Chapter 1
Earth, present-day, 7 p.m.
“Lucille Angel Williams, please consider how I feel. I wanted a family. Not a barren wife. What do I need that for? I have a family line to continue. The name Phenkel is a prestigious name,” Fred said. She winced when she heard the whine in his voice as he used her full name over the phone.
He only did that when he became pissed with her. She had hoped Fred differed from the other men she had dated over the years. However, those dreams went up in smoke. Especially when she told him what the doctors had said about her problem conceiving.
“Of course, Fred. You’re right, I was being a bitch earlier. I am just as hurt, you know? I was just hoping we could try something different or maybe adopt...” Lucy paused when she heard Fred clear his throat.
That was her signal to shut up and listen. She sat down quickly as she tried to make herself look small. She didn’t understand why she had automatically done that. Fred was talking to her over the phone. He was not here in their living room, lording over her. She guessed old habits were hard to break. Fred had packed everything he owned and moved out the same day she had told him the news.
Fred wasn’t a mean man by nature. However, he did like to see his potential wife looking prim and proper. He was one of those types that believed women should be seen and not heard. That should have been her first red flag. The fact he enjoyed punishing her in small ways should have been the straw that broke the camel’s back. He would give her small pinches that left bruises in areas covered by clothes. Sometimes he would give her guilt trips about how she dressed, or he would withhold money when he was furious with her.
“There is no trying, Lucille. We are done, you and I. I thought I made that very clear when I moved out and revoked your access to my money. Maybe I spoiled you too much. You’re going to learn that the world is a harsh place. This is lesson one. Now, I suggest you get a job, you lazy heifer, and work like any normal person,” he said nastily. She could hear the nasty sneer in Fred’s voice as he said the word heifer.
“I understand, Fred. Thank you for spoiling me. You are a good man,” she tried not to vomit as she said those words. They were what he wanted to hear, and by the hum she heard, it pleased him.
“I am a good man and spoil my woman like no other,” Fred said as he sighed. “I’d say you’re welcome for being spoiled, but I won’t. You have been a thorn in my side since day one. Never doing as you’re told, never dressing the part of a Phenkel woman, or losing weight when I told you to. After all, I was only looking after your health.”
She tried to keep the tears at bay. Fred hated it when she cried and would get violently angry every time a tear would appear in her eyes. She knew if he heard her crying over the phone, he would kick her out of the apartment, or worse. There was a tapping over the phone, and she knew he was now drumming his fingers. That was the signal he was just about done with his little speech.
“Your massive tits and blue eyes drew me in. Those are your only valuable assets. It was definitely hard to get an erection, much less have sex with you. Your body is not the kind that a man wants, but considering how mentally malleable you are... I figured you had potential,” she heard him say.
He was letting the insults fly out of his mouth with no care about how they affected her. She also heard a sultry giggle over the phone. He had already replaced her with someone new. Lucy took a deep breath as she heard him talk again.
“Potential or not, I realize now that you are just not Phenkel material. Now... I have given the landlord permission to kick you out in one week. That should be plenty of time to find a job and a home of your own. There is also some cash by the bed on the nightstand. Use that for bus fare. Consider this my last act of kindness, Miss Williams, and have a good night,” she heard Fred say before he hung up.
Lucy let the phone slip from her numb fingers as she let the tears stream down her face. Her makeup was going to be ruined, but did she care? I have one week. Just one fucking week to find a job and a place. Fuck!
She got up from the couch she was sitting on and numbly walked into the bedroom. On the nightstand were a few crumpled-up bills. She walked over, picked up the money, and counted it. The amount came to twenty-five dollars. Lucy quickly figured it up and realized that wasn’t even a week’s worth of bus fare to job hunt.
“Fucking Fred,” she said as she sat on the bed and cried her eyes out.
Once the last hiccup came out, she got up and went into the bathroom. She looked into the medicine cabinet mirror and winced. Her mascara had run, and now she had raccoon eyes. She rubbed the back of her hand across her nose and sniffled. Fred hated it when she did that. He said it was disgusting and showed how poor her upbringing was.
Lucy glared at her reflection for a moment before deciding that instead of using all that money for bus fare, she would go to a bar and get drunk. It had been a long time since she had been to a bar or dive. Fred said those in the Phenkel family would never dare step into such seedy places. No. Instead, they went to museums, operas, or fancy parties. Those parties made her senior prom look like a shindig from some backwater town. She sighed as she decided a bath was in order.
She undressed and climbed into the shower. When the hot water hit her, she moaned. The water helped relax the rest of her tense muscles as she began bathing off the misery. With some luck, Fred would not turn off her phone. At least not until they took the phone bill out of his account. Not that it mattered. All her friends turned their backs on her when Fred had popped the question.
Not a single friend had stuck around. She did not even have any family that she could call. She knew she had some relatives out west, but she hardly knew them. Her mother never said much about them. When her mother died last year, the state took her belongings and the home to pay for the nursing home care. All she had left were a few family photos.
After her shower, she went to her closet and peered inside. All the designer clothes were still there. Plus the shoes and purses Fred had bought her while they had dated. She will bet he grabbed all the jewelry out of the safe and gave them to his new woman. Lucy could have sold most of that jewelry to a pawn shop and gotten enough to rent an apartment.
However, her shoes and purses she could sell. Fred probably didn’t realize there were a few thousand dollars just sitting in their walk-in closet. He was probably in too big of a hurry to grab his shit and leave. Much less realize he left her with some income. Lucy sighed as she went through her clothes and finally found a strapless black dress she had stashed in the back.
Fred hated anything that made her look like a trollop and had her throw away most of her clothes when they moved in together. The little black dress was the only thing she could save because it didn’t take up any space. She was glad that she had the forethought to hide it from him. The clothes in her closet were what Fred wanted her to wear. They were not something you were to a bar.
“Maybe I can still fit into it,” she murmured as she walked out of the closet with the black dress in her hands.
Lucy pulled it over her head and pulled it down her body. It fit like a glove, but it wasn’t uncomfortable. It would just have to do. The dress had a built-in bra, and she was glad of it. It was a strapless type that showed off her enormous cleavage. She always loved how it made her breasts look.
She smiled to herself as she went over to her dresser and pulled out a black, lacy g-string. There was a moment of hesitation as she thought about going commando. However, she rejected the idea. She slid the panties on and went into the bathroom to see what she could do with her mousy brown colored hair.
“I think curls would be a pleasant change. I hate flat hair,” Lucy said as she grabbed the curling iron.
