Page 34 of Daddy's Little Charmer
She lifted the bag and made her way to the door, but stopped before she opened it.
She walked into her bathroom, picked up her red lipstick, and wrote “Fuck You” on the mirror, knowing Porter would see it when he came to get her the next afternoon. She just wished she could get a look at his face when he realized she was gone. His only source of income had disappeared on him.
Theresa wondered if the bastard would finally get a job, but knew better. She’d never met a lazier person in her life. Looking back on the first day she’d met Porter, she could see all the mistakes she’d made. First and foremost, she’d trusted a stranger, something she’d never do again.
He’d been sweet to her the first few weeks, but then slowly added punishments and more demands. Then he’d give her to his friends. After she’d been emotionally beaten down, he’d set her loose on the streets with his other “girlfriends.” There had been seven girls at the beginning, now there were none.
She walked out of the apartment and steadily headed toward the better part of town. Since it was hours before dawn, no one was around, but she still kept the knife by her side just in case.
The new day started to lighten the horizon, and she knew she’d only made it a few miles. Not nearly far enough to make her feel safe, even though she still had several hours before Porter came for her.
A groan of relief hit her when she saw a taxi. She waved her arm to get his attention. She dropped into the back, closed the door, and sighed.
“What are you doing in that part of town, Miss? It’s not safe.”
Theresa grasped the first thing she thought of.
“I know, my boyfriend kicked me out, and I just startedwalking.”
“Men can be animals. Where would you like to go?”
“Can you take me to the farthest bus stop, please? I’m afraid he’ll come after me.”
“I sure can. Good thinking.”
Theresa sat back and watched as the city became cleaner, and the shops started to look fancier.
“Here you go, Miss. Good luck.”
Theresa handed him a twenty.
“No,” the man said and waved it away. “This was on the house, Miss.”
Tears filled Theresa’s eyes. “Thank you so much.” It was sad when a stranger’s generosity unlocked emotions she’d buried a long time ago.
“You’re welcome. Take care.”
Theresa turned back after shutting the door. “You, too, sir. You’ll be in my prayers.”
The man huffed out a laugh. “Well, you can’t have enough of those,” he said and then waved as he drove away.
Within an hour, Theresa was sitting in a comfortable seat and watching as the city lights faded and the bus drove away.
She felt a little more tension seep from her shoulders, but she knew she wouldn’t feel one hundred percent safe until she had reached Ohio, somewhere Porter would never find her. She had never told him where she was from, and she never received mail with an address. The few pictures and mementos she had were kept in a box stored in her bag.
Theresa sent up one more prayer for Harmony and then closed her eyes and relaxed back against the window.
Chapter Twelve
Harmony knocked on Mrs. Owens’s door.
“Oh, my, Harmony. This is a nice surprise.”
Harmony bent and tenderly hugged the older woman and then turned toward Christian.
“Mrs. Owens, I’d like you to meet my … friend, Christian.”
Mrs. Owens chuckled. “I bet he’s a special friend.”
