By the end of summer and before Helen went back to work again, she truly believed that God was punishing her for the death of Mark. Now that Steve was home, he was receiving his retirement from Military. It was not a lot of money, but Helen had saved all his salary from the last three years that he had
been in Vietnam. She had spent the money she earned herself; besides every so often she had dipped into the little black bag in the safety deposit of the bank. At this point, she had no income of her own since she had taken a semester off without pay to have the baby.
Steve watched her every move. She could not even go to the bank and her box to get some money out of the bag. She had a mail box for her private mails which Steve did not know about it. In fact he was the reason she had had this post office box. She had not been able even to go and check her mails. She was like a slave. He had taken position of her car.
When college began, he took her to work and picked her up everyday. One day at lunch break, she borrowed the car of a colleague and went to bank. She needed some spending money desperately. She was sick and tired of asking Steve for money and then answering his nonstop questioning that how and where she had spent the money.
The little black bag was still there. It was her only chance of survival. Her personal account was untouched. All correspondents from bank went to her safety deposit box. She still had plenty money left in the bag; so much so that she could not count them. The golds and jeweleries were untouched. Just looking at that little black bag gave her some self confidence!
At school, she went to the bathroom, ripped the bottom lining of her purse, wrapped the money that she had taken from her black bag in a plastic bag and put it at the bottom of her purse. Then she glued back the lining of the purse back in place. She did not think that Steve would find out about it. She had seen him search her purse!
Oh God, how could she go back to her old courage and run from this situation or ask seriously for divorce? She did not care anymore if Steve told people about her pregnancy and the baby! But she knew he was serious when he told her more than once that if she left him or divorced him, he would hunt her down and kill her. She knew that he would, that he was capable of it!
To people's eyes, he was an honorable veteran, a great pilot, a good husband; to her eyes, he was the devil himself in human body!!
To Be Continued
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