Escape To Sunset-A Spicy Dark Romance

"Don’t read it here, get out of here before we both get caught and killed."

Made by Laura Knapke On Canva

Escape To Sunset is my new dark romance novel, with a bit of spice. I’ll be posting chapters twice a week, ending with the cover reveal. I would appreciate any helpful comments. I’m excited to start a new project, and I hope it is well received.

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Chapter One-Debra

I stood in front of the full length mirror in the expensive wedding dress I hated, tears rolling down my cheeks. Hot tears full of anger that boiled inside me. How did things get so bad so fast?

There was a soft tap on the door. I dried my tears before opening it just a crack.

“Debra?” Whispered Janet.

“Yes?” I stepped aside and let her in, she was holding a brown duffle bag.

“Your dad caught me outside on the way in and wanted me to give you this. I’ll stall the wedding as long as possible, now get out of here.” I opened the bag and saw a large amount of money and a letter. I was curious to see what was going on, so I started pulling out the letter.

“Don’t read it here, get out of here before we both get caught and killed. Turn around, I’ll unzip your dress.” She unzipped me and quietly stepped out of the room, closing the door behind her. I always felt sorry for Janet, being Bruce’s assistant was not easy, but she was a friend, and always there when I needed her.

I stripped out of the wedding dress as fast as possible, and put my street clothes on. I stuck my head out the dressing room door. My stomach felt queasy, and my heart was beating out of my chest. Everyone was in the chapel, I heard hundreds of people talking and laughing. The hallway was empty, it looked like the coast was clear. Taking a deep breath, I made a break for it, darting down the long hallway and out the back door of the church. I ran to my car, and drove home. Sitting on my threadbare couch, I pulled out the letter, tears stung my eyes as I read…

My Darling Debra,

Take this money and leave town, this is the only way you’ll be free from him. Me and your Mother love you so much. We thank you for your sacrifice to save us, it’s our job to save you. Be safe and have confidence in yourself. You're a wonderful daughter, go and live your best life.

We love you dearly,

Mom and Dad.

If my dad only knew, this was all my fault. I fell for his charm, believed his promises, believed he loved me.

Bruce treated me like a princess until the day I accepted his marriage proposal. Thinking if I married him, I would be worth something, actually be somebody important, more than just a screw-up. I should have known nothing ever worked out for me.

This is all my fault. What have I done, and what do I do now?

The abuse he put me through was nothing less than pure hell. I couldn’t believe how he changed after we set the wedding date. When I backed out of the wedding the first time, he was angry and blackmailed me into marrying him, or he’d kill my parents. But here I am in a little beach town off the coast of California, La Jolla. A runaway bride hiding from the groom, the devil himself.

I’ve managed to buy a new identity from a seedy character in San Diego. I found the guy on the dark web. Good thing my friend, Jaxson, showed me how to get on it. The old man picked me up at a run-down motel I was staying in. He blindfolded me and led me to his vehicle. We drove for what seemed like an hour at least. He led me inside and down a flight of creeky stairs, and took off my blindfold. It was a dark basement, the smell of dank mustiness filled my nose. This had me nervous and scared to death, thinking he could easily murder me, and no one would ever know. This would be my luck, escape from my abusive fiance to be murdered by a criminal in a dark basement.

He immediately took the money I had put in an envelope and counted out $25,000 cash. Grinning as he looked me up and down, his beady eyes full of lust, I felt violated. He took all my identity from me, my birth certificate, social security number, driver's license, and proceeded to make me a new one. I was flustered that I didn’t have a say in deciding my new name, but I was too scared to say a word. He charged me another $10,000 to provide me with a new massage therapist license to replace the old one, but I needed it to find a job, so what choice did I have other than to pay it?

Blindfolding me again, he drove me back to the motel. Now to find a place to live other than this motel room, and a job. It’s going to take time to get used to my new name, Mary, but time is something I don’t have enough of. I keep saying in my head. My name is Mary, My name is Mary.

Afraid of staying in this run-down motel, with hookers on the corner, the smell of pot drifting through the corridors, and the scary old guy knowing where I was, I grabbed my bag and drove to La Jolla in the used SUV I just bought this morning, finding a nicer hotel to stay in.

I smashed my old cell phone before getting on a flight to San Diego, and bought a new one so Bruce couldn’t track me down, and also bought some hair color. I'm going blonde and cutting my hair short. As I wait for the hair dye to finish, I look for work on my new cell phone, putting in ten applications. The hair dye is finally ready to be rinsed out.

Standing in the mirror, I’m shocked at the way I look, it’s a total change from what I looked like before, thinking even my dad wouldn’t recognize me now.

Sitting on the toilet, my face in my hands, tears rolled down my face. This is all my fault, I’m here all alone. How will I ever survive this? If Bruce finds me, he’ll kill me for sure.

I tried to call my dad again to let him know I was okay. I needed to hear his voice, but no answer. I’ve left him several messages not hearing from him, starting to worry about them both. My mom is in hospice, dying of pancreatic cancer, and dad has a weak heart. It’s all my fault that I can’t be with them, to take care of them. If anything bad happens to them, I’ll never forgive myself. I’m such a screw-up. Curling up in the blankets, I cry myself to sleep, needing to hear my dad's voice so desperately, to hear him say everything would be alright.

***

I woke up to my phone alarm screaming in my ear, not knowing why I picked such an annoying sound to wake-up too. The dream I was having was about Bruce beating me, busting my lip and my nose. It poured blood, turning my white blouse red as I covered my head, crouched in a corner trying to protect myself from further damage. His voice was deep as he yelled, “You will marry me, do you understand me? Your daddy will meet his maker, and your mommy won't have to worry about cancer killing her.” The look in his gray eyes as they darkened was pure evil. I knew he meant every word, so I agreed to marry him.

Sitting on the side of the bed, my body is shaking and sweating. Taking deep breaths, trying to pull myself together, I look at my phone to see if my dad has returned my messages, but no luck. Calling his phone, it went straight to voicemail. My eyes started to tear, my chest tightened.

Standing up, deciding I had too much to get done to sit and cry, feeling sorry for myself. I fixed myself a strong cup of coffee and took a shower. I dressed in a tight black skirt and a light lavender blouse with a pair of black strappy heels. Taking a look in the mirror, admiring my new look, nobody would ever recognize me as Debra. I’m Mary now, it's time to act like a new person. I stared into the mirror, saying out loud… I am Mary, and I am competent. I can do anything I put my mind to. I am a strong, capable woman.

Looking through the replies from the job applications I put in, finding a few that sounded perfect, I took off for an interview at a spa looking for a massage therapist.

Stepping into the spa, it was straight across from the beach. The decor was dark wood with light colored plush couches and chairs. The smell of sandalwood wafted through the air. The young woman behind the counter greeted me with a friendly smile.

“Can I help you?”

“Yes, I have an interview with Amanda.”

“Hi, I’m Andy, nice to meet you. Have a seat, and I’ll let her know you're here.” I sat down and sank into a plush blue couch, picking up a pamphlet for facial treatments. The vibe of the place seemed light and peaceful.

My mind drifted to the day I heard my mom cry. It was a stormy day, the sky was black, loud thunder and lightning shot across the sky as I walked home from school. The storm had caused my after school drama class to let out early. Stepping into the house, I heard my mom in the kitchen talking to Alma, her best friend from church.

"I'll never give Ben a son. Having Debra did so much damage to my body, the doctor said I'd never have any more children." Charlotte cried.

"Trust in God, he can make it happen. Have faith Charlotte," said Alma.

"It's been twelve years since I had Debra. If I could get pregnant, don't you think I would have by now? It's hopeless, I'll never give my husband a son, what kind of wife am I?"

I couldn't hear anymore. I ran to my room, overcome with guilt and shame that I even existed. Wishing I would have never been born at all. The thought of letting my dad down and making my mom cry left me feeling worthless.

“Mary… Mary?” It took me a minute to realize she called my name. I’m Mary... I stood up and she held out her hand. I shook it firmly, remembering dad always said to give a firm handshake. She was a middle age woman, her dirty blonde hair up in a bun, greeting me with a big smile.

“Come this way, it’s nice to meet you Mary, I’m Amanda.” Following her into her office, and having a seat, she asked me questions after question I had to make up lies for. Hearing my heart beating in my ears, I could feel sweat beading on my brow.

“Everything sounds good, can you start Monday, 9am?”

“Y…yes.” I stuttered, shocked that I was hired that quickly.

“Here are papers for you to fill out. I assume you wear a size small?”

“I’m an extra small.”

“I’ll see if I have any extra small, be right back.” I filled out the paperwork, making sure I used my new information, not the old, double checking to make sure. Amanda walked in with three pink uniforms.

“I only have three extra smalls, I’ll order you four more, but it’ll take two weeks to arrive." She picked up my paperwork and looked at it.

“You're living at the hotel on the strip?”

“Just temporary, I’m looking for a place. Is that a problem?”

“No, so why did you move here to our small beach town?”

“A new start.”

“OK, I have a friend in real estate, here’s his card. He’s a nice man and won’t screw you over. I’d take a drive to his office, I’m sure he can find you a good place.”

“Thank you.”

“I’ll see you Monday, right?”

“Yes, ma’am, 9am, I’ll be here.” I stepped out of her office with three pink uniforms in my arms.

“Congratulations, you’ll love working here with us. When do you start?” asked Andy.

“I start Monday morning.”

“Great, we should have lunch together, get to know each other.”

“That sounds like a plan, I’ll see you Monday.” I left and sat in my car looking at the card she gave me, Rowan Robinson. The new Mary is doing well, let's see if we can find a place to live.

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