sweet tea. -tkam

nowhere.

-3rd pov-

TW: DEATH, SHOCK

Daisy was in her nightgown with a dressing robe carelessly draped around her, and her wavy blonde hair pinned up lazily. She was washing dishes in the sink from dinner. The soft clanging of the dishes was all she could hear, it was a quiet night.
     She had an inexplicable feeling of dread that she could shake as she washed the dishes. Elton had been gone days longer than planned. unsure if she was scared or relieved, as she couldn't get anything from the outside without him. The once hot water was a cold, clammy temperature, not freezing, but a disagreeable middle ground between cold and lukewarm. Soggy bits of food clouded the water, the soap bubbles fading, revealing the grayish water. Her fingers were pruning from the time spent washing the dishes, as she set another plate into the water she heard distant sounds of cars on the dirt roads.
     sleek black cars that came into view were not that of the county sheriffs, and the glaring lights pierced the darkness of night like a knife. Lights came on in houses and men peeked out from their front doors as the cars pulled swiftly into their driveway. She shook her hands off and dried them quickly as she closed her robe, the door knob jolting as they unlocked it. The large uniformed policeman entered her home forcefully, not hesitating to break the door lock and barge into the dining area. Guns sat idly on their hip holsters, and they held their hats on their chests with solemn respect.

"What's going on...?" she asked, nervously looking around at the men.

"Are you miss..daisy, daisy mae I believe you go by often?" asked  one of the men.

"I am...what's...going on? Did I do something wrong?"

"No ma'am."

There was anxious silence for a moment.

"It's...your husband, ma'am."

The men around him bowed their heads further.

"My husband...?"

"He's..dead. He's dead ma'am."

~timeskip: January, next month. Daisy's pov.~

      The month had gone by in a blurred haze of confusion. I had no idea what was going on. Who had killed Elton? What would I do now? Beyond those logical questions, I didn't even know how to feel. I felt it was the human response to be devastated, or even just sorrowful, but I couldn't conjure that up inside of me.
       Yet, I didn't feel happy, or grateful. If I had to define how I felt, I guess I would say afraid. Afraid of the unknown, I suppose. In one day my entire life had been torn apart, and even worse than that alone, I haven't a clue how I felt about it all.
      I didn't know where I stood, or what I thought. I wasn't used to making decisions or having opinions, and all of a sudden now there was an endless supply of men questioning me. Men came in and out of my house and sifted through his things, lawyers chatted with other men over his will, and policemen questioned me about the situation.
        I didn't know any of them, I wanted to run, but I had nowhere to hide. I wanted someone to confide in, to protect me, and make my life okay, but I had never had that. I didn't want to have to figure this all out without an inkling of a clue how. I was terrified, and alone.
        I had no idea what to do now, I didn't know how to survive in the world, and I didn't know where to go, or how to live on my own. The men offered me no comfort. I sought a lawyer to help, but I didn't know with what. With my life? With what to do next? But I got no aid from that. The lawyers shook their heads at me and dismissed me, the policemen only apologized, and the doctors couldn't help my mental ailment.
       I didn't know who to ask, I didn't know anyone. Men with a large truck pulled up one afternoon and entered the house, soon, they began taking things out, and loading them away.

"What are you doing?" I asked, as they lugged away the sofa.

"Moving. This stuff ain't yours no more. The house ain't neither, it's the states." they responded

It hadn't occurred to me that nothing in the house was in my possession, and that Elton would have never left me a cent in his will.

"Wait- but...I live here.."

"Not anymore babe, you're gonna have to find somewhere to go instead I reckon."

They were kind enough to give me another night in the house before they finished moving, and that night was spent frantically packing up my clothing, and what cash I could find.
       I stood outside the door silently the following day as the men took everything from the house. The cold wind blew my dress slightly, and I was wrapped in one of Elton's old coats for warmth.
           All the plates, the bowls, the tables and chairs, everything was taken. They worked until the house was bare of any possessions. As the men were getting ready to drive away with what was once my house, I stood in the doorway looking into the empty home.
      One of the men approached me.

"Do you need a ride, little lady?" he asked.

"I...I suppose so...I..don't know where to do..."

"Family?" he suggested.

"I haven't got none."

He frowned a bit, and gave me a sympathetic look.

"I reckon you should go to a hotel for a bit then, stay until you find where you're going'."

I nodded and followed the man to the car. We rode away in silence, away from the house, and away from my old life, and Into the dark unknown.