In the Belly of the Beast

4

The man followed Ruby into the kitchen. He sat down in a chair at the table and watched as she began to wash the tray and all the dishes.

"Close that curtain over the sink," he said to her.

She obeyed and resumed washing dirty dishes.

"Fat guy doesn't work?" he asked.

"No," she said.

"Then where's the money coming from? How does he pay the bills?"

"Geoffrey gets gov'ment checks," she said. "One a month, just like clockwork. His family helps him some. Beats putting him in a home, I guess. Lot cheaper, anyway. Besides, if he's here with me, he's outta' their hair."

"Um," he agreed.

"You want some more coffee? I'm just gonna throw it out."

"Sure."

"Fat guy isn't allergic to soap and water. He chooses not to bathe."

"Yep," she said, "he's chosen not to for a good while now."

"Man, I stepped up to the door of that room, and the stink almost took my head off."

"I know. You never get used to it," she said. "I live in it, but I still have trouble stomaching it sometimes."

"He treats you like dirt."

"Yeah, I know. But it's the price I gotta pay to keep a roof over my head. Old woman like me can't be too picky. I mean, it ain't like I gotta a million options, you know."

She finished up the dishes and left them on the counter in the rack to dry.

"Hey, you old hag, I know I hear voices in there," Geoffrey bellowed from the bedroom.

"It's the radio, Geoffrey," she hollered back.

When she next spoke to the man, it was barely above a whisper.

"How long you plannin' on stayin' here, Mister?"

"Don't worry. I'm here only for as long as I need to be."

"It's Geoffrey. He's bound to get suspicious, and if he figures out you're here, he'll go ballistic. He's mean, but he's smart mean, you know what I'm saying?

He keeps me on a pretty short leash.

I don't know, sometimes it seems like he's readin' my mind or something. I'll be just about to do something, and boom, his voice comes roaring down that hall telling me I better not do it, if I know what's good for me.

It's spooky, you ask me.

Makes me wonder if he ain't got some kinda sixth sense or them spy cameras set out all over the place."

"I doubt it," he said. "If he had either, I'm sure he'd be screaming and telling me to get out of the house, don't you?"

"Probably," she said.

He studied her face.

"You're not afraid now, Ruby," he stated. "I'm glad."

"I was at first, Mister, that's for sure. But I got to thinking, what have I got to be afraid of? I'm as old as they come. I done seen my share of life. I done got my thrills. Lived a lot longer than I ever thought I would. Outlived all my family and all my friends. Got nobody left. There ain't nothin' you can do to me that ain't been done thirty years ago, 'cept kill me. And believe me, there was a couple who tried that too. Way I figure, the best thing I can hope for is to lay down one night and never wake up. Best thing, you got that? Matter of fact, always kinda disappointed each morning I'm still here. Means I gotta put up with fat guy, as you call him, a little bit longer. But we all have our crosses," she whispered, "and we all have our burdens to bear. Gotta bear up under mine a little longer is all."