Running

Chapter 3

Three

         Eponine rolled over in bed, her entire body aching. She knew before she even opened her eyes that she didn't want to look at herself in the mirror, didn't want to see the damage Marius had done. She glanced to his side of the bed, only to find him missing. One look at the alarm clock and she knew he was already at work. She was certain she was going to die the night before, but Marius didn't go that far, at least not yet. She thought that maybe he beat her almost to death but purposefully let her live just to make her suffer more. Eponine thought about the days before their marriage when he was the man of her dreams. He was charming and loving then. Why had he changed? Why had this happened to her? Tears stung her eyes, but Eponine refused to let them fall. She couldn't cry now, or else she would just turn into a puddle. She pressed the heels of her palms into her eyes, ignoring the fierce pain in her burned hand and the dull ache in one of her eye sockets.

         Once she had gotten herself under control, she sat up with a groan. Unfortunately, she knew it was time to start the day. Time to do damage control from the night before. Gingerly, she climbed out of bed, but no matter how slowly or gently she moved, pain still shot through her body. She didn't want to see what she looked like, but she knew she had to. She walked stiffly to the bathroom, and what she looked at in the mirror didn't shock her one bit. One eye was swollen and the tender skin around it was a purplish color. Her lips were split open and puffy. Although she couldn't see it, her scalp was sore from where he had yanked on her hair. Eponine knew there was more damage being hidden by her clothes, so she disrobed herself so she was standing in front of the mirror in only her underclothes. There were grotesque, hand shaped bruises curling around her upper arms. Scratches and other marks were displayed across her chest and stomach. She knew they would leave scars. She had so many scars now that she couldn't keep track of how she got them, although they were all given to her by her husband. Her hips and legs also had distorted bruises on them. Eponine could tell that the inside of her was hurt as well, simply because of the pain that ensued when she moved or breathed too heavily. It would be a long recovery.

         There was nothing she could do about the many bruises coloring her skin except for cover them up with clothing, so she returned to her bedroom to throw on a long sleeve shirt and jeans, even though it was warm outside. She knew the marks on her face would take lots of makeup to cover up. She wouldn't have worried about it, but she had to go to the store that afternoon. But before she could do anything else, she had to bandage up her palm, which was basically one giant blister. Eponine bandaged it as best as she could, only whimpering a few times. Then, she set to work on her face. After caking on makeup and putting layer after layer of Chapstick on her lips, she was ready to face the day.

         After a long day of struggling through the things she needed to get done, Eponine heard Marius return home from work. He didn't seem as serious as normal when he stepped into the living room where Eponine was folding laundry.

         "Good evening, dear. How are you?" he asked, collapsing into a chair.

         "I'm fine," she lied, "How was work?"

         "Same as always," he answered, "Did you sleep well?"

         "Yes, just fine." Another lie.

         "Have you started dinner yet?" he questioned.

         A lump formed in Eponine's throat. Here it comes. "No, I've been busy with the laundry."

         "That's perfect! I thought we would go out tonight. Does that sound good?"

         Eponine was thoroughly confused. "That sounds just as well to me," she answered.

         "Alright! We'll leave in thirty minutes."

         Eponine got up to change and get ready for dinner out, wondering what was up with Marius. She came to one conclusion. He was simply crazy. She emerged from the bedroom just in time to leave.

         "I'm ready," she said.

         Marius smiled, "Wonderful! Let's go, shall we?"

         It was then that Eponine knew she had to get out of there. She had to run.

         Her chance to run came to her only a week later. Marius returned home for work and sat with a sigh at the dinner table.

         "Eponine, the firm is sending me on a business trip for a few days. I won't be home until the middle of next week. I trust you'll be fine here?"

         Her heart rate accelerated. This was her chance. "Of course. When do you leave?"

         "Tomorrow morning," he answered.

         "Oh," she replied, shocked.

         He reached across the table and grasped her hand. "I'll be back soon."

         She swallowed the lump in her throat and shot a smile back to him. This was her chance to be free. He might be back soon, but she would never be back.

         The next morning, Eponine helped him load his suitcase into the back of the car and kissed him goodbye. She watched from the driveway as his car drove down the street and disappeared around a corner. Her heart was nearly pounding out of her chest. It was time to begin her preparations. She gave Marius at least an hour to get out of town before she started getting ready to leave. She knew she couldn't fly, so the easiest way out was the bus. Eponine powered up the computer and searched for buses leaving Alexandria. At first she didn't know where she wanted to go, but then she it came to her. When she was girl, she lived in New Orleans with her family for a while. That was where she was born. That was where they lived before everything went wrong in her life and they moved to Baton Rouge, before her sister was basically beaten to death by their abusive father. Azelma, her sister, was buried in New Orleans. That was where Eponine was going to go. She closed out her search and cleared the internet history. It was almost a seventeen hour drive, so she would have to leave this afternoon to get there by the next morning.

         Eponine knew where Marius kept their hidden stash of money. She had discovered it one day while cleaning. She hurried to his side of the closet and dug it out from an old shoebox in the corner. Spreading it out on the floor, she counted it. It was enough for her to get a bus ticket to New Orleans and to start over. That was all she needed. Pulling out a small duffle from the top of the closet, she stuffed it with only the necessities. She put some of the money in the pocket of her jeans, but stuffed the rest in a pair of socks. Next, she wound her hair up into a bun and stuffed it into a baseball cap. After pulling on an oversized jacket, she was ready to go. The only thing left to do was wait. Once it was finally time for her to leave, she slung the duffle over her shoulder and began to walk toward the bus station. Eponine turned the corner off of her street, never looking back.