Six

Going back home wasn't something I'd ever imagined I would have to do. Ever. I'd gotten out of that shithole of a town and never went back. Not even for my parents' funerals, or lack of. I didn't even know where their cremains were. I didn't want to see either of them ever again, not my pedophile father or my mother who allowed him to do it and stayed with him.

When my husband died, I assumed everything would fall to me, but it didn't. No, it went to his other wife and their two kids. He'd married her first and therefore mine and his marriage wasn't legal, not to mention he'd been using a fake name. I got nothing, not even our little house. The woman was so mad and acting like I was some homewrecking hussy and not a victim who'd been duped. I'd believed him when he said he was a pilot and because of Covid he had to work overtime because of the labor shortage and fewer people willing to work in planes. It made sense and I hadn't thought twice about it. When the pandemic was over and things went back to normal, he'd be home more often.

It had all been so reasonable.

Right up until his car accident on his way back to our house from the airport. It wasn't until I was trying to get things sorted and the funeral arranged that I found out he wasn't who he said he was at all and that his real wife lived in Florida with their kids.

It was my fault he cheated on her and my fault he died. If he hadn't been coming to see me...

She was a real winner, that one.

Going back to my hometown was a last resort for me, VERY last resort.

MRS VanDenBrind was apparently a big deal and was on Real Housewives of Palm Beach. She'd been a debutant and married Rich when they were young. Richard was his real name, but she called him Rich. I met him as Dave.

The first thing I saw coming over the hill and into the town, the first thing ANYONE saw, was the broken down eyesore of the old power plant. The second thing was the abandoned prison that was supposedly haunted. Right after the prison was the abandoned sheet metal factory and passed the power plant was the abandoned dog food factory. Once you circled around those, you saw the old shacks that the miners and miners family lived in for years until the mine closed. When the mine closed, everything closed. The only people left in town were people who'd lived here their whole life and owned houses or lots, and city people coming out to try their hand at a hobby farm or bed and breakfast. They lost interest real quick when they actually saw the town.

The town itself was cut in half by the railroad tracks. There was the bad side of town with the shitty trailers and oddly parked and covered old vans that were obviously meth labs south of the tracks. North of the tracks was the nicer side of town with a Caseys, a Dollar General and a long row of long abandoned businesses. At the very end, next to the tracks as if catering to both sides, was the bar. It was called 'Wet Your Whistle', a sort of play on the train whistle always coming through. 1/2 price shots when a train went by. Everyone in town called it Gene's, though, even though Gene had sold it back when I was still in elementary school.

There were actual houses on the north side of the tracks, but they were all in horrible shape. Hardly livable, most of them, and all but 1/4 of them long abandoned and left to nature to take back over.

No one moved here, people only moved away. The town had died and there was nothing here at all anymore but the people who had nowhere else to go.

I had grown up south of the tracks in a little two bedroom trailer, but it wasn't there I was headed. I'd gotten my Grams place when she'd passed years ago. I'd told them to sell it, but there was never a single offer and the only realty office in town had moved away.

I was hoping I could come, fix it up a little and post it online and sell it sight unseen. I would find some creative words for the town like 'quaint' and 'off the beaten path' and 'a great place for a fresh start with room to grow and ready for a new business'. Things that would lure in the people who wanted things like that.

I sighed glumly when I pulled into the old house. The yard was overgrown and there were creepers and vines growing into the house through the broken windows.

This was going to be spectacular.

I didn't need a key to get in, the screen door was hanging open and on one hinge. The front door had been broken open with a crowbar and was standing wide open.

Inside was worse than I was hoping. It smelled awful and the stained and torn carpet squished when I stepped on it. There were no appliances in the kitchen and all the cupboards were standing open. It was a square house, very basic with four rooms. A small kitchen, a small living room, a small bedroom with a tiny closet and a tiny bathroom. Every single window was smashed, most of them outward and not inward, but there was absolutely nothing in the house at all. Not even a toilet or sink. The small walk in shower looked and smelled like people had been pissing in it.

This was an unholy mess. It was also going to suck.

May as well get started. Grumpily, I went out to my car as I looked up the closest hotel/motel. Super, 67 miles. Rolling my eyes, I drove down to Gene's and pulled in next to a truck with a bed that belonged to a different truck and a hood that belonged to another, all frankensteined together.

Inside was busier than I imagined and I blinked as I looked around at all of the faces in the small bar. Going to the bar, I sat on a stool near the end and the bartender came over.

I recognized her from school, but pretended I didn't. "Hi, what sort of wine do you have?"

"Red or white."

"Oh... do you know what kind or if..."

"Nope. One box is red, the other is white. We don't get a lot of wine drinkers in here."

"Umm. White is fine, thank you," I told her with a nervous smile.

She came back a moment later and set a glass down. One sniff and I grimaced. "Ma'am, I think your wine has gone sour?"

"Wine don't sour, it gets better with age!" she shot back, acting like I was trying to cheat her.

"No, that's only if it's unopened. How long has this been open? It smells like vinegar."

She snatched it up and smelled it, then scrunched her nose up. "That does smell like shit. You want something else?"

"Bloody Mary, hold the hot sauce."

"I can do that."

She went down the bar and I sagged in my seat. I would have to stop on the way to the hotel and grab some wine. And dinner too I guess, I hadn't eaten all day. I was so freaking tired of driving! Ugh, the thought of another hour behind the wheel made me want to cry.

"Six?"

I turned and looked at the man who'd used my old nickname.

Holy shit.

"Uhh... Hey Corin?" I half stuttered, looking up at the tall, skinny man.

Corin had been an absolute freak in highschool, like, literally out of his mind. He grabbed random people and licked their faces, hocked loogie's down girls shirts, cut himself and flung his blood at people, peed in a teachers wastebasket every single time he was told no on going to the bathroom during class. He was always in trouble, always suspended and the day he brought a gun and a kill list to school he was put in jail.

I'd been terrified of him, even if I hadn't been on his kill list. I was too young for him to have noticed me, just a freshman when he was a senior. Everyone knew Corin though, he was talked about even after I graduated.

"Never thought I'd see you again," he offered, looking me over and shoving his hands in his pockets.

"Ditto," I tried to smile. "It's temporary."

"Your folks place burned a long time ago."

"I know, I'm looking into fixing up Grams old place."

"Corin, you harassing my patrons again?" the bartender demanded.

"No, me and Six were talking."

"What the fuck kind of name is Six?" the woman asked.

I knew she remembered me and was being a bitch. "It's Violet, actually, Vi for short. VI in roman numerals is six. Great to see you again, Trudy."

"I remember you. You were always that mousy little thing that never went to parties or hung out with anyone. Everyone said you had issues. Oh! No, I remember now, your dad was arrested for molesting you or something and your mom made you say you were lying. It was some fucked up shit, even for Wentzville."

I looked away as she set my drink down.

"I'll get her drink," Corin told her, throwing money on the counter.

"I can get it," I spoke up quickly, alarmed that Corin was trying to buy me a drink.

"It's already done," Trudy shrugged, picking up the bill and walking away.

Corin took the stool next to me and I shifted uncomfortably. "How long you back for then?" he asked, leaning over me and making me uncomfortable.

"Not sure, however long it takes to make Gram's place sellable."

He laughed, a derisive sort of sneer. "Yeah, good luck with that. You can't pay people to move here. You could make her house into a fucking barbie dream house and no one would look twice. Not in this town."

"So why are you still here?"

"My mom's still here," he shrugged.

"You still live with your mom?" I asked incredulously. I was 32 and he was older than me, 36 at least.

He stood up, giving me an ugly sneer as he did. "Judgemental cunt," he snarled, then spat on the floor next to me and turned around and left.

Trudy sidled back over with a smirk. "Don't sweat it, doesn't take much to set him off. He's always had a temper. You reject him?"

"No... Not really. I didn't really mean to say anything, I just sort of blurted it out. Most 35 year olds don't still live with their moms."

Trudy cocked her head in confusion. "Corin don't live with his mom. He goes to see her every day, takes care of her. He fixes cars and bikes out of his garage when he can, takes care of her the rest of the time. Used to be wild as fuck with a horrible temper. Now he's just got the horrible temper left."

I actually felt pretty horrible for having assumed he lived with his mom. Who was I to judge, anyway? At least he had a home.

"Thanks for the drink," I sighed, pushing it back across the bar having only taken a sip of it.

Heading out to my car, I felt shitty all around. I probably needed to eat something. Grabbing my handle, my fingers slipped off and I looked down in confusion. My handle was wet? Why? It wasn't raining? I smelled my fingers, then jerked them back in horror. He had pissed on my door handle!

I ran back inside to the bathroom to wash my hands, then took a wad of paper towels out to wipe my handle and car off.

What a jerk!

I looked around the parking lot to see if he was still there and he was. He was sitting on a tailgate next to another man and they were both laughing as they watched me.

I was steaming and I stomped over to him and threw the paper towels at him. "That was a shitty thing to do, asshole! It was an honest mistake in there and I didn't mean anything by it! Sometimes people can have shit days and shit weeks and shit months and it's not about you at all! Get over yourself!"

Corin stood up off his tailgate slowly, looking down at me menacingly, but I no longer cared. I was pissed and he was an asshole who deserved to be chewed out!

"You come near me or my car again and I'll have you arrested, you prick! You can take your tiny dick ego and shove it up your ass! Fuck you and fuck your stupid friend for sitting here laughing about picking on someone less than half your size!"

His friend was still laughing, wheezing now. "She's like a little fucking yapping dog! One of those fluffy little pomeranians all tiny and adorable and pissed off! This is fucking hysterical!"

"Shut up you troglodyte! You aren't funny either! Fuck you both, and especially you, you creepy mother fucker!" I yelled at Corin.

Turning to go, I was pulled up short when Corin grabbed a fistful of my hair and yanked me back. Lifting me, he shoved me hard over the tailgate of the truck and bent over me, holding me there.

"LET ME GO YOU COMPLETE FUCKING FREAK!" I screamed, kicking at him and trying to scratch and bite him.

"You don't get to talk to me like that," he hissed in my ear. "NO ONE gets to talk to me like that you little bitch. Last person to call me a name or tell me to fuck off? All in the hospital. He had four teeth left in his head and she had broken ribs. What the fuck should I do with you, you stupid little cunt? Chop your hands off and make you eat them? Pluck your eyes out and replace them with burning coals? Cut your legs open and put botfly larvae in, let them grow and eat your flesh from the inside out. Shove a bunch of mice in your pussy and let them claw their way out trying to breathe. Take you down to the old factory where all the vagrants and druggies live and tie you down naked? Let them all use you, fuck your mouth, fuck your ass and your pussy? Give you every STD known to man?"

"I say we fuck her," the other man laughed. "Take her back to your place and have us a good time. Invite the boys over, have a great fucking night."

"I think I should fuck her in the ass with this beer bottle. See if it's true you can chug a beer in your ass and get drunk. What do you think, Six? You want me to fuck you in the ass with this beer bottle?"

"Please let me go," I whispered, terrified. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you in there, just please let me go!"

"Fuck that. I'm going to fucking kill you, bitch. I'm going to torture you and film all of it like one of those fucked up porno films. You wanna call me names and scream at me? I'll give you a fucking reason to scream, bitch! You're going to die."

"Stop, please!" I sobbed, terrified.

The other man laughed. "Alright Corin, you scared the piss out of her. Fuck this cunt, let's go down to the creak and shoot off some rounds."

"I'm not fucking playing! This bitch is gonna fucking pay!"

"Corin, c'mon man, this ain't funny anymore, she'd scared enough."

"Fuck you Mike, if you wanna go, then go! I'm gonna teach this piece of shit a lesson!" Corin yelled, yanking me off of the tailgate and around to the cab.

I kicked and screamed and tried to fight, but he shoved me in with very little effort.

"One more fucking sound or struggle and I will beat your face in until you pass out!" he yelled in my face, yanking my head back with a fistful of hair.

"Corin, c'mon, man," Mike called.

Corin yanked his door shut and started the truck, peeling out and sending gravel flying.

I cowered on the floorboard, huddled down with my arms over my face.

Corin was muttering obscenities at me, calling me names and going on and on about what he was going to do to me. How I was going to pay for being such a bitch. I could only shake my head and cry, starting to freeze up as I tried to breathe.

When his truck stopped, I hardly noticed as I stared at the old floormat and sucked in air, thinking I was going to die before he got the chance to kill me. My heart was going to explode, stop working.

A fist in my hair dragged me out of the truck and I whimpered, grabbing his wrist as he pulled me into an airstream style trailer. Kicking the door shut, he dropped me in the floor and I only lay there, still trying to breathe, to get air into my lungs. I wasn't getting enough air! I was breathing too much and breathing in my own breath and I wasn't getting enough oxygen!

Corin rolled me to my back, a long knife in his hands as he sneered at me. "Time to fuckin' play bitch! What the fuck is wrong with you? Wake the fuck up! Hey! Stupid cunt! Fucking LOOK at me!" he yelled, slapping my face.

He was shaking me too hard, my brain was going to bruise and swell up and I would die!

"Fuck this and your faking bullshit!" he snarled, then flipped me over. Using the knife, he bagan slicing my clothes off and I whimpered. He was going to miss, sever an artery and I was going to bleed out! I was about to die!

My vision began getting smaller and smaller until I could see only a small circle of fabric on a chair, then it was gone.

A hard slap made me whimper and move slightly, my head hurting.

"I said wake the fuck up!" a male voice yelled.

Opening my eyes, I turned to look at him and I was confused for a moment. "Corin? Corin? Where am I? Where are we?" I asked, looking around the tiny space and the bed that filled it all up.

"What the fuck was that?" he demanded angrily.

"God, my head is killing me. Can I have a drink of water, please?"

"Fuck a drink of fucking water! What the fuck was that?"

"I... what?" I asked, trying to remember. I must have had a panic attack and it must have been a huge one. That was the only reason I lost time. "Where are we? Is this your trailer? Did... did I come home with you?" I asked in alarm, sitting up enough to look down at my clothes.

I wasn't wearing any clothes!

"Did... did we have sex?" I asked in a sort of panic now.

"No, we didn't fucking have sex! Answer my fucking question! What the FUCK was that?"

"I... I don't know. I had to've had a panic attack, a bad one. What happened? I never lose time unless it's a bad one. Can... can I have my clothes, please?"

"A fucking panic attack," he snarled. "Stop with that made up bullshit!"

"It's not made up... I have... severe anxiety issues and I have panic attacks. They shut me down and when they're really bad, I lose time and pass out completely."

"Lose fucking time," he scowled.

"I... I remember pulling up to Grams place... It was in bad shape. Is that what happened? It must've been. Did you find me? No... something else must've happened... Where are my clothes? Why are my clothes gone? Were we... fooling around?"

"You're telling me you don't remember you being a condescending cunt to me at the bar, then coming at me like you did? Me bringing you back here to teach you a fucking lesson?"

My eyes widened as I looked up at him in a panic. "You were going to rape me?" I asked in a fearful whisper. "Is that why I shut down?"

"Kill," he sneered. "I was going to fucking kill you after I fucked you in every hole for the next week with every fucking thing I could find to shove in you."

I shook my head, swallowing hard. "Please don't! Please, I'm sorry! I don't know what happened, but please! I'm not a mean person, I don't know what I would say to upset you, but please! I'm upset, I've BEEN upset! My husband died, then he wasn't my husband because he had a real wife and he lied to me and I lost everything! I lost everything but Grams' shitty house! He'd made me quit my job and move and I was so lost! All I could do was come back here and Grams house is such a wreck! I'm sorry for what I said or did!"

"Calm your fucking tits, bitch," he snarled, then pushed back off the bed and left out the door. He came back seconds later as I was trying to cover with a sheet and handed me a glass of water.

Sitting up as best I could while still shaking so hard, I held the sheet up and took the cup. "Thank you," I whispered, drinking the water. The taste of the water brought back so many bad memories and I closed my eyes as tears welled up.

The tiny little trailer with no room at all. The little bedroom with the twin mattress on the floor. My dad coming home drunk, full of anger. Beating my mother, then opening my door.

"I said wake the fuck up!" Corin yelled, shaking me.

I opened my eyes and looked up at him, then broke down sobbing as I hugged him and cried into his neck.

"Jesus fuck," he growled, putting a hand on my shoulder.

"It... it tastes like being back there again. Where he always hurt me so much! Where he hurt mom! She wouldn't leave him! She wouldn't leave him no matter what he did to me or her. Made me lie because there was nowhere else for us. I hated her for that, as much as I hated him! It... it tastes like being back there!"

"Fucksake! Stop your bawling, Six!"