Desperate Times by Nicholas Antinozzi Read Free Book Online

tossing out duffel bags and his
hodge-podge collection of battered suitcases.
     
    He stopped and called Paula’s cell. No
answer.
     
    He began packing his clothes but soon found
himself packing for Paula. He packed everything he thought they
might need, even taking the bins of winter clothes that Paula had
stored away the week before. He had trouble choosing shoes for her
as she had nearly fifty pairs. He tried to choose sensible ones.
Still, he wasn’t taking any chances. Boots, sweaters, jackets,
gloves and hats, pillows, bedding, shaving kit and
toothbrush—everything went into the back of the Mack. He grabbed
the portable CD player and the AC/DC television. He bagged up what
canned or boxed food they had, dismissing what little they had in
the fridge. He tossed the perishables into the trash and carried
the bag outside to the can which he wheeled to the curb. Then he
walked back inside to the bathroom and packed whatever he thought
they might need or want, taking every last roll of toilet paper
except for the roll hanging on the wall. He even remembered the
lock box under the bed which contained their birth certificates,
Social Security cards and other important papers. The entire
process took him less than half an hour. He paced the hallway,
wondering what else they might need.
     
    He tried calling Paula again, letting it ring
until her voice mail picked up. He left a message in a defeated
voice: “Please come home. I love you. We’re all packed and ready to
go. Call me?” He slowly closed his cell phone and put it back into
his breast pocket.
     
    Dejected, but still holding onto a sliver of
hope, he picked up the remote control and sat down on the couch and
turned on the television. It was now five o’clock and the news
would be on. He tuned into channel eleven and was surprised to see
a different news team on the thirty-two inch screen. He’d always
watched the NBC news and this strange news team had him puzzled.
Oddly, they led off with a sports story. They followed up with a
ten-second blurb about the failing economy which was quickly
followed with an in-depth story about lawn care. Jimmy sighed and
pushed the down button on the remote, only to find the same team on
CBS. Open-mouthed, he clicked up to ABC and there was the same news
team spouting the same nonsense about the same nothing. Jimmy sat
up, clicking through the channels; each showed the same
smug-looking news crew doing the same story. One hundred and
seventy stations, all running the same broadcast.
     
    Jimmy shut off the television and wondered
about this. He knew he should be on his way to Ken’s, but he
couldn’t leave until he’d heard from Paula. He just couldn’t. He
ran his hand through his hair, avoiding the painful spot on top,
and decided to call her one last time. He took a deep breath,
opened his cell phone and dialed her number. Nothing happened. He
stared at the small screen on his phone and discovered that there
were no antenna bars. He roamed from room to room; nothing changed.
He cursed to himself and walked out the front door into the
afternoon sun, all the while looking at the display on his
telephone. No bars. He groaned and held the phone toward the sky in
hopes of finding a signal. There was none to be found. He turned
around and went back inside and headed straight for the telephone
on the wall. He picked up the receiver and was surprised to hear a
dial tone. He punched in Paula’s number.
     
    “ All lines are busy right now. Please hang
up and call again, later. Thank you.”
     
    Jaw clenched, he slammed the phone back into
the cradle.
     
    Jimmy paced the floor, not knowing what to
do. Where was she? Why wasn’t she here? He agonized over
these thoughts. He weighed things out in his mind. She knew what
his plan was and where he was headed. She’d been there a few times
last summer. The money was gone from the table, so she had the
means to get there. He had her things packed and they were loaded
in the back