Lilly’s face lit up as she explained, “I played in the high school band in LaPoint, majored in music at USL in Lafayette and auditioned for the quartet two months after I graduated. I was thrilled when they asked me to be a part of their group.”
“How long did you play with the ensemble?”
Unconsciously, Lilly looked up at the ceiling, searching for a remnant of her life. Unable to connect to her memories, she let her head fall forward as her hands covered her stomach. A flutter in her abdomen moved up to her chest and triggered the tingling excitement and anticipation she had experienced when she was working with talented musicians. Her memories were vague and confused but the visceral excitement she experienced as a professional musician was still there. Three years ago, she had owned her life, but the details of that time eluded her. Alex had thoroughly consumed the essence of her being, her own thoughts became drifting clouds.
“I didn’t play with the Baroque for very long. Alex didn’t like me being away from home so much. He said the rehearsals took too much of my time. I was tired of his complaints and guilty for disappointing him. I quit playing with the quartet. Alex put my flute away. I searched the house and the attic for months. I couldn’t find it. I haven’t played in over two years.”
“Nevertheless, Lilly, you are lucky.”
Lilly’s eyebrows rose as she gave the nurse an incredulous look.
“You are lucky, you have a talent. You are young, beautiful and smart. It won’t take long to build a good life for yourself, sans Alex the asshole.”
Lilly sat back in her chair, blown away by Trudy’s assessment. Her head shook in vigorous denial. “I’m not lucky; I’m scared to death. I want to hide and make sure Alex can’t find me. If he finds me, he will kill me.”
“Do you believe he has it in him to commit murder? What would he gain by murdering you?”
Lilly thought for a moment, “He may not actually kill me, but he will make me wish I was dead.”
Trudy straightened her back and looked into Lilly’s eyes, “Okay,” she said in a matter of fact tone. Holding up three fingers on her left hand, she tapped each finger as she counted the steps to freedom: Get a place to live, get a job, and hire a divorce lawyer.”
“Wherever I live, Alex will find me.”
Shaking her head, no, the nurse explained, “Don’t be so sure. If I were you, I would go to the French Quarter. Rent is cheap and the people living in the Quarter know how to be discreet. If you don’t want Alex to find you, don’t use your real name.”
“What? Don’t use my real name?”
“Right. How much time have you spent in the French Quarter?”
Lilly looked up to the ceiling again, trying to locate a memory, something normal she and Alex had done. “We went down to the French Quarter once or twice before we were married. After the wedding, he told me I was not to go to the French Quarter by myself. He said it dangerous. There were muggings and murders.”
Trudy smiled, “That’s good, the French Quarter won’t be the first place he looks.” Leaning across the table, Trudy spoke sotto voce, “The French Quarter conceals a subterranean world. You can become someone else. Use a pseudonym for a while, nobody cares. Pay your rent in cash. Most of the businesses owners will pay you in cash. Don’t get involved with the strip clubs! That is an area of the subterranean world you don’t want to visit.”
Lilly grimaced, and entwined her fingers tightly on the table in front of her.
Trudy gave Lilly’s hands a gentle squeeze. “Relax, take a deep breath, let your shoulders relax down from your ears.”
Lilly followed her instructions and felt a little better.
“You will be fine. Get a place to live, get a divorce, get back to playing your flute. Pursue the life you want to live. Focus on the things that bring you joy. You can create a life that makes you happy to be alive. New opportunities lay ahead. Stay calm, keep your wits about you, new opportunities will present themselves.”
A spark ignited in Lilly’s heart. Maybe there was a way out of the mess she had made of her life. This ER nurse made it sound simple, three steps to freedom. Trudy stood up, “I have to get back to work, Lilly. Remember, you have a lot going for you.”
“Thanks so much for talking with me, Trudy.” Lilly watched her walk away in awe. Her hands tingled, and an unusual thought entered her mind, ‘I may have met an angel.’
With a new sense of resolve, Lilly looked around and grabbed the abandoned newspaper on the table next to her. Studying the classified section, she dug a pen from her bag and circled several places for rent in the French Quarter. She folded the newspaper, put it under her arm, picked up her bag of possessions and headed for the ladies’ room. ‘It is time to get out of my pajamas, get dressed and find myself an apartment.’
PART II
Panthea’s Pantry
“Bound in a hollow of space and time, only those truly in need, without harm in their hearts, could find their way to
its Sanctuary.”
~ Cate Morgan, from Brighid’s Cross
Chapter 5
Sanctuary
Lilly stepped out of a taxi in front of 106 Rue Dumaine in the French Quarter. According to the newspaper, the apartment was available immediately. The rent was $35 a month. She stood shuffling her feet on the uneven bricks of the banquette for a minute, took a deep breath and pushed the buzzer with resolve. A gravelly voice startled her as it spoke through the metal grate in the door. “You here to see the apartment?” Lilly nodded. The door opened on rusty hinges.
A whiff of body odor and a corpulent belly covered by a grease-stained T-shirt
