CHAPTER {3} Not A Regular Cabbie

“Mrs. Hermione, are you okay?”

I sniff, my throat burning. 

“I’m not a Mrs anymore, Hunter,” I whisper, forcing myself to look at him even though I feel like collapsing right here.

His grey eyes widen. “Damn!…” He exclaims, pressing a hand through his black hair. 

His grey eyes still on me like he wants to say something but nothing comes out.

“Can you… can you just drive?” My voice shakes.

“Okay,” he replies quickly. He bends to lift my box, places it inside the car, then opens the door for me.

“Please,” he says, gesturing.

“Thanks…Hunter.”

I slide into the seat, my body feeling heavy, my chest tighter than it has ever been. 

He starts the engine, and slowly, we roll forward.

I look back, the mansion grows smaller as we move down the streets, I can't stop staring at it.

Every memory I had in those walls. The kisses, the laughs, every touch, they all want to tear me in pieces.

Hot tears spill again before I can stop them.

“What did I do to you, Adam? What did I do to deserve this?”

I keep staring until the house finally disappears, and it feels like a knife twists inside my heart.

I wipe my face, but the tears don’t stop. I cover my mouth with my hand, trying to keep the sounds down. 

I don’t want to disturb Hunter. I don’t want him to see me breaking apart.

But it bursts out anyway. My shoulders shake, and my body follows.

From time to time, I catch his eyes flicking to me through the mirror, shame overwhelms me.

“I’m sorry, Hunter,” I cry out suddenly, my voice breaking. “I’m really, really sorry.”

“Please Mrs… sorry, Hermione,” he says gently, correcting himself. 

“Don’t apologize to me.” His voice is calm. Like he wants to steady me.

I shake my head, pressing both hands to my lap. “I just don’t know what I did. I wish someone could just tell me something, anything to hold on to.”

He takes a slow breath. “I don’t know what you did, Hermione. But all I know is… you loved him. And that’s one of the rarest things a man could ever get nowadays.”

I sniff hard and wipe my nose with the rough prison fabric still on me. 

My chest aches, but I turn my face to the window, exhaustion dragging me under as I watch the blur of lights and trees, till everything suddenly blanks out.

~~~

I wake up when I hear Hunter’s voice. “We’re here,” he says.

I lift my head from the window glass, my neck is stiff and aches, like I've been sleeping for hours.

“We’re… where?” My voice cracks beyond recognition.

“Well… let me show you.”

He hops down from the car, walks around, and opens the door for me.

“Thanks, Hunter.”

He nods, quietly, and I step out.

The soft air brushes my face. Then I see the sea, stretching wide, the waves dancing slowly.

My chest loosens just a little as I take the deepest breath in a very long time.

“It’s so beautiful, Hunter,” I say, the first real smile pulling at my face since… I don’t even know. 

“How did you know about this place?”

He runs a hand through his black hair, his arm muscles flexing with the movement. “It’s mine,” he says simply.

My eyes widen. “Yours?”

He looks at the water, his voice low. “I come here when… thoughts are too heavy…you know? Helps me breathe again.”

I turn back to the sea and let the air fill me. For a second, it almost feels like I can breathe.

“I knew you weren’t just a regular cabbie,” I say. 

There’s been something about him since the moment he picked me up. His voice, the way he carries himself. Not like someone used to being ordered around.

“Well,” he cuts me off gently, “let’s not talk about me.”

He pauses, then gestures awkwardly. “I’ve got a cozy rental space where you can stay, for as long as you want… I don’t know, I just… I don’t want you crying like that again.”

I shake my head. “It’s alright, Hunter, you don’t have to do that.”

“Anything you need, just name it,” he insists. His voice is steady but softer now. 

“I can’t give you much right now, but… I do know this. You’re a good person, Hermione.”

My throat aches as I smile at him. I don’t even know why it stings to hear those words, maybe because I wanted it to be Adam saying those words to me.

“Thank you so much.”

I clear my throat. “How about you tell me about yourself instead?”

He lets out a shaky laugh, revealing his perfectly aligned teeth “About myself?” He asks.

“Yeah. You’ve already seen my worst moments. Prison, divorce, me wiping my snort with my sleeve in your car.”

We both make disgusting expressions at each other. I couldn't help it after all. I need to get somewhere and clean up ASAP.

“Well… my dad landed in a coma two months ago,” he begins. “Brain disease.”

“We built a company together. It was growing, doing well. Worldwide kinda dream. But then… I have a step older brother.”

“Somehow, he…played me. Manipulated everything. And in the end, he took it all. One hundred percent. Everything I built with my father.”

“Down to the last fucking penny.”

My mouth falls open. “Oh my God. Hunter, I’m so sorry.”

He shakes his head, almost smiling. “You don’t have to be sorry, Hermione. I’ve got it under control. Good lawyers are on it. He’ll end up in jail soon. I’m one thousand percent sure.”

I nod slowly, watching the way his face doesn’t even shake when he says it. “I hope you beat him.”

“Sure,” he says like it’s already done.

The silence that follows feels heavy.

After a while, he glances at me. “What about your parents?”

My stomach twists, but I don't reply him. Going back there would feel like an abomination. Like dragging my shame through their front door.

Ever since I got married, they’ve never called. Never asked if I was alive. I've called so many times, but they ignored me. I’m sure they didn’t even know I went to prison.

I pull out my phone. The battery has been dead since prison.

I press the power button, and the screen lights up. Five percent left.

Scrolling through my contacts feels like reopening wounds. 

Adam’s name is everywhere, saved as ‘My Addiction’ I can't even look at it without my chest hurting.

I force myself past it until I find Zara.

I hit a call. I don’t have enough battery to wait.

She picks up instantly.

“Hermione! Holy shit! Is that really you?!”

I press the phone closer to my ear, “Yes, Zara, it’s really me,” I respond, hating how my voice sounds.

“Oh my God! Two damn years, girl.” Her voice wavers, like she’s about to cry too. 

“Are you home now? I’m coming over! And tell Adam he’s not seizing you today.”

I close my eyes. Hearing Adam’s name feels like a blade pressed to my skin. “Ummmh… Zara, I don’t know about that.”

“Wait…why does your voice sound like that?” she asks, her tone sharpening with concern.

I swallow, not wanting her to know just how wrecked I am. “Can I come over?” I ask, like I'm some twelve year old asking for permission.

“Are you kidding me? Why the hell are you even asking?”

“I don’t know, Zara, I mean…”

“Don’t even finish that,” she cuts me off quickly. 

“Get your polite ass over here. Girl, I’ve missed you. We’ve got a lot of talks to do.”

I sigh deeply and hang up. Zara’s place is exactly where I need to be right now. 

We’d been making beautiful progress on my App idea. We could have been hitting millions by now with the launch plan we had laid out but the arrest happened and I've totally lost track of everything.

I'm only left with the amazing ideas I've been able to come up with while in prison.

I drag my small box onto my lap and open it, picking up my purse.

I unzip it and stare at the cash tucked neatly inside. My eyes widen. Ten thousand dollars.

What the hell? I know for sure I didn’t leave that amount in here. 

Did Adam…? The thought stops me. Did Adam put the money in my purse?

Is this a pity gift?

I sit there staring at it, torn between anger and confusion. 

I lift my head and catch Hunter watching me, sitting comfortably on the hood of his car, his legs apart.

“Ummmm….Hunter? how much do I owe you?” I ask, holding the purse in my lap.

He shakes his head quickly. “Hermione, you don’t have to do that.”

“What do you mean?”

He glances at me, his arms folded to his chest, with a soft expression on his sharp face.

“See, I know this is supposed to be professional, but let’s just skip payment for today.” He pauses, and a small smile draws at his lips. 

“Maybe I'll be able to offer you much more than a broke cabbie will, the next time we meet.”

His words are strange, like there’s a hidden meaning behind them, but I don’t sweat it. 

I feel a bit relieved and I find myself smiling.

“Thank you so much, Hunter. You’re amazing.”

His smile grows wider. 

“So, where are you headed to next?” He asks.