Apocalyptic Montessa and Nuclear Lulu: A Tale of Atomic Love

CHAPTER ONEShe was beautiful, this woman who wandered the graveyard. All hair and eyes. In a light cotton dress covering her rounded belly, she walked barefoot across the overgrown lawns. She smiled and laughed as she touched the flowers garnishing the dead.She saw a particularly beautiful headstone, a grave marker.“Montessa,” she read, and something about it, the strength of it, the delicacy, stopped her in her tracks. She stood and waited. Moreover, she felt.“That will be your name, darling,” she told the child in her womb. The newly named Montessa skipped and spun and twirled. Or perhaps she sucked her thumb in silence. Her mama couldn’t really tell these days now that she was so ill. But she carried a little girl, she was sure of it, and she loved this child fiercely.“Your life will be charmed,” she said, navigating through the headstones and weeping angels as well as she could. “I believe wonderful things happen to little girls named Montessa. You’re special.”Sweet tho

CHAPTER THREEThe meathead bouncer saw Montessa leave that night, but he didn’t see where she went. Assumed she walked home if she didn’t have a ride. She’d been walking home a lot lately.“What’s that supposed to mean?” Renan demanded. His voice was hot and dangerous, his eyes narrowed to slits. He took his aggression and turned it on high.“Nothing. It just means that she’s been walking home a lot lately. What’s with the attitude, man?”“You didn’t see nobody pick her up or nothin’?”“Not that I saw.”Renan ran his hand over his hair. “She’ll be so sorry for this.”“Cool it. She could be in trouble. This doesn’t seem like her.”Renan glared at the meathead. “And just how do you know anything about her, huh? Not supposed to talk to the girls, are you? Not supposed to talk to my girl.”The bouncer stepped forward. “Then maybe you should take care of your girl, huh? Keep an eye out for her.”“What was that?”“You heard me.”Renan left with his anger burning slow. Didn’t come

CHAPTER FIVEThis guy?” Lu said.“Renan.”“Yeah. Him. Why are you guys together, anyway? He’s obviously a complete tool.”Montessa stayed silent. This was where she was supposed to defend Renan. Tell her kidnapper she was in love, that he didn’t know her boyfriend, that he couldn’t make judgments on the wonderful man that she committed her life to.“Hey. Girl.”“I told you it’s Montessa. Why don’t you tell me your name?”“I don’t want to.”“It’s Lu.”“How did you know that?”She looked out of the window. He’d let her into the front of the cab, shackled her to the door handle again. It was dark. The seat was soft and comfortable and felt like luxury. She had told Lu as much. He said he was frightened that such small things made her happy. She must be awfully used to being miserable, he said, if such tiny things meant so much.“There’s a lot of energy to you, Lu. Built up under your skin. Behind your eyes. One day, you’re just going to explode.”She turned to him, studied his

CHAPTER SEVENRenan had favors. Lots of them. Things owed to him since before the dawn of time, it seemed, and this was the perfect time to call them all in.Monty had been gone for over a week now. A week. No calls. Nothing. And that wasn’t right, wasn’t what a woman was supposed to do for her man. He found himself seeking comfort wherever he could find it, cursing her name with each bump, each hit, each woman. She was selfish, making him worry. Running off and passing her little whorish self around to any panting dog that looked at her. Laughing at him, he knew it. He just knew.So he called in his favors. Had sets of eyes looking for her everywhere. If she used her credit card, if she showed up on any newsfeed, if she stuck her head out anywhere in the country, he’d find her. He’d drag her back, screaming, if he had to. Then he’d make her pay. Oh, he’d enjoy that part. Making her pay was like nothing else on Earth. It was like hearing the angels sing.

CHAPTER NINEHis heart hurt in a strange new way.Felt too tight, like it was bound and everything in him screamed to take his knife to the knotted tissue and whatever iron band had wrapped around it. Release it. Take away the hurt. Take away this pain. Lu didn’t like it, not at all.It came from letting the girl go. He knew this. When she left, she’d go directly to the police and tell them all about the young Asian man, early 20s, surprisingly muscled and wiry, maybe 130 pounds. 150? He usually wore a T-shirt. A dirty denim jacket when things got cold. Jeans and sneakers. Oh, yes, and he had a knife—long, shiny, very clean and very sharp knife. He murdered his father with that knife. He drives a semi. His name is Lu. He’s killed several other girls. When you find him, it should be the death penalty all the way, please. He hit me in the head with a wrench. It hurt so terribly, so terribly that I threw up, over and over and over. It’s a miracle I got away.He’d be dead before the po