Taking Flight: Departure Read online

  Taking Flight: Departure

  Dedication

  For my Tribe: Sometimes things don’t go as planned – and that’s okay. Go out and build the life you want.

  Chapter 1: “Charlie Foxtrot”

  – A cluster fuck, from the NATO phonetic alphabet; used in semi-polite conversation to describe a disastrous situation that results from the cumulative errors of several people or groups.

  Stella di Imbrogliado groaned and banged her forehead against the steering wheel of her car as she rolled her eyes and silently cursed the unrelenting traffic during her morning commute.

  “Eight in the morning and already this day sucks,” she muttered toward the sea of red tail lights. The roads were stopped dead for some sort of accident. She shook it off, reminding herself it could always be worse – she could be the reason traffic was stopped.

  Her mind immediately returned to her nagging worry. Why hadn’t Fabian come home last night, and why hadn’t he replied to her calls and texts? Perhaps work had kept him at the hospital – again. Weren’t those days supposedly behind them with his residency finished and him finally working at the family practice? This was supposed to be their time, so where was he?

  The sun chose that moment to make its presence known. Though it provided a welcome reprieve from the bleakness of the typical March weather around Chicago, the rays were harsh on her eyes as she idled in her car. She dug through her purse and donned some shades.

  The sun’s warmth felt divine on her face. Lately, the sky had been gray and accompanied the murky mix of slush and old snow that covered the ground. City snow always lost its beauty and novelty with the hassle of removal and the pollutants that turned it into ugly sludge.

  Whenever the sun made an appearance, even briefly, the warmth spread down to her bones and a feeling of peace settled in to Stella’s mind. She loved winter, but by the time March rolled around, she reached her limit. In truth, Stella usually had her fill of winter by the end of January – the persistent cold and windy weather always wore down her spirits.

  Lethargy was all around, not just in her energy levels and poor attitude, reinforcing her theory that humans were actually solar-powered. The people who surrounded her all seemed to suffer with cabin fever. She hoped the sun would stick around to melt the remaining ugly snow and warm her spirit as well.

  Stuck there in the gridlock, Stella adjusted her rear-view mirror to double check her appearance and take a moment to apply some makeup. She’d woken late and Fabian’s absence had disrupted her usual routine with her tapping out texts and making calls that immediately cut to voice mail.

  Though she’d dressed in minutes, her appearance was neat and put together. Her wily strawberry-blond curls were tidy and shiny, tamed by leave-in conditioner and the French braid that nearly reached her waist. She touched up her eyebrows, added mascara and eyeliner, then a bit of lip gloss. There – she looked nice, but not overly done.

  She nibbled at the bagel she’d brought along, and sipped coffee from her giant commuter mug as she waited for traffic to clear. It must’ve been a nasty accident to stop all lanes completely.

  Fifteen minutes later, the Ike’s traffic began moving and she rejoiced. She might still make it on time, but it’d be close. As she passed the accident scene, which had been moved onto the shoulder, she spotted the tow trucks loading twisted wreckage onto their flatbeds. Stella’s heart gave a squeeze. One of them was just like hers.

  Oh, how she hated that car – well not the car, necessarily – she liked that it was built nearby. But her daily commute had taken its toll, and she felt vulnerable in the tiny thing, swimming in a sea of giant vehicles – but it was reliable. Seeing first-hand how that one mangled in a collision drove home her longing for the time when she and her husband could move forward in living their plans.

  Just thinking about it gave her a spark of hope. Soon they’d be able to buy a larger vehicle, since Fabian was finally working in his field. His years of med school and residency had made for a very long six years, not that she was complaining.

  It’d been her idea to take turns going to school to keep their debt lower. She’d dropped out after her sophomore year of college to support them. She couldn’t wait to return to campus. Though she wasn’t fond of her job as an administrative assistant, it paid the bills and allowed them some creature comforts, like her car – even if it was a tiny thing. Despite its advanced age, it got decent gas mileage and did its job.

  As she drove on, thoughts about what she’d like to study in school drifted through her mind. She’d enjoyed the little bit of public relations experience she got through her job. It would seem she was fairly decent at it, considering the company’s successful use of her ideas. Mostly, she looked forward to having a job she could enjoy and getting to spend more time with Fabian.

  If all went according to their plan, she’d return to school in the fall. Although, perhaps this would be the right time to have a baby or two. After all, school could wait a little longer. She was twenty-six and didn’t want to be an older mom. She smiled as she thought about how sweet it would be to have a baby, hopefully one with Fabian’s dark hair and her pale blue eyes.

  Fabian wasn’t getting any younger, either. He’d turn thirty in the spring, not that she thought that was old. It just seemed like a nice age for becoming a dad.

  What kind of father would Fabian be? Having grown up without one, she hoped he’d play an active role with their kids. When she was young, she’d watched her friends with their dads. Those men had coached their teams, and cheered them on all the way, attending every sporting event and dance recital. Stella had spent many nights longing for a daddy of her own to tuck her into bed and treat her like a princess.

  Her best friend’s dad, George Tobias, was one of those guys with his children. When he’d noticed that Stella never had anyone at their games or school events, he’d sort of adopted her as a second daughter.

  Despite the traffic, delays, and current upset surrounding the mystery of her missing husband, she felt a smile stretch across her face as affection for the man welled in her heart. George had been wonderful to her through the years, joyfully attending father-daughter dances with both girls, and he even walked Stella down the aisle the day she married Fabian. Yes, she definitely longed for her husband to be that kind of dad.

  Fabian was affectionate with her, although their time together always seemed to be limited, even after they’d been married – especially then – with him constantly studying or working. When his schedule slowed down, they could finally spend real time together. At that sweet thought, that thrill of anticipation returned with gusto as it spread through her, filling the rest of her commute with pleasant thoughts of their future together.

  When Stella finally rolled into work, she arrived in the nick of time, though worry for her husband still lingered. He hadn’t replied yet, and he usually did so when he was stuck at work, or, at the very least, sent a text. She shook her head to clear those thoughts. Work beckoned.

  When she stepped off the elevator, she could tell something was rotten in Denmark. Her office was virtually empty despite it being 9 a.m. As she approached her desk, Mrs. Birona, her boss’s boss, called out for Stella to join her in her boss’s office.

  “Good morning, Mrs. Birona,” Stella said. Her tummy bubbled with nervousness as this was an unprecedented occurrence. She could count on one hand the number of times she’d interacted directly with the woman. “Is there something I can do for you?”

  “Nah, come on, sit down.” She gestured toward the chair in front of the desk.

  At that point, Stella shifted uncomfortably before seating herself. She wracked her brain trying to think of what she might’ve done to warrant this ki
nd of attention.

  “Shall we skip the niceties and get down to business?” Mrs. Birona asked.

  Stella gulped and nodded.

  “I want you to know, you’ve been an exemplary employee, Stella, so this situation is in no way a reflection on you or your work.” Stella nodded again, dread pooling in her gut as Mrs. Birona continued. “With the economy the way it is, we’ve been forced to eliminate a few positions and your supervisor’s role was deemed redundant. So, the position has been cut, along with your administrative role. Unfortunately, we’re making cuts in all departments, which means there isn’t another position to offer.”

  Anger spread through Stella’s veins like liquid fire. Pissed off didn’t begin to describe what she felt. She’d put so much of herself into that job and helped them build the company. And this was how they treated her after six years of working for them? It was infuriating!

  “I’ve written a formal letter of recommendation for you and will gladly give you a glowing reference. You’ve been a great employee, and if times were better you’d have earned a promotion instead of getting laid off.” She paused. “I mean that. Also, it’s not a lot, but the company is offering a severance package.”

  With much cursing inside her head, Stella almost told her where to shove that severance package. Instead, she took the manila envelope the woman offered and managed a polite smile that probably looked more like a grimace. She choked out a “thank you” and packed up her things with shaking hands before leaving the office for good.

  As she stomped down to her car, Stella seethed over the injustice of the situation. Taking a moment to think, she pondered her options. The severance package hadn’t been large by any means. But no one could stretch a dime like Stella. She’d perfected the art over the years as she worked to support Fabian and herself. The word frugal didn’t begin to cover her budgeting prowess. And with Fabian working now, they could still make it without this job. Perhaps, unknowingly, the company had just set her life’s next phase in motion.

  Suddenly, a certain lightness enveloped her. She hated that job anyway. It was time to work on her own goals for a change. Fabian would be pleased – she was sure of it.

  When Stella arrived home forty minutes later, the smile slipped from her face. Why was her mother’s car parked on the street in front of their little weather-beaten rental home? It was especially odd considering the woman knew the couple worked during the day. She sighed as she thought of her mother, Calista Toussant. That woman was a real piece of work, forever thinking only of herself and her own needs before those of her daughter. Stella had quit trusting her mother with anything a long time ago – especially with something as important as a key to her home. Yet, the car sat empty.

  Curious, Stella parked in front on the garage, then trudged in the back door and set her purse on the kitchen table. She wandered through the house and didn’t find anything out of place. Where was she? Stella walked as she pulled her phone from her pocket, intending to call Fabian, again, eager to make sure he was okay and to find out what’d kept him out the night before.

  But the sound of his voice floated from their bedroom and stopped her from dialing. Instead she stepped through the short hallway toward their bedroom.

  As she opened the door to share her news, Stella met with a shocking site. Stuck in a frozen stupor, cold sweat wove down her back, and every atom within her shook so hard she felt as if she might just fly apart. Nausea at the sight and smell of sex clawed its way up her throat, and a spiky ball of anger and hurt tore gouges in her stomach as she watched her husband and mother wrapped up in each other’s arms, writhing together under her bed sheets, the very same sheets she’d slept in – all alone – the night before.

  The creaking of the bed, their gasping breaths, and the pungent odor all meshed together to act like a cattle prod that snapped her brain back into gear. Finally, swallowing back the bile that climbed her throat, Stella took action as she lifted her phone and captured their treachery.

  At the sound of cell phone’s fake camera sound, the two stopped and looked at her with fearful expressions. Stella, still shaking from the betrayal seared into her mind, pulled off her wedding ring and pegged Fabian in the head with it as she shouted, “Fuck you both!”

  She turned and darted down the hallway. With tears flooding her cheeks, rage and hurt warred for dominance as she grabbed her purse and keys from the table before she stormed out the front door.

  She made it about three steps before her stomach lurched. She threw up over the front porch railing into the lilac bush she’d planted next to the door. When she finished, Stella took off like her hair was on fire, her only goal to get the hell out of Dodge.

  Chapter 2: “FUBAR”

  – An acronym meaning fucked up beyond all recognition.

  When the red haze in her mind waned somewhat, Stella realized their calls had her phone lit up, probably since she’d left. With a vicious jab of her finger, she silenced the ringer and drove aimlessly in a feeble attempt to collect herself. Where the heck was she? The familiar sights of Chicago’s sprawling suburbia had passed long ago. Still she drove on, spurred by the seemingly endless, snowy farmland that glimmered outside her windshield.

  Her fight or flight instinct had kicked in, big time. She released a ragged sigh but that did nothing to calm her. Her heart pounded and she all but panted from the adrenaline and raw anger overwhelming her nervous system. Would she ever get that God-forsaken image out of her brain? Just the thought made her stomach rise again, but Stella persevered, and swallowed back the omnipresent bile in her throat.

  Knowing it was dangerous to drive while so furious and unable to focus, she looked for some sort of marker and finally saw a sign. Apparently she’d arrived in Morris, a small town she’d never heard of before. As she attempted to gather her wits, Stella finally stopped at a little ma-and-pop diner where she ordered a coffee and sat in a booth stewing in her anger and grief.

  Her thoughts zeroed in on Calista, and her chest constricted as if imaginary bands tightened about her. The woman had always been a horrible mother, and there was no denying the fact that she’d never been there for her daughter. In fact Stella had often jokingly referred to her as Mom-the-Merciless, especially after she’d ordered and ran up a credit card in Stella’s name, damaging her daughter’s credit in the process. But Stella had never, ever imagined she’d cross that line with Fabian. She’d been negligent – often careless and self-centered, but this was just plain malicious.

  And why on Earth would Fabian cheat on her, and with her mother of all people? Stella shivered in disgust. She’d spent nearly eight years completely devoted to him. Through their six years of marriage, she’d packed healthy lunches to keep up his energy. On nights he’d worked, she brought him dinners and stockpiled his favorite meals in the freezer so he could always have a nice home-cooked meal. And it had all been for nothing.

  Her grasp tightened around the coffee mug until her knuckles turned white and her hands went numb. She’d slaved all day only to return to an empty apartment that she kept tidy and welcoming. All the while, she’d wished for the off-chance that her husband would escape his obligations and join her at home. He’d always had clean laundry and a little spending money, even when she went without.

  Damn it! She’d been such a pathetic, foolish little doormat. How many other women had there been over the years, and how much of his absence had been legitimate? How much had he laughed about his devoted little peon at home? At those humiliating thoughts she forced down still more nausea.

  She’d been played – and thoroughly. Well, she meant what she said, or rather shouted, at them.

  “Fuck them both” she growled aloud, garnering rude expressions from people at nearby tables.

  She picked up her phone. Between the steady-stream of incoming calls from those traitors Stella dialed her lifeline and soul sister, Audrey Joy Tobias. Thankfully, the nine-hour time difference between them meant Audrey was already finished with work for
the day. She answered on the second ring.

  “Shouldn’t you be working?” Audrey answered in a joking manner, knowing full well that Stella never called during her work day. “What’s up?”

  “You won’t believe me,” Stella said, disgust dripping from every syllable.

  She then proceeded to spill the whole sickening story. By the time she finished the part about finding those two scumbags together, she’d garnered an audience. There were gasps from the surrounding tables in all the right places as she told her sordid tale – the very same people who’d given her the hairy eyeball for swearing earlier. But what they couldn’t know is that she almost never used foul language.

  “Wow! Shit, I dunno what to say…what’re you gonna do now?” Audrey replied when Stella finished her tale.

  “You mean besides file for divorce? Heck if I know. Why do you think I called you? I’m still in shock.”

  Audrey chuckled a bit, “Uh...ya think?” she replied sarcastically. “First thing, you need to see Dad so he can take care of the divorce. You know that.” Audrey’s father was a lawyer who owned a prestigious law firm in Elmhurst. Not only was he her self-appointed dad, he also happened to be her Godfather.

  “Yeah, I figured that was on the short list of things to do.”

  “When does Fabian have his next shift?” Audrey asked.

  “I’m pretty sure he’s working this afternoon, why?”

  “You should call Tommy and Max to take you to get your stuff. It’d be better if he’s not there, but they’d love the chance to beat his ass. And Mom will expect you to stay with them…unless you wanna come and stay here.”

  Audrey, a technical sergeant in the Air Force, worked as a boom operator on a KC-135 Stratotanker, an air refueling aircraft, at Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, Japan. Stella deeply respected her decision to serve and couldn’t have been more impressed with her best friend as she was on the day Audrey left for basic training. But with her life in the air, she couldn’t justify the cost of a trip to see her friend, especially a friend who lived on the other side of the world. As to retrieving her things, Audrey’s brothers Tommy and Max were enormous, and they’d delight in putting the fear of God into Fabian for her.