Chapter 27

I found myself tucked into my very own shabby chic bungalow a few hours later.  It was just as well.  Although the place felt cold and lonely, it at least spared me the company of Gail and her rapist lover, Jason.

Sleep eluded me until, succumbing to the overwhelming heaviness of my heart, I cried myself into the depths of dark oblivion.  When I awoke to a faint haze outside my window -which I interpreted as the sun rising over my gloomy horizon- my eyes were still red and swollen.  I pulled a washcloth from the well-stocked linen closet and, after soaking it in cold water, pressed it against my throbbing eyelids.  It brought a semblance of comfort and normality back to me.

I found the kitchen just as well stocked as the bathroom had been.  In fact, I was forced to admit that the place lacked for nothing in the line of needs and comfort.  If only it wasn’t so shabby in appearance.

With a cup of freshly brewed coffee in on