Animalistic (Tiger in Her Bed)

To completely break down and cry.

No.

Arielle wouldn’t give her the satisfaction. Not in this lifetime. Forcing her expression into a stoic mask she reserved for trials, she handed the folders to Sabrina, but when her boss reached out to grab them, Arielle flung them on the desk.

“Are you kidding me with this? What the hell is going on?” Arielle cut her attention to the cheating bastard Chris and skewered him with her ultra-withering gaze. “I hope you bother to wear a condom when you dip your wick in questionable pussy, Chris. She’s been around. Your dick might fall off.”

Sabrina snorted derisively. “That’s classy.”

Chris, who had always managed to look slick and untouchable, was now completely deflated. “Wait Arielle, I can explain...”

“Really, what’s left to explain? It’s not like your dick could wander into her by itself, could it? Freaking unbelievable.” Arielle turned around and left. She held her head high as she walked stiffly toward the reception corridor. She blinked back her tears. No, she wouldn’t cry. He wasn’t worth her tears. No way. Her hands were shaking badly when she was in the elevator. She wanted to punch the wall. Kick something. Scream at the top of her lungs. Just when she cleared out a hurdle, another one snuck up on her and tripped her, sending her face-down into the ground.

Chris and Sabrina. How long had they been at each other?

And how stupid was she for not seeing the signs?

Arielle flagged a taxi to go home; she didn’t feel like taking the subway tonight. She was afraid she was going to break down and cry and make a spectacle of herself in front of a train full of strangers. She didn’t even feel like she’d be up to going into the office tomorrow. She wanted to curl up in her bed and never step outside again. Maybe she should call Trent to cancel the ice cream excursion. She groped in her coat pocket for her phone and she realized she didn’t have it. Damn. Did she forget it again at her desk? Too late now. She was already in the taxi and didn’t feel like going back in there.

The cab driver tried to engage her in some kind of polite conversation, but she only half-listened. Her mind was in disarray. Her heart broken.

In a taxi, the ride home usually only took ten to fifteen minutes. But this time, it took her longer because, for some reason, the police had blocked off the area. Only ambulances and fire trucks zipped down the lane, forcing other drivers to yield and wait.

Up ahead, white-gray smoke clouded the darkened sky.

“There seems to be a fire in one of the buildings up ahead. We’ll have to take a side street, and I’ll have to drop you off an avenue up,” said the taxi driver.

Arielle startled from her thoughts. She peered from the window and saw a building a block away was engulfed in smoke. Fear seized her. Don’t tell me that’s Water Garden, the building where she lived. She opened her purse, grabbed a twenty, and gave it to the driver. “I’ll get out here, thanks.” She climbed out of the taxi and continued the walk home on foot. Her heart sank with each step she took. The closer she was, the more her dread drifted into a full-blown nightmare. Please God, don’t let it be true, she chanted over and over.

Her prayer had gone unanswered. Her apartment building was on fire.

No, no, no.

Police had put up a barricade on the street to keep onlookers at bay. She squeezed through the people who were just watching the fire, some of whom were recording the incident on their smart phones.

Her knees weakened. She didn’t want to believe it. As the reality set in, panic seized her body and squeezed her to the point she couldn’t breathe.

Good god, everything she owned had gone up in flames.

She couldn’t believe it. This couldn’t have happened to her. This was a joke.

Yeah, a joke. When this all over, she’d be waking up from a nightmare and every awful thing that had happened today would only have been a dream.

Before she realized what she was doing, she tumbled down to the pavement and began sobbing. A police officer came to her side and asked if she needed any help. He took her to a paramedic by the ambulance.

“I live in 4B. Is there anything I can save from my apartment?” she asked between her sobs.

“It’s too late now. Too dangerous,” said the cop. He took her name and contact information and told her to sit still as he was going to send someone to take her statement.

“How did it happen?” she asked.

“We’re still trying to determine the cause of the fire, ma’am. We’ll let you know as soon as we have the information.”

The paramedic asked her if she wanted a warm blanket, but she refused. She didn’t want a freaking warm blanket. She wanted her apartment back. Everything she owned was in there. The memory of the place. It was the home she grew up. Her parents’ memories. Cherished mementoes. Family photos. Books. Her mother’s knickknacks. She never thought that when she left for work that morning, she’d lose everything.

She had nothing now. Quite literally.

No home. No possessions. No boyfriend. Nothing.