Chapter 33: No Men Allowed
When Lyse stepped into her old apartment, a wave of nostalgia washing over her. She had missed it so much, the familiar scent of old books and stale air filled the room. She had spent countless hours here, laughing, crying, and dreaming and she had almost traded it for a more luxurious apartment.
And even though it was a far cry from the luxury that she had given up, this apartment with it’s worn furniture and faded rug felt safer and more like home. She did not need Levi Van Doren and all his money or even the massive bathtub in that apartment which was the only thing that she would miss now that she had moved out.
She shook her head and reminded herself that she had given up on that. The money was very tempting but she was not ready to deal with the massive ego of Levi Van Doren. Something told her the best thing she could do was stay as far away from him as possible and she was heeding that inner voice.
She quickly gathered a few of her clothes, a few cherished possessions. She made sure to hurry up with her packing before James caught wind of her decision and came looking for her.
With her belongings packed, she headed to the nearest Car rental where she got a compact little car. As she drove away, she noticed a pet store and she stopped on a whim when she looked at the animals in the display. She had always loved cats, and she thought that a furry friend would be the perfect companion and the women at the shelter would probably love it. She chose a small, fluffy ginger kitten with big, curious eyes. She named her Luna.
With Luna safely nestled in a carrier, Lyse got on her trip, feeling nervous as she drove to the suburbs. The last time that she had gone, it had been a disaster and she as she drove she kept looking in her rear view mirror several times and even took a longer route to get to her location just so that she could make sure there was no one following her with murderous intent.
When she was sure that she was not being followed, she headed straight to the shelter. She was looking forward to having fun with the ladies in the shelter. She usually volunteered there as often as she could and she figured that she might not have time to be able to do that since she was going to be occupied with hunting for a job soon.
As she walked through the door, she was greeted by a warm smile from Vanessa, the shelter’s director and her friend whose face clouded with concern when she caught sight of the plaster on Lyse’s forehead.
"Lyse, it seems like you have suddenly become accident prone" Vanessa said with concern in her voice. "How have you been?"