Chapter 6

In the days leading up to their date on Friday, Frannie made a decision. She started looking for a nanny to help her out with Sophie. She had decided that if this thing with Jon, whatever it may end up being was going to go anywhere, she needed to gather her courage and take a few steps to help that along. That and she couldn’t and wouldn’t rely on Stephanie to watch Sophie when they went out. With baby steps, she was slowly trying to take control of her life again.

In between interviewing women for the nanny job, Frannie got together a portfolio of her work for the Art Alliance. After much deliberation she included the one she had painted after her last nightmare. She didn’t know if it would show or sell, but she included it anyway along with some ocean-scapes, park scenes, her favorite water color done from the banks of the Navesink River and a few other non-descript sketches she had done. She was packing everything up Thursday to take to the Alliance when her phone rang. She glanced at the window and didn’t recognize the number. She was going to let it go to voice mail but something told her to answer it. “Hello?” “Ms. Daniels?” “Yes, this is Francesca Daniels. Who’s this please?” She heard the shift of the phone at the other end. “This is Officer Simmons.” Frannie started to tremble. “What can I do for you officer?” “Are you available to come down to the station today? We caught the man we believed attacked you and would like you to look at a line up.” Frannie nearly dropped the phone. “Y-you caught him?” She slumped against her car as the officer spoke again. “We are pretty sure it’s him, but we need you to identify him. When can you come down?” They made arrangements for Frannie to be at the station in the next hour. This would be the perfect time to give the woman she was considering hiring, Geena, a trial run.

Frannie was on the floor of the living room playing with Sophie and waiting for Geena to arrive when her phone rang again. Seeing that it was Jon she flipped her phone open “hi there.” “Hi there yourself. How are you?” She could hear the smile in his voice. “I am doing all right today. How’s Philly?” They chatted for a few minutes, telling each other about their respective days. At a lull Frannie posed a question, “so Jon, why did you really call me?” He smiled, she was very perceptive. “I just wanted to make sure we were still on for tomorrow night.” Frannie chuckled, “as long as you’re sure about Stephanie babysitting, yes we are still on.” Jon assured her that Steph had no problem with babysitting. They talked a few minutes more and Geena arrived and rang the bell. “Jon, someone is at the door. I have to go.” “All right Frannie, I will see you tomorrow night. Bye.” “Bye Jon.” She hung up wondering if she had done the right thing in not telling him what was going on.

At the police station Officer Simmons met Frannie and led her into a small room with a big window. She could see the men in the other room but she was assured that they could not see her. As the men stood in a line Frannie studied each one, silently assessing them, before finally identifying #4. The officers had him step forward, the scar on the left cheek was there, but it was his eyes that confirmed it. They were a flat, emotionless gray. Frannie inhaled sharply, “that’s him.” Officer Simmons turned to her, “are you absolutely sure?” Frannie nodded her head, “yes, I’ll never forget those eyes.”

On her way out Frannie turned to the officer, “how did you catch him, did he hurt someone else?” Officer Simmons nodded her head and quietly told her “yes, he raped a young girl, nearly killed her the other night.” Frannie’s hand came up to cover her mouth in shock. “Oh no.” Officer Simmons nodded her head, “she’s going to be okay.” They parted ways then, with Officer Simmons promising to keep Frannie apprised of the situation, as she would probably be needed to testify against this man.

Frannie sat in her car for a long while, thinking about what she had just done and what it would mean. She hoped that once he was in jail she could finally be free of the hold he had on her.

The Art Alliance was on her way home so Frannie decided to stop in there since she had her portfolio in the car anyway. Joan greeted her warmly and took her back to the office to talk and go through what Frannie had brought. They sat and chatted and Joan inquired about her possibly doing a showing at the end of the month. Frannie thought about it; that would give her three weeks to get used to the idea. “You know what Joan, I think I could do that.” Joan was pleased, “I will make the arrangements; you just need to decide what you want to display.” Frannie and Joan talked a bit more, “oh” Frannie started, “I have a friend that would like to bring someone by to look at my work. Would that be a problem?” Joan shook her head, “just call first to make sure one of us is here to take them around.” Frannie assured her she would and then headed for home.

After Frannie got Sophie fed and settled for the night, she wanted to talk to Jon. She had picked her phone up more than once and then set it back down. She didn’t know if she should bother him, but she wanted to tell him about what had happened that afternoon. When she picked up the phone yet again she dialed and hit send, waiting this time for the call to connect. She got his voice mail. With a sigh she hung up, not leaving a message. She wandered around her house feeling restless. She meandered out to her studio. She turned the lights on and looked around the room. She crossed the room to where she had at least half a dozen canvases facing the wall. She turned them all and studied them. They were all violent and angry, comprised of reds, blacks, oranges, bold strokes and streaks of color. The last one in the line had a silhouette of a man’s face in the middle. She picked it up and placed it on the easel in the center of the room and picked up her box knife. She ran the knife through the canvas, rending it in two. She picked up the pieces and threw them in the trash. “You can’t hurt me anymore” she said out loud as she shut the lights off and headed to bed.

Friday dawned sunny and bright. Frannie slept a dreamless sleep and woke refreshed and feeling better than she had in a long time. She thought about her upcoming date that night and smiled. Today is going to be a good day. She showered and got Sophie up and was feeding her when her phone rang. She answered without looking to see who it was. “Hello?” “Hi darlin’ how are you?” It was Jon. Frannie smiled, “you know what Jon, I am feeling really good today.” Jon smiled “glad to hear that. Sorry I missed your call last night. What did you need?” She shifted Sophie, “I wanted to tell you what happened yesterday.” Jon started pacing his home office, “what happened, are you okay?” “I’m fine Jon, just hang on a sec.” She put Sophie in her baby seat and righted her shirt. “Okay, here’s what happened.” She recounted her afternoon from the phone call from Officer Simmons right through to the late night session in her studio.

Jon sat in stunned silence on the other end of the phone. He was proud of her for what she did but he wished he could have been there so she hadn’t been alone. “Jon, are you still there?” He cleared his throat, “I’m still here. I guess it’s a good thing we are going out tonight, we can celebrate.” Frannie smiled, “I like the sound of that Jon. Are you sure you’re okay?” He sighed, “I just wish I could have been there with you so you didn’t have to go through that alone.” Frannie was touched, “it’s okay Jon. You can be there at the trial with me, how’s that?” He laughed, “count on it. Okay babe I got some business to take care of, but I will see you later.” “I’ll be waiting” Frannie laughed and hung up the phone.

Frannie, after calling Geena and hiring her for Sophie, spent the day pampering herself. She didn’t now what would happen that night, didn’t know if she would be able to let anything happen, but she was going to be ready just in case.

She stood pondering her closet, Sophie in her seat on the bed babbling away. “I don’t know Sophie” she said as she pulled out a pair of pants, “what do you think?” All she got was some raspberry noises and a bunch of spit bubbles. Frannie had to laugh at herself, “talking to a 3 month old, like she could even answer me.” She finally decided on a denim skirt that fell just above the knee, a navy blue lace cami and a wrap-style cashmere sweater in a deep russet shade. She wore knee-high brown boots with a mid-size heel, and was just slicking on some lipstick when the doorbell rang.

Jon and Stephanie were standing on the front step waiting for Frannie to come to the door. Jon turned to his daughter, “thanks for doing this for me Steph. I appreciate it.” “Let’s not make this a habit though, okay?” She smiled at her father, softening the sting of her words. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and tugged her close, “you got it. Thanks.” She shoved away from him when they heard the locks disengaging.

Opening the door with a smile she ushered Jon and Stephanie in. She turned to Stephanie “Hi, I’m Frannie. Thank you so much for your help tonight.” Stephanie liked her immediately. She didn’t seem like the other woman her dad had dated before. There was something different about her. Frannie ran down a short list of dos and don’ts for Steph. Sophie was fairly easy so she shouldn’t have any trouble. She showed Steph where some snacks were and where the bathroom was and how to use the remote for the TV. All the important things. Turing to Jon, “okay, I think that’s it.” He smiled at her, “are you sure?” She walked over to where her coat was laying over the back of a chair, “I think so. Let’s go before I change my mind.” Frannie kissed Sophie and with a laugh they headed out the door.

Once they were ensconced in the backseat of the car Frannie asked Jon again, “where are we going?” Jon contemplated the question and decided to give her a little hint. “Into the City.” Frannie’s eyes widened, “for real?” He smiled and nodded his head, “for real.” When they pulled up in front of his apartment building in Soho, Frannie was confused. “Where are we?” Jon took her hand, “just come on, you’ll see in a minute.” He had brought her to his apartment, thinking she might be more comfortable there than out in a restaurant somewhere.

They rode the elevator for what seemed like forever before it finally stopped and they stepped off. He led her down the hallway to his door and when he opened it and ushered her inside he heard her breath catch. She turned to him, “this is amazing Jon, is it yours?” He nodded his head, “yeah, it is.” She didn’t understand, “why did you bring me here? I thought we were going to dinner.” He turned her so he could take her coat and then led her into the dining room. In front of the window, where the view was spectacular, the table was set for two.