No Way Out

Eric Breuner gazed at his sleeping wife one last time before creeping down the stairs and out the front door. He took only one change of clothes—he would pick up a few other things later.

The sick feeling in his stomach intensified as he backed his Jeep out of the garage, and the pressure of doing what he had to do mixed with distress over Abby and what her reaction would be. When he visualized his wife and what he was about to put her through, he nearly turned back. Pounding the steering wheel in miserable frustration, Eric squeezed his eyes closed. 

Knowing the only solution was to get this whole mess over with as quickly as he could, he opened his eyes and pressed the accelerator. He only wished it had been possible to explain to Abby what was about to happen. That wasn’t an option, but just the same, he deeply regretted that his wife was going to have to suffer. His heart ached at the thought of his sweet Abby, pregnant and all alone. 

How can I do this? 

Pulling to the side of the road, he contemplated once again whether this was really necessary, but one glance at the documents on the passenger seat convinced him it was. After the initial discovery, the situation had rapidly gotten out of control. He had hoped he would be able to deal with his situation without leaving, but after what had happened the day before, it was obvious that leaving was the only option. Even so, the night before he’d tossed and turned until he’d made a final decision. 

Despite the fact that he wanted to let Abby know what was going on, he was convinced they would all be better off if she didn’t know anything. Not only that, he knew if he tried to explain, she would never allow him to go. He hoped she would someday be able to understand why he’d made this choice. And that she would be able to forgive him.

Resigned to the inevitability of his task, Eric put the Jeep into gear and pulled back onto the road. A few minutes later he realized he needed to double-check the map for directions to his destination—not wanting to be tracked, he’d stashed his cell phone in his home office. He pulled over again and opened the glove box, digging through the contents.

“Where’s that map?” he said out loud. Not finding it in the glove box, he reached under his seat and felt a thick bundle. “There it is.” He pulled it out and blinked at the unexpected items. “What the –?”

Rubbing the back of his neck with one hand, he read the note, then thumbed through the other items. Blowing out a short breath, he shook his head.

Good thing I found these. If the police had found them first my situation would be disastrous. 

Now he knew with certainty that leaving was the right thing to do. He also knew that as long as he was driving this vehicle, he could be found. Going home wasn’t an option, so he thought for a moment before turning in another direction. He left the Jeep where he hoped it wouldn’t be discovered for a while and hurried down the street to the nearest bus stop.

Once he reached his destination he found a pay phone—already missing his cell phone—so he could leave a message for Abby. This was the time she took their daughters to school, and since he didn’t want to speak to her directly, this would be the perfect time to leave a message. He picked up the phone, dropped in some change, and dialed. At the sound of the ringing on the other end, he hung up, suddenly not sure what to say. He heard the coins slide into the cup at the bottom of the phone.

How can I apologize for something she doesn’t know about? How can I let her know I love her, but that this is unavoidable?

Eric collected the change from the dispenser and dropped it in again. Sighing, he dialed his home number.

“Hello, you’ve reached the home of the Breuner family,” the message began in Abby’s smooth voice. “We can’t come to the phone right now, so please leave a message and we’ll call you back.”

Eric’s heart pounded as he listened to his wife’s voice, then he took a deep breath before leaving her a simple message.

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