After Richard calmed Martha down she headed home.  She had a few canned goods in her front seat to make her grocery store story a reality.  Her drive home was full of anxiety. She told herself that she would take the drive to clear her mind.  She wasn’t doing a very good job of it. Her hands were shaking, but her knuckles were turning white on the steering wheel.  She kept looking in her rearview mirror thinking that somebody was following her. She only saw one car on her way home, but it passed her and it was a small sports car.  

She pulled up in the apartment parking lot and took a deep breath.  She tried to forget about the message. She had already deleted it out of her phone.  She instead focused her mind on her time with Richard. She thought about the way he touched her and it sent chills up her spine.  She thought about his kisses all over her body and she instantly relaxed.  Everything will be fine.  Nothing has changed.  She tried to convince herself.  

She walked inside and her apartment is empty.  The boys must still be playing soccer outside.  She put the canned food in the cupboard and went out the back door of the complex.  She saw her boys. They are running around, sweating, having a good time. She notices Brick sitting under a tree in the shade.  He doesn’t even get up when he sees her.

“Hey mom!  Ready for a game?”  Teegan is out of breath, but he is so happy.

Jasper walked up to Martha and gave her a kiss.  She doesn’t feel the same as when Richard kisses her.  

“Honey, are you ok? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”  Jasper’s face looks concerned. “You’re really pale. Are you feeling ok?” He starts checking her forehead.  She didn’t realize before, but now she is feeling warm and sweaty.

“Yeah, I don’t know.  I started feeling nauseous on the way home from the store,” Martha lied. “Maybe I should skip today’s game and lay down.”  She turned to walk back inside. Maybe the best thing for her right now is to be alone. She didn’t want her boys thinking that something worse was wrong.  Them thinking that she was sick was a good excuse for her.

“Mom wait!”  Carter runs up to her.  “Can you take Brick with you?  He’s been acting weird.”

“How do you mean?”  She remembers the look on Brick’s face when her and the boys got home from running errands.  Dogs don’t show facial expressions, but Martha saw fear in Brick’s eyes when she got home earlier.  

“He hasn’t been running around with us.  He has been sitting under that tree with his head on his paws this entire time.  He got up once to go to the bathroom, but after that he just went straight back to under the tree.  I don’t know what’s wrong with him mom.” Carter seemed really worried, but Martha tried to make him feel better.

“Maybe he just got scared from shutting himself in the bathroom earlier.  I am sure he’ll be back to his old self tomorrow. Come on Brick. Let’s go inside and get a treat.”  Martha starts to head inside, and with the word treat coming out of her mouth Brick finally got up and followed her in.  He walked slower than normal. Martha studied him intently. He wasn’t limping or whimpering, but Carter was right. There was something wrong.  Brick normally has so much energy that he beats you inside the house. Especially when you mention the word ‘treat.’

They got inside and Martha headed for the treat cupboard.  Brick followed. “Did you get hurt today Brick?” She asks the pit bull, knowing he won’t answer her out loud. He rolls on his back.  Martha knows he wants a belly rub. She starts to rub his belly and he seems to be coming back to his old self. Then Brick started to growl at Martha.  Instantly she stops. Brick has never acted aggressively toward her before.

“Brick, no!” He looks up at her with his ears down. He knows he did something wrong.  Martha decided to give him a treat anyways because that’s why they came inside in the first place.

Martha then checks her phone.  There is a message from Bonnie.

Is everything ok?  Any more strange messages?

Martha debated whether or not to text him back.  She is suppose to be pretending she is sick. So she goes and lays down on the couch with her phone and turns on the TV. Brick not too far behind her.

No more strange messages.  I decided not to tell Jasper about it.

It’s probably a good idea.  Don’t get too many people involved.  

Martha waits to respond.  Why doesn’t Richard want anyone else to know?  Does he think that he is protecting her?

That’s probably a good idea.  Don’t make a scene.

He didn’t answer her back.  She assumed that he was making dinner.  Which reminded her that she should be getting a snack tray ready for when the boys come inside.  Even if she was 'sick,' she was suppose to be a mom and a wife first.

Brick jumps on the couch with her and lays on her belly.  He looks up at her with sad eyes. “Can I look at you Brick?  I promise I won’t hurt you.”

If someone was in their apartment, and if someone did hurt Brick, then there would be marks on him somewhere.  Martha wiggles out from underneath Brick and starts to check his fur, legs, ears, and face. As she is checking him, Brick growls again.  Now Martha knows something is wrong.

“It’s OK, Brick. Mommy is here. You are such a good boy,” she tries to keep him calm so she can keep checking him.  She can’t find any marks on his body, but she is still wondering why Brick keeps growling. Maybe his injury in all in his head. Dogs can sense when something is wrong.  The white truck, the message, Brick being locked in the bathroom. Maybe Brick knows something that Martha can’t see.

She finishes checking him with no luck.  She made a mental note to give him extra love and attention until this phase passes.  She gets up and heads to the kitchen to make snacks. Her mind starts to wander again.  It’s been doing that a lot today. Martha pulled out some cold cuts and cheese and started making a meat and cheese platter.  It’s the best thing to eat after an eventful soccer game. She goes over all of the scenarios in her head.

Everything could have an explanation.  

The truck could be an out of town visitor.

It could be a new neighbor that just happens to run the same errands as Martha, on the same day.

The message could have been a mistake.

It could be teenagers messing around.

Brick could have closed the door by himself and got scared that he wouldn't be able to get out.

Martha moves everything to the back of her mind.  She looks at Brick again and he is sleeping on the couch. He’s normally not allowed on the couch, but Martha assumed he was sick so she made an exception.   

The boys come in all sweaty and out of breath.

“Take your shoes off and start rotating showers.  There’s enough food for everyone, so don’t worry about missing out.”

Carter and Teegan race each other upstairs.  Jasper, knowing that he won’t make it to the bathroom first, heads to the kitchen.

“How are you feeling?”  He kisses her on the forehead.  She feels the sweat from his chin.  It feels gross on her, but she still thinks it’s cute.

She giggled at his effection.  “I am OK.  I am more worried about Brick.  He didn’t seem right so I tried checking him for injuries.  I thought maybe he hurt himself in the bathroom. But then he started growling at me.  Do you think he’s got something internal?”

“Really? He growled at you?  Brick never does that? Maybe he's got a stomach ache.  Did you touch him the wrong way?”

“No, I just checked him for sores and stuff like that.  I put a little pressure on some areas, but nothing to major.”

“When are you ever gonna touch me again?”

Martha looked at Jasper with shock.  That question came out of nowhere.  This isn’t the first time he’s mentioned something like this.  It’s been hard since the miscarriage to touch Jasper. Martha has always tried, but she would back out before anything got serious.  She still loved Jasper, but she could see the loss of the baby in his face.  Sometimes she even blamed him for losing it. Her legs went numb and she went to sit at the table before she collapsed.  

“I’m sorry.” Jasper followed her.  “It’s just been six months. It’s time to move on.  I am still in love with you. I want to help make this work.  I know losing the baby was hard, but it’s time to let go. You can’t change the past.”

“I know Jasper.  I am better from that,” Martha lied.  She couldn’t tell him that she saw the loss in his face.  It would crush him. Martha would have to try harder to work on their marriage.  Maybe Richard being gone would be the perfect time to do that. But then she’d have to  break Richard’s heart at the end of the week. All these mixed emotions she was feeling was making her head spin.  She focused back on Jasper.

“Are both of the boys upstairs,” she tried to put a sexy look on her face.

“Yeah, they are cleaning up.” He looked back with smirk.

Martha took him to the recliner that was in the living room.  She didn’t want to disturb Brick by kicking him off of the couch.  

“Are you sure you’re ready?”  Jasper seemed so sweet. He wanted to make sure Martha was OK.  He did love her and Martha could hear it in his voice.

“Just take it slow.  I will let you know if something doesn’t feel right.”

Jasper’s smile said it all.  Martha knew she was making the right decision.  Six months was a long time that Jasper had waited for her and she appreciated his commitment to her. Now she felt guilty that Jasper stayed faithful and she didn't.  Maybe being with Richard needed to end.  Her mind kept going back and forth.

It was perfect timing.  When they were done and dressed the boys came down five minutes later all cleaned up.  Jasper then went upstairs to take his turn in the shower. Martha didn’t have the heart to tell him that she faked it.  She just wanted to satisfy him enough so he would stop asking her. Plus, she didn’t want him to give up on their marriage.  That would be too much drama for her and the kids.

“The snacks are ready boys.  Save some for your dad.”

“Can we watch a movie?”  Teegan was always in to movies.  He had to watch one everyday it seemed like.  After the day that Martha has had, she didn’t mind relaxing on the couch with her family.  She noticed that Brick must have gotten up while Martha and Jasper were having sex on the chair.  She didn’t know where he went, but she was glad that he was up and about. He must just have one of those doggy colds that people talk about sometimes.

The boys turn on Netflix and argue over what movie to watch.  They finally decide on ‘How to Train your Dragon’ just as Jasper is coming downstairs.  He’s got a huge smile on his face. The look that says ‘I just got laid.’

The family settled in on the sectional and they started the movie.  Brick still hasn’t come back from wherever he went. Martha gets up to use the bathroom and make popcorn.  As it’s popping in the microwave she hears Brick barking. Brick always barks at things outside so she ignores him.  She grabs the bowl of popcorn and heads back to the movie.

Brick continues to bark and then she hears him snarling.  

“Is Brick OK?” Carter breaks the silence of the family.

“I’ll go check on him.”  Jasper gets up and heads to the window where Brick is freaking out now.  Jasper looked outside where Brick is looking. He saw a dark figure standing across the street, looking straight at Jasper.