My Only Chance

Grabbing her cup, Callie headed into the kitchen to wash up what few dishes there were. She paced around for another few minutes before deciding to take that hot bath she'd mentioned to Travis. Deciding to use Travis's master bath because it had the largest tub, Callie started the water. Searching in the cabinet under his sink, she found a box of scented bath beads and added them to her water--trying hard not to think about why he had had such an item and who they had been for--then went into the bedroom to gather her clothes. When the tub was full of hot, scented, bubbly water, Callie quickly stripped and stepped into the tub. Sighing in pleasure, she scooted down until her chin was covered with water. Now this is heaven, she thought to herself. It wasn't until the water started to cool down for the third time and Callie was becoming prune-like that she decided it was time to get out. She had just reached over to let the water out when she thought she heard glass breaking. Hoping it was just her overwrought imagination, she immediately stood and grabbed a towel to quickly dry herself. Stepping out of the tub, she ran the cloth over her skin before cracking the door open enough to look into the bedroom. Seeing that the room was empty, she tiptoed out and stood behind the door, listening to see if whoever was in the house had come upstairs. Not hearing anything, Callie cautiously pulled the door open and listened intently. Could the sound have been a neighbor who had broken something and not necessarily someone getting into Travis's condo? She listened for several seconds and had just decided that it was, in fact, her imagination when she heard another sound that most definitely came from downstairs. She watched the stairs for a few seconds and saw two men dressed in black walk by. Quietly closing the door, Callie rushed back into the bathroom where she had left her discarded clothes and threw them on. Once she was dressed, Callie rushed back into the bedroom, locked the door, and frantically searched the room for her cell phone. It took her a few minutes of looking around before she remembered that she had left it on the coffee table downstairs. With tears of frustration in her eyes, Callie crept back into the bathroom and shut the door. Opening the only window in the small room, she looked down at the ground and sighed heavily. The only way out of the condo was down and if the jump out of the window didn't kill her, she just might have a chance to get out before they found her. Trying not to think of what she was about to do, Callie checked to make sure that no one was lurking around below and crawled out of the narrow window. Hanging onto the ledge by her fingertips, she let her feet dangle for a few seconds--gave a silent prayer for a safe landing--and let go. It seemed like she fell through the air for quite a while before she finally landed on the bush she was aiming for. Not that it would have broken her fall that much but at least it was some barrier before she hit the ground. She heard several branches snap under her weight and held her breath before they gave way and she hit the hard surface, smacking her head when she landed. Callie lay on the ground for several seconds, taking inventory to see what hurt the most. When she was certain that she could take a breath--although only shallowly--she got to her feet, wincing slightly before she hobbled around the corner of the condo and disappeared into the wooded area, praying that whoever was in the house hadn't seen her.