The sight of Kenny Wilkes in Kingsport scared Barbara to death. It had been two days since that man had darkened her door and she still didn’t know how he’d been able to track her down. She’d left him in the middle of the night while he was black out drunk. It was the first chance she’d had in years to escape him, so she took it. On her way to the bus depot, she happened to pick up a magazine which extolled the virtues of Kingsport along with its richest residents. Ever the chancer, Barbara knew that if she could work for the Montgomery family, she would be able to sleep with Charles Montgomery, IV, become his mistress, and bear his child. That was her plan. Everything was going to plan until Kenny Wilkes arrived with his dirty fingernails, unkempt hair, and breath smelling of cheap beer and even cheaper cigarettes. In another life, Kenny had been enough. In this life, he was everything Barbara loathed: He was free of ambition with no drive to better himself. On top of that, her mother had forced Barbara to marry Kenny when she was fifteen. Some people whispered Barbara’s mother (who was always in and out of jail) sold her daughter for six hundred dollars, a steady supply of pills, and a carton of cigarettes to a man who was forty years her senior. Barbara knew it was true; she wouldn’t admit it to anyone.
#33 (Barbara tries to stay calm...)
#33 (Barbara tries to stay calm...)
#33 (Barbara tries to stay calm...)
The sight of Kenny Wilkes in Kingsport scared Barbara to death. It had been two days since that man had darkened her door and she still didn’t know how he’d been able to track her down. She’d left him in the middle of the night while he was black out drunk. It was the first chance she’d had in years to escape him, so she took it. On her way to the bus depot, she happened to pick up a magazine which extolled the virtues of Kingsport along with its richest residents. Ever the chancer, Barbara knew that if she could work for the Montgomery family, she would be able to sleep with Charles Montgomery, IV, become his mistress, and bear his child. That was her plan. Everything was going to plan until Kenny Wilkes arrived with his dirty fingernails, unkempt hair, and breath smelling of cheap beer and even cheaper cigarettes. In another life, Kenny had been enough. In this life, he was everything Barbara loathed: He was free of ambition with no drive to better himself. On top of that, her mother had forced Barbara to marry Kenny when she was fifteen. Some people whispered Barbara’s mother (who was always in and out of jail) sold her daughter for six hundred dollars, a steady supply of pills, and a carton of cigarettes to a man who was forty years her senior. Barbara knew it was true; she wouldn’t admit it to anyone.