Free Heart of Light by T. K. Leigh Page B

blonde-haired, heavily made up girl she was forced to be the past decade. The dark-haired woman in the mirror now looked nothing like who she felt she still was.
    She finally realized that she needed to forget about the girl she used to be. Jolene Bergio died the minute she left her house on the outskirts of Houston all those years ago. The girl staring back in the mirror now was a new Jolene, and she finally had a second chance at life. She wasn’t going to live it in fear of being found, although she knew that would always be in the back of her mind. It could all come crashing down on her at any minute but, until it did, she was going to enjoy her new life, even if it killed her.

    ~~~~~~~~~~

    “C OME ON , T OMORROW ,” E LSIE said, getting out of her car. “Bar’s this way.” She gestured with her head a few blocks from where they parked.
    Jolene followed, a bit apprehensive, wondering if she made the right decision. Scanning the busy downtown sidewalks, she felt completely out of her element. What was her element? It was as if she didn’t even know who she was as a person. He molded her into what he wanted her to be. Now that she was on her own and making her own decisions, she was constantly second-guessing herself, contemplating whether it was the right thing to do.
    “You know what?” Jolene said, getting Elsie’s attention as they walked the few short blocks to the bar. “I’m not going to spend another second of my time worried about what he thinks I should do. This is my fucking life and I’m taking back control of it.”
    Elsie continued walking, smiling at her. “You go, girlfriend. This is your fucking life, and I’m going to make sure you enjoy every second of it.”
    Jolene gave Elsie a sincere smile, thankful that she didn’t pry, making her feel surprisingly comfortable with the company of her new friend. And that’s what Elsie was…a friend. She finally had a friend. Step one in taking back control.
    “This is The Palace,” Elsie explained, stopping outside of an old brick building. “I know it doesn’t look like much from the outside, but it’s a fun place, and they do Open Mic every Thursday night. It’s kind of a tradition with our crew. Do you sing or play?” she asked, opening the door.
    “I used to play piano,” she said sadly, remembering learning to play when she was just a little girl.
    Elsie noticed her reaction. “Don’t worry about it. I can’t play an instrument to save my life. And I have a horrible voice. I’m completely inept when it comes to music.” She winked. “Come on.”
    Jolene followed her into the spacious, dimly-lit bar. It was only a little past nine and the place was already packed with what she assumed was a mixture of locals and tourists looking to have a good time before returning to the monotony of their every day life.
    The bouncer nodded a greeting to the girls. “Who’s your new friend, Else?” the tall, muscular blond asked.
    “New girl in town. If you ever see her in here, just remember she’s a friend of mine, so treat her accordingly.”
    “Got it.” He returned to checking IDs. Jolene was thankful when he didn’t ask for hers because she didn’t have one. She didn’t have anything that could identify her as who she really was, almost as if he wanted it that way. As if he wanted the world to think that she had become a ghost all those years ago.
    “What’s your poison, Tomorrow?” Elsie asked, leading her through the growing crowd of people in the bar.
    She shrugged. “I’m happy with a beer. Red Stripe is fine with me.”
    “You got it. But we’re doing shots, too. Tequila okay?”
    Jolene laughed. “Absolutely.”
    “Good. Wait here.” Elsie pointed to an empty table. “I’ll be back in a few with our drinks.”
    Jolene sat down, her eyes growing wide in shock when she noticed her friend jump behind the bar and grab their drinks. Glancing around, it appeared to be quite a popular place, crowds of people laughing