Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Chapter 88

word count 1180

Trudy woke up with her head clanging like an anvil. Moaning, she rolled over and, as fate would have it, went flying right off the couch. She landed with a loud thump, dazed and confused. Without getting hurt, however, since she was still so numb from her night of drinking, her body just went with the fall. And then the reality hit her. Couch? What was she doing sleeping on a couch?

With great effort, she opened her eyes, not an easy task when her eyelids each weighed a ton. From that veiled perspective, she spied Buzz sleeping in a chair opposite. A cursory glance revealed whiskey bottles and wine bottles, empty and discarded, scattered on the floor. What had they done?

Then she remembered how it all started in the kitchen over ham sandwiches. They finished her flask, and as she now dizzily recalled, Buzz had demanded Mrs. Dunn tell him where she hid his stash of liquor. There had been an argument, of that Trudy was sure. And she sort of thought she, herself, may have played a role in it. Probably a pretty good role. Trudy knew how to pick up the volume and intensify the rhetoric to get what she wanted. No silly Mrs. Dunn would ever to get in Trudy's way!

Trudy thought she recalled Mrs. Dunn tossing the key to her desk drawer in Buzz's direction on her way out the door. That's where they found his alcohol stash.

The facts having been determined, it was time to wake him up. She might have done it gently, quietly--but that wasn't Trudy's way.

"BUZZ! WAKE UP!" She yelled it as close to his face as possible.

"Wha..what? What the hell!!!! Trudy, is that you? What the hell are you doing in my house?"

"We partied last night! Doncha' remember?"

"PARTIED?" Buzz's heart almost gave out. "We didn't...you know...not so soon after Jeannie died."

"Nah. We just drank."

"Yeah, I can tell that. My head feels like a basketball. Oh, shit! Do I remember Mrs. Dunn quitting her job here?"

"Yeah, ya know, that does sound familiar. I think we got her mad about the drinkin'." Trudy smiled with a devilish grin.

"Oooooh shit!" Buzz rubbed his forehead and closed his eyes. "Hey sweetie, do you know how to make coffee?"

Trudy, who was applying her signature red lipstick, stopped to glare at Buzz.

"You have got to be kidding."

A knock at the door surprised them both, in addition to causing major head throbs.

"Who the hell is that?" Buzz muttered. He looked around the room helplessly at the mess, diving for one of the bottles to get it out of sight. "Trudy, are you going to help?"

She gathered the rest and Buzz tried to straighten his clothes, smoothing his shirt. Having never made it to pajamas was a convenient thing at this point. He looked to Trudy and she nodded, indicating all was well. He hobbled to the door and opened it.

"Hello, Detective Miller? I'm Dr. Travis...Jeremy Travis. I am the court-appointed psychiatrist treating your son."

Buzz looked him over. A psychiatrist! Goddamn! Didn't the kid have enough problems? His hangover big head throbbed and his mind wandered.

"Detective Miller, may I come in?"

"Yeah, sure." He opened the door wide.

Once inside, the most glaring sight in the room for the doctor was Trudy who sat perched on the arm of the couch, looking his way with interest.

"This is my...ah, friend, Trudy Hunt. Trudy, this is Dr....what was your name?"

"Travis, Dr. Jeremy Travis." He smiled at Trudy, then directed his attention to Buzz. "Detective Miller, there were some private matters I wished to discuss with you...concerning your son." He nodded toward Trudy as if to say, get rid of her.

"There isn't anything we can say that I would mind her hearing."

"Very well, then. May I be seated?" As the doctor spoke, his worried eyes darted around the room. He turned his attention back to Buzz. "The reason I am here is, upon interviewing your boy, Adam, I found he told me some disturbing things. Mind you, I must adhere to certain principles of confidentiality, but still I thought I'd like to talk to you."

"What the hell are you talking about? Are you talking about how he wants to kill me?" Even as Buzz said it, his heart plummeted, as he realized this conversation would do little to help him keep Adam.

"Well, that's part of it. You see, Detective Miller, if a child is brought up in a household with anger issues, invariably that tension is transferred to the child, often causing him to act out his anxiety in bizarre or dangerous ways."

"Will you please speak in plain English?" Buzz felt his face flush.

"Yeah, we don't talk like that around here!" It was Trudy. She could never stay quiet for long.

Dr. Travis looked from one to the other and shifted nervously in his chair. He cleared his throat. "Well, to make a long story short, we found wounds on Adam's arm, and in fact, according to him, he was deliberately cutting himself when he unknowingly hit a vein. So when we found him, he hadn't try to kill himself, but merely made a mistake in the act of of what we call cutting. Are you familiar with the term, Detective Miller?"

"My boy was a cutter? I did that to him?" Buzz's heart collapsed into itself. This was worse than Adam threatening to kill him or even a rash act of trying to kill himself. This was Adam, day in and day out, hurting himself by degrees, a slash for every pang of anxiety, all to kill the pain of seeing his mom get hit or yelled at or hurt in a myriad of daily emotional sabotages.

He felt Trudy next to him, hugging his huge shoulders, sobbing quietly. He could tell she knew what he was thinking, perhaps even blaming herself for her role as the other woman.

Dr. Travis studied them with interest. Being a perceptive man, he understood the scene in front of him. This was a broken man, his mistress, the house where a wife suffered. This Trudy was the "woman" little Adam said his dad brought home, the one causing that final upset where the boy dangerously cut himself. Small wonder little Adam was a cutter.

"There's one other item, Detective Miller," Dr. Travis said, clearing his throat. "Upon consideration of all Adam told me, and my conversation with you, I regret to inform you it will be my recommendation that little Adam be turned over to Child Protective Services to be placed into a foster home as soon as one is found, until an appropriate adoptive family is determined. If you have an objection, you may take that up with the courts."

"Get out of my house." The words were said with grit and suppressed anger.

Being a psychiatrist, Dr. Travis could see oncoming danger, and jumped up, rushing to the door. "Good day, Detective Miller! I'll see myself out!" he said, not looking back.


Monday, July 30, 2012

chapter 87


word count: 1454

officer beverly simone entered her apartment and headed toward the kitchen table.. she had successfully navigated the three flights of stairs,, and somehow or another managed to get the proper key in the door but was anxious to set down the three bags of groceries she had picked up on the way back to weston from new albany,, as they were digging deeply into the soft flesh of her arm..

“thank god i don’t do this  all the time!” she huffed,, as she set the grocery bags down on the table and  started to unload the precious ingredients to her mom’s famous chicken paprikash recipe.. in addition to all the paprikash fixings,, there were fresh cut flowers,, some absolutely delicious smelling apple pie candles and a freshly baked apple pie she planned on serving for desert,, that is,, if she and gil could keep their hands off each other long enough to make it through desert.. 

she had no sooner placed the pie under the glass lid of its serving tray,, when the phone began to ring.. she checked the caller id, it was gil. he had been calling her cell repeatedly since she left the grocery store,, but in her haste to get home and get the events leading up to her first home cooked meal for him underway,, she had forgotten all about placing her hands free device in her ear,, and having seen the devastation of people talking on their cell while driving first hand,, more times than she would like to remember,, she had resisted the urge to answer.. 

“hey, baby!” she answered her land line excitedly,, still a bit out of breath from carrying the two full armloads of groceries up the stairs to her third floor walkup apartment.. 

“i know,, i couldn’t answer though,, i was driving.. i stopped to pick up a few things,, and i was so excited about tonight,, i forgot all about putting my earpiece in..”

she propped the handset of the phone between her ear and shoulder and filled a vase with water.. as she carefully arranged the flowers in the vase,,  gil whispered sweet nothings in her ear,,  his tone, hushed,, and breathy as he was still at the station house,, but clearly as excited at the prospect of getting to spend their first whole night alone together,, since they had met a few short weeks ago as she was.. 

“you sweet talker, you!!”  simone swooned into the phone as she placed the newly arranged flowers in the center of the kitchen table.. “you better save some of those pretty words for when you get over here tonight!!”

“ok,, well you finish up there,, and then take your time getting cleaned up..  i’ve got a ton of stuff to get ready over here before you arrive,, the least of which is not putting together my mama’s special recipe for chicken paprikash.. i can’t believe you have never had it before.. you’re gonna love it..” 

gil went on to whisper to her how there was no way he was gonna love it more than he loved her,, and if it were up to him,, they could skip dinner all together,, and get right to the dessert.. 

“now,, now,,” she admonished him, “i’ve got the dessert part covered as well,, you just get yourself together and get on over here!!”

“ok, i’ll see you  then.. about seven.. perfect.."

“you know i love you too baby!!” she sang into the phone as they ended the call,, and she went about lighting the candles,, and strategically placing them in the living room and the bedroom.. by the time gil arrived,, the house would smell like she had been baking all day,, and nothing quite said home,, like the spicy sweet aroma of a fresh baked apple pie.. ok.. so she hadn’t actually baked it herself, but the ambiance would be there none the less.. 

she wasted no time getting the chicken chopped and simmering in the broth.. with that underway it was time to get her apartment in order.. one of the perks of living alone, was not having to worry about the little details,, like toothpaste smudges on the bathroom mirror,, making the bed every day before she left for work,, or folding and actually putting away the clean laundry.. 

simone took a look around and realized,, there was a lot more to be done than she had originally expected.. she decided to start in the bedroom,, since it was evident they were going to be spending quite some time in there.. as she pulled off the sheets,, and crossed the room to take them in to be laundered,, her heart skipped a beat, as her eyes fell on a picture of herself and detective brenda simmons,, arms around each other,, the unmistakable glow of young love emanating from both of their faces.. 

a sharp pain cut through her heart,, and settled in her stomach.. she dropped the sheets to the floor and picked up the picture of her and brenda.. oh my god,, how she missed her.. she held the picture tight to her breast,, and was instantly transported to the first time she and brenda had made love.. 

it had been simone’s first experience with a woman. brenda had been so gentle with her..  so thoughtful,, making her feel so at ease.. no one had ever treated her like that before.. brenda had caressed her so carefully,, so gingerly,, like she might break under the weight of her passion.. she had always made her feel like she was a little china doll.. 

she had never felt more like a woman than she did that first night under brenda’s careful tutorage.. the very thought of it gave rise to an all-encompassing ache she knew could never be satisfied again.. 

now,, with brenda gone,, lost in the devastation of the miller house explosion,, she knew she would never feel that way about another human being again.. she would forever remain under the spell of brenda’s sweet kisses,, forever ache to be back in her arms.. 

as she carefully tucked the picture away in the bottom drawer of her dresser,, she found consolation only in the fact that she was here to witness the total devastation of buzz miller.. the very thing that her brenda had worked so long and hard at achieving ever since he had passed her over for the promotion she had so well deserved.. 

she had given it her all.. her expertise in the field,, her years of devoted service to the new albany police department,, and in the end,, even she had even given him her body.. it sickened simone to think of her tender brenda being ravaged by that womanizing pig.. submitting to his every need,, becoming a vessel for his disgusting manflesh all in an effort to secure what should have rightfully been hers to begin with.. 

if only brenda could be here today,, to see that buzz had indeed lost everything.. his home,, his wife,, his son,, and more importantly,, his iron fisted rule over the 45th st. precinct homicide division.. he had been reduces to a blithering idiot on all fronts.. and taking up with that disgustingly drunk trudy woman,, who’s flamboyant sexuality was an insult to every female of the species,, was truly the icing on the cake.. 

if only….

as simone picked up the pile of dirty sheets and headed off toward the laundry room,, she took a moment to assure brenda,, where ever she was,, that she had taken up where her beloved had left off.. she had her claws in gil bettencourt now,, the very detective that had received the promotion brenda had so coveted.. the promotion she was passed over for,, and eventually gave her life in retaliation for not having received.. 

yes,, brenda had played a key part in the downfall of buzz miller.. but the fight was not over.. bettencourt would pay,, and pay dearly for having usurped the position brenda had so greatly deserved.. and all because he was a man.. 

a wicked little smile passed over simone's lips,, as she loaded the sheets into the washer,, and thought about how she was going to use that very same manhood that had gotten gil the promotion against him.. how she was going to see to it that not only did he lose the accolades that came with that promotion,, the one that brenda so richly deserved,, but if everything when according to her plan,, he would lose his position on the police force altogether.. 

oh yes,, he would pay dearly,, and if it was the last thing simone ever did,, she would see to it that he would do so at her hand..

Saturday, July 28, 2012

Chapter 86

word count 1205

Trudy stuffed the last of the sandwich in her mouth and swiped residual mayo off her lips with the back of her hand.

"Well, that Mrs. Dunn may be a pain in the ass, but she makes a dynamite ham sandwich."

"I know. Why do you think I hired her!" Buzz said the words in a conspiratorial fashion, leaning close and whispering.

Trudy laughed. It was good to be back in his good graces again. But as much as they were having a good time, the big guy had a sadness about him.

"Buzz, hon, aren't you happy I'm here?" she asked.

He shot her a tiny smile. "Of course, I am, babe! It's just I have a lot on my mind."

"Yeah, me too. My ass hole husband is threatening to take Elly from me." She blurted it out without thinking. The idea had been buzzing around in her head ever since it happened. Always there, always reminding her.

"Is that right? The state already has taken Adam from me. It happened today."

"Buzz, you're kidding! Why?"

He shot her a worried glance. "Adam hates me." He paused, shifting uncomfortably in his seat. "I wasn't the kindest to his mother. He saw me yell at her and hit her many times. So long story short, he poisoned not only me, but his mom and Mrs. Dunn, too. When the state learned that, they felt it would be best to remove him from my home."

"Oh Buzz, I'm so sorry! I knew a little about it from...Gil..." She hated to mention the other man, but he was history as far as she was concerned anyway, cavorting with that uniformed chick. "But Gil only mentioned a little of it, hon."

"So what's your story? Why is John trying to take away Elliot?"

"Do I even need to explain? Have ya noticed I do a little drinkin'?"

"Yeah!" Buzz laughed. "So do I! Is it any wonder we drink like we do?" He laughed, but next got sad again. "What do you intend to do about John?"

"Buzz, I don't have a clue."

"Yeah, I guess the courts will decide. That's a helluva thing, ain't it? The courts making decisions about families. The same thing is happening to me really. The government's got its face right in my house, poking around, and shouting orders."

"Yeah, why can't they stay out of our business, huh?"

"Damn right? Hey, you got any juice in that pretty little flask of yours?"

"I sure do, Buzz, honey!"

"Fill me up!" Buzz said, pushing his coffee cup in front of her. "And then, once my tank if filled up, I'll search around here and find us some more. Mrs. Dunn has hid all my stash, but I'll find it."

Mrs. Dunn stood just outside the door. "Oh dear," she murmured. "Now I have two of them on my hands."

***

Adam lay in bed switching through the TV channels with the remote. Nothing suited him. He was bored. At least he was out of the ICU now, but still, this place was a drag. A slight tap at the door caught his attention. He looked over and saw a man standing there.

Another guy in a lab coat, he thought. I hope it's not more needles.

"Hi Adam, may I come in? I'm Dr. Travis."

"I don't care. Do what you want!"

"Well, as I really do want to talk with you, I believe I'll come in."

Adam studied the intruder. He was tall, like a string bean. And he had a balding head, but also a mustache and a goatee, grown as if he was trying to make up for the loss of hair on top. He reached into a starched white coat to get his glasses, and settled in a nearby chair. Opening his notebook, he got comfortable, crossing his legs to rest the little book on his thigh like a desk. Next he pulled a tiny black recorder out of another pocket and placed in on Adam's bedside table.

"Do you mind if I record our little talk?" he asked.

"What for?"

"Well, our talk is very important to me, and I may not remember everything, so I'd like to have a recording to refer to. Is that all right?"

"I don't care."

"So, let's talk about why you're here. That's a nasty cut on your wrist? Why on earth did you do that?"

Adam looked at the guy. Up until now, nobody had bothered to ask him about the cut directly like this. He kind of thought they had just assumed he deliberately wanted to hurt himself which wasn't true. Everybody had been buzzing around him and nobody was asking him anything.

"I wanted to cut my arm. I've done it a couple of times. It feels good. But when I did it this time, something went wrong. It started bleeding and it wouldn't stop."

"The doctor looked up from his notebook in surprise. "You mean you were attempting to cut yourself for pleasure, and not to hurt yourself."

"Yes, sir."

"Where on earth did you learn about cutting?"

Adam panicked. His little heart beat double time. He didn't want to squeal on Elliot. "A friend of mine," he stammered.

The doctor didn't seem to care who taught him. He moved on. "What happened to make you want to cut yourself? Were you nervous, angry? What?"

Adam thought about it. "I guess I was mad because my dad brought some woman home. I didn't want some woman there. Was she going to be mother? She's not my mother. My mother died. No one can be her."

"I don't know what your daddy thought. But I'll find out for you, I promise. And if he does want her to be your mother, I will advise him to take your feelings into consideration." He paused, and then leaned forward.

"Adam, it's always better to talk to someone about your feelings than to bottle them up until you have to do something dangerous to free your mind from them, like cutting. You stuffed your feelings in and they grew bigger and bigger because you worried so much and got mad--when you should have just talked to your dad about it as soon as it happened. Do you understand me?"

"Yeah, but you don't know my dad."

"Let's talk about him. How does he make you feel?"

"MAD. He makes me mad. I think he killed my mom with the way he hit her and yelled at her. I think it made her sick."

Adam's reaction was so strong, it startled Dr. Travis. He looked up at Adam and next wrote furiously in his notebook. Finally, he stopped writing and studied the boy.

"Adam, is that why you put the oleander in the mayonnaise? Because you were angry at your dad? Because he hit your mom and made her sick?"

"Yeah, I wanted to kill him! But I never thought my mom would eat it and Mrs. Dunn, too! They weren't supposed to eat it. I never realized they would. You have to believe me, sir. I never realized they would."

"I do see that, son. I do."

Friday, July 27, 2012

chapter 85


word count: 1554

john and lisa had been so thoroughly engaged in planning their future together, that they hadn’t even noticed it took elliot nearly twenty minutes to ‘go to the bathroom’.. in fact as elliot slipped back into his chair in the hospital cafeteria he couldn’t help but wonder whether or not they had even noticed that he had been gone at all..

as they sat there hand in hand,, eyes blinded to everything accept each others existence, elliot shifted uneasily in his chair, waved his hand in front of their faces, as if to break their gaze,, and said, “hello!!!”

john shook off his preponderance with lisa long enough to ask “so what’s up buddy?? you wanna get something to eat??”

“i want a milkshake and some fries.” elliot stated flatly.

“sounds good.. umm yeah,, think i’ll have the same.. how about you lisa??”

“just a cup of black coffee for me.” lisa fidgeted uncomfortably in her chair.. “erik is gonna be home from school in less than an hour,, and i’ll have to fix him something to eat then, so i better not have anything now..”

“i’ve got an idea,” john said as he peered longingly at lisa from just under his brow, “how about if we pick erik up,, and the four of us go out and get a real dinner?” 

“i want a shake and some fries!” elliot demanded.. 

“well, i don’t want to start any trouble..” said lisa meekly as she peered back lovingly at john.. 

“ok.. so elliot wants a shake and some fries.. how about if we pick erik up,, and the four of us go to steak and shake?? then elliot can have his shake and some fries,, and the rest of us can have a nice dinner and talk.. seems the four of us have a lot to talk about.”

“i want a shake and some fries,, now!!” elliot exclaimed,, putting much emphasis on the word ‘now’..

john looked sternly at elliot.. what he saw before him was a budding young tyrant.. a little boy that was used to having to demand what he wanted,, and had no concept of what it meant to act as a part of a family.. how could he?? he had lived his entire life in spite of trudy.. in spite of her drinking,, her flamboyant sexual escapades,, her forever putting elliot on the back burner as she clawed and scratched her way through man after man trying to find someone that would make her happy.. ‘her’, john thought to himself.. everything had always been about her.. 

“el, lisa and i have something very important to talk to you and erik about.. i am not disregarding your feelings,, i know you want a shake and some fries,, and you will get them.. but you will get them after we have picked up erik, and when the four of us are together at the steak and shake,, so lisa and i can share with you and erik some of the things we have been talking about here..”

elliot snarled at john, let out a disgusted sigh,, and jumped to his feet. “fine.”

“alrighty then,, i guess that has been decided.” said john with a lilt in his voice, grateful elliot had not put up more of a fuss.. it was a small victory,, a very small victory,, but it was a start. 

“so what do you say young lady? will you accompany me to the car?” john stood and extended a gallant hand toward lisa,, who immediately placed her hand in his.. 

“my pleasure.” she answered with a smile.. 

as elliot stomped across the cafeteria,, john slid his arm around lisa and said, “it’s not gonna be easy, you know that don’t you?”

“i know.” lisa replied. “but in the end,, i think it is all gonna be worth it!!”

they shared a quick peck on the lips,, as they followed a still stomping elliot out to the parking lot.

***

it wasn’t long after elliot had dropped the bomb on him about possibly poisoning his own mother,, that a lady in a business suit showed up in adam’s room.. she introduced herself as adrian beaumont,, and explained that she was from child protective services.. 

she continued to talk,, but adam was so lost in thought he only caught a few of the words.. custody. court. protection..until further notice.. 

“so you see adam,, you and i are going to spending a lot of time together between now and the trial.. i will be with you every step of the way,, so you can rest assured you will never be alone..”

adam realized now that he must have missed something very important.. “what trial?”

ms. beaumont gave him a rather puzzled look,, but proceeded to patiently explain it all to him again,, realizing this was a lot for anyone to grasp,, especially a seven year old boy..

“well, the court has decided that it has enough evidence against you to proceed with a juvenile hearing in order to determine whether or not it was you that put the oleander in the mayonnaise. the oleander that sickened your mother, your….”

“i did it!! i did it!!” adam cried out.. 

“but i never meant to hurt my mom!! did i hurt my mom?? i gotta know!!”

“i am afraid i cannot answer that at this time.. that is for the court to decide.. my primary duty here is to see that you are kept safe and are well taken care of while the court proceedings are under way..” ms. beaumont stated.

adam buried his face in his pillow to muffle his sobs..

ms. beaumont reached out and gently stroked his hair..

“now, now,, everything is gonna be alright. we’ll get thru this together..” she whispered as she tried comforting him..  

“no it’s not.” sobbed adam..

“nothing is ever gonna be alright again!”

ms. beaumont took a seat at the side of adam’s bed.. she sat in silence,, as adam cried out all of his guilt and frustrations.. although she wished there was something she could do for the boy,, she knew in her heart that there wasn’t... adam’s  little world was about to be changed forever,, and he was right,, nothing would ever be alright again..

***

john stopped by the house,, to let lisa pick up her car.. he would follow her over to her apartment,, and there they would wait for erik’s bus.. a thick silence permeated the car as he and elliot drove to lisa's.. he wanted to just spill it all out to elliot.. he wanted to let him know that he had his best interests at heart.. that he really believed the four of them could become a real family.. the kind of family elliot had never had,, but surely the kind of family every little boy would want.. but instead,, he allowed the silence to carry them all the way to lisa’s apartment.. 

‘better wait,’ john thought to himself..  better wait till he had lisa by his side,, and together they would do their best to ease the two boys into their plans.. 

johns heart skipped a beat as the thought of having lisa beside him rushed over him like a breath of fresh air.. sure,, there was still trudy to contend with,, but even that paled in comparison to the joy he knew lisa would bring to this life.. 

as they pulled up into the visitor parking at lisa’s complex,, the bus was just pulling up.. john and elliot sat in silence,, as lisa approached erik and evidently explained to him they were going out to eat with john and elliot.. john couldn’t help but wonder how erik was gonna take the news.. 

as a less than enthusiastic erik approached the car,, a flush of confusion washed over john.. he knew this was the right step for him,, and for lisa.. but suppose they couldn’t convince the boys.. suppose…

‘no!’ john admonished himself. ‘it’s gonna work out.. it has to work out..’

with that, lisa opened the door to the car. “you guys remember my son erik, right?? erik,, this is john,, and that little guy in the back is elliot. i have a feeling you two are gonna become great friends!” she said as she settled into the front seat and erik stiffly sat down in the back.. 

a glance passed between him and elliot.. neither spoke,, but it was evident they were sizing each other up.. 

“alrighty then!!” john exclaimed, “let’s get this party started!!” he reached over and squeezed lisa’s hand,, as he pulled the car out of the parking lot.. the feel of her flesh against his gave him all the courage he needed.. touching  lisa made him feel like a man.. something trudy had stolen from him,, or maybe he had sold it to her in exchange for some amazing sex.. 

either way,, it didn’t matter anymore.. that chapter of his life was quickly coming to  close.. he was ready to move on,, ready to be happy,, and more than anything he was bound and determined to take elliot with him.. 

as they turned into the parking lot of the steak and shake,, elliot broke the painful silence between the two boys.

“i’m gettin’ a shake and some fries.. what are you gettin’?”


Thursday, July 26, 2012

Chapter 84

word count 1323

Elliot watched the cop in front of Adam's room like a hawk. He had to get in there somehow. He had to explain to his friend what had happened, how the oleander had hurt his mother and the housekeeper, in addition to his dad who was the only intended target, apparently.

"Elliot, why don't we go to the cafeteria and get something to eat," John said. He and Lisa stood nearby, ready to go. "Adam is not allowed to have visitors, so we may as well go there rather than have wasted a trip entirely."

With a sullen expression, Elliot followed them to the elevator. When they arrived on the lower level, he got an idea.

"I gotta go to the bathroom."

"Okay, son. You go ahead, and we'll wait for you here. I think I saw one down the hall." John smiled.

Elliot took off like a bullet. Once out of sight, he ran back to the elevators. Skittish, he waited for it, looking behind him to make sure the coast was still clear. When he finally got on board the conveyance, he sighed in relief.

When the doors opened on Elliot's floor, he dashed down the hallway, peeking into rooms as he went along. He didn't see what he was looking for. Arriving at the nurse's station, he got lucky. Just what he wanted! Creeping over, he reached up on his toes and grabbed a vase of flowers that sat waiting to be delivered, sunny yellow daisies with a card attached, tied with a gold ribbon. It was nice, but sacrifices had to be made. The little boy glanced over to spy the guard resolutely on duty. Next, Elliot raced with the vase a good distance down the hall and around a corner. Once he arrived out of sight of the guard, he lifted the vase up high and smashed it to the ground with all his strength. Then he took off, rounded the corner to go back, slowing when he got into view of the nurses and guard to act like he was as startled by the racket as anyone. The guard was already on route to the disturbance at full gallop. Elliot took off toward Adam's room and slipped in the now-unguarded doorway.

Adam was awake and surprised to see his friend. He was about to cry out when Elliot motioned to be quiet. He crept up to be out of view from the doorway.

"Dude, I snuck in. You're not allowed visitors. I had to talk to you!" Elliot whispered the words.

Adam nodded.

Elliot continued, knowing full well he didn't have time to waste. "Your dad got sick from the oleander, but dude! Your mom and the housekeeper did, too. I got a feeling nobody's told you that, and you need to know! I know it was an accident, dude! I'll help explain that to them if you want me to. I know they're gonna be asking you questions."

The alarm on Adam's face worried Elliot. He was right to assume Adam didn't know about his mom or Mrs. Dunn getting sick from the poison. But now, Elliot needed to get out of there, and he knew he was leaving his friend in a bad state of mind.

"Look, dude! No one's gonna blame you! You're just a little kid."

"I didn't know anyone else was gonna use the mayo," Adam whispered. His voice was weak and hoarse. Tears spilled from his eyes. "Did I kill my mother? Dude, did I kill my mom?"

Elliot saw the panic. He didn't know what to do. "No, dude! She had cancer. She mighta got a little sick, that's all. It didn't kill her. The same with the housekeeper. She just got a little sick. Don't worry. Please, don't worry. Now I gotta get out of here before the cop comes back."

Adam nodded. He seemed better after listening to Elliot.

Elliot nodded back. "I'll see you later, dude!" He took a deep breath and ran for the door. Still clear, he dashed to the hallway until he came to the elevator. He dashed in and pushed the button to go to the cafeteria.

If he was lucky, no one would be the wiser about his visit with Adam.

***

At Buzz's house, things were unraveling. Trudy emerged from Buzz's room clean, dressed, and polished only to run into a furious Mrs. Dunn.

"Miss, how dare you wear Mrs. Miller's clothes? God rest her soul."

"It's okay. Buzz told me I could. Watcha' got to eat in this dump? I'm starved." Trudy paused in front of the hallway mirror to check her hair.

"Really, miss. How can I know that Detective Miller said you could wear his dear wife's clothes."

"Because I call him, 'Buzz'-- and you call him, 'Detective Miller'-- ya get the difference. Buzz and me are friends...whoa, way more than friends. You, on the other hand, are his employee, his little tinker toy unimportant employee! Now get outta my way so I can go to the kitchen."

"There is no way I'm letting you in MY kitchen. It is my domain, and you certainly are not welcome in it." Mrs. Dunn stood her ground, hands on hips, blocking Trudy's path.

"IS THAT RIGHT?"

"It most certainly is." The housekeeper stood tall, feeling and looking superior.

Trudy pulled out her paisley flask and took a long drink, capping it and placing it back in her pocket. "Oookay," she said. "If that's how ya want to play it."

Pausing to gather her thoughts, such as they were, she looked up, growled and launched. "I'm hungry, and I'm going to Buzz's kitchen, which incidentally, isn't YOUR kitchen. And in that kitchen, BUZZ's kitchen, I'm gonna get a snack whether you like it or not. Any questions!"

"No questions, but also no admittance!"

"You're starting to make me mad, ya know! Ya don't want to do that!" Trudy's face flushed, and her foot tapped in a nervous rhythm.

"No admittance!"

"Okay, lady, you asked for it!" Trudy pulled back her right arm to launch a fist toward Mrs. Dunn's face.

"TRUDY!" Buzz arrived to save the day."What the hell are you doing? Stop right there!"

"Buzz, hon! I was just tryin' to go to the kitchen and get a snack, and this bitch wouldn't let me. You tell her, hon! Okay, you tell her! I've got as much right to a snack as anybody!"

Buzz looked from Trudy, red-faced and disheveled, to Mrs. Dunn, whose glaring stare could stop a regiment of Russian soldiers. He cleared his throat in a nervous, little cough.

"Trudy, around here Mrs. Dunn does rule the kitchen. We all stay out of it. Things are just the way she likes it in there. When we want to snack, we ask her to get us one. And she is happy to do it."

Mrs. Dunn's expression danced with triumph. Trudy stood in utter shock. "Ya mean she's right?"

"Yes." Buzz exhaled in relief, crisis averted...hopefully.

"Now, miss, since Detective Miller has approved you, if you would tell me what you'd like, I'd gladly get it for you."

"A ham sandwich." Trudy lifted both hands up in defeat as she said it. "With lots of mayo...er, make that mustard!"

"It's okay, miss! I've been shopping. All the food is fresh and replaced now." Not that the thought didn't cross Mrs. Dunn's mind about giving Trudy some of that laced mayo. But that would be undignified.

"Trudy, what's that you're wearing?" Buzz asked, his eyes traveling from her head to her toes.

"I got these from Jeannie's closet, like you said I could." She said the words in a defensive way. Trudy didn't need any more static today. "They're a little conservative, but hey, they're nice clothes!"

"Yeah," Buzz mused, stroking his chin in a thoughtful manner. "You look pretty, Trudy. You look nice."





Wednesday, July 25, 2012

chapter 83


word count: 1494

brushing past mrs. dunn,, without further ado,, trudy made a beeline straight for buzzes bedroom.. she was soaked,, and had no intention of letting buzz see her in this condition.. 

“excuse me, miss, er, mrs, whatever your name is, “ started mrs. dunn. “when i said you could come in i meant you could step inside,, take a seat and wait for mr. miller.. i did not give you permission to rampage through the house!!”

“i don’t need your permission.. buzz said i could have a shower and help myself to jeannies clothes.” trudy said obstinately in reply.. 

“i will have to demand you take a seat at the kitchen table and wait for mr. miller..  i was not instructed to allow you access to anything in the house that does not belong to you,, and as far as i know,, nothing here belongs to you.. now come back out here and take a seat!!!” mrs. dunn demanded in her most authoritative voice.

“fuck off!” trudy responded as she closed and locked the bedroom door behind her.. ‘who the hell does she think she is telling me what i can and cannot do??’ she thought to herself as she helped herself to a generous slug off her paisley flask.

with that, trudy entered the walk in closet,, and chose a pair of black slacks and a polka dotted chiffon blouse,, with cute puffy sleeves.. she found a pair of black patent leather heels that would do nicely,, and then proceeded to ransack jeannie’s underwear drawer for some hose and a suitable camisole,, as none of jeannie’s teeny weenie brassieres would contain even  half of her voluptuous breast.. 

she proceeded to the bath,, where she ran a good hot stream of water before entering the shower.. humming, ‘how do you like me now’ by toby keith,, she luxuriated in the hot steamy hot water until  it began to run cool.. 

meanwhile,, mrs. dunn had placed a call to buzz miller.. 

“there’s a woman here,,  a woman who failed to identify herself by name,, saying only that she was a friend of yours.. i took pity on her and let her in out of the rain,, and now she has gone and locked herself in your bedroom,, and i can hear her taking a shower!!! this is most unacceptable mr. miller!!”

“huh!!” buzz let out an audible sigh of dismay.. “it’s trudy, trudy hunt.. don’t let her get under your skin.. in fact stay away from he as much as you can,, she can be rather abrasive,, but believe it or not she means well..” buzz tried to comfort mrs. dunn by relieving her of the guilt of having let trudy in the house to begin with.. 

“i’ll be home as soon as i can,, and take care of her.. in the meantime,, just stay out of her way,, would be my suggestion,, she can be a little tornado if she feels backed into a corner.”

“mr. miller,, i have been assigned to take care of this home,, of you,, and of little adam.. i cannot condone this woman’s behavior,, nor do i plan to stand by and allow her to walk all over me.. if you wish her to be here,, i must insist you return home immediately and take charge of her!!” mrs. dunn concluded in a very serious tone.. 

“alright,, i am at the station house.. i have to meet with a couple of officers and answer some questions about adam’s most recent behaviors,, i cannot tell you how long i will be,, but i will assure you i will be there as soon as i can break away..”

“questions about adam?? what on earth!!! the poor boy has been through enough.. he's not with you?? where is adam while yopu are at the precinct house answering questions?? what on earth is going on here??” demanded mrs. dunn..

“it’s a long story, mrs. dunn,, much longer than i care to get into over the phone,, as i said,, i will be there just as soon as i can.. just leave trudy be till i get there,, and then i will explain it as best i can.. i promise..” buzz stated hoping it would put the matter to rest until he got out of here and was able to make it back home.. 

“none of this is acceptable, mr. miller.. none of it.. if you intend for me to be able to perform my intended duties…”

“mrs. dunn,, i have to go.. the sooner i get this over with the sooner i can get home and hopefully make some sense out of all of this..” with that buzz tapped the screen on his cell and disconnected the call..  

“detective miller?” a uniform, unfamiliar to buzz was calling out his name.

“right here!”

“we are ready for you now.. if you will just follow me.”

buzz followed the unidentified uniform to an interrogation room.. this was to be his first of many times that buzz found himself on the wrong side of the interrogation table..

***

as john, lisa and elliot approached adam's hospital room, they were more than just a little bit surprised to see an armed police guard just outside the door.. 

“good afternoon officer,,” john greeted him in a most amicable fashion.. “may i introduce myself…”

“i’m sorry sir,, adam miller is under protective custody,, and is not receiving visitors.” the officer admonished him in a tone that left little room for question.

“what’s going on?” john queried, “this is my son elliot,, adams best friend, he just wanted to…”

“when i said no visitors,, i meant no visitors..” the officer informed him.. 

“but i wanna see adam,, he needs me!!” elliot piped up,, seemingly not at all put off by the presence of  the officer.. 

“i am afraid that will have to wait until our investigation is completed, young man.” the officer addressed elliot directly.. 

“but you don’t understand!!” elliot continued,, looking back and forth between john and lisa for some kind of backup.. 

“you heard the officer elliot.. adam is not allowed any visitors right now..” john tried to console him..

“why don’t we take a seat in the waiting room.. maybe lisa could call her dad and see if we could get some special permission in this case. lisa?”

“sure, “ replied lisa. “let me give daddy a call and see what is going on.”

john lead the way as lisa and elliot followed him to the waiting room.. 

lisa placed a call to hank.

“daddy, lisa.. john and i have elliot here at the hospital.. he wants to see adam,, and there is some uniform at the door informing us that adam is under protective custody?? what gives??”

her face went very solemn as she listened carefully to hanks reply.

“ok.. .. yeah,, ok.. i don’t know what to think,, but i will handle it on this end.. “ lisa spoke in whispered tones.. 

“sure.. ok.. i love you too, dad.” she said before she clicked off the call and turned to john.. 

“i need to speak to you.. in private.” she said, as she gave a sorrowful look at elliot. 

“this will only take a minute el.. “ she tried to assure him as she led john off into the hallway by the hand. 

“what the hell is going on?” john asked her as soon as they were what they deemed safely out of earshot.. 

“oh my god,,” lisa started, “you’re not going to believe this.. i don’t even believe it.. “

“what??” john asked..

“it seems as though adam is the only one in the household that did not test positive for oleander poisoning.. you know,, the poison that killed jeannie?? and well,, i guess,, based on that,, he is being treated as a person of interest,, in other words,, they suspect him of poisoning not only his mom,, but his dad,, and the housekeeper too!!”

“no way!!” exclaimed john. “they have to be mistaken!! sure he is a bit disgruntled,, but this?? poisoning his whole family?? no way.. i know adam well enough to know he is not capable of such a thing.. “

“i’m in shock.. “ stated lisa.. “i just don’t know what to think…”

john wrapped his arm around lisa,, and the two stood there embracing as elliot silently returned to his chair on the far side of the waiting room.. he had heard the entire conversation.. 

it was all beginning to fall into place.. adam,, the oleander bush by the bus stop,, adams little dead dog, tiny.. elliot knew how much adam hated his dad.. but how could he have done this to his mother?? did he even know that was how she had died?? 

elliot thought not.. but he also thought the news would be best coming from him..

he had to get into see adam.. somehow.. someway.. he had to warn him.. 

the question at this point was just,, how??