chapter 137

word count: 1469

trudy shifted on the other foot and took a deep breath. "well, i've made my decision," she said. "i'm..."

“i’m going to go home with the sisters,, i mean,, well that is,, if they’ll have me..” she said with a sheepish smile,, and a lowering of the eyes.. 

“well, i..” started buzz,, but he was cut off by a roaring chorus of “hallelujahs!!” coming from the sisters as they both wrapped their arms around trudy and cuddled in close.. 

trudy joined whole heartedly in the hug,, but kept one eye trained on buzz so as to rate his reaction.  by the look on his face,, she could tell he was dumbfounded. 

“well, if you..” buzz stammered,, quite taken aback by trudy’s proclamation.. “if that is what you truly want.. well i guess all  can say,, is i’ll be waiting for you when you’re ready to come home..”

he couldn’t believe what he had just said,, i mean in front of his fellow officers no less.. had he actually told trudy she had a home to come to?? ‘oh my god”, his mind drifted back to mrs. dunn.. ‘how am i ever going to explain this one,, and while she is recuperating in the hospital as well?’

“oh. buzz!!” trudy cried out as she broke away from the sisters and ran across the parking lot falling head long into his open arms.. 

“oh buzz, do ya mean it?? i mean for real?? do you mean it?”

buzz pulled her close.. she felt strangely like  child in his arms as opposed to the sequined dynamite he was used to feeling when he wrapped his arms around her.. 

“yes.. yes i think i do.. no, i'm sure i do!!” he whispered in her ear,, and squeezed her even tighter. 

“but what about that crazy house keeper,, i mean mrs. dunn?? she hates me.. she will never let me back in that house without a fight.." trudy took a step back so she could look buzz in the eye..

“well,, ya see, that is just one of the reasons you going home with the sisters will work out even better for me,, i mean,, for us.” buzz paused as he looked trudy straight in the eye, and if his eyes were not deceiving him he could have sworn he saw a flash of red,, but just a flash,, not the usual fireworks he was expecting..

he paused for a minute to see if trudy was gonna throw a fit,, throw a tantrum in her own defense.. but, no.. there was just that momentary flash,, and buzz could easily just have read that into it based on past experience.. 

“trudy, mrs. dunn is in the hospital.."

“oh my god!!” trudy exclaimed in a tone of genuine concern.. “what the hell,, i mean heck,, happened?? is she alright??” 

even trudy couldn’t believe her response,, just a few weeks ago, mrs. dunns being out of the house,, even if it was because she was in the hospital would have been reason to rejoice in trudy’s old world.. 

“well you see,, an old nemesis of mine,, a guy by the name of joe tobin,, well he and a couple of his thugs broke into the house.. they subdued mrs. dunn with the butt of a gun,, and tied her up in the kitchen.. they thought they had pulled the wool over my eyes,, but when they came for me,, i was ready..”

“oh my god!! that must be the guy!! the guy you shot in your living room! i saw it in the paper!!” trudy let go of buzz and took a step back.. 

“yes,, that was the guy.. they put quite a hurting on mrs. dunn before i was able to subdue them.. and the truth is,, well trudy,, don’t take this the wrong way,, but i have to get back to the hospital.. i have to make sure mrs. dunn is gonna be ok.. you see,, if it wasn’t for her being in my employ,, this ass,, i mean this guy,, would have never gone after her the way  he did.. he was dead set on hurting anything that was close to me,, dead set on getting his revenge..”

“hey buzz,, just for curiosities sake, what does this guy look like,  this joe tobin guy??” 

trudy had suddenly begun to wonder if he might not have been her attacker as well,, after all,, it was pretty common knowledge that she and buzz had the hots for each other.. 

“uh,, well,, maybe six foot,, large build,, black hair,, you know that slicked back mob style hair??”

“trudy burst into tears.. “that’s him.. that’s the guy,, the guy that offered me the ride when i got released,, and had nowhere to go!! the guy that shot me!!” 

“shot you??” this was the first buzz had heard about trudy getting shot.. “shot you?? how the hell,, i mean heck,, did that happen??”

trudy lifted the sleeve on her sisterly frock to show him where the sisters had bandaged her arm..

“it was my fault!!” trudy continued to cry, “it was all my fault!! i shoulda never…”

buzz grabbed on to trudy and pulled her in close.. “no baby,, it was not your fault..”  he said as he gently stroked her hair.. 

“he targeted you,, because he evidently put two and two together,, and thought he could use you as leverage against me,, just like he used mrs. dunn.. it’s not your fault.. it’s not your fault..” he continued to whisper in trudy’s ear as he held her close.. 

“but i..” trudy started,, but was unable to finish her confession through her tears.. 

“no matter what you would have done,, don’t you see?? it wouldn’t have mattered.. he had it in for you.. he would have found a way.."

buzz held trudy until her tears subsided,, and the lump that had formed in his own throat subsided.. 

he squeezed her tight,, and then let her go.. 

“you go.. you go home with the sisters where i know you will be safe."“  he said as he wiped the tears from her fiery red cheeks,, and brushed back a wisp of her undone,, and yet ever so much more beautiful free flowing hair.. 

“you go do what you have to do for you.. i have to get back to the hospital.. when i left her,, mrs dunn was still out like a light.. i need to be there.. i need to talk to her when she comes to. joe tobin may be gone,, but i got two other scumbags that need to be put behind bars for a good long time.. and i need mrs. dunns testimony to be able to do that..”

“go gettem’!!” trudy exclaimed..  “and don’t you worry about me,, i’m gonna be just fine.. you just go do what you do best buzz!! you go get the bad guys!!” trudy said her heart bursting with pride.. she was so thrilled to see buzz,, the real buzz, the buzz she had fallen head over heels for in the past,, back on the job!!

“we will take excellent care of her detective.. you can be sure of that!” sister ruth assured buzz.. 

“yes we will” said a beaming sister esther,, “and when you’re ready,, and well when trudy is ready,, god will see to it that the three of you are amicably reunited.."

trudy gave buzz one last squeeze,, and then released him.. she knew he had work to do.. she knew how important it was that he get back to mrs. dunn.. for all she knew, buzz was all she had too.. 

“i’ll be back!!” buzz called out to trudy as she rejoined the sisters and the three of them locked arms as a symbol of their solidarity.. 

“and trudy!!” he yelled across the parking lot as he opened the door to the squad car, “you can take that one to the bank!”

trudy smiled and waved..  she knew in her heart now that buzz did love her..  and she was really gonna try,, no she was really gonna do it.. she was going to recreate herself,, with a lot of help from the sisters that is,, and when buzz did come back for her,, she would be the woman that he truly deserved..

the sisters beamed with a sense of real accomplishment as the three of them made their way back to the convent..

and trudy beamed too.. but hers was a different kind of glow.. it came from her heart,, and from the knowledge that despite all she had been,, in the end she had won buzz’s love.. 

trudy and the sisters scampered back to the cloister like a trio of school girls,, tittering with joy,, and  a genuine belief that the best was yet to come..