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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..
Well done! I hope to hell...I mean heck, Trudy makes it!
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