Back to Salem

by Alex Marcoux

  People started moving to the theatre. “Are you nervous about the movie?” Jessie asked.

  “No. Not even a little. Do you think I should be?”

  “No. I think you’re going to be great.”

  Fanfare announced that the movie would be starting, and Jessie and Taylor moved into the theatre. Travis quickly seized Taylor’s hand and stole her from Jessie, who admired Taylor as she watched her take her place in the center of the theatre, beside Travis. On her other side, Mark took his seat. Travis was sandwiched between Taylor and Jennifer Kendrick.

  Jessie watched the movie among the other crew members. Although she had written the book and the screenplay, it was the movie that hit her like a ton of bricks. It was then she realized that many of the incidents in the story of Deceptions had happened to her over the last year. She had never noticed it before.

  As the movie came to the end, whistling and applause erupted from the audience. The lights came on and, as expected, Travis stood and took a bow. Then he turned the attention to the two leading ladies, Taylor and Jennifer. The women stood, and the applause increased. Jessie watched Taylor admiringly, as people congratulated her on her performance.

  After the movie, the cast and crew moved out of the theatre and into their cars and limos that awaited them. Jessie ran into Taylor in the lobby briefly. “Congratulations, Taylor. You did very well.”

  “She did, didn’t she?” Travis agreed.

  Taylor was rushed off with Travis for a follow-up interview with the ET people. Jessie watched the activity, and then decided to get her car. The valet brought the Lexus to Jessie. Rather than rushing off to the party over at L’Orangerie, Jessie decided to wait for Taylor’s limo to leave.

  She drove around the block then swung back, finding a parking spot across the street from the theatre. She parked behind a dark green Buick. As she waited for Taylor’s limo to leave, she thought about the similarities between events in her own life and the subplots of the movie. Coincidences?She pondered.

  “I thought there was no such thing as a coincidence?” that little voice asked.

  Jessie ignored the voice.

  The majority of the gang had left for the party. Jessie saw through the windows of the theatre foyer that Taylor, Mark and Travis were the last. Jennifer and her husband apparently caught another ride over to the party. The three came outside and got into the limo, and the vehicle finally crept into the street.

  Jessie started her car, but just as she was about to move, the green Buick that had been parked in front of her pulled out. She pulled out behind the Buick. After the limo made three turns, Jessie realized that the Buick was following the limo also. Who the hell is that? Jessie wondered.

  Jessie reached for her phone and pushed the speed dial.

  In the limo, Mark, Travis and Taylor were celebrating with champagne when Taylor’s phone rang. Taylor removed the phone from her purse. “Hello.”

  “Did I tell you how hot you look tonight?” Jessie asked.

  Taylor smiled. “No you hadn’t. Is that why you’re calling?”

  “A-huh. I can’t wait for this party to be over.”

  “I hear you.”

  “Taylor, could you put Mark on?”

  “Mark?”

  “Please?”

  “See you soon,” Taylor said then handed the phone to Mark. “It’s for you.”

  “Hello?”

  “Mark, it’s Jessie. Please don’t get Taylor concerned…but you’re being tailed.”

  “Tailed?”

  “A green Buick has been following the limo since the theatre.”

  “How do you know this?”

  “I’m following it.”

  Mark glanced out the back window and saw a green car behind them. “I think you’re overreacting.”

  “Tell the driver to make the next left-hand turn,” Jessie said.

  “I don’t think that’s necessary, Jessie.”

  “Just do it. Please?”

  “Travis, would you open the window to the driver so I can talk with him?”

  Travis was facing Taylor and Mark; his back was to the driver. Now both Travis and Taylor were curious, and Travis complied.

  “Driver, would you make your next left?” Mark asked.

  The limo moved to the left lane and turned at the light. Mark looked out the rear of the limo and saw the green car follow. “You’re right, Jessie.”

  “We’re being followed?” Taylor snatched the phone from Mark’s hand.

  “Jessie, where are you?”

  “I’m behind the car that’s following you. Taylor, put Mark back on. Please.”

  “Be careful,” Taylor handed the phone back to Mark.

  “I’m here,” Mark said.

  “With your phone, call the police and tell them you’re being followed. Keep a line open with them advising your location. Let’s get the cops here. This might be the lunatic that’s been harassing Taylor. Give this phone to Travis.”

  Mark complied and handed the phone to Travis.

  “Jessie? What’s going on?”

  “Travis, do you see the green car behind the limo?”

  “Yes.”

  “He’s following the limo. Do you know why anyone would be following you?”

  “No.”

  “Travis, I’d like to get the limo to a safe place where we can bring the police in and get this guy. It’s probably the guy that’s been harassing Taylor. Understand?”

  “Yes.”

  “There’s a strip mall on the right-hand side about a mile up. There’s a convenience store there. Tell the driver to go into the plaza and go to the convenience store.”

  Travis turned around and talked to the driver. “Driver, what’s your name?”

  “Jimmy,” the young man answered.

  “Jimmy, there’s a strip mall up here on the right. We’re going to a make a stop at the convenience store there.”

  The driver complied and the green car followed them into the turning lane.

  “Travis?” Jessie asked.

  “Yeah.”

  “Do you have paper and a pen?”

  Travis grabbed a pen and pad from a pocket. “I do.”

  “Give this license number to the cops. It’s a California plate MDR3476. That’s mother daughter randy 3476. It’s a Buick Century, maybe a year old. Do you know if Mark has talked to the police?”

  “I believe he has.”

  Jessie could hear Travis and Mark speak briefly, then Travis returned to Jessie. “He has them on the line now. They say they should be here any minute.”

  “Have Mark tell the police our plans.” Jessie pulled her car out from behind the Buick and proceeded to pass the car. “The driver of the car has his elbow on the window and his hand is on his head. I can’t see his face. He’s got dark hair. I think it’s a man.”

  “Why are you passing him?” Travis asked.

  Taylor looked out the window and could see Jessie’s Lexus coming up on the left hand side of the car.

  “I don’t want to spook him. There’s another entrance down the road. I’m going ahead of you. I’ll meet you by the convenience store. Remember to just pull up to the front of the store.” Jessie looked at the clock. It was after nine. Up until now, there had been sufficient light, but the dark was settling in.

  As Jessie passed the limo, she looked into the dark tinted windows but could not see Taylor’s face or her hands pressed against the rear window glass.

  “Travis?” Jessie said.

  “Yeah?”

  “I’m going to be out of your sight for a few minutes. Keep telling me everything that happens.”

  “Okay.” Seconds later Travis said, “The limo just turned into the parking lot.”

  “And the Buick?”

  “He hasn’t come in yet. Oh, here he comes. We see the convenience store. We’re heading over there.”

  “I’m just getting off the road now.” Jessie pulled into the main entrance of a theatre parking lot. The lot was f
ull. She headed back in the direction of the convenience store. It unnerved her that she couldn’t see the limo. “How’s it going?”

  “We’re almost at the store. We’re pulling right up to the door.”

  “Great. Do you know where he is?”

  “Last I saw he was driving two rows over. But now I can’t see him.”

  Jessie was within sight of the store, and saw the limo parked in front. “Travis, go into the store and buy something. Keep the phone with you. See if you can find out where he went.”

  Travis opened the car door, walked around the vehicle and went into the store. He stood in front of a magazine rack up against the window, pretending to look at magazines while searching for the Buick. “Jessie, I still can’t see him. There are three rows of cars. Last I saw he was driving in the second row.”

  Before reaching the convenience store, Jessie turned into the lot, making her way to the third row. The Buick wasn’t there. She turned into the second row and combed the cars. “Travis, I can’t see…one minute.” Jessie put the phone down on her lap. The Buick was parked facing the convenience store. Jessie saw a man’s head through the rear window. A parking spot was open across the row, a couple cars down from the suspect’s car. Jessie drove past the spot, then backed into the parking space. She cracked the front windows and did not hear the Buick’s engine idling.

  Jessie picked up the phone. “Do you see me?” she whispered.

  “Yeah. You just pulled into a spot in the second row.”

  “The Buick is across from me. It looks like he’s sitting behind a light-colored SUV.”

  “There’s a white Grand Cherokee in the front row, about ten feet from the limo,” Travis said, and as he did, he saw flashing lights from the police cars. Two cars entered from the main entrance.

  Jessie saw the flashing lights heading toward the convenience store. “Shit. This is going to spook him,” she told Travis. One of the patrol cars pulled up in front of the limo. Travis came from the store and went to the patrol car.

  Jessie heard a car engine start, and the Buick abruptly backed out of his spot. Jessie quickly pulled the Lexus forward blocking the Buick from getting by her. With the Lexus blocking his escape, the driver of the Buick put the car in reverse and floored it. But another patrol car blocked his getaway.

  “I think we got him.” Jessie took her seat belt off. From fifty feet away, she watched two officers approach the Buick from behind, their guns drawn and pointed at the car. The officers shouted something to the driver but, perhaps feeling like a caged animal, the driver floored the accelerator. The tires squealed, leaving rubber on the asphalt and headed toward the Lexus. It all happened so fast. From the passenger-side window, she watched the Buick heading right toward her.

  “Shit,” Jessie yelled. She jerked the gear into reverse and just as she started to move the Buick rammed the front section of the Lexus, dragging the car until it came to a standstill. Jessie’s head hit the steering wheel hard. She tried to focus her eyes, but the images were distorted, and she started to hear rising voices.

  “Get out of the car slowly,” a man yelled. “Place your hands over your head.”

  Is he talking to me? Jessie wondered.

  “No, just relax,” her little voice comforted her.

  Jessie tried to open her eyes, but her vision was still blurry. With her hand, she explored the left side of her head, where her pain originated. She felt the torn tissue on her forehead and blood running down the side of her face.

  “Miss, can you hear me?” an unfamiliar voice called to her from outside her window. “Hey, we need an ambulance over here.” To Jessie, the voices faded away.

  Taylor ran to the scene of the accident. The police had removed a young man from the Buick, cuffed him and placed him in a patrol car. Taylor’s heart skipped a beat when she saw the crushed front of Jessie’s car and a police officer trying to break into it.

  “Jessie?” Taylor became frightened when she saw her. The side of her head was coated in blood. She was motionless as she leaned over the steering wheel.

  Taylor turned to Mark and Travis, who were watching the scene unfold. “Mark, my purse. Quick. I have keys.”

  Mark ran to the limo and returned quickly to Taylor, purse in hand.

  Taylor removed the keys and clicked the keyless entry twice, enabling all the doors to open. The police officer opened the driver’s door while Taylor ran to the passenger’s door.

  Taylor climbed into the car and pulled Jessie’s hair away from her face, exposing the cut on her forehead. “Jessie?” Taylor whispered.

  There was no response.

  “Jessie, can you hear me? Babe, you’ve got to wake up.”

  “The ambulance should be here any minute,” an officer said.

  “Jessie? Please say something?”

  Her word was barely discernable. “Headache.”

  “Jessie, what did you say?”

  “I have a headache,” she whispered.

  A smile came to Taylor’s lips. “Honey, are you hurt anyplace else?”

  “No.” Jessie tried to sit up but quickly returned her head to the steering wheel. She opened her eyes. Although her vision was blurry, she could make out Taylor. A smile came to her lips. “Have I told you how hot you look tonight?” she whispered.

  “I’m glad to see you haven’t lost your sense of humor.”

  “Did they get him?”

  Taylor nodded. “Yeah. They got him, Jess.”

  “The ambulance is here,” a police officer interrupted.

  The medics quickly slipped a neck brace on Jessie and lifted her from the crumpled car onto a gurney. Jessie groaned as they moved her, but wanted to know about the car. “How bad is it?” she asked, waving her arm toward her car.

  “It’s bad enough,” said the medic, “but it can be fixed. You just lie still.”

  “I’ve always liked this car,” Jessie whispered.

  Taylor took one of Jessie’s hands, “It’s just a car, Jessie.”

  Travis and Mark approached. “Are you okay, Jessie?” Travis asked.

  Jessie’s eyes focused on the men. “I’m fine.”

  “We’ll be the judge of that,” said one of the medics. “We’re going to transport you to Good Samaritan.”

  “Is that necessary?” Jessie asked.

  “Absolutely,” Taylor chorused with the medic.

  Jessie was moved into the ambulance.

  Taylor went to Travis and Mark. “I’m going to the hospital with Jessie.”

  “I understand,” Travis said.

  While Jessie waited to have her forehead stitched up, the police questioned her about the evening’s events. Shortly after, Taylor ran into Mark and Travis outside the examination room.

  “What are you guys doing here? I thought you went on to the party.”

  “We wanted to make sure Jessie is okay,” Mark said. He held up a purse. “In all the commotion, this was left in the Lexus.”

  Taylor took her purse. “Thank you, Mark. I think she’s going to be fine. She’s already trying to convince the doctors that it’s only a scratch and she should be released. Why don’t you go in and say ‘hi.’”

  “I think I’ll do that.” Mark left Travis and Taylor alone.

  Travis smiled. “Are you okay?”

  “Yes. Why do you ask?”

  “I guess I couldn’t help but notice your genuine concern for Jessie’s well being.”

  “Well, of course I’m concerned.”

  “Along with…the fact that you had Jessie’s car keys in your purse.” Travis’s eyes were inquisitive.

  “Travis, if you have something to say…say it!”

  “Do you want to tell me, Taylor?”

  “Not really, Travis. It’s nobody’s business but our own. But…yes, Jessie and I are lovers.”

  “I knew it. From the first time you read for the role with Jessie, I knew it. Did Kurk know?”

  “Travis, sorry to burst your bubble, but we started seeing
each other in February, after Kurk passed away. Do you think you can keep this to yourself?”

  Travis studied Taylor in silence, and then a smiled curled on his lips. “So…you like girls.”

  “Oh, I give up,” Taylor said in frustration.

  Chapter 21

  The following morning, Jessie stared at her reflection in the mirror. The sutures were near the hairline on her forehead, which was black and blue from the impact. With a cool facecloth, she washed her face studying her blood-shot eyes. She was tired. Neither she nor Taylor got much sleep when they returned from the hospital. Because of the concussion, Taylor had wakened her every couple hours.

  “Good morning,” Taylor said. She walked up behind Jessie and wrapped her arms around Jessie’s waist, resting her chin on Jessie’s shoulder. They stared at each other in the mirror.

  “Good morning, sweetheart.”

  “How does it look?” Taylor asked.

  Jessie lifted the hair away from her forehead, exposing the sutures. Taylor studied the reflection of her forehead, released Jessie’s waist and turned her so she could see the injury better. Jessie leaned her head forward.

  “It looks sore,” Taylor said.

  “It’s fine.”

  Taylor placed her lips on Jessie’s, and they kissed. “You’re lucky you weren’t killed. I have breakfast out on the deck.”

  “Great. I’ll be out in a couple minutes.”

  Jessie always enjoyed her breakfast overlooking the ocean. They sat next to each other chatting about events from the previous evening. “Did you speak with the police about the man they caught?”

  “You mean the kid they caught?”

  “What do you mean kid?”

  “The kid from the Buick? I guess you didn’t see him. Jessie, he was a kid. Maybe 18, and that’s probably pushing it.”

  “The driver of the Buick was a kid?”

  “Yeah.”

  Jessie stared at Taylor in disbelief. “I can’t imagine a kid pulling it off. Now I’m curious if he’s the one that’s been harassing you.”

  “The police suggested that we touch base with them today.”

  “Let’s go down to the station this afternoon; I want to find out what happened to my car.”

  “Okay, then do you want to go to Taggart’s for an early dinner?”