Shona Jackson- The Complete Trilogy

by Vicky Jones

  “I’m sick of this,” Lula said, as she swept up glass off the floorboards. “There’s gotta be somethin’ we can do. Everett wasn’t perfect, but while he’s out of town Lawrence and his cronies are makin’ our lives a misery. It ain’t legal what they just did, Bert.” She wiped her brow with her checked shirt sleeve, her eyes blazing. “We’re just sittin’ ducks right now.”

  “I know,” Bertie replied, her face impassive. “But I got an idea.”

  Chapter 13

  “How’s it been around town, since the sheriff got called away?” Chloe asked over breakfast.

  “Bad. I heard two guys got beaten up the other night by Lawrence’s guys. Just for being seen coming out of Bertie’s bar. As far as I know they’re only friends but…” Shona tailed off as she chewed her toast.

  “Maybe we should keep our heads down for a bit. We don’t want any more questions,” Chloe replied.

  “Agreed. I thought we’d be safe here, but I guess folks like us aren’t safe anywhere.” Shona swallowed her mouthful and pushed her plate away. “I’d better go.”

  “Please, Shona,” Chloe’s face was clouded with concern. “Please be careful.”

  “Don’t worry. I done so many favors for those cops that I’m sure it’ll be fine. And I ain’t gonna be looking for any trouble, believe me. Had my fair share of that,” she added with a rueful smile. “I’ll see you later.” Shona kissed Chloe on the cheek, grabbed her satchel and headed out of the door.

  “I hope so,” Chloe whispered to herself. She held her flattened palm to her stomach, which was now starting to show the merest hint of a bump.

  “Good morning, Shona,” a light voice piped up from the door of the garage.

  Emerging from the underside of a Chevrolet, Shona looked up at her visitor. The woman straightened her stripy cardigan and stepped forward, her low heeled pumps clipping on the concrete.

  “Have we met?” Shona asked.

  “No, not yet, but I’ve been hearing all about you from Bertie over at the bar. I’m Edie.”

  Shona sat up on her creepers and nodded her hello. “You work there?”

  Edie laughed. “No, but I was in there the other night when you came in. I think Lula pointed us all out to you. I work over at the grocery store.” She nodded across the street.

  “OK. You got a car you want me to look at?” Shona asked, glancing behind Edie.

  “Oh, no. I just came over to, um…well, I guess to introduce myself properly.” Edie fiddled with the cuff of her cardigan. “You looked a bit upset in the bar that night. I thought I’d come over and make friends.” She stepped into the garage and smiled down to Shona who stood up and dusted herself off, then crossed over to the tool chest. “You don’t like company much, do ya?” Edie observed, staring at Shona’s back. “I get that. I’m not all that great around new people either.” She adjusted her cat-eye glasses and smoothed down the front of her buttoned up blouse.

  “Just like to keep to myself,” Shona replied. She retrieved the wrench she’d been looking for and sat back down on her creepers.

  “Yeah, me too. I sometimes feel like an outsider too, being clever and all. The others over there see me as a bit of a wet rag, but it don’t bother me.” She pushed her glasses back on her pointy nose again and squinted. “I’m used to it.”

  Shona, softening her voice, exhaled and looked up again at Edie. “Ain’t nothing wrong with being smart. Maybe the others are jealous?”

  Edie grinned and twirled a lock of hair around her finger. “Really? You think so?”

  “Maybe,” Shona replied before sliding back underneath the Chevrolet.

  “Well, now, you’re the first person to ever suggest that, Shona,” Edie said. “Say, why don’t you come over to the bar later? You could meet everyone properly then. You could bring your girlfriend too. Chloe, is it?”

  Shona dropped her wrench. It clanged on the concrete.

  “Bertie told me. But don’t worry, the town won’t hear a peep out of me. Maybe you could both do with making a few friends around here?” Edie said, oblivious to Shona’s stillness underneath the car. After a minute or so of no response, she sighed. “Well, Shona, it was good to finally make your acquaintance. I’ll leave you to it.” She waited a second or two before leaving.

  Shona slid out. “Shit,” she whispered to herself. She looked up at the now boarded up window at the side of the garage and cursed again.

  Chloe lowered the newspaper she was reading and looked over to Shona who was sitting on the window seat staring out to sea.

  “They got a quiz on over at Bertie’s tonight. Wanna go?” Chloe asked.

  Shona snapped out of her daydream at the mention of the bar’s name. After a moment of contemplation, remembering what Edie had said earlier at work, she shook her head. “Nah, I don’t fancy going out tonight. I’d rather stay in with you. It’s the only place I feel truly safe.”

  Chloe got up and crouched in front of her. “Because of what Edie and Bertie know about us?” The lone tear that tracked its way down Shona’s cheek was enough of a reply for Chloe. “I’m sure they won’t say anything, honey. They know how it feels to be on the outside too. Would it be so bad to try and make friends with them?”

  “I guess not.”

  “Alright then. We try to make them our friends. Maybe that’ll make us all feel a little safer, now that Lawrence is in charge.”

  Shona remained quiet as she snuggled into Chloe’s arms.

  Chapter 14

  “Hey, how’s it going?”

  “Boy, are you a sight for sore eyes,” Shona whispered back to Chloe, who stood in front of her as she was locking up the garage for the weekend. Chloe was wearing the larger of her dresses, her growing bump much more visible lately. It was mid-January, but the weather was mild enough for her only to need a light cardigan covering her shoulders. Her face, more rounded now, was still stunningly beautiful to Shona, but her brown eyes lacked their usual sparkle. Shona still felt her heart skip a beat when she saw her though. “How did your appointment go with Nurse Busybody over there?”

  Chloe suppressed a smile at Shona’s facial gesture. “Fine. Though she won’t let up about who the father is.” She wiped a stray strand of hair from her brow and looked at Shona. “There’s only so many times I can tell her the same story. I don’t know why she keeps poking her nose in.”

  Shona stepped forward, aching to reach out to embrace Chloe. “Look, why don’t we just say he’s dead. I for one would sure love to speak those words out loud.”

  “We can’t. You know that. We have to stick to the story that I found out I was pregnant the week after his army leave ended. If we say he’s dead, then that frees me up to remarry. We’ll have guys all over this town wanting to save me from a life as a single parent.” Realizing her assumption, Chloe blushed. “Oh, I didn’t mean…”

  Shona stifled a grin. “All over town, huh? Well ain’t you got tickets on yourself.”

  “Don’t. I feel like a whale,” Chloe groaned, rubbing her swollen stomach.

  “My whale,” Shona whispered while grinning in Chloe’s ear as she brushed past her on the way to load up her truck.

  “Why don’t I cook tonight? You look tired,” Shona said, breaking the silence that had befallen them over the mile-ride home.

  “I made a meatloaf earlier, but thank you, honey. Will you rub my feet for me later? They seem to be burning more and more these days.” She let out a groan as she fidgeted in her seat.

  “Sure. Oh, I forgot, I got those pickles you asked for. And potato chips. You sure are getting some weird hankerings lately.” Shona laughed, leaving one hand on the steering wheel as she reached behind her to pull out a brown paper bag from the back seat and passed it to Chloe.

  “Thank you. I know. I never used to eat junk. Now here I am inhaling anything I can find that’s bad for me.”

  “What my baby wants, my baby gets, right?” Shona grinned.

  “Now you got two of us to take care of,” repli
ed Chloe, watching Shona’s reactions carefully. The smile of pride in that thought that draped itself across Shona’s face as she looked out on to the road ahead allayed Chloe’s momentary worry.

  As they pulled up to the house, Shona’s expression changed. “What the…?”

  “What? What is it?” Chloe asked, but Shona had already shot out of the truck and was standing at the steps by the veranda and staring at the porch swing. Open-mouthed, Chloe shuffled her body out of the truck and walked over to where Shona was standing. Then she saw what had made Shona bolt.

  “You sure did pick a neat spot here. The view is everything I hoped it would be and more,” a croaky old voice sounded.

  “Just like the picture, huh?” Shona replied, her face beaming.

  Chloe looked at the porch swing where a very familiar figure wearing a light green cardigan, white blouse and green full skirt was sitting. “Dorothy!” she exclaimed, her jaw hanging open. Her smile was almost as wide as Shona’s was.

  “So are you two gonna help me inside with my bags or just stand there catching flies?” Dorothy asked. Shona and Chloe looked at each other, unaware they had been staring open-mouthed at their guest for the last ten seconds.

  “What are you doing here?” Shona asked, racing over to embrace Dorothy. Almost crushed in her arms, Dorothy let out a laugh and slapped Shona on the back.

  “Well, seeing as though I ain’t heard from neither one of ya for the past few months since your last letter, Shona, I thought I’d better mosey on down here to see if I could do anything to help out.” Pushing Shona gently away from her, she looked closely at her. Her knowing pale-blue eyes narrowed. “You look tired.” After a moment of silent communication between the two of them, Dorothy turned her attention to Chloe, who stood watching the reunion of her two favorite people in the world. “And you?” Dorothy exclaimed, heaving her aged body off the swinging porch seat and hobbling over to Chloe. “My goodness, you’re the size of a house.” She laid her palm on Chloe’s swollen stomach.

  “Why now, ever the straight-shooter,” Chloe joked, embracing Dorothy as fiercely as Shona had. “How are you?”

  “Oh, I’m fine, nothing worth complaining about.” The old lady looked between Shona and Chloe. “Now, I think you two better start from the beginning. And don’t leave anything out, or else I’ll know.” She wagged her finger in Shona’s face then took Chloe by the hand and led her into the house.

  Shona picked up Dorothy’s suitcase and followed behind. “No change there then,” she muttered, then grinned.

  The sun had already set by the time Shona and Chloe had filled Dorothy in completely. They’d finished dinner, chatted about how nothing had really changed in Riverside with Frank still acting “like an idiot,” and were now sitting in the living room staring out onto the ocean, the moonlight glinting on the surface of it.

  “I ain’t gonna lie to you both, it ain’t gonna be easy,” Dorothy began, tapping her tea glass with her fingernail. “But if anyone can do this then you two can.” She looked between them both and smiled. “You two are strong. The love you have for each other? Well, that ain’t something that can be underestimated. Folks are gonna talk about where your men are, but you stay solid and there ain’t nothing you can’t overcome.”

  Shona squeezed Chloe’s hand and, instinctively, Chloe knew what to ask. “Will you stay with us, Dorothy? At least until the birth?”

  Dorothy looked at Shona, then nodded to Chloe. “Why, of course I will. Ain’t nothing back home to keep me there. As far as I’m concerned, my family is here, in this room.”

  “Alright, then that’s settled,” Shona announced. “I’ll go make up the spare room.”

  Chloe and Dorothy watched Shona leave, then Dorothy leaned forward in her armchair. “Do you know how happy you’ve made that lil’ girl? Why, I ain’t never seen her so full of life and hope. I’ve dreamed of this moment for so long. She’s got a family of her very own now to take care of. Seeing her like this has kept me going. Chloe, you’ve given her something she thought she’d never have.”

  “What?” Chloe replied.

  “A future. One worth living for.”

  Chapter 15

  “Say, did you hear about the plane crash in Iowa?” Chloe announced over the breakfast table. “All four passengers, including Buddy Holly, confirmed dead.” She lowered the paper. “That’s so terrible. They were all so young.”

  “Well, that’s even more reason to grab life and live it while we can,” Shona chimed in, grabbing a piece of toast from the plate in the middle of the table. “I gotta go to work. Will you be OK today?”

  “Yeah, me and Dorothy are gonna go down to the beach. The sea air will do her cough good. Did you hear her last night?”

  “I’ll go ask Doctor Thomas for some more cough drops for her,” Shona replied. She leaned over to kiss Chloe’s cheek. “See you later, baby.” She lowered her head and kissed Chloe’s large bump. “See you later, baby.”

  “Get outta here, silly,” Chloe said, swatting her away.

  As the front door closed behind Shona, Dorothy appeared and shuffled over to the breakfast table. “Did I miss Shona?” she asked, looking over to the door.

  “Yeah, just this minute. But she’ll get you some more cough drops on the way home,” Chloe said, pouring Dorothy a cup of coffee.

  “She’s such a good girl. I’ve loved these last two weeks being here with you both. And I’m so happy she’s found someone to look after her as well as she looks after me,” Dorothy replied.

  “Believe me, she does more than her fair share of fussing over me too.” Chloe giggled.

  “I can tell that too. God, it makes me so angry thinking back to how she was treated in the past. By her father, and by that wretched Lucy girl back in Mississippi. I’ll never get over the sight of Shona lying on my floor after what those thugs did to her. That Lucy led her on, making her think she liked her.” Dorothy slurped her coffee as Chloe’s keen eyes fixed on her.

  “I remember you telling me the story, back when I visited you there,” Chloe began. “It must have been terrible for you. When I saw the mess Kyle and those Bullen boys had left Shona in, it broke my heart.”

  “Yeah, our girl’s certainly been through the mill more than once. But she’s got us here now, together. Those people are ghosts now.” Dorothy drained her coffee cup and smacked her lips. “Now, I want to feel the sea between my toes.”

  Later that evening, Chloe found Shona kneeling on their bedroom floor surrounded by strips of clean, whitewashed wood and a small bag of nails.

  “What are you making there?” she asked, leaning against the door frame.

  “Well, we’re gonna need a place for the baby to sleep in a few months so I thought I’d put together a little crib. I found a place that cuts the best pine wood and bought some brand new nails. It’ll be perfect,” Shona replied, rocking back to sit on her heels. “How big would you say they are?” Shona held her palms apart as if she were gauging the length of a marrow.

  “Well, I’d say about as long as that piece you got over there,” Chloe replied, pointing down at the bits by Shona’s feet.

  “I thought I’d make a little mobile too, and a changing table that can go over in the corner there,” Shona said, excitement in her voice.

  Chloe couldn’t help but feel overcome with emotion. The tears began to roll down her cheeks. Shona shot to her feet and rushed over.

  “Honey, what’s the matter? You don’t like that idea?” Shona stroked her hair and held her in her arms. “It’s fine, we’ll go over to the store first thing and buy something brand new, already made. I’m sorry.”

  Chloe peeled her damp face away from Shona’s denim shirt and looked up at her, the smile in her eyes incongruous with the tears that filled them. “Do you know how much I love you? I wouldn’t want a crib for our baby that was made by anyone other than you,” she said, sniffing.

  “You sure?” Shona asked, wiping the tears away from Chloe’s flushed cheeks.
>
  “Positive. I don’t know why I’m crying. My emotions are all over the place.” Chloe laughed, her eyes still damp.

  “Well, there’s only a few weeks to go, no wonder. It’s probably a mixture of nerves and stuff.”

  “As long as I’ve got you, there’s nothing I can’t face,” Chloe said, nuzzling into Shona’s neck.

  “Well, that’s one thing you don’t have to worry about. I’m yours. Forever,” Shona whispered. “Now, do I paint this thing pink or blue?” Shona grinned, tapping a piece of whitewashed wood with her boot.

  Over in the center of town, two police officers stood in the alleyway adjacent to Bertie’s. They were taking note of who went in and came out.

  “You really think Lawrence can run this town while Everett’s away?” Barnes asked Gibson, who smoothed down his moustache.

  “Has to, don’t he? It’s been months now and there’s no sign of the boss coming back. I can’t lose my job. I got no choice but to follow orders. Even if those come from that snot-nosed runt.”

  “Me too,” Barnes nodded. “Looks like we got some action.”

  Both officers hushed and trained their eyes over to where two casually dressed men walked towards the side door to Bertie’s. The door opened and the short, stocky figure holding it open smiled and allowed the men to pass into the bar.

  “You recognize those guys?”

  Gibson nodded, then took out his notebook and wrote down their names.

  “Another two for Lawrence’s list,” Barnes remarked.

  Friday morning was colder than it had been in a few weeks, but still sunny and bright. Shona tapped on Dorothy’s door as she did every morning to wake her for breakfast. Not receiving the usual acknowledgement, Shona opened the door a crack and peeked inside. The blankets were heaped over Dorothy’s head and only her shape could be made out.