Sintown Chronicles III: In Dark Corners

by David O. Dyer, Sr.

Yes dear. What's your name?

  Uh, Candy.

  Oh, that's sweet. Tell Delilah all about it, Candy.

  Well, I don't have a boyfriend right now so I spend a lot of time in the shower.

  Does that help?

  Yeah, if you shower my way. I have one of those pressure things on a hose and I start off spraying my, uh, boobs.

  Which one first, Candy?

  Uh, usually I start out with the left one.

  And?

  I wait until it gets all tingly and then move to the right one. When it feels like it's on fire I move back to the left and change the spray to a fine stream and squirt it on my, uh, thingee.

  You may say nipple, Candy.

  I don't mean nipple. I focus on my areola.

  Ah! The sensitive parts of the breast horny toads always overlook. Go on, Candy. You're getting to me.

  Well, I switch back and forth until my legs get weak.

  What happens to your nips while you're doing this?

  Oh, God, Delilah. You wouldn't believe how long and hard they get.

  What next, Candy?

  When my legs will no longer keep me upright, I sit on the shower floor and direct the stream slowly down my stomach low enough to tease. Then I go back up to my boobs. I repeat this until I can stand it no longer, spread my legs and...

  When Julie realized her hand was between her thighs, she snapped off the radio. “I can't believe they allow that,” she said aloud as she mopped perspiration from her forehead. “Damn, where am I?"

  She pulled to the side of the street and chuckled. How the hell did I get into downtown Dot? I must have turned right instead of left at the traffic light, but I don't remember going through the intersection. Talk radio sure isn't what it used to be.

  Since the Dot Baptist Church was at the end of the street, Julie decided to visit her dad's grave one more time while it was still daylight. She eased back onto the road, passed the BB&T Bank, the Dot Pharmacy, the Post Office and turned into the church parking lot. What's he doing here? she wondered as she parked beside Cliff's pickup.

  Chapter Two

  Julie sat in her Cavalier for several minutes, watching a motionless Cliff, standing at the foot of her father's grave at the far end of the church cemetery. He just stood there with head bowed. Somehow it set a mood of sincere reverence and Julie closed the car door as quietly as she could when she emerged from the vehicle. Not wanting to startle him, she walked on the flagstone path, rather than take a shortcut through the neatly manicured grass where her footsteps would not be heard.

  He turned as she approached and smiled. “Hello again,” he said softly.

  She nodded. “I didn't expect to find you here."

  "I asked a lady at the Korner Kafe about you. She told me your father's funeral was this morning. I'm so sorry, Pretty Lady."

  Again she nodded. “Thank you, but why are you here?"

  "Somehow I wanted to pay my respects to the father of a unique young woman."

  "I consider myself neither unique nor young."

  "You may not be unique. I barely know you. I'm often guilty of reading into a person's body language things that are not there, but I think we must be about the same age and I consider myself young."

  "Same age? Hell, Clyde, you can't be a day over twenty-five. I'm thirty-seven."

  "Twenty-six,” he corrected. The magic smile returned to his face. “You are an old lady."

  "And you're just a baby."

  He glanced back at the mound of red clay, partially covered with flowers. “I guess you would like some time alone, Julie. Again, I'm sorry for your loss."

  Without thinking, she placed her hand on his arm. “Cliff, it was nice of you to come here. Most of Dad's friends died before him. There were only a dozen people at the funeral this morning and I didn't even know the pallbearers. The preacher looked after that."

  "The congregation didn't know him?"

  "Dad didn't spend much time in church. He was always working and the last few years he was in a nursing home in Charlotte."

  Cliff nodded and turned to leave.

  Julie delayed him by tightening her grip on his arm. She looked into his eyes, placed her hands gently on his ears, stood on tiptoe and kissed his cheek. “Thanks again, Cliff."

  She watched him slowly walk towards the parking lot and, as he approached his truck, she faced the new grave and sat cross-legged on the ground.

  "Hey, Dad. Guess what? A man kissed me today. It wasn't the kind of kiss you used to give mom, but hey, a girl's gotta start somewhere. Wherever you are, I'll bet you're holding mom in your arms and covering her with kisses right now. Be happy, Dad. You deserve it."

  She crawled on her knees to the side of the mound and rearranged the flowers. “I don't know what I'm going to do with the place, Dad. Like you said, Mr. Dollar offered to buy it, but he admitted the offer was an insult. I think I'll put it in the hands of a real estate broker tomorrow and see what happens."

  She sighed. “I know you would like for me to keep it. Sometimes I think maybe I should. It's been in the family for what, five generations? A ton of tobacco has grown on that land, but, as you know, there's no market for tobacco these days. Running the store, restaurant and motel was fun, but it was hard work with long hours too. I'm just not up to that, Dad."

  She sniffed the air and began to salivate. “I must be hallucinating, Dad. I thought I caught a whiff of Mom's barbecue. I wish I had the recipe. Boy, that made a great sandwich. I remember standing with you at the barbecue pit and watching the pigs turn on the spit. Somehow you knew just when to add hot coals to the fire."

  Julie dug into her handbag, looking for a packet of tissues. Cliff must have used them all, she thought as she stood and wiped away the tears with her fingers.

  "I have an appointment with your lawyer in the morning, Dad. There are papers to sign and I suppose I'll find out if there was any money left in your bank account. I love you, Dad. I always have and I always will."

  She turned and screamed.

  "I'm sorry, Julie,” Cliff said, handing her a key ring. “You dropped these in the parking lot."

  "How long have you been standing there?"

  "I didn't mean to eavesdrop, Julie."

  "You must be punished for your transgressions,” she said, hooking her arm in his. “Take me to dinner."

  He nodded solemnly and they headed for the parking lot. “Yes, ma'am. I looked around the town a little today. We have a choice of dining at Papa John's Pizza or the Korner Kafe."

  "I've eaten several times at the Korner Kafe. They have a delicious country style steak special."

  "Then the Korner Kafe it is."

  While waiting for their meals to be served, Julie said, “You seemed embarrassed when Maggie Bennett showed us to our table."

  He nodded. “I made a big ‘fox paw’ this afternoon. I came here to apply for a job and talked with the owners, Maggie and her husband."

  "So?"

  "They have the same last name and he must be twice her age. I assumed he was her father."

  Julie laughed. “I take it that you didn't get the job. Is age that important in a relationship, Clyde?"

  "They said they have no openings at the moment so, no, I didn't get the job. I don't suppose age matters much. I haven't really thought about it."

  "I assume you are an unemployed chef. Where did you come from? Where are you headed? Why in the world would you be interested in locating in Dot?"

  Cliff sat back as the teenage waitress brought their order and thanked her politely when the last plate was on the table. He reached for the salt. “I don't consider myself a chef,” he said, “but I have some experience in a kitchen. Let's see now, where did I come from? Raleigh. Where am I going? Well, I don't know exactly. I want to get away from Raleigh. I spent several unsuccessful days looking for work in Greensboro, High Point and Winston-Salem. I was on my way to Charlotte when I stumbled on this little community. I asked about work at the Super Save but they don't ha
ve any openings either, so I think I'll spend the night in the motel and go to Charlotte in the morning. Any more questions?"

  "Hell, yes,” she replied as she picked up her glass of iced tea. “You have me thoroughly confused. Why did you want to get out of Raleigh so bad? You said you are a chef, but the Super Save is a service station and garage. What am I missing here?"

  Cliff eyed the ceiling for a minute before looking back at Julie. “I ... I'm kind of a loner, Julie. I don't like many people, but I do like you. Somehow, years from now when I think back on our brief encounter, I'd like to think that you like me too. Now I must make a decision. Do I lie to you so that you will remember me kindly, or tell you the truth and have you despise me like everyone else does?"

  "Cliff, I didn't mean to get this personal. Do you think it will rain tonight?"

  He chewed slowly, swallowed, sipped his tea and blotted his lips with a paper napkin. “I have no idea who my father is. We lived on welfare—Mom and me. There were plenty of men coming and going while I was growing up. The day I graduated from high school, Mom left with one of them. I haven't heard from her since. I started running with the wrong crowd while I was still in grade school. I'm not offering this as an excuse. It's a statement of fact. I began using drugs and had to find a way to pay for them. We did some housebreaking, but that wasn't very lucrative. People don't keep cash in their homes and fencing VCRs and televisions is not very profitable. We robbed a few gas stations, but that wasn't profitable either. They don't keep much cash in their registers. Finally I started pushing drugs and got caught."

  Julie reached across the table and gripped his wrist. “You don't have to do this, Cliff."

  He looked at her and nodded. “Yes, I do. I served three years of a five-year sentence. I was on parole for three years. That ended roughly a year ago. Mr. Keaton became my sponsor and gave me a job as a mechanic in his Crabtree Garage. He's a good man, Julie. He could have worked me at minimum wage, but he didn't. He paid me a competitive salary. That's why I stayed with him a year after my parole ended."

  "What happened?"

  The Crabtree Mall wanted to expand and his property stood in their way. They made him an offer he couldn't refuse. I spent three horrible years in Central Prison in Raleigh and another four years living in its shadow. I had to get away."

  "While you were in prison, were you, uh, abused?"

  He smiled thinly. “Was I a victim of homosexual rape?” He shook his head. “I know that happens sometimes, but nobody bothered me. Having your freedom taken away is more horrible than I can describe, but my years in prison were good for me. They got me off drugs. I worked in the kitchen for a year and in the garage for two years. I read everything I could get my hands on."

  "So that's how you can be both a chef and a mechanic."

  The thin smile returned. “I never said I was a chef, but I can make a mean hobo stew for 600 people."

  "Being an ex-con makes it hard for you to find a job, doesn't it?"

  "Would you hire me, now that you know?"

  "Have you gone back to using drugs or smoking pot?"

  "No, and I never will. I enjoy a beer once in a while, but that's it."

  "Then it's a shame I don't have a job to offer, because I would hire you in a heartbeat."

  "It's kind of you to say that."

  "I mean it."

  He studied her sparkling green eyes and took a deep breath. “I believe you and, since an honest account of my life history didn't scare you off, I'm going to stretch my luck."

  Julie arched her eyebrows.

  "I want to make love to you, Julie."

  "Don't joke about that, Clyde."

  "Do I look like I'm joking?"

  "I'm ugly as a Tasmanian Devil."

  "I've already told you that you need glasses or a new mirror."

  She dropped her eyes and softly said, “I don't know how.” She looked up. “You found out earlier today I don't even know how to kiss a man."

  "It was a beautiful kiss, Julie."

  Julie forced a smile to her face and tried to turn the conversation into a joke. “I have a porno channel on cable at my apartment in Charleston. I could imitate the actions of the huge breasted women in those triple X films."

  He shook his head, refusing to return her smile. “That's exaggerated animal sex, Julie. I didn't say I wanted to screw you. I said I want to make love to you."

  "There's a difference?"

  He nodded. “Making love and intercourse are not necessarily the same thing. I can teach you, Julie. Let's get out of here, go somewhere, do something and see what happens."

  "Do what?"

  "I don't know. I heard someone say there is a nice swimming pool just west of Dot."

  She laughed aloud. “I don't own a bathing suit and I wouldn't let anyone see me wearing one if I did."

  "You staying in this motel?"

  She nodded.

  "Me too. We can go to your room or mine."

  She pushed back her plate, no longer hungry, and she gulped the remainder of her iced tea, hoping it would cure the bitter dryness of her mouth. “Do you have prophylactics?"

  "Rubbers?"

  "I'm not on the pill."

  "I have some."

  "Will you do it with the lights off? Total darkness?"

  "No, but we can have dim lighting if you like."

  She reached for his glass of water and drained it. “I hope I don't hate either you or myself in the morning, but more importantly, I hope you won't hate me.” She looked at him for several seconds with her mouth moving, but saying nothing. Finally the words came. “Teach me tonight."

  Cliff paid the bill and Julie's mind was reeling. His hand on her hip as they walked to her motel room sent shivers up and down her spine. Taking the key from her, Cliff unlocked the door, reached inside and snapped on the light. She closed and locked the door and watched him close the blinds and turn off all but one lamp on the desk opposite the double bed. She took a deep breath and, in an almost inaudible voice, said, “Do you want me to take off my clothes now?"

  "Would you like to take off your clothes?"

  "No."

  "Then don't. What would you like to do?"

  "I ... I want to brush my teeth."

  He smiled broadly and she felt her knees weaken. “Go for it."

  Julie stood at the sink, squeezed toothpaste onto her brush and, while scrubbing her teeth, looked into the mirror. He was standing behind her, still smiling. She felt his hands on her hips and shuddered as they slid to her lower stomach. She sighed when his lips touched her neck. He tightened his grip, pulling her into him and, although it was her first experience, she knew what it was that pressed against her buttocks. The sense of power she felt came as a total surprise.

  She leaned over, pressing her bottom more firmly against him, spit out the toothpaste and collected a handful of water with which to rinse. She straightened up and moaned as his hands traveled up her stomach and cupped her breasts.

  "You lied,” he whispered. “Mine are not nearly this big."

  She turned for the expected embrace but he sidestepped and reached for her toothbrush.

  "Do you mind?"

  She shook her head and, as he began to brush his teeth, pressed against him and circled him with her arms as he had done.

  "Don't be afraid to let me feel them,” he said with toothpaste drooling from the corners of his mouth.

  She leaned forward and nibbled his ear.

  He rinsed, turned and pulled her to him. She closed her eyes and parted her lips as his lips descended. She tried to concentrate on the sensation of his tongue gently probing her mouth, her breasts flattening against his chest and his hands tenderly fondling her buttocks. She gave up, sagged into him and let her tongue chase his deep inside his mouth.

  He pulled his lips away and flashed his special smile. “Some things just come naturally, Pretty Lady.” He clasped her hand and tugged her into the bedroom.

  Julie watched him turn back the c
overlet and prop the pillows against the headboard. “I'll take off my clothes now if I must."

  "Just your shoes,” he replied, moving to the opposite side of the bed.

  Confused, she watched him sit on the bed, remove his shoes and scoot onto the mattress with his back against the pillow and headboard. She joined him and allowed his arm around her shoulders, tugging her closer. She rested her head on his shoulder and felt his hand stroking her hair.

  "You loved your parents very much, didn't you Pretty Lady?"

  "Yes, but since he raised me from the time I was fourteen, I was closer to Dad."

  "You love the home-place too."

  Julie nodded against his chest. “I have a brain full of wonderful memories."

  "It's going to take some work to fix it up. Are you going to open the restaurant and motel?"

  "Oh, no,” she replied. “I ... I'm going to sell the whole thing. My life is in Charleston now. Tim Dollar made me an offer today, but I'm going to try to find someone who wants it a little more than he does."

  "Tim Dollar?"

  "He and his wife, Sandy, own half of Dot."

  "Rich dudes."

  "Yeah."

  "Tell me about your mom's barbecue."

  "It's not like anything you ever tasted. Dad would roast a whole pig in a coal-fired pit out back."

  "Coal?"

  Julie chuckled. “Sounds terrible, doesn't it? He actually used two pits. He let the coal burn to hot, smokeless embers and then shoveled them to the barbecue pit. When the meat was done to perfection, he would slice it off the bone and grind it up—not chop it. Then he would mix in Mom's special sauce that turned the meat a burgundy red. However, that's only part of the story. Mom had a great bread recipe. I think it had a lot of yeast in it. She rolled the dough on flat tins, cut it into squares with a pizza cutter and baked her own buns. They would slice those buns, spoon on a healthy serving of meat and top it off with mom's special slaw. God it tasted so good."

  "It sounds good.” He cupped her chin with his strong hand and tilted her head back. “I'll bet it didn't taste as good as your lips."

  Julie saw no reason to argue. She sucked hungrily on the tip of his tongue teasing her slightly parted lips. His hands roamed her back and toyed with the brassiere strap beneath her blouse. Her hand found his thigh and her fingers sizzled as she tested the relaxed muscle beneath his jeans.