I know my mouth opened, but he continued before I could say anything.
“It’s two brothers.”
“You know them?”
“They did some work for a friend of one of my dad’s business partners two years ago. They haven’t had any regular contract work for our side of—from our clients because they were a little too bloody.”
“What happened?” I didn’t know if he’d tell me, and I truly didn’t want to know.
“They were supposed to take out a rival warehouse boss, who had been siphoning off business from one of the local mob members. The guy had refused to join the union of businesses when he was given the opportunity. Jack and Ricky got a little over zealous and ended up not only killing the guy, but his wife and three warehouse workers. They burned the building to the ground just to be sure there was no evidence left behind. It really pissed them off that the mob didn’t care for their tactics.
“There is more than one group to work for in this business, so they have been doing work for an east coast group, but mostly private jobs since then and, by all accounts, they haven’t mellowed, they’ve gotten worse. They’re particularly good at one brother causing a scene, like the shooting at the school, and when the victim tries to get away the other brother either picks them off or has their car rigged to blow. I was right that day at the school to be extra cautious on getting away. They work cheap, dirty and quick.”
I could tell there was more coming as I watched his facial expression change. “ Now, would you like the bad news?”
I must have had a little catatonic look to me, as he gave a bitter laugh and continued.
“The word is out that they know you’re already under a contract. Evidently Sharon Norton told them they would be stealing a mark from one of the southern mob’s best if they pull it off. That would be an ultimate high for them to show our cliental that they made a mistake in writing them off years ago. They are just waiting for you to pop your head up and then they’ll do their best to finish you first.”
I had no tears inside me, no emotions welling to the center of my throat, just the bleak truth that what he said this morning was probably correct. Last night was the last night we would be together. I felt him reach around me and draw me against his side.
“Now that you know, are you okay?”
I nodded. “We need another car.” I know that wasn’t a response he was expecting, but the chances of something happening to him would be much greater if we traveled in one vehicle. I didn’t want anything to happen to him. “I would think it would make it easier for you to stay back and see if anyone is following me.”
He sighed, obviously believing my logic, “We’ll pick up a rental at…” he started to say.
But I had something better in mind. “Are you ready to see your new car? It should only take us ten or fifteen minutes to get there from here.”
“You mean your Porsche?” He seemed a little surprised.
“No, it’s your car. I’m just storing it for you, remember?”
“Leese, we can’t get anywhere near your house.”
“I told you it is in storage. It’s a big storage company off Teak Street. I’m the only one with the combo and I locked the keys inside with the car.”
“We’ll check the area out first. But, if I see anything I don’t like, it stays in storage and you get a rental.”
“And the bungalow,” I added. “Would it be better to have two? You can watch me from…”
He held up another room key. “I decided that this morning. I had even decided on a rental car, but…” And then he gave me the oddest expression, “One thing worries me?”
I looked at him expectantly.
“Why are you thinking like me?”
Okay, the look made sense now; he was suspicious about my motives. “It’s just—just logical, I guess.”
“You never could lie worth a crap,” he stated bluntly. “Why are you…”
I had heard the term about a ‘light bulb’ coming on, but I’d never actually seen it until that moment.
His head cocked sideways, and his eyes narrowed. “You’re trying to keep me far enough away so I won’t get hurt.”
I was so busted. I was shaking my head no, but I could tell there was no doubt in him. “Leese, you’re crazy. They’re tough, but I’m better than both of them. I’m the sure thing that’s going to end your life. I should give them a clear shot—at me!”
“Stop it,” I snapped, clamping my hand against his mouth. “You made me promise you something the other morning, and now you’re going to promise the same thing for me. Neither one of us is going to try to make this easier on the other. I’m yours until the time comes, and you’re mine, no martyrs.”
He reached out and held my face in both of his hands, his thumbs caressing my cheeks. “You’ve been a martyr since the day you figured this out. Maybe I should learn a little something about sacrifice…”
“Promise me,” my voice was quivering. “Please, make it the most honest promise you’ve ever made,” I said, repeating what he had asked of me.
The kiss came only slightly away from my lips; it was getting closer every time. “I promise,” he whispered in my ear. We hung the ‘Do Not Disturb’ sign on our unit, and then left.
Teak Street Storage is a massive place where the rich tuck away their toys. We circled the area twice before he agreed that it was safe enough to enter. He pulled up to the closed iron gates and I had to lean completely across him to punch in my gate code. I could hear him sigh as I was stretched in front of him, my shirt pulled out of my skirt, exposing my midriff. The gates opened and we drove inside. Once we reached the unit, he made another inspection and gave me the okay to enter the code.
As the garage door went up, so did my smile. A fresh cool blast of air rushed from the building. My baby sat there gleaming the way it did when I parked it nearly nine months ago.
“Air conditioned,” he scoffed slightly. “You kept your car in air conditioned storage?”
I just smiled and headed for the driver’s door.
“Wait,” he cautioned, as he pulled me back by the arm.
“Evan it’s fine,” I stated as I watched him lay down on the floor and look up under the car. “I don’t think Robert ever had a clue where I stored it.” My words had no effect as he popped the hood and checked the engine. He finally said okay and I brought the engine awake after it’s long beauty rest.
It was like someone had stuck a syringe full of happy juice right into my veins. I looked at him and gave him a smoldering stare, “Wanna race?”
The smile fell completely off his face. “Leese…”
“I know, I know, ‘be good,’ right?”
He leaned into the car from the driver’s window. “Yes, but I need to tell you something. I’ll be in the hospital lot for a little while, looking for anything out of the ordinary, but don’t expect to see me when you come out. I know it’s hard but try to keep the visit with your mom short so the news media doesn’t have time to get there.”
I started to ask why he wouldn’t be there when I came out, but he wouldn’t let me.
“Drive back to the motel, but only if you are certain that you aren’t being followed. If you are followed,” he let his hand smack down on the window frame. “Well, I’m pretty confident you can out drive anyone to give them the slip, but be careful. I’ll be back, but it might be after dark. Stay in our room, lights off and draperies closed. Anybody gets in there, you shoot.”
“But…”
“No buts.”
“But what if it’s you?” That was a mistake I didn’t want to make.
He sighed and smiled at the same time, “If it’s me, I’ll be speaking French, fair enough?”
“Yes.”
I waited as he moved the Trans Am out of the way and I backed out. The garage door closed and we were on our way. I was going to make it to the hospital a few minutes before three which was perfect, but I still wondered what I’d do if Robert was th
ere. We pulled into the lot and I immediately began looking for a spot closest to the entrance doors. He was no longer behind me, but I could see glimpses of the Trans Am as it traveled up and down the rows. I parked, further away than I wanted, but it would have to do. I hadn’t been afraid until the moment when I opened my car door. I wasn’t afraid of a sniper, I was suddenly afraid of what I would see when I entered my mother’s room. It was time to find out just how bad everything had gone since I left.
I stopped at the main desk and got her room number and headed up to the third floor. The elevator doors opened to the psychiatric unit, and right in front of the doors sat a large reception desk. Evidently they didn’t let just anyone traipse into the ward.
“May I help you,” a young nurse asked.
“Yes, I’m here to see my mother, Nadia Winslett.”
I could read a look of confusion on her face. “And you said you are—you’re her daughter? I’ll need some identification.” She was asking, but her hand was on the telephone and dialing a number. I wondered if Robert had given instructions that no one see her unless he knew, but instead she was calling the hospital administrator. “Yes, Sir. She says she’s her daughter.” I snapped my driver’s license down on the counter in front of her. She picked it up. “Yes, Sir, that’s right, Annalisa Winslett. Yes, Sir.” She hung up the phone and handed me back my driver’s license. Your mother is in 378, down the hall to the end, make a left and you’ll see it, a few rooms down on the right.”
It was the longest walk of my life. Her door was closed and I tentatively pushed it open. It was a private room, yet there was a curtain drawn around the side of the bed. My heart was in my throat as I slowly moved it to the side. I couldn’t accept what I was seeing. Her wrists were bandaged, IVs in both arms, her face was drawn and pale, and there were restraints on her arms and legs. She was asleep and I was so grateful because I wouldn’t have wanted her to see my face. It would take me a minute to compose.
I went to the foot of her bed and picked up the chart. What heartless monster could Robert have talked into helping him do this? I looked in disbelief as the name of our family physician, Doctor Figarrio, was written in as the attending physician. I shuffled through the papers and found her list of meds; the list was too long.
I reached out and gently put her hand in mine, knowing that Evan said I was supposed to keep this short, but how was I going to leave her like this?
Her eyes opened at the contact of my hand. She studied me unemotionally as the seconds ticked by, and then she recognized me. “Oh, Leese, Leese…” She began to weep. “Thank God. I was starting to believe I’d never see you again.”
“It’s okay Mom, I’m here. What happened? The news said you—you tried to hurt yourself.”
“I—I don’t know. I didn’t do this, Leese. Someone’s got to believe me,” she cried. “The last thing I remember was going to sleep and then I woke here in the hospital.”
“It’s okay, Mom. I’m going to do everything I can to help you.”
“I want to go home,” she whined.
I knew she was still going to ask me that same thing when I had to walk out the door and leave her behind. I sat there holding her hand, the straps keeping her immobile. Her eyes were watery and wild. She kept licking at her chapped lips. I looked to the yellow water pitcher and cup that sat on a table out of her reach; they were both empty. I went into her bathroom and filled the pitcher and brought it back to her bed, pouring her a small amount in the tiny cup. She sipped it eagerly, glancing around the room as if, every few seconds, it became a brand new place.
She looked up when she finished the water and cried again, “I want to go home now. Tell them it’s okay to let me out of here. Oh God, Leese, I’m never going to escape. I can’t find the way out. It’s like my mind is filled with doors but they are all entrances, there are no exits. Every time I go through another door, I go deeper. It’s like I’m trapped inside my own head. Somebody has to know the way out. I need someone to get me out.”
“They have you on a lot of meds; that’s why you’re feeling this way. I’m going to help you, Mom. Please, just hang on, okay? I’ll find away. Doctor Figarrio will just have to listen to me.” If it hadn’t been Sunday, his office would have been my next stop.
She nodded her head furiously, her unbrushed hair like a tangle of wild weeds around her face. “I’ll wait, but don’t make it too long.”
“I’ve got to go, but I love you Mom and I will be back.”
Reluctantly, she released my hand. As I was closing the door behind me the only thing I heard was the sound of her weeping uncontrollably. I hope I didn’t make things worse for her by upsetting her this way.
There was a heavyset, gray-haired gentleman in a suit walking from the opposite direction as I was leaving.
“Excuse me, Ms. Winslett, correct?”
I knew he wasn’t a threat, but he might be trying to hold me long enough for a threat to appear. I kept walking toward the elevator as I responded that he assumed correctly.
“I’d like to talk to you for a minute. Would you come down to my office?”
“Is this concerning my mother’s poor treatment in your hospital?” I pushed the elevator button.
“Ah—pardon, me? Your mother is receiving the best…”
“My mother is being over-medicated, tied to her bed and your staff hasn’t even paused to brush her hair or bring her a drink of water. I believe you and I have little to nothing to say to each other, but perhaps you will have plenty to say to my attorney. Good day.” I punched the button for the first floor. I watched as his stunned face disappeared between the closing doors.
I was pulling out as I saw a news van pulling in. I smiled knowing that I had slipped out just in time.
I watched the rearview mirror the whole way back. I took a couple side streets just to make sure that no car ever popped up behind me twice. Once confident that it was safe, I went back to our bungalow.
I wondered where Evan had gone and why whatever he was doing would take so long, but it wasn’t something I could question now. I would simply have to wait for him to return. In the mean time, I was starving. The coffee and Danish from this morning had long since vanished from my stomach. I looked in the fridge and grabbed the only thing we had; vitamin water. That wouldn’t help much in filling me up, nor would it help me when it came time to finally sleep tonight. I had an idea, but I didn’t know if the motel did such things, but it wouldn’t hurt to try. I dialed the office.
“Yes, I was wondering if you could tell me if I can place a food delivery order and have it added to my room charges?”
“You’re in unit eight, Mr. and Mrs. Gavarreen, correct?”
I know she must have thought we got disconnected after my extended period of silence, but that was something I just never expected.
“Ma’am?”
“Ah—Yes, that’s correct?”
“Yes, that’s fine. Your husband left us with an open credit in case you folks needed anything extra. Just call wherever you’d like and tell them to deliver it to the office. We’ll bring it to your room.”
“Thank you,” I said, still stunned that he registered us that way. “That’s very nice of you to deliver it to our room, but I can…”
“No, that’s all right, Mrs. Gavarreen, we make special accommodations for our newlyweds.”
I hung up the phone. My hunger was still there, but the newlywed line was like being hit by a stun gun. I couldn’t move and everything inside me turned to jelly.
Eventually, when my faculties returned to semi-normal, I ordered two baked spaghetti and meatball dinners, one large chef salad and bread sticks from a local pizzeria. At least I could surprise him by having some food ready. Not nearly as much as he surprised me by telling the motel staff that we were on our honeymoon, but …
Thirty minutes later there was a knock at the door and I peeked out to see a petite, older lady standing there with a large take-out bag. I opened the door, slightly.
She gave me a smile, “I hope I’m not disturbing anything, but here is your dinner.”
She passed me the bag as I had the sensation to tell her that he wasn’t even here, but why spoil her fun. I thanked her and closed the door.
Just before dark I heard the sound of the Trans Am pulling up to the next bungalow. I watched from the window, noticing how he took everything in before stepping from the vehicle, including the slightly open curtain in our unit. He frowned and then proceeded to the door.
He was speaking as he opened it, “When I say close the…” The aroma of dinner must have hit him. “Did you use your credit card?” He didn’t sound angry that there was something available to eat, just puzzled.
“No, you told me not too.” I was reminding him that I could follow directions. “I had it delivered to the motel and they charged it to our room.”
“I’m sorry I didn’t think to give you any cash so you could get something if you needed it, but you can use the charge card now that they know we’re in town, just don’t use it for anything that can be traced back here—like a delivery order.”
“But I was careful.”
“It’s on the news that you were at the hospital today.”
“The news crew never saw me. They were pulling into the hospital as I was pulling out.”
“They don’t have video of you, but they interviewed a nurse and a hospital administrator, both positively identified you. You won’t be able to go see her tomorrow.”
“But, I have to! She needs me and I promised.” I was filled with fear that the few minutes I spent with her would be all I had and then she might think I wasn’t going to help.
“Leese, I know they’ll be waiting for you tomorrow. If they don’t go ahead and shoot you when you’re walking in, they’ll wait for you to come out and do something then. I’m sorry.”
“Can I at least go…” My emotions were trying to uncheck themselves, but I paused to force them back down. “Can I go see her doctor downtown?” I could see he didn’t like that idea either, but I continued before he could answer. “Please. I have to see him and get him to drop all the meds he’s put her on. He’s been our doctor for years and I think, I hope at least, he’ll listen to me. I’ve got to do something before she…” So much for checking my emotions, I couldn’t continue.
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