Over the Hedge: Part 2- The Finale (Lucky in Love)

by Minerva Vesta

  “So, how is it you were able to get into graduate school and find a job with no issues if you’ve been arrested three times?” I asked.

  “Brent’s parents,” Sean stated simply.

  “Explain.”

  “Brent’s parents are somewhat…important.”

  “What do you mean important?” I asked. It was then I realized I didn’t know much about Brent’s family. He referred to Mrs. Colcord as Ma so often, I had forgotten he wasn’t her son.

  “Brent’s father is a Senator,” Sean answered hesitantly. “So, whenever we got into any trouble, he’d make a few phone calls and things would get straightened out.”

  “Shut up! Are you for real? A Senator? I never knew that,” I exclaimed sitting up straight in my chair.

  “Yeah well, they don’t quite see eye to eye. He doesn’t have much contact with them.” The faint traces of concern etched across his face. It was fleeting, but it wasn’t missed. “It isn’t my place to tell his business, but Brent’s got a lot more going on underneath that happy-go-lucky persona that everyone sees.”

  I clutched Sean’s arm as a light bulb went off. “Hold up. Brent’s dad is the Senator Brenton Thomas?”

  Sean nodded. “The one and only.”

  Before I could inquire more about Brent and his family, we were met by a none too subtle cough from Dr. Barnes. I hopped out of the chair and gathered my sweater around my shoulders. For a moment I wanted to run to the man that had made a big impression on my life and offer him an embrace. But he was after all my boss, and someone who didn’t seem all that into physical contact—especially not any that includes emotional contact.

  “Are you two ready?” Dr. Barnes asked before either Sean or I could speak.

  “Yes…let’s get out of here,” Sean answered pulling me toward the exit.

  The walk back to the truck was a silent one. Everyone lost in their thoughts. I was at the crossroads between grilling Sean for more information on Brent and questioning Dr. Barnes for more information about his arrest.

  “Well carry on then,” Dr. Barnes urged as he sat in the back of Sean’s truck. I meant to get in the back, but the older man beat me to it. I turned to look at him, my mind racing with questions. He leaned his head back against the headrest of the back seat.

  “Logic and criminals do not go hand in hand,” Dr. Barnes said as he looked up at the roof of the car. Sitting up straight, he looked and found us staring back at him.

  “Is there a reason we are still sitting in the parking lot?” he asked in a mordant manner.

  “Can you tell us the reason we had to come here in the first place?” I countered sardonically.

  Normally I wouldn’t speak to my boss in that tone. But it was way outside of work hours, and he called me to pick him up from jail; standard practices were out the door for now.

  Dr. Barnes pulled his coat tightly around his body. The man was not accustomed to answering to anyone, not even his wife; who I already knew was out of town. I could only imagine what she will say once she hears he’s been arrested.

  “We can sit here all night if you’d like,” Sean added with a smile. Dr. Barnes’s response was a smirk.

  “Come on, Dr. Barnes; we bailed you out of jail. The least you can do is tell us why you got arrested,” I added hoping to change his mind. I waited patiently to see if it would make a difference. “Okay, fine. But I’m calling your wife as soon as we get back home. I’m sure she would love to hear how you got arrested the moment she went out of town to visit her sick mother.”

  It was a low blow to threaten him with a call to his beloved wife, but I was desperate for information.

  “As you’re aware my dear wife is out of town. It has been a while since she left me at home all alone. But I would rather wonder the depths of hell, than go to visit her mother in that assisted living facility in south Florida,” he sighed and looked at me. “Did I ever tell you about the time she tried to get my wife to file for divorce?”

  “Dr. Barnes, no changing the subject,” I reprimanded.

  Sean and I both stared at him expectantly. We wanted answers and would go to any lengths to get some. Sighing heavily, he began telling us what happened.

  CHAPTER 31

  NATHAN BARNES

  Juliet is going to have my head for this.

  I moved through the dark corridor. I made her a promise I wouldn’t get myself into any trouble while she was gone and look where I am now. I ran a frustrated hand down the side of my face to stay calm. So many things were racing through my mind.

  At the forefront was a postulate of the varying mechanisms involved in the decision-making process among humans. The time I spent in holding had me theorizing there could be impulse control issues of neurotransmitter deficiencies among individuals with high recidivism rates and those that have never been in the criminal justice system.

  The five hours I spent in the county jail had been some of the most interesting of my time on earth. Never had I been around so many individuals from all walks of life. I attempted to make conversation regarding the logistics of getting caught selling drugs to one of the young men I came across. But the boy wouldn’t see reason. He kept telling me he needed to make money to take care of his family. I argued the short-term advantage didn’t outweigh the long-term risks.

  Now, here I was about to make sense of my night to my most trusted employees.

  Earlier that evening…

  “Nathan!” My wife, Juliet, yelled from the landing of the stairs.

  I knew her caterwauling was about to begin. It never fails with this woman. She lovingly calls me, ‘her absentminded professor’, yet I had enough sense of mind to avoid toxic people. It was no secret I hated being in the same room as my wretched mother-in-law. Just like the old bat made no secret that she did not approve of her only child marrying me.

  When Juliet was young, her father passed away. Her mother spent many of her childhood years telling her how she’ll find a man to fill the hole in her heart his passing left behind. But then, I came along. According to the old battleaxe, I’m nothing more than a babbling, geeky, know-it-all that doesn’t know the first thing about being a husband or father.

  Too bad for her, I’m the kind of man to never second guess myself when I made a decision. The instant I met Juliet, I knew she would be my wife. No one could tell me different, especially not her overbearing mother.

  “Nathan!” Juliet called out again.

  I swung my office door open, heavy footsteps pounding on the wood floors to the top of the stairs.

  “Damn it, woman. Would you cease all that blasted yelling?” I barked in annoyance.

  All morning I had an idea to flush out for a new project. Juliet’s voice had cut into my thoughts right when I felt like I had gotten a grasp of it.

  There she was smiling up at me. I fixed my crooked spectacles on the bridge of my nose. I peered down at myself, taking note of my appearance. I was a disheveled mess in the same shirt I wore the day before. I couldn’t remember the last time I ate and was certain I hadn’t slept in the last twenty-four hours. Yet the woman looked at me like I was the best thing since Rutherford discovered how to split the atom.

  “I wouldn’t have to yell if you would answer me the first time I called your name,” Juliet retorted.

  “Woman, I don’t need to answer if I don’t want,” I scoffed at Juliet’s words. “You’re only going to tell me you’re off to see that she-devil you call a mother and leave me home all by myself for two whole days.”

  I made my way downstairs and stood above her on the last step. The blouse she wore was very flattering. I’m pretty sure she spent an arm and a leg on it. Juliet was always into fashion since our days at university. Even back then, she was always trying to get me to dress up or fit into whatever fad was in style. My philosophy about clothes was simple. If it fit, I wore it.

  “I can only imagine the vile things she’s going to put in your ears. You would think with death looming so closely, she would
at least try to make amends here on earth.” I sighed and pulled her into a tight embrace. The added height of the stairs placed her head just below my breastbone.

  “But, don’t listen to a word she says. Because you will always be the most important thing in my life,” I gently scolded.

  Juliet returned my embrace, pulling away after I kissed her on the forehead.

  “If I were any other woman, I would believe you. But, I’m well aware your research trumps me any day,” she said patting me on the arm.

  “Is that so?” I asked, stepping off the last stair.

  “Don’t be obtuse, Nathan. It doesn’t suit you.”

  I smiled as I watched her walk into the foyer to grab her small suitcase. She had a way with me I knew I couldn’t live without. Yes, I spent many hours locked away in my office, but I knew she was always around when I needed to unwind. It was hard to explain, but her presence, no matter how distant, always kept me focused. Now, she would be gone, and I was sure I wouldn’t get any work done for the next two days.

  “Well, since you plan on running off and leaving me for an old sea hag, the least you could do is kiss me goodbye.”

  When I reached her side, she pushed up on her toes and planted a slow kiss on my lips.

  “Dr. Barnes, you’re still the best kisser I’ve ever had,” she murmured between pecks. “And, still as handsome and dashing as the day you almost hit me with your car in the student union parking lot.”

  “You shouldn’t have been walking in the road.”

  “I was crossing the street. You shouldn’t have been reading and driving.”

  “Well…yes, there is that.” I dropped another kiss on her lips.

  “I left a few of your favorite things in the fridge. Don’t forget to eat,” she whispered. Gentle fingers smoothed my brows down before she walked away.

  “Wait, I will take your bag to the car.” I shuffled around, looking for my shoes.

  “No thanks, dear. I don’t need the neighbors seeing you in your underwear again.”

  I looked down at myself, shaking my head at the sight before me. At some point, in the last two days, I removed my pants. I stood in the doorway as she loaded her things in the car. She gave me a parting wave before pulling out of the driveway.

  “I’ll miss you,” I said watching the back of her car disappear out of sight.

  For the next five hours, I attempted analyzing data from one of my neglected research projects. I was fortunate to have Price and Colcord as part of my team. They were both independent workers who weren’t afraid to take the lead on anything I assigned them. It left more time for me to work on what I liked to call, ‘my pleasure projects’. I knew the day would come, sooner or later, but Price would leave me.

  Sure, I could probably convince her to stay on. But, a brilliant mind like hers was meant for greatness. Who was I to hold her back?

  Another hour was spent wandering aimlessly around the house, looking for nothing yet finding so much. I took time admiring all the photographs my wife hung in various places around the house. My daughters were all adults now, with families of their own. The years had flown by too fast. In my heart, they were still little girls who loved helping me build wooden toys in the backyard.

  At some point my stomach growled letting me know that food was necessary. I tried reheating the lasagna but ended up burning it to a crisp. I attempted to order pizza but couldn’t find my phone or the house phone. I found a bag of old Halloween candy in the pantry and some beer; I ate that instead.

  By Saturday evening, I found myself at one of the local bars downtown nursing a scotch whilst having a few laughs with the other patrons. It had been a few years since I was out with a group of men like this, but the change of atmosphere was doing me well. Being at home without Juliet was not for me.

  I had just finished telling the story about how my mother-in-law attempted to poison me. After I caught her in the act, she told my wife it was I who sought to end her life. The men in the tavern laughed boisterously at the story. Some of them even chimed in with tidbits of dealings with their hellish in-laws.

  “And, what would the world come to if the great Nathan Barnes were to perish?” came a familiar voice.

  I placed my glass on the table and turned in my chair. My eyes landed on a man I wished I could never lay eyes on again.

  “Well, if it isn’t the ingenious Dr. Gregory Moore,” I replied, voice caustic with suppressed rage.

  “Oh, Nathan, you flatter me.” Gregory pressed a palm to his chest in false modesty.

  “Come, have a seat,” I added, pulling a chair from another table while the other men made room for him. I called one of the waiters over to set Gregory up with a drink.

  After brief introductions were made, a casual conversation persisted. As always, the communication between us was laden with disdainful innuendos. It became apparent my old college adversary had become a bit of a drinker since the old days. I remembered a time when Gregory Moore would turn up his nose at the thought of inebriation. It seemed the years had taught him a few things, due to the number of drinks he had imbibed.

  “So, Barnes, tell me, how goes the world of research at H&G?” Gregory asked. He leaned back in his chair, eyes on me, waiting for a reaction.

  “I’m sure H&G is no different from any other research center,” I gritted out, gripping the glass until my knuckles turned white.

  “I hear you all are having trouble keeping good staff in the labs.”

  “And, where would you hear such a thing?”

  “Oh, I have my resources,” his reply was taunting, purposefully meant to push my buttons.

  “What resources could you possibly have at our company?”

  I felt the glass tumbler slip between my palms. I’d done all I could at the point to keep my cool. This man wasn’t a friend. He wasn’t a colleague. He was a damned thorn in my side.

  “Have you heard about the new protocol I designed?” he added, ignoring my question and pressing my buttons even further. “I hear other colleagues have been calling it a breakthrough in oncology research.”

  The MIND Project? My protocol.

  I felt the tension spread from the nape of my neck to the ends of my fingertips. Fiery hot rage shot through my chest before finally settling in the pit of my stomach. A night that started out as a distraction from missing my wife, was quickly turning sour.

  “I don’t mean to boast, but it’s not often the Chief Executive Officer of the Department of Health and Human Services regards one’s work as a ‘step in the right direction for the fight against cancer,’” Gregory continued, uncaring of how his words affected me.

  “You two work together?” one of the patrons sitting with us asked, recognizing the tension.

  “Something like that,” I answered, rolling specks of paper along the smooth surface of the table.

  “Well, I’m sure you could be afforded the same level of praise if you worked for a better company.” Gregory paused, finishing his fourth drink. He summoned the waiter to bring him another. “How a man that graduated at the top of his class ended up working as a lab rat at some shitty research company is beyond me. But you were always one to do things your way. Even when we were in college, you would find some way of getting our professors to change the syllabus based on some brilliant idea you had. Or, you’d manage to get out of attending classes but still end up with perfect grades; while the rest of us busted our asses cramming day and night on the third floor of the library.”

  The waiter came and placed the fresh drink in front of Gregory. It was obvious the jovial atmosphere around the table had departed.

  “Would anyone else like something,” she asked the other men.

  “No, thanks. I think that’s it for me. Nathan, it was a pleasure meeting you. Hopefully, you’ll make it out more often, and we can compare tales of our mother-in-law’s new plans on getting rid of us,” said John. He was one of the regulars here.

  He nodded to Gregory before heading over to
the bar to pay his tab.

  The other three men said their, ‘goodbyes’ and left as well, leaving Greg and me sitting at the table.

  I emptied my glass of the caustic, brown liquid. I knew where my old friend was going with his tirade. Truth be told, I had heard the same speech way too many times to listen. Jealousy was one emotion I could never understand. I had always lived my life as I saw fit. If things didn’t go my way I never blamed others. I just looked forward to making the best with what I’d been given.

  Growing up, I never questioned why I was different from other children. My mother praised my ingenuity, and my father encouraged my impulsiveness. They taught me how to be ‘Nathan.’ And, to see other men filled with so much hatred and jealousy was mind-boggling. Now, that the other men were gone, and I had Gregory’s full attention, it was time to get a few questions answered.

  “What is it about me that bothers you so?” I asked, voice slow and purposeful.

  Gregory took a healthy swig of his drink before answering, “It isn’t just you that bothers me. It’s how everyone treats you. You’ve always gotten away with everything. Nathan Barnes the fucking saint. You can do no wrong.”

  “So, that’s it. You hate me because I’m obviously better than you?” Some may consider my comment a sign of arrogance, but in truth, there was nothing vain about me. I only saw the truth; the reality of what I was—extraordinary. This man wanted to be the same thing. Unfortunately, it took him stealing my ideas for him to get the recognition he wanted.

  “You are no better than any of us!” Gregory barked in a gruff voice. His loudness caught the attention of the bartender. “You just think you are.”

  I smirked at the rise in his ire. “I don’t think anything. My intellect allows me to give a flying rats ass what others think about me. But I must admit, I find it utterly amusing that one small comment could get you so riled up.”