by J. T. Lewis
Preacher had really whacked him!
As we drove back toward home, I contemplated our new associate.
I was conflicted. Although I knew him to be a good man at heart, some of his actions of the last day were on the extreme side of things. Abby seemed a little less concerned, having excitedly described to me how Preacher had disabled Shawn.
As it turned out Shawn was harmless, but like Abby told me on the way up to Indy… We are dealing with an unscrupulous murderer Gabe, who’s to say what we may come up against?. We’re better off safe than sorry!
I had to agree…generally speaking anyway.
Who is to say what we come up against? Our mysterious Bill had proven himself a cunning and resourceful man. He was definitely not someone to take lightly.
I was thinking again about Preacher’s actions to disable Shawn the day before. I had to admit that without knowing more about our unknown suspect, his actions against Shawn had probably not been that far out of line…although I’m sure that I would have handled it differently.
Another thought also entered my head as I again reviewed Preacher’s actions.
He certainly gets a lot of use out of that Bible!
Chapter 49
September 23, 1999
A sudden knocking at my door woke me with a start!
Jumping out of bed, I noticed the telltale slap of the water on the mattress.
I stopped in midstride…a waterbed?
I took note of my surroundings for the first time, finally realizing that this was not my room.
I had entered the room of my dreams moments before, the warmth of the room again enveloping me in a loving embrace as I arrived. I had sat down to drink in the wonderfully invigorating coffee while looking over the ongoing chess game.
Feeling my eyelids grow heavy, I quickly gulped down some more coffee before having to set the cup down.
Now it seemed, I was standing in the middle of someone else’s bedroom, getting ready to answer the door in the middle of the night. Shrugging my shoulders, I made my way through the bedroom door and into the living area. I noticed an old TV sitting on a table made out of planks and concrete blocks, a stack of vinyl LP’s laying close by.
Recognition struck me suddenly as I realized where I was.
My old apartment!
It was actually the second story of an old house in town that rented rooms. I had lived here after I graduated college while a rookie on the police force. I smiled at the remembrance…I had had some good times here.
The knocking started again, although now it seemed somewhat more hesitant.
I made my way to the door, pulling it open quickly.
“May?”
May stood at the top of the outside stairway, holding what looked like a bottle and two stemmed glasses.
“Hiiii!” she slurred slightly, waving the glasses in greeting.
“It’s a little late May…have you been partying?”
Starting to answer, her eyes grew wide as they moved down off of my face.
“Wow Gabe,” she giggled, “do you greet everyone like this?”
Unsure of what she meant, I looked down myself, discovering that I was naked!
It didn’t seem to bother me as much as I thought it should, although that is probably the reaction that I would have had back then. I walked over and found a towel that had been thrown on the couch, wrapping it around my waist.
“Come on in May,” I called out as I tucked in the end of the towel.
May made her way through the doorway slowly, taking in the apartment.
“You’ve outdone yourself on your decorating Gabe,” she said with a smirk before giggling once more.
I pulled a few more things off of the couch, throwing them into the corner.
“Have a seat,” I said as I turned on a table lamp while stifling a yawn.
“What’s up?”
I plopped on the couch beside my old friend and she handed me one of the glasses.
“I need someone to help me drink this Champagne,” she told me as she vainly tried to uncork the bottle.
After a few moments, I reached over and took the bottle from her, untwisting the wire until the cork popped across the room.
“That’s the ticket!” she shouted with a grin, holding her glass out for a fill.
Filling hers and then mine, I set the bottle down and looked back at May.
“What are we celebrating?” I asked, trying to remember if I had forgotten something important.
Gulping down her glass, May held it out toward me for a refill.
“I’m not sure yet,” she giggled, “I have my hopes though.”
I shook my head, “You are awful cryptic for the middle of the night kid. What are your hopes?”
“I hope…” she started, slurring her words a little as she looked over at me. Then her eyes moved down to my towel. “I hope…that that isn’t a tent pole holding that towel up.”
I looked down, surprised at having had that particular reaction.
“I don’t have a tent May.”
I guess I wasn’t that surprised. I had always thought my oldest friend was sexy…a beautiful girl that had grown into a beautiful woman.
May reached over with her hand, laying her fingers on my chin and pulling my face to hers. Leaning forward, she gently kissed my lips, moaning a little as she pulled away.
“May…” I started, swallowing the lump that had formed in my throat. “We’ve started down this road before. Are you sure this is where you want to go tonight?”
Nodding, she set her glass down on the table. “I also hope,” she started as she scooted closer to me, moving to her knees before straddling me with her legs, “that I didn’t waste my money on the Champagne!”
***
I watched her as she slept; her head on my arm, her hand on my chest. I reached over and gently moved her brown bangs away from her eyes with my finger.
May moaned happily as she opened her eyes slowly…they had never sparkled so brightly.
“Hi,” she sighed, stretching and snuggling closer to my chest.
“Hi yourself,” I replied, not really knowing what to say, and knowing it didn’t matter.
“That was…magnificent,” May purred. “We should have done this a long time ago Gabe.”
“I always wanted to…you know that…”
My words were lost in her hair as I gave her a kiss.
Running her hand down my chest, it slowly ducked under the covers.
“Mmmm,” she moaned as she then slid on top of me.
“You really have wanted to, haven’t you?”
***
I woke up as the sun was coming up, a smile on my face as I remembered May, as I remembered us!
“You want some breakfast?” I said softly as I rolled over…to an empty bed.
Feeling with my hand, I could tell she had been gone for awhile.
I was surprised by the emptiness I felt at that moment. Although we hadn’t been in close contact for a couple of years, May and I had always been buddies. Her sudden appearance during the night had indeed surprised me, but not as much as her wanting to make love to me.
I sighed contentedly as I lay back on my pillow. I had always known in my heart that this was how it was supposed to be…May and I…together in every way.
Sighing again, I decided to get up and make some coffee when something drew my attention from the corner of my eye. Reaching over, I picked up the folded notebook paper lying on May’s pillow.
I smiled at the realization that I had called it her pillow.
Unfolding the paper…
My dearest Gabe…my most lovely, intelligent, and sexy friend.
Thank you for last night…I will cherish it forever. I am shivering now as I think back to what a tender and caring lover you are. You are exactly how I have always dreamed you would be…how I always knew you would be.
But there is something I need to tell you.
Last night when I stopped,
I was driving home from a party. It was actually…my bachelorette party.
You see my dearest friend; I am to wed Tom Lassiter next Saturday.
I feel terrible that I in any way deceived you, which I of course did…by not telling you the truth. But I had to know Gabe…I had to know you…in the one way that we didn’t yet know each other.
I am in love with Tom by the way. And even if you felt half as much as I did last, I hope that you will understand that I didn’t do this to use you in any way. I knew that you wanted me as much as I wanted you, and to go through the rest of our lives without knowing…
Anyway, I’m probably making this worse by stretching it out. What you need to know Gabriel Celtic…is that I love you…and I always will love you. You are my best friend…the best friend anyone could have.
I hope that someday, you may understand this night, and not hate me for what I have done to us…and for us.
Although I am marrying Tom, you will always be in my heart…you are my heart.
I Love You
May
Chapter 50
September 23, 1999
I woke with a start, a sadness hanging onto my being from the dream. Looking at the clock out of habit, it was again showing 5:30 AM.
My morning curse.
Laying my head back on the pillow once more, I stare at the ceiling, remembering the night’s dream. It was actually more than a dream I guess; it was a memory, one that I had pretty successfully repressed for many years.
May’s note had hit me hard when I had read it that morning long ago. I had finally and completely opened the door to my heart to her that night…as I thought she had to me.
The reality had hurt. Luckily that day was the start of a weeklong shift, giving me little time to dwell on it during the day. Nights would have been tough had it not been for an outbreak of the flu that week. I got all of the overtime I wanted.
When that week had ended, I slept most of my two days off and then started again.
When I finally had time to sit and dwell on it, the stabbing pain had subsided, replaced with a general sadness as to how everything had turned out. By then, I could rationalize what May had done.
She had needed me that night, and I had needed her.
I realized that I was a piss-poor candidate for a husband at that point in my life. I had a dangerous job, no inclinations toward being a father, and I was sometimes still dealing with the backlash of Vietnam.
I recognized that I still loved her…that I would always love her. But I also realized that Tom Lassiter was her chance at a normal life…I would never jeopardize that for her.
So, I put it away. I took the memory of that night and buried it under my heart, where it would never see the light of day. I then piled on cases, other women of interest, and of course finally Betty. By the time I had met Betty, it was buried so deep as to be of little consequence in my life.
So why had it surfaced now?
Even with my recent close proximity to May, I saw little advantage to anybody of dredging that night back out of the trash bin.
I shook off my thoughts and rolled out of bed. I had enough to think about without rehashing my past. I should be more concerned with May’s safety, as well as Raven’s than our combined past.
Shaking my head with disdain, I realized that I only knew one thing for sure at that moment.
I needed coffee!
***
I was on my third cup when Abby entered the kitchen, covered in scratches and moving slow.
“You ok?” I asked with concern.
“Yeah,” she sighed, “Just stoved-up from the other night…I’ll be ok once I get moving.
I offered to get her some coffee, but she waved me off and continued to the pot on her own. Finally getting her cup filled, she returned to the table and plopped down in the chair next to me.
“Uhhh,” she moaned, “I feel like I have been hit by a truck!”
I nodded, watching my daughter over the rim of the cup. It was no wonder that she hurt this morning; last night had really been the first full night’s sleep she had gotten since the attack. Even her young body would rebel against such an onslaught of abuse.
“Take the day off,” I said with a smile, “You have been through a lot the last few days…you need some time to heal.”
Shaking her head, “I’ll rest when we catch this guy Gabe. Besides being a danger to our clients and mankind in general…now he’s just pissed me off!”
Slamming her cup down hard for effect, she inadvertently splashed coffee all over the table.
“Oh crap!” she said, embarrassed.
Trying to jump up, I waved her off as I stood to get some paper towels to clean up the mess.
“Sorry Gabe, I guess my anger got the best of me.”
I nodded as I started wiping the table.
“I realize that Abby,” I replied evenly, “And it’s totally understandable.”
Sitting down again, I had a concerned look my face.
“Fatherly advice?” I asked, never sure where my role started as a father with my grown daughter.
“Of course Gabe, duh!”
I smiled at her reply.
“It’s ok to be angry, but you need to focus your anger on the case…you need to be in control of it. Like the coffee cup, if you let it control you, it can lead to a mess…innocent people could get burned.”
“Ok dad,” she grinned immediately, “point taken. I will try my best to control and focus my anger…and to not slam down the coffee cup again.”
Even though it appeared as a lighthearted response, I knew she had taken my concerns seriously.
“So, what’s on the agenda today?” Abby asked.
“I’d like you to go meet our clients at Raven’s house. You and May can spend some more time going over the estate planners. Don’t take a direct route, and keep an eye out for a tail. Preacher will be picking May up at her mom’s condo, delivering her to Raven’s when he is certain he isn’t being followed.”
Abby seemed concerned. “Is it wise to meet at the client’s house Gabe?”
“We think so,” I replied as I cleaned up the kitchen. “When you get to Raven’s house, you’ll see it’s pretty much a fortress. On top of that, there is limited access to her place, a long one-lane private road. Preacher will be watching the entrance to the highway from a good vantage point. If he sees anything suspicious, he will call you and then follow whoever it is.”
Abby nodded, a grin returning to her face once more.
“And…” her smile growing even larger, “I’ll finally get to meet your other girlfriend!”
I could only shake my head.
Chapter 51
September 23, 1999
I pulled up behind Preacher’s car stationed at the end of Raven’s road. Turning off my engine, I noticed that he had brought the Road Runner today for his guard duty, and I sat there for a few seconds and marveled at the old hot rod.
I was jealous!
Exiting the car then, I walked up to the driver’s window.
“Morning Gabe,” he said brightly out the open window as I approached.
“Everything quiet?” I asked, noticing the ever-present bible sitting on his lap.
“Yessir! No one in or out except Abby and Miss May. There has only been two cars even drive by on this road since I got here at 6:00. Mrs. Forester has herself pretty well isolated up here.
I nodded, remembering that Calvin Forester’s family holdings included about a thousand acres. Hidden away like it was, I was relatively certain that Raven’s house would remain a sanctuary. Just in case however, I had hired the Jasper brothers to patrol the woods behind the house.
Hank and Bill Jasper were old friends from high school. Good old boys in every way, they were nonetheless straight arrows and very dependable. Deft hunters, they would jump at any opportunity they could get to go hunting or camping.
I had offered them a thousand dollars each to guard the house, and they had bo
th quickly taken a week off from their jobs, planning on spending the whole week camping on and patrolling the property.
“Boring is good!” I said finally, “I’ve had enough excitement for one week.”
Preacher nodded in agreement, flipping a page of his Bible without thinking.
I glanced in the window, trying to get a good look at his mysterious book. It seemed that he was always pulling something out of it, and I had yet to fathom how he did it. Looking at it now, I could see nothing that would indicate that it was anything other than a regular old Bible.
A noise down the road caught my attention… a motor. By the sound of it, something had just turned off the main road and was heading our way.
“Company coming,” Preacher stated nonchalantly as he picked up his gun off of the seat beside him.
I was jumpy, but was hoping it was just somebody driving by on their way to someplace else.
We could see about a quarter mile ahead of us, and soon spotted a van rounding the corner. I relaxed a little when I recognized the color and logos of a major delivery service.
The van was flying, but quickly slowed as it approached our position, the turn signal indicating that he intended to turn up Raven’s drive.
“Should we stop him?” Preacher asked, not taking his eyes off of the approaching van.
“Let it go,” I answered quickly, “I’d hate to take old James’ work from him. Why don’t you text Abby that it is coming.”
Picking up his phone, Preacher deftly worked the keypad for several seconds before setting it back down on the seat beside him.
“Abby will probably go retrieve the package herself,” I said with a smile, “By now, she’s probably bored stiff dealing with the legal mumbo-jumbo in that book.”
Preacher’s phone beeped then as he picked it up, using several seconds to retrieve Abby’s return message.
The color drained from his face as he looked at me with fear in his eye.
“She says they never get deliveries here!”
Chapter 52
September 23, 1999
The Road Runner’s engine was screaming as the tires spun around the corner and entered the driveway.
