The Twelfth Of Never: A suspense mystery romantic thriller

by Lillian Francken

  Pictures were off the walls, the couch was cut to shreds, pillows were ripped open and stuffing was pulled out while the lamps were now just wires dangling loose from rods. The residue on the floor was a mixture of clothes and food. The cupboard doors in the kitchen were all open. Kettles, pots, and pans lay on broken dishes, mixed with food.

  Gideon reached for Jenny. She struggled to free herself and then ran to the bedroom, stumbling as clothes tangled around her feet.

  "Don't touch anything." Gideon yelled to an empty room.

  "Trish!" Jenny screamed while frantically searching the room but the noise from the living room caused her to turn and rush back. Jenny stared at Gideon, who had Benjamin pinned to the wall. He'd kicked Benjamin's feet apart and was frisking him for weapons.

  "What are you doing?" Jenny ran up, struggled while pulling Gideon off Benjamin.

  "He attacked me," Gideon snapped while turning to face Jenny. Blood dripped out of the corner of his mouth.

  "Benjamin is my neighbor," Jenny yelled, and then quickly looked at Benjamin. "Did you do that?"

  "I thought the guy was back."

  "What guy?" Jenny asked.

  "Trish and I were coming home when we saw this guy walking out of the apartment."

  "What did he look like?" Gideon asked.

  Benjamin turned to Gideon, "I am not talking to no one but the cops."

  "I am the cops," Gideon snapped, not wanting to explain who he actually was.

  Jenny turned to him; she was sure he was not with the NYPD. Actually she did not know whom he was with. He'd never really identified himself.

  "I didn't know you were a cop," Jenny said.

  Gideon rolled his eyes, and then nodded toward Benjamin. He turned and asked Benjamin. "Now what did the guy look like, or should I take you down to the station and have you personally talk to the cops?"

  "White hair, about six two, mid-thirties."

  "Ian," Gideon said out loud.

  Jenny stared in disbelief. "You know him?" Jenny asked.

  Gideon shook his head, "What?" he replied glancing at the two, and then realized what he'd said.

  "You said Ian, do you know this man?" Jenny asked. Her heart raced thinking about the name Delaney wrote on the pad.

  Gideon ignored her question. He walked over to the couch and then reached down into the rubble. He picked up the sketch Benjamin had done of Jenny years ago. He shook the dirt off the piece of parchment. Gideon stood staring at the charcoal lines. Then he glanced at Jenny.

  "This is you, isn't it?" His voice quivered as he said the words.

  Jenny shook her head. "Who else would it be?" She looked over his shoulder at the soiled piece of paper. "It's ruined." Tears filled her eyes when she turned and saw John's on the floor.

  "Here give that to me." Benjamin said. He quickly took the sketch from Gideon. "I can fix it."

  Jenny reached down and pulled the sketch of John out of the rubble and handed it to Benjamin. "Would you do this one too?"

  "Maybe it's time we put it to rest."

  "Please," her eyes glassed over as she looked pleadingly at Benjamin. "Where's Trish?" Jenny asked, wiping away the tears.

  "In my apartment."

  Jenny breathed a sigh of relief. She stood there for a brief moment, watching Gideon reach down and pull at a wire that in time produced the telephone. Gideon picked up a rag from the floor, and then picked up the receiver. Quickly he dialed a number, and then waited.

  "Bronk." There was a pause before Gideon continued. "You better get over to Mrs. Hamilton's apartment right away." He hesitated, glancing around the room before staring at Jenny. "Someone made a real mess of the place." He motioned to Jenny not to touch anything. "Yes, dust it for prints. You may want to talk to her neighbor." Gideon turned to Benjamin. "You going to stay put?"

  "Yeah," Benjamin replied, and then turned to Jenny. "You can stay with me."

  "No," Gideon interrupted.

  Jenny turned to him. "I'm a big girl. Neither of you need to bother."

  "You can't stay here, not tonight," Benjamin replied.

  Gideon put the receiver to his ear again. "She will come with me tonight." He stared at Jenny for a moment. "Okay, we will see you in fifteen minutes." Gideon hung up the receiver, he continued staring at her.

  "I can't go with you," she said firmly.

  "You have no choice."

  Slowly, Jenny walked around the apartment and tried desperately to assess whether anything could be salvaged. She was unable to touch a thing for fear of disturbing the mess. It was difficult walking over the food, dirt, and garbage spewed on the floor. She tiptoed into her room. Clothes were taken out of the drawers, some cut, and other ripped, mixed with soil from the plants. The Boston fern she nursed from a small sprig was now crushed into the clothing on the floor. Jenny searched the room for the note pad Delaney had written on, but it was gone.

  Gideon followed her into the room, stood at the doorway. "Why don't you try to find a few overnight things?" Gideon said. After getting no response he walked up to Jenny and touched her on the arm. "Are you okay?"

  "Sure, everything is just peachy!"

  Jenny lashed out at him for all the hurt of the last few days. All she wanted was to punish someone for the pain she felt. It was not his fault this happened to her. Gideon was not the one who did this to her apartment. But he knew John was dead and, for a moment, all the years of hurting inside came rushing out.

  Gideon took her by the arm and guided her from the room. "I'll stop off someplace and get you a few things to wear."

  "You don't have to."

  "Let's go down to the car and wait there. It's clear staying here is only upsetting you."

  Jenny let herself be led out of the apartment, down the stairs, and into the car. She did not know what else to do. Her husband was dead, her apartment was trashed, and there was nothing left in this world for her to care about.

  CHAPTER 17

  It was already well past eleven when Gideon pulled up to the old brownstone. Only the faint glimmer of light from the lamppost lit their way, but Jenny could tell it was in an older section of the Village. They slowly climbed up a couple flights, and then stopped on the landing. Jenny glanced around while Gideon fidgeted with the keys, and when the door swung open, the cold room reached out to grab her. It was small and impersonal. She stood in the doorway, not wanting to move. She glanced around while shivering from the chill of the room. There were only a few pieces of furniture scattered around the room and the barren walls filled the room with emptiness. There was no personal touch to make it feel like home. She looked at Gideon and knew it was the way he wanted it. No ties, nothing to get in the way. She watched him walk over to the register to crank up the heat. Then he turned to her and pointed.

  "The bedroom is through that door."

  "Thank you," was all she could muster up to say, still stunned from what had happened earlier.

  Jenny walked into the bedroom. She did not bother with the light because the flickering neon outside offered enough illumination. She crawled onto the bed that took up the better part of the room. The throbbing in her head was unbearable; the aching in her body only got worse. She wanted something to take away the pain, but did not dare ask Gideon for anything more. Jenny just pulled the covers up to her chin, rolled into a fetal position, and wept.

  Thursday, September 15, 1977

  Time passed without her knowing or caring. It was a church bell in the distance that caused her to open her eyes. Jenny rolled over slowly and tried to focus. The noise from the traffic below startled her as horns blared, while drivers yelled their indifference to the world for all to hear. For a moment she thought it was still night as she shut her eyes again, but the sun was shining. Then it hit her, the realization of where she was. Jenny sat up quickly, and then remembered the night before, Bronk, the station house, the apartment, and her thoughts turned to Gideon. Jenny fell back onto the pillow. How could she have been so vulnerable as to allow a stranger
to take control of her life like she did? But last night she had been in no condition to argue.

  Jenny could hear the movement on the other side of the door. She glanced around the room slowly. The curtains fluttered in a light breeze through the open window, it caught her attention. She remembered the window being closed the night before. She knew he had been in the room while she slept.

  "Are you awake in there?" Gideon tapped lightly on the door and then paused.

  "Yes. What time is it?"

  She glanced around the room for something that resembled a clock. Jenny sat up in the middle of the bed with the sheets pulled tightly up to her chin.

  "It's a little past one."

  "You've got to be kidding," she said. Jenny searched for her clothes, and then quickly turned to the door. "Why did you let me sleep so long?" she asked.

  "After what you went through last night, I figured you needed a good night's rest."

  She knew he was right, but regretted not staying in her own domain. She could have stayed with Benjamin, surely Mrs. Bennett wouldn't have minded, but why had she let herself be led away so helplessly?

  "Thanks," was all she could muster up to say. But the fact remained that she'd spent the night with a stranger, and that upset her.

  "I'll make you something to eat," Gideon replied, his voice sounding more distant. He was no longer outside the door.

  "Is there time to take a bath?"

  Gideon muttered something, but Jenny could not make out what it was. She searched her memory for details to the apartment she was in. She was positive this was the only bedroom and wondered where he had slept last night. The furniture in the outer room did not look that comfortable, but then it was not any concern of hers. He was probably used to sleeping on couches.

  Jenny got up off the bed, walked over to the window and looked down at the street sign below. She was sure Bedford was near the University. It warmed her thinking she was not far from home, but now even that was not a place she really wanted to go back too. Someone had destroyed it last night. Jenny thought about the man in the hospital room. She quickly put that thought out of her head, picked up her clothes, and then walked into the bathroom. Within minutes she had the tub filled, and then slowly lowered herself in, letting the hot water melt away the tension she felt. She shut her eyes and tried not to think about Delaney, the envelope at the studio, or the money in her purse. Jenny let it all slip away, not wanting to think about any of the unpleasantness that had surrounded her the last few days. But it was not meant to be. She could only muster up a few moments of peace before the realization of the last few days seeped in again. Sitting there in a tub of hot water would not put the pieces of her shambled life back together. She got up and stepped out of the tub. She wanted desperately to be back in the soothing warmth of the water, but it was only a memory and nothing more.

  The ringing menace in the outer room annoyed her as she quickly grabbed a towel and wrapped it around herself. She walked through the bedroom. By the seventh ring she had started to open the bedroom door. Gideon finally picked up the receiver.

  Jenny was curious. She wanted to know what was going on. She was not sure how much Gideon would tell her, so she just stood behind the crack in the door and listened.

  "What do you mean keep an eye on her," Gideon paused for a moment. His back was turned to the bedroom door. "She knows nothing. I'm sure."

  As Gideon turned around, Jenny caught a glimpse of his face through the crack. It angered him, what was being asked.

  "It's a waste of time, I'm telling you." He looked down at his feet, then back at the bedroom door.

  Moments passed, his face flushed as the tension grew. "Are you sure they were her prints inside the closet?"

  Jenny's heart sank realizing they had her prints and now knew all. And she was stupid enough to let it all happen.

  "Okay, so it's my job, but I'm sure she knows nothing more. Why would Delaney have trusted her with something that big?" Gideon waited for a reply, but when he got none he continued, "I'll do it, but I don't have to like it." Gideon slammed the receiver down.

  The look on Gideon's face startled Jenny. She watched as he snapped the towel into the sink, sending a glass teetering on the edge. Then as if in slow motion it crashed to the floor before Gideon could catch it. Jenny jumped back at the sound, too petrified to move.

  Gideon turned quickly to the bedroom door, but did not see Jenny pressed up against the backside.

  Jenny stood motionless while an eternity seemed to pass. Finally she heard the sound of splintered glass being swept up and then she peeked back into the outer room. She watched Gideon on his hands and knees picking up large pieces of glass that scattered around the floor. His back was to her. She left the door ajar and tiptoed back into the bathroom. Jenny dressed quickly.

  "Are you about ready?" Gideon yelled from the kitchen.

  "No, I need a few more minutes," Jenny replied, not having it in her to face him yet.

  "Lunch is just about ready."

  Jenny collected the few belongings she had, and then walked out of the bathroom. She took a deep breath as she glanced around the room. It was then she saw the tiny picture on the dresser. Jenny had not taken notice of it last night. She walked over and picked it up. Two little girls about four and six stared back at her. Their dark hair and the intense eyes were all she noticed. She had not thought about Gideon being married, but then remembered the woman's name, Beth. He told Bronk he would call her. Jenny set the picture down.

  Slowly she opened the dresser drawers. Two shirts still wrapped in dry cleaner plastic lay neatly in the corner. There were three pairs of socks rolled in a ball. Jenny shoved them aside and stared at the black instrument of death that lay on top of his undergarments. Jenny swallowed hard, and then shut the drawer. She picked up the picture as the door opened. Jenny turned and stared at Gideon. The expression on his face startled her for a moment.

  "You surprised me," Jenny stammered.

  "I can see that. What's keeping you?" Gideon stepped in the room, but never let go of the doorknob.

  "They are pretty little girls," was all Jenny said.

  There was no acknowledgement of the remark as Gideon just continued to glare at her. Jenny did not know what to do or say. She was still annoyed with him and the conversation she’d overheard earlier. It embarrassed her, his catching her with the picture in her hand.

  "Lunch is ready," Gideon said.

  "You didn't have to bother."

  Gideon had embarrassed her by his intrusion just then and she felt at a disadvantage. The fact that he did not acknowledge who the girls were bothered her more. Jenny put the picture down and walked past Gideon and then over to the table and sat down at the spot with the mat. Jenny did not know what to expect for lunch, the odor was strong and pungent. She almost laughed out loud when Gideon opened the oven door and took out the foil-wrapped tin and set it on the mat in front of her.

  She looked down at the five-course TV dinner. A lifetime of pain had been endured in the last forty-eight hours. Food was the last thing on her mind.

  "Would you take me back to my place after lunch?" Jenny asked as she cut into the soft meat patty with her fork.

  "Sure, but maybe you shouldn't stay alone just yet," Gideon replied. His voice strained at the words, but they had to be said.

  "I have friends. Besides, I don't want to saddle Trish with cleaning that mess."

  "Who is she?"

  "My roommate."

  "It might not be safe for you," Gideon argued.

  "Benjamin's down the hall, he will call the cops if anything happens."

  Jenny pushed the waterlogged peas and carrots around with her fork, the meat had the texture of sawdust and was not appealing. She took a few bites out of courtesy, but would have preferred tossing it in the garbage instead.

  "Maybe you should stay here for a few days." Gideon shrugged his shoulders while wiping down the counter.

  "No!" Jenny said, cutting him off shar
ply. She would not impose on him further or make his job any easier. Her mind was made up—there was no arguing.

  As soon as Gideon walked out of the apartment, Jenny picked up the tin platter. Walking over to the garbage, she quickly discarded the remains of her meal. She then went back into the bedroom to collect her belongings. Before leaving, she turned. The picture caught her attention again. They were his, that much she knew now.

  When she walked out of the brownstone, Gideon was waiting for her in the bright red sports car. He reached over and opened the door for her. Jenny climbed in and hung onto the edge of her seat as he sped through traffic.

  "Are they done with my apartment?" Jenny asked. She wondered how much more they knew about her now.

  "Yes," Gideon replied. He looked over at Jenny in the passenger seat. "I was right. There weren't any prints."

  Jenny laughed to herself when she thought the only prints they'd lifted were hers. But it was already too late. They knew she was in the closet at the hospital. Maybe if she just destroyed the envelope it would all end. But whatever it meant, it was important enough to get two people killed and her life shattered.

  Jenny turned to Gideon and it was then noticed the scar above his ear. His jaw muscles tensed. Jenny was uncomfortable in his presence and did not know why.

  As they pulled up to her apartment building, Benjamin was walking out of the entrance. He looked over, and when he saw Gideon, a scowl crossed his face. Then he tightened his grip on the art pad he carried.

  "You're finally back," Benjamin said glancing at Jenny and then turned to Gideon as he rolled his eyes. "I see you brought your friend."

  Jenny got out of the car. "How's Trish taking the break-in?"

  "Not too good. She's up in the apartment cleaning."

  "I better get going."

  "I'll stop up later. I have to put the finishing touches on a few pieces." Benjamin said while turning to Gideon and tipping his beanie hat.

  Before Gideon could acknowledge him, Benjamin quickly walked down the steps. He disappeared around the corner onto the outer street.