“Your Uncle Geoff had dated his sister back in high school,” Lance informed.
“I did not know that.”
“He didn’t make the connection that you were my son until late into your freshmen year as well,” Lance said before gesturing towards the street. “Anyway, are you and Ellen ready?”
“I’m ready,” Ellen said first.
“Let’s go,” Everett said.
As the three began walking along with the leaving adolescent crowd, Lance said, “Ellen, I heard about your brother and sister-in-law’s tragic accident, and I would like to express my condolences for your loss.”
“Thanks,” Ellen said sullenly. “I do miss them.”
Lance nodded before saying, “I also hear that you had just moved here from Kansas City.”
“Yes, Sir,” Ellen confirmed.
“So how do you like living in Savannah, Georgia?” Lance asked.
“I’ve only been here since Sunday, but so far it’s okay,” Ellen said.
“Everett tells me that your dad lives in Independence, Missouri, which isn’t all that far from Kansas City, Missouri.”
“‘Yes’ on where my dad lives and ‘not at all’ for the distance between the two cities,” Ellen said.
Lance and Everett both grinned before Lance continued with, “It seems strange to me that you moved here to Savannah, Georgia with your sister-in-law’s relatives when your dad lives so close to where you used to live.”
“I know I would be welcome at my dad’s place, but being pen pals is the only comfortable relationship I have with him.”
“Why’s that?” Lance asked curiously.
“My dad went to prison before I was born and there in prison was where I was introduced to him for the very first time,” Ellen began. “He was released three years ago, but a year before that he attempted to bond with me during one of my visits by telling me his life story. His life story had frightened the hell out of me and that was when I decided that I didn’t want to pursue a father-daughter relationship with him.”
“Everett had informed me of why your dad went to prison,” Lance said. “And I’m sorry for your loss of your siblings.”
“Thanks,” Ellen said with a polite grin.
“Out of curiosity, what’s your dad’s first name?” Lance asked.
“Mitchell,” Ellen replied. “He also has a twin brother name Brandon.”
“What did your dad do before he went to prison?” Lance asked. “Or do you know?”
“I do know,” Ellen began. “Telling me what he had done for a living was part of what had frightened me during his life story.”
“Oh?” Lance let out in a questioning tone.
“Have you heard of Clayton Seawall?” Ellen prompted as she, Everett and Lance were approaching Lance’s car.
“His name had come across my screen from time to time. He was a major crime lord in Kansas City several years back before he went to prison. What about him?”
“My dad had worked for him and his job was to clean up any evidence that would link Clayton Seawall to any crime. When my dad was facing a long prison term for kidnapping and manslaughter of my three brothers and sister, he plea bargained and helped put Clayton Seawall in prison.”
“Mmm,” Lance began in an impressed tone. “I have a confession to make, Ellen.”
“What’s that?”
“Most everything that you had told me, I had discovered on my own earlier at the precinct.”
“Then why the questions, Dad?” Everett demanded to know.
“I wanted to see how honest Ellen would be with me, and I have to say that she was very honest,” Lance said.
“My dad’s life doesn’t embarrass me—it frightens the hell out of me, but it doesn’t embarrass me—so I have no reason to lie about it,” Ellen told him.
Lance amusingly grinned before saying, “Okay. Oh and there’s one other thing that I would like for you to tell me honestly.”
“Okay,” Ellen said cautiously as they stepped up to the car and stood at the passenger’s side.
“The night when you had your driver’s permit suspended, were you driving or was your underage-intoxicated friend driving?”
Ellen thought for a second before cautiously saying, “If you know about that then you would know about the official…”
“I don’t care about the official report,” Lance interrupted with. “And I did speak with the officer who wrote that report. He remembers you and that incident, and he strongly believes that you were covering for your friend. Were you?”
Ellen hesitated timidly for a moment before nodding and saying, “I wasn’t even in the car.”
“Why would you take the blame for something that you didn’t do?” Everett demanded.
“Charlie—the one I took the blame for—is a nice guy and he would’ve gotten punished more severely than I did.”
“I understand why you did it, Ellen, but all you did was kept a drunk driving teenager on the streets,” Lance informed.
“Maybe he learned his lesson.” Lance was about to respond when Ellen confessed, “Especially since I had blackmailed him into going to AA meetings.”
“You blackmailed him?” Everett asked curiously.
Ellen nodded before saying, “I was in the middle of filming something for a class project that evening and I caught what he did on tape…”
“What did he do?” Everett interrupted with.
“He drove over his parents’ mailbox and ruined a part of his parents’ landscaping as he was attempting to park in the driveway,” Ellen replied. “After I told the cops that I was the one who was driving the car, I showed Charlie the tape. We then came to an understanding for him to get that tape. Everyday for six months I had to see him take a safe dose of Antabuse—the drug that makes people react badly to alcohol after drinking it. And I had to see him attend twelve AA meetings. And he did it too. For six months I kept him from being a drunk driving teenager. I have no knowledge if he went back to drinking once he got the tape though.”
Lance amusingly grinned before saying, “Ellen, I applaud your intentions, but at the same time I cannot condone it. So for now on, I must insist that you let the police and the courts handle the guilty—and no more blackmailing.”
Ellen politely and timidly grinned before saying, “Yes, Sir.”
“You’re not good at blackmailing anyway,” Everett told her. Ellen just shot him a smirk.
“Anyway,” Lance said while opening the back car door. He then gestured towards the backseat. “Hop in.”
Ellen nodded with a grin before climbing into the backseat and shutting the door. As Everett was taking the front passenger seat Lance was walking around to get in.
Lance was getting into the car when Ellen asked, “What time does your family normally eat dinner?”
“Around six,” Everett replied.
“Around six is my normal time at getting home, but if a case pops up, I could be out until ten or later,” Lance volunteered before starting the car.
“So that’s why you said that I might be gone when you got home,” Ellen guessed.
“It was,” Lance said.
Once Everett saw that the radio wasn’t on he asked, “Can I turn on the radio?”
“Go ahead,” Lance told him as he was putting the car into gear. “What kind of music do you like, Ellen?”
“I like all kinds,” Ellen assured him.
“My dad and I like Country,” Everett said.
“Country’s fine,” Ellen said.
“Country it is then,” Everett playfully said. Ellen just grinned.
Everyone was quiet until Lance had merged into traffic and then Lance asked, “So are you a baseball fan, Ellen?”
“Baseball is alright,” Ellen replied. “I don’t really follow it or any other sport, but I do like going to the stadium and watching it.”
“Have you been to a lot of baseball games?” Everett asked.
“Not a lot of games, but a few,” El
len replied. “I own a Royals jersey. I guess I shouldn’t wear it here in Savannah though.”
“It’s okay to be a Royals’ fan,” Lance said. “Now if they would ever play the Braves in the World Series then you might get harassed or booed for wearing it.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” Ellen told him. “And I guess my days of going to baseball games are over.”
“Why?” Everett asked.
“Isn’t the baseball stadium in Atlanta the closest stadium?”
“For major league, but Savannah, Georgia has a minor league team,” Lance said. “The team’s called the Sand Gnats.”
“I go to those games about two or three times a year,” Everett added.
“Cool,” Ellen said.
Their conversation remained casual during their drive to the house.
Across the street from Lance’s house, RJ was setting up full-size plastic skeletons in the front yard for Halloween decorations.
When Lance was getting close to the house, Ellen pointed and asked, “That’s RJ, right?”
“Yeah,” Everett said. “His permit must’ve come in.”
“What are you talking about?” Ellen asked.
“He’s turning that house into a Halloween haunted house and he had to wait for his permit before he could do it,” Everett informed.
“He’s turning his whole house—the house that he lives in—into a haunted house?” Ellen questioned as Lance was parking his car.
“RJ doesn’t live there,” Everett said before pointing towards the house to the left of his. “He lives in that house, and he bought his second house about a month ago.”
“Ah,” Ellen said in an understanding tone.
“I’ll see you two kids later,” Lance said.
“Okay, Dad,” Everett said as he went to open the car door.
“Thanks for the ride, Mr. Delaney,” Ellen said as she opened her door.
“You’re welcome,” Lance said before Ellen and Everett could get out completely.
As Ellen and Everett were shutting their car doors, RJ turned to look and did a double-take when he saw Ellen. Lance waved at RJ when he saw him looking.
RJ waved back, which caught Ellen’s focus. Ellen’s focus then wandered to the decorations that he was setting up.
“I guess you got your permit,” Everett called out to RJ.
“I got it yesterday,” RJ called back as Lance was driving away. “The inside is set up if you and Ellen would like to take a tour.”
“I would like to,” Ellen told Everett.
Everett nodded before telling RJ, “We would like a tour, but I should let my mom know that we are here.”
“I see that you two are here,” Kristen called out while standing by the front door.
Ellen and Everett turned to look before Everett gestured towards the house across the street and saying, “Ellen and I are going to take a tour.”
“I heard,” Kristen told them. “Have fun.”
“Let’s go on that tour,” Everett told Ellen.
Kristen went back into the house as Ellen and Everett made their way across the street. Kristen had just shut the front door when the phone rang.
She went to the living room phone and answered it with the traditional, “Hello.”
“It’s me,” Lance said. “I saw Everett and Ellen going towards RJ’s place, so I figured I’d give you a call while Ellen’s not in earshot of you.”
“So how did your talk with Ellen go?” Kristen asked.
“Good,” Lance said. “I don’t know if it was the fact that I was a detective and that I could check her story, but she was very honest with me. She told me everything that I had found out on my own.”
“Okay, well, did she trigger any spidy-senses of her being ominous or at least bad news?”
“No,” Lance replied. “She seems to be a nice girl.”
“You usually have good instincts about people so I’m sure she is.”
“Well, I’ll let you go and I’ll be home when I can,” Lance told her.
“I love you,” Kristen said.
“I love you,” Lance said before the two hung up.
Across the street at RJ’s haunted house, Ellen, Everett and RJ were walking towards the first room when Ellen asked, “So how’s Sergeant?”
“Sergeant is fine,” RJ said. “I can’t afford him anymore though, so I’m going to sell him.”
“I’m sorry if I’m the reason that you can’t afford to keep him,” Ellen told him as they were entering their first room. “I have always had a way with animals.”
“I didn’t think that you did it on purpose,” RJ began. “And since you had admitted that you have a way with animals…” RJ stopped talking when he saw that there was a mouse sniffing Ellen’s foot.
“What is it?” Ellen questioned as she followed his gaze.
“Don’t be scared,” RJ said quickly. “There’s a mouse at your feet.”
“I’m not,” Ellen said while looking at the mouse. “I seem to have a charming effect with all the animals, and this isn’t the first time that a mouse came up to me.”
“Which brings me back to what I was about to say,” RJ began. “I’m going to get another dog to train as a guard dog, and nothing personal, Ellen, but I don’t want you anywhere near my next dog.”
Ellen giggled before saying, “Okay. I understand.”
“Good,” RJ said. “Now I wonder if this mouse will run away if I attempt to stomp on it.”
“Don’t you dare!” Ellen ordered. RJ shot her a curious look. “Get a box and capture it and stick it outside.”
RJ chuckled before saying, “Fine. I should’ve known that if you attract animals and rodents that you would be against killing any of them as well.”
“Yep,” Ellen agreed proudly. “I am.”
“Okay, well… stay still until I can find something to capture the mouse in,” RJ requested.
Ellen just nodded in agreement.
As RJ was stepping away, Everett asked, “What do the animals at the zoo do when you’re there?”
Ellen shrugged before saying, “I’ve never been to the zoo before or anywhere else that holds or cages animals.”
“You’re kidding,” Everett quickly said.
“I’m not,” Ellen said. “I don’t know what would actually happen, but the image in my head is me causing a stampede with all the animals.”
“You had never wanted to go to the zoo before?” Everett questioned.
“Sure I have. When I was five or six, I remember bugging my mom to take me to the zoo. She cured me of that desire by bringing home ten snow-white bunnies from the pet store. I was delighted over those bunnies for about an hour, but then when I was ready to play with my toys, the bunnies wouldn’t leave me alone. When I complained to my mom about the bunnies following me all over the place, she informed me that the animals in the zoo would do the exact same thing.”
Everett slightly chuckled before saying, “Okay. I get it.”
“Okay, I found something,” RJ informed as he was returning with a box.
The mouse had remained at Ellen’s feet long enough for RJ to scoop the mouse up into the box.
“What’s going to keep that mouse from coming back into the house?” Everett questioned.
“I’ll take the mouse to the edge of the street by the sewers and release it there,” RJ said. “Hopefully the mouse will get the hint and move on. So I’ll be back.”
When RJ left with the box, Ellen and Everett looked over the display of the room.
Once RJ returned, Ellen asked, “What shop are you opening, RJ, that you need a guard dog?”
“A jewelry store,” RJ said.
“Wow,” Ellen said in an impressed tone. “You must have some serious cash to be able to open a jewelry store and a Halloween haunted house.”
“I did have enough cash and credit for my store, the guard dog, this house, the Halloween displays, the inspections, the required insurances and my licenses,” RJ began. �
�As for the jewelry items to be sold, my granddad had retired and closed his shop last week and he’s giving me his inventory.”
“Cool,” Ellen said.
RJ amusingly grinned before saying, “Let’s continue with the tour.”
“I’m ready,” Ellen said.
“Me too,” Everett agreed.
RJ nodded before leading the way to the next display. The tour took thirty minutes, and after it was over, Ellen and Everett crossed the street to Everett’s house.
As the afternoon slowly progressed, Ellen, Everett and Megan sat at the kitchen table as Kristen fixed dinner— homemade chicken pot pies—not far from them. Kristen talked and got to know Ellen as she went. Ellen got to know Kristen as well and learned that Kristen was the third shift’s supervising nurse. Ellen had also learned that Kristen had moved to Savannah, Georgia from Seattle, Washington when she was sixteen.
Their talk continued during their meal and afterwards, they moved to the living room to watch a DVD.
Lance returned home midway through the movie and when the movie came to an end, Lance drove Ellen home. Everett went with them.
After Ellen got home, Allyson didn’t think to say anything to Ellen about Tony’s dream.
Thursday morning during gym, Mrs. Warner had her class doing warm-up exercises for the first ten minutes and then broke them into four teams to play basketball. As before, two of the teams played basketball at one end of the court while the other two teams played on the opposite end.
Midway through the game, Stephen—one of the players who were playing against the team that Ellen was on—had stumbled forward towards Ellen. His head was bowed down and he looked like a charging rhino as he tried to regain his balance.
Ellen saw him coming quickly at her, and while acting more on instincts than on conscious thought, Ellen made a gymnastic move and flipped over him without grazing him. When she landed solidly on her feet, she looked back to see Stephen falling shoulder first onto the court. Ellen’s team members, her opponents and the students on the opposite end of the court who saw the incident applauded Ellen’s move.
Mrs. Warner had seen Ellen’s move as well and stepped up. As Stephen was getting on his feet, Mrs. Warner asked, “Are you hurt?”
Legacy Page 33
