Trust A Stranger

by Baxter, Cole

  "I created such a mess," Mary said, putting her head in her hands.

  "It was a very stressful, very hard situation and you did your best." He tried to comfort her and have her see things from a different perspective. "Next time, don't hesitate. Immediately call the police."

  Mary didn't fail to notice there was not an 'if' involved. Nick was coming for her. There was no doubt about it.

  "I will," she promised without a thought.

  "I am of an opinion that you should have done that already."

  "I know, but Ruby didn't want to get involved," Mary explained. She still couldn't fully understand why the other woman did not want to press charges.

  "That is her right," Dr. Carson countered. "At the same time, you need to do everything that is in your power to protect yourself, and Ruby as well."

  "You are completely right, Doctor. I understand."

  She wasn't going to choke up the next time she saw Nick. That was a firm promise she made to herself. I will no longer be a prisoner of fear, she repeated like a mantra on the way to Ruby's apartment. The encouragement helped. Despite that, she was very worried. After discussing everything with Dr. Carson, she felt the need to share all their concerns with Ruby. She needed to be warned as well. It was important to keep her safe. Mary didn't want her additionally hurt. Not on her account.

  "You're still visiting that charlatan?"

  Ruby had an outburst when Mary tried to explain to her the situation they were in because of Nick. All she said was, "Doctor Carson and I believe this is far from over," and in return, Ruby completely lost her composure.

  "Of course I'm seeing him. He's my therapist. And please don't call him a charlatan. It bothers me," Mary replied, feeling quite surprised that Ruby would act in such a manner. Couldn't she put her personal feelings aside about therapists in general and see a bigger picture? Apparently not.

  "Sure, a therapist," she mocked. "I'll tell you exactly who he is. He's a con artist who will lead both of us to our deaths," she said dramatically.

  "Don't you think you're overreacting just a little?"

  Mary tried to calm her down but Ruby was adamant, stuck to her ways. It was really hard for Mary to remain calm as well since she couldn't understand the drive that forced her to act in such a manner.

  "Not at all," Ruby countered. "He only knows how to talk and offer meaningless advice, and where was he when you really needed him?"

  Mary was ashamed to admit that Dr. Carson had never crossed her mind when she was in need.

  "When you confronted Nick, I was there for you, not him. He was probably at home twiddling his thumbs."

  When she put it that way, it made sense . . . a bit.

  "He doesn't really care about you. Remember that. You can only rely on me, on your true friend, and never on him," she ranted.

  "Please, Ruby, calm down."

  "I can't calm down when I see you acting so foolishly. I care about you too much to simply stay silent and watch you make bad decisions."

  She was such a good friend. Mary didn't know if she deserved her.

  "Promise me you won't go back to him."

  Mary couldn't promise that. No matter if some of what Ruby said did make sense, Dr. Carson was a vital part of her recovery.

  "Let's not argue about this any longer," Mary replied, ignoring Ruby's last demand. "How about I go and make us some tea?"

  Ruby looked as though she wanted to continue then reconsidered. She simply nodded in return. "Tea would be lovely, honey."

  Chapter Seventeen

  “What?" Mary asked in surprise. "What do you mean, you're leaving?"

  A couple of days passed since their argument and everything returned to normal. Nevertheless, Ruby informed her out of the blue that she was leaving town for a couple of days, for a whole week at the most.

  It was such an abrupt decision as far as Mary was concerned. Usually, Ruby was an easily excitable woman. So if this trip were something she had planned on doing, she would talk about it non-stop, and she hadn't. So it was a spur of the moment kind of thing, and Mary wondered why, already fearing it was something she did or said that drove her away. Old habits really die hard.

  "Well, I had my checkup today. The doctor wanted to see if I was healing properly," she explained.

  "You did? Why didn't you call me to come with you?"

  "I didn't want to bother you."

  Mary was pleased to hear that Ruby could be reasoned with regarding visiting doctors and that she was taking care of herself.

  "And what did he say?"

  Ruby sighed loudly, before replying, "Well, unfortunately, he had to re-break the bone since it was healing badly."

  "I'm so sorry to hear that, Ruby," Mary instantly replied, feeling horrible. "I wish I had been there with you."

  If she didn't make that colossally wrong decision, none of this would have happened.

  "I'm all right, honey. It did hurt badly, but on the bright side, I got more of those pills."

  Mary wasn't amused. "Please take them with care, responsibly. They are highly addictive."

  "I know, I was just making a joke."

  "Good one."

  "Mary, please, lighten up. Everything is fine. Everything is going to be fine."

  Mary wished she had Ruby's brand of optimism. It seemed hers was endless. "So, where are you going?" Mary asked conversationally.

  "In the midst of this misfortune, I decided to treat myself with a few days in a spa."

  "You certainly deserve it."

  "Indeed. But I do feel worried that I'm leaving you all alone."

  "Don't worry about me. Go rest and heal."

  "Well who am I to disobey my hero's commands?" she joked.

  "Stay in touch, okay?"

  "Of course," Ruby replied.

  They chatted for a few minutes more before disconnecting.

  Mary was glad Ruby was doing this for herself. Besides, if she weren't here, Nick couldn't hurt her. It was a win-win situation.

  Despite promising to call every day, she didn't. As it turned out, Ruby checked in to a very exclusive, posh retreat that had a ban on all electronics, wanting their guests to enjoy complete peace and quiet, cut off from the rest of the world and all the troubles it brought. So after calling to tell her she arrived safely and was in the process of checking in, they couldn't speak to one another while Ruby was there.

  After spending so much time on the phone with her and seeing her daily, Mary realized she'd gotten so used to such a rhythm of living that she missed it now. She missed Ruby. Life was much more fun when she was around.

  The quiet around Mary's apartment was too loud, and when she wasn't working, she didn't know what to do with herself. Should I rearrange the kitchen, again? she mused.

  All she could do was sit around, wait for her therapy sessions, think obsessively, and stress about everything that was happening and would happen in the future, and that was always a bad idea.

  Mary was happy when Ruby returned five days later and immediately went to visit her, surprising her by going to her favorite pastry shop and buying her favorite dessert. Ruby was always buying her things, treating her in some way, and it was time she returned the favor.

  Ruby was beyond herself when she opened the door and Mary offered her a bag with a familiar logo. "Oh, honey, once again, you've proven to be my hero. I was dying for something sweet and here you are," she announced.

  "Here I am." Mary beamed, pleased that she’d managed to surprise her in such a manner. Mary noted how refreshed and healthy Ruby looked after visiting that spa.

  "How was the spa?" Mary asked after they settled in the living room. Ruby was taking a bite of the cake as she replied, "Simply divine. Very therapeutic and life-changing."

  "I'm glad."

  "We must go together next time."

  "Sure."

  "How did you spend these couple of days without me?"

  "Busy," Mary said, which, come to think of it, wasn't technically a lie. It was
true that she wasn't busy with actual work. However, she was more than busy with worrying about Nick, Ruby, and everything else that was going on. Of course, she didn't feel the need to share that with her friend. She just got back and looked happy. Mary wanted her to stay that way.

  "Any news about Nick?"

  "None." And that was really starting to frighten Mary, among other things.

  "I'm sure he'll turn up somewhere," Ruby said with a strange, thoughtful expression on her face.

  And she was right. On her return home, Mary was surprised to find two policemen, actually two detectives, waiting for her on her doorstep.

  Her anxiety levels immediately spiked, reaching new heights. Calm down, everything is all right, you're not in trouble, yet the words didn't help.

  "Hello," she greeted politely.

  "Mary Orville?"

  She felt like correcting them, but since she was still legally married to Nick, she let that pass. "Yes?" She stumbled over that one simple word as her mind worked like crazy to figure out why they were there in the first place, completely disregarding the fact that there was a one hundred percent chance that she was about to find that out because they would certainly tell her.

  "Hello. I'm Detective Carl Decker," the older of the two introduced. "And this is my partner, Detective Susanne Marks."

  Detective Decker was of medium height, a bit chubby, and had graying brown hair and gray eyes that looked tired. Mary was sure he looked much older than he really was, thanks to his occupation.

  On the other hand, Detective Marks was young, also medium height but fit, with olive skin, jet black hair, and the bluest eyes Mary had ever seen in her life.

  "Pleased to meet you," Mary said politely.

  "We need to speak with you, ma'am."

  "All right."

  "Is there someplace we could speak with you in private?" he prompted since they all continued to stand in that hallway.

  Mary felt like smacking herself across the forehead. "Of course, where are my manners?" She started moving again toward the door, and they made room for her so she could unlock the door.

  She invited the detectives in. As they obliged, Detective Decker paused to assess the damage on the front door but didn't inquire, and Mary didn't provide an explanation on her own.

  They all settled in the living room and Mary waited on pins and needles to discover what a couple of detectives wanted from her.

  Do you really want to know? a part of her questioned. It was a little bit too late for such thoughts, so she banished them.

  "So, what can I do for you, Detectives?" Mary prompted.

  "Do you know a Nick Orville?"

  "He's my soon to be ex-husband," she forced herself to say.

  She should have known this had something to do with him.

  "May we ask where you were yesterday morning between eight and eleven?" Detective Decker started.

  "I was at home," Mary replied, confused why they would ask her something like that.

  "Can someone corroborate that?"

  She lived alone, so there was no one who could do that. She started to panic. "Well, I work from home. I'm a virtual assistant, so you can probably check my logs," she provided, hoping that would be enough.

  Detective Decker wrote something down in his notebook.

  "What's this about?" Mary asked during the break.

  "I'm sorry to inform you, Mrs. Orville, that the body of your husband, Nick Orville, was found this morning in the Susquehanna River."

  What? Nick's dead? She just couldn't believe it.

  "I . . . I . . ." She started to speak yet didn't know how to continue that sentence. "How? When? Why?" she babbled.

  "We understand this is a major shock for you, but we really need your help to gather information about his whereabouts before he went into the river—friends and things like that."

  "How did he die? Did he drown?" Mary asked.

  "We're still investigating all the details. It's obvious that the cause of death isn't natural," he explained.

  "What does that mean?"

  Detective Decker hesitated just a little before replying. "Your husband was shot in the back of his head. At the same time, the state of the body suggests that he was tormented excessively prior to his death. At least a couple of days."

  "Oh, my God," Mary exclaimed. God have mercy on his soul, she prayed.

  No matter the status of their relationship, Mary had never wished him harm, let alone death. "That’s awful. Who would do such a thing?" she thought out loud.

  "We hoped you would help us with that," Detective Decker continued. "When was the last time you saw your husband?"

  At the moment, she honestly couldn't remember how many days ago he was there. "A week ago, maybe more. I'm not sure."

  The two detectives looked at one another.

  "Was it common for him to fail to return home for such a long period of time? Why didn't you file a missing persons report?" Detective Decker misinterpreted the situation.

  Mary hesitated for the briefest of moments. She didn't feel like discussing her marital problems with a couple of strangers. Sadly, it wasn't like she had a choice in the matter, and besides, she'd already called him her soon to be ex-husband and she did wish for the person responsible to be caught and brought to justice. Even Nick deserved something like that.

  "Detectives, as I said earlier, he's my soon to be ex-husband. Nick and I separated about six months or so ago. He's never lived here in this apartment."

  "I see. Were you aware whether he was having any kind of difficulties, shady associates, things like that?"

  "I'm the last person you should be asking such things. Though I would really like to help you, I don't really have any knowledge about his life since he left. We didn't part on good terms."

  "How come?" Detective Marks asked, and Mary realized that was the first time the other woman opened her mouth.

  "Nick left me six months ago for a younger woman. He cleaned out our joint savings account and moved to Boston with the girl. He only recently returned to New York City a little more than a week ago. I know that because I hired a private investigator to track him down because I wanted to serve him divorce papers," Mary explained. "From the private investigator, I knew that he was back in town and that he was hoping from one motel to the next, getting drunk most nights. That's about it."

  The detectives looked at one another.

  "We will need information about the private detective you hired," Detective Decker replied.

  "Certainly." I got up and retrieved Lara's card to give to them.

  "Do you by any chance know why he decided to return?"

  "Apparently, that smart young woman left him." Mary felt really uncomfortable speaking about such things.

  "Mrs. Orville, I know this is all very stressful for you, but . . ." Detective Decker hesitated, clearly not knowing how to ask his next question, so Mary saved him the trouble, guessing his train of thoughts.

  "I only know her first name is Gretchen and she's nineteen years old. I have no idea if she's back in New York City or if she remained in Boston."

  They shared another look.

  "I know, my life is an episode of Jerry Springer," Mary said before she could stop herself.

  "Tell us about the last time you saw him." Detective Marks took charge for a moment.

  "That was in the middle of the night. He called and threatened me. I could tell he was drunk and in a rage. I didn't want to see him and didn't think he knew where to find me. I was wrong. He got my address from our previous landlord. He came over, still drunk, still enraged and claiming I had something to do with Gretchen breaking up with him, which isn't true. I didn't even know her name until that night, and why would I bother? I didn't want him back. He was looking for a fight and I wouldn't let him inside the house."

  "Was the front door damage done by him?" Detective Decker wanted to know.

  "Yes. He got really aggressive, and my friend intervened, trying to make him leave
."

  "A male friend?" Detective Decker asked for clarification.

  "No, a fifty-six-year-old woman named Ruby Thompson."

  "Then what happened?"

  "They fought, and as I finally got the door open to intervene, Nick ended up pushing her down the stairs. She broke her wrist."

  "Why didn't you report the assault?"

  "Ruby didn't want to press charges against him," Mary replied simply.

  "And Nick?"

  "After realizing what he'd done, he ran away. And that was the last time I saw him or even heard from him."

  That was the last time I saw him. The thought really started to sink in. Nick was gone. Dead. Murdered.

  They continued to question her for at least half an hour more, going over certain things, especially his visit, a couple of times more.

  "Thank you for your cooperation," Detective Decker said, wrapping things up.

  Mary simply nodded in return, since it felt inappropriate replying with It was my pleasure.

  "Please don't leave town during the investigation," he warned.

  She wasn't planning on going anywhere, but she asked, "Why? Am I a suspect?" She was shocked.

  "At this point, everyone is," he replied in a completely jaded manner. So it was no wonder she didn't find his words reassuring.

  Mary said as much. "That is not a comforting thought."

  Once they left, the reality of Nick's demise really got through to her and Mary started to shake uncontrollably. She dropped to the ground next to the door as her legs refused to support her any longer.

  Nick is dead. Someone killed him.

  Oh, my God . . .

  Chapter Eighteen

  Not really knowing exactly how or when, Mary managed to go to Ruby's.

  "What on Earth happened to you?" Ruby asked, opening the door. "You're white as a sheet of paper," she added, rushing her inside.

  Mary sat on the couch, still shaking. For some reason, she couldn't stop doing that, though she wasn't cold. "Something terrible has happened," she forced herself to say with some difficulty.

  Ruby wrapped a blanket around her and then presented her with a glass filled with some kind of alcohol. Mary downed the whole thing without a thought. The alcohol burned her throat yet felt good at the same time.