Girl Jacked (15 page)

Jack rolled over and looked at the clock. 1:30 am. He was glad but also ticked off. He couldn’t sleep, but he didn’t want to get up before the bar around the corner closed. He didn’t want a drink… he wanted nine or ten. His pain was still raw. That burn he couldn’t put out seemed to be always on now. He tried to bury it, but it seared its way back into the open.

Drown it. Head off the rails one night and into oblivion.

He tried to convince himself that it would be okay but fought that urge. He refused. Jack was at times a blackout drinker. He knew that even before he had enlisted in the army. His drinking had never bothered him when he was younger, but it puts a completely different spin on things when you wake up, clueless, surrounded by high caliber weapons.

He got up and headed into the kitchen for some water.
Do not drink.
The service is tomorrow. Anyway, it’s too late. Everything’s closed.

“Nice butt!”

Jack grabbed for the dishtowel and then dashed back into the bedroom as Replacement shook her head.

“You should warn me!” he called out as he pulled on a pair of sweat pants.

“Warn you?” she giggled. “How? Danger, Jack! You’re about to come into the kitchen with your butt uncovered?”

“I didn’t know you were up!”

“Do you go around naked when I’m asleep?” She kept giggling.

“You know…” he stammered. “I just forgot you were here.”

He was beet red. Clearly, Replacement couldn’t decide if he was embarrassed or truly getting upset, so she changed her tune. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t… It’s my fault. This will take some getting used to.” Jack tried not to shake his head.

He returned and started getting a glass of water, and Replacement turned back to the computer.

He poured two glasses and then walked back over to her, handing her one. “What are you working on?”

“Michelle had a fitness app on her phone. It's called ‘Get in Shape Girl’.” Her eyes stayed on the screen.

Replacement sat in her old Fairfield High jersey with her legs tucked underneath her.

“And?” Jack stood behind her.

“Part of the app is that it monitors all of your exercise. There is a walking program that shows everywhere she has been.”

“Great job, kid.” Jack grabbed the back of her chair and leaned over her shoulder to stare at the screen too. “Does it give dates and times? Everywhere she has been?”

“It has everything! I just got in her phone–”

“Michelle’s phone? But I gave it to Collins?”

“Hmm ….” She hunched up her shoulders and looked at him with emerald eyes that hinted at a secret.

“You couldn’t have taken it! Did you switch it? How ….” Jack was starting to squeeze the glass.

She looked nervously at his tightening fingers. “I made a backup. That’s all!”

“You backed up her phone BEFORE I gave it to Collins?” His grip relaxed a bit.

“It’s a smart phone, so it was easy. I did it after we came home from the hospital. I didn’t think it was wrong.”

“Don’t think, ask. It’s MY JOB!” Jack winced after he almost shouted the last two words. She looked hurt, and he felt sorry.

Don’t feel bad you idiot!
He cursed at himself.
Keep your job. If Collins knew we went into the phone, he’d have your head on his wall.

“How did you get in? Aren’t they password protected?”

“They have a four digit pin. Michelle always used the same one.” Replacement shrugged.

He tried to glare at her, but she grinned like a little kid. Jack rolled his eyes and looked back to the screen. It looked like a spreadsheet of times and dates, and his thoughts shifted to the hunt for answers.

“Can you start backwards? What were her last whereabouts?”

Replacement turned and began typing. “The phone was at Reservoir Road in the same place for twelve hours. December twenty-first.”

“So Michelle got there on the twenty-first? What time?”

“12:30 am.”

She wouldn’t just go for a drive after midnight.

“What happened to the phone after twelve hours?”

“The phone must have died then…” Her choice of words made her trail off.

“Where was she before? How long–”

“Hold on! I don’t know the program that well.” Replacement’s fingers flew over the keyboard. “She was there for… almost four hours.”

“Where?” Jack leaned in, but the data on the screen didn’t make sense to him.

“I have to map the coordinates.” She pressed more keys, and a mapping program appeared. “Here! General Alexander Davidson Circle.”

They both stared at the map for a minute. There was a large building out there, but the location puzzled Jack. He hadn’t been there. He had driven around most of the county, but not out there.

“What was she doing out there?”

“The building is listed as a nature center.” Replacement zoomed in.

“Why from 8:30 until after midnight?”

He looked at the clock. 1:50 am. Replacement raised an eyebrow, and he did too. “I can’t sleep anyway.”

They snuck out of the apartment like little kids, careful not to wake the landlady. The ride out to the nature center would take about 20 minutes because of the winding roads. It was below freezing, so Replacement ditched the seat belt along with any notion of personal space and sat shivering next to him as the car tried to warm up during the drive.

They rode with their teeth chattering. He was glad to be doing something, and she looked that way too.

“Life’s hard.” Jack rolled his eyes at his own comment.
Life’s hard? What else was I going to say? How you doing? Her sister died. She’s in pain. Stupid.

“It is.” Replacement smiled. “Thanks for everything.” She curled up closer to him.

‘Thanks for everything?’ I gave her a couch instead of a closet. Everything wasn’t much.

They drove past an old open gate as they made their way up the last curving road. As they neared the top of the hill where the nature center was located, they pulled into a small, now empty parking lot.

The building was a large, two-story, circular structure. An empty, curved driveway led up to a large entrance. It was a mixture of granite and stone and from the style, it was constructed in the 1960s.

As they got out of the car, a light snow began to fall. A large modern sign at the front of the building read: 
White Rocks Eastern College – neuropsychology CENTER.

“It looks like the college converted the nature center.” Jack looked at Replacement.

Her face contorted. “So much for green.”

They both went to the door. Apart from a faint hallway light, the building looked closed. There was a large greeting desk in the front, behind which were two doors. Staircases led up on both the left and right.

“It’s opens weekdays at 9:00 am.” Replacement was pointing to a black board with white snap on letters.

Jack walked over to the left in an effort to walk around the building but stopped. The ground sloped off, revealing another level below the two. It had the same large windows as the rest of the building. Another look on the right hand side showed that there was not an easy way to walk around the building.

Replacement headed back to the car while Jack scanned the outside of the building once more.

“Wish I could get a look around back,” he said as he slid back into the Impala. “How accurate is that phone?” He chastised himself for shutting the car off as his hands shook with the cold.

“You mean distance?” Replacement slid up against him, her teeth chattering. He looked down and saw that her jacket was more suited to fall than winter.

“Can it tell if she was in the building?” Jack whipped his coat off and before she could protest, he wrapped it over her legs.

“Thank you.” She looked at Jack as if he had just done something monumental. “The app gives a rough distance like… she was around here” she made large circles with her hands when she said ‘around’.

“So … She came out here at 8:30 at night. She had some reason… Did you find anything else on the phone yet?”

“I went through her emails and texts. It wasn’t much. A bunch of school stuff. She didn’t have many friends. She focused on school. I’ll go back and check.”

“She out came here for something. We just need to figure out why.”

“I’ll go through her phone and look for any connection to here. When are we coming out on Monday?” Jack tilted his head, and he could feel Replacement stiffen next to him.

“Look… Collins is going to go after my head. I’m supposed to go through him.” Jack shrugged.

She has to think that I’m the biggest wimp.

“What if we came up with some reason you were out here? Some reason why you would come back…” She stopped when she saw Jack’s face. “Jack?”

He gripped the wheel and stared straight ahead. His voice was soft when he spoke. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry I didn’t come back.”

“You should be.” The words were softer than Jack expected, as was the hand that enclosed his, prying his fingers off the steering wheel. “But you’re here now. And we’re going to find who did this.”

The certainty in her words calmed Jack and he put the car in gear.

“We will.”

Jack shifted in his seat. He sat next to Replacement, and she was next to Aunt Haddie in the front row. He hated funeral homes. Subdued lighting and the scent of flowers hung in the air. The thick carpet and chairs in neat rows. Men in suits that you had never met who had a look of empathy and pity carved onto their faces. He hated it all.

People filled the funeral home. He couldn’t believe how many were there.

How many really knew her? When someone young dies, every young kid turns out. It’s their first taste of death of someone like them, someone who should not have died. It makes them think ‘it could have been me.’ How many here were really her friends?

Michelle had always been the quiet type. She also was careful whom she chose for her friends. She wasn’t arrogant at all, but she had high standards. Friends had to be loyal, honest, and truthful. Aunt Haddie used to say that if you made it out of this life with one good friend, that you were blessed. Michelle was blessed.

Jack shifted. He forced a smile at Replacement but she never stopped looking down at her hands. Jack closed his eyes and let his head fall forward.

The minister had already opened the service. He was a large man with a deep voice. They sang ‘Amazing Grace’ and scriptures were read. Aunt Haddie and Replacement cried.

After they sang ‘When the Roll is Called up Yonder’, a young girl around sixteen went up to the podium. Her curly dark brown hair came down to her shoulders. She was dressed in a simple gray dress and her eyes flittered around the room. She unfolded a page from a notebook.

“Michelle was my mentor and my friend. I met her through the sisters… program where she… volunteered. She always tell… told me that I…” the girl spoke haltingly. It was obviously hard for her to read.

She looked up and paused. She folded the paper back up. “I’m going to start again.” She looked forward and tried to stand tall. “Michelle believed in me. She taught me to believe in myself. I loved her very much. I was shy like her but she showed me an example of what I could be. My life is much better because of her.”

The girl took her seat. Four more girls from all different backgrounds came up and spoke about Michelle. They talked about the Michelle that Jack didn’t know. The Michelle who loved to learn and taught herself computers. The Michelle that helped her neighbors and underprivileged kids. A young woman filled with hope who passed that hope along to others.

A tall man, over 6 feet with broad shoulders and finely groomed silver hair leaned slightly on a cane as he walked forward to speak. He was dressed in a dark blue suit. He was in his mid-sixties, and had a bit of a belly.

“Michelle was one of my brightest students. As evidenced by the words of the people here who knew her best, Michelle was an example for us all. She worked to create change. She was always willing to help her fellow students and workers. Her enthusiasm and spirit will be missed but it will not be forgotten. Her legacy will live on in her work and accomplishments.”

The funeral director came over and looked at Replacement. Her eyes filled with fear and she went white. Aunt Haddie patted her leg, rose, and the Director and Replacement helped her make it up to the podium. She looked so old. She stood there bent over, griping the podium for support, and looked down for a long time.

“Michelle,” she began and her voice broke. Replacement squeezed Jack’s hand. “Michelle was one of my dear, dear babies. She was on loan from the Lord. She was such a precious girl. God abundantly blessed me by bringing her into my life. Michelle was truly special. The years she stayed in my home were so dear to me but I don’t feel this is a time for sadness. Michelle is home with Jesus now.”

Aunt Haddie paused and wiped her eyes. “I remember when Michelle and Chandler first came home to me. Michelle always looked at the positives. She was like a little ray of sunshine all bottled up. We didn’t have much, but Michelle was always looking at what we did have.”

Everyone was trying not to break down.

“They asked me to talk about some of my favorite memories of Michelle but how can I pick? I prayed about it. I tried to think, and then I remembered one – Michelle’s bike.

Michelle’s birthday was coming up, and that year we had very little. I knew Michelle had wanted a bike, she had been saving up for it all summer.” Aunt Haddie was crying now. Replacement shifted.

“On the morning of her birthday, Chandler and Jackie came inside, smiling from ear to ear. Their hands were covered in pink paint. They had found an old boy’s bike and they painted it bright pink. They put purple streamers on it. You’d think they both would pop the buttons off their shirts. They were so proud.”

Jack rubbed his eyes.

“Michelle cried and danced and cried some more. Jackie and Chandler taught her for a day but she took to it like a fish to water. She rode that bike everywhere. I can still see her smiling face riding out in the driveway. Her little wave...”

Aunt Haddie stopped and Replacement’s hand went a little limp. Aunt Haddie looked around. “I don’t know what happened to the bike…. she lost it… Michelle…” She stopped again.

The funeral director looked at Replacement and then they went up to the podium and helped Aunt Haddie back to her seat. The stress of the situation had clearly gotten to her.

Aunt Haddie turned to look at Jack and he held her gaze but he could see the effects of the Alzheimer’s. She looked at him but he knew that she didn’t really see him. Replacement stroked the back of the old woman’s hand.

Jack looked down.
That bike.
Chandler and he got it at the dump. It was a boy’s bike and it had a flat tire. They stayed up all night painting it and trying to figure out the tassels. Michelle teased them for two days because of the pink paint on their hands.

There was a little disruption to his right as a man tried to move around people to come forward. It was so quiet that any noise would have caught people’s attention. The man walked up to the podium.

“Hello.” He coughed as he looked down and brushed back his hair with one hand. “My name is Robert and I knew Michelle since we were kids.” He was a young man in his twenties. He had dark hair and eyes and wore a nice suit. His red eyes made it obvious that he had been crying. “It was hard hearing about Michelle’s bike.” He cleared his throat. “I know what happened to it.” He looked straight at Aunt Haddie. “I stole it.”

The quiet room grew completely still. Jack could hear his heartbeat.

“I was a kid and the bike was outside the library and I took it. I brought it home and painted it blue.” He paused to blow his nose and looked up but no one was moving. “It didn’t matter that I painted it and pulled off the tassels. Michelle knew it was hers and when she saw me riding it she followed me home. She came right to my front door. I thought she was going to punch me in the nose.”

“She asked me why I stole it. I said ‘What does that matter, it’s mine now!’ She wanted to know why. She said ‘you shouldn’t let evil things just go’. That freaked me out. I was like, ‘I’m not evil’, but she said ‘Well, you’re a thief.’” The young man gripped the podium and the tears rolled down his cheeks. “She asked me again, why? I told her that mine broke. The frame cracked. I couldn’t fix it and it was just me and my mom… I begged her not to tell my mom or Chandler! I knew she was Chandler’s sister and he would have stomped me. I told her she could have it back.”

“Then she looked at me and I will never forget her face when she said ‘You can keep it.’ I couldn’t believe it. I followed her half way home trying to get her to take the bike back but she wouldn’t. She said ‘I should have it since I didn’t have one and since I wanted it that bad’. She said ‘God gave her a mom and two brothers and a bike. She said she should share’… I was just a kid but I never forgot that. She and I were always friends from then on.” Someone handed him a box of tissues. He blew his nose, turned and walked back into the crowd.

Jack’s leg started to shake. He could almost see when they were kids in the driveway, laughing with Chandler and waving to him.

Two brothers. I love you too Michelle.

The black minister rose and came forward. He began to walk to the podium and then turned and came to Aunt Haddie. The large man took the old woman’s hands in his, got down on one knee, and bowed his head. “Lord, I thank you for the time that you have given all of us to know Michelle. I thank you for her wonderful heart and the example she has been. Please, Father, be with us that are left here. Watch over, guide us, and lead us to the rest that Your Son prepared for those who He has called. We pray this in Jesus’ name. Amen.”

Jack kept his eyes closed. The ceremony was over and people began getting up. He ran his hands through his hair, wiped his eyes, and exhaled.

 “Jack?” He turned. Michelle’s teacher in the dark blue suit held his hand out. The man had a firm shake and a bright smile. “Please accept my condolences for your loss.”

Slight European accent.

“Thank you. You’re one of Michelle’s teachers at the college?”

“Dr. Alexander Hahn. Psychology. I cannot express my sympathies strongly enough. Michelle’s contributions will be very much missed by the college and myself personally.”

“Contributions?”

“Michelle worked for me at the Psychology Center. She was instrumental in bringing our computer technology into the twenty-first century. I meant what I said. Her legacy will live on.”

“Thank you, Doctor.” Jack shook the outstretched hand again.

“If you have the time, you should stop by the center. You would be very proud of her work.”

“I will. You can count on it.”