Good Tidings (18 page)

“
We get much better acquainted with each other.”

Mary slipped her hand from his grasp.
Really, did that work with other women?
she thought.
I wonder if he would be offended if I used some hand sanitizer?

“
Okay, this guy is just plain gross,” Bradley whispered to Sean. “She’s going have to disinfect that hand.”

“
Well, I’ll just get my coat,” Mary suggested, walking to the couch to pick it up.

Kevin grasped her arms and pulled her back against him. He lowered his mouth to her neck and kissed her. Mary was glad she was wearing a turtleneck.

“
We could order in,” he suggested. “I’m sure I could make our stay in your room pleasurable beyond your wildest imagination.”

No self-esteem problem here,
Mary thought.

“
Wildest imagination? I’ll show him wildest imagination?” Bradley muttered.

Mary twisted her way out of his grasp. “As delightful as that sounds, I promised Sean that I would get out and get a change of scenery. And you know how demanding Sean can be.”

“
He’s nothing but a tight ass, Mary,” Kevin said, grabbing hold of her arms. “You don’t have to listen to him.”

“
I’m a tight ass?” Sean whispered. “I’m a tight ass?”

Bradley nodded. “Yeah, you are, but it’s always for a good reason.”

Sean glared at Bradley.

“
But, Kevin, I always listen to my brother.”

Both Sean and Bradley snorted.

Kevin pulled her closer. “He doesn’t have to know, Mary,” Kevin said. “It can be our little secret.”

“
That’s it, I’m going in,” Bradley growled.

Sean put a hand on Bradley’s good shoulder to hold him down. “Give her a minute.”

Mary put both hands on Kevin’s chest and pushed him away. “Kevin, if I had wanted to be mauled, I would have gone to the zoo. I’m not in the mood, okay?”

Bradley and Sean grinned at each other.

Kevin shrugged. “All you had to say was no,” he said.

Mary picked up her coat. “Okay, no, Kevin,” she said. “So, do you still want to go to lunch?”

“
Yeah, what the heck,” he said, with a shrug. “Maybe I can charm you with my scintillating conversation.”

Mary nodded. “You can try.”

*****

The place was exactly as Sean had described… a small store-front restaurant with a scattering of tables covered with cheap plastic table cloths. Each table had plastic flowers in a vase in the middle and an assortment of hot sauces in a small plastic container.

The food smelled heavenly, and if Mary hadn’t had knots in her stomach, she might have actually enjoyed it. Kevin greeted the owners by name and ushered Mary into a table near the corner. He sat so his back was against the wall and he was facing the door.
Typical cop seating,
Mary thought.

Mary glanced behind Kevin to Maria, the ghost who had been following him and tried to make eye contact, but the girl refused to look at her.

“
What would you like to eat?” Kevin asked.

“
I have to admit my stomach’s been a little nervous lately,” she said. “What do you suggest that’s not too spicy?”

Kevin reached across the table and caught Mary’s hand in his. “Babe, you need to relax,” he said. “I could tell in the hotel room that something was bothering you.”

Yeah, you
, Mary thought. She looked up to respond and noticed Maria was staring at their clasped hands, her face filled with anger. Mary turned her hand over and intertwined her fingers with his. “You always did understand me,” she said. “Perhaps better than I understand myself.”

He smiled and brought their hands to his mouth. He kissed her hand and then turned it and pressed a kiss on her wrist. “I can feel your pulse racing,” he said. “I know I excite you. I’d love to be able to show you just what you do to me.”

Mary smiled at him while her stomach turned. “That could be nice,” she said.

She quickly looked up and saw Maria staring at her. Hate filling her eyes. Their eyes met and Maria reacted with surprise. “You can see me?” she asked.

Mary smiled and nodded slightly.

“
Mary, where did you go, sweetheart?” Kevin asked.

Mary turned back to Kevin. “I’m just taking all of this in,” she lied. “I have a feeling this little restaurant is going to be fondly remembered.”

His smile reminded her of a snake, cold and calculating. “Let’s get take-out,” he suggested. “My place isn’t too far from here.”

Mary considered the request for a moment. Thought about how much evidence she would be able to find at his place. Then she considered how Sean and Bradley would react to that idea. No, that wasn’t going to work. However, she didn’t need to let Kevin know.

“
Why don’t you order for us, while I go to the Ladies Room and freshen up before we leave,” she said, trying to ease her hand out of his grip.

“
Babe, you can freshen up at my place,” he said, tightening his grip.

Mary smiled slowly, running her tongue over her lips, “Kevin, there might not be enough time.”

He released her hand. “Hurry back,” he choked.

Mary looked at Maria and subtly motioned to her to follow. The Ladies Room was in the back of the restaurant, next to the back door and loading area. Piles of black garbage bags and stacks of boxes filled the tiny hallway next to the bathroom. She opened the door and then made sure it was locked behind her. The floor was concrete, the fixtures were stained with rust and a half-used roll of paper towels sat on a shelf next to the toilet. Maria glided through the closed door.

“
He is mine, you pig,” Maria spat. “You leave him alone.”

Mary nodded. “Okay, I’ll leave him alone if you answer some questions.”

“
Really? You would give him up so easily?” she asked. “Why?”

Mary shrugged. “He’s the kind of man who flits from woman to woman,” she said. “I don’t like to be a notch on some man’s belt.”

Maria sighed. “You’re right, he is like that. But I love him.”

“
Sergeant Monroe told me about you,” Mary said. “You are Maria Hernandez?”

Maria nodded. “Sergeant Monroe is a good man. How is he?”

“
He’s dead, Maria,” she said. “He died the day you were supposed to go home.”

Maria was surprised. “Go home? How could I go home?”

“
Sergeant Monroe bought you a plane ticket,” she said. “He had contacted your parents and they wanted you back.”

Tears flowed down her translucent face. “Why didn’t I go home?” she asked.

“
Maria, how did you die?” Mary asked. “Do you remember?”

“
I think it had something to do with this,” she said and lifted her shirt.

Mary gasped. Maria’s abdomen had been sliced open, two flaps of skin hung to the sides, exposing her internal organs.

“
Who did this to you?” Mary asked.

“
I can’t remember,” she sobbed. “The last thing I remember is Officer Brady telling me that he would take care of me when I was feeling sick. He loved me.”

“
He told you he loved you?”

Maria nodded. “He was so sweet, so tender. Not like the other men.”

“
Officer Brady had sex with you?”

“
We made love together,” she insisted. “He told me he loved me. It was different than the other men.”

“
Where did you meet Officer Brady?” Mary asked.

“
By Navy Pier,” she said. “That’s where I hung out. Traffic is good there.”

“
Traffic?” Mary asked.

“
You know, tourists looking for a good time,” she said. “I could make some real money there.”

“
Did you have a pimp?”

“
Yeah, sure,” she said. “I met him at the bus station. I didn’t, you know, didn’t want to do this. I knew my parents wouldn’t want me to… But, he gave me some pills and then I didn’t care anymore. I really needed the pills.”

“
What was your pimp’s name?”

“
Angelo. He said he was my angel and he would save me,” she said. “But he didn’t save me or any of the other girls.”

“
Did Officer Brady know Angelo?”

Maria nodded. “Yeah, they had an agreement,” she said. “Officer Brady got to use the girls whenever he wanted and then he would looked the other way when it came to the stuff Angelo was doing.”

Mary knew that her time was running out. “Maria, do you know where your body is?” she asked. “Where are you buried?”

“
Cold water,” she said, “I remember cold water.”

The pounding on the door startled them both. “Mary is everything fine in there?” Kevin demanded.

“
Yes, I’m fine,” she said. “I’ll be out in a minute.”

She turned to Maria. “I’ll find you,” she whispered.

Maria nodded and faded away.

Mary turned on the faucet and let it run while she texted Sean. She washed her hands, dried them on the paper towels and opened the bathroom door. She nearly ran into Kevin. “Who were you talking to?” he asked, blocking her way back to the restaurant.

Mary stepped to the side and pushed open the door. “Really, Kevin? Does it look like I was having a party in there?”

Kevin looked around the bathroom. “I heard your voice.”

“
Of course you did,” she said. “I left a message for Sean that I wouldn’t be available for the rest of the afternoon.”

She ran a finger down his chest. “Wasn’t that the plan?”

He pulled her to him and kissed her roughly. “Yeah, but I don’t think I’m going to be done with you until tomorrow at the earliest.”

It took all of her self-control to not wipe her arm across her mouth and get rid of his taste. “Well, it sounds like I’m in for an exciting time,” she said, gently pulling out of his embrace. “Shall we leave?”

She started to move toward the safety of the restaurant, but was once again blocked. “We can leave through the back door,” he said, running his hands over her hips and pulling her to him. “It’s faster that way.”

Her cell phone rang. “Don’t answer it,” Kevin said, trying to pull it away from her.

“
I have to,” she shrugged, “Sean will worry.”

He slapped it out of her hands and it crashed to the floor, sliding across the floor. “You left him a message,” he said. “He can deal with it.”

“
Excuse me,” Mary said, pushing back against his chest. “You don’t treat me like that.”

“
Baby, right now, you’re in my territory,” he said. “And I’m going to treat you anyway I like.”

Mary looked at the man she had just been sitting with. His eyes were dilated and his nose was red. Cocaine.

“
Did you just snort?” she asked.

He smiled. “Yeah. But don’t worry, I’ve got some for you, Mary,” he said, sliding his hands over her butt, “Makes the sex so much better.”

She slid her hands onto his shoulders and smiled. Leaning back, she braced her foot against the wall. “It seems that we have a little miscommunication,” she said. “Perhaps this will help.”

She pushed her foot off the wall and brought her knee up between his legs with as much force as she could. Kevin dropped to the floor with a scream. Mary stooped down, scooped up her phone and turned back to Kevin. “No one treats me like that.”

She stepped over him and walked to the front of the restaurant. Her hands were shaking. She knew that Kevin would have raped her if he had been given the chance. Sean rushed through the front door. “You can arrest him for assault and attempted rape,” she said to his anxious face, her voice shaking, “And check him for drugs while you’re at it. He’s lying on the floor in the back.”

He put his arms on her shoulders and looked at her. “You okay?”

She bit her lip and nodded. “It got a little scary there for awhile,” she admitted.

“
My car’s parked half a block away,” he said. “Why don’t you wait there?”

“
Thanks.”

She stumbled out the door and onto the sidewalk. Walking down the street, she found her legs were too wobbly to stand. She stumbled to a light pole and laid her head against it. A moment later she was encased by a pair of familiar arms. “Your shoulder,” she protested.

“
Shut up,” he growled, holding her close and helping her down the street.

She buried her head in his chest and let the security of his arms replace the fear.

“
I’m going to kill him,” Bradley said. “If I ever get my hands on him…”

Mary shook her head. “It’s not nice to hurt handicapped people,” she murmured.

He stopped and looked down at her. “Handicapped?”

“
I don’t think he’ll ever walk totally upright again,” she replied, meeting his eyes.