South River Incident (4 page)

The dam burst. Claire broke
down sobbing, rocking back and forth in her chair, and progressively losing
control of her emotions. Billy tried to comfort her while I sat quietly,
feeling like a rat. I had been pretty mean to her in the past couple of weeks.

Slowly, Claire regained her
composure and looked at me through teary eyes.  She cleared her throat.

“Jesse, you know I’m a city
girl. I’d never make it out in the middle of nowhere by myself. I have to think
of the kids. There’s nobody around for miles except Billy’s family, and I can’t
bother them every time I need something.”  She turned her attention towards
Billy. “I’m sorry, Billy, but I can’t move into your house. I appreciate your
offer, but I just can’t live alone in the wilderness with two kids. I wouldn’t
know how. Mom and I discussed it and decided it would be best for the children
if we lived with her. That’s what we’d like to do.” She hesitated before
looking at me. “If you don’t want to do it, Jesse, just say so. We won’t get
mad.”

“Do what? I don’t even know
what you’re talking about,” I responded.

“If we’re going to continue
to live here, I think it would be best if I had a room to myself and the kids
could share a room. So we came up with a suggestion, but we need to run it by
you.”

I could tell I wasn’t going
to like what she had to say. If she thought for one minute she was going to run
me out of my home, she was crazy. I would stand my ground.

“Honey, it’s only a
suggestion,” Mom added.

“All right, let’s have it.”

“What do you think about
moving into Billy’s house?” Claire asked. “I mean, if Billy agrees to it.”

I was momentarily stunned
by her suggestion. That was a great idea. Why hadn’t I thought of it? I looked
over at Billy to see if I could pick up on his facial expressions. As usual,
all he had on his face was a smile.

“Well, I never thought
about it,” Billy replied. “But now that you mention it, I think that would be a
great idea. Jesse could have her own place to do whatever she wants to do with
that boyfriend of hers, and you and the kids could have your own space.” He
blew me a kiss.

Everyone got a good laugh
out of his comment.

“You’re crazy, Billy
Blackhawk. One day you’re going to pay for being so mean to me.” It was all I
could do to keep from laughing, too.

“If rent money is a problem,
Jesse, I can help you out there,” Claire continued with her pitch. “Carl’s
being very generous. He knows I’m going to get half of what he has, so he’s set
up a bank account for us. There’s enough money to live the way we’ve been
accustomed to for a long, long time. I guess he wants to make a good impression
on the judge. The kids and I won’t go without, that’s for sure.”

“Don’t worry about the
money,” Billy insisted. “We can work something out. Besides, money is not an
issue when it comes to family.”

Of course I would like to
have had my own place, but I would never have left my mother alone. She had
been through so much. But now that Claire lived with Mom, I could move out and
not feel like a deserter. I wouldn’t have to worry about Mom being by herself
or being lonely. Loneliness is so heart wrenching. I know all about it.

“Claire,” I said as I
swallowed my pride and admitted to myself that I had been a selfish,
self-involved little turd. “That’s a great idea.” I looked over at Mom. “Is
this what you want? I mean, I won’t be that far away, and if you need me I can
be here in no time at all.”

“The main thing I want is
for my kids to be happy. Jesse, you’re independent and you’ve been on your own
for a long time. Claire has never lived alone. She didn’t leave home until she
was married. If she still lived in the city I wouldn’t worry as much about her
and the kids living by themselves. She’d have friends close by and if she
needed anything, she could call one of them. But out here, she hardly knows a
soul, and I think the isolation would be too much. Looking at it logically,
it’s the perfect solution. I just don’t want you to think that I’m throwing you
out.”

“It’s all right, Mom.” I
leaned over and patted her hands. “I know you would never do that. If I get
lonely I can always come back for a visit.”

“Then it’s settled,” Billy
announced. “We’ll make the move right after Thanksgiving, just like we planned,
only now we’ll be moving Jesse instead of Claire. It won’t be a problem. I
think this is the right decision. Now that everyone has made up their minds,
all we have to do is do it.”

Just then, a thought struck
me. What about the dogs? Would the dogs live with Mom or me? Mom was the one
who has been taking care of them, but maybe she didn’t want the job of looking
after two dogs anymore. Athena was my responsibility, but I couldn’t take her
and leave Thor behind. They had become inseparable. What about me? I wasn’t the
best care provider. I braved the question.

“What about Athena and
Thor?”

Mom looked in their
direction. As usual, Athena and Thor were crouched together in front of the
fireplace, taking a nap. Napping was their favorite pastime. They could do it
all day long.

“That’s up to you, Jesse. I
think you should be the one to make that decision. They’re welcome to stay here
or they can go with you. It doesn’t matter, as long as they’re together. We
sure can’t split them up. What would they do without each other?”

The minute I mentioned
their name, both of them got up and proceeded to go through their ritual of
stretching and licking each other, eventually finding their way over to us.
Athena jumped up and put her paws in my lap. Thor licked at the air around my
heels. I knew what I had to do. I had to take responsibility.

“I’ll take them with me.
It’s the right thing to do.”

“Oh, you know you love
those dogs.” Billy made fun of me. “You’re always talking about them.”

“Yeah, because they’re
always doing something to make me mad, like when Thor chewed up my new tennis
shoes or the time Athena puked all over my bed.”

“Thor’s just a puppy, and
Athena wouldn’t have puked all over your bed if you hadn’t given her that
pizza,” Mom said. “I tried to warn you.”

“Maybe I do like them a
little bit.”

“A little bit?
Bull.
I saw how you were when Athena got bitten by that copperhead,” Mom added. “You
cried like a baby. When you rescued Thor that day, you were like a mama hen.
Your concern was overwhelming. It almost made me cry.”

“Forget it,” Billy said.
“Jesse will never admit to having a heart. She’s too stubborn to...”

The doorbell rang before he
could finish his sentence. The sound echoed like a bell tower and seemed to
rattle the walls. I was so startled that I jumped up and knocked over my chair.

“Oops,” I said. “I bet
that’s Sheriff Hudson. He said he’d come talk to us before he left. Maybe
they’re finished and he wants to apologize. I’ll try to be as nice as I can,
but considering who I’m dealing with, it might be a real chore. The police can
be such jerks.”

“I sure hope you’ll behave
yourself, Jesse,” Mom said.

“Let me answer it,” Billy
said. He stood and headed for the front door. “Minnie, why don’t you go to your
bedroom? Claire, you go upstairs. I’ll handle everything.” He looked at me with
a serious expression on his face. “Jesse, you stay with me.” He stood at the
door waiting for them to do as he said before he opened it.

“Sheriff Hudson, please
come in,” Billy said, and then closed the door behind him.

“Would you like a cup of
coffee?” I asked. “Mom made a fresh pot.”

“Yes, thank you. That would
be nice. It’s freezing out there.”

“How do you take yours?” 

“Black is fine.” He looked
around the living room. “Nice place you have here, Miss Watson.”

“Please, I told you to call
me Jesse,” I said as I took him a cup of coffee. Billy gave me a dirty look,
and as usual, I ignored him. “Actually, this is my Mom’s house.  She’s been
kind enough to let me stay here, but I’ll be moving out pretty soon.”

“Has Mrs. Watson gone to
bed?” 

“Yes,” Billy answered for
me. “This has been terribly upsetting for her. We thought it would be best if
she got some rest. I’m sure Jesse and I can answer any questions you might have
left.”

“Do you mind if I sit
down?”

“Oh, I’m sorry. Please have
a seat, sheriff,” I said, embarrassed by my poor manners.

Sheriff Hudson sat in the
recliner sipping his coffee while Billy and I sat on the sofa and waited. I
couldn’t stand it any longer.

“What’s going on out there?
Has the body been removed?”

“Yes, it has. The M.E. is
going to start the autopsy first thing in the morning. The forensics team says they’ll
be done in about an hour, so we should be cleared out of here soon.”

“What about the crime scene
tape? Can that come down?” I asked. “It’s almost Thanksgiving, and we have
family coming.”

“I’m sorry, but I’m afraid
that’s going to have to stay up for a while longer. We will need to come back
in the morning and do a final sweep. I assure you that as soon as our
investigation is complete, my men will remove it.”

“Can’t you just take down
the one out front? It’s a bit of overkill, don’t you think? All of our
neighbors are going to see it. I couldn’t care less about the tape, but I can
assure you my mother is not going to be happy. She’s from the old school, if
you know what I mean. Pride is everything to her. She’ll fret herself into a
tizzy worrying about what her neighbors will think. She won’t be able to sleep.
It will drive her nuts. Next thing you know, she will be on the phone
complaining to everyone that your department was bullying her.”

“I’ve already done that. We
didn’t need that one up, but I wasn’t sure what we were dealing with in the
beginning. If you don’t mind, I just have a couple of questions I need to ask
before I go.”

Billy and I answered the
sheriff’s questions for almost an hour. By the time he and his men left, we had
our own idea of what had happened. Even though her body hadn’t been officially
identified, it was only a matter of time.
Roy
would put a name to the face soon enough. It was
obvious that she had been murdered and whether or not she had been kidnapped
was yet to be verified. Either way, Roy Keen’s wife was dead, and the bad guys
just happened to pick Mom’s place to dump the body. That decision might have
been an act of convenience or just plain frustration. Maybe the kidnappers were
out riding around looking for a place, got tired, and decided this was it.
Whatever their reasons were for dumping the body in our back yard, I had a
feeling all was not well on our home front.

“Are all women as
transparent as you?” Billy asked as he shut the front door. “I was so
embarrassed. You should be ashamed of yourself.”

“What on earth do you
mean?” I asked. I walked back to the sofa and sat down. I was worn out and all
I wanted to do was lay back and relax.

Billy came over, sat down
beside me and said, “You’ve been flirting with that man ever since you met him.
You even had the nerve to do it in front of Cole. It was disgusting. I’m
surprised he didn’t say anything. If you were my `ge ya, I’d dump you like a
hot potato.”

“Fortunately, I’m not.”

“Do you always have to be
so sarcastic?’

“Was I being sarcastic? I’m
sorry. I’m just tired.” I batted my eyes at him, mimicking my past
indiscretions.

“You’re so full of
yourself,” he said, laughingly. “It’s about time for me to leave. I’m tired and
it’s a long drive.”

“You can’t go out in that mess.
The last time I looked it was still snowing. I bet there’s a foot on the
ground.  It’s too dangerous. You can spend the night with us. How about I fix
us a shot of bourbon before we go to bed? I could use one after all this.”

“And where are we going to
sleep?”

“I’m going to sleep in my
bed and you can sleep on the sofa, smarty pants. Don’t pout, it won’t be so
bad.”

“In that case, I’m leaving.
I would choose my bed over your couch any day. I’m tough. I can handle a little
snow.”

“Oh, stop being silly. You
can sleep on the sofa. It won’t kill you.”

Mom’s bedroom door opened.

“Billy Blackhawk, you’re
not driving home in this blizzard,” she ordered.  “Jesse’s right, it’s too
dangerous. You can sleep on the sofa. I’ll get you a pillow and a blanket while
she gets you a drink.”

“I guess it’s settled,”
Billy said. He looked over at Mom and smiled. “I sure don’t want to go against
your wishes.”

Mom had spoken.

I
don’t know if it was
the shot of bourbon
or the
question Billy jokingly asked about our sleeping arrangements, but something
had triggered a reaction. I spent a restless night having romantic dreams about
him and when I awoke, I was covered in sweat. I couldn’t get the images of the
two of us out of my head.

When I finally dragged
myself out of bed and went to the window, it was apparent that more snow had
fallen during the night, covering any trace of last night’s visitors. However,
I thought I caught a glimpse of the sun behind the trees in the front yard. I
walked over to the side window to my computer and clicked the icon to log on.
After typing in my zip code, the weather forecast promised the temperature
would be in the low forties today. The roads might be tricky tonight when the
temperature drops back down into the twenties and freezes the melting snow, but
by tomorrow, Thanksgiving Day, the temperature would reach a high of
forty-eight. If the temperature continued to rise in the following days as
predicted, it would erase any signs of our prelude to winter. However, flooding
might become a problem.

I took a shower, and then
headed downstairs, ready to start a new day. Claire’s door was closed when I
passed her room, and Billy was asleep on the sofa. The dogs were curled up on
the floor next to him. Mom was in the kitchen, and I could smell the aroma of
fresh brewed coffee.

“Would you like some
coffee, honey?” she whispered.

“Please,” I answered as I
pulled out a chair at the table and gingerly sat down. I was starting to get a
headache from the one shot of alcohol that had turned into three before the
evening was over. I should’ve known better. Alcohol is not without lasting
affects. It makes me stupid. I sure hope I didn’t say or do anything that might
come back to haunt me later.

“Do you have some aspirin?
I have a whopper of a headache.”

 “Sure, honey, I’ll go get
you some. Did you and Billy have a few drinks too many last night?”

“Oh, we had one or two...”

I swallowed the aspirin
with a big gulp of coffee while Mom mumbled something about my relationship
with Billy. I brushed her off with a wave of the hand and tried to change the
subject.

“Are Uncle Bill and Aunt
Edie coming for Thanksgiving?”

“I’m afraid they can’t make
it. Edie called yesterday morning and said Bill had the flu and they weren’t
going to be able to come.”

“That’s too bad. I enjoy
their visits.”

“Who are you talking
about?” Billy growled from the living room.

“It’s alive,” I snarled.
“Mom has some coffee ready. Come and get it!”

Athena and Thor came to
life. I guess they must have thought I was talking to them because they came
running to the kitchen, barking like they normally do when they sense food.
They were awake and wanted to be fed. They drooled on my feet.

I went to the utility room
to fill their bowls, but before I could finish they tried to eat the food right
out of the scooper.

“God, you both act as if
you’re starving. Calm down, and have some manners. You’re such pigs. You’re a
bunch of mongrel dogs!”

“Thanks,” Billy said as Mom
sat the cup down in front of him. He looked at me. “Jesse, they’re just dogs.
Give’em a break. If you want them to have manners, you have to teach them.” He
looked at Athena and Thor and said firmly, “Sit!”

They stopped their
playfulness, glared at Billy, and then sat down.

“See, they’re like kids.
You have to tell them what to do.”

I backed away and stared in
disbelief.

“How did you do that? They
never listen to me.”

“It’s the tone in your
voice. You have to let them know who’s boss and at the same time be gentle. You
can’t yell at them.”

The kitchen phone rang just
about the time I was getting ready to put my hands around Billy’s throat.

“Hello,” I answered,
turning my back when I recognized Cole’s voice. “I’m fine... No, I’m not mad...
Okay... See you then... Bye.”

“That was short,” Billy
said as I hung up the phone and sat down at the table. “I sense trouble
brewing.”

“Cole’s coming over in a
few minutes. He wants to have a talk.”

“What do you think that’s
all about?” Mom said with a concerned look on her face. She had liked Cole from
the start, and thought he would be perfect for me, until Billy came along. I
don’t think she could make up her mind which one she wanted me to marry. What I
couldn’t get her to understand was that I wasn’t going to marry anyone until I
found the right man. I was in love with Cole, but we had some issues to deal
with before making it to the altar. Billy was my boss and friend—not my lover.

“Beats me,” I said, trying
to act like it wasn’t important. Yet, under my cool facade, my heart was
racing. What did he want to talk about? He sounded so cool and distant. Was he
going to dump me? What had I done wrong this time? “Maybe he wants to apologize
for being such a creep about our relationship. I’m sure his boss didn’t know
that I was his girlfriend, and Cole didn’t stand up and tell him.”

I met Cole six months ago.
We started dating immediately. Our fire was intense and if our jobs hadn’t
gotten in the way, we’d probably be living together. But things happen. We
finally adjusted to seeing each other every few days, savoring every minute of
our time together, but we couldn’t quite get past dealing with the different
directions our jobs pulled us: he’s the law, and I’m the snoop
.
I’m not
officially a P.I., but eventually, I will be. I attend night classes at the
community college, and to expedite time, I also take courses online. Billy
convinced me that if I wanted to stay in this line of work I would need a
license, and as an incentive, he offered me a partnership.

In retrospect, my career
was on the rise, but my relationship with Cole was going down the toilet.

The twenty minutes it took
Cole to show up on my doorstep had been plenty of time for me to go into a
tailspin. I had yelled at everyone at least once, and pushed the dogs away so
many times that they finally got fed up with me, and retreated to their favorite
napping place. It was barely
nine o’clock
, and the day was starting out badly. My instincts
told me that it would probably get worse.

“Good morning,” Cole said,
smiling at all of us while brushing the snow from his boots. “I think the snow
is beginning to melt.”

“That’s good to hear,” Mom
said, walking over to Cole. “Here, let me take your coat. Come on in and have a
seat.”

Mom quietly left the room;
Billy was in the shower; and Claire was upstairs planning the takeover of my
bedroom. I was left alone with Cole.

“Why don’t we go to the
kitchen? We need some privacy.”

That had to be a joke.
Privacy isn’t possible when you have three snoops lurking in the background.

“Let’s go to the garage,” I
said. I didn’t wait for a reply. 

The instant I closed the
garage door, Cole took me into his arms.

“I’ve missed you so much,”
he said. His hands were gentle and his kiss warm. I wanted to snuggle up in a
bed next to him, but I was still furious about his previous behavior. I pulled
away.

“I’m sorry about the way I
acted last night, Jesse. I was embarrassed when my new boss caught us
embracing. He didn’t know about us then, but he does now, and that complicates
matters.”

“Why?”

“Because Sheriff Hudson
thinks it would look bad for the department if one of his deputies were
involved with a witness.”

“Don’t you mean someone who
is under suspicion?”

“You’re not under
suspicion, but you are a vital member of this scenario. For the time being, I
have to distance myself. I don’t have a choice. Sheriff Hudson ordered me to
stay away from you until the case is closed. I’m sorry, but he’s my boss and if
I want to keep my job, I have to do as he says.”

“Call me when the time is
right. You can find your way out.” I turned my back to him and fled back to the
house. With tears running down my face, I slammed the utility door and leaned
against it. What a rat! When things get complicated, he walks away.

Billy walked out of the
bathroom. He had shaving cream from one ear to the other. His jeans looked new
and his flannel shirt looked like it just came from the cleaners. I wondered
where the fresh clothes came from, and then I remembered he kept a spare change
of clothes in his truck.

“What’s the matter?” he
asked. “Don’t you like my clothes?”

“It’s not that,” I sniffed,
trying to conceal my tears. “It’s just that everything you wear has a feather
or a bead stuffed somewhere. You look like a regular mountain man now. Is that
shirt new or did you iron it? I’ve never seen one of those shirts without
wrinkles unless it was new.”

“I’m sure my attire is not
what brought those tears to your eyes. What happened? Did Cole break your heart
again? I warned you about him.”

“I guess you could say
that,” I said, bursting into tears. I brushed past him and slumped down on the
sofa. “What’s wrong with men? Is it their destiny to drive us women crazy?”

Billy wiped the shaving
cream off his face with the towel that had been slung over his shoulder.

“What’s wrong with that
man? I know he loves you, but he continues to do things that make me think
otherwise. What’s his problem?”

“It’s this case,” I cried.
“He said that he can’t be involved with me until the case is closed, and I know
that could be a long time.”

“
Bologna
!”
Billy was getting hot under the collar. “Something’s going down that he’s not
telling us about. He’s covering his butt. Mark my word.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. He’s
doing what he was ordered to do.”

“Jesse, get real! When a
man loves a woman, he’d do anything for her. He wouldn’t let anything or anyone
stand in his way. Trust me, I’m a man, I know these things. Maybe it just comes
back to what I’ve said all along. His job comes first.”

I had only a few minutes to
think about what Billy had said before the front doorbell rang. I opened it and
was greeted by Sheriff Hudson and three of his deputies.

“Good morning, Miss
Watson,” the sheriff said. “May we come in?”

“Sure,” I said. “What can I
do for you?”

“I need to know if you
recognize this watch.” He held out a plastic bag with EVIDENCE written in big
red letters.

I took the bag and examined
it carefully. I was surprised to see the watch again. I lost it a couple of
months ago at a restaurant where Billy and I were having dinner. I took it off
to wash my hands in the rest room and accidentally left it on the counter. When
I noticed it missing, I went back to look for it, but it was gone. I hadn’t
thought much about it since. Now I was holding it in my hands, and knew it must
have something to do with this case.

“Sure, I do, it’s mine. It
has the name Jesse etched on the back. I did that myself with one of those
little plug-in things. Where did you get it?” I asked as I relived the past few
moments spent with Cole. No wonder he had bailed out. The dead woman and my
watch were connected, and he must have known. Why didn’t he warn me? What was
going on? I just got out of bed and the world was already crashing around me.
“You don’t think I had anything to do with that dead woman, do you? I didn’t
even know her.”

“That’s enough. Don’t say
another word, Jesse.”

“But I didn’t, Billy. I’ve
never met the woman.” I was close to tears again. “They’re wrong about this. I
don’t know her.”

“Jesse has identified the
watch as belonging to her. You can either arrest her or get out,” Billy said.
He stepped up into the sheriff’s face. “What’s it going to be?”

“Nobody’s arresting
anybody,” the sheriff replied. “I just have a few questions I’d like to ask
Miss Watson.”

“Like I said, arrest her or
get out.”

“Have it your way, Mr.
Blackhawk,” Wake Hudson said. He and his deputies retreated.

Billy slammed the door and
glared at me in an uncontrollable fit of anger. The cursing that ensued from
his lips was a product of his native tongue, but I did recognize the words
i’na-dv
and
u-lv-no-ti-s-gi
.  It had something to do with a snake and a crazy
woman.

Mom walked out of her
bedroom and asked, “What’s the matter? What’s all the fuss about?”

“Ask your daughter,” Billy
said. He walked back to the bathroom and shut the door.

Claire appeared at the foot
of the stairs and said, “I’m going to fix the kids something to eat and then
I’m going to take them outside to play for a little while. Jesse, what’s the
matter with you? You look awful.”

Billy came out of the
bathroom in time to hear what Claire had asked. “Cole dumped Jesse because he
didn’t have the guts to stand up for his woman. He could sure use a dose of
reality. In the real world, you stand by the ones you love. You don’t desert
them when they need you just because the going gets a little rough.”