Black Forest, Denver Cereal Volume 5 (34 page)

“
His loss,” Dale sat down
in a recliner. “Who was that guy?”

“
Which guy?”

“
Bumpy?” Dale
asked.

“
He’s the best standup
bass player in Denver,” Seth said. “He has a general practice in
Five Points. Good man.”

“
How’d you get him to do a
house call?” Dale asked.

“
Old friend,” Seth
shrugged.

“
He touched me, you know,
my shoulder, my neck, my face, my back,” Dale said. “He looked into
my eyes and listened to me like I mattered. I don’t think any
doctor has ever really touched me or looked at me.”

“
He knows what you’re
going through,” Seth said.

“
I felt like he…
understood me,” Dale said. “He told me that you’d make me the man I
was supposed to be.”

Seth continued to play the piano.

“
He said you’d done that
for him,” Dale said.

“
He’s a good man,” Seth
repeated.

Hoping to deter the walk down memory lane,
Seth changed songs.

“
What’s that?” Dale
asked.

“
Something I wrote when I
was in Vietnam. We used to hum it in the tunnels. The original
score is in the First Division Museum,” Seth chuckled. “What to
hear an irony?”

“
Sure,” Dale
said.

“
I sold this song while we
were in Vietnam. I don’t remember why, probably for furlough money.
My best friend and I were eighteen and lived in a state of excess,”
Seth said. “Anyway, the next time I heard this song was in my
wife’s obstetrician’s office. At the time, calming songs for
pregnant women was all the rage. The pregnant woman would pick a
few songs and play it through the pregnancy. When the woman was in
labor, she would hear the song and stay calm. It had been… twenty
years, maybe longer, since I’d heard or thought of this song.
Imagine my surprise.”

“
I bet.”

“
We had both of our boys
to this song,” Seth laughed and shook his head.

He continued playing.

“
What’s it called?” Dale
asked.

“
A Medley for Amelie,”
Seth said.

“
Is that why you call her
Ava?” Dale asked.

“
Among other reasons,”
Seth said.

“
She’s named after this
song.”

“
Who?” Seth
asked.

“
Amelie,” Dale said. “Her
mother loves it. She had it playing in the delivery room and used
to play it for her as a baby. Amelie was supposed to be named after
her mom, but listening to the song, her father named her Amelie. Or
that’s what they say. Amelie listens to the song anytime she’s
anxious.”

Seth stopped playing to look at Dale. Still
sound asleep, Ava began to cry. Seth went to comfort her. He
whispered in her ear and stroked her back. He got another one of
his mother’s handmade quilts from the chest and laid it over
her.

“
I heard what that guy
said when we got home,” Dale said.

Seth kissed Ava’s cheek and went back to
playing. Ava stopped crying.

“
I heard him ask if Amelie
was your daughter,” Dale said. “Then laugh that you were always a
hound for young pussy.”

“
Lecherous old man,” Seth
shrugged.

“
She really loves you,”
Dale said. “It’s not a joke or a fluke. She’s not after your money
or this house or your music or anything. She loves you.”

“
Listen…”

“
No. You listen. Beth’s
not here to tell you off so I have to say this,” Dale said. “Beth
was with Amelie when she met you, you know, the day the Cigarette
Killer was convicted. Beth said Amelie fell in love with you at
that moment. Amelie’s never been this involved with any guy. Ever.
She’d never let a guy take care of her. She’s always been really
independent. Beth was terrified she’d never find
anyone.”

“
I…”

“
I’ve lived with Beth and
Amelie off and on for almost six years. I know her better than
almost anyone,” Dale said. “We knew the moment she met you again.
She was happier than I’ve ever known her. She danced around the
apartment singing
her
song,
that
song. When she didn’t come home for a month, Beth just knew
she was with you. Beth was so, so happy. If I know anything, Beth
died happy knowing Amelie was with you.”

Dale took a deep breath to cool the
intensity of his feelings.

“
Amelie loves you,” Dale’s
raw emotions came out in his raised voice. “Do you love her or is
she just a piece of young ass?”

“
Whoa,” Seth said. “Slow
down, Dale.”

Dale scowled at Seth.

“
Have some Scotch. Breathe
for a minute.”

“
I’m not a child,” Dale
said.

“
No, you’re not,” Seth
said. “But you’ve been through a horrible experience. You’ve lost
everything so every little thing carries that intensity. My God,
Dale, you buried the love of your life today.”

Dale blinked at Seth. He’d never had another
man understand him. Not his father, grandfather, his uncles or any
man he’d known could have made that statement. Dale finished his
Scotch and refilled his glass. He stopped by the fireplace to add a
piece of wood. When he sat back down in the recliner, he felt the
warm flush of Scotch and the safety of the room.

“
Amelie?” Dale
asked.

“
I care about Amelie,
Dale. But it’s been maybe three months since we met in a forensics
meeting. We’ve been dating maybe six weeks? Seven? Everything is
brand new. Now she’s lost the person who made her world whole. Her
compass. She’s undergone an unspeakable horror. She needs to find
her footing before anything else happens. It’s going to take time.
Whether I love her or she loves me or we work… All of that will be
determined with time.”

“
I guess that makes
sense,” Dale said. “Who were those guys?”

“
Army buddies,” Seth
said.

“
Army?”

“
You knew there were
tunnels in Vietnam?”

“
Vaguely.”

“
I used to go down them,”
Seth said. “Miles and miles of wretched, filthy, bug infested,
human waste filled, God forsaken tunnels under the jungle. We think
the guy that killed Beth and hurt Amelie is in a tunnel under
Denver. The guys went over some ancient maps. They have more
experience in tunnels than anyone in the world. And we…”

Seth shook his head. They’d gotten nowhere.
Tomorrow morning, he was meeting with Jake, Mike, and Delphie. Seth
sighed. At this moment, he felt less ‘magic’ and more
desperate.

“
Most of those guys think
I’m living in my Daddy’s house because I’m a boozer,” Seth said.
“They don’t know my heart and can’t speak for me. But they will
show up any time, anywhere, ready and willing to kill for me. I’d
do the same for them. I bet you have friends like that.”

“
No,” Dale shook his head.
“I had Beth. And that was enough…”

The boy broke down. Seth played while Ava
slept and Dale cried. After a while, Seth looked over and Dale was
staring into space.

“
I wanted you to know…”
Dale said.

Seth stopped playing and went to Ava. He
lifted her head to his lap and settled in to listen.

“
I was going to hang
myself tonight,” Dale said. “I had this whole plan. Then I got here
and Maresol had my favorite food ready. Even a warm berry pie. I
figured it was my last meal. So I was going to hang myself after
dinner and then I met Bumpy. And…”

Seth stroked Ava’s bald head to comfort her
tears.

“
I don’t want to die,”
Dale said.

“
But you don’t want to
live without Beth,” Seth said.

Dale nodded.

“
I understand,” Seth
said.

“
My Mom wants me to come
home to Fort Collins… get on with my life… put this behind
me…”

“
What do you want?” Seth
asked.

Dale raised a shoulder in a drunken
shrug.

“
Can I stay here until I
figure it out?” Dale asked.

“
Of course,” Seth
said.

“
Is there something I can
do?”

“
As repayment?” Seth
asked. “You don’t have to.”

“
I need something to do.
Sitting around is making me crazy,” Dale said.

“
Lost your
job?”

“
Not showing up for a week
does that,” Dale nodded.

“
Maresol has a long list
of crap that needs to be done around the house. It’s enough to keep
any dozen men busy for months,” Seth said. “Why don’t you see if
you can make a dent in her list?”

“
I worked building tract
houses every summer through high school and college,” Dale
said.

“
That should help,” Seth
said.

“
Can I stay inside?” Dale
asked.

“
I thought Maresol set you
up in a room upstairs,” Seth said.

Dale nodded.

“
You can stay there or
over the pool with your stuff from the apartment,” Seth said.
“Whatever feels right.”

Dale gave a partial smile.

“
But don’t hang yourself,”
Seth said. “That’s just dumb.”

“
Selfish, childish,” Dale
said. “That’s what Bumpy said. He told me I would dishonor Beth if
I killed myself.”

Seth chuckled.

“
What?” Dale
asked.

“
I’ve heard that speech,”
Seth said. “Did he say you were acting like a spoiled
child?”

Dale nodded.

“
He’s right, you know,”
Seth said.

“
I know,” Dale
said.

“
I’m going to play for a
while,” Seth said. “You’re welcome to stay or head up. We’ll be up
in an hour or so. Maresol’s off on Sundays. You’ll need to be ready
to work on Monday around seven.”

“
I can do that,” Dale
said.

Dale got up from the chair. He nodded to
Seth and moved to leave the room. Seth kissed Ava then went to the
piano. Dale was at the door when he turned.

“
Thanks,” Dale said. He
raised a hand in ‘good bye’ and was gone.

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED & FORTY-THREE

Intervention

Sunday morning — 5:35 A.M

Seth woke to the feeling of Ava’s hands
stroking his stomach. Her long fingers stopped at his naval before
moving to his thighs. He opened his eyes and she was leaning toward
him. She gave him a slight smile and kissed his lips.

“
Ava,” Seth said. “You
don’t have to…”

“
I want you,” she
croaked.

Her lips attacked his lips and tongue. The
pure honesty of her desire brought him fully awake. He met her
intensity. Their lips tingled with their magnetic fusion. Her body
gave off an infectious heat and he rose to her desire. He pulled
her on top of him. She sat across his thighs. With her access, she
continued ravaging his mouth. She gave him a cocky smile, then
moved her hips to engage.

She threw up.

Seth wasn’t able to move out of the way. Her
vomit hit him in the chest and spilled onto the bed. Horrified, Ava
jumped up and ran into the bathroom. Grabbing a towel to wipe off
the vomit, he followed her. He stroked her back while she hugged
the toilet. When her stomach was empty, he pulled her into the
shower and turned on the warm water. Shaking her head, Ava’s mouth
moved but no sound came out. Tears fell from her eyes.

Seth put his ear next to her mouth.

“
I’m so sorry,” Ava
said.

“
Don’t be sorry,” he said.
“You’ve been through a horrible experience. This kind of thing is
normal. We need to go slowly, respectfully.”

“
But I…”

Seth put his finger over her mouth.

“
Rest your voice,” Seth
said.

Under the warm stream of water, he held her
to him. Moving away, she took a wash cloth and soap to scrub where
she’d thrown up on him. He smiled.

“
I know you feel bad,” he
said. “You want everything to be normal. But right now, you need to
heal and healing takes time.”

She nodded. He took the wash cloth from
her.

“
I’m clean,” he said. “Why
don’t you stay here as long as you’d like? Or until the hot water
runs out?”

She pointed to him.

“
I’ll change the sheets,”
he said.

She looked indignant.

“
I’ve changed a lot of
sheets in my life. Please. Take in the warmth. It’ll help to chase
away the dark.” When she didn’t look convinced, he added, “For me.
We’ll get there, Ava. Promise. There’s no hurry. We have
time.”

She gave him a slight nod. He kissed her
forehead and left the shower. He dried off and went to change the
sheets. In the way of vomit, a little had spread over a lot of
surfaces. It seemed to be everywhere. He made a pile of sheets and
comforters, grabbed a pair of jeans and went down the hall to the
linen closet. He returned to the room with an arm full of sheets, a
duvet cover and a cotton blanket. He tossed his load into an arm
chair and made quick work of the bed. He was so intent on the job
that he didn’t hear the water shut off or see Ava step into to the
bedroom. He looked up when she touched his back. She held his phone
out to him.