Helios Beginnings (The Helios Chronicles #0.5) (11 page)

“What the fuck! I haven’t heard from him in fifteen damn years and that’s the best he could do? No, ‘I'm fucking sorry for beating the shit out of you or worse, making you beat yourself.’ No, ‘Hey man, sorry I used drugs around you and fucked your mother while you were in the same room.’ No, ‘I'm sorry for making you scam and cheat people and feel like shit.’ Nope, all I get is, I am sure you’re somebody’s bitch by now and need my help protecting your sorry ass. FUCK! What exactly did that motherfucker teach me?”

Andrew’s hands flew into his hair as he tried desperately to control his need to hit something. As if on cue, he spotted his sketchpad lying under his bed. His hands dropped to his side and with a heavy sigh, he reached down and grabbed it. He dropped down on the bed and closed his eyes, remembering what Reeves said. He couldn’t get into another fight. If he did, then he would be right back in the hole and this time he knew he wouldn’t come out of it okay.

Year Five

Andrew stared down at the nearly blank piece of paper. He had been wrestling with it all morning trying to figure out what to write. His aunt had written to him religiously, once a month, for the last few years. The letters always came around the first because she said that it was the start of the month, a new beginning of sorts. Andrew wasn’t exactly sure what that was supposed to mean, but he had to admit that she was wearing him down with her optimism. In the beginning, she used to spend most of her letters apologizing for not being there for him, for what her sister did and how she wished things had been different, but the past year she changed approaches. Her letters were now always joyful, as if she were writing to her nephew who was away at summer camp and she was letting him know what was happening in town while he was away. Andrew wasn’t sure what she was trying to prove, but after the letter from his father a year ago he realized that things needed to change. It was clear that his father had not changed at all. He saw nothing wrong with what he did and instead critiqued him for having too much of his mother in him which made Andrew wonder if maybe his mom had not always been crazy. He wondered if maybe there was something else there as well, some goodness.

Over the past year of reading Olivia’s gentle musings, he decided it was time to stop hating her for something she truly had no control over. The problem he had now was what to write about. He couldn’t exactly tell her about the things that went on in prison and he wasn’t accustomed to expressing his feelings. That didn’t leave him many options. He closed his eyes and waited, hoping that something would happen and the right words would emerge from him.

“Harrison, I need to ask you something,” Reeves said walking into Andrew’s cell.

Thankful for the distraction, Andrew set his pen and blank letter down and looked over at him. Reeves looked nervous for some reason. He was shifting his weight from one foot to the other. He then walked back to the entrance of the cell and glanced at a noise that was coming from a cell, three or four down from Andrews.

“What’s on your mind?” Andrew asked, curious what could make the tough guard look so skittish.

“Look, this is going to sound weird but...” He stepped out of the cell completely and looked down both hallways before walking back inside.

“Okay?” Andrew replied, shaking his head slightly.

“My anniversary is in two weeks and umm, my wife is expecting something spectacular. Well, that’s sort of my fault because I hinted that she was getting something she would never expect and nothing she could find elsewhere. I mean I don’t know what the hell I was thinking,” He rambled as he started pacing in the small cell.

“I’m not sure how I can help you.”

Reeves let out a deep breath and leaned against the wall opposite of Andrew. He stared at the prisoner debating if what he was about to do was a good idea or not. He then remembered his wife’s beautiful face and the look of shock as he promised her something so unique that she would immediately love it.

“I was thinking maybe you could draw a picture of her and then I could get it framed. That would be original wouldn’t it?” Reeves asked questioningly.

“You want me to draw a picture of your wife?” Andrew replied, stunned.

Reeves immediately reached in his back pocket and pulled out several pictures and a rolled up magazine. He handed them to Andrew and opened up the magazine which automatically fell to a photo shoot of a voluptuous blonde who Andrew immediately recognized. Andrew didn’t watch many movies and certainly didn’t keep up with the goings on in Hollywood but he had seen this actress on many walls. As he recalled, the prison had even showed her latest film about a month ago, there wasn’t an empty seat available. They had to show it twice.

“You’re married to Skylar Chase?” Andrew asked louder than he should have.

Reeves immediately brought his finger to his mouth and made a 'shhhing' sound, while frowning. “Yes, we are going on our ten year anniversary and I want to do something special, hence the drawing of her.”

“You’re aware that half the men in this prison jack off to posters of her, right?” Andrew replied with a chuckle, and then thought to himself that it was likely more than half.

Reeves laughed before getting a very serious expression on his face. “Of course I know that. That’s why no one knows. You are the first prisoner I have ever told and if it gets out I swear to God I’ll kill you.”

Andrew shook his head and tried not to smile. He was trying to picture Reeves and Ms. Chase married. It was funny that Andrew had no concept that Reeves could possibly have a wife out there. He never wore a ring, not that Andrew was looking for one but he was definitely surprised.

“So can you do it or not?” Reeves asked impatiently.

“Yeah, sure, umm, when do you need it?”

“By next Wednesday, so that I have time to have it framed and wrapped nice and pretty.”

Andrew once again had to stifle a laugh because he knew that Reeves would likely beat the crap out of him if he suspected that Andrew was making fun of him. But it was pretty funny hearing him talk about his anniversary.

“Okay, well, give me a few days to come up with a variety of sketches and then you can pick the one you like best. And, get me an 11 x 14 artist board. You can get something a little bigger if you want, but not larger than a 16 x 18 or I won’t be able to get it done in time. The boards are white and kind of thick and you should be able to find them at any art supply store. The sketch you pick out I will draw on the board. Sound okay?”

He bounced on the balls of his feet. “Sounds fantastic!” he said, smiling that happy go lucky smile of his.

He started to walk out of my cell when Andrew cleared his throat, “Hey, you aren’t going to get in trouble for this are you?”

Reeves didn’t reply as he stepped out of the cell. All Andrew heard was his laughter as he walked down the hall and then suddenly his tone changed. Andrew heard him shouting at someone down the way and then his baton hit the bars of the railing. Andrew shook his head and looked at the pictures he had given him which were candid shots of her at what was likely her and Reeves home. There were some pictures of her with a dog, one with her in a silly hat and another where she was sun bathing by a pool.

“Boy, there are people that would pay big money for these,” he mused aloud.

Andrew shook his head knowing damn well he wouldn’t sell them. As he admired the pictures he noticed that she looked really happy and he wondered if Reeves had taken the pictures. Sadness bloomed in him that he quickly pushed aside. He picked up the magazine and began to look through the magazine spread.

“I don’t want to copy a picture, that’s a cheap way out. He wants something original for his wife and after all the help he has given me over the years I want to do something nice for him.”

Andrew stared at the pictures for a long while until he thought he had her in his head well enough that he could draw her. He glanced at the unwritten letter and put it between a few pages, thinking he would get to it later, perhaps he might have something to write about after all.

~*~

“Well, what do you think?” Andrew asked anxiously.

Reeves stood in the middle of the cell holding up the most beautiful interpretation of his wife that he had ever seen. There were small flowers that he didn’t know the name of, intermixing with her long blonde hair which cascaded around her face in waves. She was looking towards him although he could not see himself in the picture. There was only his hand visible. It was outstretched towards her, the fingers curling slightly as if beckoning her to him.

“How… how did you come up with this from what I gave you?”

Andrew smiled relieved. “I don’t know. It just came to me. Do you think she’ll like it?”

Reeves looked up at him in shock. “Are you serious? She’s gonna love it! This is the one I want on the artist board.”

Andrew nodded. He couldn’t contain the smile that was spreading across his face. He had never really drawn anything for anyone else and rarely showed what he did draw to others. This was different though. He had come up with ten different drawings for Reeves to pick through. Reeves seemed to like them all but the wedding one he kept coming back to so Andrew knew that was his favorite.

“I’ll bring you the board tomorrow. Are you sure you can get it done in time?” He asked while continuing to look at the picture and bouncing on the balls of his feet ever so slightly.

Andrew grinned. “Of course.”

Reeves handed the picture back and grasped Andrew’s shoulder. “Thank you.”

Andrew stood there in shock. He was thanking him. No one had every thanked him for anything. Of course, he had never done much to warrant a thank you, but it was still an unusual experience for him. Reeves smiled and squeezed his shoulder slightly before exiting the cell. Andrew sat down. His heart was still pounding and he wished he had someone to talk to about how he was feeling at the moment. Someone who could help him understand what was going on. He glanced at his sketchpad and saw something sticking out of it. He reached for it and smiled at the blank piece of paper.

Olivia

I’ve been thinking about writing to you for a while, but couldn’t think of anything worth saying. It’s not as if I want you to know about what it’s like being in prison. Why would anyone want to know that but the strangest thing happened to me today and I wanted to tell someone.

He stared down at the paper, his pen hovering above it. This felt so strange to him, writing to a virtual stranger. Was she a stranger though? He almost felt like he knew her after the pile of letters she had written to him. Besides, he needed to start thinking about what he would do after he was released next year. Olivia had asked him to stay with her and her husband Aaron but he was undecided about that. He took a deep breath and continued.

I did something for someone. A friend I guess he could be called. What I did was such a minor thing, at least to me it seemed like something, I don’t know, insignificant, but he was really happy. I had been worried that he would tell me that what I did was actually just a piece of shit.

Andrew stopped and frowned. He quickly crossed out the word ‘shit’ and replaced it with ‘not good enough’ instead. He couldn’t very well send a letter to his aunt that included him cursing. If he did that she might change her mind and then where would he be, back on the streets, that’s where. He sighed and went back to writing his letter.

I’ve never really done anything that made anyone feel happy and now I’m sitting here confused. My stomach hurts and my head is going in circles. Is that normal?

He took a deep breath and signed his name at the bottom of the letter. He briefly debated crumpling it up but then shook his head and folded it instead. He dug underneath his bed where he kept the letters she had sent him bunched together. He reached for the blank envelop she always sent him in her letter and slipped the sheet of paper inside. A small smiled crept across his face as he imagined the look on her face when she received the letter.

Year Six

“So, today’s the big day. Are you ready?” a voice said happily from the entrance of Andrew’s cell.

Andrew turned towards the voice. It was Reeves. Over the years Reeves had become the closest thing to a friend that Andrew had. He didn’t interact much with any of the other prisoners but Reeves looked out for him over the years. He never really wanted anything from him either, except for the picture he had drawn, which sort of shocked Andrew.

“You just got that one box?”

Andrew grinned slightly. “Yeah, I came in with nothing and I’m leaving with nothing.”

“I don’t want to ever see you back here.”

Andrew eyed Reeves who had a very serious expression on his face.

“I mean it Harrison. You have the opportunity to get your life on track. Most of these guys,” his head bobbed in both directions, “they go right back into the same environment. It’s pretty hard to walk a straight line when everyone around you is crooked. But your situation is different isn’t it?”

“Yeah,” he replied, looking to the ground.

“Take advantage of your second chance. They don’t come around every day.”

Before Andrew could reply, Reeves walkie-talkie was buzzing at him. He stepped out of the cell and Andrew heard Reeves heavy footsteps racing down the hall. There was a commotion in one of the cells. Now that was something that Andrew wouldn’t miss. Well, in actuality most everything in prison he wouldn’t miss, except for Guard Reeves. He was the only thing in there that made his time bearable. He leaned against the wall and closed his eyes, waiting for them to come and get him.