Authors: Cheri Lewis
“I know, he must be plastered. I can’t believe he didn’t wake up when we carried him down the stairs.”
“I can’t believe he didn’t wake up when you ran his head into the wall.”
“Oh stop it. It wasn’t that bad.”
“Get Coot—” came muffled from the other side of the room. Jessie and I quickly sit up, when he says it again. “Get Cootie,” Tank whispers. I jump up and go to Tank who was lying on the bed with his eyes open but still not moving, Jessie flips the light switch. We both blink a few times allowing our eyes to get adjusted.
I lean over him. “You’re alright. Get some rest. Do you feel sick?”
He reaches over and grabs my hand. “Get Cootie now and tell him to bring his bag.”
“I don’t know where he is and what bag do you need?” I ask confused.
Tank began to move slowly and I can hear the alarm in his voice when he asks, “Who’s—who’s watching you?”
My eyes go wide and I shrug, “I really don’t know. After Alexander went and got you from Weasel's—”
I look up at Jessie when he ask, “Weasel's!? Who is Weasel?”
“Hold on,” I say back to Jessie, then I continue talking to Tank, “After Alexander brought you here, he and Cootie went back to get his truck and, just so you know, he was a little pissed about that.”
Tank has barely even made it half way sitting up when he grabs his head and lays back down on the pillow. “My head is killing me. I need you to get my cell phone out of my pocket, call Cootie tell him to get here now and bring his bag.”
“We checked your pockets when you got here. No phone.”
“I forgot. It’s in my vehicle.”
I turn around to Jessie “Go get my cell phone. Call the police station and ask them for Cootie's number or for them to call him.”
He put his hand on his hip. “Do you know how ridiculous I’m going to sound calling a police station and asking for Cootie?”
I huff in exasperation. “Wait, hold on, his name is Bruce, Officer Bruce.”
“Okay, I’ll be right back.”
I reach over and grab the bottle of water off the nightstand. “Here you need to drink something.”
He slowly shook his head, “I can’t until Cootie gets here. I’m sure someone put something in my drink.”
“Put something in your drink, like drugged you?” I ask.
He closes his eyes. “Yeah, one second I was fine, the next I remember trying to stand to walk but after that everything went blurry.”
“You think someone roofied you?”
“I won’t know ‘til we get some blood work done.”
“Oh… why would somebody roofie you?” I ask again confused.
“I… don’t… know…” he replies annoyed.
“Do you think it was—?”
He reaches over and lays his hand over mine, this time with a kind tone said, “McKinsey I don’t know.”
I shake my head and stare at his bruised face. “I was hoping that it was all over. We haven’t had anything else happen since I got those dumb cookies.”
His fingers lightly caress my hand and it feels nice. “We’re going to get him.” He promises.
“I believe you,” I whisper.
“We’re here!” Jessie announces from the hallway.
They both enter the room with Jessie stopping at our pallet on the floor but Cootie comes around the bed carrying a black bag as he says, “I was out front, I didn’t know how long you’d be out.”
Tank leans up on his elbows with his eyes half open. “I need you to take my blood. Somebody slipped something into my drink and I want to know what it was.”
Cootie pauses and I can tell he’s contemplating something, so I ask, “What is it?”
“You know, I thought it was odd you weren’t talking last night when Alexander brought you back. You want me to do something about that cut, too, while I’m here?”
Tank reaches up and lightly feels his forehead. “Yeah. What happened anyway?”
“All I know is you got damn lucky Alexander went to find you. A piece of tuna had her claws all over you; he said it was pretty bad. You were drunk and she didn’t care.”
“Tuna?” Jessie and I both ask aloud.
Cootie who is busy doing medical things to Tank turns and looks at us but seems embarrassed. “Yeah, tuna… you know.”
“Oh that’s just gross!” Jessie shrieks.
I look at him confused; he leans in and whispers, “A woman’s va-jay-jay,” then waves his hand back and forth in front of his nose.
My face instantly wrinkles. “Oh man, that’s disgusting,” I cry absolutely repulsed.
Cootie grimaces then nods at Tank and says, “He would’ve regretted it more.”
I back up a few steps. “I’m out, I’m going to watch TV.”
Jessie immediately agrees, “Me, too, I’m right behind you.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
A Very Busy Day
The next morning I lay in bed listening to Jessie singing and apparently practicing dance moves to Hollaback Girl in the shower. Prima is kneading on my belly begging me to wake up and feed her. My mind is racing over all the things going on in my life: serial killer… Zebib… Tank possibly being drugged… Jessie’s parents moving… the disco for my mother's fundraiser in two weeks… my job… missing my house… basically my entire life is falling apart and it doesn’t look like it’s going to get straightened out any time soon. I crawl out of bed feeling sorry for myself, Prima constantly meowing at my heels. I turn around and face her and fuss, “Hold on. I gotta pee, dang.” I open the door to the bathroom and can barely breath it’s so steamy in here, “Hey, I’m in here, sorry but I really had to go.” I call out to Jessie.
“It’s fine, porcupine,” he says from behind the curtain.
I smile at his silly rhyme, when I finish I flush and reach to wash my hands. “Yeow!” Jessie cries. Then I hear two loud thuds. I know immediately what had happened and I burst out laughing. He sticks his head out from behind the shower curtain. “That got hot! I ping ponged off the walls.” I laugh even harder; Jessie shoots me a bird and disappears back behind the curtain.
I wash my hands and quickly leave the bathroom. I then stop by the kitchen to feed my darling diva kitty before she falls over from starvation. Jessie has apparently started the coffee so I fix my coffee and watch Prima crunch on her food. I hear a strange noise, a thud, and then another thud. I walk back to the bathroom, “Jessie is that you making those noises?”
“I don’t think so, I’m getting out now,” he says as he turns off the water.
I walk back into the kitchen and a thud sounds again.
It must be Tank
. I walk upstairs and follow the mysterious thuds. I didn’t realize until now, but apparently Tank's office is directly above or right near the kitchen downstairs, because that’s where all the thuds are coming from. I take two steps into his office. Tank's back is to me. He’s holding on to his desk with both hands leaning on them. He stands up and kicks his desk,
Wham!
“Are you alright?” I ask worried.
He never acknowledges me, continuing to stand with his back to me; he raises his hands and laces his fingers together on the back of head. He then looks toward the ceiling as he talks to himself, “What am I missing? What am I missing? It’s right here, what am I missing?” he chants agitated.
I take a step back to leave; he drops his hands and spins around quickly. “Tell me again, from the moment I left yesterday everything that happened.”
“We cut your grass and I really wanted to apologize—”
“Right now I don’t give a damn about my front yard. I need to know who came and went yesterday.”
I swallow hard when I remember that I hadn’t told him his in-laws had stopped by, “First, with everything going on I forgot to tell you that your in-laws stopped by.”
He studies my face a second before he asks quietly, “What’d they want.”
“They said that Christine had told them they needed to come by. It was urgent.”
He shakes his head. “Good ol’ sweet Christine, always scheming to get her way.”
I don’t ask what that means, even though I want to know. I tell him everything I can remember about yesterday. He walks to the empty wall on the left side of his desk and pushes on it. A part of the wall moves! He disappears into the room beyond the wall.
Wow! Totally cool!
I take a few steps and peek around the hidden door and peer inside. It’s a small room with no windows. There is a desk with several monitors hanging on the wall. None are turned on. On the back wall is I assume where he sleeps as a couch lines the wall and it has a pillow on one end and a blanket thrown over the other. He picks up two files then turns in my direction, I step back to let him by. He pushes the wall closed and it locks into place.
“What was that?” I ask in awe as he sits down behind his desk.
He takes a second to look up from the file he has about an inch away from his face. “That would be a room my father built; he used to store things of value to him in there. Supposedly it’s been proofed.”
“Proofed?”
“Yeah you know, water, fire…,” he says as he flips through another file. He sets the file down and leans back in his chair then rubs his hand across his jaw. “You know this just isn’t adding up, it’s almost too perfect.”
I flinch when Jessie pops up behind me. “Girl, don’t make me be the one to tell your momma that you aren’t coming to church because you haven’t even got your shower yet.”
I whip around and Jessie is leaning against the doorway smiling a dazzling smile and, of course, decked out in his church attire. “Oh crap, what time is it?”
“Just put a dress on and I’ll do something with your hair. You got a shower yesterday so you shouldn’t smell too bad.”
I start to leave the office but turn back to Tank. “Do you wanna come with us?”
“No,” he says too emphatically.
The abrupt “no” shocks me. I start to ask him to reconsider going but Jessie grabs my shoulders and turns me toward the hallway and gives me a little shove. “I’m not facing the wrath of June, not on a Sunday, at church, alone. Besides I need to leave right after and go talk to my parents. I’ll call you when I leave to go back to work.”
I stop midway down that hall. I feel like I was punched in the gut. I look over my shoulder and say, “I know I’m going to be the suckiest friend on the planet right now but please don’t leave me. These training weeks have been terrible already; I can’t imagine my life without you in it daily.”
He doesn’t say anything and actually I’m afraid to hear his answer. I know the bond his mother and he have is strong. They faced something together that I can’t even begin to imagine how it would feel, especially at the hands of somebody you’re supposed to trust completely. I know I’m lucky; my parents did spank me but they never left marks. I walk slowly down the stairs and this time I say a little prayer, “Just let him be okay. Whatever he chooses, and let me be okay too, please.”
****
Church went as church normally goes; we all sit in our designated pew and when it’s over Jessie hugs my parents and hugs me goodbye as he speaks softly in my ear, “I’ll call you when I’m on my way to work.” I nod and then let him go.
I join my parents for dinner on the grounds but my heart is heavy because of Jessie. I have unchristian like thoughts added to the mix when the boy my mother wanted me to meet at Bible study sits down across from me. I glare at my mother who sits beside me as she leans over and whispers, “I had nothing to do with this; now you just be polite and I’ll do the rest.” When she sat back I watch her in surprise. She talks the entire time. He can’t get a word in, and when he tries to ask me a question she answers it for me. Every now and then I have to look away to hide my smile.
Who is this woman and what have you done with my mother?
After lunch is over my mother is on the cleanup committee so I volunteer to stay and help, I don’t want to go back to Tank's and just sit. There really isn’t anything else to do. When the vehicles thin out I spot my babysitter watching me from the parking lot. I wave; he opens his cruiser door and walks over to where we are. I can’t help but admire him as he fills out a uniform very, very well. “You want a piece of cake?” I offer.
“Sure, I could never turn down cake.” Officer Hunter smiles a brilliant smile.
“Sorry you have to sit out here with me on your off time. You should have come down and ate with us. We had way too much as you can see.”
“It’s all in a day’s work. Besides watching you isn’t that bad and I’m working 2
nd
shift today. There have been a lot of call ins. Apparently a stomach virus is going around.”
I nod, and then look at my watch. “What time do you have to be at work?”
“I have to report in at 2:45. My shift starts at 3:00.”
“You only have forty five minutes ‘til you have to be there, which means I need to hurry up and get back to Tank’s.”
He grins then finishes his last bite of cake. I take his plate and fork from him and throw them in the garbage. “Let me tell my parents goodbye and I’ll be on my way.”
He dips his head while he’s in the middle of taking a drink from an orange soda can.
I pull up in front of Tank's, wave bye to Hunter and then go inside. The front lobby is dimmer than usual but I’m relieved to see Cootie waiting for me in the lobby. I plop my purse down in one of the chairs. “You wanna play some go fish or something? Watch a movie?”