by Peter Grist
ten
“Noooooo!” He woke up with a start to see bright white light in front of his eyes. He immediately flinched as he presumed the searing pain would follow. Instead, he heard the anxious but soothing sound of Linda’s voice. She bent over him and looked into his eyes, concern wrinkling her brow. He realised that he was lying on the floor of the library looking up into the white lights in the ceiling.
“Mr Saunders, are you okay? Ed, can you hear me? Ed? She helped him sit up and lean against the wall by the doors.
“I’m fine, I think. Did you get me in here? What happened?”
She knelt as best she could opposite him and felt his forehead for a temperature.
“I heard a loud thump on the door and just as I was coming over to see what it was, you fell through. I think you must have collapsed against it and pushed it open. You’ve been out for a couple of minutes. I was just about to call 911 when you started to shout and wave. It was like you were having a nightmare. Do you want me to call an ambulance? Goodness, I was so worried; I didn’t know what to do”.
“No, I really am okay now. I think I must be getting used to these things, and yes, it is a nightmare”.
Linda looked surprised. “You mean this has happened to you before? Did you have a seizure? Is it epilepsy?”
“Yes, I mean no, I mean….” he replied meekly, “What I mean is yes, it has happened before but I’m not epileptic, it’s only since I got into town it started, but this is the third time now.”
“I think you should go see a doctor and get checked out, you were completely gone! And how did you get all those scratches on your face and arms, what happened to you?”
He looked down at his forearms at the dozens of fresh small scratches then slowly looked back at Linda. “You wouldn’t have any coffee here would you?”
She helped him to his feet, not that he needed it but it felt good when she put her arm around his waist. Once again he could smell her fruity perfume. They walked to the rear of the library to a room marked ‘STAFF ONLY’.
He sat down heavily in an old armchair while Linda poured a mug of steaming coffee from a percolator on the other side of the small room. He looked around at what he presumed used to be a storeroom and still held some odd boxes among the four miss-matched chairs and a couple of tables.
“How do you want this, black?”
“No, white please with sugar too if you have some, thank you”.
As she walked back towards him she asked, “So, are you going to tell me what’s going on, are you sick?”
He sat there without replying, looking sheepish. He took the coffee in both hands and took a tentative sip.
“Mmm, that’s good. Thank you Linda.”
He was just thinking about how or what to tell her when he glanced at the wall clock hung high on the wall opposite his seat. The clock said 9.55. He sprang out of the seat. “Oh hell! Is that thing right? I’ve gotta go, I’ve got my first meeting in five minutes and I don’t know where the hell it is yet”. He thrust the coffee back into Linda’s hands. She just stood there, bewildered. “Look Linda, I have to go but I want to thank you for helping me out, and to try and explain what’s going on. I know you must think I’m nuts but, well, er, how about after you finish work tonight I take you out for a drink or a meal somewhere. Give me a chance to explain, what d’you say?” He was moving earnestly towards the staff room door. The look of surprise on her face at the request was total. “No, I can’t I’m sorry”. She knew that it sounded too abrupt, the way it had come out, not the way she meant it at all, but it stopped him in his tracks. He turned and looked at her, crestfallen. “Of course, what was I thinking? We only just met and you think I’m nuts or sick or something, why on earth would you want to spend any more time with me?” He turned away towards the exit.
“No, wait! It’s not that, really!” she replied quickly, “it’s just, well I have…..I have commitments, at home”.
“Okay, I understand, it’s no problem…….” He said over his shoulder as he continued for the door.
Linda walked towards him, slopping the coffee down on the table as she went and put a hand gently on one of his forearms. Ed stopped and turned. She didn’t know what she was getting herself in to but she knew she wanted to see him again. There was something, something about this man that reminded her of Ben, her deceased husband; something in his eyes. Without thinking too much about the consequences she said, “No, it’s not that at all. I just can’t go out at short notice like that, but you could come round to mine….for a meal….tonight…..if you wanted. I have food in; it would be no bother, really?”
It was his turn to look surprised. Well, he thought to himself, she must have a really understanding husband, but what the hell, he knew he needed help with this and from where he was standing she looked perfect for the job.
“Yes! That would be great, if you’re sure. But I don’t know where you live?”
She frowned then said, “Well, you’ll never find my place on your on, it’s out of the way a bit, on the other side of town, so come and meet me after I finish work at six can you, then you can follow me in your car?”
“Okay,” he replied with a beaming smile, “see you at six.” And with another glance at his wristwatch he dashed for the main doors.
eleven
The rest of the day went by slowly, visiting farms and small business’, tying up loose ends to the orders, even selling some extra equipment and software at a few places. He kept his summer jacket on all day to cover the cuts on his arms but there was no way he could cover the scratches on his face. He received many strange looks and even a few enquiries to his injuries from some of his bolder clients but a barely believable excuse of falling over the previous night into a hedge hardly quelled their curiosity. By four in the afternoon he was finished, he had time to take a shower, change and still be early to meet Linda. As he came back into town he spotted a liquor store called Moonshiners not far from his motel. He didn’t want to arrive at her home empty handed so he parked outside the store and made the quick walk to the door. A bell jangled over his head as he entered. A plump blonde woman squeezed into a dark blue cowboy shirt a couple of sizes too small for her carrying the logo of the store emerged from what Ed presumed was the stockroom out back. “Howdy!” she welcomed with a broad smile. “How can I help you?” Her expansive bosom was hardly contained by the tasselled cotton garment and her substantial bottom was also challenging the material of her matching skirt. The Moonshiners logo circumnavigated her left breast and the name ‘Tash’ struggled to climb the other. “Oh high, can I have a bottle of red wine please?” The woman’s smile faded a little. “Well, we don’t got much but it’s right over there.” she said, pointing behind the counter. Cooler’s lined three of the four walls and was stacked high with cans and bottles of beer. Along the forth wall on the left sat the long counter which protected the hard liquor from light-fingered customers, mostly bourbons, vodkas and some rum. Next to that was one small shelf with a dozen bottles of red and a dozen or so bottles of white wine. Ed raised his eyebrows at the lean selection. As Ed moved closer to the shelf to see what was on offer the storekeeper made her way round to the other side of the counter, flipping up a wooden flap at the end and squeezing in sideways through the gap. “We don’t get much call for wine,” she said apologetically. “The main grocery store has more if you don’t see nothin’ you like.” she added helpfully. Ed was not completely oblivious to overt signs from women on the rare occasions someone liked the look of him and Tash seemed to like what she saw regardless of the scratches on his face. She leaned over the counter casually with a coy smile on her bright red lips, offering Ed a glimpse of what he imagined the Grand Canyon would look like from a helicopter. “But let me know if you see anything you like”. Clearing his throat, he quickly pulled his gaze away from Tash’s seemingly bottomless cleavage and studied the few bottles of wine with keener int
erest than was required. Ed liked wine but rarely had the occasion to drink it but tonight he wanted to make a good impression, but not with Tash. He was hoping there would be at least one bottle from France but it took him seconds to see it was all American or Chilean. He glanced over the bottles again and recognised one of the Californian labels with that year’s vintage that he knew tasted good. “Oh, can I have that one please, the Cabernet with the picture of the river on it? He was pleased that he had found something palatable in the store and she seemed pleased that it was there. “For sure!” she replied happily as she straightened herself up again, “I just love the picture on that label!” she exclaimed. She deftly took the bottle from the shelf and wrapped it up in beige tissue paper then placed it in a single bottle brown paper bag. As she rang up the bill on her till she looked Ed directly in the eyes and with a theatrical wink asked “Anything else you need?” Ed quickly reached into his back pocket and withdrew a twenty from his wallet. “No, that’s all, thank you…err…. Tash.” he said, glancing at her right breast for her name. She took the note and handed him back his change, lingering as she poured the few coins back into his palm. “If you find you need anything else I’m here til late”. Ed nodded and quickly made for the door, jingling the bell above. As the door closed itself behind him he stopped on the sidewalk and took a deep breath. With a wry smile he thought to himself ‘That was close!’ Back in his car, he placed the wine safely in the foot well among some trash that he promised himself he would clean out in the morning, started the engine, let the cool air wash over him then put it in gear and headed back to his room.
Ed parked in the same slot as before in front of the door marked 14. He was still amused by the encounter with Tash but as he unlocked his motel room and opened the door he looked up at the air-con unit and the smile slid from his face. The room was hot but he wasn’t tempted to turn on the unit. During the day he had tried to make the link between the noises he was hearing and the sudden attacks that followed. It didn’t help him understand why he was getting the headaches or the dreams if that was what they were, but the noises were all quite similar. The static on his radio, the air-con unit and the kid’s noisy cycle all sounded similar. That seemed to be the common denominator, the noise, but he couldn’t be sure. It was a noise that reminded him of a different time in his life, a sound from way back, walking through the jungles of Vietnam, the noisy chirp of chit-chats, the crickets, a constant companion, day or night. He walked to the bathroom to splash some cold water on his face and through his hair. For the first time, he had a chance to take a close look at the scares on his face. He knew damn well where he had got them, walking through the pine forest in his dream, but he didn’t want to dwell on that fact for too long. He glanced behind him, back into the room. Something didn’t seem right. He turned and looked more intently around his room. Everything seemed in its place, just where he left it, or was it? Probably house-keeping had been in, but the bed looked made, but as he had made it that morning. What was it? There was something. He looked at the doll sitting by the alarm clock. The doll was in the same place, but he was sure that when he had left her this morning the doll’s arms had been crossed, the way he always left her. Now they were lying by her side. A curious house-maid? Something told him it was unlikely, so who had been rummaging through his room? He walked over to the trash bin. The burger , wrappings and coffee cup from last night had been removed so someone had been in here. They wouldn’t have found the handgun as he had taken it with him in his car; it was in his glove box right now. He opened the draw to the bedside cabinet, the newspaper report about the missing girl was gone, and only the traveller’s bible remained. The proprietor of the motel, Sam Ryan was the obvious suspect, or maybe even Sheriff Rosen, but why? Well, there was nothing he could do about it now. Just time for a shower, change, and then head over to the library. If he was lucky, he might even have time to drop some clothes off at the nearest laundromat.
Wearing his one and only pair of jeans and yet another polo shirt, he slid behind the wheel of his car, dumping a small plastic bag of dirty washing on the passenger seat. He backed out of the slot and headed the short distance towards the town square. He spied an open laundromat that offered service washes a block short of the main square and parked right outside. Huge cream-colored washing machines ran down one side of the laundromat while dryers ran down the other. Just two of the six washers were spinning around churning up suds. The fluorescent strip lights bounced their off-white light from the chrome doors of the giant appliances. At the far end of the shop a slim girl with short bobbed light-brown hair was reading a book with one hand while shoving wet bed sheets into a huge tumble dryer. She seemed oblivious to Ed’s presence, he coughed gently but she still almost jumped out of her skin when she finally noticed him. As she turned he could see she wore a fitted T-shirt that proudly announced I AM A NERD across the chest.
“Oh my gosh, you scared me!”
“Errr, sorry, didn’t mean too,” he offered his most disarming smile. The girl seemed to relax a little. He extended his arm to show the girl the bag of washing.
“I was wondering if you could do a service wash for me please?”
“Oh, for sure, no problem, do you want it just washed or pressed too?”
“Pressed as well please if you don’t mind, thanks.” She stopped what she was doing and took the bag from his hand. After dumping his clothes into a plastic basket and counting the items she handed him a ticket.
“I’m working late tonight so I’ll do them now, have them ready for you for the morning okay?”
“Yes, that’s great thank you. What time do you open?”
“I’ll be in for 8.30.”
“That’s perfect, thanks…err?”
“I’m Molly.”
“Great, thanks Molly, see you in the morning. Oh, what’s the book?”
“Oh it’s a self-improvement book; I am doing a course on psychology at college.” Impressed at her enthusiasm for her job and life in general he offered her his biggest smile again and then turned and headed back to his car.
A quick glance at his watch told Ed that he still had time to kill so he carried on with his ‘to do’ list. The gas station where Buster worked was closed up tight, the lights all off. He carried on and turned left at the intersection onto Main Street. He drove straight passed the right turn for Memorial Square and went on another block to where a neon light beamed brightly from the drug store. There was little traffic but he signalled right and pulled in directly outside the store. An elderly couple were in deep conversation with the similarly aged woman behind the glass-topped counter as the door closed behind him. They all stopped speaking mid-sentence and stared at him with undisguised curiosity. Ed felt like he had just walked into a wild-west saloon where the piano player stopped playing and the barman started moving bottles of liquor quickly under the counter. As a travelling salesman this was not the first time he had come across this situation, and each time he felt like saying ‘Howdy folks’ in his best Clint Eastwood voice. Instead, he waited to be served. The old couple shuffled up a little and the old lady behind the register enquired “Yes, can I help you dear?” He stepped up to the counter and looked down towards the woman’s well-coiffed grey hair.
“Yes, could you give me something for headaches please?” She reached behind her for a box of generic painkillers.
“Will there be anything else?”
Ed shook his head.
“That’ll be three dollars and fifty cents then, thank you”.
Ed handed over the exact amount, picked up the box and headed for the door. He gave a nonchalant nod to the elderly couple as he passed them and wasn’t surprised to hear their voices before the door closed on his departure.
“That’s definitely him, the man Mr Ryan told me about….”
The elderly ladies went back to their gossiping as he climbed in his car. News certainly travels fast around these part
s he thought. A very different welcome from the one he had received from Tash earlier in the liquor store. He turned the key in the ignition, fired up the car and selected drive. When he had checked the road was clear he did a quick U-turn across the Main Street and headed back to the library.
He arrived a little before six so he did a K turn and parked in the same spot that he had that morning, next to the Burgundy and rust Nissan, and went inside. He never noticed the pick-up truck with dark tinted windows parked on the other side of the square, with a lone man watching intently as Ed made his way into the library. “Quite a bookworm aren’t you Mr Saunders?” the driver said to himself, “you keep on digging and I’m gonna have to whup ya like you was a redheaded stepchild.”
Linda and Ed came out together at five after six. Ed felt that since he had arrived Linda had been staring at his face, not his features so much but the cuts and grazes on it, but he had said nothing and let it go. They walked towards the Nissan.
“Is this yours?” he asked. She nodded a yes. “You sure that thing’s gonna get you home?” he asked teasingly, looking at what remained of the wafer-thin metal.
“Hey, don’t knock it, I know she’s not pretty but she’s never let me down yet” replied Linda as she gently patted the car on the hood, a pretend hurt look on her face.
“Okay, but I think I’ll keep my distance when I’m behind you, just in case something falls off!”
She gave him a withering look then unlocked the door. As a habit, she had kept the windows slightly open all day but a wave of dry heat still escaped past her. She slipped behind the wheel and started the engine as he got into his car. A thick blue cloud of smoke belched from her muffler pipe as the engine turned over slowly then finally fired. Her Nissan’s air-conditioning unit had stopped working over a year ago but she hadn’t gotten around to getting it fixed yet so she simply wound down the windows more. She did plug the dash-mounted fan into the cigar lighter but that just pushed hot air around the cabin. She was sure it did nothing on a practical level but psychologically, she felt cooler with it on. She clipped her seat belt on then checked her rear-view mirror. Ed was smiling right back at her. It was a nice, warm, genuine smile with just a hint of mischief in there somewhere. She pulled away from the sidewalk up to the stop line at the intersection, indicated left and turned towards home. Ed turned the radio off, just in case, but with the heat of the day still present he kept the air-con on. He followed Linda left on to Main Street then left again at the big intersection on to Homestead Road. A few seconds later the pick-up trucks engine burst into life and pulled away too, slower than the other two cars. It too turned left onto main. It stayed a long way behind them until the driver was sure they were both headed for the stuck-up librarian’s place then he eased off some more and pulled over. He knew where just about everybody in town lived, he made it his job to know.