Ian

by Denise Irwin

  “Mr. Marksman, my name is Marsha Phillips, I was one of the judges for the agility completion that you attended in mid-October. I promised to call you if a children’s class opens. We are going to train at the Perry Hall Middle school for three consecutive Sundays, starting with December 1. The class time is 2:00 in the afternoon. Are you still interested?”

  “Yes ma’am, I sure am.”

  “I’m glad to hear that. I’ll send you two registration forms. Just fill them out and send them back to me.”

  “Will do, Thank you for calling.”

  “Sam, was that the judge from the agility completion?”

  “Yes ma’am it was. Her name is Marsha Phillips and she’s going to send me registration forms for Molly and Jack. Her class starts on December 1 and runs for three consecutive Sundays at 2:00 in the afternoon.”

  “Oh my word, the kids are gonna love hearing that.”

  When Molly and Jack entered the house, they went straight upstairs to change their clothes. They were chattering about another student when they sat at the table to eat their after school snack. When they finished their snack, they went upstairs to do their homework.

  Sam went to the bottom of the staircase and called up the steps, “I need the two you to come down to this kitchen as in right now.”

  Jack said, “We’re doing our homework, so can whatever you need wait until we’re done?”

  “No, it cannot.”

  They met in the hall where Molly asked, “Jack, did we do something wrong?”

  “I don’t know, but it sure sounds like it.”

  They both looked terrified when the entered the kitchen, Molly clung to her brother’s arm. Sam told them, “I want you both to sit at the table.” They sat in their chairs and looked at their father. “Neither of you greeted your mother or me when you came home from school. Neither of you thanked your mother for fixing your after school snacks. I believe that you both need to apologize to your mother.”

  Jack went first, “Mom, I’m sorry and what Dad just said makes me feel really bad.”

  Leona said, “Thank you.”

  Molly said, “I want to say what Jack said.”

  Dad told her, “Molly that doesn’t work. You have to speak for yourself and not ask your brother to speak for you.”

  “Okay Dad. Mom, I am really sorry that I didn’t greet you when I came home from school. I’m also sorry that I didn’t thank you for making the afternoon snacks.”

  “Thank you.”

  They started to leave the table, so Sam said, “The two of you need to stay seated at the table. Your mother has something to tell you.”

  Molly was terrified that she would have to sit in the bad chair for the rest of the week.

  Leona said, “There is a children’s dog agility class starting in December. Your dad has ordered the registration forms to fill out and send back.”

  There wasn’t a single word from either of her children and that was more than strange, especially for Molly.

  Sam broke the silence by asking, “Aren’t either of you excited about that?”

  Molly spoke first, “It really is exciting, but can we still go since we’ve been so bad?”

  Leona looked at her husband as if to say, ‘You created this mess and you gotta get out of it on your own’.

  “Molly you both apologized to your mother and I’m sure that you learned a valuable lesson about respect, so there’s no reason for me not to let you attend the class.”

  “Thanks Dad, can Jack and I go do our homework now?”

  “Yes, bring it to me when you’re done and I’ll review it.”

  Molly and Jack ran up the steps to do homework.

  Leona reached across the table and took her husband’s hand, “Thank you Sam.”

  After dinner, Molly and Jack asked to be excused from the table. When Leona said that they could Molly said, “Thanks Mom that was a really good dinner.”

  Jack said, “It was really good.”

  After they left the kitchen, Leona chuckled and then said, “I’m not sure if I can handle all this adulation.”

  “Take it while you can.”

  <>

  Ian arrived at Pickles on the early side. He ordered a salad and a glass of iced tea. When Bob brought him the tea, Ian tells him, “I have a coffee date with Ellie tomorrow night.”

  “Ian, that’s great, you worked up the nerve to ask her out. Where are you going?”

  “I do not know since I told her she could pick the place.”

  “Great idea. Chicks really like being asked to pick.”

  With a concerned voice, Ian asked, “Bob are you comparing Ellie to a chicken?”

  “Oh hell Ian, I forget that you are new to the culture. When I said ‘chicks’, I was referring to women, not chickens.”

  “Oh, I see. Thank you for clearing that up for me.”

  “Not a problem, if you need help with the American language, just come to me and I’ll translate it for you.”

  Ian paid his dinner tab and went into the kitchen to see what he had to work with. All of the trash cans were full, but the prep cooks had tied them up, making it easier to just grab the bags and walk them to the dumpster. He whistled a tune as he put new liners in the cans and then took the full bags out to the dumpster. One of the prep cooks asked him, “Why are you so happy tonight?”

  “Pedro, I am always happy.”

  “Not like tonight.”

  Ian didn’t leave Pickles until well after 3:00 Thursday morning. He walked home and went to bed excited about his coffee date with Ellie.

  <>

  While eating breakfast on Thursday morning, Leona asked her children, “Since its Halloween, do you want to wear your costumes to school?”

  Molly asked, “Can we do that?”

  “I don’t see why not. I’m sure that there will be a number of students dressed in costumes.”

  When they finished breakfast, they both came back into the kitchen to ask Mom what she thought.

  “I think that the two of you look like swash buckles.”

  Molly asked, “Is that good?”

  “Yes it is.”

  Leona did some house chores and woke her husband for lunch. “I hope that the other children like Molly and Jack’s costumes.”

  “What happens if the other kids don’t?”

  “It’ll upset our children.”

  He didn’t bother to tell his wife that as their children grow older, there will be many disappoints that they’ll face. “I guess that we’ll have to wait and see.”

  After lunch, Leona attacked the bathrooms. She did housework until she heard the front open and heard her daughter screaming, “Mom, where are you?” Leona was not about to scream to her daughter. She went down the steps to find her daughter doing the little wiggle dance. “Molly, go into the bathroom and I’ll meet you in the kitchen.”

  Jack was already changed and sitting at the table. He said, “Hi Mom, how’s your day going?”

  “It’s going really well. How’s your day going?”

  “It’s also going really well.”

  Leona had no idea what all this ‘how is your day going?’ was all about until her daughter came into the kitchen.

  “Jack, you didn’t tell Mom yet did you?”

  “No, I did not.”

  “Are you sure that you didn’t?”

  “Yes Molly, I’m sure that I didn’t.”

  Leona asked, “Just what are the two of you talking about?”

  Jack said, “Molly tell Mom.”

  “Okay Jack. Mom, Jack and I won a prize for our costumes.”

  “You won a prize? I think that’s great.”

  Sam came into the kitchen. He’d overheard the conversation with their mother, so he said, “Congratulations. What is the prize?”

  Molly told him, “It’s a coupon for the game place we like. It’s the one right next door to the pizza restaurant.”

  “Then I guess I know where we’re going for dinner. Do either
of you have homework?”

  Both nodded their heads. “Go do your homework and then we’ll leave for the game arcade that’s right next to the pizza restaurant.”

  <>

  Ian was excited about having coffee with Ellie this evening. He went out for long walks, had lunch at the café and walked again. It was a beautiful October day and he was enjoying the less humid weather.

  He went back to his apartment and took a nap to while away some time.

  <>

  In the Arcade, Leona said, “Sam, just watch how many quarters you dole out to your daughter. She’ll break the bank.”

  “I was planning to see if I can find something that interests her other than the claw machine.”

  “Good luck with that.”

  “Molly, let me show you how to play the pin ball game.”

  “Dad, I want to try to get a stuffed animal.”

  “Well, you can play that later, but I’d really like to show you the pin ball game.”

  A pouting Molly followed Sam to the pin ball machine and Leona was shocked to see that her daughter liked it.

  They played in the arcade for about an hour and it was now time to go to the pizza joint next door. Sam placed their pizza order and then asked his daughter, “Molly, what did you think about the pin ball machine?”

  “At first, I didn’t think that I would like it, but after I played it, I really thought it was fun.”

  “Well then, Miss Molly by Golly, I’m sure glad to hear that.”

  <>

  Ian was so anxious about having coffee with Ellie that he left early. He walked up and down streets to take up the time until he could meet her. His palms were sweaty and his stomach was doing flip flops. He checked the time on his cell phone every five minutes. He tried to mentally calm down, but he’d never been out with an American girl and didn’t how to behave. It was finally time to meet her and he thought that his legs might buckle depositing him to the ground.

  His nervousness dissipated like the sun burning off the morning mist when he walked into the lobby to find her smiling at him. “Good evening Ellie, how was your day?”

  “It was good, busy with new patients, but really good. Tell me about your day.”

  “I will after you tell me where we’re going.”

  She laughed and then said, “There’s a great coffee shop on Pratt Street. The name is Peace and a Cup of Joe.”

  “That is an odd name.”

  “It is, but the shop has great coffee and pastries. I think that you’ll enjoy it.”

  Ian held the door open for Ellie to enter the shop; he then followed her in. He asked the hostess, “Is there a table for two along the windows?”

  “Yes sir there is. Follow me.”

  Ian looked at the table and thought, this is exactly what I have in mind. The lighting in the shop was low and there was low jazz music coming through the speakers. The hostess told them, “Ken will be here in just a moment for your orders.”

  While they waited for Ken, Ian asked, “Do you come here often?”

  “Yes I do. It’s a great place to study, so I come here more often during the school semester. Now, I have to ask you, what do you think of Baltimore?”

  Ken appeared and told them, “We have a variety of coffees for you to choose from…”

  Ellie interrupted him and ordered two cups of Kona.

  “Ian, please continue with your impression of Baltimore.”

  “I was not sure what to expect, but I was intrigued with the history and the culture. I am sure that like many cities and towns, it has its darker side, but I have not seen anything like that.”

  “Tell me about Stonehaven.”

  “Well the residents call it a town, but I liken it to a village. Everyone knows everyone, so there is no way to keep a secret. It was a wonderful place to grow up and I am looking forward to becoming a physician and returning to my home and put out a shingle. Old Doc Balderston is getting up in age and it is likely that I will replace him. Now, it is your turn. I know that you are majoring in medicine, but are you looking into a specialty?”

  “Yes I am. I’m planning to focus in pediatrics. I love children and hope that I’ll become a good doctor.”

  “In just the short time that I have known you, I think that you will be a great pediatric doctor. Where did you grow up?”

  “I grew up in Towson. I have three brothers who are all older than me, so I was a tomboy growing up. My decision to become a pediatric doctor stemmed from my neighbor. She and I were very close as children and when she died of heart failure, I knew that I wanted to be a pediatrician.”

  Ian was enjoying have coffee and hoped that she did as well. They talked for several hours about their views on politics, books, movies and music. It was getting late, so Ian paid the bill and walked her home. It was a short walk, so when they reached her apartment building, she told him, “Ian, I really enjoyed this.”

  “I did as well. Maybe we can do it again?”

  “I sure hope so. I’ll see you Tuesday at the volunteer center.”

  He whistled a tune as he walked back to his apartment. He didn’t see the man who walked up behind him and grabbed him as he said in a low gravelly voice, “Keep your dirty hands off my girlfriend.”

  Ian was about to respond when the ogre covered his head with a pillow case and shoved him into the floor behind the driver’s back seat of his truck. The truck started to move forward, but Ian had no way of knowing where it was going. If he got out of this truck he would ask Ellie if she had a boyfriend.

  The truck stopped and the monster opened the door to grab Ian and to get him out. “Get the fuck out of my truck.” Ian got out of the truck and his assailant pulled the pillow case off. Ian never saw the knife coming for his throat. He felt what seemed like water, but was sure that it was his blood. He felt the cold water surround him and then the world then went black.

  <>

  During breakfast Friday morning Jack asked, “Mom, can you put the training dates on the calendar?

  “I did that already.”

  “Thanks Mom. Molly and I really appreciate it.”

  They were happy children when they left for school. “Lee, can we just sit and have another cup of coffee before you rush off to do whatever it is that you.”

  She wanted to make a snide remark, but he knew what she did all day, so she said, “I would really like that.”

  She poured two fresh cups of coffees and sat at the table with her husband. She waited for him to open the conversation. He finally said, “I know that we just finished a pretty rough case, and that a new case will come along shortly. At least I hope one will. Don’t get me wrong, I love being at home with my family, but it feels wrong to me. Am I making any sense?”

  “Yes you are. You just wrapped up the Brennan case; however, you’ve done back to back cases for so long that you don’t know how to relax. We’ve been married long enough that I know that phone’s gonna ring with a new case.”

  “Is this really the wrong thing to say?”

  “Sam, I don’t it’s wrong to say that. You like to work. You also like to work on cases that interest you and that sometimes means that you have to sit tight until one pops up.”

  During dinner, Jack said, “My history teacher was really impressed with my essay on the book you gave me about Alcatraz.”

  Sam said, “Is that right? In that case, I’m really happy that we bought it for you.”

  “Me too Dad.”

  <>

  Bob was surprised when Ian didn’t come in for dinner before starting his shift. He was concerned when he didn’t show up to take his shift. He went into the kitchen and told the staff, “Ian hasn’t reported to work this evening which means that we’re all going to need to cover the garbage. Send someone out to the bar if you need my help.” He saw the look of concern on their faces as he left the kitchen. Like him, they knew that Ian never missed a night of work. Bob would give him a second chance, but if he doesn’t report for work on Wednes
day, he may need to fire him. He didn’t want to, but if he didn’t, he would look bad to the rest of his staff.

  He managed the bar as well as the kitchen trash. Hell, he thought because he did double duty when he bought the place, so he did double duty tonight.

  <>

  It started to rain hard on Saturday. Sam put the coffee on, fed and walked the dog. By the time he and Vinny returned to the house, they were both soaked. Leona grabbed towels for both of them. As she handed him a cup of coffee he said, “I think that it’s been a long time since I’ve seen it rain that hard.”

  “While you were out, I turned the news on and according to the weatherman, this is just the start of this system. He said that there could be some flooding in the low areas and suggested that folks stay indoors.”

  “Well, other than taking the dog out, I have no plans to go out in that rain.”

  Leona picked up the phone and called her mother. “Hey Ma, wanna get together for a flood watch party?”

  “Are you serious?”

  “Yes I am. Think of it as a hurricane party.”

  “Okay count Bill and me in. Do you need us to bring anything?”

  “Not that I can think of.”

  <>

  Ellie thought it was strange that Ian hadn’t called since he seemed to have had a good time over coffee with her. She told herself that he was just probably busy and would call just as soon as he was free. The rain kept her in her apartment. Her phone rang and she nearly lunged for it. The call was from her mother, “Ellie, how are you doing with all this rain?”

  “Okay, I’m gonna read a new book that I bought the other day.”

  “Do you want to come and stay with us at the house?”

  “Thanks for the offer, but I think that I’ll just stay put until it stops raining.”

  She did not tell her mother about coffee with Ian because she wasn’t interested in the interrogation she would have to endure from her mother.

  <>

  Bob looked out the window of his apartment to watch the rain. He dialed Ian’s number and when Ian didn’t answer, he left a message.

  His phone rang about ten minutes later and when he reached for it, it hoped that it was Ian. He didn’t recognize the number but something told him to answer it. A woman said, “I’d like to speak with Mr. Keane.”