* * *
Two days went by before any news came about Clyde and Shirley. Clyde transferred to the Atlanta office. No one knew whether it was required or requested. Shirley's husband was still incarcerated and Shirley would be taking a leave of absence to recuperate. The new manager would be hiring a temp when he arrived.
Elaine knew that she missed a bullet this time. She found it hard to believe that she could get herself into so much trouble without trying.
Spiraling Secrets
The three related families the Sharptons, the Stones and the Simpsons, lived within a four-mile radius of each other in the community of Richmond Heights. Once when the children were small the families gathered for a picnic at the local community park. It was a disaster. The men drank too much beer, one mothers an independent thinker, and other believed the world was square. None of the cousins got along. It was as if the three families all came from different planets. Sisters Rose and Caroline got along the best. Their husbands Henry and Seth found common bonds and got along for their wives.
Caroline loved to cook and Rose did not. On Saturday night, Brittany and her family would meet and have dinner with Uncle Ed and Aunt Caroline. Brittany came of an age where she no longer could endure this tradition and rebelled.
"Mom I'm 14-years-old. I'm old enough to stay by myself for the evening." Brittany lamented.
"Well, I don't like it. Henry, do something." Mrs. Sharpton was getting the younger daughter Jessica ready to leave the house. She knew she couldn't win the argument without her husband's support. . Brittany could get anything she wanted from Henry, especially when she smiled, batted her eyes and kissed his cheek.
"Rose, dear, Brittany's right. She babysits and there are no adults in the house. We are only going across town to your sister's house. We could be home in ten minutes if she needed us." Brittany being the favorite of her father's two daughters. Brittany was the pretty one. Brittany was the smart one. Unfortunately, for her younger sister Jessica, Brittany was the only child they wanted. Jessica was an accident and at the tender age of six, she had experienced this fact more than once if only in innuendoes.
"Mom, as long as Trevor is there, I refuse to attend another Saturday night dinner ritual you guys seem to crave. I can tolerate Aunt Caroline and Uncle Seth, but their son is a troll from my worst nightmare."
"Well, okay. I'll leave my iPhone here and we will take your dad's. If there is the least bit of trouble, this is the button you need to push for 911 and this one to call us, in that order." Being overprotective, she put the phone on the coffee table.
"Mom, I'm not a child. Trust me. I have my report to work on so the peace and quiet will be a welcome change. Nothing exciting ever happens in this town, anyways."
"Yeah, that's what they all say. However, things do happen. I'm still not convinced it's safe. I've heard from Ethel down at the beauty salon that there are a lot of home invasions lately."
"If that's settled, let's get going, or we will be late. My mouth is watering for that pot roast. We'll be home by 11:00pm. Your sister will probably be asleep long before then." Henry Sharpton was a true male specimen, preferring a good meat and potatoes dinner to vegetation any day.
The quiet, virtually crime free suburb of Richmond Heights developed after the war to accommodate the increasing blue-collar population. It ballooned over the years from a sleepy township to a bustling city and had the usual growing pains. "And don't forget to be sure the doors are locked at all times and check if anyone comes to the door before you open it." Rose interjected as she left the house.
"Yes mother." Brittany refrained from any sarcasm in her tone, to get them to leave without further instructions.
Brittany being an all ‘A' student, planned her work assignments ahead of time and hated waiting until the last minute. She had a science project on Florida sinkholes in the planning stages and wanted to do some Internet research in peace. It was October and she expected her own phone for Christmas because of her good grades. All her friends had them and she couldn't wait for her's.
She curled up crossed legged on the huge overstuffed couch in the living room with her iPod set to her favorite playlist and her laptop secured on her lap, a huge bowl of freshly popped popcorn set to her left and a large soda on the end table to her right, ready for a full night of research.
Her search led her to sites on the web that were above her academic level and soon became drowsy and nodded off. A noise woke her and got her attention. Her iPod battery ran out of juice and her bladder announced its presence to her annoyance. She removed her ear buds and craned her neck. She thought she heard someone on the front porch. Then there was silence. The grandfather clock in the dining room chimed 10:00 o'clock.
"Wow, I‘ve been out for awhile. I think I'll watch a movie; after I take a quick trip to the john." She spoke aloud to no one. She closed her laptop and started down the hall to the bathroom. After relieving herself, she headed back down the hall towards the living room when she heard the breaking glass. She stopped short in her steps and stood planted to the floor.
Two males; both dressed in dark clothes appeared in her sight, one holding what appeared as a gun. She could only see them from a profile. They had on watch caps and blackened faces. She felt the sensation that she knew the taller one, but that wasn't possible. They hadn't seen her yet. She tucked her body flat against the hall wall while they ransacked the living room. The heavier of the two grabbed her mother's iPhone off the coffee table and stuck it in his back pocket. He looked mean and scary with tattooed arms and an angry scar on his neck.
Seeing Brittany's snacks, the fat one said to the tall one: "It looks like someone might be home. You'd better check."
She found herself cut off with no retreat. The windows in the house had burglar locks and she knew she couldn't escape that way. The only thing she could do was to hide in the hall closet. They still had their backs to her and did not see her next move.
"Man, we got to pick a different area of town next time. These people ain't got nothing. Let's check the bedrooms and then get out of here before someone comes home." The tall thin one said.
Brittany opened the hall closet door slightly, there was little room inside to spare. Barely having time to squeeze in between the golf bag and the skateboard before she heard them talking as they came down the hall toward the bedrooms. There was no room to stretch or shift. She was afraid to breathe too deep or the skateboard would topple and give her away. The pain in her side from the handle of the vacuum increased as it shifted towards her. The voices were still within her hearing range. She still thought she recognized one of the voices
Brittany heard her mother's cell phone ring. If it is mother, she expects me to answer, Brittany thought. It stopped after four rings.
"That might be the homeowners. We'd better hurry." The tall thief exclaimed as he continued his pursuit of ill-gotten booty.
When Brittany chose her hiding place, she tucked her foot in such a way it twisted unnaturally and let her know it didn't like it. She hugged the golf bag to give her arms somewhere to rest. The voices were getting closer and she could now make out their conversation.
"What a waste. I told you we should have gone across town to the Bradford."
"Next time, let's get out of here. It ain't much, but it's enough"
"Wait, we missed a door." She got that feeling again that the voice she heard speak sounded familiar.
Brittany's eyes became accustomed to the dark. She heard their words and knew they were outside her airless cave. Her heart throbbed inside her body, pounding to get out. The door swung open, a large shadow loomed in front of her. She stared at him as the tears in her eyes blurred her vision. Time stood still, neither spoke. Her parched throat made her choke and she forgot to breathe. Not more than six inches from her teary face stood her pitiful cousin Jack. His gloved hand grabbed her throat, cutting off most of her air supply. He kept it there long enough for her eyes to widen
like saucers and gasp for air. He released his grasp enough to be sure she did not pass out. She choked and her chest heaved. She fought the urge to throw up.
In a whisper so the other thief could not hear, he said "Now you listen good, you little brat. You so much as breathe a word to anyone that you saw me; I will personally come back, slit your throat, and then pull out the heart of that monkey sister of yours. Got it?" Brittany shook her head.
"Good, cause this ain't kid stuff. So keep your mouth shut and there won't be any trouble." Jack spent time in juvenile detention and dropped out of school the day he turned sixteen. Brittany had no reason to doubt Jack's sincerity. He had nothing to lose.
"Same old trash in here. Chalk this one up as a learning experiment." Jack said as he turned away.
"I thought you said you knew this family."
"I do. Thought we might pick up a few bucks along with teaching them a lesson. Bunch of goody two-shoes live here. Come on, let's split."
The door closed and the voices became muffled again, then Brittany couldn't hear a thing. She hugged the golf club bag tighter while waiting her tenuous fate. The darkness pounded through her brain and the moldy smell of old gym shoes nauseated her stomach. Her arms tingled with needles as her body contorted in place. The silence penetrated her body and her head throbbed. Tears rolled down her cheeks and the salty taste reached her lips reminding her of one of her favorite thing, a day at the beach. She wondered if she would ever see the sandy beaches again or her family. As much as she disliked her cousin Trevor, right now even he would be a shining light. Then her consciousness slipped away.
The Cat's Dowry and Other Short Stories Page 14