Jailbird

by Heather Huffman

  “Well, what am I supposed to think?” His voice was nearing a shout.

  “He’s not my boyfriend and I’m not conning you,” my shoulders dropped. He had a point, what was he supposed to think? “He’s my brother.”

  “Right. You’re brother,” this time he snorted.

  “I promised Isabel we’d have dinner with her. Can we finish this fight later?”

  “No need. I think we’re done now.”

  “We are not finished here.”

  “You can’t force me to fight with you.”

  “But I can ask you to listen to me,” I pointed out.

  “Why? So you can lie to me some more?”

  “You know… I’ve actually been pretty damned honest with you.”

  “Would you please stop swearing like a sailor?”

  “Well I have… you know what? This is getting us nowhere. Can we please go to dinner? Then I have one place I want you to take me. After that, if you still say we’re done, then we’re done.”

  “Fine. Fine... fine.”

  “Fine.”

  I stormed out the door with him right behind me. It was a frigid ride to the Torres house. I didn’t stop to answer Anjelita’s questioning gaze. I was afraid the tears would burst past the newly opened dam again. Alone in the bathroom, I splashed some cold water on my face. I stared at my reflection in the mirror. I already looked more human than I had just the week before. My face was less sunken, my cheeks less sallow. I looked almost… soft. Feminine.

  I stared at the woman in the mirror and admitted to myself that I was afraid I’d lose Charlie even before I had a chance to sort out what I was feeling for him. The fact that I was afraid worried me even more. What happened to my priorities?

  With a deep sigh, I left the bathroom before anyone came to find me. I stopped short when I realized Charlie was talking to Anjelita about me.

  “If you could have seen the way she looked at this guy…” his voice was ragged. Without his anger to fuel my own, my heart went out to him. I had hurt him. Four days and I’d hurt him already. What was it with me?

  “Was it Conrad?” Isabel’s pretty voice broke into their conversation.

  “Who’s Conrad?” It was obvious she had the adults’ attention now. I smiled a little and walked into the kitchen. Isabel looked at me, her eyes obviously asking permission to tell them.

  “It’s okay sweetie, it’s not a secret,” I assured her.

  “He’s Miss Neena’s brother,” she announced, very proud to know something the adults didn’t. Relief washed over Charlie’s expression, only to be instantly replaced by distrust.

  Anjelita’s face lit up. “Is your brother in town?”

  “He is,” I met her smile. “He wants to meet everyone, but had some business to take care of this evening. Hopefully he can have dinner with us tomorrow.”

  “Oh, I hope so. I’d love to meet him.”

  “I’d like that, too,” and surprisingly enough, I meant that. It would assuredly complicate matters, but I did want him to meet my friends.

  Manny came in, still sweating from a day spent in his workshop, wrapping Anjelita in a big, stinky hug. She squealed and shoved him away. I giggled until I realized he was headed towards me. I shrieked and darted behind Charlie.

  “Don’t even think about hugging me, man,” Charlie warned, forgetting for a moment that he was angry with me.

  Anjelita laughed and called us to the table, explaining that Mamá Torres was at bingo so there was no point in waiting on her. After dinner, Manny gave us a tour of his workshop at Anjelita’s insistence.

  “This is amazing,” I ran my hands along a gleaming piece of woodwork. “I had no idea you could do this.”

  “Neither did I, and I’ve known you for years,” Charlie gave a low whistle as he knelt to inspect a coffee table.

  “We’ve been saving for the tools, and cutting the wood on our days off. I work in here when it rains, since we can’t work the fields anyway… it’s a slow process, but we’re getting there.”

  “Isn’t it amazing?” Anjelita’s eyes shone with pride.

  “He’s an artist,” I agreed. “Please let us know if we can do anything to help. I mean me. Let me know. Charlie can probably speak for himself. Damn... I mean dang. Sorry.”

  “I’d be happy to help, too,” Charlie offered, his lip twitching in amusement. “Now if you’ll excuse us, Neena has somewhere she wants me to take her still tonight, and I have an early day tomorrow.”

  “No dandelions?” I tried not to look hurt.

  “No dandelions,” he might have looked apologetic.

  “Will you be staying with your brother tonight?” Anjelita gave me a quick hug.

  “Probably,” truth was, I didn’t really know.

  I borrowed Anjelita’s phone to call Conrad’s cell to get his room number. The weight of Charlie’s gaze never left me. I tried to make small talk on the way to the town’s only motel. My attempts were met with stony silence. Apparently without the buffer of Anjelita and Manny Torres, he was still super ticked at me.

  There were so many words I wanted to say. But they were all stopped short by the knowledge that I hadn’t even known this man for a week. Even for the romantic girl I had been ten years ago, that wasn’t long enough to trust someone. For the woman I’d become, it was ludicrous to risk my life to reassure a man I didn’t know.

  So maybe it was something other than sanity that compelled me to walk around the car to Charlie’s door in the motel parking lot. Perhaps some grand puppeteer was at the strings when I opened his door, took him by the hand, and led him reluctantly to the door.

  One thing I hadn’t counted on was the look on Conrad’s face when he opened the door to his motel room. I almost took a step forward to place myself between him and Charlie. Instead, I took a deep breath and plunged ahead with introductions.

  “Conrad, this is Charlie. Charlie this is Conrad. Conrad, before we go any further, can you please tell Charlie the exact nature of our relationship?”

  “I’m her brother,” Conrad took a step towards Charlie, straightening to his full six-foot-four height. “What’s the exact nature of your relationship with her?”

  “That’s a very good question,” it was Charlie’s turn to scowl. “I’ll let you know if I figure it out.”

  “If you hurt her, they’ll never find all of the pieces of you,” Conrad growled low in his throat.

  “Is that really necessary?” I placed a hand on his chest and shoved him back into the room.

  “I can assure you I have absolutely no intention of hurting her,” Charlie moved in towards Conrad. I’m not sure if I attributed his actions to bravery or stupidity. Sometimes it was hard to tell the difference between the two. “In fact, I’d help her if she’d let me.”

  “Good luck with that,” Conrad snorted.

  “This is pleasant,” I folded my arms across my chest and looked from one to the other. “Should I excuse the two of you to step outside? Are you going to beat each other up or see who can pee farther?”

  “Don’t be so crass,” Conrad reprimanded.

  “Don’t be so bullheaded,” I snapped.

  “Okay. I believe he’s your brother.”

  “Fantastic.”

  “You didn’t believe I was her brother? Wait, I thought you weren’t going to tell anyone I was here.”

  “Well I wasn’t, but Charlie saw you drop me off and assumed we were lovers and I was a con artist.”

  “Why weren’t you going to tell us he was here?”

  “You thought my sister was a con artist?”

  “Because,” I answered Charlie then turned to Conrad, “Can you really blame him?”

  “Well that helps,” Charlie retorted sarcastically.

  “True. For all I know, you are a con artist. You haven’t exactly let me in on your life recently.”

  “I don’t think either of you are being very fair,” I frowned, sinking onto the bed. “And you’re giving me a headache.”
>
  We all stared at each other for several minutes, apparently at an impasse.

  “Okay, Charlie, I’m going to walk you back to your car now. Conrad and I really need to talk. It’s important. I know you said you’re busy tomorrow, but I’m sure we’ll figure out some time to discuss this. Conrad, I hope you can stay one more day. Someone really important to me really wants to meet you before you leave.”

  “So I’m being dismissed?” Charlie arched an eyebrow. There was a tinge of humor in his voice and I got the feeling he was a little relieved to be able to go sort it out in his head.

  “I am so confused,” Conrad shook his head and sank onto the other bed.

  “I get the impression that’s a constant state around her,” Charlie cut his eyes in my direction.

  “Funny. You’re very funny,” I grabbed his hand and tugged him towards the door.

  “And cute. Don’t forget that you think I’m cute.”

  “Adorable. Come on.” I tried to look serious, but he was right. I did think he was cute.

  We stopped by his car door and he pulled me into his arms, resting his forehead on mine.

  “I like you,” I reminded him. “Being with you terrifies me and I can’t tell you everything you want to know, but I like you.”

  “Knowing that you’re keeping something from me is driving me to distraction,” he informed her. “But I like you, too. It’s ridiculous how much.”

  “Good.” I kissed him so thoroughly that I hoped his toes curled. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  “Should you really have a boyfriend right now?” Conrad was waiting for me when I got back to his room.

  “Absolutely not. But I’m addicted to that man. He’s like crack.”

  “You’re on crack?” Worry creased his brow.

  “No, I mean… oh, never mind. Can we just leave it for now?”

  “Right. We have a lot to talk about.”

  “Right,” I didn’t relish the thought of reliving any of the last ten years. Well, right up until the last week. I was pretty much cherishing every moment of the last week.

  “Oh, but first… I have something for you,” Conrad starting pulling bags out from the far side of the bed.

  “What are these?”

  “Basics,” he smiled expectantly. “Come on, open them.”

  “You shouldn’t have,” I insisted as I opened the first bag. But I was forever grateful that he had. I held the pretty little pink pajamas up to my face. I couldn’t remember the last time something so new or so soft touched my skin. There was more. Shorts, t-shirts, tank tops, a pair of capris, a dress, panties, a bra, a brush, a toothbrush, deodorant and even some girly-smelling soap. “You have no idea how much a person can come to miss deodorant.”

  “I can imagine,” he chuckled. “You need enough clothes to be able to function, sweetie. You look like an orphaned waif.”

  “Until I stole a stranger’s clothes off the line, I was wandering the woods in my underwear,” I informed him. “I’m actually rather proud of how much I’ve accomplished with nothing.”

  “You’ve done very well,” he acknowledged. “But there’s nothing wrong with letting me help you.”

  “I can’t even begin to tell you how excited I am to put these pajamas on,” I admitted.

  “Then go get a long, hot bath and put your pajamas on,” he smiled. “There’s a razor and shaving cream in that bag over there if you want to shave your legs.”

  “Are you even male? How did you think of all of this?”

  “Hey, my world is centered on a pre-teen girl right now. As often as she asks when she can shave her legs, I know it must be important.”

  “She wants to shave her legs?” my brow furrowed.

  “Don’t worry, I haven’t let her. Still, she’s getting to an age where it’s becoming more and more awkward not having another woman in the house.”

  “I’m so sorry I thrust this on you,” I studied him. Had I kept him from finding a wife? Had he been too busy raising my daughter to have his own life?

  “I wouldn’t trade one minute with her,” he promised. “Well, except maybe the colic. That wasn’t fun. But the rest of the moments have been good ones.”

  I nodded and stood on tiptoe so I could kiss him on the cheek. He stooped over a bit so I could reach.

  I didn’t speak, I couldn’t. I was suddenly keenly aware of how many moments I had missed with her.

  I took my time in my bubble bath. I shaved my legs with great care—pleased I hadn’t forgotten how and surprised at how much I’d missed that silky smooth feeling of legs that were freshly shaved. The feel of my new pajamas against my clean skin was almost more wonderful than I could bear. It made Dixon Correctional and its itchy bedding seem like a bad dream. Places like that didn’t exist in a world that made pajamas like this.

  When I came out, Conrad was just saying his goodbyes to Gabrielle. From what I could hear of the conversation, the two were clearly crazy about each other. The image of Charlie and Cara staring at each other in mutual adoration came to mind. It made me happy to know Gabrielle had that, too. I wanted to ask about her. Wanted to, but didn’t. That was another door in my life that was closed. Peeking through the keyhole wasn’t going to do anyone any good.

  “Thank you,” I gave him another hug.

  “Call it ten years’ worth of Christmases. Tomorrow we’ll catch up on birthdays.”

  “I hate to tell you, I didn’t get you anything.”

  “You can catch me later,” he teased.

  “So I guess now is the part where I start talking, huh?”

  “That generally helps,” he nodded.

  This wasn’t going to be a fun conversation. Still, best to rip the Band-aide off and get it over with; I took a deep breath and plunged headfirst into the story of my nightmare.

  Chapter Eight

  Conrad sat in stony silence, his eyes never leaving mine, long after I finished my story. He seemed to be processing it all. As best I could tell anyway. I eventually got uncomfortable under the weight of his stare and crawled under the covers, figuring he’d talk when he was ready.

  Next thing I knew, the golden rays of dawn were streaming through the window. Conrad still sat in the chair facing me, only now he was snoring softly. I stretched lazily and relished the fact that I was in a real bed with real sheets and a real pillow. The last time I’d done that, Y2K was still looming on the horizon. My eyes had nearly closed again when I realized Conrad’s had opened.

  “Hey big brother,” I curled up with my pillow and regarded him.

  “Why didn’t you see me when I came to visit? Why didn’t you tell me what was going on?”

  “I told you,” I sighed heavily. “I didn’t want to bring the wrath of Daniel Winslow down on the entire tribe over me. He hated me. He still would if he knew I was alive. He’d have used every bit of his money to destroy everything our ancestors have spent generations building.”

  “But we would have stood with you to fight.”

  “It wasn’t your fight,” I sighed again. I seemed to be doing that a lot lately. “I was the one that got in that car.”

  “Exactly. You got in a car. You didn’t do anything wrong. You know you didn’t do anything wrong, right?”

  “Sure,” I flopped over on my back to stare at the ceiling. This conversation was seriously hampering my enjoyment of the morning.

  “So, what about this Charlie fellow?”

  “Fellow?”

  “Stop teasing me and answer the question.”

  “I don’t know. I mean, I know I should stay away from him. But I can’t seem to. When I’m with him, I just feel so… hopeful. Normal. I miss him when he’s not around. It’s the weirdest feeling.”

  “I like him.”

  “Could have fooled me.”

  “I’m your brother. It’s my job.”

  “Good to know.”

  “So, if you weren’t going to ask me for help, why now? Why did you call me now after all this time?”
/>
  “I do need your help; just not for me.”

  “How so?”

  “Remember last night, when I told you about Mary? Well, she’s all alone now that I’m gone. I want to know if she’s okay. Could you just go visit her? I don’t think anyone would think much of it if you went to visit her.”

  “You want me to visit your old cell mate?”

  “Just to be sure she’s okay.”

  “Why don’t you ask Charlie to do it?”

  “First of all, he doesn’t know I’m an escaped convict. That might put a damper on things. Second, why would Charlie say he’s gone to visit her? You have a reason to visit.”

  “Good point. Yeah, I’ll go visit her.”

  “Thank you,” I beamed at him. I’d worry later about what to do if the news he brought back wasn’t good.

  “On one condition,” he held up a hand.

  “What?” I asked warily.

  “You let me pay for this room for the rest of the month. And you promise to actually stay in touch this time. And you let me know if you need help.”

  “That’s three conditions.”

  “I mean it, Kali.”

  “Neena. My name is Neena here.”

  “Fine. Neena… but you have to forgive me if I slip up occasionally. It’s going to take a while to re-learn your name.”

  “Just try,” I sincerely hoped he could manage the correct name for one evening.

  “You should tell them.”

  “And risk it getting out? I’m not going back there.”

  “You can’t hide forever.”

  “But I can sure as hell try.”

  “It’s hard to build much of a life on the foundation of a lie.”

  I wanted to scowl at him, but I knew he was right. My stomach growled, effectively changing the topic of discussion.

  “Get dressed while I get my shower and I’ll feed you before we go work on your dandelions,” his face softened.

  “Really?” I hopped out of bed at the prospect. I’d missed him and the thought of spending a day in his company was exciting. It was pretty cool having to decide which clothes to wear that day. I settled on a pair of denim shorts and a yellow tank top that had frilled edges. I brushed my hair out then mussed it back up. He’d even brought me some pink lip gloss. I looked at my reflection in disbelief. The transformation made me realize just how bad I must have looked before. What on earth had Charlie seen in me? Had he been embarrassed to take me in public?