by Jamela
“I’m sure it will. You want me to stay and work at home next week don’t you?” He quietly says.
I look at him nodding my head astounded at how well he can read my mind. He hugs me and says it won’t be a problem. I kiss him and before I realize it, the kiss turns into more than a thank-you peck. It’s like I haven’t tasted him in decades and I’m starving. I can’t get enough of the taste of his mouth, morning breath and everything. At some point I open my eyes and I see reflected in his eyes that he is surprised. He is unsure of what is happening. I slowly pull away. He sits quietly. I look down and see the familiar bulge of his pajama pants. I’m a little ashamed of myself. I wasn’t thinking of having sex. I just wanted to give him a peck on the lips. I honestly don’t know what happened.
“Mommy, X pushed me!” Screams Eric. The spell between Ed and I is broken. I lightly pat his chest as I rise to find out what is going on with the boys. I check things out and play referee for a minute or two. Finally they are ready for school and Ed has breakfast ready and waiting for them in the kitchen. We get them off and I begin to clean the kitchen. Once I’m done, I decide I want some new curtains in the living room. I walk down to the basement, where my sewing room is located and pull out some fabric for drapes. After deciding on a piece of fabric, I choose a pattern. I have the door closed and I’m listening to music. Ed comes down the stairs and says, “Tasha, you have a phone call.” He looks so serious. I wanna ask what’s wrong, but decide not to. I walk up the stairs and pick up the receiver.
“Hello. This is Tasha. Oh yes Officer Woodson. That is wonderful news. Do we have to come down to the station to hear the results? Oh. Yes. I don’t understand. How could that be? No! Are there any other suspects? No. I can’t think of anything else. Yes. Thank you. I will call if I remember anything.” I say unsteadily. I plop down onto the nearest chair and begin to cry. Ed quietly comes over and puts his arms around me.
“I’m sorry, sweetheart. I thought we had him. But we’ll get him. I know we will.” He says rubbing my back to calm me down.
Suddenly I have an idea. “Ed, maybe if I go to the shop, I’ll remember something else. I mean maybe being in the surroundings will trigger something in my memory. Will you go with me?” I excitedly ask.
“Of course I’ll go with you. Besides, I don’t want you anywhere near that shop without me. The person could be watching to see if and when you return for all we know. And I don’t wanna give them another chance to hurt you. You just let me know when you are ready to go. I’ll be right there by your side.”
I pull away and go to our bedroom. I shower and dress in a pair of sweatpants and a big sweatshirt. I pull my hair into a ponytail. I don’t bother to put on any makeup. I walk back to Ed’s office where he is working. I announce that I am ready to go and we leave immediately. On the way over, there is no conversation in the car. I look at my hands over and over again and I can see them shaking. Ed notices too and grasps them in his to calm me. Once we get there, I mention to Ed that I don’t want to go through the back door. In fact, Ed, decides to park across the street and we enter the front door.
As we walk through the door, Sonny walks out of his office. Once he sees who it is, a big smile spreads across his face. For a minute, which seems like eternity, he doesn’t say anything. He just looks at me. Then he asks, “How are you doing? I’ve been worried about you.”
He keeps his distance from me. “I’m managing. I just wanted to come pick up my stuff before you gi….” I say.
Curtis walks out of Sonny’s office. He looks at me smiling. “Well, look who decided to visit.” He says walking out.
I look up at Ed. He looks down at me. “Ed, you already know Sonny. This is his old friend Curtis. Curtis, this is my husband, Ed.”
Curtis walks over to shake Ed’s hand. Ed brushes past him and guides me to a chair. “Honey, if you’ll tell me what you want to take with you, I can get it for you. Unless Sonny already has it packed up.” He says frowning.
“No. I don’t have anything packed up. In fact, I’m lost around here without Tasha. She was so organized that I can’t find anything. You go ahead and pack up the stuff. If you don’t mind, I’m gonna pick your wife’s brain so I’ll be able to run my own business.” Sonny says turning to me.
Ed looks at me for confirmation. I give it with a slight nod and give him a few instructions on what to get. Meanwhile Sonny asks me things about the filing system, what the last orders were that I placed and questions about the last pickups. I explain everything to him and even give him a few notes. During all of this Curtis is watching TV. Cops is on and apparently this is one of his favorites shows. He’s even talking to the television. I sort of tune him out. It doesn’t take Ed long to get the stuff I wanted. He never leaves me completely alone. He is right in Sonny’s office with the blinds opened and the door opened. He can hear everything being said. But I realize that I don’t feel comfortable. Ed walks over to me carrying a small box. I grab a hold of his arm and say a general goodbye. We leave, cross the street to the car and drive straight home. Again there is no conversation in the car. Not because I’m nervous. I am unnerved. On edge and nauseous.
Once in the house, I thank Ed and go back to the basement to finish my drapes. As I’m stitching them together, my mind begins to work. I have never felt that way around Sonny before. It must be because of the attack. No, that’s not all of it. It’s something else, but I can’t put my finger on it. Think Tasha. “What was it that made you nauseous?” I continue to sew and it hits me like a ton of bricks. I was fine until Curtis came out. He makes me nervous. Why would I feel that way about him? I must be imagining things. The doctor said I would look at everyday situations differently. This must be one of those things. I never felt that way before the attack and Curtis had been there several times.
I finished up my drapes after a couple of hours. I was so engrossed in what I was doing, I had worked right through lunch. When I finally looked at the clock, it was 1:30. I shut the sewing machine down, turned off my stereo and headed upstairs. Ed was still in his office working. I went in and apologized for forgetting lunch. I found out what he wanted and went into the kitchen to get things started. After a few minutes, Ed came in to watch. He often sat at the table watching me move about the kitchen. Suddenly he asked, “What put you on edge at Sonny’s?”
“I’m not sure. I was trying to figure that out when I was downstairs, but I couldn’t. I think it must be because of the attack. So, you noticed, huh?”
“Yeah. I couldn’t help but notice. Your whole facial expression changed and you grabbed my arm. Your body stiffened. That’s why I guided you to a chair. I was waiting on you to say let’s go, but you never did. So, I didn’t wanna say anything else, especially since it was your idea to go there in the first place. But, I will tell you this. I’m glad you aren’t working there anymore. Sonny is all right, but I don’t like the folks he has hanging around. Who is Curtis, a new partner?” Ed questions sarcastically.
“Nah. He is a friend of Sonny’s from high School. He is relocating to this area and he came in to buy some tires and stuff. I sold them to him. I guess he and Sonny are getting reacquainted after all these years. He brought me breakfast the last morning I was there. I don’t really have much to say to him. I get the feeling he looks at women as objects.” I reply.
“Well I just met him and I don’t like him. He strikes me as the type who doesn’t take “no” for an answer. Anyway, I’m glad we’re through with the shop.
**********
“Sonny, man, she doesn’t look too bad. I see she still knows her job. You should see if later on she’ll be willing to come back to work for you. She might change her mind.” Suggests Curtis.
“I don’t think so. She’s scared to be here. I wish this had never happened, especially here.” Sonny says dropping his head.
“Well there is nothing you can do about it. Some people are just bad. They do what they want when they want. Besides, with a talented lady like Tasha work
ing here, some crazy person was bound to notice her. Working with the public opens you up to things like that. No matter what kind of business it is. She could have been working at a jewelry store and the same crazy person notice and try the same thing. So don’t knock yourself around about it too much. The only thing you can blame on yourself, is leaving her here alone for so long. You can’t read people’s minds and you don’t know what kinds of things people have planned. Don’t worry about it. Besides, she seems to be doing fine to me. She and her husband are probably already having sex just like they normally would.” Curtis says with a grin.
“I hear what you’re saying, but it doesn’t ease my conscience any. I never should have left her alone. How could I let something like this happen to her? What was I thinking? I know. I was thinking about making money and I put her in danger because of it. Ed is the better man. He never would have let something like this happen to her.”
“Man, you need to stop. He did let it happen to her. He let her work here didn’t he? So, in a sense, he’s just as guilty as the person who attacked her. But, like I said. You can’t control people. No matter how well you think you know someone. Besides, she didn’t have to be alone. I came by that morning and brought her breakfast. I told her I had plans to spend the whole morning with her. But she turned me down. I have never been rejected so nicely. But she made it clear she wasn’t interested in me, so I left.”
“See. I told you not to try.” Sonny says with a smirk. “Anyway, I’ve got to find a way to make this up to her. I can’t stand feeling this way.”
Just then the door opens and the mailman comes in. “High Jarvis. How’s it going?”
“Okay, I guess. Is Tasha ever coming back to work here?” He hurriedly asks.
“No. Why?”
“Because I want her to know that I did not attack her. The police have put me in a lineup and everything. They have been investigating me. They even had me say some of the same lines as her attacker during the lineup. If you talk to her, please tell her I’m sorry, but I didn’t do it.”
“Whoa! Aiight man. Will do. As a matter of fact, she was here a ‘lil while ago. I just hope they hurry up and catch this bastard. What did they have you say?”
“Something about a talented lady and Sonny knowing better. I don’t remember. But, I know for sure I didn’t do it. Anyway, do you have anything going out?”
“Nah. See ya.”
Jarvis leaves and Sonny is quiet for a long time. After a while he tells Curtis he has to run an errand. Curtis agrees to watch the shop until Sonny returns. Sonny leaves and drives straight to the police station. The officer he wants to see isn’t there so he leaves a written message. He stops and gets a six-pack of beer and goes back to the shop. Curtis is changing the channel when he walks in. “You didn’t have any customers. I guess I don’t pull ‘em in like Tasha, huh?” He says grinning.
Sonny tells Curtis about the six-pack in the fridge and goes back to filing the receipts. He was doing that when Tasha and Ed came in. He makes small talk and realizes that Curtis hasn’t told him what he’s really been doing since high school. So he starts shooting questions at Curtis. Curtis, who loves talking about himself, answers them all as he’s drinking the six-pack. Before too long, the whole six-pack is gone and Sonny hasn’t had one beer. Then Sonny recalls that Curtis never could hold his liquor.
Sonny gets up to get the next stack of receipts and Officer Woodson comes through the door with her partner. Sonny walks over and whispers something. The officers follow him to his office where Curtis is sitting. Curtis looks up and comments, “You people protect and serve. What happened to you when Tasha was being attacked?”
“Well, huh, what’s your name?”
“Curtis, Curtis B. Lawson”
“Well, Curtis, we don’t know crimes are going to be committed before they happen. If we did, there would be no crime. But as soon as we find out, we come. And, sometimes, we can prevent crimes from happening or catch some as they are committing a crime. Do you know Tasha Burrows well?” Asks officer Woodson.
“I guess you could say that. I met her last week and I’ve been watching and getting to know her. It’s a shame she couldn’t identify her attacker. It was smart of him to bend her over. But it’s such a shame. Tisk, tisk tisk.” He says shaking his head.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t hear you. What did you say?”
“I said, it’s a shame he bent her over and raped her. I’m sure he only did that so she couldn’t identify him. She probably wouldn’t have been able to since he had a mask on anyway. Such a shame.”
“Mr. Lawson, would you mind taking a ride with us. You have made some interesting points. I would like to put these observations in my reports as we look for the suspect. But my reports are at the station. We can bring you back when we are finished, if you wouldn’t mind coming with us.” Officer Woodson prompts.
“Sure, anything I can do to help. Tasha is such a talented lady and Sonny feels bad about this happening. He never should have left her alone you know. He should have known better than that.” Curtis says rising from his chair.
Officer Woodson walks over and lends him her arm. She can see he’s not steady on his feet. Her partner grabs the beer bottles and puts them in a bag to carry with them. As they walk out, she winks at Sonny. He nods and then they are gone.
Once they arrive at the station, the beer bottles are processed as evidence and a rush is put on them. Officer Woodson wants to find out what else Curtis knows about the rape. She leads him to an interrogation room and grabs her reports. She begins by asking him how he knows Tasha. What he thinks of her, and how he found out about the attack and when. She asks where he was when the attack happened and other questions. Then she suggests that because he knows so much, they need to rule him out as the attacker. She says he’ll need to be in a lineup. He agrees without hesitation.
Woodson calls Tasha and explains things to her only giving her minimal details. She agrees to come to the station right away for the lineup.
A short while later, Tasha and Ed walk over to officer Woodson’s desk. “I hope things will go better this time.” I say doubtfully.
“I hope you’re right. Let’s get started. You guys have been through this before, is there anything you need refreshing on?” Says Woodson.
“No. Let’s just get this over with.” Says Ed. They all walk to the room to view the men in the lineup. Immediately Tasha feels apprehensive. “I don’t wanna do this. Okay, get a hold of yourself, Tasha. Do this and get back home. They are never gonna find this guy and you’ve got to find a way to live with what happened. Life goes on and you have a beautiful one. Bad things happen all the time and you can’t give in to them. If you do, you are allowing the bad people who do them to win. Get a grip!”
She walks over to the window and reaches back to grab Ed’s hand. He gives hers a slight squeeze. All of the men have on masks and are holding balloons filled with helium. When they are all done, she asks for number five to repeat this statement with the helium. A slight surge of hope begins to fill her. But then again, she was sure of the last person she had chosen and it was the wrong man. The DNA results had proven that. Nothing matched. So, she waited a few moments until the effects of the helium had passed and the men spoke the same lines in their natural voices. Again, she asks that number five repeat his lines. She couldn’t be sure, this time. Not after what happened the last time.
She asks Officer Woodson if they can talk. Woodson gives instructions to the other officer and she accompanies Ed and Tasha to a place where they can speak freely. “I see some familiar things in one of the men, but I don’t know. I can’t be sure. I mean, I was so sure the last time and I was dead wrong. I don’t want to have to go through that disappointment again. Not to mention, the pain of knowing I accused the wrong person. How much evidence do you have on this person, if any?” I ask skeptically
“I can tell you that this person has intimate knowledge of the attack. They have revealed to me things that o
nly the attacker would know. You haven’t given anyone the details of the attack, have you?”
“No, I haven’t. I haven’t even told Ed what happened.” I say holding his hand. “I just want to forget what happened, if we are not going to be able to catch the person. What should I do?”
“It is up to you. But, with the evidence we have, we have enough to hold the person for further questioning. It would be better for the prosecution if you picked the person out of the lineup. It would make the case more airtight. But if you can’t, I understand.” Woodson says patting my hand.
“Okay. I don’t want to pick the wrong person, but number five is familiar. He seems to have the same voice. So what do we do now?”
“We get some samples and wait for the results. I’ll call you as soon as we have them back, okay. Are you still going to the counselor?”
“I had an appointment scheduled for today. In fact, I should be there right now. But I can reschedule. She is a nice lady to talk with. I’m trying to follow her suggestions and a few things are getting easier.”