The figure crossed the street and stopped at Lora Lemmon’s car. Driving past and making another U-turn he parked behind the Volks and turned on his headlights startling the person. It was Miss Lemmon! He got out and walked toward her, glowering.
“So, why are you sneaking across someone’s lawn, Miss Lemmon?” he growled.
Her hand covered the gasp and her eyes stared wide with shock.
“O-Officer Bates?”
“Yes ma’am., it’s me. What have you got to say for yourself?”
“Ohoo,” she wailed. “I can’t tell you.”
Arly Bate’s heart sank. Surely, this girl, foolhardy as she was, couldn’t be the burglar.
“Miss Lemmon, there have been burglaries in this neighborhood and you were acting mighty suspicious, so it’s very important that you tell me what you were doing.”
“I can’t. Not until I talk to Dr. Ackerman.”
“Dr. Ackerman? The Dr. Ackerman who you saw hugging Billie Bliss?”
“Yes.”
“Why, for Pete’s sake?”
She whimpered. “I told you I have to talk to Dr. Ackerman. Can you follow me to my apartment and I’ll call him?”
Arly looked at his watch and saw that it was only ten minutes before he was off duty, so agreed to follow her.
“I promise I won’t make a break for it.”
Arly chuckled. “You do overwork the drama, Miss Lemmon.”
On the way, Arly found himself shaking his head, wondering why he seemed destined to get tangled up with this emotional and melodramatic girl!
Arriving at the apartment, they got out of their respective vehicles, and Lora waved him inside as she ran ahead into the apartment. She suggested that he have a seat while she dialed Dr. Ackerman’s number.
“Hello, Dr. Ackerman? This is Lora Lemmon. I need you to come down to my apartment immediately. I’m in trouble.”
Officer Bates rolled his eyes.
“No, I didn’t get caught, but the grumpiest man came out and picked it up . . . He’s Billie’s uncle? . . . I don’t know what kind of trouble I’m in.
Officer Bates didn’t tell me. He wants me to tell him . . .Yes, he’s right here waiting for you to come down . . . All right, thank you, Dr. Ackerman.”
Officer Bates couldn’t help chuckling at the swivet this Dr. Ackerman must in at the moment. Miss Lora Lemmon was a master at putting a guy in a bewildering situation.
“Can I get you a cold glass of juice, Officer Bates?”
“No. Thank you.”
Lora’s voice quivered slightly as she said, “I was almost scared out of my wits twice tonight.”
“Oh? By whom?”
“By you, for one.”
“You scared me Miss Lemmon.”
“I did? How?”
“I saw your car parked in a strange place between houses, and you were nowhere in sight. For all I knew, someone with harmful intent might have grabbed you.”
“You were worried about me?” she asked, a wistful smile on her face.
“I was, Miss Lemmon, and I’m wondering why I always have to be the one to pull you out of your scrapes or be around when you are about to get into one.”
Lora thought about this. “I don’t know, either. It does seem rather unusual, doesn’t it?”
“Yeah! Wait till the guys down at the station hear about this latest escapade.”
“Oh dear!”
A few minutes passed in uneasy silence before a loud knock startled Lora.
“That must be Dr. Ackerman.” Opening the door, she invited him in.
Sheldon, worried and frowning, turned to the policeman. “What is it, officer?”
“That’s what I would like to know. I was on duty this evening watching a neighborhood where a burglary had taken place. I was driving down Maple Avenue and saw this figure sneaking across a lawn. I followed, and it turned out to be Miss Lemmon, here. When I asked her what she was doing sneaking around, she said she couldn’t tell me without talking to you first.”
Sheldon blew out a breath of relief, then turned to Lora. “Being that loyal is beyond the call of duty, Miss Lemmon. You should have told the officer.”
“My name is Officer Bates,” he said, standing up. You’re Dr. Ackerman, right?” Sheldon nodded.
“Well, Dr. Ackerman, maybe you’d better tell me what Miss Lemmon was doing.”
Sheldon flushed. “It was perfectly innocent. I asked her to deliver some roses and a card several nights in a row to a young woman, and I, uh, didn’t want the young lady to know they were from me—just yet, that is.”
“And what is this young lady’s name?”
“Miss Billie Bliss.”
A slow smile spread across the officer’s face and his gaze turned to Lora.
“The Billie Bliss that Dr. Ackerman was hugging?”
Sheldon jerked his head back, shocked. “How did you know about that?”
Officer Bate’s smile gradually turned into a belly laugh. Sheldon stared at him, shocked and puzzled. When the officer was able to suppress his amusement, he said, “I’m sorry, Dr. Ackerman, I just couldn’t help it. You wouldn’t believe how I found that out.”
Before Sheldon could pursue the subject any further, Lora volunteered some of the pertinent information. “Dr. Ackerman, it was Officer Bates who rescued me when I was being devoured by the ants . . . both times.”
Understanding began to dawn on Sheldon, and he began chuckling himself. “I have a feeling, Officer Bates, that you and I could share some Miss Lemmon stories and have more than one good laugh.”
“I don’t think I like that,” Lora spluttered.
“Like it or not, Miss Lemmon,” Office Bates retorted, “it’s a fact. Well, I’ll be leaving you two to your business. It has been nice to meet you, Dr. Ackerman.”
Sheldon smiled. “It’s nice to meet a commiserative fellow, Officer Bates.”
Arly turned to Lora and grinned. “And I’m certainly glad I didn’t have to arrest you on burglary charges, Miss Lemmon. Good night.”
Lora giggled. “Me too. Good night, Officer Bates.”
Sheldon sat down and let out an explosive breath of air. “You really had me worried, Miss Lemmon.”
“I was worried, too. But everything’s all right now, Dr. Ackerman. My mission tonight was successful,” she stated proudly, giving him the gist of what happened.
“I’m sure that was a little frightening. Thank you, but you’re part is over now. I’m planning to make the delivery, myself, tomorrow night.”
-
Henry entered the library where Billie and her parents were discussing her plans. “I thought I could scare the rascal out of his hiding place tonight by telling him, if he didn’t show himself, I’d throw this in the garbage can,” he said, grinning, as he handed her the box.
Billie shook her head in consternation. “If he was out there, Uncle Henry, he probably took you seriously.”
“I was serious—almost. Open it and let’s see.”
Billie, now feeling more curious about her secret admirer, opened the box.
Seeing the dozen red roses, she gasped in delight. She inhaled their fragrance, then opened the card and started reading silently.
“Billie, do read it out loud,” requested her mother.
“Uncle Henry doesn’t want to hear this ‘romantic folderol’, as he calls it,” she teased.
“Well . . . humph, I’ll listen, go on.”
Billie began to read:
The fountains mingle with the river,
And the rivers with the ocean;
The winds of heaven mix forever,
With a sweet emotion;
Nothing in the world is single;
All things by a law divine
In one another’s being mingle:
Why not I with thine?
See! the mountains kiss high heaven
And the waves clasp one another;
No sister flower would be forgiven
If it disdained
its brother;
And the sunlight clasps the earth,
And the moonbeams kiss the sea :
What are all these kissings worth,
If thou kiss not me?
Shelley
Billie found herself profoundly moved. Everyone in the room was silent, wondering. Even Henry was at a loss for words. For some reason Billie thought it sounded like . . . Could it possibly be?
“Excuse me, everyone, I’m going to find a vase for these.” She walked to the door then turned to her family. “Oh, by the way, tomorrow night, if the doorbell rings, I want to answer it.”
Thirty
The trip to rescue Miss Lemmon from the grip of Officer Bates had taken up valuable time—time Sheldon needed to prepare for tomorrow night.
For a moment Sheldon stood by the window, gazing down at the lights of Claytonville, this time without feeling such desperate loneliness. Now he focused on the scene with a burning desire to successfully win Billie Bliss for his wife. Ah, how good that sounded! His bachelorhood, he hoped, was about to end.
He sat down at the kitchen table, pen and pad in front of him, with a pile of poetry books. For some time he thought, he meditated, he prayed.
Thoughts and inspiration came—encouraged by the intensity of his desire.
He pondered on how his shyness had narrowed the world in which he had lived for so many years, and he marveled at how Bliss had broadened that world. Discovering the depths of his soul was a poignant experience.
Loving and living, which he had denied himself for so long, were wonderful, but painful. He knew he was taking a chance, but life itself was a chance, a glorious chance to live, love, and endure life’s trials with courage.
He had been selfish by closing himself off from life, but now realized it was the coward’s way. Tears dropped onto the paper. Then and there he made a vow to himself and to God that, no matter the outcome of his present course, he would never again run away from life. He would give of himself and his heart to those with whom he associated.
He marveled at what he had learned about himself. Always aware he had inherited his father’s painful shyness, his practicality, and his love of hard work, he had been unaware of the legacy from his mother—the sensitive and poetic side of his nature—until now.
-
That night, Lora slept in the new apartment for the first time. She woke up to the new surroundings feeling at little disoriented. Suddenly, the realization that she could now have more control over both her life and her living conditions flooded her with happiness.
Lora thought of her mother still in the dark self-imposed lifestyle she had created for herself. The familiar pall of anxiety and guilt began to settle over her.
Immediately, she suppressed it, remembering something she had read in a selfimprovement book: “We make the choice how we live.” Her mother chose to live as she did. Lora decided, however, that she would still look after her—but it had to be in a different way than she had before. She would figure it out later.
Smiling, Lora allowed herself to remain in bed a little longer, thinking about last night and the statement Officer Bates had made about his worry over her. To a certain extent, it had been his duty as a policeman, but she hoped it was more than duty this time.
She jumped out of bed, pulled the sheets and blanket up, and folded the bed under, making it into a couch once more. Looking around, she noticed with great satisfaction that the little apartment was still neat. She hoped that neatness really was part of her nature. If not, she would make it so. Billie Bliss was her idol and Lora was determined to become more like her.
After selecting something from her new wardrobe, she noticed with excitement that the clothes did not feel quite as tight as they had. She brushed her hair, observing that after washing and styling it herself yesterday, it still looked fairly nice, and that the ant bites were almost gone. While she made herself some breakfast, she decided to ask Billie about what makeup to buy.
Today was the day she planned to break the news to her mother that she was moving out. As far as her mother knew, she had stayed the night with Billie Bliss. Even though she had been preparing her all week for this event, her mother hadn’t accepted it well at all—whining, crying, and trying to work on her sympathy. He didn’t know it, but Officer Bates had given her the impetus and courage to make the break.
-
Sheldon waited for the class to assemble. He nodded at Miss Lemmon, giving her a knowing smile. She looked positively radiant this morning. What a different demeanor she has now, he mused. The sour expression she’d had just a few short weeks ago was gone. Yes, Bliss certainly had a positive influence on others besides himself.
He managed to get through the lecture, even though both happiness and nervousness alternately kept pressing in upon his consciousness. In spite of this difficulty, a strange phenomenon occurred. Many of the class members, including Miss Lemmon, came up and told him how much they enjoyed his lecture, smiling and thanking him. Since his lecture was not as organized as usual, it left him wondering. What was different about it that the class members would take the time to compliment him?
-
Officer Bates was experiencing a different kind of phenomenon. Friday afternoon, he had been called to handle a problem in the vicinity of Ella Lemmon’s home. As it often did, the domestic dispute was solved by his appearance—not because he did anything, but because the couple ganged up together against him. Climbing back into his car, he shook his head as he reflected on how contradictory human nature was at times.
Since the area was near the Lemmon home, he wondered at his own contradictory nature. Since the last episode with Miss Lemmon, his thoughts kept returning to and focusing on her—as they had after the other episodes with her. Why? he asked himself. She had proven to be nothing but trouble, and he didn’t have any guarantee that it would be any different in the future.
He shook his head in frustration. The girl was so childlike, so vulnerable. She needed looking after. But he was sure of one thing, it wouldn’t be him!
As he was thinking about her, he found that he had automatically turned onto Lora Lemmon’s street. After a couple of blocks, he was about to turn around when he noticed her blue Volkswagen parked in the Lemmon driveway with a door open and the trunk lid up. Presently, he saw Lora carrying a load of things to the car. He pulled into her driveway, parked behind her car, and got out.
“Good afternoon, Miss Lemmon,” he said, as her head came out of the trunk.
Her mouth dropped open in surprise and then she blushed. A pleased smile crossed her pink face. “Officer Bates! What are you doing here?”
“I had a call in this vicinity and I saw your car, so I dropped by to say hello.”
“You did?” she questioned wide-eyed. “Thank you. Hello.”
“What are you doing?”
“I’m moving out, but I’m afraid my mother isn’t taking it too well.”
“I have about ten minutes before I need to get back to the station. Need some help?”
“Why thank you,” she said. The sparkle in her large green eyes was duly noted by the young officer. “I have two more loads. If you take one, I can leave a little sooner.”
They walked together to the front porch. He waited outside, but could hear Ella Lemmon wailing, carrying on, spewing out accusations. Lora, looking distressed, appeared at the door and handed him a box which he promptly carried and placed in the trunk, then walked back to the porch.
Lora handed him the second load. Taking it from her, he carried it to the car and shoved and pushed things aside, fitting it into the crowded trunk.
“Is that all?”
“Yes,” she replied breathlessly.
“It sounds like your mother is pulling some histrionics.”
Raising her brows, Lora asked, “Is that what they are?”
“You didn’t know?”
She shook her head, still contemplating the thought.
“Like mother like daughter.”
Lora, incensed, replied, “Officer Bates, I do not say things for effect.”
Arly Bates laughed. “Then what were all the dramatics about when you insisted I handcuff you and take you down to the station?”
She thought about this a moment as she looked into his warm blue eyes.
“Well, maybe I was a little over-emotional.” With a small smile on her lips, she added, “You must be a brain, using words like histrionics.”
Arly flushed with pleasure. Though she said it in a lighthearted manner, he could see that she was sincerely impressed, and he knew from experience she was too honest to play games. Painfully honest, in fact. “Just because I’m a policeman doesn’t mean I haven’t had a college education,” he stated.
“You have?” her eyes revealed unadulterated admiration, pleasing him further.
He grinned. “You must be a brain, too, since you know the meaning of histrionics.”
“I do, only because I’m an English major. But I’m truly grateful to you, Officer Bates, for pointing out that what my mother was doing was simply indulging herself in histrionics. Now, I won’t feel so guilty over her tears.”
“Good,” he said, smiling. “Well, Miss Lemmon, I must be going. It’s been nice talking with you in a normal manner about fairly normal things—no ant bites, no sneaking over lawns, and so on.”
-
It had occurred to Sheldon earlier that if he were going to make the delivery himself tonight, he couldn’t make the Friday night Project Success meeting. Hastily calling Nettie, he requested that she conduct the meeting and excuse his absence.
At last—the moment had arrived. He was personally taking this last offering to his beloved Bliss.
Parking his car a block away, he pulled out the long, white box and headed for the Bliss home. His heart clubbed against his chest as he moved warily across the lawn. At the corner of the porch, he stopped a moment, listening, checking to see if it was safe. Deciding it was, he stealthily walked up the steps. Placing the box in front of the door, he rang the bell, ran around the corner of the porch, and hunkered down. He held his breath, waiting. The door opened and closed very quickly. Presently he heard the squeak of the porch swing. Whoever had come to the door, had remained outside! His heart thumped as he listened intently. Soon, he heard an audible gasp.
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