by Terri Marie
Parts of the lab at Montclair Pharmaceuticals were always running, but he knew the other employees had already left for the day. Tyler waved at the guards when he passed them to enter the building. He took the elevator down a floor to the shipping and receiving department. He picked the phone up, from behind the counter, and called Ralph. Tyler couldn’t push the sinking feeling away.
“Ello,” said a sleepy Ralph as he fumbled with the phone.
“Ralph, I know it’s late, but have you heard from Sean and Elissa?” Tyler held his breath and puffed his cheeks out.
“No, but they got out of that house. I went there and spoke to Sean directly through the window. Then I ran back to where their Equinox was parked and watched them leave. They didn’t come back here. They’ll not do anything to jeopardize Brian’s whereabouts. You can get some sleep now, Tyler. I have everything under control here in Ohio.”
“Thank you, Ralph. Call me the second you hear anything.” Tyler closed his eyes and rolled his shoulders. Now, he could go home and get a little sleep. Hopefully this news, along with the news of Robert’s court date, will give Renee some reassurance, and maybe, a smile.
∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
Robert glared at Skinny Ass, while he sipped the stale water in the stained coffee cup. He’d had to swallow the sour smelling bologna sandwich in large, half-chewed mouthfuls in order to eat it.
“Today’s your lucky day, Preston!” yelled Skinny Ass as he approached the cell door. Robert wanted to dig out his eyes with the Cheap Ass spork.
“What the hell do you want?!” yelled Robert.
“I’ve just been informed that I’ll be on your transport team back to the big house in Marquette! Then, I can come back here and live each day in peace, instead of staring into the eyes of a piece of shit. You’ll be their problem then.” Skinny Ass walked away and back to the front desk. Robert wanted to yell something at him to put him in his place, but the stale bread was sticking to the roof of his mouth. It was okay though. Skinny Ass was going to get what he had comin’ to him.
Robert couldn’t wait to leave this Hell Hole. Being trapped in this cage like an Animal wasn’t exactly the life he’d had planned for someone as important as himself. He wanted to write down his plan on paper. But noooo! With his luck, another Schmuck would steal his ideas. He couldn’t have that. Robert the King was infamous, and it was about time that everyone realized not to cross his path. Maybe he’d get the chance to snap his Stupid Lawyer’s neck before saying “Adios!” He stood there laughing his ass off, so hard that he got dirty looks from everyone at the desk.
A new song popped into his head, just like magic. “I am a lucky birrrddd, you are a Stinky Turrrddd, I am King, you’re Nothing, I am a very lucky birrrddd!?”
“You’re an asshole, Preston. Give it a rest before I tape your mouth shut!” yelled Green Bean guard. Robert didn’t know why they weren’t laughing at his songs. It seemed to him they’d want to be on his good side. Oh well. This is exactly why Stupid People ended up dead, thought Robert as he began laughing all over again. The depth of his wisdom was profound.
Robert laid back on his Shitty Mattress and closed his eyes. It wasn’t that he was tired, but the Stupid Loser guards would assume he was sleeping and run their Pie Holes. That’s how he got most of his information. He’d learned which guard got in trouble and for what, who was taking a vacation and where they were going, and most importantly, when they were shorthanded. Robert wanted to laugh when Skinny Ass was yelling at Green Bean about turning his back on the prisoners, but he had to fake them all out and pretend to be asleep. Hell, he might just throw in a snore here and there for good measure.
Then there were the Stupid Montclairs and his Bitch Ex. He’d make sure to kill them before he was through with this world and called to sit on his Throne. Robert the King would go down in History, and the rest of the world could Kiss Off. If a few Stupid Turnips got in his way? He’d give them Third Eyes too. Robert rolled over onto his stomach and buried his face in the Shitty Pillow so he wouldn’t lose control. He let out a nice big snore…
CHAPTER 11
SEAN STARED AT the blank blue television screen for what seemed like hours. He’d make sure nothing else was on the disc, even if it meant that he had to sit staring at the screen from this chair all night. Then suddenly, there they were: the basement stairs and two sets of feet going down them. He quickly recognized Shirley’s nauseating voice. “Do you think he’s asleep, Hank?” Sean knew where they were going. “Who gives a shit,” Hank replied. Shirley filmed as Hank stuck the key into the lock on the bathroom door and pushed it open. Sean saw something in Hanks hand, but he couldn’t tell what it was. “What’s in his hand?”
“He’s got a light bulb, Sean,” whispered Elissa.
Right after Hank entered the bathroom, the light came on. There, curled up in the corner, was a little boy, lying on pine needles. As little Brian squinted upwards and straightened his legs, Sean could clearly see the clamp around his ankle and the chain on the floor. He was completely naked.
“May I have some water, please?” asked Brian in a very scratchy voice.
“Thirsty? Here ya go you little bastard!” Sean watched in horror as Hank urinated all over the kid. Brian’s screams and cries made Sean fast-forward the video.
When he hit play again, Brian was a little older, still chained to the floor. This time, after Hank and Shirley turned the light on and went inside, they kicked and punched him. He cried and begged them to stop, promising to be good, but still they kept at it.
“I can’t…I’m done!” Sean stood up and removed the disc. He tried to put it back into the case but his hands were shaking too badly, and tears were streaming down his face. He pulled out his phone and called Tyler.
“Sean?”
“I got it Ty. All the evidence we need was recorded onto a CD.” He choked through his sobs.
“Thank God…” replied Tyler with his own voice cracking.
“Everything Brian told us…the bitch filmed it. No matter what happens, Tyler, don’t watch it. Do not even look at one minute of this thing.” Sean watched as Elissa put the CD back inside the case and tuck it into her purse. She got a tissue out and wiped off her face.
“We have to figure out a way to get this to the cops without the both of you getting arrested. Let me call Vinnie, and I’ll call you right back. Sit tight Sean, and don’t you dare blow this case by taking out your emotions on that evil bitch.” Sean listened as Tyler hung up the phone.
“Now what? None of this matters if we don’t get it to the cops, so I’ll take it to them.” Elissa picked up her bag and headed towards the door.
“Wait! First and foremost, we have to get Brian out of Ohio. Shirley knows this CD is missing, and she knows someone was in that house, because I left the gun on the counter. Grab all the hamburger and packaging. It’s evidence, which she went to great lengths to conceal. Let’s go.” After all of the contents had been collected and placed inside of an empty trash bag, which they’d found in a drawer, Sean took the keys from Elissa’s and led her out to the Equinox. It was difficult not to speed, but he couldn’t risk getting stopped by the cops. Time was of the essence, but they had to get Shirley behind bars.
Sean’s phone rang and he was in such a hurry to answer it that he dropped it on the floor. Elissa scrambled to grab it and hand it to him.
“Sean, go get Carrie and Brian and bring them back to my house.” Tyler spoke quickly, and he could hear Renee crying in the background.
“We’re already on our way. I’ll call you the second we leave Ralph’s house.” He hung up the phone and handed it to Elissa. “Find Ralph Charles in Laurel. Call him.”
It took Elissa under a minute to find his number and place the call. She handed the phone back to Sean.
“Ello,” answered Ralph.
“Ralph, it’s Sean. Let me speak with Carrie.” Sean listened as he heard footsteps running towards the phone.
“Sean?” she answered in a
near panicked voice.
“We got the evidence. We found a CD in the freezer at Shirley’s. She’d tried to hide it inside hamburger meat. Tyler already knows, so we’re coming to get you and Brian. We’ll be there in about an hour. Do you have any idea how we can get this to the cops, without risking it’s destruction in the mail? I mean, I’m willing to go to jail if need be, but we can’t afford to have anything happen to this thing.”
“Did you keep the hamburger with the packaging she used?” Carrie lowered her voice.
“Yeah, it’s all here.” Sean looked down at the trash bag between Elissa’s feet.
“Just get here. By then I’ll have it all worked out.”
Sean hung up and set his phone in the cup holder. He wiped the sweat off his face with the palm of his hand. Elissa reached over and locked her fingers through his. She turned her face towards the passenger window, and Sean could hear her softly crying.
“We got this, Elissa. Stay strong, Babes.” He squeezed her hand.
“You bet your sweet ass, we got this…”
∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
Carrie gathered Brian and Ralph at the dining room table. She didn’t know what the kid’s reaction was going to be to all of this news, but now wasn’t the time for anyone to be losing their cool.
“What’s wrong, Carrie?” asked Brian with a serious scowl.
“No one leaves this table. Deal?” she began.
“Yeah, yeah. Rules for good communication. Tyler pulls this stuff when the news sucks. Spill it.” He leaned forward to look her in the eyes.
“Sean and Elissa found a CD Shirley had hidden in the freezer. All the evidence we need is currently on its way here with them. Brian, I need for you to stay with me here. Shirley knows it’s missing, and she has a gun. We can’t stay in Ohio any longer, but we have to figure out a way to get the evidence to the cops. I need you to help me brainstorm.”
“Freezer? You’re kidding, right?!” Brian went to stand up, but Carrie pulled him back down.
“She had it hidden in a package of hamburger meat. All of this has to be turned over to the police, but the problem is getting it to them. Think Brian, think. We don’t have much time.”
“I can help you with that,” smiled Ralph. “You folks just leave it all with me. I was at the grocery store, so maybe I went dumpster diving and found the meat. When I brought it home, I discovered the CD. I can take it to the cops and tell them about the shocking things I saw, and that perhaps they should review it.”
“Ralph! That’s perfect!” Carrie stood up and hugged him, as Brian took off running to the bathroom. She could hear gagging from the other side of the door.
“Brian, may I come in?” She waited in the hall for a few minutes until he opened the door. He had tears streaming down his cheeks.
“Come here, Sweetheart,” Carrie said softly as she pulled him into her arms. “I can only imagine what all you’re feeling right now, but trust me when I say, that you’ll never have to worry about going back to that house. You can be with Tyler and Renee, and the rest of us, forever.” She hugged him tightly, until she felt him nod his head and return the embrace.
Brian let her go and she followed him back to the dining room table. He dried his face with the front of his shirt. The smells of bread baking in the oven filled her senses, but it did nothing for her. Carrie’s guts were in knots.
“Ralph, do you have a computer? We need to make a copy of that disc, just in case something happens to the original.” Carrie let her eyes move around the room.
“Sure do. Can’t say that I quite know how to do any of that, but I have one. Just a minute and I’ll fetch it from my closet.” Ralph got up and disappeared into the bedroom.
“Carrie, you can’t make copies of that shit!” Brian’s eyes filled with fear. “If that gets out, it’ll end up all over the internet!”
“Brian, once Shirley has been sent to prison, I’ll give the disc to you to destroy. We’ll ask Sean to take the copy directly to a safe place at work. I’m pretty sure there has to be a vault there.”
“Here ya be,” said Ralph as he removed the laptop from the case. “It’s not top of the line, by a long stretch, but Stella and I bought it for each other for Christmas last year. Six hundred big ones!” He placed the laptop in front of Carrie, then plugged the cord into a wall socket. “My password is Charles. Nice and simple.”
“Ralph, do you have any blank CD’s?” Now she was worried.
“Bought some when we got this thing. The guy said we should ‘back up our data.’ I’ve never had anything to back up, so the package isn’t even open. Just a second and I’ll go get them.”
Stella brought out the fresh loaf of bread, a stick of butter, and a jar of homemade strawberry preserves and set them down on the table. She went back into the kitchen and returned with a pitcher of lemonade and a stack of plastic cups. “Here you go! I hope you enjoy it. Ralph loves this stuff. I’m going to go finish cleaning up my mess, so holler if you need anything.”
“Thank you, Stella,” said Carrie and Brian in unison, but neither of them touched any of it. Carrie guessed that the poor kid’s stomach felt twenty times worse than hers did.
By the time Carrie got the computer on and ready to go, she could hear the sounds of a vehicle on gravel. She looked at Brian, who was quickly getting up to go to the back of the house.
Ralph rushed to the door before yelling back to them. “Sean and Elissa are here! It’s okay.”
Brian returned to the dining room table and sat next to her. When they came inside, Carrie stood up to greet them, but Brian stayed seated.
“You guys watched it…” Brian’s face reddened and his eyes began to water.
Sean walked over to him and pulled him to his feet. He put his hand under Brian’s chin and gently raised it up so he could look into his eyes. “Two minutes tops, Brian, that’s it, and then we shut it off. Look, it wasn’t a movie for us to sit there watching, while we ate popcorn. This was probably the worst thing I ever saw in my life. Not just because of the horrible content, but because I love you with all my heart. I love you just as much as Tyler and Renee do. I love you so much that I’ll go to jail for you just to get this to the cops. You don’t understand Brian. Those sons of bitches didn’t just do that to you, they did it to me, Tyler, Elissa, Carrie…all of us. It’s us fighting for justice right now, not just for you, but for this family. That’s right. They hurt our family, and if I can’t get her arrested within the next few hours, I’ll either go to prison for a long time, or go to prison for a very long time, because I’ll put that bitch under the dirt for eternity. That, Brian, is my promise to you.” He pulled Brian to his chest and hugged him tighter than Carrie had ever seen someone hold onto another person.
“Sean, we need to copy that disc and get out of here.” Elissa reached into her purse and handed it to her. Her face looked like she could kill someone with her eyes.
Carrie got to work, put the disc in, and let the computer start its job. She prayed like hell that it wouldn’t take too long, but once she saw the file size, she realized they were in trouble. “This is going to take a couple of hours, Sean, we don’t have that kind of time. Ralph is going to take the disc to the cops with all of the hamburger evidence and tell them he was dumpster diving. But now, we’re going to have to leave without copying it? We can’t. You guys go home and I’ll stay.”
“Ralph, do you know how to do finish copying this disc?” asked Sean. There was no way he was going to leave any of them behind in Ohio. He’d be the one to stay if necessary.
“If you can explain it to me, I’ll be okay. I’m a pretty fast learner.” Ralph stood over Carrie’s shoulder and stared at the screen.
It only took Carrie a few minutes to explain the process to Ralph, but then she saw a bit of confusion in his eyes, so she explained it all over again. Sean also simplified it a little more for him.
“I got it now. You folks get a move on, before the cops show up here asking questions. Shirley
hasn’t been arrested. Until that happens, they’ll have to return Brian to her.” He quickly stuck his head through the kitchen door. “Stella, wrap this stuff up for the kids to take on their journey back to Michigan. Hurry up Honey, they have to leave before it gets too late.”
“Of course!” Stella came and wrapped the loaf up in a towel, and placed it in a bag. She added the jar of preserves and a knife to spread it onto the warm slices.
“Guys, we need to get out of here. I hate to be rude, but Brian, make sure you have everything. We leave in five minutes.” Sean’s gaze followed to where Brian was pointing. There were two bags sitting by the door.
“We’re ready. Those are our things. All Carrie and I have to do is throw our shoes on, and I’ll do that now.” Brian got up and went to the back door. He returned carrying their shoes.
After quick, but meaningful, goodbyes and thank you’s, Sean told Ralph he’d call him once they got back to Michigan, and that if he had any problems with the disc, to call Tyler.
Once they were in the Equinox, Carrie turned her head and saw Ralph and Stella standing on the porch watching them until they were out of sight. Though Carrie had parents, she wished more than anything they could have been those two elderly people who had saved her and Brian. Damn, she thought. I’m going to miss them.
“Hey, we’ll see those kind folks again.” She swiped the tears off of her cheeks and saw Sean looking at her in the rearview mirror. “We owe those two the world, and I plan on repaying them tenfold.” He winked and shifted his eyes back on the road.
Their return drive to Michigan was mostly quiet. Carrie wanted to talk to Brian, but she knew the kid needed space to process everything. His leg was bouncing up and down a million times a minute, so she hooked her arm through his, and leaned her head on his shoulder. He looked over at her and gave a half a smile, and she hoped that soon, she’d see lots of genuine ones coming from him. Brian deserved to have the best of life handed to him on a silver platter.