“Don’t get up.” John called to the hefty woman, even though it was obviously not her intention.
“Mary Jo said we should introduce ourselves as her friends. I’m Sally Bianco. This is my fiancée, John Nelson, and this is Officer Sam Tedler.”
“I’ve taken copies of these papers to the county coroner.” Sam handed Harriett a sheaf of legal documents.
Harriett re-positioned herself to the edge of the swing and holding onto the wooden braces, she hefted herself to a standing position. “Come into the house.” She clutched the documents to her chest. “Susan, watch the children don’t go near the road.”
John and Sam followed Sally to the front door of the house. A thin stone acted as the front step of the entrance. Sam and John ducked their heads to cross the threshold. Sally was sure they could feel the ceiling brush the top of their heads.
“Come into the kitchen. I have coffee and biscuits. Do you boys want a slice of ham with your eggs?” Neither man turned down the Southern breakfast. Harriett’s size didn’t prevent her from eating right along with them.
“This strawberry jam must be homemade.”
“It is, it is.” Harriett beamed. “It’s better than any store-bought I can find.”
Sam was all smiles. “Usually when I accompany Sally and John on their detective missions, I only have time to chew on toothpicks. You’re a great cook!”
“I try.” Harriett was pleased; but she suddenly noticed something amiss on the front room carpet. She scurried faster than her bulk would predict to the side door and yelled, “Susan, who’s been tracking mud into my front room?”
Susan arrived and pointed to her aunt’s own shoes. “You usually take your shoes off.”
Harriett laughed and kicked off her muddy shoes. Susan picked one slipper up and hit her aunt on the head with it. Harriett only laughed at the child’s antics. So Sally, John and Sam joined in. After they calmed down and the triumphant Susan returned to the front yard, Harriett asked, “Is Mary Jo safe? She’s not answering her cell phone.”
Sam put his hand in front of his mouth, which was jammed with food. “My older brother is helping to protect her.”
“Ricco was arrested for making false accusations and assaulting a friend of mine.” Sally didn’t expand on the statement. “But Judge Wilcox says we need more evidence to bring murder charges against him.”
John took over. “Ricco is incarcerated now, but we want him out of the way permanently. We’re also afraid he might send others to harm Mary Jo, which is why Sylvester and the local police are guarding her location. They’re probably monitoring her cell phone calls.”
“Will the children need to testify?” Harriett asked.
“No,” John answered spontaneously, then he asked, Sam. “Would they ask the children to face their father?”
“We’ll do everything we can to prevent involving the children.” Sally waved her hand to not accept any more servings of breakfast. “Mary Jo says the children think their father died in Iraq.”
“I don’t think they need to know what kind of male specimen fathered them. With Mary Jo’s help, we hope to see these babies educated and living normal, peaceful lives.”
“With God’s help,” Sally said. She decided to stay with Harriett and the children, when Sam and John left for the judicial offices in Kansas City. She needed to take a break from her detective obligations and the company of Mary Jo’s stepchildren promised to keep her pleasantly occupied.
Eight-year-old Susan’s motherly duties for her sister and younger brothers were demanding precious hours of her childhood, as far as Sally was concerned. “How about we go shopping for school clothes?” She asked Susan and her Aunt Harriett.
“Could we?” Susan asked, and then added, “Sarah needs some, too.”
“We’ll take Sarah tomorrow. You can help me find a shopping mall, if your aunt lets me drive her pick-up.”
Susan looked at her aunt. “Would it be all right?”
Harriett embraced the youngster. “Of course, baby. You go ahead with Mrs. Bianco.” She smiled at Sally. “She’s going to need a new raincoat, with a hood, too.”
♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦
When Sally and her young charge returned to Harriett’s home, the back of the pick-up was filled with boxes. Sally saw no reason for Mary Jo to have all the fun providing what these young orphans obviously needed. John and Sam returned from the city empty handed, just in time to haul in the booty. The noise level inside the house rose to near pandemonium as the children opened the packages of clothing and boxes of toys and candy. Sam was leaning against the front door or they might never have heard the knock. Mary Jo and Sylvester entered the melee.
Susan said it all. “Look, Aunt Mary Jo, it’s Christmas in October!”
Mary Jo hugged the girl. “Mrs. Bianco has been shopping, I see.”
“And a new TV!” Young Martin jumped up and down in front of his newly arrived aunt. Then he stopped and doubled up his little fists. “Where have you been?”
Sarah and Melvin came over to where Mary Jo stood, too. “Yeah?” they chorused.
“We’ve just come to see you for a little while.” Mary Jo lifted chunky Martin into her arms. “Susan, Sarah, Martin, Melvin, say hello to this nice police officer?”
“I don’t know.” Melvin eyed Sylvester. “What’s he doing here?”
“He’s keeping your aunt very safe.” Sam said, then he addressed his brother. “Any trouble in Michigan?”
“Judge Wilcox visited us last night.” Sylvester explained. “Mary Jo started talking about how great you kids are and he sent her down to see you, until we need her in Michigan again.”
Harriett took Sylvester’s hat, shook his hand. “You didn’t bring any trouble trailing you down here, did you?”
“No, ma’am. We flew to Canada, before we rented a car to drive down here.”
“I bet you’re hungry.” Harriett said. “Kids let Mary Jo come eat a bite, then you can tell her your news.”
All four children dropped whatever toy or article of new clothing they were holding and marched into the kitchen, testimony to their Aunt Harriett’s cooking. Sally made their excuses and John and Sam left with her for their hotel room in Kansas City. Sally hugged Mary Jo at the door. “I’ll be back out in the morning, if that’s okay.”
“I can tell you think these kids are great.”
“I do. John and Sam can visit the coroner’s office, while I’m out in the sunshine with these sparks of life.”
“Robert taught us well, didn’t he?”
“I guess he did.” Sally agreed. Anything life-affirming would be worth Robert Koelz’ attention. The cunning trap of alcohol didn’t allow him adequate time on earth. Sally sent a plea to her Higher Power for those still suffering under its influence. “I’ll miss the sound of his voice for the rest of my life.”
“I still hear his words.” Mary Jo pointed to her forehead. “In here.”
“And here.” Sally touched her heart. She prayed the Lord would receive the old reprobate with loving kindness. “He wasn’t your most perfect saint.” Sally prayed silently. “But we loved your handiwork. Robert will never be replaced, Lord. Keep him close to your heart until we join You.” Sally remembered she needed to call her sponsor as soon as she got back to their hotel.
♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦
Hyatt, Kansas City
Sally’s Room
“Missouri?” Grace asked. “Are you vacationing?”
“I’m helping a detective unearth evidence.”
“Did you take your AA books with you?”
“I’ll read you Step Three.” Sally appreciated Grace’s time, which felt as if her mother’s attention was focused on her. “How old are you?”
“Twenty-nine. Why?”
“I was just thinking, I feel like I’m reporting to a parent.”
“Is there a problem?”
“No! I’m thankful for your time. ‘Step Three: Made a decision to turn our will and our li
ves over to the care of God as we understood Him.’ I noticed on page 34, it says ‘We can have faith, yet keep God out of our lives.’ I think it’s true.”
“Have you found a meeting in Kansas City?”
“I’ve been watching four children, taking them shopping.”
“Use the telephone book in your hotel. They’ll pick you up for a meeting.”
“I don’t want to tell you I’ll do something and not do it.”
“Good. Do it.”
“I’ll call you in the morning.”
“If you can’t get a hold of me, keep dialing until you talk to someone. Traveling is very tricky for alcoholics.”
Chapter Eleven
Kansas City, Hyatt
First Wednesday in October
Two days later, Sally’s only contact with an AA member was a conversation with a con-man who insisted on visiting her. Well conversant with AA traditions, Sally never gave him her location and repeatedly asked for the telephone number of a woman. Whoever was running the city’s hotline needed to police the people answering their phones. When she failed to reach Grace Wednesday morning, she asked the concierge if he knew where an AA meeting was held. After her third call to three different people in the lobby, the manager showed up at her door. “Is there a problem?”
Sally wanted to explain how the room’s refrigerator full of tempting liquor should be cleaned out, but her pride refused. “No, no trouble. Thank you.”
Thursday her watch informed her five o’clock in the morning was time to rely on her own resources. She repeated the Serenity Prayer and picked up her AA book to remember how to best approach another Fourth Step confession. In Step Three she re-read, “No adult man or woman…should be in too much emotional dependence upon a parent.” or friend or mate. Sally knew her grief which included Robert and Danny could cause her to stop loving, or to stop living fully. Renewed with God’s grace, she closed her book and faced the day.
♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦
Napping in her hotel room after another long drive from Harriett’s home, Sally felt completely exhausted by the four youngsters’ antics. She loved being with the children but her sixty-five years announced themselves in every aching joint and tired muscle in her body. She thought she might have gained ten pounds from Harriett’s cooking, too.
John called her hotel room. “We have the evidence. You sounded sleepy when you answered. Do you want to come down to the lobby? Sam’s here, too.”
“I’ll be right down.” Sally forgot to hang up the phone. She threw the handset on the bed as she strolled toward the door.
Rat poison was still traceable in the corpse of Ricco Cardonè’s second wife, Anna. John explained, “The coroner’s report says the symptoms mimicked a heart attack. Ricco didn’t ask for an autopsy, so his young wife was buried quickly without a fuss.”
“Thankfully, he didn’t think about cremation.” Sam re-gathered the documents.
Sally felt relieved, energetic even. “Did they wire the results to Judge Wilcox?”
“We did and I called Andrew. Judge Wilcox recused himself from the case. Judge Kevin Lovejoy will be the presiding judge. I think Sam and I should fly back tonight. Would you mind going back with Mary Jo and Sylvester?”
“No, no. We need to proceed as quickly as we can. Mary Jo deserves her freedom from her creepy husband’s threat.”
♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦
Independence, Missouri
Sally thought Harriett would welcome the news, but, of course, the wound was re-opened.
“He did it,” was all Sally needed to say.
“Take the children outside.” Harriett turned her face to the wall in the kitchen.
“Come along.” Mary Jo directed the children. “We need to try out these kites while the sun is going down.”
Sylvester tried unsuccessfully to herd the children into the living room. “The winds always pick up as they chase the sun.”
“The winds chase the sun down?” Martin’s bright eyes of wonder kept him nailed to the floor in the kitchen.
Susan hefted him onto her young hip, “Would Aunt Mary Jo’s friend lie to you?”
Melvin held the outside door of the living room open for Sarah’s exit to the front lawn. “He’s telling a story, Martin. Stories don’t need to be true.”
When all was quiet in the house, Sally touched Harriett’s shoulder. “Sit a moment, Harriett.”
“I knew he killed her.” Harriett slumped into the nearest kitchen chair. “Anna was my maid-of-honor. Ricco always made eyes at her. When I divorced him for terrorizing me, she wouldn’t believe how evil he was. He never hit me, just yelled at me when I didn’t jump fast enough, or forgot to ask how high.”
“I’m sure Anna learned her mistake quickly enough.” Sally said, but needed to ask. “Why did she keep having his children?”
“I suspect some of them were the product of rapes.” Harriett’s face was wet with tears. “Hand me a dish towel.”
Sally complied. “Did you try to talk to Anna after Ricco attacked her?”
“Yeah, but he could act like a repentant angel, whenever he had a mind to.”
“She thought he loved her?”
“Worse,” Harriett re-wiped tears away. “I’m sure she loved Ricco.”
“How did you get custody of the children?” Sally asked.
“Ricco brought them over one day after the funeral with hardly any clothes, no toys.” Harriett stood and went to the stove to stir a pot of savory soup. “I never saw him again. I don’t remember him saying more than three words to me, not even, ‘Take care of them.’”
“Did the state help?”
“No, but my church helps out when I ask.”
“We need to put the children in your hands.”
“No. Mary Jo has asked to adopt them. I know she loves them and she says I will always be at their side. They need a younger mother.”
♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦
Airplane to Detroit
Second Friday in October
John and Sam had returned to Ann Arbor earlier than Sally. On their plane to Detroit, Sylvester sat between Sally and Mary Jo. Sally asked for the aisle seat for the same reason most elderly people do. Bladders do not appreciate pressure changes. Mary Jo snuggled into the window seat. Once they were airborne, canceling out the possibility Mary Jo might jump ship, Sylvester kissed her hand. “Will you marry me? I would love to have a ready-made family to work for.”
Mary Jo looked across Sylvester’s big chest to Sally. Sally shrugged her shoulders. Sylvester was a nice young man, but Mary Jo might want to sample single life.
Mary Jo whispered, “Sylvester, do you think you love me?”
“I know I do. And Mrs. Bianco will testify I would never lay a hand in anger on you, or the children.”
Sally nodded. Her ready tongue could think of nothing to say. Where was wisdom when she needed her?
“I know you’re a decent man. But, my divorce isn’t final. You’re willing to adopt Ricco’s children?”
“You are a woman with foresight. You’ve gone through hell through no fault of your own. I see how those kids love you. I want to be around you the rest of my life.” Sylvester’s voice was rising with the panic of perceived rejection. “I’m surprised how I feel around those kids. I think I could make a difference in their lives. Love them; teach them how to live right.” Sylvester took a breath.
“I accept,” Mary Jo said. Sylvester broke down and cried, right there on the plane. Sally didn’t think the boy possessed such a soft or generous heart. She patted Sylvester’s big shoulder, as she watched the stewardess approach. Mary Jo was stroking Sylvester’s hand, repeating in a soothing voice, “It’s okay to cry. I love you. It’s okay to cry.”
The stewardess stopped at their row of seats. “Anything the matter here?”
Sylvester straightened up his emotions. “Sorry, no thank you. This lady just agreed to marry me.”
“Oh.” The flight attendant left them in peace. “Tear
s of joy.”
“Call your mother,” Sally said. “She’ll want to know.”
“I don’t want you to think the story I’m going to tell you influenced me, Mary Jo; but I can’t very well share it with Mother.” Sylvester breathed deeply, as if he were submerging into a deep, black sea. “My sergeant told me a story which happened back in the seventies. This woman they rescued from her husband refused to prosecute. She was all beat up, bloodied from head to foot. Of course, back then the district attorney didn’t proceed, because wife-abuse wasn’t considered a crime against the state. Anyway, the woman, I think her name was Rose, insisted on going back to her horse farm. Apparently, the property was willed to her by her father. The very next night, she called 911.”
Sally leaned over to see how Mary Jo was taking the news. Mary Jo was shaking her head in the negative mode, expecting the worse.
Sylvester corrected the misinterpretation. “Rose didn’t have a mark on her, but we called the ambulance to save her husband.” Sally hooted. Sylvester shook his head at her. “Rose tied the guy to the bed by sewing the sheets to the mattress after he went to sleep…drunk and repentant, according to her. Then she got a baseball bat and beat the poor sucker.”
“Did he die?” Mary Jo asked.
“No. She didn’t hit him in the head. She didn’t want to kill him. She wanted to make him suffer. But he went into shock. He was barely breathing. She broke both his legs, his arms, and three ribs.”
“Mercy,” Mary Jo said.
“Violence begets violence,” Sylvester said.
“Amen.” Sally remembered being kicked off the women’s shelter volunteer list for advocating such behavior.
“She plea-bargained for imprisonment for the mentally ill.”
Sally matched Sylvester’s story. “When I worked for the shelter in Jackson, before they asked me to leave, they invited the district attorney to explain the movie about the woman in Marshall. Remember ‘The Burning Bed,’ the movie with Farrah Fawcett? The attorney mentioned a case which preceded the Marshall one and involved a husband in Jackson. Seems this degenerate guy found a crowbar to smash an eighty-year-old neighbor lady’s legs for chatting with his wife. Then he went after his wife. Both women survived as paraplegics. The dumb judge sentenced the guy man with the words, “I hope the time in jail doesn’t ruin your life.”
Rohn Federbush - Sally Bianco 01 - The Legitimate Way Page 13