by J. D. Griffo
“Vinny did say the tree house was used as a lover’s hideout,” Helen said. “So maybe Kichiro went to rendezvous with Sharon at the tree house and found Jonas there instead.”
Nola reached out to hold onto the tree to steady herself. The women weren’t sure if she was stunned that Sharon was Kichiro’s married girlfriend or shocked that Helen would announce the truth so cavalierly. Not that it really mattered because once the words had been spoken there was no taking them back.
“Helen . . . sometimes, Giuro su Dio!” Alberta seethed.
“Knock it off, all of you!” Helen cried. “We know Kichiro was shacking up with Sharon, and Nola knows Kichiro was shacking up with Sharon. The only one who probably didn’t know about the affair was Bruno.”
Clearing his throat, Bruno replied, “You are, um, right about that, ma’am.”
Letting go of the tree, Nola was stronger now. She didn’t look very happy, but she was definitely more in control of her emotions. “Bruno doesn’t know about Sharon because I didn’t want him to know.”
“Why not, Nola?” Bruno asked. “This is incredibly useful information.”
“No, it isn’t!” Nola shouted. “All it proves is that I’m a liar and a really good one. How is that supposed to help me beat a murder charge?”
She had a point, Alberta thought. If Nola could willingly walk around as Kichiro’s girlfriend all the while knowing that his real girlfriend was her married boss who may or may not know that Nola was also not qualified to be a teacher, it could destroy her character in the eyes of the court. No one felt good about keeping the information hidden, but exposing it could do irreparable damage.
“I’ll make a deal with you, Nola,” Bruno started. “We’ll keep Sharon’s name out of this unless it becomes apparent that she is somehow involved in Jonas’s murder.”
“Sharon has absolutely nothing to do with Jonas’s death,” Nola stated. “So we have a deal.”
“Good,” Bruno replied. “Now, can we please continue with our reenactment? If Kichiro is the one with the ladder—allegedly of course—he couldn’t have found Jonas inside the tree house, it would’ve had to be the other way around.”
“Right,” Jinx huffed. “It’s all about that dumb ladder.”
Standing back from the tree house, Alberta looked up and tried to imagine a scenario that would include the two men inside the small space. “Just suppose that Jonas somehow was hiding up there since it was his personal tree house in the first place that his father built for him and Kichiro climbed up thinking that he was going to meet Sharon.”
“That would’ve been awkward,” Joyce said.
“Exactly!” Alberta agreed. “Maybe Jonas saw Sharon and Kichiro in there once before and he was waiting for them.”
“To blackmail them?” Joyce asked.
“Yes,” Alberta said. “If Kichiro thought that Jonas was going to reveal the truth about their affair, he might do anything to prevent him from exposing the truth knowing that it would destroy Sharon’s marriage as well as her career.”
“A Catholic high school principal having an affair with a much younger cop isn’t what you’d label the good kind of publicity,” Bruno added.
“I can’t believe this is happening!” Nola screamed.
The young woman’s outburst disrupted not only the peaceful surroundings but the hypothetical speculations as well. The time for ruminating over possible ways that Jonas might have met his untimely death were over and it was time to deal with the reality Nola was having to endure.
“All I was trying to do was help my . . . my friend . . . you know?” Nola explained. “I wanted to help Sharon and now I’m being charged with murder and have to defend myself against a crime I didn’t commit.”
“Don’t worry, Nola,” Jinx consoled, hugging her friend. “We’re going to find out who really did this.”
Alberta was delighted to see Jinx’s maternal instinct kick in and embrace Nola the way she wanted to only moments ago, but she realized a mother also had to dispense tough love.
“Is Sharon really your friend, Nola?” Alberta asked.
“What?”
“You said that all you were trying to do was help your friend,” Alberta repeated. “I didn’t think the two of you were that close, more like employer and employee.”
“We’re . . . both,” Nola replied.
She jabbed at the tears still falling from her eyes and Helen grabbed a handkerchief from her pocketbook and offered it to her. Alberta watched her go through the motions of wiping away her tears, but thought she looked odd. Not scared by her circumstance or embarrassed to have virtual strangers witness her vulnerability, but nervous. When Nola resumed speaking, she punctuated her explanation with sniffles, stuttering, twitches, and pauses. Alberta felt like she was making up her speech on the spot.
“It’s a . . . a small school you know? And since we’re a Catholic high school . . . parochial . . . we’re working with a much smaller b-budget than p-public schools so . . . so, you know, we all have to pitch in where we can and, well, that . . . that kind of um . . . um . . . work environment makes you get closer to each other.”
Alberta wanted to look around to see if anyone else was alarmed by Nola’s dismal effort at public speaking, but she couldn’t take her eyes off of Nola. “I just find it strange, not to mention disappointing, that neither Kichiro nor Sharon have come to your aid since you’ve been arrested.”
“I’m sure they’re just . . . trying to, um, distance themselves from me so they d-don’t accidentally out themselves and reveal their affair,” Nola stammered.
“After all you’ve done for them, I think it’s time they returned the favor and came forward, don’t you?” Alberta asked.
“No!”
The word echoed throughout the park, hovering overhead like a steel dome, its power and conviction as strong as the sturdy oak trees that dotted the immense landscape. The authority and command of Nola’s voice even surprised Bruno, who up until then had exuded an air of unflappability.
When Nola spoke again, the volume of her voice wasn’t as loud, but her tone was just as unwavering. “Absolutely not. We just agreed. I do not want Sharon brought into this. You all promised me that you wouldn’t say anything, and you can’t go back on your promise! Her affair has nothing to do with Jonas’s murder.”
An image of Alberta’s deceased husband, Sammy, yelling at her flashed through her mind. Alberta had rarely talked back to Sammy when he sounded like that, but Sammy was dead and so were those fears. She could speak her mind, she had earned that right, and often what she had to say needed to be heard.
“You don’t know that, Nola, and we don’t either,” Alberta replied. “All we really know about Sharon is that she’s a liar and a cheater.”
It could have been the cool weather, but Nola’s neck and ears started to turn a light shade of red. She didn’t appear to like what Alberta said.
“Mrs. Scaglione, you have to promise me that you’re not going to do anything that will implicate Sharon,” Nola demanded. “Swear to me!”
“I can’t do that, honey,” Alberta replied. “All I can do is promise that I won’t say a word unless I feel I have to. The first thing we need to do is speak with Kichiro and find out exactly what he knows about this whole situation and if he really does have access to some kind of retractable ladder.”
Nola looked up at the sky that had turned into a blend of dark blues and pinks like an unfinished abstract painting. Its visual beauty seemed to soothe her spirit and help her understand that Alberta, Bruno, and everyone gathered were all on her side.
“Okay fine, that sounds like a good plan,” Nola said.
“I agree, Gram, Kichiro’s been acting strange since this whole thing began.”
“It could be that he feels guilty for sleeping with another man’s wife,” Helen suggested.
“Or he’s feeling guilty for taking another man’s life,” Alberta proposed.
“You really think he could�
��ve killed Jonas?” Jinx asked.
“It’s a very real possibility and one we need to explore,” Alberta declared. “First thing tomorrow I’ll speak with Vinny and pick his brain to find out what he truly thinks about his detective’s peculiar attitude lately.”
“I have a better idea, Gram.”
“What’s that, lovey?”
“We might have more luck if I ask Freddy to talk to Kichiro,” Jinx said. “You know, guy to guy.”
“As the only guy represented here,” Bruno remarked, “I think that’s a smart idea.”
Blushing slightly, Jinx replied, “Thank you, Bruno.”
“Whoa, look at the time,” Bruno said, glancing at his watch. “Nola, I have to get you back home.”
“She’s a little old for a curfew, don’t you think?” Helen asked.
“It has nothing to do with my age,” Nola said. “But everything to do with this.”
Lifting up her pants leg she revealed that she was wearing an ankle monitor that tracked her every step. She explained that the terms of her bail insisted that she not leave the state and that she had to be home by eight o’clock every night. Since it was seven forty-five, Nola only had fifteen minutes before she would get into trouble the first night she was out on bail.
“You two go ahead,” Jinx said. “I’ll get a lift home.”
“Thanks again, everyone,” Nola said, smiling and tearing up at the same time. “Despite my little outburst, I really am very grateful.”
They all exchanged quick good-nights and Bruno and Nola raced to his Volvo that was parked near the entrance of the park. By the time the women were standing under the metal arch, the Volvo had already made a right turn at the end of the block.
“Who’s in the mood for some potato pancakes?” Helen asked. “My treat.”
“That’s one of my favorites,” Alberta cooed. “Is this a special occasion?”
“Alberta Marie Teresa, you are a worse actress than Nola,” Helen barked.
“What are you talking about?” Alberta asked.
“Berta, it doesn’t happen a lot, but I have to agree with Helen,” Joyce added.
Perplexed, Alberta stared at the women and saw that only Jinx looked as confused as she did. “Seriously, I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“It’s your birthday, Berta!” Helen shouted.
“Today?” Alberta exclaimed.
“Gram, I can’t believe I forgot. I’m so sorry!”
“Oh please, lovey, I didn’t even remember,” Alberta said with a laugh. “Well, happy sixty-fifth to me! Let’s celebrate with some potato pancakes!”
“I might even allow myself some real dairy sour cream,” Jinx said.
“Also too, some applesauce,” Joyce added.
“Berta, take us to Veronica’s Diner,” Helen ordered. “Unless you forgot how to drive, too.”
“I have to drive on my birthday?” Alberta joked.
“Even though you’ve taken up the crazy sport of jogging, you’re still too old to walk all the way to the diner,” Helen said. “So yes, you have to drive.”
“Yes ma’am.”
The four women walked to Alberta’s BMW having a bizarre conversation that continued as they drove to the diner. They were marveling at how Alberta could have forgotten her birthday, comparing silver dollar pancakes to the conventional size, and wondering if Kichiro really could have committed premeditated murder by poisoning and tossing Jonas out of the tree house. All thoughts about birthdays, pancakes, and poison were forgotten when Alberta ran a red light.
“Gram, you didn’t even slow down.”
“I tried.”
“Try harder, birthday girl,” Helen shouted from the backseat. “I’d like to get to the diner in one piece.”
“I’m not doing it deliberately,” Alberta said, a trace of fear creeping into her voice. “The brakes aren’t working.”
“What?!” Helen shouted.
“They were working fine on the ride over here,” Joyce said, leaning forward from behind the driver’s seat.
“Well, they’re not now,” Alberta said.
“This is not funny, Berta!” Helen shouted.
Alberta pumped the brakes several times, pressing her foot all the way down on the brake pedal, but the car didn’t slow down, in fact, it started to go faster.
“Somebody cut the brake lines!” Jinx screamed.
“What?” Helen and Joyce screamed simultaneously.
“Oh my God!” Alberta shouted. “Who would do such a thing?”
“Somebody who doesn’t want us helping Nola,” Jinx answered.
Thinking quickly, Alberta swerved to make a left-hand turn and barely avoided colliding with an oncoming car. She breathed a sigh of relief for not crashing into another vehicle, but when she saw what lay ahead she immediately regretted her decision.
“Berta! What are you doing?” Helen cried. “This is Crimson Lake Road.”
“I know!”
“It’s all downhill!”
“I forgot!”
“And do you know why they call it Crimson Lake Road?”
“No!”
“Because people crash here all the time and leave blood stains on the road!” Helen screamed.
“Gram, are the brakes seriously not working?”
“If they were I wouldn’t be going eighty miles per hour down a dirt road.”
“Use the emergency brake!” Joyce screamed.
Both Jinx and Joyce reached for the emergency brake at the same time and pulled it back, but all they heard was a loud screeching sound coming from somewhere inside the car. Looking out the windows they saw the scenery whizzing by on both sides. On the left was a very narrow patch of land with a low, barbed wire fence that was built to keep cars from falling into a ditch and on the right was Crimson Lake, which was about half the size of Memory Lake. Alberta thought she could steer the car into the lake, but there were stone barriers built to prevent such a thing from happening. She looked to the left and tried to see how deep the ditch was, but at the speed the car was going she couldn’t tell how severely they would be hurt if they careened off the side of the road. She looked straight ahead and saw their only option.
About a hundred feet in front of them the road curved to the right and followed the circumference of the lake, but just before the curve was a huge enclave of bushes. Alberta had no idea what was on the other side of the bushes, but she thought if she could turn the car to the left, the bushes might cushion the blow, and allow the car to continue driving up the hill and eventually lose momentum. If they kept driving to the right where the road continued to dip for at least another mile and sped into a more congested area, they could do a lot more damage to themselves and to other unsuspecting cars. Alberta had never taken a defensive driving class, but how hard could it be to turn a wheel?
“Hold on!”
Out of reflex and not necessity, Alberta pressed both feet onto the brake and turned the wheel sharply to the left just as the passenger side of the car slammed into the thick barricade of bushes. Since the shoulder of the road was unpaved dirt, the wheels on the passenger side lost their grip and started to spin around, which drastically slowed down their speed. Just as Alberta felt the car start to get back onto the road, she turned off the ignition in a last ditch attempt to get the car to stop moving. It lurched forward a few feet and then rolled back into the bushes where it finally stopped.
“Siamo ancora morti?” Helen asked.
“I don’t think we’re dead,” Alberta replied. “Are we?”
“It looks like we all survived,” Joyce confirmed.
“Is everyone okay?”
“Yes, thanks to you, Gram.”
“Some happy birthday,” Alberta muttered.
“It would’ve been very unhappy if it weren’t for your expert skills behind the wheel,” Jinx proclaimed.
Joyce jumped out of the BMW and ordered Alberta to release the hood of the car. The rest of the women slowly followed while
Joyce surveyed the engine and the surrounding area. By the time the rest were out of the car, Joyce slammed the hood back down. “Someone cut your brakes, alright,” Joyce announced.
“Seriously?” Jinx shouted.
“Dead serious.”
“Don’t use that word, Joyce,” Helen said, leaning against the car and using another handkerchief to wipe some nervous perspiration from her forehead. “Not on an empty stomach.”
“I can’t believe someone would do that!” Jinx exclaimed. “We were only a few hundred feet away.”
“You don’t think Kichiro could’ve done this, do you?” Alberta asked.
“Right now I don’t know what to believe,” Joyce replied. “I can’t even believe we’re all alive and unharmed. That was some fancy driving, Berta.”
“If we’re done praising Mrs. Mario Andretti,” Helen said. “Would someone mind calling the police so we can get out of this ditch?”
“We should leave the police out of this for the time being until we know exactly what happened,” Jinx said.
“I don’t know,” Alberta hedged. “This has gotten dangerous.”
“Plus, super fabulous!” Jinx squealed.
The three women looked at Jinx as if she was certifiably insane.
“I’m serious,” Jinx protested. “Somebody is so afraid of us that they want us dead or, you know, seriously injured.”
“And that’s super fabulous?” Alberta shouted.
“Yes!” Jinx shouted in reply. “It means we’re legit. A Ferrara force to be reckoned with.”
The women contemplated Jinx’s reasoning for a moment and realized that her thought process, though warped, was correct.
“Not for nothing, lovey, but you’re right,” Alberta said.
“Maybe we’re getting closer to the truth,” Joyce commented.
“Then we can’t call the fuzz ’cause that’ll take away our street cred,” Helen added.
“Then what do you suggest?” Alberta asked. “That we hitchhike home?”
“I have a better idea,” Jinx said typing into her cell phone. She paused until the person on the other end picked up. “Hi, Freddy! I hope you’re not busy because I need you to do me a really big favor.”