by Marie, Dani
The two officers pulled up in front of a rundown shack of a place. There were car parts all around, some with weeds already growing through them. A mean looking dog on a heavy chain growled and snarled at the men. The place had the look and smell of defeat all around it. Blu was once again angry at himself for not trying harder to talk to Bobby before. They walked up to the porch, stepping lightly over the broken boards. Blu rapped twice on the door. The door opened about two inches and Blu could just make out Bobby’s face peeking out.
“Yeah, what are you doing here?” The boy was already starting to sound like his father in attitude anyway.
“Son, we need you to open the door and come on out. Is your father home?”
Bobby nodded his head and started to open the door.
“Why?” was all the boy got out when the door was wrenched from his hand and swung wide. There was his father and Blu could tell he was half drunk and feeling mean from the look and smell of the big man.
“Get the hell off my property, cop.”
Blu started to say why they were there when the other officer pulled his gun just an inch from the holster. Blu didn’t know why, other than the younger man might have felt threatened or maybe thought the belligerent man inside would back off. Who knows, but it was the wrong thing to do.
Bobby’s father swung his half hidden arm out and shot Blu in the shoulder, then turned, and just before the young officer drew his weapon, shot him right between the eyes. Blu had been knocked backwards off his feet with the blast. He could only watch as the young officer teetered then crumbled. He was already dead before his body ever hit the ground. The big man aimed his gun at Blu again. Blu didn’t move a muscle, he knew he was in deep shit.
In as calm a voice as he could muster through the pain he tried to talk to the man. “Now wait a minute, let’s settle down and think a little before things get worse.”
“Keep those paws where I can see them.” Bobby’s father told Blu and grabbed him, pulling him into the house, kicking Blu’s gun off the porch from where it had fallen from Blu’s now useless hand.
Blu could just make out Bobby hiding crouched down between a ragged sofa and the stained wall, crying. Hell, this wasn’t good. Bobby’s father slammed Blu to the floor. He grabbed some cord and tied Blu’s hands behind his back. Pain radiated through Blu’s shoulder almost to the point that he passed out. The whole time Bobby’s father was doing this he was ranting and raving, occasionally shoving or hitting Blu, his anger was a palatable thing.
“You just couldn’t leave things alone could you, cop? I should have made sure you were in your place when I torched it. Now, I’m gonna have to kill you and get rid of your stinking corpse too.”
Bobby let out a tiny strangled cry that caught his father’s attention. The man walked over to where the small figure was hiding and drug him out by his hair.
“Shut up brat or you’ll end up in the same grave.”
Bobby cried harder.
“You’re just like your pain in the ass Mother. Dumb bitch couldn’t shut the hell up either. You know what I did to her. If you don’t be quiet I’m gonna have to do the same with your dumb ass.”
Blu saw Bobby flinch and try to quiet his crying but the poor boy was terrified. When his father saw the boy had urinated in pure fear, he threw the boy down next to Blu and ordered him not to move. Bobby laid there next to Blu, too frightened to move, tears pouring down his young face.
The house phone rang and with another curse Bobby’s father answered it. “Yeah, yeah, I can get there. Let me lock up a couple things here and I’ll be there.”
“Damn it, I don’t have time for this,” the man muttered as he paced a time or two.
He walked to Blu and aimed the gun at his head.
“Time to die, cop.”
Bobby seemed to come unglued at this and launched himself at his father. He was crying and trying to hit the big man. It was as if he’d gone crazy. One thing the poor boy kept repeating would haunt Blu for the rest of his days.
“Don’t kill my Mommy. Don’t kill my Mommy.”
The big man finally shook the boy off and with a backhand knocked him to the floor where the boy curled into a ball and sobbed.
“Damn it I don’t have time for this shit.”
Bobby’s father had made some kind of decision Blu realized when the man grabbed him and started dragging him out of the ramshackle house. The pain in his shoulder was excruciating. They stopped in front of a warped door to the home’s cellar. He was thrown down the stairs and landed hard. He blacked out as he heard Bobby’s father mumbling.
“I’ll take care of you two later.”
Blu could hear breathing. Wherever he was, he wasn‘t alone. It took a few minutes for his brain to kick in past the pain to remember what had happened and register. He turned his head and saw Bobby lying not too far from him. He was pretty sure the boy was unconscious. He tried moving just his arms but they were still tied tight. He moved his body a little and quickly realized he had probably broken a rib or two. He wasn’t sure how he was going to get out of this situation but at least he and the boy were still alive at this point.
He couldn’t rouse the boy by calling his name. Soon he got frustrated and started thinking of his life and how things had gotten to this point. Then Aqua come to his mind and he realized he was mad that he wasn’t going to get to spend more time with her. Damn it, they should have had years together. Hell, he even wanted babies. He thought about the psychic thing that had been holding him back and it finally hit him that he just didn’t care. Ok, so she’s psychic, that wasn’t so bad.
He knew she’d always be true to him and that they could make a good life together. The more he thought about it the better it sounded. Hell, worst thing he could think about it was that it would be dang hard to surprise her on her birthday. He would have smacked his own head, if his hands weren’t tied. Why the hell was he just now figuring this out?
Ok, Blu told himself, if I’m in this than I’m in it all the way. He got a picture of Aqua in his head and let himself start talking to her in his mind.
“Hi Darl’n, I sure hope you’re listening. Just wanted to tell you that I love you. I know, my timing sucks but hell I’m a man and we are slow sometimes. Not sure if I’m gonna make it out of this mess alive this time and I wanted you to know how I feel. Well, and if we ever had a little girl, I wanted to name her Hanna. No reason, other than I just always wanted a little girl named Hanna.
Just so as you’ll know, I’m not faring too well at the moment. I’m out at little Bobby’s place. Boy is his Pop a piece of work. He killed one of our officers, his own wife, and torched my place. He’s got me tied up down in the cellar so he can kill me and Bobby too. Bobby is already hurt, not sure how bad. I’ve been shot and bunged up a bit. Not feeling so hot myself.
Whatever you do, don’t you come out here. If you can hear me, call the Chief and tell him what’s going on. Tell him to come loaded for bear. The damn man killed Fred without blinking an eye. Guess that’s it other than let my family know I love them too. Damn Baby, I wish I’d not been so dang stubborn. Love ya, Darl’n. Oh, and the pearls are for you.”
Chapter 9
Aqua was ringing up a sale and chatting with a customer when a feeling of dread came over her. She did her best to finish up and then went to the door of the store and locked it, turning the closed sign on. She wasn’t sure what was going on but she hadn’t felt this overpowering feeling before. She went upstairs to the apartment and sat in her favorite chair and closed her eyes trying to pick up on what was wrong.
It wasn’t long before she knew there was something going on with Blu. She flipped the mental switch to try and tune into his thoughts. He seemed to be in pain and talking to some young boy it seemed. Then she felt him mentally flinch. The images of blood and death brought a startled gasp from deep inside her. She saw and felt his sense of urgency as the scene played out in Aqua’s mind.
Tears were streaming down her face as
she listened and prayed. She cried out when she felt the pain of his ribs breaking as he was thrown down the cellar stairs. She was on her feet turning in circles, not sure what to do when she heard him start talking to her. She stopped and listened, sobbing when he told her he loved her. The pain must have gotten to much and he suddenly stopped talking, she guessed he’d blacked out.
Aqua ran to the phone and called 911. She begged to be patched into the chief and told him what Blu had said. When he asked how he’d contacted her she lied and said he’d called her cell and that his phone wasn’t working right and he had been only able to contact her the one time. She prayed the chief would believe that thin line and was almost breathless until he told her he would go get him.
The second she hung up Aqua ran out the door and all the way to the police station. When she ran through the door, there were officers all over. They were gathering rifles and the chief was barking orders. Aqua felt a little better knowing that help was on the way to Blu. The Chief stopped in front of her and told her that he would get Blu back home safe and instructed her to stay put. She nodded and gave him a quick hug.
There were several cars of officers from nearby towns with county deputies and state troopers all converging on the property. Luckily, Blu had left Bobby’s file on top of his desk so the Chief had known where to go. The place was surrounded and looked like a war zone within a very short time.
That was when Bobby’s father had the bad luck to come home. He wasn’t about to be taken quietly and a short but deadly gun fight ensued. No other officers were harmed but Bobby’s father would never stand trial.
As the chief searched for the cellar Aqua had told him about, ambulances were called and someone covered Fred with a blanket not wanting to see his blank stare. Blu and Bobby were both unconscious when the rotted cellar door was flung open. No time was wasted getting them both on their way to the hospital.
Aqua heard the radio report stating they had been found and were being transferred and before anyone could offer her a ride she was out the door and running again. It was several blocks up to the hospital emergency room but she ran the whole way. Lungs burning and gasping for breath, even as she worked to keep the tears from blinding her, she was at the doors well before the ambulance arrived. The doctors didn’t question her right to be with the officer when he was brought in and although they made her stand back while they worked on him they didn’t ask her to leave. When the x-rays were done and Blu was cleaned up and starting to wake up, Aqua was there holding his hand crying.
Blu’s family had been contacted and they were in the waiting room thankful for the good news that he was going to be alright. There had been no question about Aqua leaving his side. The only time she’d left him was when she heard Bobby crying in the next exam room. She went to the boy and spoke softly to him giving him what comfort she could until he was sedated and taken to a regular room. They would keep him for a couple days for observation but he should be fine, physically anyway.
So when Blu’s eyes opened the first thing he saw was the woman he loved. He smiled and thought she looked prettier than he’d ever seen her. He didn’t notice the red eyes, smeared makeup or bruised lips from the way she had been biting them as she worried.
He tried to talk but ended up coughing which was a new kind of pain for him with three broken ribs. The nurses were there immediately helping him and he tried again. They let him speak just enough to tell Aqua one more time that he loved her before they gave him medication to help him sleep. He was transferred to a regular hospital room and the family was finally allowed to come in. They were instructed to let him sleep but the doctors knew they needed to see their loved one.
Everyone hugged and more tears were shed and prayers prayed. They had been through another close call and they were all thankful that their family was still intact. Eventually, Blu’s sister Amanda made Aqua leave with her and took her home to get some rest. They had been assured he would not wake up until tomorrow. The doctors wanted him to rest and heal and they would keep him sedated until at least then.
Amanda offered to stay with Aqua, but she needed time alone. There was so much emotion flowing through her she really needed to be alone to sort through it all. Once Amanda left, promising to pick her up early to go back to the hospital, Aqua drew a bath and let the hot water do its calming magic. She soaked until the water turned cold and then went to bed exhausted.
Aqua was up early and was sipping a cup of tea waiting when Amanda came to pick her up. They were solemn as they drove to the hospital. Both were thinking of how close they came to losing someone they love. It was as if they couldn’t talk about it yet, it cut too deep. When they walked into the reception room, they found they found both of Blu’s parents waiting for word and approval to go see Blu.
The doctor came out fairly soon from his early rounds. The nurses had let him know the family was waiting for an update. He smiled at the family and sat.
“He really is going to be fine. It’ll take a week or so for him to heal and a bit more to really get back to normal. You can go and see him but only a couple of you at a time and please don’t stay too long. He really does need to rest.”
The family thanked him and he headed off down the hall. Aqua sat quietly with tears in her eyes. She was so thankful he was going to be OK. There were tears and laughter as the family was adjusting to the relief of knowing he was all right. Blu’s mother gave Aqua the tightest hug and then took her hand and told the others that they were first. Hand in hand they walked to his room and went in. Blu was just starting to wake up and both women rushed to his side. His Mom, Betty, took his hand and lifting it, kissed it while tears streamed down her face.
“Oh Blu, I’m so glad you’re ok. We were so scared, Son.”
“I’m fine Mom, sorry to worry you.” Blu got most of that out before he coughed and grimaced in pain from his injured ribs.
“Now Son, don’t you talk. You just listen and nod.” Betty then told him how Bobby’s dad was dead and that little Bobby was doing fine. The state would be working to find a home for him so that he didn’t have to go to into the foster system. She let him know that she had personally gone and spoken with the boy.
“He was worried about you, Son. He was relieved to find out his dad hadn’t killed you like he had his own mother. What a thing for a ten year old to have to worry about. Just makes me so upset. Anyway son, all is as good as it can be with him. The family is all here and fine so you have nothing to worry about and on that note I’m leaving and going to give Aqua a chance to see you on her own. Now you be nice to this gal or you will have me to answer too.” Betty leant down and kissed Blu’s cheek then turned and left with a smile for Aqua.
Blu looked at the woman he now knew meant the world to him. “I love you.”
Aqua kisses him and whispered, “I love you, too.” She stayed with him holding his hand as he slipped back to a healing sleep.
The next week was slow and yet one of the best Aqua had ever experienced. Blu was getting better, his arm may never be quite the same but he could use it and with physical therapy get most of his range of movement back. His ribs were better, still sore but he could walk and was back out at the ranch recuperating.
The Chief had come out to debrief Blu and was a little puzzled when Blu didn’t have an answer as to how he’d been able to “call” Aqua with his hands tied and his phone had been found smashed and inoperable. Blu thought back and realized he would never be able to explain it to his boss in a way he’d understand so he just shook his head and told him, “Well hell Boss, you know women always know what you’re thinking or up to well before you do,” and left it at that. Chief didn’t like that answer but realized no better information was forthcoming so he finished up his reports and closed the case.
Chapter 10
Soon, Blu was feeling much better and ready to go back to work, desk duty at least. He and Aqua had spent as much time as they could together. They really were a good match in most every way. B
lu wasn’t sure exactly what she wanted but, he knew he wanted forever, kids and the whole mess that families entail.
When his Dad came into the sitting room and saw Blu looking pensive he was worried. “Whats wrong son?”
With a sigh Blu told him that he wanted to make a life with Aqua but wasn’t sure how to approach her. “Hell Dad, I owe her my life. How do I top that?”
Blu’s Dad had been married several years and was wise to Blu’s torment. “Son, I learned a long time ago. You can’t top anything your woman does for you. All you can do is be the best man you can and love them. A nice string of pearls doesn’t hurt either, especially when you mess up. And son, you will mess up plenty. I heard my Momma tell a of friend of hers that pearls were symbols of feminine wisdom and that it meant a lot to a woman when a man gave them to her. I remembered that all my life and it’s served me well. Why do you think your Momma has so damn many of them?”
Blu decided it couldn’t hurt and found a long beautiful strand that somehow reminded him of Aqua. They were almost all the pearly white everyone sees but there were just a few darker colored pearls thrown in that Blu knew would appealed to Aqua’s love of the unusual. He purchased them and a diamond ring surround with small pearls that the sales woman assured him would work beautifully as a wedding set.
Blu was a nervous wreck on their next date. He had asked Aqua not to listen in to his thoughts for a while and she had been good about giving him his mental space. He knew she might worry that he was deciding if he wanted to be with her or not but, it was the only way he could think to surprise her. When they finished dinner, they walked hand in hand back to her place and sat snuggled on her sofa. Blu was so anxious that he couldn’t sit still.
He leaned over and gave Aqua a kiss on the cheek then slid to the floor. He was in the classic ‘down on one knee’ position and had taken Aqua’s hand in his.