Tenderly Beats the Lonely Heart

by K. J. Janssen

  Miriam left her aunt’s home and attended Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, graduating with a B.S. in Kinesiology and Health. She obtained a job as a Sports Program Consultant for a high school in Spartanville, Pennsylvania. Several months later, while attending a retirement party for the assistant principal, she met Nathan Peter Walton, a very successful entrepreneur, who she married seven months later.

  The nostalgia she was feeling at the moment had little to do with her own lifelong memories and more to do with locating the son that she had given up twenty-three years ago. She promised her Attorney, Mike Tolliver, that she would let him finalize his investigation before making any personal contact with her son. She knew, deep in her heart, that if she should see her son, the promise would be the hardest one she would ever have to honor. I hope he shows up at the festivities today. I just want to see him; to feel his presence.

  CHAPTER 6

  At first glance the town of Owensburg looked like a typical mid-west town on a typical mid-summer day. The sun as shining brightly, the high temperature for the day was forecast to reach 92 degrees and the only relief expected would be in the form of a gentle ten mph wind visiting from the northwest. On a day like today, most of the townspeople would normally stay indoors, but that wouldn’t do for today, not by any measure, because today Owensburg, a quaint Ohio town with a population of 28,328 as of the last census, was celebrating the 200th anniversary of its founding and the natives were abuzz with excitement.

  This was a town that took its celebrations seriously. Young and old alike lined Main Street for the opening ceremonies highlighted by the appearance of the Owensburg High School High Steppers; OHSHS for short. Led by Pop Weatherby, the venerable 83-year-old curmudgeon who put the town and the band on the map with multiple invitations to the Macys Thanksgiving Day Parade, the High Steppers awed the crowd with their flawless performances of town favorites.

  Following the Steppers on the parade route were floats sponsored by local businesses. While attempting to keep with the centennial theme, they shamelessly advertised their companies, which was not unexpected, being that the parade was televised by NCTV, the prime TV station for Newcastle county, presenting an opportunity for free advertising. The Anniversary’s organizers turned a blind eye to the overt commercialization of the event, ever cognizant of the economic contribution that the companies made to the town as both employers and as tax payers. They were more than happy to look the other way and allow a reasonable balance between business floats and an assortment of floats sponsored by Town of Owensburg departments and several charitable agencies. All told there were eighteen floats; a new record for a parade held by the town.

  Bringing up the rear of the parade was anyone else who wanted to participate in the pageant. Civic organizations, book clubs, quilting bees, antique car owners and any group or individuals wanting to be a part of the celebration, made their way slowly down main street, stopping and starting as the procession of floats ahead of them dictated.

  The parade slowed, then stopped, as the

  High Steppers reached the reviewing stand; first marching in place, then bringing their set to a finish and coming to rest.

  It was time for the opening ceremony. The grandstand was filled with Aldermen and city department heads. John Martin, Owensburg’s Mayor was already standing at the dais. Suddenly the quiet was shattered by his voice booming from the multiple of loudspeakers placed along the parade route. “What a wonderful day this is. I speak with certainty when I say that two hundred years ago, our founding fathers could never have imagined what a beautiful and prosperous town Owensburg would become, two hundred years hence.”

  He hesitated for a moment and then glanced at a sheet of paper an aide handed him. He returned to the microphone to announce, “Governor Fleming planned to be here today, but his plane is grounded in Seattle due to a sudden change in the weather. He sent an e-mail this morning. He regrets not being able to be here to share in all the merriment. The Governor congratulated us on our anniversary and wished us a festive day. Let’s look at the bright side, folks, that’s one less speech to listen to.” He smiled as a few cheers came from the crowd. He turned his attention back to his prepared speech. “Now, I promise to be brief, so you good folks can enjoy the rest of this celebration, but I do want to give credit to Wendell Phillips his committee and

  all of the volunteers and vendors who spent so many hours putting this celebration together. Let’s give them a rousing hand of applause.”

  After the clapping died down, the Mayor continued his speech, “There’s a lot planned for your enjoyment, today, so instead of a roster of town officials and guests taking turns up here making speeches, they decided that it would be more in keeping with the spirit of the occasion for them to spend the balance of the day visiting the various activities and mixing with you townsfolk. They invite you to step right up to meet them and to discuss whatever may be on your minds or just to say hello.

  “In case any of you missed the Anniversary section of today’s paper, the planning committee has a scavenger hunt, three legged races, an egg tossing contest, car show, sharpshooting contest, pick-up softball game, pie eating contests and a host of other activities for the whole family. And, of course, the festivities will end tonight with the Anniversary Dance with our own Bobby V and the Rhythm Riders. You’ll find the complete schedule and all the details at the Chamber of Commerce booth at the park entrance.

  “I believe that I speak for everyone here when I say that on this, our 200th Anniversary, we’re all proud to live in the beautiful town of Owensburg, in the bustling Buckeye State and in the greatest country in the world. You’re not going to get another chance like this for another hundred years, so have a great time.”

  As the Mayor turned and exited the grandstand, he turned to an aide, “I certainly hope they appreciated me keeping that short.”

  “I’m sure they did, sir,” the aide said with a big grin, “I sure did.”

  The crowd turned its attention back to the parade. As the Steppers resumed their play, they moved down the remainder of Main Street to the terminus of the parade route, where a large banner hung over the street. HAPPY 200TH BIRTHDAY OWENSBURG - YOUR TOWN, MY TOWN, OUR TOWN. Eventually all the marchers followed that course to the end and then headed off to their favorite activity.

  * * *

  Police Chief Walter Peyton scanned the crowd with a practiced eye. Peyton was reelected three weeks earlier on a platform of “Safety and Security”.

  One of his Officers, George Weisberg, on the force just 6 months, remarked, “Everything looks okay so far.”

  “It usually does this time of day, George. Wait until the sun goes down. That’s when we’ll have to be especially vigilant.”

  “Are you expecting trouble?”

  “I’m always on the alert for potential trouble; it goes with the job. I don’t want a reoccurrence of what happened last year at the Homecoming Dance.”

  “What happened?”

  “What didn’t happen is more like it? We had a full-fledged riot on our hands. Ten people were jailed, nine hospitalized, one with multiple stab wounds, charges of police brutality and thousands of dollars in property damage. Let’s grab a cup of coffee over at the diner, George and I’ll tell you all about it.”

  * * *

  Wedged between a 1940 Cadillac Bohman & Schwartz convertible and a 1960 Pontiac Bonneville convertible, “Cassy”, with Thomas at the wheel and Louise at his side, followed the parade route. They smiled as they waved to the crowd. Even tired arms couldn’t spoil the excitement of the day. Being in a parade was not the sort of thing the average person does very often in their lives; except, of course, for members of marching bands.

  Not only was Thomas home with his foster parents and friends, but he planned to finish the day by proposing to Louise. What a great day this is going to be. I can’t wait for the dance tonight.

  * * *

  A woman was slowly walking up and dow
n the street behind the onlookers. She paid little attention to the parade itself; with the hundreds of waving and smiling people, floats and cars. Miriam was scanning the crowds on the sidelines, for anyone who could be her Thomas. She searched both sides of the parade route several times.

  For over an hour Miriam’s pilgrimage continued up and down the street, until finally the last of the parade passed by and the throng of revelers began to dissipate. Miriam didn’t notice “Cassy” with her son at the wheel when he passed within ten feet of where she was standing. Of course, she may not have recognized him anyway, with his face shaded by the baseball cap with the large red OH blazoned on it.

  Disappointed at not finding Thomas among the onlookers she stopped at a food vendor and bought a hot dog and soda. She sat at a small table set up on a side street, ate her lunch and planned her next move. I’m sure that I’ll have better luck at the park. Mike’s report said Thomas excelled in softball in high school. How could he resist the chance to play in the game today? Even if he isn’t planning on playing, he’s sure to be in the bleachers cheering on one of the teams...Please be there, Thomas.

  Thinking about his reported athletic prowess in high school stirred up a parcel of guilt. Not only did Miriam miss those four years, but the fourteen before them and the five after them. How will I be able to explain to Thomas why it took all these years to search for him. My Therapist calls it Traumatic Amnesia resulting in “suppressed memories” of the events leading up to and following the death of Thomas’s father. That’s all fine, but why did I wait so long to get help for the depression that came over me several years ago? Why did I wait until eight months ago to finally start working with Dr. Wells to uncover my buried memories of Thomas’s birth and subsequently abandoning him? What if he doesn’t understand what I was going through at the time? What if he hates me for it?

  Life’s often presents questions that only time can answer.

  CHAPTER 7

  Chief Peyton and his deputy ordered coffee and assorted pastries. When the food arrived, the Chief began his story:

  “It started late that afternoon when several busloads of students from Towson High arrived for the Friday night football game between their unbeaten team, the Warriors, and our unbeaten Owensburg Panthers. Many of the visitors drove to the game, filling the parking lots around the stadium to overflowing. The game with Towson is part of a school rivalry dating back to the early sixties and the excitement was heightened by it being Homecoming night at Owensburg High. Even though both teams were undefeated going into the game, the Warriors were favored to win. Their quarterback, Nate Swanson, was County All-Pro. College scouts were often seen at their games.

  “It’s long been known that whenever two rival schools meet in a sports venue, ‘all bets are off’. Current season records or past games don’t mean a thing. Whenever town rivalries come into play the outcome of a game is up for grabs.

  “The game started at seven sharp, with Owensburg kicking off to their opponents, who were determined to spoil the Panthers undefeated season and even up the number of victories in the rivalry.

  “Towson High fans would be disappointed, however, as the Panthers rewarded the enthusiasm of the home crowd with a lopsided 48-0 score. Much to my surprise the Towson fans, with the exception of a few smart-ass teenagers, were civil during and after the game. Their buses left on time, sans a small number of fans who joined with other students that had driven to the game. I was glad to see the busses pull out of the parking lot.

  “I assigned fifteen officers to be visible at strategic areas around town where any crestfallen teenagers might be inclined to congregate and stir up trouble. Only a few incidents actually happened and by ten o’clock I felt comfortable enough to return to the station, get a late dinner and watch a little television.

  “Unfortunately, my rest would be short lived. Shortly after midnight we received a call from the 911 line that a brawl was taking place at the Homecoming Dance which was being held at the Newcastle County Convention Center on the northeast corner of the town.

  “The Newcastle County Convention Center is the only indoor facility in town that could accommodate a dance of that size. Students from all four grades and their dates plus the Alumni were invited to the Homecoming Dance. Only a fraction of eligible students actually registered; slightly more than four hundred were expected to attend.

  “The dance committee spent several days decorating the meeting hall with streamers, banners and balloons. A team of engineers from the county worked on the lighting and stage effects requested by Bobby V and the Rhythm Riders. I assigned ten of our officers to back up the twenty-man security force at the center.

  “The fights broke out during the bands last set. It started when a young woman got past a security guard, jumped up on the stage, removed her blouse and bra and started dancing topless to the music. It was obvious to everyone that she had consumed too much alcohol.

  Of course, alcoholic drinks were banned due to the ages of most students, but we both know that even the most stringent of measures by security will never prevent the smuggling of alcohol by underage students or even those old enough to drink. Hell, I did my share when I was young.

  “When the crowd first saw the naked woman, they went crazy; guys left their partners and rushed to the front of the dance floor to gawk at the gyrating hips and bouncing boobs. Bobby V was nonplussed by the whole thing and kept the band playing since the set had only ten more minutes to run. He continued to sing and play, but he had a big grin on his face. To his credit, though, he finally stepped away from the mike for a minute and told the dancer that she had to put her clothes back on, but she just laughed at him and continued her dance across the stage.

  “Guys started to push their way toward the stage as the security forces tried to keep them behind the yellow line on the floor that marked a no-pass zone between the dance floor and the stage. There was a lot of pushing and shoving and inevitably fights broke out among the students and with the security guys and a few of my Deputies. It didn’t take long for several hundred students to get involved in the fracas. Finally, the head of the Center’s security cops yelled, ‘Okay, that’s it. Pull the plug! Stop the music. This dance is over’. A few minutes passed, and finally the amps were silenced. There was still a remnant of music as the piano, sax and drums continued to play. It sounded disjointed, though, without the amplified instruments to accompany them and after several minutes, they all stopped playing.

  “That’s when things really got crazy. Everyone was pissed. They were chanting, ‘Security sucks!’ and ‘Let the band play’ and that set off a whole series of events. One of my deputies jumped up on stage and tried to put a table cloth over the dancer, but she just ripped it off and continued to dance; apparently to her own drummer.

  “Two students were taken into custody when they refused to stop fighting each other. Their arrest set off a multiple of other fights. A security guard jumped up on the stage with a megaphone, ‘Look, that’s it for tonight folks. This dance is officially over. Please leave the Center at once.’ The Center’s staff opened the doors to let people out, and that was to be the end of it or, so they thought. When the students realized the dance was officially over and that the band would not be coming back, they started breaking tables and chairs. Students were milling around, refusing to exit the building. They were yelling at the band and yelling at the police. A Deputy attempted to take ‘Chip’ Miller, the captain of the football team, into custody for breaking furniture. Miller resisted and assaulted the officer, causing a minor cut to the forehead and a broken finger on his left hand. As additional police came to assist the injured officer they were attacked by four women and then by three men who came to the women’s aid. It was really crazy.

  “Finally, Principal John Clark stepped up on the stage and took the megaphone, ‘Okay everyone, that’s it. It’s time to go home.’ That’s all he needed to say; disobeying the police or the Center employees was one thing, not li
stening to the school Principal, who had your future in his hand, was another. Reluctantly, the crowd started leaving, but once they got outside, a few of the students started breaking headlights and mirrors on the cars parked in the Valet Parking area immediately outside the doors. That’s around the time that I arrived with backup cruisers and officers in riot gear. Once they saw the show of force the crowd dispersed immediately.

  “So, we had ten overnight guests at the jail. The two students arrested for brawling were charged with disorderly conduct. The four women and three men that attacked the officers attempting to arrest ‘Chip’ Miller were charged with interfering with an official police action and resisting arrest.

  They were booked and held for court or bail. ‘Chip’ Miller was charged with destruction of public property, two counts of assault in the fourth degree and of resisting arrest. The young lady that started the trouble was never found. A warrant for her arrest is still outstanding for inciting a riot. The damage to cars and to furniture in the Center was extensive and we had several law suits brought against the Force for police brutality. Those were entirely unfounded; hell, we didn’t even use our batons, pepper spray or tasers. Those cases were eventually thrown out.”

  Walter sat back in his seat and looked George straight in the eye, “Now you know why I am not looking forward to another dance that has Bobby V and the Rhythm Riders on the bandstand. I’m not saying that they are responsible, but that bunch seems to draw trouble. I was very upset when the committee selected them for the dance tonight.”

  To himself he thought, I’ve got a really bad feeling about it.

  CHAPTER 8