“We were just saying that on the way over here,” Liz said. “And, Jessie, I called Alan. He’s going to find you a good lawyer and he’s coming as soon as he can get here.”
Jessie took a step back, looking puzzled. “You…you called him? So I guess you told him what happened. What did he say?”
Liz raised her eyebrows in surprise at Jessie’s response. She’d expected her to react differently, to maybe yell at her or something for calling Alan. Instead there was nothing, just a mild curiosity of Alan’s reaction. Relieved, Liz explained, “He said it was unbelievable. I gave him a rushed version of what happened. I’m sure he’ll want to hear the whole thing in detail when he gets here. I didn’t want to waste time so I did it for you. I hope you’re not mad at me.”
Jessie smiled at Liz. “Of course not, thank you, Liz. If Ricardo talks to Davis, I might not need a lawyer. I might be out of here tomorrow.”
Liz looked at Kent who had a vague expression on his face. No one really knew what would happen next. But Liz hoped that Jessie’s positive attitude would not be in vain. It all sort of hinged on Ricardo now, and what he told Davis, if he told him anything at all.
“Alan said your house is liveable,” Liz told Jessie. “The power’s still on and the phone’s still hooked up. All we need is to get some food in.” She turned to Kent. “Will you drive me back to my car? I hate to leave it out there in the woods any longer.”
“We? You’re staying?” Jessie said.
“Of course. What are friends for?”
“And I’m staying too,” Kent said. “I’ll not leave you again, Jessie.” He looked through the bars at her with affection. “Have you seen Davis lately? I guess they’re keeping you here for the night.”
Jessie looked glum and returned to the narrow bed in the cell. She sat down then looked back at Kent. “I’ll be okay. It’s only for tonight. I’ll be out of here by tomorrow…I hope.”
Kent smiled at her and changed the subject. “Let’s go get some groceries, I’m getting hungry,” he said to Liz. “We’ll get your car later, okay?”
They left the police station and Kent hoped that Jessie was not getting her hopes up for nothing. Even if Alvarez couldn’t talk to Davis in the morning, he was hoping that Alan would be able to arrange bail for Jessie so she wouldn’t have to spend one more night in that horrible place.
At Jessie and Alan’s family home, both Kent and Liz carried a bag of groceries. They dropped them by the door and Liz ran over to Sandra’s and got a key. Liz inserted the key into the lock. She pushed the door open.
Liz was the first to drop her bag on the table. “Whew,” she remarked, “a little stale in here.”
Kent sat his groceries beside Liz’s. “Hot too. We’ll get some windows opened.”
Liz started unloading the groceries into the cupboards and fridge, then followed Kent upstairs. “It’s even hotter up here,” she mentioned to Kent.
Kent was already flinging open a window in the upstairs hall. “Why don’t you go down to the bedrooms, Liz? You know, with Alan coming home you want to check and see if the beds are made up or not.”
“Oh, sure. Of course, that makes sense.”
Kent turned from raising the third window. He looked sadly at Liz. “Does anything make sense anymore?”
Liz put her arms around Kent. “It’s been a crazy time I know. But it’s almost over. You and Jessie are back together, aren’t you?”
Kent moved away from Liz’s supporting arms. “I know. But coming in this house without Jessie here is hard to handle. And what about Alvarez?”
Liz moved forward again, leaning her hands on Kent’s shoulders. She stared into his eyes. “Alvarez is a creep, Kent. All we want out of him is a confession that Jessie shot him in self defence.”
“I know that, Liz. But you don’t know how responsible I feel. It was me who put Jessie in danger in the first place. If she hadn’t been thinking I was the culprit, then she wouldn’t have gone to the police.”
“I’m sorry, Kent. You’re right. I don’t know. But it wasn’t anything you did. It was me, if it was anyone, who put Jessie in danger. I started the whole e mail thing then I put it in her head to not trust you. I don’t know if she’ll ever forgive me…if she finds out.”
Kent was silent and Liz had hoped for some encouraging words from him, something like maybe he wouldn’t tell Jessie and it would be their secret. But Kent said nothing, he just stared at her, and she wondered what he was thinking.
“I’d better get to those windows in the bedrooms, or we’ll all have a hard time sleeping tonight,” Liz mumbled and went down the hall to the bedrooms.
When the evening meal was finished and the dishes washed and put away, Kent, and Liz retreated to the living room. Liz glanced at the pile of photo albums that she and Alan had leafed through during his mother’s illness. The thought of seeing Alan again sent a thrill through her. That was followed by a guilty feeling over Ricardo Alvarez. She hadn’t meant to be so hard hearted, but she really didn’t care too much if he survived, except that it would ease Jessie’s conscience. She decided to keep her opinions to herself from now on.
Liz was the first to head out of the living room when she heard the knock on the kitchen door. “I’ll get it.” She thought it was probably Alan, but wondered why he’d be knocking on his own door, unless for some reason he didn’t have a key. She pulled open the door. “Oh, Mrs. Norton.”
Sandra Norton loomed over Liz’s medium-sized frame. Liz backed up as Sandra pushed her way into the kitchen. Jessie’s neighbour certainly wasn’t shy, Liz thought.
“Kent’s in the living room. We…ah…were just sort of sitting around waiting for Alan to arrive. I’ll get Kent.”
“Don’t bother,” Sandra called, as she made her way into the living room.
Liz closed the kitchen door and followed her. When she reached the living room, she found Sandra making herself at home in the rocker beside the fireplace. “So what brings you two here?” Sandra asked, while rocking.
Liz hesitated and glanced over at Kent. She noticed he had been looking at some of the photo albums. Kent looked past her and over at Sandra, and Liz decided that she might as well begin.
“It’s a very long story, Sandra. But you’ll hear about some of it on the news fairly soon.”
Sandra’s eyes bugged out and she continued to rock the chair. “The news? Like on TV?”
“Jessie’s had a horrendous experience, Sandra,” Kent said. “She was kidnapped, you could say, and in the end she had to shoot her abductor to get away.”
“Oh, Lordy. Is this all true, Liz?” Sandra asked.
Liz nodded, wondering why Sandra would even question what Kent said. She was reluctant to go into details, but she knew that Sandra Norton would not be satisfied until she learned every gruesome detail.
****
Trace lines on the ECG monitor turned erratic. The small team of doctors and nurses in the ICU hovered over Ricardo Alvarez’s bed once again.
Wakefield’s police chief stood at the far corner of the room. Ricardo had been stable when he’d arrived. He’d stood over the bed and looked at the young man he had watched grow up. Even though Ricardo resembled his father, there were traces of his mother in that face. The lips for instance were definitely like hers, well shaped and sensuous, although his lips were larger than his mother’s, more manly. Today though Ricardo’s lips, as well as the rest of his face, were a ghastly grey tone. And right now, all hell had broken lose.
“We’re losing him,” Dr. Farley yelled. He’d just arrived on the scene, being called back from home when all else had failed. “We’ve got to get him back on the ventilator.”
Dr. Ryan glanced at Davis. “Get him out of here,” he told a young nurse.
Before the nurse reached him, Davis turned his back on the action and fled from the room. He walked hastily to the small room which served as a chapel or praying room. It was in darkness when he entered. Before long the room was ablaze with lit
candles. Alton Davis knelt before the wooden alter, his head bent into his knees, and the room took on a silent, trembling glow.
****
Liz’s story to Sandra had just begun when Alan walked into the house. Liz’s heart jumped when Alan came into the living room. He immediately walked towards her and she rose to accept his embrace. Liz glanced over at Sandra and realized that even a busybody like her could keep quiet on certain occasions. But not for long.
“Well, Alan. Good to see you. I’m glad to see that you came to your sister’s rescue. Too bad your dear mother, God rest her soul, couldn’t be here to see this. She grieved her heart out you know, when you two were feudin’.”
Alan stepped back, his arms dropped to his sides and he scowled at Sandra. “What are you doing here?” he said in an irritated voice.
Liz sat back down. “I was just telling Sandra what had happened.”
“Is that necessary right now?” he asked.
Sandra made no attempt to leave, and Alan looked into Liz’s eyes. She looked about to burst and he felt himself feeling the same way. Suddenly he wanted to just hold her, but he controlled his emotions. It wasn’t the right time. Jessie was in trouble and if Liz had to tell the story she might as well get it over with. He sat down across from Liz. “Well, if you’re set on telling the tale, I probably need to hear the long version. I still can’t get over Rick Alvarez’s part in all this.”
“Ricardo Alvarez!” Sandra boomed and almost lifted straight off the rocker. “What’s he got to do with this?”
“You know him?” Liz’s eyes searched Sandra’s face.
“I knew his mother well, poor little thing, and him, when he was a little tyke. His mother was the sweetest soul...until she got married up with that foreigner.”
“Seems you have a story to tell too, Sandra,” Liz said. “One I’d really like to hear.”
“Oh, I’ll tell it all right. But I want to hear yours first. Mine’s old stuff. What’s Ricardo been up to?”
When the room turned quiet, Liz began her story. She started with the computer, then the e mail messages. She cringed, hoping she’d never have to talk about those e mails again. But she kept on, not daring to look at Kent. She prayed he’d hold his tongue and keep the silence about her — for everyone’s sake.
The room was like a tomb when Liz finally finished up the story. She sat twisting her hands together, remembering her part in the whole thing and wishing to God that she had the courage to blurt out the truth. At least it would take away the damn guilt that had built up inside of her. Suddenly, Alan reached across and laid his hand over hers. He squeezed her hands to calm them, not realizing the part she had played in getting his sister in jeopardy. Liz looked over at him and he smiled at her.
“Well, now,” Kent broke the silence, “if you’re not too speechless, Sandra, maybe you could fill us in a little on what you know about Alvarez. Maybe it would help us understand better why he did what he did. Not to say in the least that it would ever excuse him for what he’s done to Jessie.”
Sandra sighed. “You’re right, Kent. For once in my life I’m almost speechless, but not totally. I always knew Ricardo had troubles, deep troubles. But when he grew up, I thought he’d outgrown them. I remember though when his poor mother passed...she killed herself you know...it was the talk of the town. I’ll never forget the look on Ricky’s face at the cemetery. I went up to him to pay my condolences, and you know he looked right through me. He looked straight through me and walked away. He’d just become a policeman then.”
Alan feared this personal essay of Sandra’s could drone on for hours. And personally he wasn’t up for listening to Sandra for that long. And he didn’t really want to hear all that stuff about Rick over again. The thought of Rick Alvarez right now sickened him. When Liz had told the part about the near rape, he had felt his teeth clench. Alvarez deserved to die as far as he was concerned. He twisted in his chair and cleared his throat. “Can you speed it up, Sandra? Just get to the point, okay?”
“Alan,” Liz cautioned.
“It’s all right, honey. I understand Alan. He’s always been impatient. Well, maybe he’s right. I do tend to get carried away sometimes. But you wanted to hear the family history I believe, wasn’t that your intention, all of you?” Sandra gawked around the room at the three others.
“I’m trying to understand why Ricardo did what he did,” Liz said. “When Jessie first met him, she thought he was a nice person, and she trusted him. She thought he was going to help her.”
“He has good qualities,” Sandra said. “He’s a lot like his mother, but you know he has his father’s genes too. His father, now there’s a person. I’m going to go back a bit further though first. I went to school with Christine, Ricky’s mom. She was from a very nice family. Her grandfather, old Ricardo Gomez, owned and operated the gypsum mine. When he died he left everything to his son. Well, his son was not the businessman that his father was, and besides that he was a drunk. Suffice to say, he lost the mine. His only daughter went from riches to rags. The family had to move out of the big house and ended up renting a dump. Christine was such a pretty girl, but both her parents were drunks. She was a grade A student until she reached grade nine. She started running around then with a number of guys, and she ended up getting pregnant. But the baby’s father wasn’t wild. He picked her out of the trash and he would have married her. I think she loved him too. I didn’t think it at the time because that’s when we stopped being friends...for a while that is. She was carrying little Ricky when she came to me again. I hadn’t had anything to do with her for years, but I’m getting ahead of my story.”
Alan was also getting restless. He wondered what the point of all this was. But Liz had insisted in dredging up all of Alvarez’s past. If she wanted to know so much about him, and if it would help get Jessie over all this, he’d try and be patient for their sake.
“The boyfriend I’m talking about was Alton Davis. He —”
“The police chief?” Kent blurted loudly, almost unbelievably.
Everyone in the room gaped at Sandra. They seemed spellbound by her story, as if somehow she would make sense out of the whole crazy puzzle. Sandra had stopped in mid sentence. It took a lot to stop Sandra from talking, and Kent, along with the other two, waited for her answer with baited breath.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Sandra paused only slightly then continued on with a simple nod. “Like I said, he wanted to marry her, but Christine’s aunt, her dad’s only sister and a respectable woman in the community, sent her off to Spain. She had put plans in motion for Christine to have an abortion there and for her to stay with relatives. But Christine had her own plans. She wasn’t about to have an abortion, and when she met Dominic Alvarez, she ran away from the relatives. She and Dominic got married and she brought him back to Canada.”
Alan interrupted, “Do we really need to hear all this gossip?”
Liz shushed him and encouraged Sandra to keep talking. Sandra picked up right where she’d left off, as if she were a tape recording bouncing back and forth between play and pause. “When the little girl, Julia, was born, Dominic got suspicious. The baby was fair skinned and blonde. She didn’t look anything like either one of them. He started hanging around with some drinking buddies, and he soon learned of Christine’s past relationship with Alton. Christine finally confessed one night, after he’d beaten the living daylights out of her. But she never left him. She was faithful to that man with all her foolish heart.”
“You said you didn’t see her for a long time,” Liz said.
“I’d see her around. But one day when she was pregnant for Ricky, she showed up on my doorstep. She had a black eye and she looked like she was going to collapse. I took her in, poor thing, and gave her something to eat, and she told me she was terrified of him. That’s when I found out all this stuff for real. She said he’d been gone for two days, after he’d beaten her bad. I could have wept when she told me that he abused the little girl too. She a
sked me for money. Said she was gonna leave him. She called it a loan and said when she got a job and got on her feet, she’d pay me back. You know what I said? I told her to go home and get the girl and come stay with me. She couldn’t work in her condition. Besides, she was about eight months pregnant. She agreed and I waited all evening for her.”
When she didn’t come, I got in my car and went out to that little shack. But he answered the door and ordered me to get off his property. I saw Christine huddled behind the stove, her arm around the girl. The look in her eyes was something I’ll never forget. Those eyes were dead. She never came to me again. I saw her around, and watched the kids grow up. Poor little sad things, both the cutest things you’d ever see.”
Sandra clammed up. Just as if the tape had ended. She sat staring straight ahead, not rocking or moving. Then she raised one hand and wiped her eyes. She rose as all in the room were quiet. “I have to go now. Earl will be looking for me. This is a terrible thing has happened...for all concerned.”
She walked over to Alan and he stood up. Sandra wrapped her long arms around his body. “I’m sorry about your troubles. I’ll be praying for yah. And God help me, I’ll be praying for Ricky too.” She sped from the room, long legs striding quickly towards the kitchen door. It closed softly.
Kent rose and so did Liz. She stood beside the two of them. “Why don’t we all get some sleep?” she suggested. “We didn’t get much last night.” Then she twigged. “I never even introduced you two. Alan, this is Kent Morgan, Jessie’s—”
“Friend,” Kent finished for her. He reached over for Alan’s hand, and Alan took it and obliged with a smile.
“So you’re the one who saved Jessie?” Alan asked.
“Not alone,” Kent answered. “Liz had a big hand in doing that, and Jessie herself made the first move.”
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