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April 20, 2002
The following morning after Joseph left for work, Lovette kept her promise. She called Joseph at the office just to make sure he was actually there. Satisfied that he wouldn’t be making a surprise visit back home, Lovette drove Mary back to the field.
“Mama, is was right here. I swear it was,” said Mary. The whole thing only made her that much more frustrated because she knew the exact spot it was supposed to be in. The huge trees that stood on each side of the shed had both been there. She knew it had been the exact same trees because one of them had been leaning over.
Lovette felt that something was off. The grass they had been standing over didn’t match the grass around them. They were two different greens.
“Go over there and look between those trees,” said Lovette.
“It wasn’t over there. It was here,” said Mary in a stern voice.
“Look. I’m trying to help you, so just do as I say,” demanded Lovette.
Stomping away, Mary pretending to be doing what her mother told her to do. She knew it wouldn’t be in the opposite direction and felt like it had been pointless.
Lovette bent down towards the grass and tugged at it. Just as she suspected, the grass moved. Feeling around for its perimeter, she finally discovered a corner and peeled it back.
Cement. Nothing but cement. Lovette tugged at the grass she knew didn’t match and stuck her finger into it. Pulling her hand up, there was dirt beneath her fingernail.
“What are you doing?” asked Mary. Lovette hadn’t felt her behind her and jumped. Laying the grass back down on top of the cement, Lovette dusted her hands off and stood back up.
“Nothing. Let’s go,” said Lovette.
“But, mama…”
“I said we’re leaving. We’ll talk about this later.” Mary said nothing else and followed behind her mother feeling as if she were back at square one.
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April 26, 2002
“You sure you don’t need me to turn around and take care of you?” asked Joseph.
“No. We promised him we would visit this weekend. He knows I don’t feel well. Plus, you two are long overdue for a father and son outing,” replied Lovette. “Did Mary act up on the way to your mom’s?”
“She told me she hated me and that I was the worst father ever. I really think it’s time to get her admitted,” lied Joseph.
In fact, Mary hadn’t said a word to him the entire ride to her grandparent’s house. After her mother failed to do anything and her father continued to lie, she was glad to be getting away from the both of them.
“She’ll get better. I’m about to get some rest,” said Lovette.
“I’ll call you later. I love you.”
“Love you, too.”
As soon as she hung up the phone, she grabbed her car keys along with the set of copies she had secretly made and headed over to Joseph’s office.
There was work she had to do. Work that she had avoided doing over the years. All of the suspicions she had but never fully acted on them caused her to have a lot of regret.
Pulling up to the office, Lovette felt a sense of relief knowing that no vehicles were in the lot. It was Friday evening and nobody was supposed to be at the office afterhours. Had it been someone there, her plans would’ve been ruined.
Pulling out the piece of paper from her purse, Lovette placed the key in the door and stepped inside. Glancing at the paper as if she hadn’t memorized the security pin, she punched in the numbers to disarm the system.
Lovette waited for a few seconds to see if a dog would come running around the corner. Nothing. Either they had gotten rid of the security dog or there was never one. She knew it had to have been the latter.
The smell in the office was nice. It smelled as if someone had just sprayed or maybe even lit a candle. The receptionist’s area was kept neat and a bottle of blue nail polish sat right next to the phone.
Searching through the desk, all of the files and cabinets, Lovette found nothing. Just a bunch of women’s magazines, receipts from buyers and colorful pens. If she didn’t know any better, Joseph’s newest receptionist was a teenager.
Lovette slowly walked down the hall and peeped into the two office rooms before Joseph. The first one had belonged to Will and the second one had been the security footage room. Deciding she would come back to this room last, Lovette headed to Joseph’s office
Twisting his office doorknob, she had expected for it to be locked. Placing each key in the door until one opened the door, Lovette stepped inside and closed the door behind her.
Everything in Joseph’s office required a key. The closet, desk, file cabinets, and even a pen box that sat on his desk. Taking out her set of keys, she opened the file cabinet first.
The top file cabinet was filled with office supplies. The second was filled with miscellaneous papers that Lovette didn’t too much understand. Opening up the third cabinet, it was completely empty.
“Tuh. All these things are locked for no damn reason,” said Lovette out loud to herself. She continued to search throughout the whole office and nothing caught her attention. Deciding to go look at the camera footage, Lovette made sure the office was exactly how he had left it. Turning to leave, the closet’s gold lock caught her attention.
Running her hands along the black matte door, she tried the keys until one had been its match. Pulling it open, she was faced with boxes on top of boxes stacked up under the top shelf. Pulling the first one open, there were highlighted tabs filed one after another.
“What in the…” whispered Lovette.
Chapter 30: The plan.
April 27, 2002
“Hey. I’m coming to get Mary. I feel better and I want to take her on a girl’s day out,” said Lovette.
“You sure? Joseph said you were pretty ill and we love having her over. She’s been helping me in the garden. I couldn’t get that child to touch dirt a year ago and now, look at her,” laughed Sarah.
“Yea, she’s definitely growing up. I just really miss her and we haven’t gotten a chance to do much together lately. I’ll be over in a few. Don’t tell Joseph I’m coming. He’s just going to make a fuss and I feel fine,” said Lovette.
Hanging up the phone, Lovette called around to see what she could do with the information she had found in Joseph’s office. His power had now been shifted upon her. He had left her in the dark for so many years and she now had enough of it.
Pulling into her in-law’s driveway, Mary had been sitting on the front porch waiting for her. Lovette felt warm inside knowing that Mary wasn’t mad at her for not finding anything out in the field.
“I’m only coming with you because I know we are going shopping,” said Mary as she slid into the car and put her seatbelt on.
“Fair enough. We have a lot to talk about anyway. I believe you,” said Lovette.
Mary’s throat felt dry. Finally. She couldn’t believe the words that her mother was saying but at the same time, she was glad she had finally heard them.
“Really?” she questioned.
“Yes. Are you hungry?” asked Lovette while changing the subject.
“No. You know Grandma loves to cook and wasn’t going to let me out the door before I ate again for the twentieth time today,” said Mary.
Lovette laughed because she knew her daughter hadn’t been exaggerating. Sarah loved to feed everyone and denying her food would only hurt her feelings.
“How did you enjoy your grandparents?”
“It was okay. Grandpa just yelled at the TV, as usual. Grandma cooked and kept asking me about “the boy she heard I like”,” said Mary. Her voice faded out near the end of her sentence.
She had missed Eric and was torn that she hadn’t known where he was or what her father had done to him. Mary had gone against what her fathered warned her and
for all she knew, he was dead by now.
“Hey. It’s okay. People are still looking for him. I went over to Bill’s yesterday and he told me that he was going to visit some surrounding states to look around for him. Hopefully, he shows up soon. Try not to think too much about it,” replied Lovette.
“So, why do you believe me all of a sudden?” asked Mary. She knew her mother was trying to shy away from talking about it and wanted to know more about what she had recently found out. Pulling into Shawford Mall, Lovette parked the car and turned towards Mary.
“Let’s save that for home. We have all night to talk about that. For now, let’s shop until our feet hurt. You can have whatever you want. I mean it,” said Lovette.
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Lovette and Mary had just gotten home from shopping and putting everything up. When she told Mary she could have anything she had wanted, she took it literal. Lovette had spent over $5,000 between the both of them and every penny had been worth it.
Placing the chicken in the pan and watching it sizzle, Lovette took a sip of her wine. She turned around to face Mary sitting at the kitchen island.
“I really do believe you,” started Lovette. “Your father…my husband…he isn’t who we think he is.”
“That’s what I was trying to tell you! He’s a maniac and he needs to pay for what he’s done to Eric and all of the other people he had down there,” said Mary.
The house phone started ringing, Lovette held up her finger to Mary and ran into the downstairs guest room.
“Hello.”
“Hey. It’s…Mike. I’m glad you answered. I didn’t want to have to explain to Joe why I was calling. I just needed to talk to someone.”
“It sounds serious. What’s going on?” asked Lovette.
“It’s Monica. She’s…dead. Well, someone killed her this morning. She was in the parking deck getting into her car and someone shot her,” said Mike in a cold and low tone.
“Mike, I’m so sorry! That is terrible! Nobody deserves that. I know it’s extremely new but…how are you holding up?” asked Lovette.
“I don’t know how to feel besides angry. I just want to find out who did this to her just so I can kill them myself and maybe the anger will subside,” said Mike. “I just don’t understand why someone would do this to her.”
“People are crazy and do crazy shit. She didn’t deserve it and you don’t deserve this. Is there anything I can do for you?” replied Lovette.
“You’ve already done something just by listening. I just needed to hear a familiar voice. Sorry if that sounds weird. I just don’t know what to do right now.”
“It’s normal to feel like this. Everything just happened. It’s the same way I felt when my parents were killed,” said Lovette. Shaking her head, she tried to rid the thought and keep the focus on Mike.
“I understand exactly how you feel. It takes time to sort your feelings out. Don’t rush yourself to be okay. Move at your own speed,” she continued.
“Thank you. That really means a lot to me and I’ll keep that in mind. Hey, look. Can I call you some other time? Maybe later? It’s some things I need to handle,” said Mike.
“Sure. I’m here all day. Joseph is going to be out of town visiting Joey until Monday night.” Hanging up the phone, Lovette went back in the kitchen to check on her food and finish talking to Mary.
“Mama, he’s crazy and has to pay,” repeated Mary.
“I know. And…he will,” said Lovette. She took a long sip of her wine and begun to feel a buzz. “You cannot tell you father anything. You can’t tell your grandparents or Joey either. No one can know about anything we talk about. Okay?”
“Okay.”
“I’m serious, Mary. We have got to work together to figure this out. If anyone else finds out, they won’t believe us.”
“I promise. I won’t tell anyone.”
Lovette stared at her for a few seconds without saying anything. Mary needed to know how serious the matter had been. When she had felt confident enough, she continued talking.
“I know how we can solve everything, help those people and get Eric back,” said Lovette. She had Mary’s full attention and now was the time for her to put her plan into action.
“Remember when you said you couldn’t wait until your father dies?” asked Lovette.
“Yea, well…” said Mary.
“Well, that’s the thing. You were right. He does deserve to die,” said Lovette.
Mary’s eyes had gotten so wide. She would’ve never expected for her mother to say such a thing. She had said those things out of anger and wasn’t sure if she had really meant it.
“But…I can’t be the one to do it. I’ll go to jail and you’ll never get to see me again,” said Lovette.
“Be the one to do what?” asked Mary. She had a feeling about what her mother was getting at but didn’t want to think it had been that.
“The one to kill him,” said Lovette with no emotion at all. The expression on her face added emphasis to how serious she had been.
“Mama…” whispered Mary.
“Your father has done some awful things and have hurt a lot of people. We have to get rid of him so that we can help people who are innocent. Isn’t that what you want, right?”
Mary nodded her head. She wanted Eric back and she wanted everyone to know what kind of person her father had been but she didn’t know about him actually dying. She was confused and didn’t know how to feel.
“Just listen. Your father is a bad very bad man. This is something neither one of us knew. In order for the good people to stop feeling pain, we have to take him out. You understand that, don’t you?”
“Yes, mama.” Mary had started to see her mother’s side and now felt as if she agreed. Her father was a bad man that had hurt people. People like him didn’t deserve to walk around as if they were a good person.
“If I do it, you’ll never see me again. Is that what you want?” asked Lovette.
“No, mama. I don’t,” replied Mary.
“You have to be the one to do it. You’re a child. Children don’t go to jail,” said Lovette.
“But…”
“Joey won’t believe us. He told me that there was never a shed. We can’t trust him to do this. We can make it fast,” said Lovette. “Think about what he did to Eric.”
Eric. Lovette saying his name had triggered Mary. Eric had been the one person who understood her and never judged her. He was important to her and she wanted him back. She would do it for Eric.
“Okay,” said Mary.
Lovette was surprised at how easy it had been to convince her. She thought it would take more due to Mary always being so set on doing the opposite of what they told her to do.
“I have a plan that will make everything go smoothly. You have to do exactly what I tell you to do. Nothing more and nothing less; exactly what I tell you to do. Okay?” Mary nodded her head. Turning around to flip the chicken, the opposite side had been burned.
“Shit. Well…go order a pizza,” said Lovette.
Chapter 31: “You put on a good act.”
May 4, 2002
Lovette poured both glasses of champagne and watched one fizz more than the other. Picking them up and walking into the family room, Joseph had been sitting on the couch and was watching The Green Mile.
“Imagine having to feel like that just from taking a piss,” said Joseph as Lovette entered in the room. “Champagne? What are we celebrating?”
“Oh. Just new beginnings, I guess. Hopefully, things will get better around here soon. Mary seems to be doing better,” said Lovette.
“I that case, I’ll toast to that. Yea, she does seem to be calming down some,” said Joseph while taking a large swig of the drink. Lovette watched him swallow and took a sip of her own.
“How’s work been? Did you keep…I mean, meet any new people?” asked Lovette. She watched his brows furrow and quickly release.
“No. Haven’t really made any new business partners,” said Joseph. “We’re doing. We really don’t need anyone new. I’m thinking about selling very soon and looking at new opportunities.”
Joseph blinked his eyes continuously and rubbed them as if something were blurring his vision. Sitting back on the sofa and rolling his shoulders, he looked at Lovette with crossed eyes.
“Joe. You okay?” asked Lovette.
“Yea. I think I need to go lie down. It’s been a long day,” he replied.
“Oh, no! I wanted to have a little fun but if you aren’t feeling well, just relax for a while and we can watch a little more of the movie together,” pouted Lovette. Her disappointment made him lie back on the couch in an attempt to relieve the pressure he had been feeling in his head.
Joseph hadn’t been lying down for more than 45 seconds before he had begun to snore. Slowing moving from up under his feet, Lovette headed up to Mary’s bedroom.
“Hey. You ready?” asked Lovette.
Mary’s face instantly had concern on it. She didn’t want to do this…but, she wanted Eric back. She wanted her only friend and to be able to laugh again. If this was the only way, she would have to do it.
“I guess,” she replied.
“Everything is going to go as planned. Do it exactly where I told you to. Then, we can go get Eric. I’m sure I know where he is,” said Lovette.
Instantly, Mary rose to her feet. Hearing her mother say she knew where her father had been keeping him made her anxious and happy at the same time.
Both of them walked downstairs towards the family room where Joseph had been sleeping. Handing her daughter the knife, Lovette stood back and watched Mary stand over Joseph’s head. As soon as Lovette gave her the greenlight, Joseph opened his eyes and coughed.
“Shit!” whispered Lovette. “Just do it!”
“Mary, WHAT IN THE HELL ARE YOU DOING WITH…” shouted Joseph. He was stuck in his position and was too in shock to move.
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