by Jay Lang
“What the fuck are you doing in my office? And why did you bring this bitch with you?”
Tank, who is standing behind Fournier, slowly maneuvers around him and walks over and stands beside Slinky.
“What in the hell is this?” Fournier asks Tank.
“It’s a revolt, so to speak,” declares Slinky, grinning.
“You better hope you’re fucking joking, you junkie piece of shit.”
Slinky looks at Tank and then nods. Tank reaches behind his back and pulls out a hand-gun.
This is it. It’s the end of the road. I can feel it. My knees almost give out and I feel like I’m going to faint.
“Oh, you’re going to kill me, is that the plan?” Fournier says, laughing. “And then what? You and the big idiot are going to take over my business?”
“You got it now, boss,” says Slinky.
“And what the fuck are you doing here? “he says, pointing at me.
I open my mouth to speak but no words come out.
Slinky intervenes, “We figured we tie up our loose ends at the same time. You know, kill two birds with one stone.”
“Or two bullets,” Tank laughs, idiotically.
“I don’t give a flying shit what you do to this dumb bitch, but you’re making a catastrophic mistake if you fuck with me,” Fournier says gritting his teeth.
The tension in the room is so thick you can almost see it. All four of us stare at each other. The only two that aren’t showing fear are Slinky and Tank.
Then, I hear the sound of the door opening again.
I turn around, wondering what other threat is coming through the door. Stunned, I can’t believe who I’m seeing. “Dad. What are you doing here? How did you know where I was?”
“You shouldn’t leave your phone out if you’re trying to hide something. Now, be quiet Jules,” he says.
“I don’t fucking believe it,” says Slinky. “It’s John boy. How did you get in here?”
“I know Darlene, too.” Dad says, matter of factly.
“What is this, a family reunion?” says Fournier.
“Go to hell, Fournier. You ruined my life, you son of a bitch, and now you’re trying to take away my daughter? It isn’t gonna happen. Not while I’m still here,” my dad says, reaching in his jacket and pulling out a silver revolver.
“Dad, where the hell did you get that?” Right after I ask, Charlie’s face flashes through my mind.
Fournier looks at my father, “You stupid sod. I didn’t ruin your life. You’re looking in the wrong direction. Slinky is the one that butchered your wife and then set you up for her murder.”
“Bullshit,” my father yells, “You’re a liar.”
“Well, actually, no. He’s not lying,” Slinky says, smugly. “You were just too stupid to figure it out,” he laughs. “See, when I went to your apartment all those years ago and I brought you and Jean dope. I gave you both a hot dose, and I did the clean one. After we were done shooting up, the two of you hit the floor. Since you owed Fournier a lot of money at the time, I figured that if I did him a favor and took care of you two, he’d wipe my debt clean. Only, when I called him to come to your apartment, he got pissed off and told me that because of what I had just done, I ruined any chance he had of getting paid the money you owed him. So, in his infinite fucking wisdom, he made me responsible for both my debt and yours. How’s that for instant Karma,” Slinky laughs. So, there I was with a corpse and you overdosing on the floor. I had to come up with a plan quick or it would’ve been my ass in the clink and not yours. So, I rolled you around in Jean’s blood and stabbed her in the hands so it looked like she tried to defend herself then lastly, I placed the knife beside you. I was actually shocked how well it all worked,” he says, boastfully.
I stand looking at Slinky, loathing him with every fiber of my being.
“You got lucky, Slinky. You’re a little pissant and there’s nobody that’s listed in that book that will ever sell anything to you. You’re a small-time player in a big man’s game. You hear me?” says Fournier.
Slinky turns to Tank and nods. Then, with one motion, Tank raises his hand and points the gun at Fournier and pulls the trigger. The blast is so loud, everything sounds distorted. My father yells for me to get behind him.
Slinky nods at Tank again looking at my father. I move in front of my dad to shelter him then I hear the gunshot. Horrified, I turn and face Dad, scanning his body for a wound.
“I’m not hit, Jules.”
Then, I hear a loud thud, turning around in time to see Tank collapsing in the corner.
Dad yells at me to get out of the room now.
“I’m not leaving you.”
“Get out, and I mean it. Slinky and I have some unfinished business.”
Reluctantly, I slowly walk out of the room and close the door.
My body stiffens when I hear the blast.
* * *
.
It’s been six weeks since they arrested my father and hauled him away for the second time. Because of court proceedings, I was only able to have brief visits while he was waiting for trial. Now, he’s back in Matsqui but this time, he’s not in the main prison, he’s in the Regional Treatment Center on the prison grounds. Katie and I are going to see him this afternoon.
Life has been surprisingly good for us since that night at the bar. Initially, there was a lot of media coverage about Slinky, Tank and Fournier’s death, but after a week or so, more current news took its place.
Even though my dad isn’t here at the apartment with us, I don’t feel sad. Because being in a medical prison facility, he’s getting help with his pain and is in relatively good spirits considering he’s so emaciated and weak. Just yesterday he called me and told me that he doesn’t mind being locked up because this time, he’s actually guilty. Plus, he feels that he did society a favor by killing Slinky and Tank. Dad says that if they had lived, they would’ve just continued to do evil. I can’t argue with that.
Chapter Sixteen
Katie is in the bedroom getting ready for our drive up the Fraser Valley to visit Dad. With only a few minutes to spare, I use the washroom to brush my hair and put on some make-up. I hear my cell ring in the living room and ask Katie to grab it. Ed is probably calling to offer me another case. It’s been busy lately at work. It seems like as soon as I get through one job, he’s handing me another.
When I’m finished getting ready, I walk out of the bathroom and see Katie at the end of the hall. Her face is pale and drawn. She looks upset as she speaks into the phone. By the time I reach her, the call has ended and she holds my cell out to me.
“What is it?” I ask nervously.
“It’s, John. I’m so sorry, Jules,” she says, breaking into tears.
I take my phone from her and walk over to sit on the couch. There’s a part of me that’s devastated. I lost my only living family member, my dad. And then there’s the other part of me that is grateful that he’s no longer suffering. All his pain is gone now. As I sit and stare out the window looking at the grey, dismal sky, in the distance, I see a small break in the clouds where blue is showing through. Instantly, I remember my father and me at the graveyard, kneeling over Mom’s and Abby’s graves. I remember what he said, “I’ll see you soon, my girls.”
Warm tears stream down my cheeks.
Katie sits beside me, “I’m sorry you’re sad, Jules.”
“I’m not,” I say, looking in her eyes. “I’m happy.”
* * *
The grey overcast has been replaced with a clear night sky. The call we received about Dad just hours ago has left a somber energy in the apartment. Katie and I call Charlie to come over and we share the news. Charlie told us that even though he hadn’t known my dad long, Johnwas like a best friend to him.
“Dad liked you a lot, Charlie.” I say, patting his shoulder. Katie and I promise him that we’ll invite him over a couple of times a week for dinner and socializing. He smiles and seems happy about that. When Charlie shuf
fles back to his apartment, I decide to take Katie for a drive to clear our heads. In the truck, I turn on an easy listening station and gasp when I hear what song is playing -Aupres de Ma Blonde, the song my father used to whistle. My heart feels both light and heavy as I drive toward Second Beach.
I park in the same spot by the shore where I parked with Dad on our visit here. Then, Katie listens while I tell her about how when my parents were young, they would come here at night, strip off their clothes and go skinny-dipping. She laughs, looks out the window for any onlookers then starts undressing. “What the hell are you doing?”
“I’m doing this as an homage to your dad,” she says, sliding out of her jeans.
“Katie, are you kidding me?”
“Nope,” she says, now totally naked.
“Don’t be crazy.”
She pushes open the door and runs on the sand toward the water.
Oh, shit. I guess I forgot to mention that when my parents did this, it was summer. Shaking my head and laughing, I quickly peel out of my clothes and open the truck door. “This one’s for you, Dad.”
The End
Jay Lang books also published by BWL Publishing Inc.
Hush
Jay Lang grew up on the ocean, splitting her time between Read Island and Vancouver Island before moving to Vancouver to work as a TV, film and commercial actress. Eventually she left the industry for a quieter life on a live-a-board boat, where she worked as a clothing designer for rock bands. Five years later she moved to Abbotsford to attend university. There, she fell in love with creative writing and wrote five novel manuscripts in a year. She spends her days hiking and drawing inspiration for her writing from nature.