Hungry for Love (32 page)

Norm looked at Chrissy then at his wife
,
then up in the air for a moment
,
picturing how this pace would be received in the bedroom.  Not even the vacuum whirred this fast.  He attempted to move faster
,
the sweat flying in all directions in a manner he could only consider gross.  No matter how he clung to the rails at the side
,
the machine was going too fast for him
,
and his head began to swim.  His face grew flushed and he felt a little woozy.  He wanted to yell help
,
but couldn
’
t get his breath regulated enough to speak
,
wanted to turn the machine off but was afraid to let loose of the rail
,
even with one hand.

Gasping
,
Norm reached for a water bottle
,
planning to douse his face with it
,
but it slid through his fingers
,
bouncing along the racing treadmill and onto the floor behind it.  He felt something inside of him clench then
,
and his eyes rolled back into his head
,
his hands let go and the machine flung him off too
,
as his hand reached for his chest.

In the background he could hear Lisa yelling his name and Chrissy yelling
,
“
Norm
,
get up immediately.  No faking.
”
  Then it all went black.

Chrissy was truly appalled when the paramedics arrived within minutes
,
all sorts of medical gadgets at the ready to shock Norm awake.  How could anyone let himself get so out of shape
,
she wondered.  In short order they
’
d revived him
,
but were still loading him on a stretcher and carrying him out to the ambulance.  Lisa didn
’
t even finish her session.  She clung to her husband
’
s hand and climbed into the ambulance beside him
,
shaking a fist at Chrissy
,
who was clearly the victim in all of this—she  hadn
’
t even been paid.

Chrissy wondered should she wait for Lisa to return
,
but hospitals were pretty slow so that would be hours.  She sat in her car
,
annoyed and frustrated.  Now and then she leaned forward and banged her head on the wheel
,
but wow that hurt and it didn
’
t seem to clear her head at all.

There was no way Kevin was going to let that psycho get the best of him—nobody got the best of Kevin.  And although he had the sense that he should avoid Sunset Boulevard for a while
,
he was damned if he would—fear was never going to be his co-pilot.  He was a tax paying American and a damned fine driver.  And besides his house was right off Sunset
,
so he had to get home.

He drove reasonably
,
the Porsche handling the seductive curves like a bustier on a bimbo.  Kevin loved this image and as he drove
,
he laughed
,
picturing many sets of breasts inside many bustiers.  But then it happened—there they were.  Again.  Frantically he thought about what to do and then epiphany struck—he could spin his car around and chase them—put the fear of God into them.  How would they feel when he was on their tail
?

But the determined black car was right on his rear bumper and he still couldn
’
t see who was behind the wheel.  The setting sun was in his eyes
,
shining too brightly to make out any image of the other driver.  But so what.  Even if he could see who it was
,
what good would that do
?

Maybe he should instigate a cataclysmic showdown.  As the car came closer and closer
,
he should slam on his brakes
,
let them crash into him.  He had excellent belts and bags and would be fine.  And a psycho like that probably wasn
’
t wearing seatbelts at all.  Maybe they
’
d shoot through the winshield and be launched into space
,
or better yet into the path of an oncoming vehicle.

Kevin kept driving
,
the other car on his tail
,
and just as they were about to crash
,
he slammed on the brakes
,
but the other car pulled out into the middle lane and a third car screeched to a stop behind him then smoothly pulled around him
,
making an obscene gesture
,
like he was some kind of menace.

And then
,
again
,
the cop lights went off.  Surely this time the cop would have seen what happened.  Kevin
,
at first relieved
,
opened his window to face the same barely pubescent cop
,
who by rights should have taken after his assailant.

“
You again
,”
said Kevin with disgust. 
“
You didn
’
t see that fucking black SUV again
?
  They
’
ve been trying to run me off the road for days.
”

“
Watch the language
,
doctor
,”
said the cop mellowly.

“
Language
,”
squawked Kevin
,
“
Language
?
  Language
?
  That
’
s what you think is important now
?
  Never mind that someone has been tailgating me
,
deliberately trying to run me off the road for days
?
  But no you
’
re worried about a language violation
?”

“
I saw the red VW you nearly caused to crash into you by coming to an abrupt stop.  Make you feel any better
?”

“
Oh my freaking God!
”
shouted Kevin. 
“
The other car.  The
other
car.  The black SUV.  The black SUV that tried to run me off the road.  The black SUV that veered around me before the VW.  Are you telling me you didn
’
t see that
?”

The officer handed Kevin another ticket and said
“
I
’
m telling you this.  Clean up your act.  Learn to drive.
”

Kevin snatched the ticket out of the cop
’
s hand and drove away
,
yelling
“
Donut eating asshole
,”
out of his window.

Bill and Angie sat congenially at one of the small tables in her deli.  There were several plates of food ready to be tasted and approved.  Briefly they laughed as they talked.

“
And I actually told Kevin—Dr. Flicker—I thought you were a quack
,”
said Angie with a big smile
,
which Bill returned. 
“
You really helped
,”
she went on
,
beginning to babble
,
a glazed look muddling her eyes.  She
’
d concluded Bill was a hero
,
and the look of adoration crossing her face was unmistakable. 
“
You
’
re a real healer
,
very talented
,
quite amazing.  I
’
m so impressed
,
I just can
’
t say.  Well I am saying
,
I
’
m saying it right now
,
right out loud.  Nobody has ever….
”

Bill gave her hand a quick
,
fatherly squeeze.  He was glad she was doing well.  Angie immediately reached out and pressed her other hand on top of his
,
rubbing it seductively. 

As Bill removed his hands
,
he said
,
“
Stop right now.  Think about what you
’
re feeling and why.
”

“
Oh my God!
”
exclaimed Angie
,
“
You
’
re correct again.  And you saw it right away.
”

At that moment Laura arrived and Bill rose to hug her
,
and pulled out a chair so she could sit and approve the last bit of food for the menu.  They each took some bites
,
nodding happily and smiling at Angie
,
who beamed.