Sue (5 page)

When they returned to Sue’s house,
Melvin helped her carry in her purchases and then stood awkwardly at the door.
“When do you need me again?”

“Let’s get one thing clear.
I
don’t need you at all.” Sue’s eyes flashed. “I’m just tolerating you to appease
my folks. Don’t get a big head.”

Without a word, Melvin spun on his
heel and marched to his car, slipping a little on the snow
. Sue slammed the door and carried her bags to her room,
hands trembling.
Why does he make me so angry? He’s a nice guy.
Kind of nerdy, but okay.
He’s nothing like Zeke.
She
stopped,
packages in hand, as if stunned. That was the
problem. He was nothing like Zeke. Zeke was cool. Melvin was not. Zeke had been
graced with stunning looks, a muscular lithe body that oozed sex appeal, and electric
blue eyes that pierced her soul. Melvin was ordinary with a lanky body and
unremarkable brown eyes. Zeke moved like a cat, sure of himself, comfortable in
his skin. Melvin had a loping gait, almost awkward. Zeke was smooth, knew
exactly what to say; Melvin struggled to make conversation with her.

Sue tossed the new clothes on her
bed and dropped down beside them. She put an arm under her head and stared at
the ceiling. Zeke would never have tolerated the attitude she displayed toward
Melvin. If she’d dared to snap at Zeke that way, he’d have hurt her. Melvin
just seemed to absorb the verbal abuse, never struck back. So why did she treat
him so badly? She decided to present the question to Dr. Camden at her next
appointment.

Feeling better, she sat up. She
wanted to check her voice mail to see if Zeke had tried to contact her. As she
plugged the phone in to charge, her landline rang and she picked it up.

“Hello.”

“Susan? Will Falstaff here.”

“Oh, hi.”

“Um, I’d like to come by and talk
to you, if you’re not busy.”

“No, I’m not busy. What’s this
about?” Sue fiddled with her new haircut, suddenly nervous.

“Well, we’ll talk when I get
there.” He sounded firm.

“Is it about Zeke?” She held her
breath.

“No, no.
Nothing
like that.
I’ll be over in about ten minutes.”

Sue went downstairs and prepared a
pot of coffee. She glanced at her watch while waiting for the investigator. It
was Saturday and her parents had gone to run some errands, knowing Sue would be
with Melvin. She hoped they didn’t return before she found out what Will
wanted.

The coffee was done by the time
Will arrived. Sue let him in and offered him a cup, which he accepted. Once
they were settled, Will took a sip of his drink and then leaned forward.

“Has Melvin said or done something
to offend you?” he asked, his eyes curious.

“No. Why?”

“Well, I’m just going to be direct
about this, Susan. Melvin’s asked to be taken off the job. He doesn’t want to
escort you anymore, but he won’t tell me why, so I’d like you to tell me what
the problem is.”

The shock showed on Sue’s face. “He
doesn’t want to guard me anymore?
Really?”

“Really.
Any idea why?”

Sue’s face flushed. “I guess I
haven’t exactly been nice to him.”

“I suspected as much. But I don’t
understand what you have against him.” Will’s voice was gentle.

“Well, I’m really not sure. I can’t
put my finger on it.” Sue jumped to her feet and began pacing, wincing a
little. “It’s just something about him, about the whole situation. I mean, look
at him! There’s no way he could protect me anyway. Look at those geeky glasses
he wears! Plus, he has asthma, for crying out loud, always puffing on that
stupid inhaler. He’s weak.
A sissy.
A
puss...pushover.”

Will chewed his lip thoughtfully.
“You’re wrong. Melvin’s not a pushover, Sue. He’s a gentleman.” He smiled suddenly.
“I bet he didn’t tell you he’s a former Golden Gloves champ
, did he?”

“Golden Gloves?
No, he didn’t mention it.” Sue frowned, starting to feel foolish.

“Well, he’s a humble sort, not the
type to brag. Something else I’ll bet you don’t know about him; it’s not
exactly asthma that he has. His lungs were damaged in a house fire when he was
a kid. He was out; he was safe. But he ran back inside because his baby brother
was still in there. I think Melvin was about seven or eight years old when that
happened.”

Sue’s face went pale.
“Oh my god.
He rescued his brother?”

Will’s expression was strained. “He
got him out, but the little guy didn’t make it.”

“That’s awful. I had no idea.” Sue
dropped into the easy chair and rubbed her forehead. “I’m an idiot. But wait,
how can he box with the lung problem he has?”

“It only affects him when he gets
agitated,” Will
said
. “I’ve seen him in the ring. He
doesn’t get rattled there; he’s calm, confident. Pretty cool customer when he’s
boxing. I suspect he uses the inhaler for more of a security thing than for
medical reasons, but I could be wrong.”

“No kidding.” Sue turned
thoughtful, absorbing the information. “Look, I feel really bad about the way
I’ve acted. Do you think he’d reconsider being my escort?
If
I promise to try to get along?
If he’s willing, then I guess it’d be
okay for him to tag along with me.
But not forever.
Just for a little while longer.”

“Well, I’ll have a talk with him
and see what he thinks. He may not want to return; it’ll be up to him.”

Not long after Will left and Sue’s
parents returned, she retired to her room. With trembling hands, she picked up
her charged cell phone.

Tears gathered in her eyes as she
listened to pleas from her parents that had been left while she was gone. She
finally just deleted the remainder without listening past the first few words.
There were no messages from Zeke.

She sank to the edge of her bed and
tried to calm herself. Why had she hoped to hear from him anyway? She doubted
her sanity and was unable to fathom her motivations. Her mind clouded from the
cacophony of mixed emotions.

Chapter
8

A week later, Sue was watching TV
when her mom came into the house lugging several large bags of groceries.
Hopping up, Sue took two of the sacks, set them on the kitchen cabinet, pulled
on her coat, and followed her mom back to the vehicle. “Wow, this is a lot of
stuff. What are you planning to do? Feed an army?”

Linda laughed as they brought in
the last load and set the bags on the counter. “You might say that. You realize
this Thursday is Thanksgiving, don’t you?”

Sue’s face blanched.
“Oh, no.
I forgot.” She plopped into a kitchen chair and
lowered her head into her hands.
“Mom?
Is everyone
coming?”

Her mom turned and looked at her
daughter. “We thought that maybe this year we’d just have the three of us. We
didn’t think you’d be ready for a big gathering. Were we right?”

Sue sprang from her seat and
wrapped her arms around her mom’s waist. She kissed her on the cheek. “You were
spot on right. I love you.”

“Well, I love you too, honey.”

Sue froze.
What did she say?

“Honey?”
Her mom asked. “Are you okay?”

“What? Oh. Yes. I’m sorry. I don’t
know where I went. Guess I was daydreaming,” Sue babbled, trying to cover up
her momentary surprise. “If it’s going to be just us, how come you bought so
much?”

“Well, no matter how many are
eating we still need the same food. Turkey,
ingredients for dressing, potatoes,” she smiled, “you know, all the good stuff.

Sue hung up her coat and returned
to help put everything away before escaping to her room. She still felt
shocked. She’d have sworn her mom had called her by the pet name Zeke used so
often; Bunny. She shivered, remembering how much she’d loved it at the time.
And, if she was honest with herself, she still longed to hear the word from his
lips. Sue buried her face in her pillow and cried.

The next afternoon Sue’s dad drove her
to Dr. Camden’s office. It would be her last appointment until early next week.
Settling back in the comfortable chair, Sue stared at the ceiling and spoke
slowly. “How can I still miss him so much? He hurt me; he’s a monster. But
sometimes I literally ache to feel his touch again. Why?”

The doctor’s face was kindly.
“There is a progression involved in unraveling what you feel from what you
know. In your mind, you are unable to separate the man who won you over from
the man who tried to kill you. But
it’s
coming, Sue.
You’ll get there. Remember, he used some pretty effective brainwashing
techniques on you, set up a dichotomy. We’re going to work to merge those two
opposing visions.”

She encouraged Sue to open up about
the beginning of the relationship, relive the tender and sensual moments,
really
immerse herself in the recollections. Longing swelled
inside her as she revealed the most intimate details to the doctor. Then Dr.
Camden asked about the night of Brenda’s murder and Sue felt the soft cloud of
romantic memory she’d been floating on vanish in a puff as she was abruptly
compelled to confront the real Zeke.

“Oh god.”
Sue buried her face in her hands. “It was awful. She screamed and screamed. I
can’t stand to think about it.” Tears rolled from her eyes and the doctor
handed her the box of tissues. Once the flood was over, Sue sniffed and blew
her nose. “I hate breaking down like that. But I have to admit I feel better.”

Before the appointment ended, Dr.
Camden recommended Sue start a journal. “Write everything in it.
Every feeling, positive or negative.
When you come back,
we’ll discuss what you’ve written, point by point.”

On the way home, Sue had her father
pull into a stationery store where she purchased two leather-bound notebooks
and a nice ink pen. She scribbled a few thoughts as they continued home.

Two days later found Sue and her
mother surrounded by freshly baked pies, deviled eggs, and stuffed celery. The
turkey smelled heavenly, resting on a platter waiting for her dad to carve. The
table was covered with delectable dishes: mashed potatoes fluffy and white
begging for a coating of turkey gravy, savory dressing, green bean casserole,
and hot rolls with browned tops.

Outside, the sky was gray and a
chill wind whistled around the corners of the house, a lonely sound that echoed
the emptiness Sue felt. She looked away from the window and tried to focus on the
warm cozy setting inside.

Sitting at the dining room table,
Sue and her parents clasped hands in a circle and silently gave thanks. Sue
wondered if Zeke was in town having dinner with his mother. A thrill of fear
mixed with excitement rushed through her. She forced away these forbidden
thoughts and gave thanks for being in the safety of her home. They all felt the
absence of family, aware of the missing jabber of aunts, uncles, and cousins.
But still, the meal was
enjoyable
and even the
clean-up went smoothly. Joyce called to wish her a happy Thanksgiving, and they
chatted for a short while, staying away from touchy subjects.

Later, Sue had an internal debate
with herself. Images of Zeke played through her mind: that million-dollar smile
he’d used to such great advantage, the vivid electric blue of his eyes, body so
lithe and perfectly-formed that at times she’d physically
ached
to touch
him. Part of her wanted to jump in the car and drive around looking for Zeke. A
wiser part issued a silent reprimand for even giving life to the thought.
Besides, where would she look? She had no idea where his mom lived. She’d just
be wasting time and gas. Instead she slumped in a living room chair and watched
a Christmas Special on TV.
Christmas.
Already.
They’d just eaten Thanksgiving dinner and were
already dealing with the next holiday.
Time flies when you’re having fun
,
Sue thought wryly and gazed out the frosty windows as another light snow fell.

Chapter 9

Following the holiday, the skies
remained overcast and a sense of gloom permeated the days. As snowplows cleared
the streets, the temperature plummeted and wind chills hovered around zero.

Feeling restless, Sue turned to her
computer. Every free moment was spent on the internet searching for hints as to
Zeke’s whereabouts. She was obsessed with finding him. Since Thanksgiving,
she’d already amassed a file of grisly news reports, a murder here,
an abduction
there. But none had really tripped any alarms
for her.

She had begun her search close to
home, thinking Zeke would have followed her to finish what he’d started,
wanting to complete the torture that would culminate in her death. But as the
days turned into weeks, Sue decided to direct her search closer to St.
Louis, the last place she’d been with Zeke.

Today her heart rate slammed into
high gear when she hit what she thought to be the jackpot. Darla
Stringe
, age nineteen and from a small town sixty miles
south of St. Louis, had been
reported missing by her parents just days after Zeke’s savage attack on Sue,
the one Will had interrupted. Sue printed the article.

She searched and scrolled through a
page of homicide reports. There she found an article about the body of a woman
that had been found a week later, two hundred miles from the site of Darla
Stringe’s
disappearance. Her face paled as she read the
details. This had to be the work of Zeke. Sue printed this story also.

She grabbed the pages from the
printer and hurried down the stairs to her parents’ doorway. Her mom was at
work, but her dad was here sleeping.

Just as she reached out to knock,
she experienced a flashback so intense she pulled her hand back as if she’d
been burned. In her mind, she could hear Zeke’s voice making despicable
assertions about Sue’s dad and his inappropriate intentions toward her as a
child. Shame flooded through her. Although she knew Zeke had lied, had only
been tricking her, she suddenly couldn’t enter the room before her.