Chapter 36

Friday, June 11, 2010

Ellen woke Jake shortly after seven.

“Kitten is gone and Havel will be here soon.”

“I can sleep in for a while this morning.”

“First, tell me why you didn’t sleep with me last night.”

“I was restless. I didn’t want to keep you from getting a good night’s sleep.”

“Don’t lie to me, Jake. I am your mother and I can tell.”

“Damnit, woman. Can’t a man practice a little well-intentioned deceit once in a while?”

“Stop joking. I want to know.”

“I was thinking about my father.”

“And you felt guilty?”

“Yes. And dirty by association.”

“And that’s the whole story?”

‘As much as I’m going to tell you.”

“Jake, you know that I don’t blame you for what your father did. I thought we had worked that out.”

“Sometimes I can’t help it.”

“What brought all this up again?”

“I’m not going to tell you.”

Ellen lay down beside him and put her head on his chest.

“I will never blame you for what that man did. You are my son and my master, Jake. You are my whole life. Please, don’t let this come between us.”

Jake kissed the top of her head.

“I love you, Ellen. I’ll do my best.”

The doorbell rang. Ellen got up to answer it and Jake pulled on a shirt and followed. Ellen let Havel in.

“Ah, the life of a student during the holidays,” Havel said as Jake shuffled over.

“And I’m going back to bed when you’re gone. My mom told me of your precautions yesterday, Mr. Havel. I approve.”

“Thank you. I always like to keep my clients happy.”

“I’m glad to hear that.” Jake looked at Ellen, “Mom, what are you going to do if my father approaches you.”

“I’m going to shoot to kill.”

“And what about the fall out?”

“You’ll take care of it.”

“Mr. Havel, what are you going to do if you see my father?”

“I will take the appropriate action.”

“What if he points a gun at her?”

“I will shoot him.”

“What if he points a deadly weapon at her that has a range of twenty feet?”

“I understand your point, Mr. Fielding. But I cannot use deadly force without a good reason.”

Last night I discovered my mother’s memories of being abducted by my father. You tell me if they constitute a good reason to use deadly force.

Jake steeled himself and went through Ellen’s memories one by one. He tried to put them in order, but he had not seen enough of them the night before. As a result, the sequence was haphazard. It might have been all the more horrible for it.

Havel sat down. He was pale and Jake could sense his nausea and his arousal. If it had been anyone besides Ellen, Jake would probably have shared the arousal.

“I don’t appreciate that, Mr. Fielding.”

And neither did I when I discovered it. I doubt it’s any consolation, but I felt worse than you do. According to his most recent victims, he’s gotten even crueler. I do not want my mother to fall into his hands again.

“So, please, tell me, Mr. Havel,” Jake said. “What are you going to do if you see my father?”

“I do not like to be bullied, Mr. Fielding. I will take the appropriate action. I will consider all the facts available to me if it becomes necessary to act.”

“I hope you don’t take too long deciding on the appropriate action. My father will take the choice away from you if you do.”

“Jake, what did you do?” Ellen asked.

“I’m not going to tell you.”

Mr. Havel, please, don’t tell her what I showed you. I haven’t decided yet whether I should show her those memories.

Jake did not go back to sleep after all. Instead, he checked his email and did some research on consciousness and the unconscious on the Internet. There was still nothing from his father. Jake was convinced that that was not a good sign. He was relieved when he got the hourly calls from Ellen at eight and nine o’clock.

There was a knock on the door moments after the nine o’clock call. Jerry’s investigator introduced himself as Tom Cheresh.

On the drive to Greenberg, Jake called Jan’s cell phone.

“I have need of your counsel, my Jedi master.”

“Then bring your swimming trunks, my young padawan. Wisdom will be dispensed from poolside today.”

“Thanks, Jan. Can I come by around two this afternoon?”

“Sure. A teacher has a very flexible schedule during the summer.”

The ride to Greenberg was mostly quiet. Cheresh was confused by Jake’s presence. He had been told that Jake was to be introduced to the witness, that he, Cheresh, should interview her if she were willing, and that he should bring back copies of her medical records if possible. Jake was a mystery the law office staff was very curious about.

“So tell me why a 13-year-old boy is going to meet an important witness on the biggest wrongful death case this state has ever seen?”

Jake sighed. He wanted to avoid bringing attention to himself.

“I’m not 13.”

“Then why did Tammy McBain say you were?”

“You’ll have to ask her.”

“Then how old are you.”

“Fourteen. I turned 14 yesterday.”

“That doesn’t really make my point any less valid.”

Jake decided to be careful with Cheresh. If he failed to come up with a plausible explanation, an investigator might just decide to investigate. Better to keep that genie in the bottle.

“Think about it, Mr. Cheresh. Forget my age. What would Jerry like to see happen with Nina Tamborg?”

“He wants her to testify.”

“More than that.”

“He wants her to hang around to testify.”

“You’re warm, but you’re missing the big picture. She’s more than just a cog in the machine that’s covering up Tommy Cox’s misdeeds.”

“You mean he wants her as a client?”

“Correct. But whether that happens or not, she’s every bit as much a victim as the dead woman.”

“So what’s that got to do with you?”

“I’m here to tell her that.”

“You’re dodging my question.”

“Not really.”

“I could have told her that.”

“But could you have convinced her that it was true?”

“And you can?”

“That’s why I’m here.”

“But you’re just a kid.”

“Maybe you should watch me when I talk to her. But, please, hang back and don’t interrupt. I’ll need to have her undivided attention.”

Jake could tell that he was rankling Cheresh. The rest of the drive was tense.

At the clinic, they got directions to her room. Jake halted them outside the door. He sensed two people in the room. One was an unconscious woman with mental patterns unlike any he had ever seen before. The other was a very unhappy, very bored woman whose hips hurt with every movement of her body.

Jake stepped into the room. An old woman was lying unmoving on the near bed with her eyes closed. There was a young woman on the other bed, watching television.

“Got a second to talk, Nina?” Jake asked and pushed her to trust him.

Jake was sure that in other circumstances Nina would have been quite good looking. Her face was striking rather than pretty. Her breasts were large. Her hair was long and blond. But her unhappiness and discomfort spoiled her looks. Her hair was disheveled. The roots were dark. She had a cast that ran the whole length of her right leg.

She looked over at Jake. He felt her interest in him. In fact, almost any visitor would have been a relief to her. She was also curious why a boy would be in the rehabilitation clinic.

“I’ve got lots of time. It’s not a very good episode of The Price is Right.”

Jake laughed. “Are there any good episodes?”

“I like the ones where they give away Caribbean vacations. Well, not really. But it makes me think about getting out of here.” She turned off the television. “Who are you?”

“My name is Jake.”

“Not that I’m looking a gift horse in the mouth, but why are you here?”

“I was going to deliver a message, but now that I’m here, I find that I have something more important to do.”

“What’s that?”

“Did you ever read Stranger in a Strange Land?“

“No. Is that some kind of book?”

“Yep. It’s science fiction. In it, there are these Martians. Sometimes when they are distressed, they discorporate. That means that they choose to die. Believe it or not, it’s a fun book. I can get you a copy.”

“I’m not much of a reader.”

“I think I’ll get a copy for you anyway. You don’t have to finish it, but you might be surprised how much you like it. But the reason I bring it up is that I’ve never before met a person who looks as unhappy as you. I’m surprised that you don’t discorporate before my very eyes.”

“I look that unhappy?”

“Nina, you look miserable. You make me want to cry just looking at you.”

“My life is really fucked up.”

A childhood memory flashed through her mind.

“Nina, do you like it when someone combs your hair?”

“Uh, yeah. I like it a lot.”

“I’ve never done it for a woman before, but why don’t you let me brush your hair for you. You can tell me if I do it wrong.”

She looked stunned. She pointed to an overnight bag on the floor. Jake found a brush in there. He took it and stood beside her bed.

“I really don’t know what I’m doing so you tell me how you like it.”

Jake began to brush.

“You can brush harder. Just watch out for tangles.”

Jake brushed slowly, working out each tangle that he came upon. Nina closed her eyes and began to relax, soothed by the feeling of the bristles against her scalp and the rhythm of the brush strokes.

“Nina, your hair is beautiful. How come nobody does this for you?”

Her unhappiness returned.

“I don’t know anyone.”

“Nina, you seem like a nice girl and you’re very pretty. Why don’t you have any friends?”

“I do have friends, but they’re all in the city. They don’t know I’m here.”

“That’s crazy. When you’re hurt, that’s when your friends should rally around you.”

“I haven’t told any of them that I’m here.”

“So you’re making yourself miserable on purpose?”

“No, it’s just something I have to do. I can’t talk about it.”

“Why not?”

“It was part of the deal for getting me into this place.”

Jake bumped up her trust in him another notch.

“Nina, if you can’t tell the guy who’s brushing your hair who can you tell?”

“I want to tell you, but if I do, it’ll cost me a lot of money.”

“Nina, I promise that I won’t tell anyone else.”

“What about him?” she said.

Cheresh was standing near the door watching.

“He’s my driver. Speak quietly so that he can’t hear you.”

She lowered her voice. “I was in an accident. If it becomes public then an important guy would get in a lot of trouble.”

“So you’re going through all this to keep some fat cat from having to take responsibility for his actions?”

“They made me a deal. If I keep quiet, they’ll pay my doctors’ bills and give me half a million dollars.”

“Is that all? He’s going to have to pay the family of the dead girl at least four million dollars.”

“What do you mean ‘the dead girl’?”

“Carolyn. You didn’t know?”

Nina looked at Jake with shock.

“Carolyn’s dead?”

“Carolyn O’Conner. Yes, I’m sorry.”

Nina began to cry. Each sob jostled her pelvis making it hurt which made her cry harder. Jake leaned over the bed and pulled her face into his chest and stroked her hair.

“Listen, Nina, I’m really sorry,” Jake said when her crying had subsided. “I would never have just dumped that on you if I had known.”

“But he told me she is fine, that she is just one of the people I can’t talk to so that the secret doesn’t get out.”

“I’m sorry, Nina, but Carolyn died at the scene of the accident. She was thrown from the car when it rolled over.”

“How do you know about all this? It’s supposed to be a secret.”

“There’s a lawsuit, brought by Carolyn’s parents. Cox testified that he was giving Carolyn a ride home after a private poker party and that he lost control of the car to avoid an animal running across the road. He testified that she died instantly.”

“At least she didn’t suffer.”

“Unfortunately, that’s not what happened.”

“What did happen?”

“He was too busy trying to cover up the accident and he let Carolyn lie there on the ground. When he finally called in a doctor to look at her, it was forty-five minutes later and she had finally died. It was the same doctor that brought you here to Greenberg.”

“That was horrible. I hurt so bad, I couldn’t think about anything else. At least the doctor gave me a shot for the pain.”

“It’s too bad they didn’t just call an ambulance. You could have been in a hospital an hour and a half sooner than you were.”

“At least I’m going to get the money.”

“At least. But you know that Cox is getting a bargain, don’t you?”

“What do you mean?”

“Carolyn’s family will get at least four million from Cox. You could get just as much.”

“Half a million is a lot of money.”

Jake heard an interesting thought go through Cheresh’s mind.

“But it’s not enough to live on for the rest of your life.” He called Cheresh over. “Tom, I don’t know how the numbers work out here. Would you explain to Nina how good she could live on a settlement of half a million compared to four million.”

“It’s no comparison,” he said. “If you invested in an annuity you could live very comfortably off of four million. With half a million you don’t get much above the poverty line.”

“What’s an annuity?” Nina asked.

“It’s part insurance policy, part investment,” Tom said. “When you buy one you get a guaranteed income until you die. The more money you have to pay for it, the bigger your income. With four million, you get about $200,000 a year. It’s more like $25,000 if you only have half a million to buy the annuity.”

“So you’d have a lot more money, and you wouldn’t have to be by yourself away from your friends,” Jake said.

“But you’re talking about money later. I need money to pay the medical bills now.”

“It doesn’t work that way,” Cheresh said. “Cox’s insurance is supposed to pay the medical. Usually, it does. If it doesn’t your attorney will guarantee the bill for you and the doctors will still take care of you.”

“Nina, I don’t want to be the bearer of bad news, but regardless of the medical bills, you still have to worry about what Cox is going to do,” Jake said.

“What do you mean?”

“The truth about that night has already started to come out. When the press learns that he let Carolyn die to protect his reputation, it will be the end of his political career. When this goes to trial, it will be your testimony that is the nail in the coffin. He’s not going to want you to testify. He might very well do something to you so you can’t.”

“I can just keep quiet. I already promised I wouldn’t say anything.”

“No, Nina, you can’t,” Jake said. “You will be subpoenaed. You can’t lie and you can’t refuse to testify. But even if you could, too much has already come out. Just your existence shows that Cox has been covering up the truth. Cox’s only hope is for you to disappear.”

“That’s fine. He can take me someplace where I can’t be found.”

Jake pushed her trust level up harder.

“Nina, you’re not hearing what I’m really saying. Cox is an evil man. He can’t afford for you to show up, either now or later, and tell your story. He has killed people before and for reasons that aren’t as important to him as protecting his reputation.”

“Then what should I do, Jake? You tell me.”

“We’ve got to get you to someplace safe, someplace that Cox doesn’t know about. Or maybe someplace with good security where he can’t get to you. Until your testimony is on the record, he can silence you. Once you testify under oath, it won’t do him any good to kill you and you’ll be safe. Or at least a lot safer.”

“But I don’t have anything. No money. No place to go. If I leave here, I don’t even have a doctor.”

“Nina, look at me.” Jake made eye contact with her. “I promise you that you will be safe and taken care of. I make this as a personal promise to you, on my honor. Even if the insurance companies and the lawyers and the doctors let you down, I promise to take care of you.”

Nina sighed in relief. “Then I’ll go with you. I know I can trust you, Jake.”

“Then let’s go.”

“Right now?”

“Every minute you lie here increases the danger. One of Cox’s henchmen could walk in the door at any time. Obviously, you can’t walk. Would the hospital staff let us push you around in a wheelchair?”

“I don’t know. I’ve been in this bed for the last six weeks except for therapy sessions.”

“Why don’t you ring the nurse and we’ll ask.”

Nina pushed the call button and a nurse showed up a couple of minutes later. Jake explained that his sister was going stir-crazy and asked if he could wheel her around for a while. The nurse said that a wheelchair ride would be better for Nina than sitting around watching TV all the time. She went out for a wheelchair and helped Nina into it.

“Can we go out into the sun for a little while?”

“Yes, but, please, don’t go outside the grounds.”

Jake thanked her and pushed Nina down the hall.

“Nina, do you have anything back in your room that you can’t live without?”

“No, I guess not. Just toiletries and a couple of nightgowns.”

Cheresh opened the outside door for them.

“Are you okay with all this, Mr. Cheresh?”

He nodded. “It’s the best solution. I’ll go get the car and meet you over there.”

He pointed to a place some distance from the building where they could load Nina into his car. Jake wheeled Nina around for a few minutes until Cheresh drove up. Jake helped Nina into the back seat. As they drove off, Jake looked back. None of the staff had noticed them leaving.

“You busted out!” Jake said, laughing as they pulled onto the highway. He turned to her and took her hand. “That took courage. I’m proud of you, Nina.”

“I did the right thing, didn’t I, Jake?”

“Remember what I said. You have my personal promise that you’ll be okay.” He squeezed her hand. “Now let’s start making arrangements.”

Jake pulled out his cell phone and called the law office. He got through to Jerry and explained what he had done.

“I’m not sure exactly what to do, Jake,” Jerry said.

“How soon can you take her deposition?”

“I can give notice of the deposition before the end of the day. We can schedule it for the end of next week. I’ll get started on it.”

“She’s going to need medical care. She’s got broken bones and she’s in pain. She was getting physical therapy back in Greenberg, but I’m not sure the care was very good. I think the place where they had her was chosen more for its discretion than its reputation.”

“If there is any one thing that a personal injury lawyer knows, it’s who are the best bone doctors. I’ll find a doctor and we’ll get her in for a thorough examination. We’ll have him refer her to a specialist.”

“She’s going to need an appointment soon. She doesn’t have any medicine for the pain and we left everything behind.”

“I’ll try to get her in today.”

“Hold on a second, Jerry.” Jake turned to Nina. “Do you have any thoughts on where you can live?”

“There’s my apartment if I still have it. I haven’t been back there in a month and a half.”

“No, you can’t go anywhere that Cox’s people will connect to you. That means no relatives or friends that they could find out about.”

“I’m not close to my family. And with Carolyn gone, I don’t have anyone that I could stay with anyway.”

“Jerry, she doesn’t have anywhere to stay.”

“That’s for the best. We don’t want Cox to track her down. We can put her in a motel for the time being and arrange an apartment for her later.”

“Okay. Hold on.” He turned back to Nina. “We can put you into a motel immediately.”

Jake felt her dismay and kicked himself.

“A motel won’t work, Jerry. She’s been held incommunicado since the accident. She needs human contact as much as she needs shelter. I’ll keep her with me until we think of something better. Given this turn of events, do you mind if I bring a date for dinner tonight?”

“I’ll let Mattie know about the change of plans.”

Jake rang off.

“Nina, do you mind hanging out with me for a while? At least until we find a good place for you to stay.”

“For some reason, I trust you, Jake. I’d rather go with you if you don’t mind.”

“As long as you want.”

He turned to Cheresh.

“Mr. Cheresh, we’re going to go back to my place, but we’ll need a wheelchair for Nina. Do you have any ideas?”

“I’d suggest a medical supply house.”

“Can you suggest anyone in particular?”

“Sorry.”

Jake called his grandparent’s house and asked for Carol. His grandmother told him that Carol had gone to see him. He called his own home. When the answering machine picked up, he asked Carol to call his cell phone.

A few moments later his phone rang.

“Are you alone, Carol?”

“Yes. I wanted to talk to you about that Brian.”

“Oh. That doesn’t sound good.”

“No. He was as bad as I’ve ever had. Quicker even than Jason.”

“Ouch. I’ll be home in less than a half-hour and we can talk, but for now, I was hoping you would do me a favor. I’m bringing home a woman who was badly hurt in a car wreck. We need to get a wheelchair for her, but we don’t know where to find one. Would you check the Internet and find a good place for us to get a wheelchair on the way home? Maybe a medical supply house. We’re about twenty-five miles east of the city heading home.”

“Count on me. I’ll call back in a few minutes.”

Jake hung up.

“Nina, tell me about your injuries.”

“I have a broken pelvis and several bad breaks in my right leg.”

“How do you get around?”

“I can get around with a wheelchair. I can’t walk yet. I need some help getting into and out of the chair.”

“Do you need help with going to the bathroom?”

She blushed.

“Yes. Unless I use a bedpan, I need help getting to and from the toilet.”

“My assistant is working on getting a wheelchair for you. When we stop, I want you to get all the stuff you need, like a bedpan and anything else that will help you. How about bathing and dressing?”

“I can’t get to a shower or a bath without help. I can pretty much dress myself, though it takes some time. It’s a lot easier with help.”

“I was going to go to a friend’s house for dinner tonight. Can you come along?”

“I get tired after a while and sore, but I should be okay for a couple of hours.”

“How are you doing now?”

“It hurts a little. My drugs are starting to wear off.”

“We’re working on getting you in to see a doctor. I can give you something over the counter for now.

Jake’s phone rang. It was Carol.

“Jake, I figured that you don’t need one permanently. You can rent wheelchairs. There’s a medical supply house right on the way. The guy I called says that he can get you a chair immediately.”

She gave him the address.

“You’re a marvel, Carol.”

“Just get home soon. We need to talk.”

“Yes, dear.”

It proved to be easy to get a wheelchair for Nina. Jake made Cheresh put the initial rental fee on his company credit card.

“Nina, I already have lunch plans with my girlfriend and her daughters. Why don’t you come with me?”

“That wouldn’t be a problem? And what do you mean your girlfriend’s daughters?”

“Okay. Just say my girlfriends and their mother then. I like them all. Let me check and see if it would be a problem.”

Jake called Leanne who agreed to Jake bringing a guest.

“Your son’s girlfriend may want to come, too. Is that okay?”

“Carol? She doesn’t need permission to come over.”

“Thanks, Leanne. We’ll be there in about fifteen minutes.”

They pulled into Jake’s parking lot. It took a minute to move Nina to his car. Carol came out during the transfer.

“Where are you going, Jake? We need to talk.”

“Leanne says you can join us for lunch. We’ll talk on the way.”

When Jake tried to get in the car, Cheresh pulled him aside.

“Tell me what happened back there at the hospital.”

“There’s nothing to tell. I was nice to her.”

“How come she came with us? She doesn’t know you from Adam.”

“I went into that room ready to deliver a message from Jerry that she should be careful about Cox’s intentions. I found a woman who needed help. I liked her and I wanted to help if I could. She saw that I was sincere. I think my arguments made sense. Besides, I gave her my personal guarantee that I would take care of her. That is an unbreakable promise as far as I’m concerned. You don’t think she should believe me?”

“I don’t know that I would have if I were in her shoes.”

“You don’t have a ghoul like Cox after you. You have the luxury of being skeptical.”

Back in the car, Jake turned to Nina.

“You doing okay, darlin’?”

“I’m sore.”

Jake ran into the apartment and returned with ibuprofen and a glass of water.

“This is the best I can do until we get you to a doctor.”

She thanked him and they started for the DeRizzos.

“So it didn’t go well with Brian after we left?” Jake asked Carol.

“It went okay for Brian. It was a dud for me.”

“Nothing?”

“He barely got my motor started when he filled his fucking condom.”

“He couldn’t go again?”

“I couldn’t tell you. He didn’t even try.”

“Man, this is even worse than I feared. That’s so bad that it’s like a caricature of the self-absorbed jock. How are you doing now?”

“I can’t get my mind off of sex. It’s been since you did me yesterday.”

“Do you want me to do you before we go into the DeRizzo’s house?”

“What about your friend?”

“Nina, are you uncomfortable around sex?”

“Heavens, no. I love sex. Or at least I did before the accident.”

“Would another special like yesterday be okay, Carol?”

“It would be wonderful.”

Jake pulled into a grocery store parking lot and parked away from the street and away from the building.

“Pull off your shorts,” Jake said as he undid his seat belt and pulled his pants down. He slid to her side of the seat. “Climb on top.”

She turned and faced him. He slid his pelvis forward so Carol could straddle him. She dropped down onto his penis.

“Who was on top?” Jake asked.

“He was. He didn’t ask,” Carol said and began moving up and down on him. “As soon as I was naked, he squeezed a tit, pushed me onto my back, and started humping me.”

“I’ve had too many guys like that,” Nina said.

Jake energized her clitoral stimulation circuit. Carol drew her breath in hard and whimpered.

“Oh, Jake. I like that. Do it just like that. Make me come hard.”

Jake powered up her feedback circuit and drove her to an orgasm. It was less than a minute before she screamed into his ear. He eased off some on her feedback circuit, but he still kept a steady stream going. She kept coming hard. Jake thrust up into her. His thrusting and her convulsing vagina quickly brought him to climax as well. She was almost unconscious when he came back to himself and he let her come down. He held her to him, his face between her breasts. She held him tightly and quivered, moaning out his name.

“What the fuck was that?” Nina asked, awed.

“Carol’s got a short fuse.”

“That was the most intense sex I’ve ever seen. And it only took five minutes.”

“We didn’t have much time,” he said. “Carol, I hate that we always seem to be hurrying.”

She giggled lethargically. “And I just hate having to accommodate your busy schedule.”

“That was incredible,” Nina said, “but I wish I hadn’t seen it. I don’t think I’ve ever been this horny.”

“Just talk to Jake. He knows how to make a woman feel good.”

“I can’t have sex. Not with my pelvis broken. The broken leg doesn’t help either.”

“Do you mean no vaginal sex?” Carol asked. “Or no orgasms at all?”

“Fucking is out of the question. I also have to be careful with anything that puts pressure on my pelvis or that makes me move it. That rules out most kinds of sex.”

“Talk to Jake. If anyone can figure it out, it’s him.”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence. Leanne is waiting. Is it okay if we go?”

“You’ll have to finish dressing me when we get there.”

Jake kissed her, lifted her up, and scooted out from beneath her.

“You can put your own clothes on, gorgeous,” he said as he moved back to the driver’s seat. “What did you say to Brian after the sex was over?”

“When he wouldn’t even try to go a second time, I told him he better do a lot better than that or there was no future for us.”

Jake resumed driving.

“Good. I don’t know if he can be salvaged, but we can’t coddle him. I’ll go at him with both guns blazing when we get there.”