Chapter 24

Bill was sitting on the couch watching the Saturday night 10 PM news. He had an ice pack pressed against his cheek bone where Brian's fist had caught him. Susan was sitting on one side snuggled against Bill's arm that was holding the ice pack. Mandy was on the other side with Bill's arm around her. Beth was curled up on his lap with her head against Bill's chest. Tim and Ruth were sitting on bar stools watching the news expectantly too. They were all waiting for the commercial to finish. The teaser the station ran just before the commercial announced a rumble in Show Low City Park and all the high lights would be right after the break.

"Who would ever think something like that would make the news," Tim said in wonder.

"Hey," Susan protested. "In this town, if you get more than 20 people together on purpose its news. A fight at a big get together is major news."

"But, I don't want to be on the news," Bill complained. "I just wanted to come to town and build my building. Then I met you and the girls and I added getting married to my list of what I wanted to do. I didn't have getting on the news on any of my lists."

"I don't blame you," Tim said with a grin. "When people see how easy it was to punch you then everyone's going to want to try."

"He was just lucky," Bill groused.

"I missed the whole thing," Beth complained. "I wish I could have seen you knock him out."

"It looked almost like in the cartoons," Mandy embellished. "It looked like Brian had hinges on his heels. Brian just stood straight up after Bill hit him. Then he stayed stiff and fell back flat on the ground. I think he even bounced a little."

"Well, I was worried," Susan said. "I've seen Brian in fights and the only one I can say he really lost was to Penny. I don't think he was holding back because she was a girl either but that is what he said later."

Ruth chuckled before saying, "Actually, Penny was holding back. I talked to her after the fight. She said she had to really work to keep from hurting him. We had a big football game coming up on Friday night and Penny was worried the whole town would be mad at her if she did something that knocked the star player out of the game."

"I couldn't help being worried about him," Susan said as she hugged his arm. "I'm not taking any chances that something bad happens to him. I just found him."

"Why do you think Sandra reacted the way she did?" Ruth asked. "I thought the twins had pretty well taken her out. Then, after Bill puts Brian's lights out she acted like a mother bear protecting her cubs. I don't understand."

"I don't either," Susan said musingly. "They have been together for a long time. I guess you can't exactly call them a couple though. More like f ... ah." Susan stopped and looked at her daughters for a moment before continuing. "More like love buddies."

Mandy rolled her eyes and said, "Moooom, we know what you were going to say."

"I don't," Beth said as she sat up and looked back and forth between her mom and sister. "What were you going to say?"

Bill grunted as Beth sat up but Beth didn't react. "Small, sharp hip bones can cause havoc with a guy," he thought to himself.

"Nothing honey," Susan said. "It was just a thought that I couldn't think of how to say."

"In other words it was a nasty thought and you think I'm too young to hear it," Beth huffed. She crossed her arms, bounced once, and flopped back against Bill's chest.

Bill's grunt was accompanied by a whine this time.

"Of course you are too young to hear it," Mandy said from her lofty perch of 16 years. "We just put away your Barbie Dolls last year."

"What's wrong Bill?" Susan asked. "Do you need another ice pack?"

"No ice pack," Bill said in a tense voice. "Nothing's wrong."

"Mom," Beth complained turning towards Susan and bouncing in frustration. "Make Mandy quit picking on me and tell her that's not true."

Bill groaned, grabbed Beth's hips and pushed them down his legs. Then he grabbed her shoulders and pulled them back against his chest.

"Either of you stop it or both of you can just go to bed," Bill ordered, his voice strained. "Beth, if you don't sit still your mom's going to be real mad at you Tuesday night."

Beth's eyes got huge as she realized what she had been sitting on and what she had done. Mandy snickered but it was debatable if she was laughing at Beth's blush or Bill's predicament.

"Maybe I should sit on your lap," Susan purred as she snuggled tighter against Bill's arm.

"Beth, give the guy a break and you guys be quiet," Ruth ordered. "It's coming on."

The news logo faded from the screen to the face of the pretty reporter that Bill remembered seeing earlier in the day. A lot of people could be seen behind the reporter, including the twins on each side of Mary. Both of the twins had an arm around Mary and Mary's expression was one of terror and delight.

"Oh, we need a still of that picture," Ruth cooed. "We can tease Mary for years over that one."

The reporter said, "I'm Bridget Tillman and I'm at the Show Low City Park. Today's event was announced to celebrate the engagement of a local celebrity, Susan Pierce to Bill Miller the contractor that is building the new aviation center at the airport. We found out a few minutes ago that this is actually the wedding reception in advance of the wedding. The happy couple has moved their wedding date up from the end of the summer to next Tuesday."

"Why is she calling you a local celebrity mom?" Mandy asked.

"I think that just means that a lot of people know me honey," Susan answered.

"The reporter continued. "Today's happy event drew between 150 and 200 people but was marred by one bit of violence. An altercation occurred between the groom and a local contractor, Brian Blain."

The picture on the screen switched to a picture of Bill and Brian standing face to face about 18 inches apart. The camera looked like it was about 40 feet away and the picture was bouncing. It was clear the camera man was running towards the pair. Bill's mind flashed back to the image of the little camera man running into the park carrying the huge camera and he felt sorry for the cameraman. Sandra could clearly be seen behind Brian and she had a look of shock on her face. The picture dipped to show the grass in front of the camera man's feet as he tripped and almost went down. The camera rose and focused on the two men again just as Brian started to turn away from Bill. The camera was about 20 feet away from the men when Brian whirled and tried to punch Bill. Bill slapped the back of the fist coming towards his face and knocked it aside. He did the same to the next punch before sending his own left jab into Brian's nose. His right uppercut caused Brian to straighten, almost up on his toes. At the same time Bill's right fist connected with the point of Brian's chin, Brian's flailing right hand caught Bill flush on the cheek bone. Brian settled back on his heels and, staying straight, toppled backward. Brian did bounce when he landed on the grass.

The camera was about 10 feet away when Brian bounced and was able to pick up sound. Sandra pounced between Bill and the prone Brian with a screech.

"Why did you do that," Sandra screamed at Bill. "He just told me he loved me for the first time and you killed him," she screamed at Bill.

"I didn't kill him," Bill protested with his hands in front of him in a warding gesture. "He tried to hit me, twice, so I knocked him out."

Susan jumped between Bill and Sandra and yelled, "Bill just protected himself. So leave Bill alone and take your big 'bleep' over there and take care of him."

"What did they bleep out?" Beth asked.

"I said boobs," Susan said.

"Is boobs a bad word?" Beth asked.

"Hush," Ruth said. We're trying to listen.

"Probably in this market," Tim said in answer to Beth. "Now hush."

Sandra had whirled and rushed to Brian who was still on the ground, not moving. She managed to lift Brian's head and get it in her lap.

"Damn," Tim muttered. "If they were going to bleep something it should have been that little scene."

"You've got that right," Bill agreed. "Sandra running should only be in a porn movie. Not on the 10 o'clock news." He gasped when Susan's fist hit his side, right under the short ribs again.

Bill's face appeared on the screen with a microphone shoved near his mouth.

"Bill Miller. Right?" the reporter asked.

"Uh, yeah," Bill said with a distracted note as he explored his cheek bone where Brian had hit him.

"What was the altercation about?" the reporter asked.

"Oh, nothing much," Bill replied then he focused on what was being asked him. He seemed to just realize he was speaking to a news reporter and had a camera trained on his face. "I turned some information over to the police that seem to implicate Brian Blain in an attempt to sabotage the construction of a building I am working on. The police are investigating. I wanted him to know that I had turned the information I had over to the police and warned him that, if he was responsible, not to try anything else."

An image of the construction site filled half the screen with Bill's face on the other half.

"So you think Brian Blain, a local competitor for that construction job, is trying to sabotage the project. Is that right?" the reporter asked.

"The evidence seems to point that direction," Bill agreed on camera. "But nothing is proven at this point. The police have the evidence that I have and are investigating."

"What evidence did you turn over," the reporter asked. The picture of the construction site changed to a artists rendition of what the building should look like when it is completed.

"I'm sorry but I can't tell you what the evidence is," Bill said patiently. "It is an ongoing investigation and I can't tell you any more about it without jeopardizing the case."

"Are you going to press charges against Mr. Blain?" The reporter asked. "He clearly tried to hit you first."

"I think Mr. Blain has enough problems already," Bill said with a chuckle and nodding towards Brian. The camera swung to the still prone Brian with his head in Sandra's lap.

"Were you talking about being knocked out, the police, or Sandra?" Susan asked drily.

"He could be smothered to death like that," Tim chuckled referring to the way Sandra's double D's almost covering Brian's face. "They couldn't charge you for murder if he died from asphyxiation by being smothered by those things could they?"

The camera switched to a head shot of Susan and the reporter asked, "Did you hear what Mr. Miller said to Mr. Blain?"

"Oh Jenny," Susan said with disgust. "It's Bill and Brian. Remember? Bill said just what he said he said," Susan continued as she pushed past the microphone and camera to reach Bill. The camera followed her as Susan grabbed Bills shirt to pull him down so she could rub his cheek.

"Let me guess," Bill said with a snort. "You used to go to school with Jenny. Right?"

"Well, she was four years behind us," Susan replied. "She was a freshman when we were seniors. She got on the school paper when she was a freshman which was pretty unusual. In fact, she reported on the prom incident and the graduation incident."

Ruth nodded and said, "She even got an article in the paper about the incident with Roy, his broken leg, and the paint in his mustang."

"Yeah," Susan said with a little irritation in her voice. "It seems like she's been reporting on me all my life."

"I guess that really does make you a local celebrity," Mandy said with a grin.

"Shush," Ruth said. "We're trying to listen."

"Why do we have to shush and they don't," Beth muttered.

"Because we're taller," Susan said.

"No you're not," Beth muttered back.

One of the construction workers that attended the picnic was interviewed next.

"Can you tell us anything about any sabotage at the construction site?" the reporter asked.

"Only that Susan could have been killed," the construction worker replied. "Mr. Miller saved her but if it had been one of us we would have been killed or hurt bad."

"Is there any doubt it was sabotage or could it have been, ah, clumsiness?" the reporter asked.

"It was sabotage all right," The construction worker said vehemently. "There's no doubt about it. And Susan's our bookkeeper and she takes care of us better than we've ever been taken care of on a construction job. There's nothing clumsy about her." The man hesitated and continued in a quieter voice, "Uh, except maybe the fire last week, and uh, maybe a couple of other little things."

The picture switched to people throwing horse shoes at the park and the reporter's voice overlay the scene. "I talked to several of the construction workers today that didn't agree to an on camera interview," the reporter said. "All of them agree that someone was trying to sabotage their project. The most surprising thing from everyone that I talked to was the attitudes towards the construction project and Susan Pierce. Every employee that I talked to seemed to take personal ownership of this project and every one of them were almost rabid in their defense of their bookkeeper. I feel sorry for anyone that tries to hurt that lady. Let's try to get some more information about the altercation."