Chapter 11: Judith: The Next Day

Judith worried all night about her Percy. She knew about the dreams and how close he had become to being an alcoholic because of them. Last night she held him when the dreams reappeared. She knew that she loved him before their divorce and now that they had rejoined, she knew her love for him had increased. No longer was her career her main motivation,

Percy had replaced that desire in her heart.

She would sit in his lounge chair by the fire place. She could smell his smells. That made her happy and contented. The only thing better was when he sat in the chair and she sat in his lap. She would sit there and curl up against his chest. She felt that if she was a cat, she'd purr.

She was also scared. These people Percy was chasing had no fear of killing. She didn't want to lose her Percy to them.

Tara wheeled Kate into the dining room for her breakfast the next morning. Judith joined them because "her" Percy was still asleep.

Tara started the conversation, "How's Dad today? I know finding those new bodies really bothered him."

"He's still sleeping," answered Judith, "He had a bad night. The nightmares are back and I don't know what to do. I don't want him to start drinking again."

"Drinking again?" asked Kate.

Between Judith and Tara they brought Kate up to speed on Percy's problems.

Kate was quiet as they ate their breakfasts. When they were finished Tara asked, "Mom you've been awful quiet. Is there a problem?"

"I don't know it this will help your Dad, but it helped me stop drinking. Can we get him to sit in on an AA meeting?" Kate asked, "Some AA members were driven to drink by tragedies."

Judith quickly replied, "He won't attend a meeting on his own, we'll need to trick him."

"I know how!" interrupted Tara, "We hold a meeting for Mom here in the dining room. Dad always sits in his chair at night across the room. He won't be a member of the meeting, but he'll be listening."

"Great idea!" exclaimed Kate, "I'll call the local meeting and see if they'd hold it here. I suspect they will because the AA groups are always looking for a place to hold their meetings."

"We won't tell Percy until it's too late for him not to attend," commented Judith. "I don't want him 'finding' something to do to avoid being here."

Once they set their plan in motion, Percy didn't stand a chance.