As Jack came running by, his attention focused on the glow in the distance, Jeff tripped him causing Jack to hit the ground hard on hands and knees. Rolling over quickly, he saw Jeff and put it together. “You son-of-a-bitch, you set my house on fire,” he yelled, scrambling to his feet.
“Yeah, I did, Stupid,” Jeff said, hitting Jack across the mouth with a forearm, rotating his body with the blow, letting loose some of the pent-up emotions boiling inside him. Jack hit the ground on his ass. His jaw felt like it had exploded.
Jack couldn’t believe Jeff had hit him so hard. Hell, he outweighed the guy, and he was a lot younger. He staggered to his feet spitting teeth, boiling mad – and met a back kick to the groin, purposely angled slightly up to crush his balls against his pelvic bone. Jack went to his knees and threw up, leaving his side open as he grabbed his balls.
A snap kick took out four ribs on his right side. As Jack flopped to his back, Jeff stomped his balls and dick to make sure he had the younger man’s attention. He felt something break and hoped it was Jack’s balls. Taking the .45 out of its holster, Jeff grabbed Jack by the hair and inserted the barrel into his mouth – not gently. The front sight and barrel broke off two more of Jack’s teeth. Jeff cocked the hammer as Jack stared cross-eyed at the Colt protruding from his face. There was the pungent odor of fresh piss.
Whispering in Jack’s ear, Jeff said, “Punk, you’re not even in the same league with me. So just sit tight before I have to kill you. You have fucked my wife and daughter, maybe knocked them up. If I ever lay eyes on you again, I will kill you where you stand. Right now, it’s all I can do to keep from pulling this trigger. You’re young, and I’m going to give you one chance. But if the cops hear about this, you will be dead. I have a friend who is an assassin for an agency you have never even heard of. I’ll talk to him tonight, and if I don’t report in regularly, he’ll kill you. You will never know whether it will be with a rifle, or a fake robbery gone bad, or a chemical on a car door handle to give you a fatal heart attack, or any one of a dozen other ways, but the end result will be the same. Dead.“
Jack tried to say something, but Jeff slammed the gun deeper into his mouth, making Jack whine and gag. “Remember, if I ever even see you again, ever! And incidentally, just tell the people at the hospital that you fell off a ladder at a friend’s house, and stick with it, no matter what they say. If the police show up at my house, I’ll make that call. Your life depends on the things I’ve told you.”
With that, Jeff snatched the gun back and hit Jack in the forehead with it – hard. Jack collapsed, which was a pretty good thing, everything considered, since he didn’t have to feel the pain any longer.
Jeff holstered the .45, then covered Jack with a painter’s plastic drop cloth. After picking Jack up in a fireman’s carry and dumping him into the back of the van, Jeff took the pistol back out of the holster, let the hammer down and safed the weapon. He stood looking at Jack a moment before returning the gun to its holster and strapping it down.
Shaking his head, ashamed for the rage inside himself, he closed the back door, then got in and started the motor. A little later, he dropped Jack, still unconscious, a block from the hospital. Wearing his gloves, Jeff covered the handset of a payphone with a rag and dialed 911.
When the dispatcher answered, Jeff, changing the cadence of his voice, gruffly said that there was someone passed out with blood all over him at Dearborn and 9th Street, and hung up. The cloth was to keep any droplets of saliva off the phone, on the extreme off chance that a DNA sample would later be taken. Changing the cadence of his voice probably wouldn’t fool a good voice analyzer, but it would give a lawyer something to argue with, should things go bad. He put the cloth and the plastic sheet, along with the two cooking oil bottles and his gloves in a dumpster that was not near enough to a building to cause any problems, and set the trash on fire.
He drove the van back to the lot, retrieved the tapes, and carefully wiped the vehicle down – just to be sure. After picking up his rental car, he drove home.
As he walked into the playroom through the side entrance a little later, everyone started to talk at once. “Just hush,” he said in a stern voice. “I’ll be back in a minute.” He noted that everyone had their clothes on but Arnie, who was sitting on the couch tied up. He had so much rope wound around him that he looked like a mummy. Jeff went up the stairs and into their bedroom, forcing himself not to think about what had been going on in there.
He laid the pistol and holster on a washcloth on the sink, and stripped off his clothes in the bathroom. Being careful not to let them touch anything, he carried every item of clothing he was wearing, including his belt and leather holster to the washing machine and dumped them in. He put twice as much detergent as usual in, and poured in a whole bottle of stain remover that was supposed to get out blood and crayon stains. Turning the controls to hot, he started the machine.
He doubted if the precautions were necessary, since he thought Jack had gone along with his instructions. Jeff had waited for an hour where he could see the emergency room entrance of the hospital, and the cops had not come. Jack must have told the doctor he fell off a ladder. Shit happens.
After putting on fresh clothes, he field-stripped the .45 and cleaned it with a chemical that he knew would obliterate any traces of blood. He hadn’t shot the guy, but cramming the gun in his busted mouth had certainly gotten some blood on the barrel and sight, not to mention hitting him in the head with the gun. When he was satisfied that everything was in order, he stuck the .45 inside his belt in the small of his back, put the washcloth in the washing machine, and set the machine up for a second cycle, starting it again. After thinking a minute, he went down the stairs to the playroom.
Before anyone could say anything, Jeff said, “Diana, you and Arlene go make some coffee. Arnie and I need to be alone for about five minutes. And I’m hungry, if you have any sweet rolls or something like that, I need a snack.”
Diana looked at him and started for the stairs, but Arlene was worried about Arnie. “Dad, please don’t hurt Arnie. I can explain...”
Jeff turned to Arlene, and almost growling, said, “Get your ass upstairs nowbefore I lose my temper.”
Jeff knew that Diana, and maybe, Arlene had put things together: the gun on his hip when he had first come in, the delay upstairs, the washer running. Diana probably thought he had killed Jack, and was getting rid of the blood on Jeff’s clothes. From the worry on Arlene’s face, she thought Arnie was going to join Jack. Diana grabbed Arlene by the arm and snatched her out of the room before she could even open her mouth again.
Arnie, at least, has the sense to keep his mouth shut, Jeff thought, but he would bet there was a wet spot on the couch.
Jeff sat on the couch, not too close in case some leaked out, and casually laid his arm across Arnie’s shoulders. “You and I have to talk, Son. After that, we’ll get you untied and get your clothes back on.”
There was an odd look on Arnie’s face. From the smell, Jeff thought he definitely had the young man’s attention.
A couple of hours later, Arnie was the owner of a new hard disk, preloaded with the latest operating system and several new programs, plus a new flash memory card for his camera. Vacation pictures had been uploaded with the same filenames as the pictures Arnie had stored on his website, three times, with different pictures, but the same filenames. Jeff sat in the playroom on the freshly cleaned couch where his wife had been fucked earlier, his wife and daughter sitting on either side of him. Arnie’s old hard drive and flash card for his camera were on the floor in front of them. Jeff had gathered up the microphones, cameras and other equipment, and put them in a bag ready to return them to Wilson when he had a chance.
Both women had cried until their eyes were red and swollen, but Jeff had sat without expression while they told their story. Neither of them even thoughtabout lying. They just told it the way it was.
Jeff had asked questions – many questions. In the end, he knew everything they could remember to tell him. He sat staring at the floor, occasionally sipping from a cup of coffee. He put the cup down and picked up the phone. A couple of minutes later, he was talking to someone that Diana had never seen, but knew that Jeff talked to him from time to time.
After the amenities were passed, Jeff said, “I know it’s late, but I need a big favor.” After a pause while the other person said something, Jeff continued, “I need some morning after pills for two women who have had non-consensual sex for the past week, and I need them now. I don’t have time for a doctor visit and all that bullshit.”
Again there was another pause while the other person said something, then Jeff said, “I owe you. I’ll see you there in twenty minutes.”
Diana was silently crying again, and Arlene had an odd look on her face. Jeff got up, picked up the bag of equipment, and left without saying anything.
A little over an hour later, he walked in and handed two small prescription pill bottles to Diana. “Each of you take one now, and if your periods haven’t started in twenty-four hours, take the other pill.”
“Where did you get these?” Diana asked. “You can buy over-the-counter morning after pills at any drugstore, but I’m afraid to take something like this. I...”
Jeff interrupted with, “Look on the bottles, they’re legal. That doctor is from out of town, but the prescription is real. Carl just filled it, that’s all.” Looking at first Diana then Arlene, he continued, “Take them now, one pill each.”
“I’ll get the water, Mom,” Arlene said, hastily getting up.
After they had taken the pills, Arlene went upstairs, returning a few minutes later with a tray laden with coffee and sandwiches. Jeff looked at the tray, and took a cup of coffee, but refused a sandwich. “I’m not hungry,” he said, his voice listless.
Arlene wouldn’t move the tray away, but stuck it back in her dad’s face. “Yes you are, Daddy. We all need to eat. That sweet roll wasn’t enough.” With her voice quavering. “Oh, Daddy, I’m so sorry. Please forgive me.” Diana hugged Jeff, almost causing him to spill his coffee as Arlene started crying again. He put it on the end table and started to say something when the phone rang.
“It’s after ten,” Diana said, getting up and starting toward the phone, “Mom would never call this late unless something was wrong. I can’t think who it would be, unless it’s her.”
Diana answered the phone, paused a moment then said, “Hold on.” She turned to her husband, “It’s a Mr. Wainwright. He says you know him and it’s important that he speak with you.” When Jeff nodded, she released the mute button and handed the phone to him.
After a long conversation, Jeff got up and replaced the phone in its charger. A frown on his face, he sat back down on the couch.
Diana turned to her husband. “What was that all about, Jeff? I mean, I heard what you said, but it doesn’t make sense. What is this Learjet at seven in the morning? Where are you going? What...”
Jeff stretched out his long legs and stared at the floor a moment. “I didn’t mean to tell you two this, yet. Certainly not this way. I was saving it until it was a done-deal, but I guess it is, just about...”
“Jeff, you’re driving me crazy,” Diana said, “What’s going on?”
“I wanted this to be a happy time for us. And it’s everything but that right now. Things, other things, are coming together, and somehow we have to change gears, so to speak, and go with this, I think...”
Diana and Arlene exchanged looks, and Diana started to say something when Jeff sighed, motioned with his hand for her to stop, and finally began talking. “Ok. I’ll give you the quick version, and tomorrow on the plane, I’ll tell you everything.”
“On the plane,” Arlene said, incredulously, leaning forward as she wondered. “Where are we going, Daddy?”
“I’ll get to that in a minute. As you both know, I’ve been working on an invention in my spare time.” When both women nodded, he continued, “Well, it hasn’t exactly been just in my spare time for the last year. Yeah, I’ve picked up a few engineering jobs, but most of the time that I’ve been away from home, it has been because I was working on, or testing my system.”
“What system?” Diana interrupted.
“Well, we haven’t exactly named it yet, but the closest I can come to make you understand without a lot of details, is a new kind of radar.” As both women started to speak again, he shushed them with his hand and continued. “I came up with the idea about two years ago, and since then I have spent a lot of time with patent attorneys. I’ve also rented various labs from time to time, and although I didn’t tell you,” he said, guiltily, “I’ve pretty much borrowed all the money I could, and generally screwed our finances – royally.”
Diana’s face flushed with that statement, but Jeff couldn’t tell whether it was just shock, or anger. Ignoring her reaction, he went on. “I was in the final stages of selling part of the patent rights, and the system to Wainwright, Inc., which is the largest military contractor in this type of business, when I talked to you from their parking lot.” He picked up his cup from the table and refilled it from the carafe on the tray. Taking another sip, he said. “Actually I was in the process of telling you we were going to be rich,” (there was an intake of breath from Arlene) “when I heard a man’s voice in the background. After I got here and realized that something was badly wrong, I called Wainwright and told him that I needed to put off the meeting in the morning when we were to sign the contracts.”
Jeff allowed a slight grin to cross his lips. “I guess Wainwright and his bunch must have thought I was either talking to another company about the patents, or maybe I was getting cold feet about the deal. Anyway, it must have shaken them up, because he sounded stressed just now, said they were sending the company jet to pick us up, and said they were going to ‘sweeten the deal’ a little. I agreed to go on with the meeting, but I guess I sounded a bit reserved, although for other reasons. He, on the other hand, sounded like he was about to panic. He finally said, ‘I promise you that you won’t be disappointed.’ So, I guess we will go. I forgot to call the lawyers to cancel, anyway.”
“Go where?“ Arlene squealed.
“Oh, St. Louis. And incidentally, you need to take enough clothes for a couple of weeks, because we are not coming directly back home.”
Diana locked eyes with her husband. “Where are we going?”
Jeff shook his head. “Dammit, that was part of the surprise, and it’s still going to be. Now, you two need to pack, and don’t worry about being neat about it. Just get it done. Whatever we forget, we will buy. After tomorrow, assuming everything goes right, we will be able to buy just about anything we want.”
Both females started asking questions at the same time; Jeff just waved his hand. “Load up all the suitcases we have. If that jet won’t hold them, we’ll ship them. Diana, while you are at it, clean out my drawers and pack my things in something. My cases are in the rental outside, but they are both full. If you don’t have enough luggage, I’ll go down to Wal-Mart and pick up what you need. But right now, I’m bushed. I’m going to lie right here and rest, maybe sleep for a while, if I can. Then I’ll help you. We can all sleep on the plane tomorrow.”
Jeff put his feet up on the couch and started to relax, then yelled up the stairs where Diana and Arlene were already packing. “Hey, I forgot. You two are going to that meeting with me tomorrow, so dress in your best.”
There were protests, but Jeff ignored them and added. “Check on my good suit, I’ll wear it tomorrow. The clothes in my cases are wrinkled. And put everything from the washer in the dryer. And wash the sheets on the bed,” he grimly added. He was trying to think what else he needed to do when exhaustion caught up with him and he slept.
Arlene rushed into Diana’s bedroom. “Mother, I can’t get all my stuff into those two little cases of mine. I don’t even know what to pack. Dad didn’t say where we were going...” she worried, gradually running down.
Diana put her hands on her hips and started to admonish her daughter, when she thought better of it. “You’re right. Let’s go to the supercenter. If Jeff wants us to throw things together, that’s what we will do.” Grinning at her daughter, she said, “I’ll give you five minutes to get ready, then we’ll go.”
Diana took one look in the mirror and realized that she wasn’t going out looking the way she did now. Her eyes were red and swollen, and her face looked puffy, not to mention the mascara running down her cheeks.
Fifteen minutes later, they went downstairs to find Jeff on the couch, obviously deeply asleep. Diana hastily wrote a note telling him where they were going.
An hour later, they were back to packing. She didn’t know anything about company jets, let alone this one, but she doubted if anything would be said about a few extra suitcases if this company sent a plane just for them.
Her mind wandered as she hastily folded clothes and packed them. Jeff had finished his BS in two years, and started to serve his military time. They had moved from base to base. After the first year or so, something had changed. Jeff had gone away when others in his unit had not. Then he had less and less contact with his unit at all. When she asked him, which was about a million times, she reflected, he would just shrug and tell her it was training.
She knew he was not just going on training missions. He had changed, become hardened, not just in body, but in mind as well. She still could not comprehend what an electrical engineer did on, what must have been, secret missions. His times away, and presumably the length of the missions, lasted from a few weeks to six months or so. Twice, he had come back with wounds half-healed. And they had seemed to be bullet wounds. One almost healed wound seemed different from the others – odd. The area around the central wound seemed to have been burned. He had obviously been badly hurt, but he would not say anything about his injuries. No matter how many times she asked, he would just sigh and say he had been on a training exercise.
He had been only a Captain, but some of the time, he wasn’t treated like a Captain. When they were moved from one base to another, and this was far more than anyone she knew, things got done for them. Oh sure, the military took care of its dependents, but this was more than that. There was always someone there to take care of Arlene and her when Jeff was gone for a long time. None of the other wives got this treatment. When she asked Jeff about it, he just told her to accept it and keep quiet about it. “Low profile,” he said.
There were times that she wondered if Jeff was still in the army, at least as she knew it. Whatever had happened, it made him quicker, both of body and mind, and harder. Not that he was ever any way but gentle with her.
She remembered an incident with a drill sergeant who kept coming on to her. He had gotten so bad that he tried to grope her whenever he caught her out somewhere. She had never had any real problems with stopping a come-on, but this guy would not take no for an answer. He kept making comments about her husband being gone all the time and wanted to “console” her. She had slapped him twice, and threatened to report him, but he would not stop. In desperation, she had told her husband about what was happening.
Jeff hadn’t gone after the guy, and did not seem to be bothered about the incidents. She had started to get irritated that he was not making any attempt to stop this brazen idiot when she found out that said idiot was in the hospital. Jeff had left two days after she told him about the Sergeant, so she could not ask him if he had anything to do with why the guy was in the hospital. Thinking about it, she thought that Jeff might have actually left a day before the guy had his accident, or whatever had happened to him.
A week later, she saw the sergeant in the PX. Much of his face was several shades of purple, yellow and green, and his right arm was in a cast. They had both rounded an aisle and nearly bumped into each other. She thought the guy was going to faint. Big badass drill instructor had almost fainted. He left his cart and then left the PX in a shuffling run. She sniggered all the way home.
She still did not know whether Jeff had done that or someone else, but it obviously had been done for her. When she questioned Jeff a couple of weeks later, he said, with no expression whatsoever, “Drill instructors get hurt all the time. They have a tough job.” That was it. End of conversation, but she might as well have had the plague. None of the “come-ons” ever opened their mouths to her again.
Jeff had always been her man, was all she had ever wanted. For the hundredth time, she asked herself how she had gotten into this. And why had she come for Jack, and even Arnie, like she had? Jeff had invariably been so gentle and loving, and had always made gentle love to her. Shit, his dick is a lot bigger than Jack’s. Why did I come like I did? Maybe Jeff needs to fuck my brains out every now and then, instead of always being so gentle.
When Jeff had picked up the cameras and microphones, she felt like she was going to faint, realizing that he had seen Jack fucking her, and her fucking Jack. She had tried to kiss him twice, but he just brushed her lips and went on. He had looked like he did just before he went on his missions. Cold, reserved, efficient. It scared her to death. Yet in just a few hours, they were going to get on a plane and go to a meeting about something she knew very little about.
Jeff had said they were going to be rich, that the contracts were ready to be signed. Was he going to sign the contracts and then divorce her? Damn the money, I want my husband.
“Mom, what are you staring at?” Arlene asked, standing in the doorway.
“Just thinking, Baby. Just thinking.” Her voice broke, “Just thinking that while my husband was working his ass off for me, I let myself and you, get suckered into something I should have been able to handle. What’s wrongwith me? How could I let this happen? Now, I’m scared to death that Jeff is going to divorce me,” she sobbed.
Arlene put her arms around her mother. “Dad isn’t going to divorce you. If he was, he would never have fixed things so Arnie and Jack don’t have the pictures anymore.”
“Darling, I know you mean well, but you don’t know him the way I do. Once he starts to do something, he will finish it. Nothing will stop him. He not only saw the pictures, but also saw me fucking Jack tonight. Not just being fucked, but with me fucking and coming like a bitch in heat. Oh, Arlene, I can’t lose him. I can’t even think about life without him.”
“Mom. Stop it. Your face and eyes are all red again. You don’t want a bunch of strangers seeing you tomorrow, uh, today,” she said, glancing at her watch, “looking like that.”
Diana glanced at herself in the mirror. “Oh, shit.”
Arlene giggled. “You – we – have been saying that a lot lately.”
Diana forced herself to grin a little. “Yeah, we have; haven’t we? And some of those times I was coming so hard I couldn’t think of anything else to say.” Mentally shaking herself, Diana went on, “Let’s get all this stuff down to the side door. I think we can sleep for a couple of hours before we have to get ready.”
A few minutes later, the bags were all ready to go. Diana had put out Jeff’s best clothing, and hers was ready as well. Following Arlene into her bedroom, Diana said, “Let’s see what you picked out to wear. Whatever happens, I want us to look our best.”
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