The Good Neighbor - Bettes Kimberley A. - Страница 14

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As I listened to it ring on her end, I wondered how in the world Andy lived with such a bizarre sleep schedule. I’d missed one night and was about to go into a coma.

Carla answered on the fourth ring. I was happy to hear her voice. It was so...everything. I smiled like a fool, too tired to care, but still glad that no one was around to witness it.

After telling her I’d be there tonight and her telling me she’d be waiting, I pushed the ‘end’ button and let the phone fall on the bed beside me.

Still wearing my clothes and shoes, I fell asleep atop the blankets, dreaming of Carla.

16 Andy

I went inside, eager to sleep. I found Jill’s note on my pillow. She told me she loved me, which I already knew. That was one thing I was certain about. She loved me more than anything, as I did her. I undressed and climbed into bed, curling up with her pillow, holding her note in my hand. I breathed deeply, making sure to fill my lungs with her scent before I drifted off to sleep.

I lay there awake for a while, which I didn’t think would happen. It wasn’t the first time, though. Night shift always messed up my sleeping patterns. There were times when I was too tired to sleep, and times I fell asleep when I didn’t even feel tired. It just came with the territory. Just night shift or just day shift wouldn’t have screwed with my sleeping routine so much, but the back and forth really did a number on it.

While I waited for sleep to find me, I thought of Jenson. I tried not to, but he’s all I had. I kept seeing him dragging that bag to his trunk. It was a scene I’d watched unfold before me many, many times. And I would probably see it many more times.

I tried to imagine what I would do if he was a murderer, hacking his victims to pieces and hauling them away in trash bags. How would I deal with that?

I couldn’t see Jenson hacking anyone to pieces. He didn’t seem likely to be a butcher, what with him being old and all. But ask Gacy’s or Dahmer’s neighbors and they’ll tell you the same thing. It was possible. Anything was possible. You never knew a person, no matter how well you thought you did. Wives, husbands, children, parents, neighbors, co-workers, classmates...anyone was possible of anything at anytime. I’d seen enough news to know that was a fact.

I probably wouldn’t have even considered the possibility that an old man could do such a thing, probably wouldn’t even have murder on my mind, if I hadn’t studied serial killers in college. I was going to do something in forensics, probably along the lines of forensic pathology, but Jill didn’t like the idea of me having such a morbid job. So I’d dropped the idea. But I’d maintained my interests in psychology, human behavior, and of course, murderers.

It was my study of murderers that made me suspicious of everyone. I didn’t walk around assuming everyone was a murderer. That would make me crazy. But I did walk around assuming everyone had the potential to become a murderer. That made me cautious.

I knew looks didn’t matter when it came to killers. Ted Bundy was handsome, and look what he was hiding behind his good looks. Gender didn’t matter, though it was true that most women killed their spouses or children. Not a lot of women went around killing total strangers, though Aileen Wournos was an exception. And age certainly didn’t matter. People like to think that our elders are incapable of such horrors, but Dorothea Puente and Albert Fish are prime examples of why we shouldn’t assume that the elderly are harmless.

I sighed, disappointed. We’d done what I wanted, what I thought would work. We’d followed him. It had done no more than add to the mystery.

So now what were we going to do? I wanted to get to the bottom of this. I didn’t know why I wanted to know so badly, but I did.

I wouldn’t give up.

17 Carla

I couldn’t lie to myself. I was disappointed when Owen called and said he wouldn’t be able to come by today. I hadn’t realized how much I wanted him and expected him to be there for me. It had been a long time since there’d been anyone in my life that I could totally be myself around and whose company I enjoyed so thoroughly. I know it was selfish and foolish to expect him to spend so much time with me, but I did. I wanted it very badly.

I pushed the kids on the swing, laughing at their silliness, but my mind wasn’t in it. I couldn’t stop thinking of Owen.

I tried to wrap my mind around how anyone could leave him. His wife had left him, but for the life of me, I couldn’t understand why. It was true that I didn’t know him very well and hadn’t known him for long, but I got such a good feeling about him. He was so kind. He was so everything, actually. To name a few of his qualities, he was handsome, funny, sweet, charming, and smart. I felt so at ease around him. I couldn’t imagine a flaw he could possibly have that would drive someone away from him.

So I was very excited when he said he’d be over this evening. I couldn’t wait. I felt as silly as a schoolgirl wanting the day to rush along so I could be with my sweetheart. I tried to relax and enjoy the feeling. It really had been so long.

I had almost everything unpacked now. The kids were settling in and adjusting to being in a different place. And I was too. It was hard to start over, especially somewhere new. But Owen had made it easier for me.

Of course, Bernie flickered through my thoughts from time to time. I couldn’t imagine what would’ve happened with Bernie if Owen hadn’t shown up and taken care of him.

I glanced at his house now, trying my best to look like I wasn’t. I couldn’t deny that he gave me the creeps. He could surely overpower me if he wanted to. And I had a sneaking suspicion that he wanted to.

I worried that Owen may not always be there at the right moment. If he’d been asleep the night Bernie came over...I shuddered at the thought of what would’ve happened. What if he was asleep next time? Worse yet, what if he wasn’t home? What would I do?

I couldn’t believe how defenseless I was. That was going to have to change. I had my kids to protect. And not just from Bernie. What if someone else broke in? I had no weapons. I had no skill in using any weapons. I had nothing. I was definitely going to have to do something about that. I wondered if there were any classes given in the area. Perhaps a self-defense class or firearms training class would do me some good. It would certainly ease my mind to know that if any of the horrible things that were now on my mind happened, I’d be better equipped to protect myself and my children.

There had been so much happen on this street in the previous two years – some of it in my house. I couldn’t deny that worry was a necessity.

Once I’d drained the life out of those thoughts, I thought again of Owen. I couldn’t help but notice that every thought I had of him came with a smile. The two were synonymous. And that wasn’t such a bad thing.

I made sandwiches for lunch, and the kids and I had a picnic in the back yard. We spread an old blanket on the ground under a large oak tree. We ate and talked there in the shade. I took it all in, memorizing the moment. Their laughter, their smiles, and the funny faces they made. They were so special to me.

I threw my head back to laugh at something Ethan said, and that’s when I saw him. Or at least I thought I saw him.

Bernie was peeking through the curtains at us. I swear he was.

I stopped laughing immediately and concentrated, trying to make him out better in the shadows. I wanted to be sure. Of course, even if he was looking out the window at us, what could I do about it? Go over and tell him he couldn’t look through his own windows? That was crazy.

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