Middle River Murders (6 page)

The time had finally come for us to leave the hospital. I was
glad to be out of there. Even though the staff was wonderful, I’d had enough. I
wanted to be at home with my new son and my family.

Billy and Mom came to the hospital to take us home. Everyone
else had their own task at hand. Claire was watching all the kids, while
Billy’s family was with Jonathan.

We stopped by to see Jonathan for a minute before we left the
hospital. Billy stood outside the room holding Ethan as Mom and I went in.

“You look pretty good for someone who has just been shot,” I
said as I leaned down and kissed his forehead.

“And you look pretty good for someone who just had a baby,”
he replied, slurring his words.

“He’s a little doped up,” Sarah said as she got up from the
chair and walked over to his bed. She straightened his covers. “He was cranky
and determined to leave, so Dr. Staton gave him a shot to help change his mind.
The doc says he can leave tomorrow if everything is okay. Gunshot wounds can be
tricky.”

We stayed just long enough for me to see for myself that
Jonathan wasn’t going to die, so I could go home and not worry. I was still
upset about the whole undercover operation that put him here and the fact that
I was kept in the dark, but I wasn’t going to say anything else about it… for
now. Once he recovered, I’d give him a lecture about not trusting little old
ladies with guns. He’ll get a kick out of that.

We rode in Mom’s minivan and I couldn’t have been happier to
be heading home.

“You need a new car, Mom,” I said. “This one’s old and
outdated. Nobody drives a minivan anymore. You need a nice SUV like the one
Billy bought for me. That way, if you wanted to go four-wheeling, you could.” I
laughed.

Two months ago, I finally let go of my red Jeep. I loved that
fancy SUV with all its bells and whistles, but I had come to the conclusion
that it was just plain bad luck. I’d had several near death experiences in it
and had lost my nerve to even drive it. So one day Billy came home with a brand
new shiny, black
Toyota
4Runner. I almost freaked out when
he told me what it cost, but I let it slide. I figured if Billy wanted to buy
me a nice automobile, then so be it. Then he told me he got it for next to
nothing from Redman’s Auto, the car dealership his brother, Daniel, owns. It
sure pays to have a family with such diverse careers.

“We’re not going there,” Mom said. “Just because Billy went
out and bought you a new car doesn’t mean I have to get a new one. I like my
van, thank you very much. Besides, your father bought me this van.”

That was enough for me. I knew the wheels would have to fall
off before Mom would trade in that van and buy another means of transportation.
As we pulled up in the front yard and got out of the van, I glanced back,
looked at it for a second and saw my father’s face flash before me. I almost
cried. I turned back around and looked up at our home.

This is the house that Billy built many years ago. It’s a
two-story mountain home with a large living room, kitchen, and dining room
combined. There’s a utility room off the back of the kitchen. Our bedroom and
private bathroom are on the right down the hall, and there’s a guest bathroom
past the stairs across from our room. Upstairs there are two large bedrooms
with a bathroom in between.

Billy lived here for many years with his first wife, Ruth,
but now I’m his wife and we’ve made a few changes to our home. Over the summer,
Billy and his brothers added two guest bedrooms upstairs and a large bedroom
downstairs for our babies. They also added a large family room downstairs at
the back of the house big enough to throw a good-sized party. The room is a
nice place to relax when the whole family comes over for Sunday dinner. I’m
just glad Billy does most of the cooking.

Once we were inside, the house came to life. Athena and Thor,
our canine wonders, howled as loud as they could when they saw me. They jumped
and pranced to their own tune until I reached down and patted their heads.
After that, they went on about their business.

Spice Cat was asleep on the hearth of the fireplace and never
did give us a fleeting glance. He rolled over on his back and lay spread-eagle,
oblivious to the commotion around him. He was too content to be bothered with
such trivial stuff, or maybe he had just finished a meal. Who knows when it comes
to cats?

Carrie and Benny were ecstatic to have another cousin, while
Maisy was too young to know she had a brother. She was just glad to have her
mommy back. She crawled all over me the minute I walked through the front door.

By the time we got settled in, it was time to feed Ethan
again.

I sat down in the rocking chair and leaned my head back.

“I love these moments,” I said. “But eventually I’m going to
need a break. Where’s that electric breast pump I got at the shower?”

When I reached my sixth month, Mom and Sarah put on a baby
shower that defied all reasoning. It definitely wasn’t the traditional baby
shower most people have. Men were there and we had family come all the way from
North Carolina
and
Newport News
.

The party turned out to be a Blackhawk/Watson gathering. I
met family that I didn’t know and got reacquainted with distant relatives. Not
one of the guests stayed at a hotel. They were pretty much spread out. A few of
them stayed with Sarah and the chief, while some stayed with Billy’s sisters
and brothers. Aunt Edie and Uncle Bill stayed with Mom.

I was most impressed when Abby and Isabel Morgan pulled up in
the driveway that afternoon with our old buddy, Detective Frank Trainum
chauffeuring the two in their limousine. He even had a smile on his face.

“He’s just here for the free ride,” Abby said as she brushed
passed him. “He’s still dating that woman at the hospital.”

“Don’t listen to her,” Frank said as he handed me a small,
nicely wrapped present. He hugged me and whispered in my ear, “I put a check in
the box. You know me. I’m a cop. I don’t know anything about babies, but I had
to bring a present that Abby could actually see. If she thought I hadn’t gone
out and bought you something, she’d give me grief. You know what she’s like.”

“Did you ask your friend, Alexandra, to join us?”

“Alex has to work.”

“Then I assume you’re going to see her after the shower.”

“Actually, I thought I’d leave after a little while. Abby
suggested I stay for at least an hour.”

I slid my arm through his and said, “I think that’s a
respectable amount of time. Let’s go join the others. We have so much to catch
up on.”

Several months ago, Abigail, Isabel and Randy Morgan came
into our lives. They were Claire’s neighbors when she lived with her husband,
Carl, the scumbag, in
Washington
,
D.C.
They still live there.

Things change and Carl is basically no longer in
my
picture. Claire has the house and Randy.

Abby (who insisted from the start that I call her by a more
personal, shortened version—which she never suggested Claire do) and Isabel are
two delightful sisters. They’re a little older than Mom and they argue like
sisters do. Abby is the outspoken one and runs the show, while Isabel is the
more subdued one and follows… most of the time. That pecking order was established
a long time ago. Isabel is a widow and Abby’s husband, Pete, plays golf all the
time, so they spend all their time together.

Just before their appearance, we met Detective Frank Trainum.
He’s a D.C. cop, and all I can say is that I convinced him I was an honorable
person. It took a little work—we certainly didn’t meet under the best
circumstances—but in the end, my charming personality won him over.

Mom immediately turned and walked to the back of the house.
She disappeared into the nursery and came out carrying a blue duffel bag
containing the electric breast pump given to me by Claire (who, at the time,
said I would really thank her for that gift later). We’ll see. Mom walked up
and set the bag down by my feet.

I had to laugh. “You’re such a good mother. You’re always
here when I need you.” Then I started to cry.

“It’s starting,” Claire said. “Post-partum depression. Nobody
has such an easy delivery without paying for it in some other way. I knew you
were very lucky.”

“That’s nonsense,” Mom said. “Don’t go putting those ideas in
Jesse’s head. She’s just glad to be home. I was the same way with every one of
my kids. Don’t listen to her, honey.” Mom put her hand on my shoulder.
“Everything’s going to be fine.”

But everything wasn’t fine. I cried for three straight days.
The first day I cried when Jonathan came home from the hospital. Then I cried
when Ethan cried and I cried when he didn’t. I cried because I just knew he was
going to come down with some fatal disease. I cried because I was afraid he was
going to get beat up when he went to school. I cried when I thought about him
going off to college and leaving us. I cried… and cried… and cried. Then
miraculously, on the fourth day, the crying stopped.

“I tell you, Minnie, Jesse’s lucky,” I heard Sarah whisper to
Mom while they were standing in the kitchen. “I really thought she was going
through post-partum depression, just like Claire said.”

“Yeah, me, too,” Mom whispered. “I even looked it up on the
internet after the third day.”

Billy had gone to work. He didn’t want to leave and I didn’t
want him to go either, but somebody had to make a living and pay for my new
car. I laughed when he said that just before walking out the door.

“I can hear y’all,” I said, rising from the sofa where I had
been sitting with Maisy by my side and Ethan in my arms. “I’m going to put
Ethan in his crib and Maisy in hers. They’re both ready for a nap. Anybody want
to give me a hand?”

The phone rang as I walked toward the kitchen holding Ethan,
with Maisy holding onto my leg.

“Let me help you,” Mom said as she came to my rescue.

“I want to help, too,” Sarah said as she walked toward us.

“I’ll get that,” Claire said, walking over to the kitchen and
then picking up the receiver from the wall phone.

As Claire answered the phone I was thinking of how much I
disliked that old thing. It protruded from the wall at face level and the cord
always hung down low enough for the cat to swat at. Once Maisy came into our
lives, I stopped at the store one day and bought a shorter cord.

Besides, nobody has those old phones anymore… except Mom and
us. Both of us have other phones, but neither one has taken the time to rid
ourselves of the dinosaur attached to the wall. One of these days I’m going to
dispose of that thing.

Claire refused to go back to D.C. once my crying spell
started. She told us she just wanted to be around our new bundle of joy, but I
knew better. She was worried about me and wanted to be here in case she had to
strong arm me into going to the doctor and getting some pills.

Mom picked up Maisy. “I’ll carry her,” she said. “You have
your hands full. You really shouldn’t be lifting anything so soon after having
a baby.”

“I’ll be fine,” I said.

We were still busy making a fuss over Ethan and Maisy when
Claire hung up the phone. She turned to us and said, “Another member of that
club has died.”

“What?” I asked, stunned.

“That was Billy on the phone and he’s with Russ Shank at the
hospital. Alice Aikens was killed in a car wreck.”

“Oh, no,” Mom cried. “Not her! Please tell me there’s been
some mistake.”

“I’m afraid not, Mom,” Claire said. “Billy said she was run
off the road. She was on
Middle
River Road
one mile
past Daisy’s house when it happened. She was on the phone with Billy at the
time. He said she told him she had just left Daisy’s house. She also said they
had a terrible argument. She accused her of murder and said she wouldn’t give
up until Daisy was either dead or in jail. She would expose her no matter what
the cost. Then she saw Daisy’s car in her rearview mirror.”

“How awful!” I said. “Everybody give Ethan and Maisy a kiss
so I can put them to bed, and don’t talk about this until I get back. I’m tired
of being left out. I feel great and I’m ready for action. Come on, Mom. Let’s
go. I don’t want to miss a thing.”

I did feel great and I was ready to get involved.

Athena and Thor jumped to their feet.

“Not you guys,” I said. “No offense, but I don’t want your
tongues on my children.”

“Yeah, sure,” Claire said with a chuckle. “I can just see you
now running around, jumping fences and sliding down hills. How about a good
B&E?”

“I can do it!”

“I’m sure you can.”

We left the room, put Ethan in his crib and Maisy in hers,
and then closed the door slightly. As we walked back into the kitchen, Claire
and Sarah had just sat down at the table and were sipping coffee.

“Would you like a cup?” Mom asked me. “I can fix you a cup of
decaf in the microwave. It’ll be instant coffee, but...”