Silent Witness (22 page)

''Wait. My name is Josie Bates and Ms. Vendy sent me to see you.'' Josie hurried after him. ''I'm an attorney. I want to talk to you about Tim Wren and if you don't have time now I'll wait until you do.''

She walked toward him, the hard heels of her shoes making harsh sounds in the quiet hall. She extended her hand. He checked it out and took his fine time deciding what he wanted to do.

''Nate Walters.'' He took her hand. ''You here to hurt or help?''

''Help, I hope.''

''You ain't gonna make Tim seem bad.''

''I'm not going to do that,'' Josie assured him. ''From what I know about Tim, he couldn't be bad.''

''You got that right. He could be a handful but he couldn't be bad.'' Nate looked down the empty corridor then back at her. ''You want to come with me? I got a break.''

A few minutes later Josie was sitting in a room full of mismatched furniture, a radio, a sink, a coffee maker and a bulletin board covered with messages, reminders and jokes cut out of magazines. Nate sat across from Josie with his legs splayed, one hand on each knee, his dark eyes holding steady on hers as he talked.

''I take care of the men mostly 'cause they need a strong hand. Tim started acting out right about the time he was eleven or so. They thought he'd be better with me. He liked men, anyway. He wanted to be one of the guys.'' Nate chuckled, remembering his charge. ''That kid kept saying he wanted to be one of the guys. Took us a month of Sundays to figure that one out. Everybody thought he was saying 'he wanted to be a fly' He was okay, that kid.''

''But there were times he violent, right?''

''No worse than most of them. Hit the nurses if they tried to help him when he wasn't in the mood. He tried to hit me, but I was always one-step ahead of him. He never figured that one out.'' Nate relaxed. He clasped his hands and put them on his lap.

''Was he big enough to fight off a grown man who was trying to do something bad to him?'' Josie pressed.

''Sure he could do that,'' Nate answered matter-of-factly . ''But you're thinking like a normal person. You're thinking if someone went at Tim would he try to fight 'em, right? That's not the way it works,'' Nate chuckled.
''You mean he wouldn't try to protect himself if someone tried to hurt him?''

''What I'm sayin' is he wouldn't necessarily know about normal. Like when he was on that ride at Pacific Park, Tim may not know what was good for him and what was not. See what I mean?'' Nate held his palms skyward and smiled, pleased that he got the drop on her.

''Oh, yeah, I been readin' about it. It ain't like they lock us in here night and day. I got a life. I get the paper. They say that man unbuckled Tim's straps. Well, Tim might not know it was dangerous if someone did that. He probably wouldn't know that he'd fall out if he didn't hold on.''

''You mean he didn't understand cause and effect,'' Josie suggested.

''You got it. That's it.'' Nate grinned broadly. ''Come at him with a baseball bat and he'd probably sit there 'till you hit him in the head. But you try to take away his rice puddin', I'm tellin' you, you were in for a fight.'' Nate laughed, amusing himself with his stories of Tim Wren.

''So, since you know, how was Tim when he was around Lexi's husband?''

''Nobody knew her husband all that good. The man was hard to read. Most I can say is he didn't look real comfortable when he was with the boy.''

''Was it a normal uncomfortable or an angry uncomfortable?'' Josie asked.

''In this place they're about the same. Being around here makes people feel guilty for being okay. You're guy gets props for sticking to it, though. I mean, he weren't a father or brother or nothin'. Mother's have the most love. Strangers, they're polite you know. But steps? They marry the mother or the father of one of these people, but they don't know they bought into a lifetime of misery. It gets ugly when they figure it out. Lot of marriages go belly up because someone's got kin here.''

The door opened and a small woman with red hair looked in.

''Nate. We can't get Richard into the shower. Can you come?''

Nate raised a finger and the woman ducked out as quickly as she had poked in. He put his hands on his knees as if that helped him get up. Josie stood up too but cut him off before he got to the door.

''But it didn't get ugly with Archer and Tim, did it? Or with Lexi?'' she asked.

''Not that I saw,'' Nate answered, ''but I ain't here 'round the clock. The only thing I really know for sure is it was a damn shame Tim's own pop didn't come down to see him but Tim kept hopin'''

''His real father never did come here, did he? You didn't see him at all?'' Josie pressed. ''Balding. Glasses. Not very tall.''

''Not that I know. Tim never said. I didn't see anyone like that with his mom.'' Nate walked around Josie, stopping long enough to pass the door to Josie after he opened it. ''Tim would have told me if his pop came.''

''Did Tim's mother ever say anything about Tim's real father?''

''You mean like raggin' on him?'' Nate shook his head. ''I ain't on intimate personal terms with the patient's families. But if you're askin' if I ever heard her say anything against Tim's pop while I was around, the answer is no. The only thing I know for sure is that woman walked a tight rope between her man and Tim. At the end, she only cared about the boy. She didn't worry that her man didn't want to be here.
She
wanted to be here.'' Nate threw a look over his shoulder and then gave Josie another minute and a suggestion. ''I gotta go now but, if you hang around 'till dinner, you can catch Mrs. Schmidt. Her and Tim's mom were tight. Maybe she knows what went down.''

''Thanks. I just might do that.'' Josie was already turning away, Nate was a step further down the hall when he stopped and called her back. They walked toward each other. When Nate was close enough he said:

''Just for the record, if your man hurt Tim I hope he fries.''

As Nate went on to where he was , Josie took account. This was the first time she'd heard it said aloud, that cold call for blood. It had been implied in the press, reflected in people's eyes even heard in Burt's wavering defense after Archer's second arrest. Raising her eyes, Josie clutched her bag tight and drew a deep breath through her nose and let it out through pursed lips. She heard someone holler. She heard the sounds of a television and a respirator. Things could be worse for Archer. Not by much but it was possible.

In the parking lot, Josie settled into the Jeep and called Hannah to let her know she wouldn't be home until late. That done, Josie put her head back and looked at the roof of her car and wondered if anyone would notice if she just never got out again.

Hannah hung up the phone as the doorbell rang. Following the new house rules she pulled Max close, walked quietly toward the door and pulled back the white curtains on the window just enough to see if friend or foe waited outside. With a cluck and a put upon sigh, Hannah sent Max packing, unlocked the door and opened it as though she was doing a great favor to Billy Zuni who waited on the porch with a huge grin on his face.

''What do you want?''

Holding the door open just far enough so Billy could see her face Hannah assumed Billy would see exactly how unimpressed she was with his presence, how impatient she was for him to get the message. It wasn't enough. Billy grinned wider and pushed his blonde bangs out of his eyes.

''Hannah. Hey. I told Ms. B. I'd be checking on you when she wasn't around. I don't see her car so I figured I'd check on you. The way I said I would. . .''

His voice trailed off. He wasn't as dumb as Hannah thought. The fading smile, the way he moved his weight from one foot to the other told her he knew when he was being dissed. Too bad it didn't make him go away.

''The car could be in the garage, you know,'' Hannah pointed out wearily.

''Yeah, but it isn't because I've been waiting for her since four and she didn't come home from work early.'' Billy brightened as he bested Hannah. He was a man on a mission and he wasn't going to give up trying to make Hannah like him. ''So, since Ms. B.'s not home, I should watch out for you 'cause it's getting dark.''

''You mean you want to babysit me?'' Hannah rolled her eyes in disbelief and Max whimpered as if he felt bad for Billy.

''No, no,'' Billy shook his head hard. ''No, for sure, I just want to make sure you're okay. Like do you need anything – or anything. If you don't, I could just, like, well. . . You want me to sit on the patio and hang? I can do that?''

''No, I want you to go home, Billy. Just go home and leave me alone.''

''Naw, I can't do that. My mom's got somebody over and I promised. . .''

''Oh, Christ. I know. You promised Josie . . .''

Hannah threw open the door and walked away. He could come in or not - his choice. Hannah went into her bedroom and shut the door. Billy just talked louder.

'' So, I thought we could go to Burt's and get some burgers. I don't have any money but Burt knows I'm good for it. . .''

Billy stood in the living room waiting for her to come back but it was Max who came to greet him. Billy took the dog's face in his hands and ruffled him affectionately.

''Okay, we'll have dinner, dude,'' he whispered.

Billy changed Max's water and dug in the bag for his food. When he was done, he went to the patio and picked up the hose to water Josie's plants. That's where Hannah found him.

''So, do you want to go get something to eat or not?'' she demanded.

Her fingers touched the sides of the door over and over and over again, short bursts of activity that kept Hannah aware of her parameters, hiding the fact that she was nervous because Josie wasn't there. Billy didn't seem to notice; the same way he didn't notice her low-slung jeans and her tight t-shirt, the chocolaty skin in-between and how beautiful Hannah was even when she was annoyed. Billy didn't notice those things because Hannah had just told him that she was willing to go with him to Burt's. That made him grin again.

''Yeah. For sure, Hannah. You want to go down to the beach? It's not too cold. You know, we could sit and watch the waves for awhile and then go to Burt's and then we could go walk on the pier later. They say there's going to be red tide but I think it's too late for that.''

''This isn't a date. I just want to go get dinner and then go home again and then you leave.'' Hannah led Billy through the house. She touched the table, the lamp and the sofa on the way out the door.

As loyal as Max the Dog, Billy listened to the ground rules while Hannah locked up. She walked to the end of the path three times and three times she went back to check the door. The fourth time Billy went with her and that was enough to make Hannah stop checking. Shrugging into her hoodie, she walked by Billy's side as they crossed the street and made a right on the bike path heading toward Burt's. Billy stuck his hands in his pockets and looked around, wracking his brain for something to say. Finally, he hit on something they both knew something about.

''You know, maybe this thing with Lexi's kid is why Archer doesn't really take to us. Maybe it's why he doesn't like kids.''

''Maybe,'' Hannah muttered.
''Like, what are you going to do if Archer is guilty?'' Billy asked.

''I'm not going to do anything.'' Hannah pulled a face and looking at him as if he was a mutant. ''Why should I have to do anything?''

''Hey, whoa, Hannah. Don't get mad about it. I was just asking.'' They walked in silence a minute longer. Then he brightened. Another thought had come into his head. It was the answer to her question. ''Because things aren't going to be good if Archer killed that kid.''

''I wouldn't imagine,'' Hannah muttered not wanting to use her energy to point out how stupidly obvious that was.

She bent and swept something off the street. It was a piece of silver paper, a gum wrapper. She put it in her pocket. Even though the beach wasn't her favorite place, she didn't want to see it dirty. Besides, it gave her something to do while Billy struggled to get the conversation going.

''Yeah,'' Billy mused. ''Josie might not want kids around anymore if Archer has to go away because of a kid. See what I mean? I don't think she'd want me around anymore because I'd remind her of that boy, but maybe Josie wouldn't want either of us around anymore. You know, because it was a kid who caused this grief. And we're about his age. You and me. Well, we're older but . . .''

Billy walked on hardly noticing that Hannah had fallen back. When he turned to find her, Hannah blanked her expression, opened her mouth and said:

''God, you're stupid.''

Turning around, she stormed back to Josie's house. Billy followed her. He took no offense at her attitude. Billy knew Hannah hadn't thought about what would happen the way he had. He always thought ahead. When you figured out the worst that could happen then everything else was better. He wasn't the smartest guy on the beach but still he did know one thing for sure. It was a lesson his mother had taught him well. Billy Zuni knew that women liked to blame the kid when the men walked away or were taken away or were put away.

That was just a fact of life.

CHAPTER 23

Using normal parameters Josie Bates did not consider herself an overly charitable person. She didn't collect toys for children at Christmas. She didn't pray for world peace. She didn't lunch with ladies who raised money to save anything with four legs or two fins. She never volunteered to help the sick. Yes, she had taken Hannah in, but that seemed less charity than an in-your-face necessity. That act was definitive: feed and clothe Hannah, teach her, give her an opportunity to thrive and then let her take it from there. But charity? The kind personified by truly selfless goodness in the face of unrelenting need? That was another matter, altogether. Total dependency, perpetual weakness, those were conditions that Josie could not abide because it made the person on the other end of the stick seem almost God-like. And nobody but nobody was that good.

Maybe that was why Josie took a minute to study Mrs. Schmidt in room 21. She was looking for a sign that the woman wasn't as perfect as she seemed. Josie wanted to catch her when she faltered, see the break in her bearing that would prove this woman was as fatally flawed as ninety-nine percent of the population. But she wasn't. Mrs. Schmidt was possessed of superhuman patience, kindness and good humor. To top it all off, she was gorgeous.