Installment #26 Meg

Installment #26
Meg

Meg stepped out of the little silver Ford and took the parking stub from the valet. She smiled as she walked into the lobby of the Sheraton and spotted the entrance to the restaurant. She smiled at the maitre de and told him she was meeting some one. “Is he here yet? His name is Eldon.”

“No one by that name has checked in yet. Perhaps madam would like to wait at the bar and I will let you know when he arrives?” Meg agreed and soon found herself seated at the bar. She smiled as she settled at the bar.

She checked her watch and saw that it was already 12:20.    Eldon had said noon. He was already 20 minutes late. Well maybe he had gotten tied up. Things do have a way of doing that. She ordered a glass of white wine and began her favorite pastime of people watching. By one o’clock she was fidgeting and by 2:00 she was fuming. The clientele in the lounge had turned over at least once. The waiter was beginning to look askance at her. She knew how many glasses of wine she had sipped and that she really needed to get something in her stomach before she started the long drive home. She caught the waiter’s eye.
"I guess my friend is tied up. Might I have a small table, preferably by a window? I really should eat something before I drive my car.” She smiled at the sad young man.

“Certainly, mam. I have just the table for you. Great view of the garden and if you stretch your neck to the right you can see the fountain.”

“Then I shall ‘stretch my neck’!” She laughed as she rose to follow him to the table. Once more she was seated but this time with a glass of Raspberry Iced Tea instead of wine and a Blackened Tilapia served on Wild Rice with Pinon and Basil, recommended by Jerome, the waiter who reminded her very much of her dear Kevin. She had craned her neck and managed to see the fountain, which was indeed a work of art. But then so were the gardens.

She would reserve judgment on Eldon aka “redranger” until she heard from him. He might have a very good excuse. Or he might be what the Internet warned us all about, a faceless little creep hiding behind the boiler in a prison some where figuring out a way to get to Meg Paker. She made a silent vow to herself to find out more about this man that she had become so attached to through her computer. But right now she just wanted to go home, back to her part of the mountain where she felt safe and not so vulnerable as here in the middle of Denver, Colorado, waiting for a man that she knew was not coming.

She put her money with the bill and closed the cover, leaving a very generous tip for Jerome. She crossed the lobby and handed her ticket stub to the valet and waited. When the little silver car arrived, she tipped the valet and climbed inside. She adjusted the seat, checked the mirror and pulled into traffic. She did not notice the black Jeep pull onto the street at the same time. Nor did she notice the black Jeep when she took the ramp to I 25 South. Nor as she turned on the Johnny Mathis CD, one of her deviations from Country Western.

She began to sing along with him “There is someone, watching your footsteps , Turn around, look at me! There is someone waiting to hold you, Turn around, look at me. For I have waited, and I‘ll wait forever, for you to come to me. Turn around, look at me!”

And she was completely oblivious when she turned into her yard and pulled into her garage.

But He was not.

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Installment #25

Him

Marshall Purcell steered the Jeep Cherokee back onto the dirt road that would take him back to the Interstate.  He had almost weakened but then he remembered the Jeffery of long ago; the one his mother had loved instead of him.  They were twins, for God’s sake!  Why couldn’t she have loved him just a little bit?  It had been down hill ever since the day he had caught her in the kitchen with the neighbor man’s dick buried in her.  He had tried to tell Jeffery, but he had told her and she had hated him even more.  They may have been born on the same day at the same time, but they were nothing alike in her eyes.  And Jeffery had used it all to his advantage to get what he wanted. And he was still the same selfish lying little bastard today as he was then.  Dad had seen through him, but even the old man had never had guts enough to stand up to Mother.  So Marshall sucked the hind tit.

Jeffery had been all for the slight detour to check out the old mine shaft.  He was getting paid the same whether he worked or not so a little time on the side was no big deal.  John had not cared enough to have a car at the airport, so what the hell!  It was a nice drive up the mountain and Jeffery began to relax with Marshall.
 
“Well,  right after we left Oklahoma I met a great woman in Brattleboro.  Smart, and sexy as hell.  Yeah got myself a son right out of the gate and then twin girls.  Judy is a wonderful mother and life is great, but she is kind of busy so sometimes I have to take little side trips, know what I mean?”  He winked and laughed.
 Marshall Purcell looked sideways at redranger and knew exactly what he meant.  And he knew  this side trip would be ending up with Meg Paker bagged and bedded before he went back East.  Well, it would be over his dead body.  Well, not so much his dead body, but there would be a dead body involved, that was for sure.

They had walked up the short incline to the mouth of the mine.  Jeffery had always been fascinated with things like this.  It was no different now.
“How did you find this place?  How far down does the shaft go?  We won’t fall in will we?  Does it have a barrier? “  And he stayed right behind Marshall. 
They entered the mouth of mine and Marsall explained.  “ I found this quite by accident about a year ago.  It used to have a big fence around it, but it has kind of fallen down over the years.  We will be alright as long as we watch where we are going.  Here I brought a flashlight.”  He switched it on and handed it to Jeffery.

“You carry it and go ahead.  I am right behind you.”


They entered the cavern and Jeffery flashed the light from side to side and top to bottom, like a little kid.  As they went deeper into the abyss Marshall remembered his first trip up here and a 17 year old kid named something that he had picked up on the highway hitchhiking some where.  That was all innocent enough until the kid had reached over and put his hand on his crotch and smiled at him with a mouthful of rotten teeth.  His response had been instant and deadly.  In three seconds it was over and the kid lay against the door with his neck broken and his eyes staring vacantly at nothing in particular.
  Marshall had  panicked and drug the kid out the door and threw him over his shoulder.  He started up the mountain seeking somewhere to stick the body.  The cavern yawned before him and he entered the opening.  He dropped the kid on the ground and went back to get a flashlight.  Soon all was revealed to him and he had rolled the body over the edge and listened as it bounced off the wall and then a dull thud as it struck the floor of the mine and then dead silence.

His mind jerked back to the present as he watched Jeffery near the shaft.  “OK, Jeff, it is right ahead of you.  Get down on your hands and knees and crawl forward about 4 feet.  Then you can kind of lean over the side and see all the way to the bottom.  It is straight down so be careful.  Here let me hold your feet to make sure your don’t slip.”  He sat down and took a foot in each hand realizing as he did so that they were genuine leather shoes and no doubt very expensive.  “So can you see the bottom?  I got you bro’, don’t worry.” 
He felt Jeff strain a little and then heard him say, “My God!  There are bones down there!  They look like a human!  Ah shit!  There arelots of them!”

 But that was pretty much the end of that one sided conversation as Marshall Purcell shoved the feet of his twin brother , Jeffery Purcell over the side of the mine shaft, leather shoes and all.  A brief gasp, a split second and he hit the wall and then the pause and then  he heard the dull thud as he hit the floor.  Marshall stood and dusted off the knees of his pants.  Then he cursed softly as he realized he would have to buy another flashlight, turned and walked out into the bright sunlight and headed down the hill to the Jeep.

Installment #24 Him and Eldon

Him And Eldon

He pulled the Black Jeep into the short term parking at Stapleton and pulled his ticket from the little box that spit them out so faithfully.  He put it in his pocket and pulled into a vacant space near the end of the third row.  That was luck!  It was going to be his day, Karma dictated it.  He strolled through the door with 15 minutes to spare before the plane landed.  He looked at the bank of greeters holding their signs with names printed.  John,  Mary Smith, Eldon.  That was the one.  He took a deep breathe and hurried toward the blonde haired fellow in very casual dress.  Name tag.  Great!

“Jerry?”  He looked the guy right in the eye. “You waiting for Eldon?”
“Yeah, why?”
“Well, John sent me to do the waiting.  Said he needs you back at the office , post haste.  Some kind of problem.  Said tell you to hurry.”
“What’s going on?  He told me this was important.!  Said I had to meet this guy and get him there safe and sound.  Why didn’t he call me?”
“Look, I don’t know.  He said he tried to call but got a busy signal , so he said I should get over here and send you back.  What!  You think I just happened in here, saw you with a sign and decided I wanted to pick up Eldon?  Do I look nuts?”
Jerry laughed.  “Well, when you put it that way……”  Jerry started for the exit.  He stopped him.
“Hey, buddy, leave me the sign or we are going to miss the connection here!”  Jerry handed him the sign and walked away shaking his head.

So now he stood with the “Eldon” sign hoisted high as the passengers began to stream down the runway.
He spotted the man and recognized the walk.  Tall, lanky guy with a shock of brown hair and steely blue eyes.  How long had it been?  Oklahoma.  Jeffery.  Jeffery Eldon Lefton.  He shuddered as he made the connection between Jeffery Eldon Lefton and the redranger and Meg Paker.  And he cringed as he lowered the sign and prayed Jeffery had not seen it.  Finally he realized that a prayer of his had been answered as Jeffery scanned the signs looking for his name.  He did not see his name, but he did see the face of his brother, Marshall Lefton.  Their eyes met and they both realized that this was a chance meeting in a very unexpected place that neither of them could have forseen.  Jeffery appeared bewildered.

 “Marshall?  What are you doing here?  Did John send you?  Are you meeting me?”
“Jeff!  Lord no, I just happened to be killing some time waiting for a friend to get in from California.  What are you doing here?”
“I have a consulting job here for a company in Denver.  Someone was supposed to meet me, but it looks like I may be stood up.  How long have you got?  Can we grab a cup of coffee and catch up a little?”
“Hang on a sec.  I may be stood up myself.  Let me make a call.”  He turned away and punched a few numbers in the phone and then waited. 
“Oh, Jane this is Marshall.  Are you behind schedule?”  He nodded as he listened to nothing and then said, “Oh, no that is fine.  Something unexpected has come up here on my end. I will just see you at the apartment this evening…Yeah, honey, you too.”  He closed the phone and turned to face Jeff who had apparently been listening very closely.

“Wow!  Who is Jane?  Sounds serious.  Are you married?  Living together?”  Jeffery was a multitude of questions.  And Marshall was an engima with no ready answers.  He looked at his twin brother with a blank look and a mind that was a blur.  He had come to the airport to meet a man named redranger  with the full intent of  killing him, but here he stood in the hubbub of  Stapleton International Airport in Denver, Colorado face to face with his twin brother that he had not seen nor communicated with in years.  Had this been a faceless stranger, it would have been easy to bull shit his way through, but here was the face he had grown up with, the face that still looked at him in the bathroom mirror every morning and many times a day.  But a plan was a plan, wasn’t it?

“Well, Jeffery, where are you staying?  What are your plans?”  He paused, like he didn’t know what was planned.
“I have some work to do for Higgenboth Architects here in Denver and that will keep me busy until noon tomorrow and then I am meeting someone I have been communicating with online.  An old army buddy.  Haven’t seen him in years.”

Marshall sighed.  Damn liar did not realize that he had just sealed his fate.  No reason to change any plans because this was his brother.  This was the same little worthless piece of shit that had made his life so miserable when they were still at home.  Telling mom every time he looked cross ways.  Really had the old man eating out of his hand and he had gotten his hind end beaten more than ones by Jeffery’s lies.  And he had tried to tell Jeffery about mom and the dip wad up the street and Jeffery had just looked at him and went to mom.  Another ass beating.  No, Jeffery was no different now and that was too bad.  It would have been kind of nice to have a little family, but it sure was not this idiot.  Brothers should not lie to brothers.

Suddenly Jeffery  turned to Marshall.  He stared in wonder.  “Your eye!  What is that?  Did you get an eye?  I thought you just wore that patch.  When did you get this?  Is it real?”  He actually had noticed something besides himself. That was a wonder!

“It is glass.  Well, not exactly glass, some sort of artificial combination that looks like a real eye.  Doesn’t work , but it is set in there so it actually moves a little and at first glance it looks pretty real.  I had this done about 4 years ago.  Still have the scar, but it isn‘t as pronounced or maybe I have just learned to live with it.  Anyway, it was good of you to notice the eye.”  Marshall stopped and then asked, “How is the old man?“

Jeffery shuffled his feet then looked at Marshall.  “I don’t know.  After you left and mom died he married a real loser.  We moved to  Vermont and it was clear that Virginia did not want me around so I got my own place and they traveled a lot and we just drifted apart.  I assume they are both still around and still alive cause I have not heard any different.”

“I thought you and him were tight?” 

Jeffery laughed in derision.  “No way.  I watched how he treated mom all those years and it was all I could do to stomach being around him.  He did not respect her at all.  Treated her like a doormat.  All she ever wanted out of him was a little attention and that was the one thing he was incapable of giving her.  Too damn busy with his work! Hell, when she was dying he didn‘t even hire any help.  Took care of her himself, that is how tight he was.”  Marshall wondered at Jeffery’s devotion to their mother, but then remembered that mother had always fawned over Jeff, so that explained that.  Really not much sense trying to tell him any different.

“So, Jeff, want me to give you a lift into Denver?  I am headed that way anyway.”  Little did Jeffery Eldon Purcell realize that this might be the last decision he was ever to make on this earth.

“Sure!  Beats hell out of walking.”  They smiled as they started for the exit at Stapleton International Airport, but for totally different reasons.  Marshall put his arm around the shoulder of his brother who was 7 minutes younger than him and gave him a playful hug.

“Well, I bet you like to think so anyway!”  They laughed.

Installment #23 Meg

Meg Meg did not turn her computer on Monday after her trip up the mountain, so it was Tuesday morning when she read the email from Eldon. She answered right away and soon the plans were made and everything was in place. Eldon would arrive Wednesday right after lunch. The driver would pick him up and he would be busy with John until late, late that night and until noon on Thursday. Then he was free until Monday. Business she knew nothing about. She would meet him in the lobby of the Sheraton at 12:30 and they would have lunch somewhere and then just sight see until later when they would decide what to do next. Sounded like a loosely woven plan they could both live with. She realized that she was actually almost giddy at the thought of meeting a man. And having lunch and then deciding what to do next. That was the part that rather made her feel warm and anxious. But Thursday was two days away. Lot could happen in two days. But she hummed as she did her chores that day. Then she remembered the dogs rather guiltily. She phoned the friend who watched them before. She explained that she was not sure how long she would be gone. Maybe not even one night, but maybe more. He laughed. Yes, he was available and yes, he was flexible. Yes he would come Thursday afternoon and evening and continue his chores until she told him he was done. That taken care of she began to rifle the closet for clothes for her trip into Denver. She realized she had nothing sexy, but she did not want anything sexy. Nothing old maidy either. She finally settled on a pair of black tailored slacks and a red long sleeved clingy shirt with a high vee neckline. Little black pumps. Then she realized that those were too dark for summer. But it was not really summer and Denver is high and cool so she thought it best not to obsess. And as she climbed into her bed that night she found herself wishing that Thursday would hurry up and get here! Sweet dreams found her that evening and a tall stranger stood in the mist as she ran toward him.

Installment #22 Him

Him

He stood with his back to the closed door and felt the sweat pour down from his head and arm pits.  He was not ready for this!  Why had she come up here?  Why  was she in his yard?  This was his home and she had found him.  She appeared so innocent, but he knew better!  Never knew this house was here?  Who was she trying to fool?  This house had been here for years.  Years!  She was snooping around and he had caught her.  Did she know about his tunnel?  Did she know about his tree?  Did she know he watched her?  Maybe she was watching him watching her!  Women!  Nothing but treacherous bitches, every one of them.  Even that stupid Jennifer.  Always making coffee and tidying things.  Damn feather duster.  What was it with the cleaning all the time.  Her job was to run the office, not get in his way.

He peered out the window and could not see any sign of the woman.  She must be gone.  She had to be gone.  Of course she was gone.  She was probably down there right now on her farm gathering her eggs.  Damn chickens never stopped, did they.  Course not, they were females.  Females never stop what ever they start doing. They would keep laying eggs and Meg Paker would keep gathering them.  Jennifer would keep dusting and putting her pointed little nose into his business.  Maybe he should do something about her before he did something with Meg Paker.  When he made his move on Meg it would take time away from the office.  Jennifer would be suspicious.  She might come up here.  No, she did not know where he lived.  She knew about his apartment in Denver.  She knew about the apartment on Williams, but not about the cabin here in the mountains.  She knew he went some where out of town, but not where.  Nosey bitch could probably figure it out.  Get with the accountant and see where he paid taxes.  He shook his head violently.  This was sheer paranoia and he had more important things to concern himself with than that right now! 

It was now next week and redranger was on the horizon and headed toward Denver and Meg and the rendezvous that was scheduled and he had to figure out how to stop that from happening.  Get his ducks in a row.  First, check her email and see what the plan was.  It took so long for the computer to boot up that he decided to make an exception and have a drink in the middle of the day.  A splash of soda and a splash of Scotch.  Well, two splashes of Scotch.  That was better.  He settled at the computer, pulled up her yahoo account.  It had been rather quiet the last few days.  No sales at all.  A few feedbacks and finally he saw the redranger.  “meg.  I will be leaving Brattleboro, Vermont on Wednesday morning and arriving at Stapleton early afternoon.  John is having a car meet me so I am good for Wednesday until Thursday.  I would like to meet with you on Thursday and we can spend the whole day together.  I am at the Sheraton and they have a lovely dining room there.  Let me know and we will firm all this up on Tuesday.” 

He hit the “print” button and then the “keep as new button”   It was one thing to hack into her account but she was a smart woman.  Smart and alert.  She would connect the dots and know something was wrong  if he started leaving things laying around or not laying around.  Nothing  else that was of any interest to him.  But he left the screen up in case she showed any action.  He put a CD in the player and kicked back in his recliner.

His mind toyed with what to do with the redranger.  Eldon. That was a silly name.  He wondered if it was his real name. Some how he doubted that it was.  He had been around and he knew what this online stuff was.  Guy probably did not even have a job.  Just coming to Denver to play around and Meg was his target.  A little weasel that hid in the shadows and played pretend games because he was afraid of reality.  Acted like something he was not.  He would do God only knows what to Meg and then go back to where ever he came from and never even think about her again.  Well, not while there was life in his body!  No siree!  He would save her.  He would protect her.  A shimmer of an idea began to form in his mind.  Yes, he knew what to do.  Eldon would arrive in Denver on Wednesday.  Today was Monday.  He would be ready.  Of course he would be ready.  Wasn’t that what he had learned in Viet Nam, to always be ready? 

He smiled as he drained his glass and the hot liquor found the warm place right beside his heart.  The heart that suddenly longed for Meg Paker.  He sighed sadly thinking of all the things he had done and would continue to do for her.  He was sad that she could never know the real depth of his commitment to her.  It would frighten her, he knew.  His eyelids grew heavy and he chortled because he knew he was going to sleep right there in the chair.  And fully clothed as he thought of Meg Paker standing in his yard, he touched himself and blushed at the pleasure it brought him. 

Then his mind went blank with sleep.

Installment #21 Meg

Meg

Meg sealed the last box, added the label, stuck a Priority Mail sticker on it and tossed it into her tote.  Daisy and Elvira began to dance around as she took her hat from the hook.  She opened the door and started down the drive to the mailbox.  The dogs ran sniffing both sides of the road ahead of her.  At the mailbox she opened the big door and put the packages inside.  Then she raised the flag to let the driver know that she had a pickup.  She turned back towards the house, but then turned to look up the mountain.  The dogs looked at her quizzically.  She laughed.  “All right!  Just a short one though.”
She crossed Banner Road and entered the field.  She skirted the fence that was across the path and started up the hill. The dogs ran ahead as was their habit.  Sniff and pee.  Sniff and pee.  Dogs had such easy lives.  Soon they were at the fork in the trail that led to the tree she had discovered on the last trip up the mountain.  Without a second thought she turned and headed up the path.  Might as well face this demon and put it behind her.  She had avoided the mountain when Greg and Kevin were here because of this and now it would be put to rest.  As she neared the tree she relaxed.  The brush was not beaten down at all.  As she looked around she noticed the growth pattern on the big pines was the same as this one.  Looked like a ladder.  What a silly goose she had been.  The path turned slightly to the left so she followed it.  About 300 yards and she realized that off to her right was what appeared to be a small cabin.  She stopped and studied it.  It was a small cabin.  There was a worn driveway so she knew it was used by someone.  She should go back.  This was some ones home.  She was trespassing.  Well, not really.  She was just walking past a house. 
The road lay right before her and she knew if she followed the road around to the right it would lead back to Banner Road where she lived.  Fred lived up here somewhere, but this looked too neat to be where Fred would live.  She scoffed at herself for making judgements about Fred.  She did not know where he lived and so could not know how he lived.  As she debated whether to take the road back down or go back the way she had come, she heard a vehicle coming up Storm Lake Road.  She made her mind up very quickly when the Black Jeep Cherokee approached and  turned into the little cabin.  Curiosity made her look at the vehicle and she strained to catch a glimpse of the driver as she looked back over her shoulder.  So intent was she in that endeavor that she did not notice that Elvira had stopped to itch herself.  She stepped on the dogs tail and she yelped.  She halted the forward momentum of the second leg and tumbled forward into Daisy.  Another yelp as the door of the Jeep closed.  The big man whirled and stared in her direction.  He did not look happy at all.  And then he looked very surprised as he started towards her.  Meg rose and was dusting herself off when he reached her.

“Are you alright lady?”  He glanced at the dogs who were cowering at her feet.  “Did I scare you and your dogs?  Why are you up here?  This is private property, you know.”  He stopped and waited for her to answer.

Meg was frozen in place by his cold steely eyes and then she noticed his scar.  She had met this man before.  Her and Tommy.  Long ago.  She took a deep breathe and began her explanation.  “Well, I am Meg Paker and I live straight south of here.  I was just walking on the trail with the dogs cause that is what I do sometimes.  I did not even know there was a house here until I stumbled on it today.  I usually turn around before I get this far.  I was thinking of taking the road back and then I noticed your cabin.  And then you came and so I started back and tripped on Elvira….”  Her voice trailed off as she stood waiting for what?  Absolution?  Wrath?  She turned to go.

“Oh.”  And that was all he said.  Meg was suddenly aware of his eyes burning into her.  She shivered as she suddenly felt very vulnerable.  She turned back toward the trail she had come up to get here.  “It is alright if you walk across my yard.” he said curtly as he  turned and walked toward the little cabin without a backward glance.  He unlocked the door and quickly disappeared inside.  Meg was left staring at a closed door.  She suddenly just wanted to be home and she hurried back the way she had come.  The sun was past it’s zenith when she hurried inside and  the door locked behind her.  Home!  This was her sanctuary.  Her haven.  And suddenly she began to sob as she thought of Tommy.  Never again would her Tommy hold her.  Never would they laugh.  As she sank into the overstuffed chair that faced the open window and the mountain she gave vent to the last three years of loneliness and frustration.  The dogs stood silently at her feet and stared at the grieving woman.