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.
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.
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