Trials and Perseverance: The Silver Slippers

By J.A. Massa

Freeman, Danny, Clay and the girls are back at it.

After brilliantly solving the alleged rape of a sixteen year old girl, Freeman together with his partner, Danny, take to the streets to put an end to a small group who have been burglarizing homes in the area. The two detectives soon learn that they are not only dealing with a group of thieves, but also the case involves several other crimes against the group ranging from murder, to contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

Who are these ruthless people? What are their motives? What secrets lay within the Silver Slipper and the home the gang shares? The answers lay within the pages of this story.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Nov 15, 2014
• ISBN: 9781503510425

J.A. Massa

From a very early age, I have written everything from songs to poetry. Having several short stories published in the past, I have never undertaken a task of this magnitude. I was encouraged first by my history teacher in high school on a paper I had to submit about the Hindenburg. I wrote the article through the eyes of a mouse that happened to climb aboard the ill-fated blimp. I was further influenced by my English professor in college. During more twenty years that I spent in the Marine Corps, I continued to write for my own entertainment. Now retired and considered disable, I thought I would share a few adventures with those who will be entertained by my writings, those who will share the laughs I have gotten from some of the characters. Some of the sorrows I felt are in my books. I continue to write in hopes that some will find my works enjoyable and entertaining but feel deep in my heart that if I can bring pleasure to just one person who reads my stories, then the time and effort are well worth the hours put into them.

Book preview

CHAPTER ONE

Freeman Stamford sits at the kitchen table of the apartment he shares with his fiancée Lois Weatherford. The glass of ginger ale sitting in front of him has long ago gone flat. His eyes are focused on the closed bedroom door. Behind it, Lois sleeps soundly. So much has been on his mind lately that he finds it nearly impossible to sleep. He glances at the clock on the wall. It reads four-twenty a.m.

Freeman, a Sergeant of Detectives for the Stafford Oregon Police Department, has been off duty for nearly three months recovering from gunshot wounds he received in a daring rescue of his best friend’s, Clay Johnson’s, now wife and step-daughter.

Freeman and Clay met nineteen years ago while both he and Clay attended the University of Oregon. They were assigned by the school to be roommates, since both were studying Criminal Justice.

During their college days, Clay studied diligently, while Freeman spent most nights drinking beer, partying, and chasing any female classmate that showed an interest in him. Clay graduated top in the class, while Freeman graduated next to last. From the start, the two became good friends. Clay was determined not to let this short, over-weight, foul-mouthed, student fail. Many nights when Freeman returned from his night out, Clay would force Freeman to review all that had been taught that day in class. Freeman knows, had it not been for Clay, he would have flunked out of school after the first semester.

After graduation Clay opened his own detective agency, while Freeman joined the local Police Department. As the years pass, Clay’s business flourished, and over the years Freeman was promoted to Detective Sergeant. Today will be Freeman’s first day back to work since his injuries.

He glances once again at the closed bedroom door, where a few short hours ago he found a little peace of mind, making love to Lois for nearly two hours. He thinks back to the time he first met her He begins to reflect on all the events that had brought the two of them together. I could write a book about this, he thinks with a chuckle.

Freeman reaches for his cane, hobbles to a desk drawer and takes out a legal pad and pen. He hobbles back to the table and thinks. Let’s see. He begins to write:

It all started when me and Clay planned that week long fishing trip at Clay’s cabin on Lake Chaffee. We were both long overdue for a break. The thought of kicking back, relaxing, drinking beer and doing a lot of fishing sound like the perfect getaway.

It was there we met Connie, (then Connie Simpson,) and her daughter Beth. It was love at first sight for both Connie and Clay. He sets his pen down and sips the flat ginger ale. Picking up the pen he begins writing again. It was also the time that we met the notorious gang known as the ‘Devil’s Messengers.’ I knew about them but never had any dealings with them since they always stayed in Salem. I remember we felt strange that a gang of that magnitude was in such a rural area. Suspicious by nature, Clay would have normally looked into why they were there. I had to remind Clay we were on vacation and although curious, he let the gangs being in the area not concern him. Not concern him, that is, until the gang started stalking, tormenting, and terrorizing both Connie and Beth.

Freeman scratches his head and thinks how different things may have been if Clay had taken his advice and enjoyed his vacation rather than getting involved with the two women and their problems, Chances are I may have never met Lois, he thinks to himself.

Since he and Clay met, nearly twenty years ago, Freeman can’t recall a time, that no matter how bad things seemed, or what sort of trouble surrounded him, everything seems to come up roses for Clay. The man can reach into a bucket of shit and pull out a diamond, he thinks to himself with a chuckle. Once again Clay’s involvement with the two women had not only netted Clay a diamond in Connie and Beth, but he, Freeman Stamford, had found a diamond in Lois Weatherford.

Freeman takes another sip of his flat ginger ale, before turning back to the legal pad. I remember Clay contacted the local sheriff’s department to have the local authorities put an end to the harassment the gang was putting the women. As it turned out those backwoods patrol monkeys were of little help.

Freeman again looks at the bedroom door. If those damn idiot cops would have done their job, I might never have met her, he thinks. "But no! Clay had to take it upon himself to find out why this gang chose Chaffee to settle in, and why they had selected Connie and Beth to terrorize. His snooping around and asking questions put me and him in the biggest pile of shit I’ve ever been in. Freeman writes.

He thinks back to the night the four of them were having dinner together. It was the night the first body turned up. Connie nearly collapsed when she heard the TV newsman begin the story. She told me and Clay that the body was the body of her former husband’s young girl friend. The reporter went on to say that the woman had been found beaten, raped and murdered.

"A couple days later, it was reported that another young woman’s body had been found. Like the first, she too had been beaten, raped and killed. As the story continued we learned both women had worked for Simpson’s Motors. A Toyota dealership owned and operated by Connie’s former husband. The police believe the murders were gang related and committed by the same gang. We knew right off it had to be the ‘Messengers.’

It was right after the second broadcast Clay began to put things together. I remember Clay showing me on the map how the bodies were found along a route leading from the town of Pleasantville, to the small town of Chaffee. I showed Clay how the gang, moving from Salem to Chaffee, would have had to go right through Pleasantville. I also remember telling Clay how strange it was that both the murdered victims worked for the same company.

The following day, through a contact of Clay’s, we learned that besides being bludgeoned, raped, and murdered, both women were pregnant.

The gang had twice before become involved with women connected with Simpson and now, here they were, where two other women connected to Simpson stayed. That’s when I realized me and Clay had to do something.

As the gang became bolder and bolder in their taunting of Connie and Beth, Connie looked more and more to me and Clay for comfort and protection. It didn’t take long for Clay to win her confidence and trust. I still don’t know how he got Connie to open up to him, but Clay learned that Connie’s divorce from Simpson was anything but friendly. It took more then three years for the two parties to reach an agreement and when it was all over, Connie walked away a very wealthy woman. He also learned Simpson had been sexually abusing his daughter for several years, and he learned from Connie that Simpson had three loves in his live. Money, young women, and Lyle Simpson.

Clay learned that Connie had a will drawn up leaving all of her assets to Beth. Clay called a lawyer friend of his. He was told that if something were to happen to both Connie and Beth, there was a good chance everything Simpson lost in his divorce, would be turned back over to him. We knew that somehow Simpson was involved but how could we prove it. We also knew the women were in a world of shit.

Freeman takes another sip of the ginger ale. Turning back to his legal pad he continues to write. We both knew we needed to get the women the hell out of there. Try to convince a woman you have known a few days to run off with you. Talk about mission impossible! Connie wasn’t going anywhere. We decided that while Clay investigated, I would keep an eye on the women.

Clay spent a great deal of time away from the cabin back then investigating. The gang knew better then to mess with the women while I was on the job. All the evidence Clay was turning up showed more and more that the gang was responsible for the two young women’s deaths. The problem was tying Simpson to the gang if he was the one responsible for the gangs actions. We both had that sickening feeling that the only way this would end was in the deaths of Connie and Beth unless we could prove that the mastermind, with the deep pockets who hired the gang, was Simpson.

Clay continued to try to convince Connie to move her and Beth to a safe location. I recall how hardhead she was until that last night at the cabin. We were all sitting around Clay’s cabin. Well sort of, Beth was sitting outside on the front porch. Suddenly we heard Beth scream! Me and Clay ran out the cabin’s door, guns drawn. In the moonlight we saw two of the gang members trying to carry Beth to their waiting van. I remember how anxious Connie was after that to get out of that area.

We moved the two women to Clay’s house. Clay’s home is like a fort Together, me and Clay, felt it would be the perfect place to hide the women. For the next couple weeks it was still my job to watch over the women. Clay continued to gather more and more evidence implicating Simpson. He felt he was getting close to having enough evidence to have a warrant taken out on Simpson. To be sure, he contacted the District Attorney’s office. That’s when we met Lois, Assistant District Attorney for the city of Stafford. We set an appointment to meet with her at Clay’s home. As soon as I saw Lois, I fell in love with her. Freeman sets the pen down. A smile crosses his face as he remembers her blazing red hair and long shapely legs. He can picture in his mind the smile she gave him when she caught him trying to look up the short navy blue skirt she wore.

I remember Lois asking to see all the evidence Clay had turned up. I remember Lois sitting in Clay’s big easy chair. That’s when I made my move. I got up and moved to the arm of the chair. She opened the folder and I asked if she minded me reading over her shoulder? He chuckles as he remembers her reply, ‘I would rather you sit next to me rather then sit on the floor trying to look up my skirt,’ she told me. After Lois finished reading over the last bit of information she told us she felt she had enough to put the gang away, but told us we had nothing that implicated Simpson with the gang, or the murders of the two young women. Back then Lois didn’t know how thorough Clay was when working a case. He told her that evidence would be arriving any minute.

That’s when Connie’s only real friend, Mary Bitts, arrived. Not only is Mary a friend of Connie’s, but she was also the bookkeeper for Lyle Simpson’s Pleasantville dealership. Mary brought with her copies of pages from her books. They showed that a couple of days before each of the girls murders, she had been sent to the bank by Simpson to withdraw five thousand dollars in cash. Mary also mentioned that shortly before the gang arrived in Chaffee, another ten thousand had been removed from the bank, and was unaccounted for. Mary told Lois how soon after she returned from each withdrawal, a dirty young man visited Lyle Simpson in his office. Each time he left, he was carrying the bag she had used to bring the cash back to Simpson. Lois told us we were on the right track. We all looked at her puzzled. Connie asked what more Lois needed to put an end to the ordeal? She told us how the defense attorney, I would ask if she knew for sure that the money was in the bag or was it possible that the bag contained Simpson’s dirty laundry or something else? "I need more proof. I didn’t want to lose this case,’ she told us.

After our meeting I walked Lois to her car. I don’t know what I was thinking, but when I opened the car door for her, the words will you marry me just popped out. I still remember her cute little giggle and her exact words. ‘Your cute, Mr. Stamford, but since we just met, marriage is out of the question. I would be happy to have dinner with you one night when your free. It might be nice to get to know you better.’ I remember telling her I would be free the next night. We did meet for dinner that following night. Our first dinner together and I really turned on my charm.

Freeman thinks back to their second dinner date. It was the first time she kissed me. It wasn’t much of a kiss just a simple kiss on my cheek, but it meant the world to me, so I proposed again. I remember her telling me she was starting to take me serious. If she only knew I was serious, he thinks.

Freeman sets his pen down and takes another sip of the flat ginger ale. Glancing once again at the closed bedroom door, Freeman fights the urge to go in and wake her. He begins writing again.

Despite our efforts to keep the women safe the gang using a trick masterminded by the gang’s leader, managed to abduct the two women. They transported Connie and Beth back to Chaffee, and held them in an old deserted root cellar. There Connie and Beth met another young women, also being held captive, by the gang. Her name was Leanne Boucher. Leanne had been abducted nearly a week before Connie and Beth arrived. It was apparent right off that Leanne had been severally beaten. Connie and Beth soon learned that besides the beatings, Leanne had been continuously raped. She told Connie that after the first rounds of beatings and rapes that she contemplated suicide, but for the sake of the unborn she carried, she clung to the hope that the father of her baby would come to her aid, or send help. Connie soon learned that the father of Leanne’s baby was none other than Lyle Simpson. Rather than tell her the truth about Lyle Simpson, Connie assured her that me and Clay would be there soon to save the three of them, but at that time, we had no idea where they were being held.

Connie learned from Leanne that by making the gang members feel they enjoyed sexual abuse, the beatings would be less severe. Leanne also told her that one of the members seemed to like her and at times would speak up and put a stop to whatever sick notion came into their heads. ‘Sometimes they will listen, sometimes they won’t. The important thing is to just do what they want and pray your friends come soon. Either that or just kill yourself and your daughter right now and avoid the torture.’

From what I learned later, Connie gave the words of advice from the young woman a lot of thought. She went to Beth and told Beth that she felt in her heart me and Clay would be there soon to save them. She told Beth what she was expected the gang had planned for them, how Beth needed to do whatever the gang wanted of her in order to survive until we arrived. Through tears, Beth agreed but never imaged what those sick, sorry bastards had in-store for the three women. It was unimaginable.

It took us four days to track down the whereabouts of Connie and Beth. At that time we had no idea that there was a third woman. The way we found them was a stroke of luck. We spotted the same van, the one we saw the night of the failed attempt to abduct Beth, go by us in Chaffee. We followed it to an old dirt road. We drove about a mile before turning around and returning to the dirt road we witnessed the van go down. We waited. With my bum leg Clay decided to walk the road. Keeping well out of sight, yet close enough to hear their conversation, Clay learned that Sheriff Collins, the sheriff of Chaffee, was the messenger between Simpson and the gang leader. The gang leader, who called himself T-Boss, felt he no longer had use of the Sheriff so ordered two of his followers to kill Collins. They followed his orders and bury the sheriff outside of their campgrounds.

From where he hid Clay learned that Lyle Simpson would be meeting the gang that Sunday at one o’clock. He heard T-Boss tell his members that Simpson wanted to witness the three women being killed. Despite knowing the torment the women would have to go though, Clay knew that by catching Lyle Simpson together with the gang, Lois would have enough evidence to put Simpson, and his hired henchmen away for life.

Leaving them there at the gangs mercy had to be the hardest decision Clay ever had to make in his life, yet he knew come Sunday he would have enough evidence to assure Simpson got what he deserved in a court of law. We ended up leaving the women behind and returning to Stafford. Back at Clay’s, we put a plan in action to rescue the women.

We headed back to Chaffee on Saturday night, under the cover of darkness, to wait on Simpson to arrive. About ten o’clock Sunday morning the women were taken to the lake to clean up. Connie spotted me hiding behind the stone wall that separated her and Clay’s cabin. She had to know that Clay was somewhere close. While in the lake, Connie silently let the two girls know we were there. We sat and waited for Simpson to arrive."

"At one that afternoon Simpson pulled up to the cabin where the women had been moved. Once Simpson and his gang moved inside, Clay quietly moved down to the window of the main bedroom of the cabin. All I know of what he saw and heard is what he told me later. He said could hear Connie asking Simpson why? How she begged him to spare the girls lives. He told me Simpson had his back to the window. That the window had been cracked so he could hear every word. Through the crack he could see that Connie was on her knees. Her hands had been tied behind her back and she was tied at the ankles. Simpson stood in front of her. He could see that Simpson was holding a knife to her throat.

Clay told me that Connie kept begging him to spare the girls. Neither me or Clay knew until later what happened because Clay said Simpson started whispering in her ear. Clay told me that it was then that Connie saw him at the window. Connie nodded and Simpson toss the knife on the bed. Next thing he saw was Connie giving Simpson a blowjob. That’s when all hell broke lose. In a matter of seconds Simpson screamed and fell back against the wall. Hell even I could hear him screaming from where I was. He was bleeding like a stuck pig according to Clay. Seems Connie had chewed his pecker off. Hearing Simpson screaming, two of the gang members ran into the bedroom. That’s when Clay open fire though the bedroom window. I had moved from behind the wall and had the front door of the cabin covered. Hearing the shots the other three gang members ran out the front door. I fired and two of them fired back. When it was all over four of the gang members lay dead, one escaped and later turn himself in to the local sheriff’s department. I was shot once in the shoulder and one round that went clear though my left leg. I got to the bedroom where the two girls were tied sitting in a corner. I say Connie laying on the floor out cold. Her face was covered in blood. I thought she may have been struck by a stray bullet. Then a saw the penis laying on the floor. By now Clay had climbed through the window. We untied the girls and wrapped them with the sheets and blankets from the bed. Paramedics arrived and we were all taken to the hospital.

During my hospital stay, I learned just how much Lois loved me. She stayed in Chaffee by my side almost the entire time. It was her idea to move in together. She told me it would be a lot easier to care for me. So I gave up my place and moved in with her. Now she is due to testify in a case being held in the capital city. It will be the first time we have ever been apart.

The case concerns the one young man who managed to escape the shootout. It turned out he was with the gang at the time of Connie and Beth’s abductions, but was not a part of it. The only involvement he had with any of the three women, was when for fear of his life he was forced, by the gangs leader, to have intercourse with Connie. He had nothing to do with the games the women were forced to play, the rapes that took place, or the beatings the women underwent. ‘He was just a young man who found himself in the wrong place at the wrong time,’ Lois has told me time and time again. In fact according to Lois, it was this young man’s testimony at Lyle Simpson’s trial, that assured conviction. Regardless, I admit I’m having trouble dealing with her being gone.

Freeman takes a sip of his flat ginger ale. Needs ice, he thinks. He reaches for his cane and notices the clock on the wall shows almost six am. He glances again at the closed bedroom door. She’ll be getting up soon to start her journey, he thinks.

As Freeman stands to get his ice, the door to the bedroom opens. Lois stands in the doorway wearing a very short powdered blue nightgown. Lois stands five feet eleven and three quarter inches. She tells everyone she weighs one hundred and twenty five but in reality stays between one forty to one hundred forty five pounds. Unlike the man she is engaged to, Lois always takes pride in her appearance. Her fiery red hair is always worn in an attractive manner. She has long shapely legs and she isn’t afraid to show them off. She has a figure that turns most men’s heads for a second look whenever she passes them, but lately has noticed her clothes fitting a bit tight on her. Prior to Freeman moving in, she always had an exercise regiment she followed. Since Freeman’s arrival, she realizes she has been neglecting it and the results are beginning to show. She vows to get back on her program when she returns from Salem. Her fiery green eyes always have a sparkle to them, and her bright smile can light up the darkest night. She will tell you she’s thirty five, when in reality she is forty but could pass as thirty to those that didn’t know better.

Spotting Freeman at the table she asks if he has been up all night? He nods. I just have so much on my mind, he tells her. Lois stretches her arms exposing the blue panties that match her gown and yawns. What could you have on your mind that is so important that you haven’t slept? You go back to work in a couple of hours if you’ve forgotten. I’ve got plenty on my mind, he tells her. Let me get some coffee on and you can tell me all about it, Lois tells him.

After starting a pot of coffee, Lois sits beside him at the table. Spotting the legal pad in front of him she asks, What are you doing with that paper? He looks up and smiles. I’m writing a book about how we met. Lois laughs. Angel you know I love you, but your really wasting your time. You can’t write a book. You can’t spell. He tells her he hoped she would read it and fix things. Again she chuckles. Better if you just dictate it to me, she tells him. Lois picks up the note pad and begins to read. Planned has two n’s in it not one Angel, and week, as in days of a week, is w-e-e-k and not w-e-a-k. Don’t you have to write reports? he nods. How do they understand them? He tells her that they must be use to him.

Lois reads a bit farther into Freeman’s writing. Angel I really don’t think this is a good idea. What I’m saying is Connie and Beth are trying hard to get over what happened to them. Here you are bringing the whole ordeal back up. Why not just drop the idea of a book?" Freeman nods his agreement.

Glancing at the coffee pot Lois asks, if he would like some breakfast? Any jelly donuts left? he asks. She smiles, walks to the counter and places the two remaining jelly donuts on a plate. She hands them to Freeman, leans and kisses him. I so love you Angel. Let me get coffee and we’ll talk, she tells him. After pouring them each a cup of coffee, she rejoins Freeman at the table.

So what else is troubling you? she asks. Freeman wears a sad expression. I don’t like the idea of you going off to Salem on your own. Lois sends him a weak smile. You know I have no choice in the matter Angel. I’ve been subpoenaed. I know but I still don’t like the idea. I mean if we were married……. Lois holds up her hand. Let’s not go there this morning Sweetheart. All I was going to say was if we were married, I don’t think it would bother me so much. Look at you. You’re a beautiful woman. You will be hundreds of miles away from me. What if you find you want a little male companionship? Being single, your free to find some. Now if we were married that would be different. Looking over the rim of her coffee cup Lois smiles. Please Free. Let’s not go back to this wedding idea. Not this morning. I told you I would marry you. I’m just not ready. As for this trip to Salem, you know I have no choice but to go I’ll only be gone a few days. As for wanting male companionship, your all the man I want or will ever want. Freeman offers a weak smile. Any idea when you’ll be ready? he asks. Lois smiles. I’ll know when the time is right. Why the rush? Freeman pauses to bring his thoughts together. We’ll look at me. Then look at you. You’re a beautiful woman. Since the shooting I haven’t been able to do much. I’m really out of shape. I’m even starting to get a beer gut. Lois laughs. It’s not what you look like that has taken my heart Angel. It’s who you are that I love. As for that beer gut, you’ve had that since I’ve known you. According to Clay you’ve had it since the age of twelve." she tells him with a giggle.

Freeman stands and hobbles over to the coffee pot. A little more, he asks, holding the pot out to her. Lois nods. Freeman pours her coffee. I better start getting ready for work, he tells her. Danny will be by to pick me up soon. She watches him walk into their bedroom to change, she again picks up the note pad and thinks back to the first time she met this intriguing man. It was at Clay Johnson’s home. She remembers Freeman walking her to her car after their meeting. How Freeman proposed marriage to her. Lois laughed so hard her sides ached that day. Little did she realize, Freeman was serious. She opted for a dinner date with him instead. The date went well and again Freeman proposed. During their dinner Lois realized that there was nothing phony about this man. Although he may not look like Adonis (the Greek god), this is a man let you know exactly where you stood with him. An immediate attraction to him began to form.

Now Lois stares at the closed bedroom door. She remembers the time spent at the hospital while Freeman recovered from his gunshot wounds. It seemed from the moment he opened his eyes after surgery, to the time they wheeled him out the front door to go home, Freeman was constantly trying to convince her to get in the bed with him. That’s when Lois began to wonder if she was truly falling in love with this man or was she just intrigued by his cocky attitude and openness. She asked herself over and over how could she be falling in love with a man who at the age of forty two, still tried to look up women’s dresses, ate jelly donuts and washed them down with beer, and cussed worse than a drunken sailor? But she was and the thought terrified her.

A knock on the door at precisely 7:00am signals Danny Sturgis, Freeman’s rookie partner, had arrived to pick Freeman up. Lois answers the door. Nice outfit! Freeman hears Danny tell her. Freeman rushes into the room. Jesus! Freeman shouts. How many times have I told you to put a robe on before answering the door? Lois hangs her head. I thought you were proud of the way I look. I never realized you were ashamed of me. Freeman takes her in his arms. You know I’m proud of you. I just wish you would quit showing off your wears to all my friends. Who? she asks. Well Danny here for one. And who else has seem me dressed this way? I don’t know. he tells her. Just from now on will you at least put on a robe before you answer the door? She crosses her heart, winks, and tells him I promise. A big kiss and she sends Freeman off to work. Call me when you get Salem so I know your safe? Freeman asks. You know I will, she tells him.

On the way to the station, Danny turns to him. It may not be my place to say anything Free, but I don’t understand what a hot looking woman like Lois sees in you. What’s wrong with me? Freeman asks. For starters your hair. I don’t remember the last time I saw you have it combed or brushed. What else? Freeman asks. You haven’t shaved your carrying about an extra forty pounds across your middle, I could go on and on. Just so you know asshole that belly is paid for! Freeman tells him. Danny laughs. That it is Free, that it is.

CHAPTER TWO

Not five miles from Freeman and Lois’s apartment, Connie Johnson is in her kitchen getting ready to prepare breakfast for her husband Clay and daughter Beth. Connie a very attractive blonde stands five feet four inches. Her silky, blonde, shoulder length hair is always kept neat. Her amazing emerald green eyes, have had the gift of telling when someone is being truthful or lying for many years, they are further accented by her high cheekbones. Normally Connie takes pride in her figure. She has always been very weight conscious and exercises daily. However times are not normal at this time for Connie. She is forty one years old, and very pregnant with twins. Her breast that are naturally a little large for her frame, have become larger and heavier. Her once shapely legs have gained several extra pounds. In her present condition, with the exception of the walks she and her husband take daily and the exercises that her doctor has suggested, Connie’s normal exercise regiment has been placed on hold.

As she reaches to put on a pot of coffee, one of the unborn babies moves within her sending a unusual pain up her backbone to her head. Connie doubles over trying to catch her breath. Her hands moves to her stomach. At that very moment Beth, Connie’s twenty one year old daughter walks into the kitchen. Beth stands five feet six inches tall and weights roughly one hundred twenty pounds. She has her mother’s enchanting eyes but up to now not her mother’s gift of telling the truth from lies. She also has her mother’s shapely legs. She too is very conscious of her dirty blonde hair and wears it to the base of her neck. Unlike Connie, Beth’s breast fit her frame well, and like her mother, Beth is haunted by flashbacks from the ordeal both women suffered at the hands of the Devil’s Messengers.

You ok mom? Beth asks. Connie nods. Just your brother or sister having issues this morning, Connie replies flashing her daughter a brilliant smile. Won’t be long now mom. Connie nods. Couple more weeks. We may learn more when we visit Doctor Noble (Connie’s OBGYN) this afternoon, Connie tells her. Connie turns and places several strips of bacon into the frying pan. I thought we were going to see Doctor Little today? Beth is referring to the physiatrist that both her and her mother have been seeing since they were abducted, raped and beaten by the gang. We are Sweetheart but first I have a one o’clock appointment with Doctor Noble. Your welcome to come along if you like but if not make sure your home by at least two and your father and I will pick you up, Connie tells her daughter. Think I’ll just hang around the house mom. Danny will be at work and I have nothing planned.

Clay walks in and joins the two women. He walks over and places a kiss on Beth’s cheek. Good morning Princess, he tells her with a broad grin. Next he walks and stands behind Connie. He places his arms around her stomach and kisses her on her neck. And how is the queen of this house this morning? he asks. Connie turns and offers him a smile. Your children are a little rambunctious this morning, she tells him with a bit of a frown. Won’t be long, he reminds her. Beth sits on one of the counter chairs laughing. What’s so funny? Clay asks. Mom better have those babies soon. You can hardly get your arms around her middle she’s so big. Connie turns from the stove and glares at her daughter. Your day will come, she warns her daughter in a playful tone. Beth hangs her head. I don’t know mom. Connie realizes what she just said. She walk over to Beth and places an arm around her daughter. Doctor Little said these flashback will become less and less frequent Sweetie. One day, hopefully soon, yours will stop. Look at me. I haven’t had one in over a month now, Connie tells her. That’s your mom. That’s not me."

Connie steps back and looks at her husband from head to toe. Most mornings, Clay will have his breakfast in his pajamas, but today Clay is wearing a shirt and tie. Something I should know about? Connie asks. Clay gives her a puzzled look. Have you a case? she asks. Oh yes, he replies. I have a meeting with Old Man Billings up in Coventry. Seems his grand-son has been arrested for burglary and he wants me to look into the boys involvement. I know Joey Billings and personally I find it hard to believe he’s involved."