Amateur Hour

Liam

When she opened the door to him, Nina was wearing a pink measuring tape draped around her neck, and looked surprised to see him. Naturally, she would be — he hadn’t called.

“Ted’s just gone into the study, to shop for suits, online. I can get him, for you,” she said, after their initial greetings.

“Hence, the measuring tape.”

“Oh. I’d forgotten about that.” She reached for it, and began the process of rolling it, with a sheepish little smile.

“It was you, I wanted to talk to, actually,” he confessed. “But, privately, if that’s all right.”

She appeared taken aback, but not unwilling. “I suppose we can use my studio, if you don’t mind the smell of paint. Or, we could sit on the back patio. I can get some paper towels, and dry off the chairs.”

“Whichever is easiest, for you.”

“Let’s use the studio. It shouldn’t be too hot. I had the AC on, just a while ago.”

After a few words to Hannah and Sissy about where she’d be, if needed, Nina led Liam outside and across the yard. Once inside, he sat down, on the worn love seat, while Nina perched on the office chair she used, while painting.

“Now that I’m here, I don’t know where to start,” Liam said.

“Is it about Janice?”

“Only half of it,” he smiled ruefully. “Obviously, I’m the other half.”

“You might get better advice, from Ted. He’s the smart one.”

“I’m not so sure. Ted is smart, but he’s not a woman.”

“No,” she allowed. “I’ll help, if I can.”

“I want to apologize, first, for ruining last night.”

“You didn’t, exactly. I don’t like seeing people so angry with each other, but, it happens. I’ve never seen Janice so upset, though, and that was disturbing. Usually, she gets quiet, when she gets mad.”

“She’s worn out. We all are, I guess, but this situation has given her more ugliness than she can deal with, at once.”

Nina nodded. “And, you haven’t protected her, from it.” It wasn’t an accusation, just an astute surmise of his own feelings.

“Worse than that. I dragged her into it.”

“Not kicking and screaming.”

“But, I made the mistake of forgetting how idealistic she is. Her optimism is just about gone, Nina. What’s going to happen to her idealism, after that happens?”

“You need to start building her back up.”

“That’s where I’m stuck.”

“You need to change back, a little.”

“Change back?” He was honestly puzzled.

“Yeah. Liam, what did Janice eat, last night?”

“The same thing we all ate — a nice chunk of beef pot roast, with two kinds of potatoes, some carrots and onions, and Texas toast.”

“That’s what you ate. Janice had a small piece of meat, half of a white potato, and half a piece of bread. There was a half of a sweet potato on her plate, but she didn’t touch it. Once upon a time, you monitored her food, religiously. What was she wearing, yesterday?”

“I don’t remember. Shorts and a T-shirt, I think.”

“Shorts, and a lacy blue top, that made her eyes really pretty. How much sleep did she get, last night?”

“Is this the not-so-Newlywed Game?” he scowled, too embarrassed to admit he’d slept on the couch.

“You see my point. You don’t need to smother her, but you need to go back to showing you care about her.”

“I do care about her!”

Nina wasn’t perturbed by his small outburst.

“I know. You need to show her, if you want to build her back up.”

“I’m sorry I shouted. I’m turning into a jerk.”

“No. Some of your changes — they’re good. You’re just starting to lose balance, that’s all. When you lose balance, it sets hers off, too. A balanced Janice would never have called you an idiot, twice, in front of people. She might have implied it, but she wouldn’t have said it.”

“In retrospect, riding around in an aluminum boat, in a thunderstorm isn’t the smartest thing I’ve ever done.”

Nina grinned. “I’ll bet you’ll think twice, before you do it, again.”

“Three times, at least.”

“She’s driving you crazy, with caution, isn’t she?”

“Yeah.”

“Maybe she’s paying too much attention to you, because she feels you’re not paying enough, to her. Not intentionally. She’s too… disciplined. Is that the right word?”

“It’s exactly right. Lashing out, isn’t her style, and pettiness isn’t either.” Liam fetched a deep sigh, and shook his head, staring at his shoes.

“Don’t blame yourself. Just fix it, and give her a chance, to fix her part of it. I’m sure she wants to, or will want to.”

Ted was in the kitchen, getting a drink out of the fridge, when Nina escorted Liam toward the door.

“Liam,” he said, with some surprise. “No one told me you were here.”

“Ted, your wife is a genius, and I’m going to kiss her, on the cheek,” Liam announced.

“I don’t object, if she doesn’t.”

In answer, Nina smiled her shy smile, and turned her cheek toward Liam. He gave it a light peck, and left.

*******

Steph

“This is you,” Steph said, handing him the brass key, with the diamond-shaped room number fob. “I’m down the walkway, in 106, on the end.”

Guy handed her his shopping bag, and fitted the key into the lock. He opened the door, to an example every motel room he’d ever stayed in, including the air conditioner running only the fan, to stir the humid air. Steph followed him inside, and placed his bag on the table, by the window.

“Want these closed?” she asked, indicating the drapes.

“Please. I’m going to sleep, for a week, right after I get a shower. I think I did start to mildew.”

“I’ll still be in the same room, next week,” Steph smiled. “Come on over, and I’ll put a pizza in the oven.”

She went to put his car keys on the table, by the bag.

“Hang onto those,” he suggested. “I’m gonna nap, and you may want to go somewhere.”

“Okay,” she shrugged. “I put a couple of sodas in the fridge, for you.”

“Dr. Pepper?” he asked, hopefully.

“Of course. Twenty-ounce bottles, no less.”

“You spoil me,” he chuckled.

“Not quite. I didn’t turn down your bed, or leave a mint, on your pillow.”

“Only four and a half stars, then. I’ll have to motivate you, to do better.”

Steph grinned.

“I’ll leave you to your shower and nap, then.”

His face clouded a little. The slightly battered look was back.

“What is it, vato?” she asked.

“I don’t suppose you’d stay? Until I drop off? We don’t have to cuddle, or anything,” he added, with a crooked smile. “Just stretch out, next to me.”

“Sure. Tell you what — you get your shower, and I’ll trot down to my room, and get one of my root beers, then come back.”

“I take it back. Five stars; highly recommend.”

She took her time, to give him time. Steph imagined that he’d need to warm up, a bit. He’d been shivery, off and on, since he had come off the river, even though his clothes had dried, and the weather was warm.

While she was getting her own soda, and a couple of other things, she also shook out a vitamin C tablet, a zinc supplement, and a couple of aspirin, for good measure, and dropped them into a plastic sandwich bag.

Twenty minutes after she had left him, she was at his door, again, rapping.

“Are you decent?” she called.

“No, but I’m dressed,” he called back. In a moment, he opened the door.

He looked much better, still pinkish from a scalding shower. His hair was damp, but neatly combed.

“Here,” she said, shoving the sandwich bag into his left hand.

“Those aren’t mints,” he observed, “and they’re not on my pillow.”

“Vitamins. You swallow them, whole, with a beverage. They’re supposed to keep you healthy.”

“I know what vitamins are. I avoid them.”

“And, I know what a chill is. Take them.”

“All right,” he groaned, rolling his eyes. “I’m warm, now, though.”

He perched on the edge of the bed, and opened the bag. Without further argument, he took the pills, then stretched out, and patted the mattress.

Steph stepped out of the flip-flops she had changed into, and joined him. They lay there, companionably silent, for a few moments.

“I didn’t tell you, I nearly put Kayla through a wall, last night, did I?”

“No,” Steph chuckled. “You didn’t.”

“Yeah. She snuck up, on me.” He went on to regale her, with the tale.

“Maybe she’s not a lost cause, after all,” Steph remarked, when he had finished.

“Maybe. But, I have to wonder.” Guy turned onto his side, to face her. “If she hadn’t distracted me, and held me up, I would have gotten back to the dorm, sooner.”

“And, what if you had, Guy? You couldn’t have stopped Franklin from being dragged off, all by yourself.”

“No, but…”

“You’re torturing yourself. Stop it. What we have to do, is figure out how to get into Hermes Transportation, to get to their records.”

“Good luck, with that. Those guys are licensed, bonded, background checked, and God knows what else.”

“The transporters, sure. But, not everyone, who works for the company.”

“No… I suppose not.”

“I’ll dig a little, later. See what I can find out.”

“I gotta get another computer,” Guy observed, then yawned. “’Scuse me.”

“And another phone.”

“I still have the one Liam loaned me. Put it in a sandwich bag, like you did, your pills. It came out, dry as a bone.” He reached toward her, and fingered the medal, which she had been wearing outside her ‘Margaritaville’ shirt, today. “You still have Mike.”

“You want him, back?”

“Hell, no. I gave him, to you.” He yawned again. “Sorry.”

“Go to sleep, vato. I won’t go anywhere, until you’re snoring.”

“I don’t snore.”

“Yeah, you do. Softly, but you snore.”

Guy’s hand dropped down to rest on top of one of hers, where it lay, on her stomach. In less than a minute, he was asleep.

*******

Janice

For a long moment, Janice sat in her red Forester, listening to the engine tick, as it cooled. She considered not getting out of the car. The key was still in the ignition. All she had to do was turn it, back down the driveway, and send Liam a text, from whatever motel she found herself in.

Instead, she pulled the key, grabbed her satchel, and got out. In the house, she could hear Spike barking, the little tattletale. He’d probably been barking, since she pulled up.

An appetizing aroma of Italian food welcomed her, when she opened the door. Had Liam made lasagna?

“Hey, Honey. Dinner’s in about forty minutes.”

“It smells good,” she said, grounding her satchel, and dropping her keys into the bowl they used as a holder. “Yes, Spike — I heard you, all the way down the drive,” she addressed the spaniel, who was hopping all over her. She bent to give him the attention he demanded, then straightened, when he trotted away.

“I thought it was time I made us a nice, high calorie pan of lasagna,” Liam smiled. He put his book on the coffee table, and leaned forward to fill her empty wine glass.

She sat, a little hesitantly, next to him, on the sofa, not settling back. The wine was chilled, and refreshing.

“You must have had a good day, on the high seas,” she remarked, after a modest sip.

“It was a little scary, to be honest.”

“For me, too, when I saw the lightning.”

“That didn’t start, until we were about halfway to the school. I knew you’d be worried about us.”

“It was considerate of you, to call. Thank you.” She said it, without irony. “Do you know if Will got home, safely?”

“He texted, to say he’d made it.”

“Good. Did Franklin go with him?”

Liam hesitated. “He wasn’t with Guy. He was taken off, last night.”

“Oh, no…” she groaned.

“Guy was pretty broken up, about it. He feels responsible.”

“He’s not, though. There’s nothing he could have done, alone, to stop it.”

“At least he has Steph. I get the feeling she’ll know how to comfort him.”

“Double entendre?” Janice frowned, in disapproval.

“I meant that she knows him well, and will know what to say to him.”

“Sorry.”

“No. I don’t blame you. I’ve been an ass, lately. I realized that, when I was sitting in a metal boat, in a lightning storm, on the water. You were right — it was dangerous. You weren’t wrong about me feeling like I had something to prove, to myself, either.”

“Did you? Prove it, I mean.”

“Well,” Liam smiled, a bit, “there weren’t any gators, in sight, but the weather made up, for that. So, yeah. I guess I’m satisfied.” He sobered, again. “What I’m saying is that I’m sorry, Jan. I didn’t see that I was adding to your stress.”

“I’m sorry, too. I’ve been dismissive, of you and that was wrong. Men just have to be men, sometimes.” As always, the generalization galled her, but it was applicable, here.

He was thinking about protesting her apology. She could see it. He overcame the impulse, however, and raised his glass.

“Friends, again?” he asked.

“Friends,” she nodded, and touched her glass to his.

They drank to it. Janice relaxed back, onto the sofa, shoulder to shoulder, with her husband.

“No gators, huh? That must have been disappointing,” she joked.

“Not one, but they’re no myth. We saw several slides, along the bank. Will said they sometimes go into hunting mode, when it rains. Could be they were hunting, elsewhere. I was just as happy, that they weren’t hanging out, by the cemetery.”

“Hmm…” she nodded. “Dinner smells great. I’m starving.” It was true. It was the first actual appetite she’d felt, in a week, at least. “You didn’t have to do that.”

“You know I like to cook, sometimes. Wait until you see the tiramisu I threw together, for dessert,” he bragged.

“How did I get lucky enough, to marry a Gordon Ramsay?”

“We were made, for each other,” he shrugged. “But, the next time I insinuate that you’re not a genius, I want you to slap my mouth.”

“We both said things we didn’t mean. But, I will,” she added, with a lopsided grin.

“I had a little talk, with Nina, today.”

“Oh? I’m not sure how I feel, about that,” Janice admitted, with a frown.

“I needed a woman’s perspective, preferably one who would be unequivocally on your side. She said something that struck me, as we went back into the house. She said, when she was at Gordon’s, she thought of you, when she felt frightened, tempted to cry, or just generally like she was going to lose her shit.”

“Nina would never actually say that,” Janice scoffed. The implication that she would be anyone’s role model, made her uncomfortable.

“But she did. ‘Lose my shit’, were her exact words. She also said that, when she was finally alone with Ted, she came unglued.”

“That’s Nina,” Janice shrugged. “I’m not the same. I’m older and tougher.”

“Because you expect yourself to be?”

“Liam, we just made up. Are you trying to pick another fight?”

“No,” he sighed. “I’m not. I’m just trying to be available.”

“Okay,” she said, patting his knee. “Message received. Isn’t it about time to brown the top of your lasagna?”

“Nearly,” he replied, dropping it. “About five more minutes.”

“I’ll throw together a salad.”

“Already done, and in the fridge.”

“I’ll set the table then.”

“It’s set. There’s nothing left to do, but fill your plate and salad bowl, Jan. I’ve got this.”

*******

Guy

Guy whistled low, as he stepped into Steph’s efficiency.

“So, this is how the other half lives,” he feigned wonder.

“Shut up. You have dibs on the next efficiency that opens up.” Steph scowled at him, but looked a bit shamefaced, too.

“I’m kidding! It’s not a bad little setup, but I don’t really need one, like it. You have a glorified toaster oven, and a slightly larger fridge.”

“You could make ice cubes.”

“There’s a machine.” He gave her a negligent half shrug. “Speaking of machines, get a load of that one,” she pointed at her laptop, on the table. “It’s a dinosaur.”

“Oh, your Vista machine, right. You say it works?”

“It does, sort of. You can surf with it, and it’ll handle your email.”

Steph turned, to pull a frozen pizza out of the freezer.

“Sit down, somewhere, Guy. Make yourself comfortable.”

She set about preheating the counter top oven, and opening the pizza. Guy couldn’t get over how good it was, just to see her, again. He’d had a bad moment when he had first awakened, and she hadn’t been there. It seemed like her presence had been a dream, and he was back in his dorm room, at the school. Then he had rolled over, to discover that he had a second pillow, and was on a queen-sized bed.

He’d gotten up, put on his shoes, combed his hair, and left his new quarters, without a backward glance. By the time he had made his way to Steph’s door, he’d recovered his swagger, and his taste for baiting his partner. It was now New Canaan that seemed like the dream — almost.

Stop staring, he told himself. You’re burning holes, into her back.

Pulling his gaze away, he studied the old laptop, instead. He drew it toward himself, and opened the cover.

“Crank it up,” Steph invited, over her shoulder. “You want ham?”

“Hell, yeah. Got a password on it?”

“No. I never really took it anywhere, and there’s nothing much, on it.”

Guy waited, however, until she was finished doctoring the pizza with ham and extra cheese, and had it in the oven. Steph brought him a cold Dr. Pepper, and sat down with a root beer, for herself.

“Thanks,” he said, twisting the cap off the bottle.

“Don’t be shy. Start it up.”

Guy did as she asked, and after a moment was rewarded with the four-note tune, and the logo.

“Oh, that’s too much. It’s like finding a Dead Sea scroll, in a box of corn flakes. Damn, Steve — how many games did you put on this thing?”

“They were already there. I just dug them out of the files, and put them back on the desktop. Some of them are baffling. I can’t figure out what Minesweeper is even about.”

Guy could only stare at her.

“What?” she asked. “Don’t pretend you know what it is.”

“It should be right up your alley. It’s a logic puzzle game.”

“Whatever,” she shrugged. “It’s kind of dull.”

He shook his head, sadly. “What am I gonna to do, with you?”

“You can take it with you, if you want. It’s a clunker, but as I said, you can check your email with it. It has a larger screen than your phone, and a keyboard.”

“And, Minesweeper — don’t forget that,” he grinned. “You’re sure?”

“Of course. If you need a serious computer, before Christina can ship yours, we can share mine.”

“I should call her, and ask about that.”

“I did it, last night. After I got off the phone, with you. But, you should call her, anyway.”

“Is there anything, you don’t think of?” he demanded, in admiration.

“I try to cover the bases.”

“I can call her, after we eat. She’ll want to talk,” he elaborated. “I’d rather not be trying to eat, while she’s asking a million questions.”

“That’s reasonable.”

“I thought so. You okay, Steve? You act like you’re waiting for another shoe to drop, or something.”

“Truth? I’ve been wondering the same thing, about you.”

“I’m solid. Just decompressing, is all. Give me a day or two, and I’ll be as irritating, as ever.”

Steph smiled, looking reassured. “Okay. It’s not that I don’t like you a little bit sentimental, and vulnerable. I just don’t want to do or say something wrong.”

“You’ve done everything, just right. Only, don’t burn that pizza, or I’ll be forced to eat it, anyway, because I’m starved.”

“Yeah. That oven is a little over temperature.”

She hopped up, and checked the pie. It was perfect, as they both liked the crust a bit dark.

“So, I found Hermes Transportation Services,” Steph said, when they were seated with a couple of slices of pizza on each of their plates. She looked a bit hesitant, as though she was wondering if he had any objections to talking shop.

He didn’t. “Yeah? Where are they based?”

“Everywhere. Like toadstools after the rain. I have a hunch that each office coincides with the general location of a Ridgeview school. Liam would probably know. Anyway, the nearest one to New Canaan is in Dothan.”

“Eldridge doesn’t want all of his eggs, in one basket, I guess.”

“That, or it’s just that it draws less attention, in a larger city.”

“Why would he care, about that? I don’t approve of what they do, but technically, it’s legit.”

“It is, but I’ll bet some of their methods are questionable. I didn’t resist, much, when they picked me up. The guys they sent, were bruisers, and I didn’t want to get my ass kicked. They looked like they hoped I would put up a fight.”

“That’s how Julio sent you in? He arranged for me to be arrested, for possession, while hanging out behind a strip mall. I arrived in the back seat of a county cruiser — handcuffed. I did struggle,” he grinned, at the memory. “How did we never talk about that part?”

“We were busy, I guess. Too much, going on.”

“That’s for sure. Damn… You know those are the people who were responsible for Jess Greene, right?”

“I know.” Steph’s eyes ran away from his, and she seemed inordinately focused on her pizza.

“You think Eldridge was lying about her killing herself.”

“I didn’t say that. Even liars tell the truth, occasionally.”

“Steph, I saw her body. You didn’t. Her neck was broken.”

“It still could have been suicide, or an accident.”

“You’re all over the map. Why are you so determined to deny that you’re suspicious?”

She didn’t answer. In the silence, it dawned on him.

“I see. You don’t want me to worry even more, about Franklin. I’m not made of bone china, Steve. My mind has already gone there.”

“And?”

“And, there was evidence of a struggle, in his room, but no evidence of injury. He was subdued, and it was a neat job, too. No one even woke up. Eat your pizza, and stop worrying about me.”