 
Bittersweet

By Bobby A. Troutt

Copyright 2012 Bobby A. Troutt

Smashwords Edition

Thank you for downloading this free ebook. You are welcome to share it with your friends. This book may be reproduced, copied and distributed for non-commercial purposes, provided the book remains in its complete original form. If you enjoyed this book, please return to Smashwords.com to discover other works by this author. Thank you for your support.

Table of Contents

Dark Hollow Creek/Return to Dark Hollow Creek

False Witness

Double Trouble

On the Corner of Perry Street

Bridge Over McKinley County River

*****

Bittersweet

Dark Hollow Creek/Return to Dark Hollow Creek

The blizzard of 1949 is a time I'll always remember. The driving force of the wind and snow forced us off the main road and caused us to detour down an unknown road. The road sign read Dark Hollow Creek, Kentucky, Boone County. I roughly estimated we were about one hundred and fifty miles from the West Virginia state line. This was a new route for me. I had worked for Southern Streamline Bus Company about four years and this was my first experience of driving in a blizzard. The snow was packed deep; it was up to the bumper of the coach, nearly paralyzing it. The blinding sleet and snow made visibility almost impossible. I had to stop three or four times and wait for the storm to let up so we could move on.

The blizzard hit hard and fast, within a matter of minutes the wind had caused drifts of snow up to five feet tall. The icy wind, mixed with snow, also packed drifts up against the bus. The tree limbs were weighed down with ice and snow causing some of them to break and others to bow downward toward the ground.

As I slowly drove on, the headlights of the bus pierced through the darkness showing off the busy snowflakes. When suddenly from the bus a light appeared through the woods. As we got closer we realized it was a house; everyone was relieved. We all were eager to get in out of the storm. As we approached, we realized it was not a house but a country inn. There was a creek that ran right in front of the entrance to the inn. You could either drive or walk across the bridge. The snowstorm had driven us into the inn; we were stranded with little to no hope.

Cautiously, we made our way off the bus and into the inn. We knocked on the door several times but no one answered. We could see a lamp on by the window. We yelled, hello, is anybody home but there was no answer. I tried the door; it was unlocked. I opened it slowly and we all went in yelling hello is anybody at home. But, there was still no response. Once inside, we stood in a giant chamber filled with antique furniture and bookcases. Across the room there was a huge fireplace; the coals were still hot on the smoldering fire. There was a long bar, tables, chairs, two couches, a long winding staircase that led upstairs and a teardrop glass chandelier that was suspended over the middle of the room.

"Where do you think they are?" asked Gary.

Gary was gay and went by his nickname, Bubba.

"I don't know," I replied.

"Haskell, see if there's a phone," demanded Bubba. "You're the bus driver that got us in this mess."

"Oh come on, Bubba," said Stephen. "He drove the best he could under the circumstances."

"He's the one who made the wrong turn," he said. "He shouldn't have left the main road, now we are stuck here for God knows how long."

As Stephen started to say something back to him, his wife, Audrey, interrupted. "Let it go, Stephen. It's not going to make things any better."

"Yeah," said Bubba. "Listen to your wife, Stephen."

"Both of you shut up," I said. "Let's split up into two groups and check upstairs and down here."

As we carefully searched the house, we found no one. But what mattered most was that we were in out of the storm. Also, there was food and water which was a blessing in itself. I suggested we stay at the inn until the storm lifted.

"Here's a phone," yelled Audrey as she picked up the receiver. Unfortunately, it was dead. There was no dial tone.

"That's just great," cried out Bubba.

"I believe under these circumstances the owner wouldn't mind us staying," I said and everyone agreed.

"What if this place is haunted," asked Bubba.

"The more the better," laughed Stephen. "Are you afraid of ghosts, Bubba?" he teased.

"No way, man" he replied. "And I'm not afraid of you either."

Stephen jumped up and got right in front of Bubba. Bubba backed up and I was able to step in between them before things got out of hand.

"Both of you stop it. Damn it; I'm already sick and tired of y'all bickering and we just got here."

"You can tell he's a little sissy," popped off Stephen. He's got a little sugar in him."

"That's enough," I yelled.

"I've got more sweetness about me than your wife does, maybe you'd like me better."

Then they lit in to each other as Audrey and I tried our best to pull them apart. Finally, they settled down and walked away. The others on the bus were Susan a recent divorcee and her daughter, Heather, Evelyn and her husband, Earnest who they call Peroy and has Alzheimer's, just walked away in disgust.

Suddenly Audrey spoke up with fear in her voice, "What was that noise?"

"I didn't hear anything," replied Stephen.

"Listen, there it is again," she said.

"Ah, it's probably the wind," I responded.

Then all at once the grandfather clock began to chime. Dong, dong, dong it sounded as the cuckoo clock started cuckooing. The sounds of the clocks were toned down by the big room.

"Well, let's grab a bite to eat and get some rest," I suggested.

"Sounds good to me," spoke up the others in unison.

As Audrey turned away, she asked Stephen if he was coming. He turned to her and told her not right now. She stormed out of the room and up the steps out of sight. As the others walked away, Stephen started to say something but was drowned out by the slamming of the door upstairs.

After we had eaten, I helped Evelyn and Peroy to a room. Peroy had no earthly idea of what was going on. Evelyn was taking him to a home in Lexington that specialized in patients with Alzheimer's; he was in the last stages. He had to be watched and Evelyn was not able to do it by herself. All they had were each other. Both their families were all gone and it was just the two of them. Later on, Stephen went upstairs to his room. I could hear them all the way downstairs as they argued at the top of their voices. They were really going at it. Then suddenly, Stephen came out of the room with a pillow and blanket. As he headed down the steps, Audrey slammed the door behind him. As Stephen pitched his bed clothes on the couch, Bubba immediately started in on him.

"And you call me a sissy."

"Okay, okay," I refereed. "Let's drop it."

Stephen gave Bubba a bird and Bubba replied, "Now who's got the sugar."

"Let's go to bed," Susan said to Heather. "Mama doesn't feel too well."

"Where are we going to sleep?" asked Heather.

"You can take the room beside Peroy and Evelyn," I answered. "I believe I'll sit up for a while, just in case the owners come back."

"Okay," agreed Susan. "Let's go Heather."

The night eased toward a cold morning. I slipped out the front door, during the night, to get my big brown suitcase off the bus and place it with the other bags in the baggage compartment of the bus. Then I headed back into the house, sat back down in the chair and fell asleep. I didn't know until later that Bubba had watched my every move.

The house layed dormant, the only sound you could hear was the ticking of the clock and the dong, dong, dong of its chimes. Morning had broken and everyone was downstairs drinking coffee and talking. But no one noticed that Peroy had left the room. Evelyn had gone into the bathroom for a few minutes, thinking that the others would keep an eye on Peroy. When she came back into the room, she noticed he wasn't there. She asked if anyone knew where he went.

"He was right here a minute ago."

She started calling out his name with panic in her voice.

About that time they heard something hit the floor upstairs and then a gunshot. Evelyn started screaming and ran for the stairs and we were right behind her. We raced down the hall, looking in all the rooms calling his name, Peroy! Peroy! Finally, Evelyn opened a door and found him staring out the window. She ran over to him and put her arms around him.

"Thank God, Peroy, you are all right."

The shotgun lay on the floor not far from where Peroy was. As Evelyn and the others escorted Peroy back downstairs, I looked the situation over and came to the conclusion that Peroy must have found the gun in the closet, took it out and somehow managed to take the safety off. But, before he could do anything with it, he dropped it on the floor and it went off. He was lucky he wasn't killed. I took the gun downstairs and put it up.

It was so beautiful outside. From the window it appeared like a winter wonderland. The early morning sun swept across the blanket of snow; it created a glistening effect on the icy crusted snow. There were long icicles hanging from the edge of the porch, as the cold arctic wind stirred about.

"There are only six more days until Christmas," shouted Bubba.

"I hope we'll be home by then," replied the others.

Then unexpectedly the phone rang. We were startled at first because the phones were dead.

"See, what'd I say," said Bubba. "We'll be home for Christmas. Hello, hello, it's dead again," he replied.

"Oh well look, Heather," said Susan as she pointed out the window. "The wind is picking up the snow and filtering through it like a whirlwind causing it to dance about on the crusty top of the snow."

"Look, Mama, it looks like someone is out there lying in the snow," stated Heather.

"It does," cried Audrey. "I believe someone is out there."

Quickly, Stephen and I rushed out the door. We fought the deep snow and struggled to get through it.

"It is, it is someone Mama," cried Heather.

Quickly, Stephen and I picked her up and brought her into the inn. We laid her down on the couch; she was barely breathing.

"How long do you think she's been out there?" asked Bubba.

"I don't know," I answered.

"Where did she come from?" questioned Stephen.

"She may have walked here from the main road."

"That's a long way," said Evelyn.

Suddenly, she began to cough and come to.

"Where am I?" the woman asked.

"We found you outside and brought you inside the inn," I replied.

"My car stalled just down the road. I started walking to get some help. I saw the light on and I tried to get here but I must have collapsed. I was so close. Who are y'all?" she asked. "I'm Irene."

"We were on a bus headed for Lexington when the storm hit. We were forced off the main road and got stranded here. I'm Haskell the bus driver."

The others told her who they were and welcomed her to stay. She really had no other choice. There was nowhere else to go.

"It was Heather who saw you in the snow," Evelyn informed her.

"Why thank you so much, Heather," Irene replied, "for seeing me."

"I believe I'll go and lay down for a while," said Susan. "I'm not feeling very well."

"Okay, Mama," Heather replied.

"Do you think we'll be out of here before Christmas?" asked Stephen.

"I don't know," I replied. "If they are able to get some snowplows up here on the road, we just might."

"That's just great," complained Audrey. "We're stuck up here for God knows how long."

Stephen spoke up, "I think it is different for a change."

"You would," shouted Audrey.

Then they started arguing once again, yelling back and forth at each other.

"Look at you two, if all you are going to do is fuss and fight will you at least take it somewhere else," I suggested.

"Yeah, man," retorted Bubba.

Audrey and Stephen both stomped out of the room and went upstairs. Evelyn sat beside Peroy and held his hand. Irene and Bubba just shook their heads. Then Peroy farted and smiled. All the others looked at one another and didn't say a word.

The day soon passed and night fell once again on Dark Hollow Creek. The weather had not changed and there still wasn't another sole in sight. Bubba and Heather played checkers. Irene sat with Susan who was not feeling well at all. Luckily, Irene had some nursing experience. I sat in a chair, falling in and out of sleep. Evelyn and Peroy had gone to bed. Audrey had locked herself in the bedroom and Stephen was back on the couch. Bong, bong, bong chimed the grandfather clock and cuckoo went the other clock. It was a little after midnight when we were awakened by a pecking sound. We got up and followed the sound.

Heather screamed, "I thought I saw someone looking in the window."

We went from room to room and finally found where the pecking sound was coming from. A limb was rubbing against the glass. But, no one else saw anybody.

"It won't be long until morning. I'm going to fix me some coffee," I told the others. "Anyone else want some?"

"I'll take a cup," said Stephen.

"Me too," replied Irene and Bubba.

While we drank our coffee and enjoyed the early morning, Stephen noticed that the grandfather clocked chimed thirteen times.

"Did you hear that?" he asked.

"Hear what?" I questioned.

"The grandfather clock chimed thirteen times."

"It can't do that," I said. "You must have missed counted the strikes."

"No, I didn't," he replied. "I know it struck thirteen times. I didn't miss count."

"I'll get it," said Irene as the phone rang once again. "Hello," she said. "Hello, it's dead."

"There is something going to happen. I feel it," cried Stephen. "This place is weird."

"Go on and finish your coffee," said Bubba. "But he does have a point this place is different."

At the breaking of dawn, there was a knock at the door.

"Hello, anybody home."

Quickly, Stephen and I jumped up to answer the door. As we opened it, there stood two workmen.

"We wanted you to know that we have been working on the telephone lines. It may be a couple more days before your service is restored. Are y'all alright?" they asked.

"Yes, sir, we got stranded here by the storm," I replied.

"Yeah," said the repairman. "The storm has knocked out most of the county's services. I'm surprised you still have electricity."

"We have the generator running and that's about all we have."

The repairman stated, "It may be the end of the week before the snowplows will be able to get up here."

"We're okay," stated Bubba. "We'll see you."

"Okay, then," the workman replied as they left.

As the day moved on, Susan became worse. Evidently, she had picked up a bug. Irene and Heather took care of her.

"If we can get her fever down," said Irene, "I believe she'll recover. This cough she has is not good. Heather did your Mama ever smoke?"

"Yes, ma'am, but she quit about a year ago," she said. "I pray she doesn't get pneumonia."

"We'll just have to wait and see," replied Irene.

Little did anyone know that Irene was the girlfriend of Susan's husband. He had brought her up there and let her out to get inside and abduct his daughter. Then they were going to leave the country. But unknowing to him, Irene had become friends with Susan and Heather; she had a change of heart. She just couldn't go through with it. She never wanted to do it in the first place. But, he was so controlling and overbearing; she could see it clearly now. She figured Susan had all the right in the world to take Heather and leave. Without warning, Bubba cried out that there was someone looking in the window. But, by the time we looked around, whoever it was, they were gone. Irene had a pretty good idea that it was Kenneth, Susan's husband, trying to get to her and Heather.

"That's the second time somebody has seen someone looking in," I said as I grabbed the gun and placed it close by. "Now let them look in," I boasted.

As the day passed, night fell once again and everyone had all but turned in except for me and Bubba. We sat by the fireplace talking about nothing in particular. Then Bubba asked me if I knew Sid McClanahan.

"No, should I? Why...why do you ask?" I nervously replied.

"Sid is the head of the McClanahan Mafia out of Louisville."

"So," I replied.

"I know that you have ripped off a bunch of money from Sid and he sent me to get it back," explained Bubba. "And besides that, my name is not Bubba it is Rex; I'm not gay either. I work for Sid."

"I don't know what you're talking about," I responded. "Do I look like I got money? I'm just a bus driver, check it out."

"Right," answered Rex. "Why don't we check the baggage section under the bus? Let's take a look in there."

"Okay, I saw a little chance to pick up some extra money at the bus station," I told him. "And I did, but I didn't know who it belonged to until it was too late. I saw the chance and took advantage of it. Hey, I don't need all that money. You can take a cut of it and we can go our separate ways. They'll never know."

"You'll be running for the rest of your life, hiding and looking over your shoulder," Rex stated. "I'll take the money back and that will make everyone happy."

About that time the lights went out and it was pitch black.

"It must be the generator," I said. "You got a flashlight?"

"Here's one," replied Rex.

"Come on, let's check it out," I instructed.

As we stumbled through the darkness we made our way to the generator. Within minutes, we had it back on. Rex and I went back to the den to sit by the fire. The money was never mentioned any more that night. But, I could tell Rex was keeping his eye on me. He wasn't sure if I would try to sneak out there, grab the money and take off on foot. And I wouldn't be surprised if Rex didn't take the money and run. I had to keep my eye on him. How could I trust him when I knew he was a crook? By the time we got settled down by the fireplace, Audrey and Stephen were at it again. You could hear them at the top of the stairs.

"That mans got problems," said Rex.

"I know," I replied. "I believe I would have left her a long time ago."

"What's their problem anyway?" asked Rex.

"All that I can figure out is he does and she doesn't."

Then all of a sudden a pillow came bouncing down the steps with Stephen following close behind with a blanket. We didn't say a word when he came in. He just flopped down on the couch and pulled the cover up over his head. By morning Susan's fever had broke and she was feeling better. She was still weak, but she was getting her appetite back. Irene had come down and fixed us breakfast. Then Heather yelled from upstairs.

"Hey," she said, "Look what I found, a Christmas tree and decorations."

"Hey, not a bad idea," said Evelyn. "It looks like we're going to be here for Christmas anyway."

"Why not go for it," replied Irene.

"Bring it on down," I shouted.

Irene went upstairs and helped Heather bring down the tree and decorations. We all gathered around and started putting up the tree.

"This is fun," exclaimed Heather. "Mama, do you like it?"

We dressed the tree with ribbons, bows, lights and ornaments. Evenly started singing and we all chimed in. While some sung off key and out of tune, it didn't matter at all. The song from the heart brought in the joy of the season. Peroy just sat and stared off into space, but he did pat one of his feet a bit.

"Hey," said Audrey, "we don't have an ornament for the top."

Stephen reached over and took Peroy's stocking hat off his head and placed it on top of the tree. Peroy looked at dumbfounded at first, but then he looked around and grinned. Andrey and Stephen hugged together and joined in the singing. Stephen took Audrey's red lipstick and colored his nose red. He then pranced around while all the others laughed hysterically. Once everything calmed down, the women went into the kitchen and fixed a Christmas meal for everyone.

The sun had finally started shining much brighter than before so we all went outside to play in the snow. We rolled up big balls of snow and made snowmen. We also threw snowballs and made snow angels. Everyone seemed so happy. Even Audrey and Stephen were enjoying the fun instead of fussing.

As the day settled into night we went in and enjoyed the Christmas feast. After supper we all retired into the den and reminisced about our family Christmases that brought great conversation and more laughter.

Irene stood up and said, "Since we have no presents to put under the tree, I would like to make a Christmas wish and I would like for everyone else to do the same. Let me see; I have it. I wish I could do something good with my life for a change."

Susan stood up. "My wish is that Heather and I can start over with a new life."

"I wish I could take away all the bad things I have done, replace them with good things and settle down," said Bubba.

"What about you and Peroy, Evelyn?"

"We have had a long journey, through the years, but it has been a good one. I guess our wish is for both of us to go on to be with the Lord."

I spoke up and said, "I wish I had it to do over."

Audrey spoke up, "That the Lord would bless us with a child."

"Amen," replied Stephen.

As the fire crackled and popped, we scattered about and went to our rooms to sleep. Sometime in the night Evelyn awoke screaming and calling for Peroy. He was gone. Everyone jumped out of bed and began to search for him, but he was nowhere to be found. As we made our way downstairs, the front door was open.

"Oh, no, he's gone outside," Evelyn cried before she collapsed.

Bubba and I picked her up and laid her on the couch. The men got dressed and went outside to search for Peroy.

Stephen said, "It doesn't look good."

"I know what you mean," I replied.

The night laid cold for its guest. It had started snowing again. As we searched we called out his name, but there was no answer. The night was so dark that it was hard to see the light from the flashlights.

"Peroy! Peroy!" we yelled.

Stephen cried out, "Over here."

As we followed the sound of Stephen's voice, we made our way over to him. As the flashlights glistened on the broken icy pond, we saw Peroy lying face down in the pond.

"He must have fallen in," I implied, "and couldn't get out."

No one said a word. As we pulled Peroy back upon the bank, Bubba asked, "What are we going to do?"

I answered, "We'll wrap him up in some blankets and put him in the shade until we can get some help."

After we placed his body in the shade, we went back in.

"First chance we get we'll call the sheriff and tell him about Peroy. I'm sure they will send an ambulance," I said.

"He's dead ain't he," cried out Evelyn.

Stephen said, "I'm sorry."

We all gathered around to comfort Evelyn. She finally stopped crying and just sat and stared in quiet, rubbing her hands together.

"How did he get out?" asked Bubba.

"I didn't think he could unlock the door," I responded. "We must have left the front door unlocked."

The girls took Evelyn upstairs so she could lie down. The men decided to sit around the fire some more to get thawed out. It would be morning soon.

"I told you something bad was going to happen," said Stephen.

"Come on," I replied. "Surely you don't believe in all that mess. Like I said earlier, you probably miss counted. You haven't heard it again have you?"

"Well no," Stephen replied.

"It was just Peroy's time to go," I assured them.

"Maybe," said Stephen.

"Let's talk about something else," interrupted Bubba. "Let's talk about getting out of here. Maybe the snowplows will be through here tomorrow."

"Shhh," hushed Stephen, "listen, hear the music."

"Yeah," I acknowledged. "But, where is it coming from?"

"Over here," said Bubba. "It's coming from this music box."

"Maybe you're right, Stephen," I replied.

Then the music stopped.

"Do you believe me now? This place is weird," he said.

"What next is going to happen next?"

Everyone slept a little later that morning than usual. Evelyn had come downstairs and stood by the window, looking out at the shed. From time to time, you could see her wipe away the tears from her eyes. Then out of the blue, Audrey came running down the steps.

"I'm pregnant," she cried. "I'm pregnant."

Stephen jumped up and ran over to her and asked, "Are you sure?"

"I believe it's for real this time," she exclaimed.

"I don't see how," shouted Bubba.

Stephen picked her up and swung her around. Bubba and I congratulated them. While they were celebrating, no one noticed Evelyn as she went over to the table, picked up the music box and opened it.

As the music played and tears filled her eyes she said, "This is the song that was playing when Peroy asked me to marry him."

Bubba started to speak but I interrupted him, "Don't go there."

Evelyn took the box and went over and sat down.

"Are you alright?" asked Stephen.

"Yes, I am now," she said. "The Lord has let me know everything will be alright."

The snow was slowly melting and we knew it wouldn't be long before we would get back on the bus and go our separate ways. The long icicles hung with drops of water dripping one at a time to the ground. The tall drifts of snow had shrunk down and the tree limbs were no longer weighed down with snow and were taking their shape again. As everyone lounged around, Bubba was turning the dial on the radio trying to see what was on when he came across a news station. The broadcaster was talking about a bad wreck in Louisville. He stated there was a three car pileup on the interstate. Sid McClanahan, the head of the Louisville Mafia, had been killed with one other. Bubba looked up at me and shook his head. A few minutes later we met on the porch.

"What are we going to do now?" I asked.

"Well," Bubba said, "since no one else knew about the money but Sid, I guess it's yours. You know it doesn't mean that much anymore," he replied.

"I'm still willing to share it."

"Why don't you share it with everybody. Give them something they can start a new life with," encouraged Bubba.

"You know you're right," I agreed. "There is a lot of good that can come from this."

"Let's tell them tonight," suggested Bubba.

Later in the evening, the phone rang; Stephen answered it.

"The main roads will be clear by the morning," the sheriff informed him.

"Oh, by the way sheriff you may need to send an ambulance. We had one man with Alzheimer's that got out of the house, fell in the pond and died."

"We'll check it out. Thank you."

"Hurray," everyone shouted and danced about.

I Haskell asked everyone to gather around the tree once more.

"Bubba and I have a little gift for you all. We hope it will make some of your Christmas wishes come true."

Everyone looked at each other with puzzled looks on their faces.

"But we don't have anything to give you," said Irene.

"That's not what Christmas is all about," I explained. "Giving to others is the blessing," I said as I took out of the bag of money and handed each of them a stack.

"You can't do this," they said.

"I just did."

"But—but where did you get it?" asked Stephen.

"Just say a blessing came my way."

Each of them hugged me and Bubba.

Bubba spoke up and said, "Let's make a promise that in ten years we will meet here once again for Christmas."

Everyone agreed. When morning came, the sheriff arrived and we told him what had happened. He and his men checked it out; everything seemed to line up. However, he did take our names and where we could be reached, just in case. I asked again about the main road and the sheriff said it was clear, but to be careful because there were still some patches of ice here and there. The sheriff followed the ambulance as it left the premises.

As we were loading on the bus, a car pulled up. It was the owners of the inn. They told me they had gotten an emergency phone call and had to leave hurriedly. They were stranded at the airport in Virginia because of the blizzard. I explained the situation and everything had worked out good for everyone.

A few days later the sheriff received the report from the coroner. It appeared it had happened exactly like we had told him, accidentally. But, when he checked into it a little further, there was one person in the group who had taken out a large insurance policy on him. Did he unlock the door or did someone else, thought the sheriff.

*****

Return to Dark Hollow Creek

It had been ten years since I had been to Dark Hollow Creek, Kentucky in Boone County. I drove a bus back then, but not anymore. We all promised to have a reunion at the inn where we were stranded. I wondered what they would say and how much everyone had changed. The snowplows had already cleared the roads. There were piles of snow beside the roads and patches of snow on the ground, but nothing like it was in 1949. The air was crisp with a bitter twist that would bite you if you weren't careful. It was hard for me to picture the scenery because when I was here before there was so much snow and ice, I couldn't see much. Not far up the road was where I turned off. That night there was a detour sign there and I had to leave the main road; that's how we happened upon the inn. I don't remember much; it's all different now. Could all that snow make that much of a difference? Within minutes the inn was in sight. There were a few cars already there. I wondered if they belonged to the others I had shared the inn with. As I pulled up, I looked around to see if I recognized anyone. I noticed a young girl standing on the porch. She looked to be about seventeen. I wondered if it was Heather. The last time I saw her she was seven years old.

As I walked up to the porch I said, "Hi, young lady. Remember me."

"Kinda," she replied.

"My name is Haskell," I said.

She ran up and hugged me. About that time Bubba came out on the porch.

"Hey, man," he said as he hugged me.

"It's good to see you again," I replied.

"Man, it has been a while," he said. "How have you been?"

"Pretty good," I replied. "I have sugar now and last year I lost my leg. You know how it is with diabetes."

"Y'all come on in and meet everyone else."

We made our way into the inn where the others were gathered. It had been a long time since we had been together. There was Audrey and Stephen with their twins, Susan, Susan's boyfriend, Heather, Bubba and myself. I noticed an elderly lady in a wheelchair, so I went over to say hello.

"Evelyn?"

Her shaking hand reached for mine as she softly spoke, "Haskell."

I said, "Yes ma'am."

She introduced me to the lady standing behind her.

"This is my best friend, Agnes. She brought me here, you know."

I looked up at Agnes, shook her hand and said, "I'm so thankful you could bring her. We are all here," I said.

"Not quite, we are one short," replied Bubba. "Irene hasn't made it yet."

"Here let's have some wine before supper so we can talk about what's been happening in our lives over the past ten years. Supper will be ready in about an hour."

It was good, once again, to be with and talk to them again. We never heard from Irene; she never showed up. After we had our wine, we all went into the dining room and ate; it was good. Bubba had closed down the inn so we could have our reunion. Bubba had done good for himself. He had passed back through here about five years ago and noticed the inn was for sale, so he decided to buy it. He had remodeled it. He added a stage floor for plays and enlarged the dining room. Yep, he had done real good. Susan introduced me to her boyfriend, Roger Shelton, a lawyer from Lexington. All Audrey and Stephen talked about was their set of twins. Those twins were something to talk about. As for me, I have seen better days. Health wise it looked as if my road ahead would be all downhill.

As evening fell, we all gathered around the fireplace and talked about years ago. Evelyn had to go to her room because the excitement of the day had all but worn her out. We all said our goodnights to her as she went to her room.

"That Peroy was a lucky man," I said. "She stuck with him to the end."

"There won't be another like her," replied Stephen.

"When are we going to put up the tree?" asked Susan.

"I don't know," answered Bubba.

"I wish we could go ahead tomorrow and put it up tomorrow. Roger has to be back in his office on Wednesday," she explained.

"Well, is that alright with everyone else?" asked Bubba.

"That's fine," agreed the others.

The night slowly turned to morning and almost everyone was up early. Those that were already up were downstairs waiting for breakfast. It appeared it was going to be another good day when Agnes came downstairs and told us that Evelyn had passed away in her sleep during the night. Our spirits fell in her mourning, but yet our hearts were cheerful for we believed she had gone on to be with Peroy. Bubba called the sheriff and he said he was on his way. We all thought it was strange that Peroy had died here and ten years later Evelyn died here too. It seemed like they were supposed to die at the same place.

"Hey, everyone," shouted Bubba so he could get our attention. "I believe Evelyn would want us to enjoy our stay. So what about the tree? Are we still game?"

"I believe you're right," I said. "I believe Peroy and Evelyn would want that."

Susan spoke up, "Where is the tree?"

Bubba yelled, "Follow me."

I turned to Stephen and asked him if the grandfather clock still struck thirteen times. He told him me no, it doesn't.

Audrey stepped up, "The music box is broken; it won't play," she said. "And it was their favorite song."

About that time they brought the tree and decorations in. Quickly, everyone scrambled about to do their share of decorating the tree. Everyone was talking, laughing and having fun when there was a knock at the door. Bubba answered it. It was the sheriff and the coroner. As we all stopped and stood, the sheriff, the coroner and Agnes went upstairs. All was quiet around the tree. Some were cried while others prayed. Within a few minutes, the sheriff stood at the top of the stairs as the coroner's men brought Evelyn down. Nobody said a word. The sheriff told us he was sorry for our loss and he'd keep in touch. We all watched them load her in the ambulance. Agnes said she needed to be going too, but I told her she was welcome to stay.

She said, "Thank you, but there are a few more things I need to do for her." Then she reached over in the chair and picked up Evelyn's stocking cap, turned and placed it on top of the tree and said, "Merry Christmas, Evelyn."

Slowly, we all gathered around the tree.

"This time we may not have a Christmas wish, nor throw snowballs, build snowmen or sled in the snow, but we do have our memories of how it was before. However, today is a different day," I stated.

We all joined hands and softly said, "Amen."

A few days later, the sheriff came by. I went out to meet him. We had general small talk and then the sheriff asked if everyone showed up for the reunion. I told him everyone except Irene; she didn't come and nobody had heard from her.

"I doubt you will," replied the sheriff. "She's in jail."

"Jail," I yelled. "What for?"

"Irene worked in a doctor's office where she met Peroy; you called him, and Evelyn. She falsified some insurance documents and took out a large policy on him. As part of her plea bargain, for lesser time she admitted she unlocked the door the night Peroy died. She was in the kitchen when he came downstairs. She didn't try to stop him from going out. She followed him down to the pond, but she swears he slipped and fell in. When he fell in, she panicked and went back into the house to her room as if nothing had happened. That's when she heard Evelyn screaming his name. And the rest of the story you know.

"You got to be kidding me," I replied. "I would have never imagined she was like that. She seemed so sweet and innocent. She helped nurse Susan back to health."

"Another bizarre twist is that Irene admitted she was the girlfriend of Susan's husband. Originally, Irene was to help get Heather away from her mother to go live with her daddy. She was supposed to kidnap Heather. Irene was so in love with him, she would have done anything for him and she did. But you still haven't heard it all yet. Irene didn't know Peroy and Evelyn were on the bus. She came to the inn to kidnap Heather, but realized that it wouldn't be long before Peroy died. So she decided not to kidnap Heather since she knew she would be getting the money from the insurance policy. Susan's husband was Peroy's doctor. What do you think about that?" asked the sheriff. "Both Irene and Susan's husband, Kenneth, are serving time now. Well, I guess I'll go on," he said. "Now you can stop wondering why Irene never came."

"Yes, sir, but I'm still shocked" I replied.

"Well, I'll see you around," the sheriff said as he left.

Stephen came out as the sheriff was driving off.

"What was that all about?" he asked.

"Nothing," I replied, "just a little small talk."

The day soon passed and I thought about what the sheriff had said about Irene, but I was also curious if the sheriff was suspicious about anything else. As I looked at my surroundings I noticed Bubba had a new car, the inn was remodeled and he had new clothes as well. Yeah, it seemed like Bubba had done extremely good for himself.

The next day I decided I needed some exercise so I decided to take a walk. As I was leaving Roger decided to join me so he could get out of the house some. As we strolled along, we started talking about different things. When we reached the pond where Peroy had died, we stopped, looked around and reflected on the day we had found him in the pond.

"Bubba has a nice place here," Roger stated.

"Yep, he seems to have a good thing going," I responded.

"It's a shame it's not going to last," said Roger.

"What do you mean?" I questioned.

"I work with the firm," said Roger, "that handles the estate of the inn. Bubba is in the process of bankruptcy. When they ran the road through here it nearly broke him. The inn is too far from the main road."

"I didn't know that," I replied.

"That is probably the reason the other owner sold out. About five years after he bought the inn, it caught fire and nearly burned down. He had to spend quite a bit of money to have it rebuilt."

"No kidding," I replied. "Where did he get the money for all of that?" I asked.

"I guess he took out some loans," replied Roger. "Rumor has it that he torched the inn to get insurance money. I don't know that for sure, but it was talked about for a long time."

About that time Susan yelled, "It's time to go."

"It has been a pleasure to meet you," said Roger.

"You, too," I responded.

"I've got to run," Roger replied. "I'm coming, sweetheart."

I wondered if Bubba had found the other bag of money or if he had taken it from the beginning. Rumor had it that at first there was only one bag of money and then it was told later there were possibly two bags. The facts weren't very clear. I figure Bubba suspected I had hidden the second bag of money in the inn when no one was looking. I think that was the only reason Bubba bought the inn, so he could look for the money. Who knew the real truth of this bizarre twist surrounding the money bags. I believe Bubba may have seen me hide it. But if that was the case he never would have bought the inn; he would have been long gone by now. I suspected that he hadn't found it yet. This doubt made me think Bubba had found it before the fire got to it. My problem now is since the fire and all the remodeling, if he hasn't found it he will have to start tearing down the walls. It's obvious he can't do that. Bubba finally confronted me about the money and he wanted a share of it. But, I really had no idea where the money was; at least now I'm sure Bubba doesn't have it. After ten years later, the fire, and all of the remodeling, who would know where to start looking.

"So what are we going to do, tear the inn down or just forget the whole thing and leave it?"

"Oh, no," cried Bubba. "I need that money. I've got to get something taken care of."

"What if it was burned up in the fire," I asked.

"Don't talk like that," replied Bubba.

"For me, I'm going to forget it," I said.

"I bet you will," replied Bubba. "You know where it is, don't you."

"No I don't," I said. "Bubba, you are going to do what you want to anyway. I'm headed home."

As that day slipped by, the awaking sun shone through the trees. Everyone was ready to go. I was leaving that morning and the others were leaving later in the day. We said our goodbyes again knowing that this time we would probably never meet again. Bubba stayed behind to look for his pot of gold. As I drove on, I decided to stop off at the sheriff's office. When I arrived, I went into his office and sat down. Within a few minutes the sheriff left the room and returned with a bag. It was the second bag of money; he handed it over to me.

"I believe you're looking for this."

"Yes, sir, I am," I replied. "It has been some long hard years. I tried to get back here earlier but due to sickness I had to put it off. Did you get your cut?"

"Yes, sir, just like we agreed. This will come in handy for my upcoming retirement in a few months. When you came back that weekend and we talked about it, I figured I could find it. The fire was unexpected; it just about got it," he said. "The next morning after the fire and after everyone had left I went back out to the inn to see about getting it. After a few minutes of looking I found it. The bag was smoky and charred but the money was still green. I remembered hearing about Sid McClanahan getting killed in the car wreck and that's when I recalled the rumor of the missing money. When I saw Bubba (Rex) at the inn, I remembered seeing him in some mug shots. The rest you know. We joined together after Peroy's death to lay low and split the money. But, I didn't think it would be ten years later."

"Me either," I said. "But it still spends."

As I got up to leave, we shook hands and I left. At the inn they were saying their goodbyes. As everyone except Bubba left, the lights went out on the Christmas tree and a Christmas ball fell to the floor and broke.

*****

Bittersweet

False Witness

The falling rain created an icy looking glare on the road. It was around 1:00 in the morning as Judge Caudill Clark made his way toward Spencer's Cove. When he passed Big Wheels Truck Stop in 1953, he was about twenty-five miles south of Tupelo, Mississippi and about fifteen miles north of Jackson. He had just passed the truck stop on Highway 7 when he saw a hitchhiker. When he pulled over, he asked her where she was going and she told him Gulfport. He told her to get in because he was going that way. She threw her bag in the backseat and got in the front. He told her he had to make a stop at Spencer's Cove but it wouldn't take but a few minutes and then he would take her on to Gulfport. She told him that would be alright. As he merged back on the road, they began to talk. He told her his name and she told him hers.

"Everyone calls me Ty," she said.

"That's a strange name," he replied.

She said, "That's my street name."

"I understand," he said.

"So you are a judge," she inquired.

"Yes, I am. I've been a judge for about fifteen years over in Lee County."

"That must be exciting," she stated as she started to light up a cigarette. "Do you mind?" she asked.

"No, that's fine, just crack your window a little if you will," he said.

"Okay," she replied.

"What brings you to Mississippi?" he asked.

"I'm on my way to see my sister in Gulfport. I'm going to stay with her a while."

"I'm sure she will be glad to see you," he replied.

"Yeah, I'll say so," she said as she slipped her hand down in her small bag and took out her lipstick and a mirror.

She held the mirror up to her face and lightly moved the lipstick over her lips with a smooth stroke. As they drove on, it started raining again. After a while, they approached Spencer's Cove and he slowly pulled over to the side of the road. He could tell she became uneasy. But, he assured her all he wanted to do was talk and that he was not going to harm her. He needed her help. When the car came to a complete stop, he asked her to get out because he had something to show her.

"I've got something I want to show you," he said as they made their way to the back of the car.

She was hesitant and a bit afraid. When he opened the trunk there was a dead woman. Startled, she turned away and started running down the road crying and waving for someone to stop. But, they didn't.

"Are you crazy," she yelled at him.

He pleaded, "Come on and get in the car so I can explain it to you. I'm not going to hurt you."

Still hesitant, she ran a few more steps and stopped. Afraid and confused, she paced back and forth.

"Come on," he insisted. "Let's get back into the car. I'm not going to hurt you."

As she looked around, she didn't recognize where she was. It looked like the middle of nowhere, plus the rain had started to fall harder. Finally, she gave in and they got back into the car.

Ty asked, "Who is she?"

The judge answered, "My wife."

"Are you implying that you killed your wife," she inquired.

"Yes, I did," he said.

"Why," questioned Ty.

"She had a boyfriend, seven through the years. I got fed up with her cheating and killed her," he said. "If I can't have her, no one else will."

"What does that have to do with me?" she asked.

"I need a witness, a false witness, to frame her boyfriend for her murder. I'm willing to pay good money for the witness. All you have to do is lie."

"I can't do that," she said.

"You mean to tell me you have never lied about anything," he questioned her.

"Well, yeah, but not to frame someone for murder."

"Would fifty thousand dollars make a difference?"

"Well, I don't know," she replied. "If I get caught, I'll go to jail."

"But, I am a judge and I have friends."

"Did you say fifty thousand dollars in cash? After I testify, can I walk away?" she asked.

"That's what I'm saying," he stated as he pulled a couple of hundred dollar bills out of his pocket.

"I don't have to touch the body or anything do I," she said.

"All you have to do is sit in the car while I dispose of the body and plant the evidence."

He put the car in gear and eased back onto the road. The lights of the oncoming cars and the glare of the road made it hard to see. The rain had fallen on and off all day. The spray from the tires of the big trucks made it hard to see out of the windshield. In a matter of minutes, he navigated the car through Spencer's Cove and turned off the lights. The cove was wet and muddy; the air smelt musty. It was hard to see much because the windshield was covered with rain and fog. The judge got out of the car and opened the trunk. Ty heard him as he took the body out of the trunk. When she looked out the side window she saw the judge toss the body over his shoulder. In a matter of seconds, he disappeared in the dark blanket of the night. While Ty waited in the car, she watched so she could warn him if she saw someone coming. But, she didn't have to. In just a minute of two, he rushed back up the embankment, got into the car and sped off.

As they made their way toward Gulfport, he told Ty he'd have her money in the morning and he'd let her know what she needed to do. As he drove on, he let her know what evidence he had planted. He had placed a piece of her boyfriend's business card in her pocket with today's date and 2:45 p.m. written on it. The card also had a smear of her blood on the back. Her boyfriend's home phone number was in her wallet. He had also planted some of her boyfriend's hair on her clothes and luckily he was able to put a couple spots of her boyfriend's blood on her clothes since he suffered from frequent nosebleeds. Ty's part was to say she saw them leaving together from the Willow Spring Motel the day his wife disappeared. The motel would have his signature on file from when he rented the room. The owner of the hotel will also verify that he checked them in. With the testimony of Ty and the owner both overhearing them fussing and arguing in their room right before they left, it should be an easy conviction. It may be somewhat circumstantial but he had put people in prison for less than that before.

It wasn't long until they saw the lights of Gulfport. Ty was ready to get out and get her head back on straight. The judge told her he had a meeting in Gulfport and he would meet with her before he went back to Tupelo. He pulled in at the Willow Spring Motel. It was a sleazy motel, the kind you would expect people used when they had a rendezvous with their lovers. It had twenty-four units with a swimming pool in the middle. The three room units had a bathroom, bedroom and small kitchenette. The rooms smelled old and rustic. She thought to herself, if my boyfriend brought me to a place like this, I'd kill him. He told her to ask for Sinlow because he would know what to do and take care of everything else. She was about to get out of the car when he noticed he had a cufflink missing. They both looked inside the car for it, but they didn't find it. He told her it was not big deal, so she got out and went on in the motel. He hoped he had not lost it back at Spencer's Cove. He thought to himself, it could be anywhere in the trunk or car. He didn't have time to look right then.

At the breaking of dawn over the skyline of Gulfport, you could hear morning birds as the moon slipped behind the clouds. The skyline of the city arched across the bluish gray sky as a small plane circled the city. The Gulfport Herald broadcasted that the body of a woman had been found at Spencer's Cove.

It was about ten-thirty the next morning when the judge knocked on Ty's motel room door; she let him in. In his hand he carried a black briefcase. Hurriedly, he tossed the briefcase on the bed and quickly unlocked it. When he flipped back the top of the briefcase, she had never seen so much money (all big bills) in her life.

"Is it all mine?" she asked.

As she jumped onto the bed with the money, she laughed and cried at the same time. Then she rolled from side to side, grabbing the money and squeezing it in her hands. She stuffed some down her bra and panties, and she waltzed about the room as a teenager who had her first kiss.

"It's all yours if you will be my false witness. But, if you change your mind or try to run with the money, the blood of your sister will be on your hands."

"What do you mean about my sister?" she questioned. "My sister has nothing to do with this. Leave her out of it."

"She is just a little insurance policy to see that you do right," he said.

"Oh, no," she replied. "You won't hurt my sister will you?"

"Your sister's name is Brittany McCullen and she lives at 550 Bledsoe Street here in Gulfport. I don't think I need to say anymore. Do we have a deal?"

She hesitated a little then shook her head to indicate yes.

"Nothing better not happen to my sister," she cried, "or I'll kill you."

"It won't as long as you do as you're told."

"Your testimony will be taken right here in this motel room. The police will be by here in a day or two asking questions pertaining to my wife's murder. That is when you will make your move. I've got to get back to Tupelo. I'm supposed to be out of town on business. They are probably looking for me now to question me. When I leave here, we will never meet again unless you try to stab me in the back. Oh, yes," he said, "I know your sister is a lawyer too."

When the judge left, she made her way back over to the money and dove in laughing and pitching money into the air. She had never seen so much money in all her life and it smelt good too. As time slipped by, she hid the money and headed to her sister's house. With a couple of quick rides, she was there in no time. As she knocked on the door, she heard someone inside. About that time the door opened and on the other side of the door stood a nice looking guy. He was tall with eyes that sparkled and his beautiful smile captured the moment with a soft hello. By the time her legs quit shaking like jello, her sister stepped out from behind him.

"Ty," she cried out as she grabbed and hugged her.

She returned the greeting just as enthusiastic with hugs and kisses.

"Come on in here," Brittany cried. "Why didn't you tell me you were coming," she said.

"I wanted to surprise you," replied Ty.

"Hey, girl, I want you to meet a friend of mine. Ty, this is Isaac Denton. Isaac, this is my identical twin sister Michelle, but we call her Ty."

"Glad to meet you," they said at the same time.

"It's my pleasure indeed," he said to smooth over the intro.

"Come on in here," cried Brittany, "we have a lot of catching up to do. Before you ask, he's not my boyfriend," Brittany informed her. "We've been friends for a long time; we hang out together a lot."

"Is he gay?" Ty asked.

"No way," replied Brittany. "He has his women friends and I have my men friends."

"So is he available?" asked Ty.

"Yes, you can say that. He has a lady friend he has been seeing for the last few months. But, nothing binding."

"That sounds good," replied Ty.

"Now, Ty, don't you get involved with him. You know I can always tell when you are up to something," insisted Brittany. "Promise me you won't do anything."

"Well, I'll see," responded Ty.

Time quickly passed and Ty told her sister that she needed to run. Brittany asked her why she was in such a hurry.

Ty laughed and replied, "Oh, I have 50,000 reasons."

"Where are you staying?" she inquired.

"Oh, at a motel up the road," Ty answered.

"Now, I want you to go get your things and come back here to stay with me," ordered Brittany. "I'm not having my sister staying in a motel."

"But...," Ty mumbled.

"Ty, no buts about it, Isaac can take you to get your things."

"But...," replied Ty.

"No buts," Isaac interrupted. "Come on," he said. "I can take you over there now to get your things."

On their way to the motel, Ty told him she needed to go by the bus station to put some things into a storage locker.

He said, "That is fine. Where do you want to go first?" he asked.

"The motel," she replied.

Within minutes they were parked in front of the motel. As they made their way inside, Ty started a little teasing and flirting with him. He played it cool at first. But as things started to warm up, she began to loosen some of her clothes. Slowly, he eased over to her and stretched his arms and hands above her head; she slowly unbuttoned his shirt. She quickly turned her back to him and he passionately kissed the back of her neck with his warm lips. As she stood there weak in his embrace, she suddenly spoke up.

"Hold what you got. I'll be back in just a minute."

She went into the bathroom and he lay on the bed and waited for her. When she opened the bathroom door she didn't have anything on. She made her way over to him; the darkness of the room enhanced them engaging together. After their romantic encounter, they both fell asleep. When she woke up, she saw him at the foot of the bed putting on his clothes.

"I will be back in a minute," he assured her. "I'm going to get a newspaper from the newsstand by the office."

As he started out the door, he suddenly stopped.

"What is that on your lip?" she asked.

"Oh, nothing, just a little nosebleed," he answered.

While he was gone, Ty got up, got dressed and gathered her things. Suddenly, the door flew open and Isaac barged in; he was panicking.

"I can't believe this," he cried out.

"Believe what," questioned Ty.

"This woman they found dead at the cove," he cried.

"What woman?" shouted Ty.

"Her husband is a judge," he said. "I've been having an affair with her for the past few months."

"Oh, my God," screamed Ty. "Please tell me this is not happening."

"No, it is," cried Isaac. "It's real."

"Come on, let's get out of here," insisted Ty. "Let's get to the bus station and back over to Brittany's."

When they arrived at Brittany's, she had seen the paper too. She knew about Isaac's relationship with the judge's wife. She had tried to get him to end his relationship with her because she knew Judge Clark. But, he wouldn't listen to her. Brittany already knew they would try to charge him with the murder. He asked Brittany if she would represent him and she assured him she would. Isaac didn't know what to think or believe and Ty was dumbfounded. She didn't know if she should tell Brittany everything. She would lose the money and put Brittany in danger if she did. But, she didn't know if she could frame Isaac either.

"I've got to get out for a few minutes," spoke up Ty. "I'm going for a walk, I need some fresh air."

"Okay," replied Brittany, "but be careful."

As Ty rushed out the door, she battled with her situation. She was afraid of Judge Clark. He had killed his wife, plus he threatened to harm her sister if she backed out.

"What a mess," she cried out loud. "I have never been involved in anything like this. What else is going to happen?"

About that time, a patrol car pulled up beside her with its lights flashing. Now what have I done, she said to herself. When the officer got out, he asked her if she was Michelle McCullen.

She said, "Yes, I am."

"Well, I'm Officer Davis. The manager at the motel gave me your name and description. I went by the motel to speak with you about the man and woman that was in the unit beside you," he stated. "Would you be willing to go down to the station and give a report?"

"Now," she said. "Can't I give it to you here; I really don't know that much."

"Well, that'll be fine, go ahead and tell me what you saw and know," he replied.

"I was trying to get some sleep and the couple next door was arguing; they were loud."

"Could you tell what they were saying?"

"A little," she replied. "The man told her that if he couldn't have her no one else would. Then it sounded like he slapped her. I assumed he did since she started to cry out for him to stop. I heard something break; it sounded like someone had thrown something against the wall. After that, it quieted down. About all that I could hear then was the woman crying."

"Did you see either one of them?"

"Yes, I did. When I heard the door open, I went to the window and peeped out from behind the curtain. That's when I saw her."

"Was this the lady?" he asked as he showed her a picture.

"Yes, it looks like her," Ty replied.

"What about the man? Did you see him?" asked the officer.

"Yes, I saw him as they were getting into the car."

"Do you think you could pick him out of a lineup?"

"Yes, I believe I might be able to. What is this all about and why am I tangled up in it?"

"From what we have found out, you may be the only witness to have seen the woman that was found dead in Spencer's Cove alive and who she was with. Did you recognize who the man was that she left with?"

She replied, "I have never seen him before."

"Well, that will be all for now. We will be getting back in touch with you."

Ty was unaware that Officer Davis was one of Judge Clark's friends. As the officer drove off, Ty turned and headed back to her sister's house. A couple of hours later, a warrant was served on Isaac. Brittany went to the station to get him out on bond. In the meantime, Officer Davis picked up Ty and brought her into the station to see if she could pick the man she saw at the motel with Brenda Lynn Clark out of a lineup. As Brittany worked out a deal with the bonding company, Isaac stood in a single line with some other men in a police lineup. As Ty looked them over, she studied each one. Officer Davis asked her if she recognized any of them. He told her to take her time; he wanted her to be certain. She asked for two of the men to step up for some side views, but it wasn't them. She carefully examined each man in the lineup.

"It looks like number three," she told Officer Davis. "Please ask him to step forward?"

Officer Davis asked number three to step forward, to turn to the right and then to the left.

"I believe it is number three."

"Are you sure?" he asked. "You can take them out now," instructed Officer Davis. Officer Davis turned to her and said sternly, "I don't know what kind of game you are playing."

"What do you mean?" questioned Ty.

"The man you picked out of the lineup is a vice squad officer. Are you sure you don't want me to bring in another group of men? You're in a whole lot deeper than you realize."

When she looked into his eyes, she knew exactly what he meant.

"No, you don't have to bring anymore in; it was number seven. Number seven was the man at the motel with Mrs. Clark."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive," she stated as she turned away.

"Okay, you can go. Judge Clark is a good friend of mine and he has a lot of friends. I'm just looking out for his best interest. Thank you, Ms. McCullen, for your help."

As Brittany was leaving, she unexpectedly ran into Ty.

"Ty, why on earth are you down here?"

"I'll tell you later," she said as she headed out the door.

Brittany tried to arrange a bond for Isaac, but they told her he had been denied bond. She asked them on what grounds.

"We have a witness who placed Mr. Denton with the deceased right before her death. Since the victim is the wife of a judge, they denied bail to protect the judge."

"Who is the witness?" she inquired. "I want to talk to this witness."

"Go ahead," said Officer Davis. "Your sister just picked him out of a police lineup a few minutes ago."

"What, my sister!" she screamed. "What does she have to do with this?" she yelled as she turned and stormed out of the station.

When Brittany got outside, Ty was waiting in her car.

Brittany jerked the car door open and screamed, "What in the hell is going on, Ty?"

Ty began to cry and she told Brittany the whole story.

"How could you get yourself in this mess?" cried Brittany.

"I don't know it just happened. The money sounded so good and all I had to do was lie," explained Ty. "What am I going to do?"

"What did you do with the money?" asked Brittany.

"Oh, I put it in a safe place," Ty replied. "Why?"

"There might be a way we can turn things around, get Judge Clark in the process and still be able to keep the money."

"You think so," said Ty.

"Let's sleep on it," Brittany replied. "If there's a will there's a way. Let's go home and get some rest."

Early the next day, they were up and going. Brittany had a plan and she was ready to share it with Ty over a cup of coffee.

"First of all we don't know anything about any money. The only thing you need to mention about it is that you never received it. All you need to do is tell the D.A. that Judge Clark picked you up hitchhiking and offered you a deal of $50,000 to be a false witness to frame his wife's boyfriend for murder. Let him know he instructed you to stay at the motel until the police came to talk with you. And once his wife's boyfriend went to prison you would receive the money. This will be on our plea bargain. Let's go to the D.A.'s office and see what we can do."

As they headed for the D.A.'s office, they went over their story to be sure everything lined up. When they got there, Eugene Dickens, the D.A., was out of his office. So, Brittany decided to go over to the jail and talk to Isaac. When they brought him out, Brittany told him that she was working on getting him released. She told him to be patient and trust her, but she couldn't go into all the details right then.

"I will try," he said. "It's hard to keep your head up in a place like this."

"I know," she replied. "But, it shouldn't be long. Well I've got to go," she said. "I'll talk to you later."

As they made their way back over to the D.A.'s office, Ty said, "Isaac's going to hate me."

"No, he's not. He will be pissed, but he will not hate you," replied Brittany.

When they got there the D.A. still hadn't returned.

"Let's get a bite to eat. Hopefully he'll be here when we get back."

"Sounds good," replied Ty.

"This is not the first time Judge Clark has pulled this stunt," she stated. "I believe this is what happened to our brother, James. He was fooling around with Judge Clark's first wife and was sent to death row for her murder. I never could prove his innocence," she said. "He had too many false witnesses that testified against him. Judge Clark is a very powerful man in Mississippi. He got away with the murder of his first wife and only God knows what else he has gotten away with. Well, are you about ready to head back?" asked Brittany.

"Sure," replied Ty. "Do you think we can get James out?"

"We are going to try our best," she replied. "We sure in hell are going to try."

When they got back to the D.A's office, he was waiting for them.

"Come on in counselor," welcomed Eugene Dickens the D.A. "What can I help you with?"

"I want to talk to you about a plea bargain for Isaac Denton," she said.

"Oh, the one who is supposed to have murdered Judge Clark's wife," he replied.

"Yes, sir," said Brittany. "I have a witness who can testify of that fact that Isaac Denton didn't kill Judge Clark's wife," she explained.

"Okay, I see," replied Dickens. "It better be good because you're going against a judge. You know he has been nominated for the State Supreme Court, don't you."

"Yes, sir, I heard something about it."

"Well, what have you got?" he asked.

Ty told him the truth about everything except for the money.

"I see," he said. "Now, what's the plea bargain you're looking to get," questioned Dickens.

"For Ty's testimony, I want all charges dropped against Isaac and I want an investigation opened regarding the death row sentence my brother, James McCullen, received for the murder of Judge Clark's first wife."

"So you think he is trying to do the same thing to Isaac Denton that he did to your brother James?" asked the D.A.

"Yes, I do," replied Brittany. "I could never prove it, but maybe you can."

"Do you think a judge or jury will take your sister's word over a judge's?" he asked.

"Not in Mississippi, but maybe another state. Is it possible to get a change of venue?"

"It's highly irregular, but Judge Clark knows a lot of influential people. I don't know, probably not in Gulfport but maybe in Jackson or Biloxi. Let me look into it. As far as the plea bargain, I don't see any problem with that. You are trying to make some wrongs right which I don't blame you. As far as your brother, I'll get a team to pull his records and see what we can turn up. I believe we have enough to open a more thorough investigation into the case. Let's wait and see what turns up," he suggested. "Thank you so much for this information."

About two weeks later, the D.A contacted Brittany. Judge Clark had been picked up for the murder of his second wife and the investigation into his first wife's death was ongoing. The charges against Isaac Denton were dropped. James McCullen, Brittany, Isaac Denton and Ty were on their way home.

A month later, after finding and interviewing the witnesses in Judge Clark's first wife's case, they found enough evidence and the false witnesses agreed to testify against Judge Clark for their immunity. This was enough to prove Clark killed her. Judge Clark was tried and convicted in Jackson, Mississippi court. They waved the death penalty and he was convicted of murder in the first degree; he was sentenced to life without parole. About three years later, he was found dead in his cell from an apparent suicide.

When everything died down they all went to get the money out of the locker at the bus station. But, when they got there and opened the locker, it was empty.

"What's going on," cried Ty. "Where's the money?"

She looked in the locker again and noticed something; it was a cuff link. When she picked it up, she recalled Judge Clark saying he was missing a cuff link; she wondered where it could be.

*****

Bittersweet

Double Trouble

Hill Creek, Virginia lay snuggled in the foothills of the Appalachians along US Highway 73 in Judd County. Its winding roads traveled through Virginia over into North Carolina and split at the fork toward Tennessee. It was early fall 1983 and the Appalachians were never more beautiful. The gallery of colors accented the skyline as the fall winds blew in rain from the coast. The scent from the rain brought a clean and fresh aroma that created a pleasant feeling as it hovered about. The time had come for the season to change. In the higher elevation of the mountains, you could see the early snows lying in wait for its next moment, which in a few months would be spring and spring would feed off the winter snow.

Life around Hill Creek was good. It was a small city town with a country touch. Homes of all kinds lined the hills and hollows. Businesses were abound, upon every hand, as the town grew daily with leaps and bounds. Tommy Stewart was an only child; he grew up on a small farm in Illinois. Tommy never went to college, but he spent three years in the army. When he got out of the army, he worked at a small business where he lived and that is where he met his wife of five years; they had no children.

Tommy was sitting in his car ready to pull out into traffic when he noticed his wife coming out of a lawyer's office. He watched as she came out, got into her car and left. It was raining that day so he watched her as she drove by because he wanted to be sure it was her. His wipers moved back and forth as fog began to appear upon his windshield. As he wiped away the fog with his hand, he looked again, it was definitely her. But, she didn't see him. What would she be doing in a lawyer's office, he said to himself. He was startled out of his daze by a horn honking from behind him. He could tell the driver of the car behind him was cursing as he motioned for him to get out of the way; he wanted that parking place. Tommy whipped out into the street and as he took off, he shot the other man a bird. On his way home he decided not to mention to his wife that he saw her leaving the lawyer's office. He wanted to see if she would bring it up. When he got home she was already there. The rain had let up a little but you could still hear the thunder rumbling in the background. When he went in, she was throwing things, cursing and raising hell. When she saw him they immediately started arguing over the same old thing as before.

About a year ago, Tommy had an affair with a woman he met at a bar. Well, she wound up pregnant. When Kimberly found out, she started fussing and hasn't stopped. She just couldn't forget it. He kept telling her he was sorry and that it wouldn't happen again. But, she didn't trust him. She told him he did it once and he'd do it again. He argued back as he tried to settle the affair once and for all. However, she told him that she had stopped by the lawyer's office and had some separation papers drawn up.

"What," he exclaimed.

"Yes, I want a separation," she yelled. "I've got to have some time to myself."

"But, Kimberly, don't you think you're going too far with this," he questioned. "I made a mistake. Haven't you ever made a mistake?"

"Yes, I have, a big one; I married you," she cried.

"Okay! Okay, you want a separation. That's fine," he yelled. "I don't know why you don't go ahead and file for divorce."

She stormed out of the room and slammed the door behind her. I need a drink, he said to himself as he left and headed for Wet Your Whistle Bar and Grill. When he got to the bar, he saw a lot of the regulars. He sat down at the bar and ordered a double. The smoke in the bar was heavy and you couldn't hear the jukebox for everyone talking. As he turned and placed his back to the bar, he tossed back the double whiskey down his throat and asked for another. He kept noticing a good looking girl in a booth at the back of the establishment. She too had noticed him and when she caught him looking she gave him a flirty look. As he turned back toward the bar, he looked back at her once again. This time she took her hand up under the back of her head, lifted up her hair and then let it fall free. He motioned for the bartender, ordered a bottle of whiskey, two glasses and left the bar. He went to the booth where she was sitting and asked her if she would like some company.

"Sure," she replied.

"Whiskey," he said.

"That would be fine," she answered.

"Tommy is my name," he said as he poured the drink. "And yours," he asked as he handed her a drink.

"Shantel," she softly spoke

"I don't believe I have seen you in here before," he said after he shot the drink down.

"It's my first time," she replied.

"You're not from here are you," he questioned.

"No, I'm in town visiting an old friend," she said.

"Male or female," he replied.

"It doesn't matter," she said, "does it."

"Oh, no," he replied.

As they sat and started to get acquainted, Tommy got on the subject of his marriage. He told her his wife had filed for a legal separation. She didn't seem to be very impressed with his marriage situation at all; she wasn't married. All she seemed to be interested in was having a good time. When an old song started to play on the jukebox, he asked her if she wanted to dance.

"Sure," she replied.

They slipped out of the booth and headed to the dance floor. It was a slow song so he held her tight against him as they slowly moved across the floor.

"Not bad," she whispered in his ear. "You must have danced a lot."

"Well, some," he replied as the song ended and a new upbeat one began.

"You want to try it," she said.

"Why not," he replied as they broke loose and moved about on the floor.

When the song ended he said, "Let's sit the next one out. I'm out of breath."

As the night went on, the more he drank and the more he talked. He talked about getting even with his wife by stalking and scaring her. He also talked about getting his hands on some of her money and that he may even kill her so he could have it all. Then later on, about closing, the bartender came over to the booth and woke him up. He had drunk too much and passed out. When he looked around for Shantel, she was gone. He asked the bartender where she went. The bartender pointed to a napkin on the table with a phone number on it. He grabbed the napkin, got up and left.

Two weeks later, he was at home packing up some of his things to move to a motel when he found a letter stuffed back in a drawer. It was from a lawyer in North Carolina. The way it read, his wife would be coming into a large sum of money. Her daddy's brother had died from complications of diabetes and cancer. So that's why she wants the separation. She didn't want to share her money with me, he said to himself.

The next day, he called Shantel's number three or four times but she didn't answer. He figured she had probably left town and gone home. However, one day while he was stopped at a red light, Shantel pulled up beside him and there was another woman with her. Tommy rolled down his window and told her to follow him to the bar where they met. Shantel told him to lead the way. When they arrived at the bar, Shantel introduced him to her fraternal twin sister, Lindsay. Tommy invited them in for a drink. The bar hadn't been open long and there were only a few people inside. They took a booth in the back and sat down to talk.

"I found out that Kimberly is going to come into a large amount of money. I don't know exactly how much, but that's what I wanted to talk to you about. I want to get my hands on that money and if you'll help me I will cut you in too."

"Are you serious about what you said regarding your wife?" Shantel asked.

"Yes," he said. "I mean no. Why do you ask? I don't remember exactly what I said."

Shantel filled him in on everything he had told her that night at the bar.

"Well," she said, "we might be interested in helping you, for a small fee."

"You might," he replied with a surprised tone. "How small of a fee are you talking about?"

Lindsey took a pen from her purse and wrote an amount down on a napkin and slid it over to him.

"Not bad," he responded as he wrote another amount on the same napkin and slid it back to her.

She underlined and circled her original offer and said, "This amount or no deal."

He thought a minute and shook his head okay. The threesome sat and talked about a plan. He told them he would give them half of the money then and the rest when they finished the deal. After several drinks, the twins left. Their final words were that they would be in touch. As Tommy was about to leave a man walked up to him and asked him if he was Tommy Stewart. He told him yes. The man handed him an envelope and left without saying another word. Tommy opened it up as he walked to his car; it was from her lawyer. He had officially been served his separation papers. He started cursing as he jumped into his car and left.

Within weeks the twins had put the plan in motion. Tommy had paid them half of the money to get the stalking started and he promised them the other half when they were finished.

One day as Kimberly was driving home from town, she met a car driving recklessly; it was speeding and changing lanes back and forth. As she neared the car, she slowed down. She didn't know what the car was going to do next. As the car approached her, it suddenly swung into her lane causing her to veer off the road into a field. She looked back to see if she knew who it was. She could see two women in the car but she couldn't make out who they were. She assumed they were just two drunks. When her nerves settled down, she made it back out onto the road and headed home. The more she thought about it the more she realized how strange it was. Nevertheless, she passed it off as nothing. Later that night, she was awakened by a phone call. All they said was that they were sorry they missed her on the road and that was only the beginning of things to come. Before she could say anything, the phone went dead. From then on she received two or three calls every day and night. They never said another word; all they did was breathe heavily into the phone. As time went on, she began to feel like she was being followed. She felt uneasy; everywhere she went, even at home. Tommy is behind this, she said to herself. He has someone watching me, but who. She decided to get a restraining order against him and have her phone number changed to an unlisted number. She was tired of receiving the annoying phone calls and wanted to get a peaceful night's sleep.

The day she decided to file for a restraining order, it was pouring down rain. A storm had come up unexpectedly. As she was running to her car, she stopped in her tracks; all four of her tires were slashed. As she was headed back into the house, she heard a car horn blow. She turned around; it was a woman she had never seen before.

"I notice you have a flat, four of them. Can I help you?" asked the woman.

"I need a ride into town," she replied.

"I'm headed that way," the woman said. "I can drop you off. Get on in out of this rain."

"Sounds good," said Kimberly.

Kimberly got into the car and they drove off in the downpour of rain.

"My name is Lindsay," the woman stated.

"Hi and thanks. I'm Kimberly."

"Where do you need to go once we get into town?" asked Lindsay.

"The Sheriff's Office," replied Kimberly. "I'm going to get a restraining order against my husband."

"Are you going to tell them about your slashed tires?" asked Lindsay.

"My tires, harassing phone calls, being watched and being run off the road," cried Kimberly.

"All of that," replied Lindsay. "Who would do such a thing?"

"My husband," assured Kimberly.

"He sounds like a creep," stated Lindsay.

"He is," agreed Kimberly. "We are separated right now and I have already filed divorce papers."

By the time they reached the Sheriff's Office, the rain had eased up. As Kimberly was getting out of the car, Lindsay asked her if she needed a ride home.

Kimberly replied, "Yes, if you don't mind waiting."

"We can go by the tire store to get them to tow your car in so you can get some new tires," suggested Lindsay.

"Hey, that will be great," responded Kimberly. "You sure you don't mind. Hey, I know a really good restaurant that's on the way home. We can stop there and I'll buy you lunch for helping me out so much," replied Kimberly.

"Oh, you don't have to do that," said Lindsay. "But, it does sound like fun. I'm new in town and I don't know the best places to eat. I'll be waiting for you."

"I shouldn't be too long," Kimberly said.

When Kimberly entered the Sheriff's Office, she told them she wanted to get a restraining order against her husband, Tommy Stewart. She filled out the paperwork and the officer sent her up to the County Clerk's Office to do some more paperwork. She explained everything to them and filled out some more papers. When she was finished, the clerk told her she had to take the paperwork to the judge and he would determine if it was enough to issue the order. The clerk asked if she could wait a few minutes. Luckily, the judge was in and it didn't take very long. About an hour later, the clerk called her to the desk and told her the judge had granted for the order to be served. The clerk presented Kimberly copies of the order. Kimberly thanked her for her assistance; she was relieved to get it taken care of. She made her way down to the first floor where she saw Lindsay waiting in the hall. Kimberly smiled and waved her restraining order papers in the air as a victory; Lindsay greeted her with open arms. On the way to the restaurant, they stopped by the tire place. Kimberly told them her situation and they told her they would take care of it. She gave them her address and handed them her keys. She requested to have the same kind of tires she had and she would come back that evening to get her car and pay them.

The man at the tire place said, "Your car will be ready in a couple of hours. We close at 5 o'clock today, so try to be here before then."

"That will be fine; I'll be here before 5 o'clock," she replied.

As Lindsay and Kimberly headed to get a bite to eat, they talked and tried to get to know each other better. While they were at the restaurant, Tommy had contacted Shantel and told her he had to leave town on business and would be back that evening. He wanted to meet her and Lindsay at the Wet Your Whistle Bar and Grill. He wanted an update on their project. He asked her if his money was being well spent. She assured him it was and told him not to worry.

At the restaurant the two girls got to know each other and agreed to have some more outings together. Before they knew it, a few hours had passed. Lindsay took Kimberly to the tire place to get her car, but it wasn't ready. Lindsey told her she would wait with her but she had a meeting to go to, but she'd see her tomorrow. Kimberly told her that was fine and she would be alright. Kimberly's car was finally ready about thirty minutes later and she was able to head for home. She figured she could get some rest now since she had her number changed. While Kimberly arrived home, Tommy arrived at the bar. Just as he was about to go in, a deputy served him with the restraining order. He started cursing and questioning the deputy. The deputy just turned and walked away. Tommy's heart was racing as he opened the envelope. He prayed it wasn't the divorce papers. He sighed in relief that it was only a restraining order; he had been expecting her to do that. Anyway, he had no reason to see or be around her. He had Shantel and Lindsay for that. Tommy made his way inside and ordered a double whiskey. He looked around for Shantel and Lindsay but he didn't see them. He figured as much since he had arrived a little early. He knew with his luck they wouldn't be early. He tossed down double after double. When he looked up, he saw them in the glass mirror behind the bar. He raised his shot of whiskey to make a toast, slowly turned it up and eased it down. They joined him at the bar and realized right away that he was pretty buzzed.

"This is going to be good," Shantel whispered to Lindsay.

"Ladies," he cried, "welcome to my lair."

He turned toward them, put one arm around Shantel, the other around Lindsay and escorted them to a back table for a little more privacy. Tommy ordered a bottle of whiskey and some glasses from the bartender. Lindsay poured each of them a drink and they filled each other in on what had been going on. As Shantel was telling him what they had been doing, he reached into his pocket, pulled out the restraining order, slammed it down on the table, drank a glass of whiskey and then turned the glass over.

"Ya'll are going to have to speed things up. If she dies before the divorce, I get it all. If she doesn't and the divorce is finalized, I won't get anything that amounts to much, if anything at all. She has already filed the divorce papers. It's just a matter of time before they serve me with them. It's going to take a little longer than I thought to get this matter taken care of. Girls, you told me you could take care of this," he said.

"We can," they replied in unison.

"Do it then," he demanded. "I don't think I have ever seen two people lollygag around like you have. I should have done it myself. You do want the rest of your money don't you?"

"Sure we do," exclaimed Lindsay. "We will take care of it. We are the ones who will be committing murder."

Shantel butted in, "Yeah, we are the ones sticking our necks out. You have to stay away from her and don't call her either."

"Okay, okay," he replied. "Please try to get it done in the next two weeks. I'm sure I will be served those divorce papers any day now; the judge isn't going to wait forever, agreed."

"Agreed," they replied.

"I'll drink to that, cheers, cheers. Either one of you girls want to dance."

"No," they said. "We've got to go."

"See you later, girls," he said with slurred speech.

It was midday when Kimberly was in town and ran into Lindsay. Shantel was in the car with Lindsay. Lindsay introduced her to Kimberly and as they sat and talked a few minutes it came out that Shantel needed a place to stay. Kimberly had an upstairs apartment, a little furnished cottage house and she told Shantel she was welcome to stay there.

"That would be great," replied Shantel. "When can I move in?"

"Today, its empty," said Kimberly. "Lindsay knows where I live. You can come and look at it now, if you want."

"That will be great," said Shantel.

"Let's go," replied Lindsay, "we'll meet you there."

They took off for Kimberly's house. On the way there, the twins planned out their next move. They had to act soon. They knew Tommy was right. The judge was not going to wait for the divorce papers forever. It wasn't long before they arrived at Kimberly's. She showed Shantel the cottage and she loved it. In fact, she moved in that evening. The three became inseparable. They did everything together, even a little partying.

One night when Kimberly was on her way home, her car stalled; she was all alone. It was pitch black dark. When she got out of the car, she saw some headlights approaching over the hill behind her. Within seconds, the car appeared. She stood beside the road waving her arms above her head to get their attention. The car stopped, flashed its lights on high beam, then low and sat there. Kimberly became afraid so she decided to walk on with hopes that the car would go on around her. She occasionally looked back over her shoulder. It seemed like when she started walking, the car moved slowly toward her. It was so dark that she couldn't see who was driving or even what kind of car it was. She did notice, however, that whoever was driving lit up a cigarette and turned the lights on bright, nearly blinding her. The car revved its engine, like it was going to take off. As fear ran through her, she took off running and screaming, but the car didn't move. As she continued to run down the road, she turned around to look back but her feet got tangled up and she fell. Once she gathered herself and looked back down the road, the car was gone. It must have turned off on a side road. Almost as suddenly as the car disappeared, Shantel drove by and saw Kimberly standing beside the road. She stopped to see what was wrong.

"Kimberly, are you alright?" she asked. "What happened?"

Kimberly started telling her what had happened. When she told her about the mysterious car, Shantel told her they needed to get out of there. Shantel helped her into the car and told her she could finish telling her the rest of the story on the way home.

"We'll check on your car in the morning."

"I bet you it was Tommy," she said.

"Well, you don't know that," replied Shantel. "It was too dark to see. It might have been some teenagers."

"I don't know," she said as she closed her eyes and took in a deep breath.

It seemed but a matter of minutes and they were home.

"Are you going to call the police?" asked Shantel.

"No, I don't know, maybe," she stammered. "I just want to lie down right now."

"I'll stay here with you tonight so you won't have to be alone."

As Kimberly headed to her room, she walked by the living room window and that's when they heard a shot. Quickly, they hit the floor and laid there trembling. A bullet came through the window and buried itself into the wall across from the window. Outside they could hear a car as it squealed its tires and sped away. Shantel crawled over to get the phone, all the while telling Kimberly to stay down. She dialed 911 and explained the situation. The police were on their way. While they waited, Shantel comforted Kimberly. Cautiously, Shantel eased up to look around; it appeared to be clear. She could hear the sirens piercing through the darkness.

"They are on their way," Shantel said to console Kimberly.

When the police arrived, Kimberly told them everything from the time her car stalled to the time the shot came through the window. They asked a lot of questions; one was if she knew anyone who would want to harm her.

She said, "No, unless it was my husband. We are in the process of a divorce. I have a restraining order against him. But, I don't think he would go that far."

"Has it been a bitter divorce so far?" he asked.

"No, not too bad," she replied. "He had an affair with another woman and she got pregnant."

"Has he left you for her?" questioned the officer.

"No," she answered.

"Could it be his ex-girlfriend or could she have hired someone to harm you?" he inquired.

"No, maybe, I'm not sure. So much has happened; I just don't know what to think," she said as she started to cry.

The officer turned to Shantel and asked, "And who are you?"

"I'm her friend that rents the cottage out back."

"We will be in touch with you," he said. "I'll request to have a patrol car stationed in front of your house until we can find out what is going on. Also, I'll have your husband brought in for questioning and to see if he has an alibi for his whereabouts tonight."

"Thank you, officer. I would appreciate that," Kimberly replied.

"Oh, Miss Shantel, will you be staying with her tonight?" he asked.

"Yes, oh yes," she said. "I'll be here; I'm not going anywhere."

Within hours they had brought Tommy in for questioning. He denied knowing anything at all. After serious questioning and checking his alibi, they released him and told him not to leave town.

Later on that evening, he met with the twins to call off the deal. He had changed his mind and didn't want to go through with it. But, they didn't want to. He even promised them the rest of the money if they would drop it and leave town, if it wasn't too late. They told him they would think about it and let him know.

Tommy, buying some time from the twins, wanted to warn Kimberly about them without exposing himself. Late one night, Tommy snuck around outside of Kimberly's house trying to find a way to talk with her. But, the officer on patrol saw him and arrested him.

As the officer was putting him into the patrol car he yelled out, "We need to talk, Kimberly. There is something you need to know."

As they drove off, he looked through the back window and saw Kimberly, Shantel, and Lindsay standing together in the yard. He was charged with a violation of a restraining order and then released on bond. He tried for three days to get in touch with the twins, but he couldn't reach them. He had their money and he wanted all of it to stop. Finally, he was able to reach Lindsay.

"I've got the money," he said. "Where can we meet?"

She said, "Hold on a minute."

He could tell she was talking to someone but the voices were muffled and he couldn't understand what they were saying. Apparently, she had her hand over the phone.

When she came back on the phone she said, "Meet us at Kimberly's tonight at 8 o'clock."

"Kimberly's," he exclaimed. "Are you crazier than hell? I can't do that."

"You can if you don't want anything to happen to her," she warned. "Be there or the deal is off, and make sure you bring the money."

"What about the police," he asked.

"That's your problem," replied Lindsay. "See you at eight."

Tommy took a deep breath and headed for the bar. He drank and smoked heavily until he left for Kimberly's at seven o'clock. What have I gotten myself into, he mumbled to himself. What have I done? The doorbell rung at Kimberly's at about seven forty-five. Lindsay opened the door; it was Tommy, dog drunk and holding a briefcase. She let him in, but before she closed the door she looked around to make sure no one was with him. When he entered the living room, he saw Kimberly sitting on the couch. Shantel stood behind her with a gun pointed at Kimberly's head. Lindsay then went over and sat down beside Kimberly. No one said a word. He put the briefcase down on the coffee table and opened it. The money was all there. Kimberly and the girls stood up and gave each other a big girl hug. Tommy was stunned by what he was seeing.

"What the hell," he said.

"Thank you for our money," they boasted.

"But, wait a minute," he cried out before he grabbed his chest, doubled over and fell to the floor.

They stood over him a few minutes; then Kimberly called 911. She was crying and all hysterical so Shantel took the phone and explained the situation to the operator. But before help could arrive, he was dead. As Kimberly ran from the house, the patrol car had received the call and was pulling up in the driveway. Lindsay followed behind her trying to comfort her. In no time the ambulance was there. As the paramedics loaded his body into the ambulance, the police took their statements. Kimberly told them that Tommy had come over to try to work things out.

I have a restraining order against him, you know. I was afraid at first to see him, but my two friends, Shantel and Lindsay were with me. He just wanted to talk and try to work things out. But, I told him I didn't believe that it would ever work out because there was too much excess baggage and that I was sorry. That's when he grabbed his chest, fell to the floor and died. I guess it was too much for him to deal with.

A few days later, the coroner's report ruled his death was from natural causes, a heart attack. He had experienced spells of chest pains the last couple of years. But, Tommy had never had a heart attack before. The smoking and drinking brought a lot of the trouble on him. A heart attack was bound to happen sooner or later.

After the funeral, the girls stopped by the cemetery to see Kimberly. Unbeknown to them, Kimberly had taken out a large health insurance policy on Tommy. She figured his excessive drinking and smoking would eventually take a toll on him. The policy she took out would pay a double amount if it was a natural death. She didn't get an accident policy, although it would have paid a lot more. But if there had been an accident there would have been an investigation and a greater chance of being caught. She took the lesser amount for the sure jackpot.

"I want to thank you girls for all your help. We have all come a long way since high school and college."

"We were glad to help."

"The insurance check should be in the mail in a few weeks. Once I get it cashed, we can meet for lunch and I'll bring each of you your share."

"If you hadn't come up with that fake inheritance file, claiming to be coming into a lot of money, I don't think you could have pulled it off," said Lindsay.

"Well, it took all three of us to pull the scam. That night on the road, when my car stalled, was scary and so real."

"It wasn't me," Lindsay said.

"Me either," replied Shantel.

"Then who was it?" Kimberly asked as they all looked at each other puzzled. "Could it have been Tommy?"

"What about the shot?" asked Lindsay?

They looked at one another again and said, "Tommy."

Everything seemed to be going as planned for the twins until they found out Kimberly had already received the check and left town. She even took the money they got from Tommy. Everything they did was for nothing; they never received a dime.

*****

Bittersweet

On the Corner of Perry Street

It was no given time, year or day that the following events took place. They could have happened anywhere, at anytime. The town that lied from whence they came was called Defeated and the town they were going to was called Difficult. The small town of Defeated had only one bus stop outside of town that sat along a narrow, crooked road leading to Difficult. Many people traveled the road. Some left and never came back, while others came back for a short stay. Some never left, they died there in Defeated. There were those who also died in Difficult because they gave up. People came to the bus stop everyday to catch the bus. They were all different kinds of people from all walks of life who were all doing things that could make a difference. Now, let me introduce you to the people at Bus Stop Station 550.

There came a man one day who was a liar. He lived his whole life lying to get what he wanted. What he didn't lie about, he stole. No one could ever believe him. He was caught several times and went on his way.

There was the fisherman with his crooked hook. According to him, the big one always got away. He came to the bus stop all alone with his cane-pole, a box of worms and of course the crooked hook. He sat on the bench at the bus stop and practiced fishing by dropping his hook down in the storm drain beside the road. But, lo and behold, along came the bus; it ran over his cane-pole, broke it and kept on going. Now, that was the big one that got away.

There also came the woman who had sung all her life. She came alone to the bus stop; well except for her dead canary in the shoebox that she carried everywhere she went. She started singing in the church choir; then moved on to smoke filled bars and honky-tonks. No one knew if she could she still carry a tune or if she still had an unsung song still in her heart. Her greatest ambition in life was to have a song on the jukebox for others to enjoy. Do you have a quarter? The bus pulled up at the bus stop. As she started to get on, the bus driver asked her what she had in the box. She told him her canary; he said, "Sorry no pets allowed."

Life sometimes is like sitting at a red-light with it pouring down rain on one side of the red-light and dry as a bone on the other. The person in the car across from you has their wipers cutting a shine. Can you figure that? Who then can draw the line?

It was a typical day at the bus stop; people came and went. It was a beautiful clear sunny day and every single person had a different expression on their face. But, they were all serious looks. Some appeared to be experiencing a touch of joy, while a few toted a sly smile. There were many, some young and some old. Everyone around came to the corner of Perry Street with all sorts of mannerisms. On any given day there would be someone sitting at the bus stop on the corner going from here to there.

And there came a man with a hole in his sock who thought he had it hidden so no one could see it. But as he walked, you could see it as his shoe flopped up and down on his heels. Not only were his shoes too big, they also wore holes in his socks. There were those who saw it and those who paid it no never mind. Should he buy a smaller shoe or not wear any socks? Is there a hole in the toe of his sock? There is no way to know unless he takes his shoe off, but then his feet may stink. What about the woman with the run in her stocking who fixed it by painting the end of the run with fingernail polish?

A soldier came along in a wheelchair and rolled up beside the bench. As he stretched his arms, he closed his eyes, leaned back for a moment and saw a vision of killing and torture of the young and old. He smelled death; he heard cannons, gunshots and bombs explode. As tears beaded about his eyes, a light broke to an overcast sky and the warmth of the light dried up his tearful eyes.

But, what about the man with the crooked leg that walked a crooked mile? Or, what about the man with weathered hands that stopped to pray?

There came a blind man with his dog in one hand and a tennis racket and a ball in the other; go figure that.

A gambler came by to catch the bus; he had been unlucky all his life. He tried to win, but always failed because he was always one number short. In his pockets were cards, dice, lottery tickets and a rabbit's foot. As he sat that day waiting for the bus, he couldn't help but notice a small patch of clover at the end of the bench. He sat there a moment and looked it over and that's when he saw a four-leaf clover; he picked it and began to feel lucky immediately. About that time, a stir of wind blew up a lottery ticket; it landed right by his feet. It was still good because it was for the evening drawing. Some passerby must have dropped it. He didn't know who it belonged to. Counting the odds against him, he laid the ticket back down. But, just out of curiosity he wrote the numbers down. About that time, the wind stirred again and blew the ticket on. The bus pulled up, the gambler got on and left. That night as he watched TV, the lotto came on and the winning numbers of 5, 18, 27, 32, 48 and 50 were drawn. The gambler looked at the numbers he had written down from the ticket he had found on the ground. The numbers were 5, 18, 27, 32, 48 and 50; he dropped his head and cried.

Life is like a carnival with all its ups, downs, twists and turns in its game. Liken unto a child that came that day eating cotton candy and holding a balloon in her hand. There's the thrill of the roller coaster that dodges this way and that with its high climbs that fall into its lows. Take the Ferris wheel that slowly turns. From the top you can see for miles. But, when you stop at the top and begin to look around as the chair begins to rock causing your heart and thoughts to race, creating a touch of fear. At that moment everything is out of your hands and you have to put your trust in another to get back down.

There never is a dull moment around the bus stop. A lot of people from all walks of life come and go. It is a great part of the lifeline of Defeated and Difficult. Each has their own little part to play; that's what makes the world go around.

There are two ladies of the night that came and stood around the bus stop. These working girls would stay until sunrise the next morning looking for customers from town. They really didn't have much to say except for hi there, what's going on and are you looking for a good time. The names of the two girls were Rosy and Starr; they were friends. They worked together to find Johns until the morning light.

Bus Stop Station 550 had it all. There was the lost child, a nurse, a coach and a little boy with his bat and glove that came with a grumpy old man, newlyweds and a bartender who all had a story to tell. Some looked back and others looked straight on. Life is like a writer with a broken pencil lead, a guitar with no strings, a singer without a song and an artist with no paint. Expressions can be good or bad. It's not what you bring into this world it's what you leave behind.

There was the farmer with a basket of vegetables headed for the market. He was hot and sweaty; his clothes were soiled with dirt and his shoes were covered with mud. He was proud of his labor and his finished work. He had an outstanding garden. It received the right amount of rain and sunlight he could wish for. But, as he stopped at the bus stop, he happened to look down into his basket and saw a worm crawling out of one of his tomatoes and one in the shuck of his corn. He was so disappointed.

There came an easy rider that rode up on a chopper. He got caught by the red-light and had to stop in front of the bus stop and wait for the light to change. He had only one thing to say when it changed. He flipped his finger at them all and drove away. A picture may be worth a thousand words, but a finger says it all.

And it so happened, there came a waitress who had worked all of her life serving others. She worked so much that she never had time for herself, except for short breaks and random moments. But, she loved her job although she didn't make much money; she depended on her tips to get by. The waitress didn't take for granted her services of those she served. Her customers thought so much of her that they set aside a day and called it 'Susie's Day.' They all waited on her and served her to let her know how much they appreciated her. "Don't forget the tip," she said as she laughed.

What about the climber who always had one more hill to climb? He would climb halfway up and look back toward Defeated, then climb a little higher and look up toward Difficult.

"Is there no rest on the corner of Perry Street?" asked the policeman that stopped to arrest a drunk lying on the bus stop bench. A fireman who stood nearby flushing out a fire hydrant replied, "It has been busy, I think." The policeman looked down at the drunk's feet. He said, "He has his shoes on the wrong feet. Could that have made him stumble and fall or did he have too much to drink?"

Night fell once again over Bus Stop Station 550; Rosy and Starr were back again to work the corner of Perry Street. As the cars passed, they waved and yelled at the ones who were stopped by the red-light and had to wait for it to change. They looked over into the cars with encouraging words until the police came by and told them to move along.

When morning arose in the town of Defeated a bully came to the bus stop. He loved to fight and pick on others. But, he is old now and set in years. His brass knuckles are rusty, his knife blade is broken, he has a scar across his face and he wears an earring in one ear. He was covered from head to toe with tattoos of all kinds. His favorite was the one on his arm with his mama's name written inside. His whole life he lived to make his point and see that everything went his way, whether it was right or wrong. He only saw the weakness in others; he never saw his own. The morale of the lesson is when the bully finally met his match, things changed and he saw life in a different light.

There came a hippie and a flower child one day to the corner of Perry Street. He had long hair down below his shoulders, a headband, a paisley shirt and blue jeans with holes. He carried a guitar in one hand and he raised his other hand to signal a peace sign and a love sign too. Along with him was the flower child with her tie-dyed shirt, a headband, a flower behind her ear, blue jeans with holes, sandals and beads. She carried a 'Make Love Not War' sign in one hand and she waved her other hand back and forth as she walked. The two sat on the bench; he sang and played the guitar. As the people came to catch the bus, he would look up, smile and say, "Hey man, what's up?"

It was after the hippie and flower child came that a Rabi, Preacher and Priest came to the bus stop. The preacher sat in the middle, the priest on his left and the Rabi on his right. As the people came and as others passed by, the Rabi would say, "God loves you." The priest would say, "The Lord loves you" and the preacher would say, "Jesus loves you." The others said, "Amen."

What about the little girl who came with the balloon tied to her wrist? The balloon flew high above her head and she was so proud. It bounced up and down as she walked. Then a most unusual thing happened; the balloon come untied and climbed high into the sky. As the string fell down about her, she started to cry. The others at the bus stop all watched the balloon as it disappeared into the clouds. They were all so taken away that they missed their bus.

A nosey reporter came by the bus stop. He snooped around and tried to get the scoop on the missing balloon. He was looking for the story of his life. He looked around but found nothing but a teacher and a drunk. She had graded papers and now she was reading a book. The drunk had passed out on the ground. His last words were, "Can someone stop the sky from spinning around." The reporter never saw the balloon so he decided to leave. The teacher got on the bus and the bus drove off with the drunk passed out on the ground behind the bench.

There came along the next day an old man of age. His step was slow and he shuffled his feet when he walked. His legs were bowed out and his feet turned in. He carried himself with a smile and walked with a wooden cane. As he approached the bus stop, he looked from side to side. He carefully looked about everywhere to see if he could see anyone. He slowly moved closer to the bench and carefully sat down, still looking this way and that. With a sly cut of his eyes and a slight grin from ear to ear, he let a fart. He paused for a minute, looked about again, slowly got up and disappeared down the street. Within minutes an old woman came along. She had her handbag on one arm and a hat with a ribbon on her head. As she reached the bus stop, she sat down right where the old man had just gotten up. She was nearly out of breath; by taking deep breaths, she was able to settle down. She sat on the bench with a big smile. She started to look around because she wondered what on earth that smell was. She lifted her feet up and checked the bottom of her shoes. She smelled under her arms; she gagged and became sick at her stomach. She started feeling weak in her legs; her hands trembled and shook. She jumped up and cried out, "Damn, is there no mercy?" The odor was so overwhelming that she passed out onto the bench. In a few minutes, the police came by and saw her laying there. One cop turned to the other and asked, "What is that smell?" The other cop said, "Let's take her in." They arrested her for loitering and took her to jail. The next day in court, the judge fined her $100 dollars and gave her three days in jail.

Time soon passed and the pretty lady with the ruffled dress came by. A boyfriend who was on his way to dump his girlfriend, a businessman with his card, a sly lawyer who was itching to get a case and a young couple in love was all waiting for the bus. Also, I don't want to forget the young man with the clackers whose arms were bruised black and blue.

Did you hear about the toothless man who hung around the bus stop? He used to have a lot to say. Everyone would gather around to hear his words and admire his smile. He was a good speaker with a lot of words in his vocabulary. But, when he lost his teeth and that adoring smile he was at a loss for words. People now just walked by him as if he wasn't there. His face became as wrinkled as a prune and his mouth was sunk in. Time soon passed and he bought himself some false teeth. His smile was a bit better, but he had no words to speak.

Evening had come when a little boy with a one-eyed teddy bear came to the bus stop with his mother. As she sat on the bench and waited for the bus, the little boy played around the bench. He found a quarter in the tall grass. Well, it so happened when the bus pulled up, the mother counted her money to pay the bus fare. Guess what; she was a quarter short! So the little boy handed her the quarter he had found in the tall grass. They both got onto the bus and rode away. I wonder if the drunk dropped a quarter when he laid passed out behind the bench.

It was night again in Defeated and Difficult. The streetlights were back on and sirens sounded in the background. Time had passed; a lot of years had slipped away. Things were different now than they used to be. The old neighbors around Bus Stop Station 550 had slowly died or moved away. The new buses no longer used that route. Stop 550 had slowly gone down. Even the ladies of the night no longer worked there; they too had moved across town. However, Starr still found a John from time to time. Rosy was killed a few years ago so Starr worked alone now. A homeless man has taken over the bench and he sleeps there when the cops are not around. Defeated and Difficult still exist. All the others are still trying to catch a bus ride at a bus stop to somewhere out of town. Everything has moved to the other side of town now; you leave Defeated on your way to Depressed.

*****

Bittersweet

Bridge Over McKinley County River

It is the summer of 1933 in McKinley County, Kentucky. I have been sleeping under the bridge for a pretty good while. I find it to be a great little hideaway from the other homeless people. I like my solitude but in the homeless camp you can't find much of that. My name is Homer Bentley; I am homeless. My sister Sharon and I live not far from the bridge in Shanty Town, a tent village located in the woods by the river. We like it there. We have been there for about three years. We call it home, for now. Shanty Town is a community of lean to structure tents, tarpaulin teepees, one room huts with dirt floors, outhouses, and trash barrels for fires, along with a mixture of homeless people and dogs. Sharon is a little slow; I watch out for her and she watches out for me. She's a good girl; we have been through a lot through the years. I guess we have been homeless now for about fifteen years. I don't guess we will ever settle down. Our home is wherever we are at the time.

The bridge is about five miles from Honey Run, Kentucky on Highway 10 at Junction 23 on Winding Ridge Road. Honey Run is a small town about seventy-five miles from the Ohio and Kentucky state lines. The McKinley River tapers off into the Barron River and feeds through the northern central part of Kentucky. It feeds back into the Ohio River just north of Louisville. From under the bridge you can hear the cars as they cross from one side to the other. The old rusty iron bridge was built in the early 20's. The cankered rust flakes off the steel railing because it hasn't been painted in years. As the cars cross, you can hear the wood boards pop and give from the weight of the cars. Sometimes, when the water is up, the children jump off the bridge to swim. People also come after it rains to try their luck at fishing. The banks stay mainly dry since there is not much rain. There are several rocks that lay close to the water's edge to keep the banks from washing away.

It come a good rain a couple of days ago. The current of the waters were rushing underneath the bridge. The water is a lot deeper now since the rain. It also washed a lot of brush down from up stream.

Late one evening, after the rains, Sharon and I were under the bridge eating our supper which consisted of Vienna sausage with hot sauce and crackers when we heard someone walking on the bridge. It was a man and woman arguing. They argued for about thirty minutes. We couldn't understand much of what they were saying, but at times she cried out, 'no, no please don't.' It was getting close to dusk. They had no idea we were under the bridge. Suddenly, it sounded like he slapped her. She cried out, 'no, no please don't do it.' The next thing I heard was a loud splash in the water. I jumped to my feet and ran toward the water's edge. My instinct told me to grab the grass sack. Within minutes, however, the grass sack disappeared under the water and moved swiftly under the bridge. I carefully eased out into the water trying not to be seen. I forced my hand down into the muddy water about where I thought the grass sack was as Sharon watched from the bank. I couldn't find it; I continued to feel around in the water. When I looked around to make sure no one saw me, I noticed the grass sack had snagged on a tree branch that had washed up under the bridge. Quickly, I grabbed the grass sack; it was heavy. I worked my way back over to the bank to Sharon. I struggled to untie the top of the sack. When I finally got it open, I saw something wrapped in a blanket. Hurriedly, I unwrapped the blanket to find a child with its mouth taped shut. The child was scared, but she was alright. She was crying so Sharon took her into her arms to comfort her. The noise from the river helped drown out the child's crying. She appeared to be about two or three years of age. As Sharon eased back upon the bank, she carefully maneuvered through the trees to keep the people on the bridge from seeing her. I waded back out into the water to see what would happen next. I could still hear them fussing from the top of the bridge, but just barely. The woman was hysterical. He pushed her down and told her to shut her damn mouth or he was going to kill her. But, unfortunately she kept talking. The next thing I heard was the sound of a gun going off. I saw the woman fall off the edge of the bridge into the busy current of the water below. Within seconds there was a splash in the water to the side of me. I tried to reach for her but the current was too swift. As she floated face down in the creek in a mixture of blood and muddy water, she disappeared under the current. When I turned and looked up toward the edge of the bridge, the man was leaning over the iron railing looking at me. As he raised up and ran to the other side, I made my way down through the woods with Sharon and the child. He fired two more shots into the air and laughed. In a few minutes, I looked back and saw him getting into his car; he cranked it up and left. I looked over at Sharon and then the baby. As we made our way deeper into the woods, we rushed to get back to Shanty Town. Once again, I heard a car crossing over the bridge. We kept on going and didn't look back. It sounded like some teenagers joyriding, because we heard glass breaking and they were screaming and yelling obscenities.

It was the next day as the early morning sun rested in the sky. The sound of a rooster crowing cackled out across the way.

Sandy Carlton's sister, Dorothy Carlton, notified the police that Sandy and her baby didn't come home. She told them it wasn't like Sandy. She was afraid of what Roger might have done to them because he was so angry and bitter. She told the police that she had bad feelings about the whole situation since Sandy and her boyfriend, Roger Calloway, had been fighting and arguing the day before. The last time she saw her she was getting into his car.

Early that morning, I made my way back to the bridge. As I looked around, I found some drops of blood on the deck of the bridge. There was also blood splattered on the rusty iron railing of the bridge. I didn't stay but a few minutes, besides a car was headed that way. I quickly walked back under the bridge and into the woods.

It so happened that while Dorothy talked to the police, two men who were looking for dry land fish found her body washed up on the bank about a half of mile from the bridge. Her body was covered with mud and debris. She had been shot twice, once in the head and once in the shoulder. Her arms, legs and face were bruised and scratched from where the river had carried her downstream. The river had beaten her up on the rocky banks as the current carried her to her resting place.

I too had found her earlier that morning, but I kept my distance. I watched from a far off distance, being careful not to be seen. When I left the bridge that morning, I figured she would wash up somewhere down the river. I watched from across the small of the river. Her body lay next to a bulldozer pile. I watched as one of the other men ran to get help. I then turned and headed back to Shanty Town. It took a few minutes for the call to come in. When it did the police were on their way and they brought Dorothy with them. I could hear them crossing the bridge from where I was as the sirens taunted the woods with its haunting sound. It was one of those feelings of chills going up your spine. I figured they came up the old logging trail. It brought them as close as they could get and they walked the rest of the way. As I disappeared out of sight, I looked back once and then headed for Shanty Town.

The baby was doing good and had one heck of an appetite. Luckily not too much water got to her. I believe she was more afraid than anything. I would have to say the Lord was watching over her. I'm afraid to think what would have happened to her if we hadn't been under the bridge that day. For what little time she's been with us, she has been a God sent blessing in our lives already. My sister, I call Sissy, had already accepted her as one of us. I knew it would take them a while to find us out, but the waiting would be worth it. I named the child, a girl, B.J.; she was a special child. The others in Shanty Town called her the river child, because she was drawn from the river. She was so tiny. She had some of the smallest fingers and toes I believe I have ever seen and the prettiest little round face. Her fingernails were so tiny and her hair was coal black. Everyone at camp loved her. There were other children in Shanty Town, but they were older. She was the smallest, no bigger than a minute.

I made my way back down to the river's edge. I made sure they didn't see me. I got as close as I could so I could hear what they were saying. I sat quiet, humped down behind some wild river bushes and thorns. I wanted to see and hear as much as I could.

But, I knew the day would come when they would find B.J. and take her away from me. It's hard to raise a child in a place like Shanty Town. In the long run, it might be best if they did find her. She would probably be better off.

Suddenly, the woods were terrorized by a hurting cry passing in the wind; a cry over the loss of a loved one. Immediately, the birds in the trees took flight as the echo of Dorothy's fear became reality. They had reached the body. As they were getting ready to remove the body, the woman they called Dorothy was hysterical over her sister's death. She cried out that Roger had done it. As Dorothy cried out more, she asked God where her niece, Holly, was. She prayed for her sister's child to be alright. As the search party began to spread out and look for the child, I heard the officer in charge put out an APB for Roger Calloway, the boyfriend of the child's mother. He wanted him brought in no matter what it would take. He warned them that he may be armed and dangerous. As I made my way back across the river and through the woods, the search team was dragging the river from the bridge down for the child. I was afraid they might find Shanty town. If they did they would take B.J. away. But, luckily it seemed their main focus of the search was the river and its bank. The manhunt for Roger Calloway went on for days, but they were unsuccessful.

By now, I had made up my mind to leave Shanty Town. The search team was getting too close. I didn't want to lose B.J., so Sharon, B.J. and I headed south since winter would soon be up on us. We were already in the dog days of summer; it was late July and August was just around the corner.

They finally found Roger in Tennessee. He had been pulled over for a traffic violation; he was weaving back and forth. He was arrested for DUI. When the officer did a background check, he found out he was wanted in Kentucky for questioning regarding a murder. The police noticed he was acting very suspicious. The officer then searched his car and found a gun hidden under the front seat along with beer cans and whiskey bottles. The police brought him in and he was later transported back to Kentucky. The gun was tested and found to be the murder weapon that killed Sandy Carlton. He was pending trial for first degree murder, which could possibly become two counts.

Lawrence Jenkins, the D.A., informed his assistant that other than the gun all they had was circumstantial evidence. Ballistics had proven the gun found in Roger's car was the same gun that killed Sandy Carlton. There was also proof that the blood splatter on the iron railing matched her blood type and the scratch on her leg was caused when she fell from the bridge. Her blood and pieces of her skin were found on a bur on the iron railing. But, it was still all circumstantial. However, it could be enough to sway the jury to return a guilty verdict. Lawrence knew the gun was their only hope.

The search team dragged the river for four days and came up with nothing. But, Dorothy never gave up; she was no quitter. She still hoped and prayed the Lord would help them find Holly. She knew Roger had done something with Holly, but she didn't know what. It was a million dollar question.

During Roger's interrogation with the Kentucky D.A. and the detective, he told them he didn't know where Holly was and the last time he saw her she was with Sandy.

"I don't know what she did with Holly. I can't tell you something I don't know," he stated.

"Did you kill Holly?" questioned the D.A. "Did you hide her body?"

"No," he repeatedly replied. "I don't know anything about her."

"You're lying, Roger. You're telling a damn lie. Tell us where the child is and things may be a little easier for you in court."

Roger spit on the D.A. and told him to go to hell.

"You'll never find her," he boasted as he laughed.

About that time the detective ran over and picked him up out of his chair and started hitting him. But, Lawrence stopped him.

"Take him out," said the D.A. to the officer, "and lock him back down."

"We have enough to charge him for one murder," said the detective. "Do you want to do that?"

"We can try him for Sandy Carlton's murder," replied Lawrence, "and cross the bridge about the little girl later. Yeah, let's go for it."

Within a few days, Roger went up before the judge. The D.A. stated his case. A court appointed lawyer, Dwayne Harris, was representing Roger. Little did the D.A. know that Roger's lawyer was one step ahead of him. As the judge reviewed the charges and the situation of the case, he stated to the D.A. that he would have to suppress the gun as evidence since it had been obtained from an illegal search. The officer in Tennessee had searched Roger's car without a warrant. Then Roger's lawyer spoke up and petitioned the judge to set him free since the only other evidence the D.A. had was circumstantial.

"Do you have any other strong evidence that may wave a verdict or do you want to try your luck with what circumstantial evidence you have already?" questioned the judge.

"We do have probable cause and a motive, your Honor," said the D.A. "They were not married and the missing child is not his. We believe that we can prove he committed the murder in a jealous rage because the child belonged to another man."

"Sounds good," stated the judge. "Bring the argument to court with supportive evidence, counselor, and give it a try."

"Roger Calloway you're free to go," said the judge. "Hearing dismissed."

As Lawrence and his assistant left the courtroom that day he started searching for answers. By the time they reached his office, he received a call from the sheriff. The sheriff told him they had found Shanty Town not far from the bridge and he might want to question some of its occupants. Hurriedly, Lawrence and his assistant dropped what they were doing and rushed out there. When they arrived, they had to park their car next to the bridge. A deputy met them there and took them to Shanty Town. At first the occupants were quiet and no one had anything to say. It was obvious no one wanted to get involved. Lawrence told them about the murdered woman and her missing little girl. They nervously stood there and listened. Lawrence asked them if they knew where the child was and if she was alright.

"We are not here to cause you any trouble," Lawrence said. "We just want to find the child and give her back to her aunt so she can be to taken care of. Do you know anything? Anything at all about her that may help us find her? Have you seen her?" he asked as he showed them a picture of her.

One of them spoke up, "B.J. is fine," he said. "She's in good hands."

"Thank God she is alive," said Lawrence.

"B.J. is not the name of the little girl we are looking for," replied Lawrence. "Holly is her name."

"Sir, it is probably her," he said. "Homer named her B.J. because he didn't know her real name. We called her the river child, because Homer drew her out of the river."

He told them the whole story and that Homer and his sister, Sharon, left Shanty Town because he was scared B.J. would be found and taken away from him.

"He loves that little girl as if she was his own. He wouldn't hurt her for nothing; you don't have to worry about that."

"Where can I find him?" asked Lawrence. "She has an aunt who is worried to death about her. We just want to reunite."

"Well, she is safe with Homer. Tell her not to worry. We don't know where Homer is. He left weeks ago. There's no telling where he is. He moves around a lot and don't stay in one place very long."

"We have no idea," said another.

"Can you give us a description of Homer and his sister?"

"Sure," the old man replied.

After the man gave them descriptions of Homer and Sharon, they left Shanty Town, went back to the office and called Dorothy and informed her they had a new lead on her niece. She was so glad to hear that. But, she was still worried about her being with a stranger. Lawrence told her he believed Holly was fine and that they were putting an all points bulletin out for me, my sister and the child. After the phone call, Lawrence contacted the sheriff to issue another warrant to bring Roger Calloway back in. He knew all he had was circumstantial evidence but he'd rather take a chance with that than to let him walk free. He knew deep down in his heart that Roger did it and he hoped the jury would be able to see it too. By the evening of the next day the sheriff brought him in. What they had wasn't much, but it might be enough to create a reasonable doubt with the jury. Within weeks they presented their evidence before the jury. They had a bloody partial fingerprint from the iron railing, his pants with a smear of her blood on the backside and a heel print of his shoe that was found in her blood on the bridge. Hopefully, with a God sent miracle this would be enough for a guilty verdict. The next few days were crucial. The D.A. presented the case to the jury and the court and stood his ground. The discussion then went over in the hands of the jury for deliberation. They waited patiently. The hands of the clock didn't seem to even move.

Holly had not been found before the trial. The search continued on. Timing was the key; the quicker the better.

It was about two hours later when the jury returned. Lawrence said a little prayer to himself as the court officer handed the verdict over to the judge from the jury foreman.

The judge stated, "You have a hung jury."

He dismissed the jury and Lawrence's heart fell in his stomach; he was sick. Roger Calloway walked free once again. As Roger walked by the D.A. that day in the courtroom he gave him a hard look and laughed in his face. I guess this was the last chance for the D.A. to get him for the murder of Sandy Carlton. There is no doubt in Lawrence's mind, but he didn't have the convicting evidence needed to lock him away for good. As Roger headed out the door, he saw the D.A. looking at him and gave him the finger.

A month later, the D.A. we received a report on me, Homer Bentley. I had gotten into a fight with a man in Florida and was arrested and sent back to Kentucky with Sharon and B.J. (Holly). When we arrived in Kentucky the D.A. was waiting to talk to us. The child was doing good and was well taken care of. But, B.J. didn't want to leave me. She cried and held on to me and Sharon as she begged Dorothy to let her stay with us. Dorothy took the child and went home. As the D.A. questioned me and Sharon, he told us that we were in serious trouble for taking the child and that we could be charged with kidnapping, carrying the child out of state, and interfering with a police investigation. I never said a word.

"What do you want with me?" I asked.

"I want Roger Calloway for the murder of Sandy Carlton and the attempted murder of Holly," replied the D.A. "Can you do that?"

"What do I get in return?" I replied.

"You walk away a free man?" said Lawrence.

"Can I be with B.J.?" I asked.

"That I don't know; that's not for me to say. That will be up to child services. But you can help us get her mother's killer," replied the D.A. "Tell me what happened that day on the bridge."

I told the D.A. what happened on the bridge and that I would be a witness to the fact of the crimes on McKinley Bridge. The D.A. put an APB out for Roger Calloway. It took them about three weeks to find him, but they did and brought him back to Kentucky for the third time. At the same time, Kentucky Child Services had placed Holly in the custody of Dorothy, her aunt. Sharon and I were allowed to see her from time to time, but after the trial Dorothy moved away and no one knew her whereabouts. Sharon and I were lost without her and I never did get over it. I did go on and testify against Roger Calloway and stayed around Honey Run the rest of my life. The jury found Roger guilty of murder in the first degree and attempted murder for the child along with some other unrelated charges. He got thirty years without the possibility of parole. Roger Calloway was found dead on the outside basketball court after serving five years in prison. His death still remains a mystery to this day.

Fourteen years later, Holly (B.J.) is now 20 years old; she came back to Honey Run searching for me and Sharon. She walked across McKinley Bridge, the first time since the incident. She stopped and looked over the side of the bridge and watched the muddy water go by. As she made her way across the bridge, she looked once again at the river. Unexpectedly, she heard someone call her name.

"B.J., I knew one day you'd come back."

Quickly, she turned to see who it was; it was Sharon.

"Where's Homer?" she asked.

"He's gone," she said. "He passed about five years ago; he died of cancer. He waited and watched everyday for you to come back. He loved you; you were his life. All he wanted to do was take care of you."

"I wanted to come back but they wouldn't let me. I even ran away twice, but they came and got me. I loved him so much. I wish I could have been here."

"There is something he asked me to do for him before he died."

"What's that?" asked B.J.

"He was cremated and wanted me to find you to spread his ashes off the bridge. He said that you and him would always be together in your hearts."

"Do you have his ashes?" she asked.

"Yes, I do. I have always kept them with me just in case you ever returned."

Sharon went to her car that was parked at the end of the bridge. She returned with my urn. As her hands shook, Sharon undid the lid. B.J. walked over to the edge of the bridge and slowly emptied my ashes into the water below. As they held hands and hugged each other, they watched the last of my ashes disappear under the bridge.

"I love you, B.J., and I've missed you. Homer would have been proud of you."

Life is full of twists and turns. My last name was Bentley. I had changed my name when I was young after I was adopted. My real name is Calloway. The Bentley's had adopted me. I was the older brother of Roger Calloway and Sharon was my half sister.

*****

Discover other titles by Bobby A. Troutt at Smashwords.com

Beyond the Truth

A Cry in the Wind

Thistles and Thorns

Dead Limbs and Leaves

Troubled Waters

When Autumn Falls

When Time Was

To read other works by Bobby A. Troutt, visit bobbysbooks.8m.com
