Serial Separation (2 page)

Chapter 5

I was up and out of my apartment
and headed to the task force office to plead my case to Mike. There was a
parking spot on the same block as the task force office. As I locked my car, I
noticed it was a few minutes before eight o’clock. Hopefully, my luck would
continue for the rest of the day.

I stopped at the gate for the task
force office and looked at the building. Nothing had changed; the brick walk
leading to the two-story colonial with its light-yellow paint made the
structure stand out like a postcard compared to the contemporary furniture
store next door.

At the door, the small brass plate
next to the doorbell read ‘55 Brattle Street’
and below ‘Task Force
Office.’
The dull patina indicated it was from last year’s task force. I wondered if things
inside would be the same or much different.

I opened the door to the reception
area and stepped in. It took Colleen a moment to recognize me. She came running
around the desk to give me a big hug.

“Wow, you look good.”

“Colleen, you always have a way of
making someone feel good.”

“Thanks, Scott, I’ve missed you.
Are you coming back?”

“I’m hoping to, but I’m not sure if
they will let me.”

She smiled and waved her hand.
“That’s ridiculous; you helped before; why wouldn’t they want you again?”

“If you were the only one I had to
convince, it would be a done deal.”

“Are you planning to see Paddy?”

“Well, I was thinking of pleading
my case to Mike. Is he here?”

She looked at her watch and said,
“Well, you beat him in this morning, but Paddy is upstairs. Mike would only
have to see Paddy anyway. You know Paddy well enough to plead your case.
Besides, he would be glad to see you. Now is a good time; he just finished
getting his coffee, and he’s going to be quite busy later.”

“Okay, let’s go for it. Are you dating
anyone new?”

“Well, you remember Paul Brosque. He
finally got up the courage to ask for a date, and we’ve been seeing each other
quite a bit. Now that the task force is resuming, and he’s working here, it
will give us extra time to see each other.”

Her face turned an interesting
shade of red, and she turned to go up the stairs but paused.

“I’m sorry; you did want me to let
Paddy know you’re here . . . right?”

“Sure, why not. Thanks.”

I watched her climb the stairs and
realized she might have a new love life, but she was still hiding behind her
clothes. She was an attractive girl, but you had to look closely to see it. However,
her smile could light up a room.

Within a minute, she returned to
the top of the stairs. “Scott, Paddy would like to see you.”

I took the stairs in my previous
manner—two at a time. “Thank you, Colleen. Hopefully, we can talk later.”

When I entered, Paddy was standing
behind his desk smiling. “Scott, it’s good to see you. What can I do for you?”

“Would you believe I heard the
coffee is great?”

“Not the way I make it; would you
like a cup?” he said shaking my hand.

“I would love one.”

I knew where the pantry was
located, but he put his hand on my shoulder and led me out of his office. He
filled my cup and then his own.

“Paddy, I attended your lecture
yesterday, and I wanted to talk to you after it. By the time I was outside you
were long gone.”

He took a sip of coffee and looked
at me over his cup. “Are you looking to help us?”

“What gave my motive away?”

“Well, it’s kind of obvious, since
we just started the new task force, and you show up. It doesn’t take much of a
detective to fill in the pieces.”

I followed him back to his office,
and he motioned for me to sit down.

“Scott, it’s going to be difficult
for me to get you on the task force this time.”

I must have looked puzzled because
he explained, “The attorney general is already asking about progress, and we
just started. He’s getting pressure from all sides, and I’m expecting another
call from him in just a few minutes. At this point, I have nothing to report
other than we know who the men were.”

“Paddy, I might have something you
can share with him.” I waited for him to bite.

“That’s interesting. What is it?”

“I knew both of the guys that were
killed.” I watched for a reaction, but his cup was blocking his expression.

“How did you know them?”

“When I read the newspaper article,
I thought the names were familiar. Since the paper indicated they played hockey
at Northeastern, I pulled this old article I had at my apartment.”

I handed it to him. “Both of the
guys are listed in this article.” I added, “Four years ago, I played hockey in
a new hockey league, and they were part of the league.”

“That’s an interesting connection.”
He studied the article and the picture.

“Paddy, I need to help on the task
force. I knew these guys, and, although they weren’t close friends, they
weren’t strangers either. Isn’t there any way I can assist like I did before?”

“Scott, I’m under a lot of pressure
already. The AG gave me some grief that I let you on the last task force. I’m
sure it would set him off if I let him know you joined again. It’s nothing
personal, but he’s a stickler for procedure, and you’re not connected with law
enforcement. I’m sorry, but I need to think this through. Maybe I can figure a
way for you to help. God knows you were a big help, and Mike really enjoyed
working with you. This article and your association with those men might help
me, but I can’t agree to let you participate at this time.”

I tried to lighten my expression.
“Paddy, thank you for your time, it was good to see you. You were an
inspiration to me yesterday, and I’m sure others hearing your lecture were also
motivated. Would you do me the favor of thinking about my role rather than
making it a definite no?”

“Okay, Scott, I owe you at least
some additional consideration. I’m not making any promises the answer will be
any different.” He stood and offered his hand. “However, I want you to talk
with Mike and the others downstairs about your knowledge of these men.”

“I’ll see Mike if he’s in. Do you
want me to show him the article, or do you want to?”

He folded the article and handed it
back. “No, I’m expecting the AG’s call any second. You can show it to Mike.
Scott, it was good seeing you again. Thanks for alerting us these men knew each
other. We didn’t know that. There might be a connection that we can follow up
on.”

Chapter 6

She looked at her watch through the
broken crystal. It was almost 6:30 p.m.

“Lisa, you’ve been looking at your
watch every ten minutes. Scott is most likely delayed for a good reason. He’ll
call.”

She sat down on her dorm bed and
looked out the window. “Judy, I’m sorry I’ve been such a nervous wreck lately.
I know Scott will call, but I worry about whether he’s okay. I guess I worry
about things more than ever.”

She could feel Judy studying her.
She wanted to explain things to Judy. Even though they had been roommates for
four years, she was still having a problem discussing what was bothering her.

It wasn’t so much the time she was
worried about, but the broken crystal that reminded her of her ordeal. She
stared at the building lights across the alley. That was another reminder. Jimmy
Ballou’s bedroom was in that building. She didn’t want to go to the window and
see if the lights were on in his former room, but she had to make sure the
lights were off. He was dead, but she had to be sure.

She knew Judy was watching her, but
she didn’t care—she had to see for herself.

“Lisa, I know you’re still trying
to get over the night Jimmy kidnapped you. He’s
gone,
Lisa. You don’t
have to worry about him any more.”

She saw a light on in his room,
blinking her eyes to make sure she was indeed correct. She heard Judy’s voice,
but it sounded distant. She heard her heart beating fast. She was frozen and
couldn’t leave the window. She panicked and grabbed the curtains, closing them
so fast the curtain rod vibrated. Then she realized Judy was holding her.
“Lisa, I think you need to share what happened that night. I hoped you would
have by now, but Jimmy’s dead . . . he can’t hurt you anymore. Please, Lisa,
I’m your best friend; let me help you.”

“Judy, he must be in his room. The
lights are on.” She pointed to the curtain and moved from Judy’s arms. Judy
hesitated opening the curtains, but she moved them slowly apart, still staring
at her. A long minute passed. “Lisa, you’re mistaken. There are no lights on in
his old room. You must have looked at the wrong floor.”

She heard what Judy had said but
thought she must be mistaken. She was standing facing Judy but her hands were
behind her ready to turn the doorknob to leave the room.

“Lisa, come see for yourself.” She
watched Judy as she completely opened the curtains.”

She didn’t want to look out the
window again.

“Lisa, please. You have to see
there are no lights on.”

They stood close together, and she
could feel Judy’s arm around her. They examined the building.

Hesitantly, she acknowledged the
lights were not on in his former room. She suddenly felt clammy, and it was
like she was looking down at her image from the ceiling. Judy guided her to the
bed. She couldn’t hold the tears back any longer.

She was glad Judy was here with
her. Her friend stroked her hair and just held her until the tears stopped. She
felt ashamed she believed Jimmy was in his room, and also embarrassed by her
behavior.

“Judy, I’m so sorry. I guess I lost
it. Thanks for being here to protect me.”

“Lisa, there’s nothing to protect
you from. I think it’s time we talked about what happened. Maybe I can help
you.”

She took a deep breath. “I think
I’m driving him away.”

“Why in the world do you think
that?”

She spotted the ski sweater she
wore last year skiing with Scott. “It’s hard for me to talk even to you about
this, but a year ago we couldn’t get enough of each other. You, of all people,
know that . . . lately we haven’t been with each other . . . you know what I
mean.”

“Lisa, I’ve been waiting for an
opportunity to ask you some questions, but I didn’t want you to get upset with
me. You’ve been behaving strangely and haven’t been yourself for some time. It shows.”

“What do you mean?”

“Oh, Lisa, you haven’t been
my
Lisa for months now, and I think you need to talk to someone about what’s
bothering you. You’ve been waking up some nights screaming.”

“Why haven’t you mentioned this
before?”

She watched Judy retrieve her
favorite teddy bear and hold it to her chest. “I was afraid if I brought it up,
you would get upset with me.”

“Judy, I wouldn’t get upset with
you.”

“There’s been many times recently
that I’ve wanted to bring it up, but I hoped if something was indeed bothering
you, time would help mend it. But it hasn’t happened. You’re not the Lisa I
first met, and you’re certainly not the prancing-around-here Lisa
who
couldn’t get over meeting and dating Scott.”

“I think you’re reading much more
into this.”

“Okay, let’s say you’re right. Why
are you concerned about Scott? Why aren’t you two still making love? It’s
obvious to me; you just said it. You used to stay out late with him, and
sometimes you wouldn’t be back until the next day. Lisa, I’m your friend, and I
want to help you . . . please, please let me.”

She wanted to tell Judy about her
ordeal, but was embarrassed. She wondered if she had brought it on by her own
actions—watching Jimmy the way she had. They were both quiet for several
minutes.

“Judy, it was awful. I go to bed
thinking about Scott and our future together and wake up struggling to get away
from Jimmy.”

“Lisa, do you have any idea how
many times I’ve wanted to comfort you, but I just didn’t feel right doing it. I
guess I was waiting for you to show me you needed it.”

“I’m a wreck lately . . . I need
it.”

Judy knelt down beside her bed and
stroked her hair. Seconds later, she looked at Judy, and they hugged. She
couldn’t hold it in any longer and sobbed into her friend’s shoulder. She
wondered if Judy could feel her heart beating.

* *
*

“Judy, Scott and I have been about
to make love several times recently, but instead of my being caught up in the
moment and Scott’s closeness . . . Jimmy’s face is there instead haunting me. I
know Scott has sensed me going cold. He’s been patient, but, honestly, I don’t
know how much patience he has. He just lies there holding me tight. What makes
it worse is that I love him with all of my heart, but I’m hurting him. Maybe
I’m trying to keep him away from me so that I stop hurting him. I just hope he
hasn’t found someone else.”

They were face to face now, but
still close. “Lisa, I know the two of you are made for each other. You can’t
afford to let him drift away. He shows he loves you by not pressing you to
satisfy his need. But, you can’t take the chance that one of these times he
either says something he regrets, or finds someone else.” The small bed made an
ugly sound when Judy climbed onto it with her.

“Lisa, you have to do something
about your problem. Jimmy is haunting your mind, and you need to get help. I’m
not a professional, but you need that kind of help. You can’t let your problem
with the memory of Jimmy drive Scott away. You both love each other, and you’re
perfect for each other. I used to see how you two behaved, and I want to see it
again.”

“I know you’re right, but I can’t
even think about that night myself. I don’t think I could share what happened
with you . . . how am I going to share it with a stranger?”

“Lisa, don’t take the chance of
driving Scott away. You haven’t been yourself. If you were to say something to
Scott . . . something you wish you never said, you run the risk of losing him.
Scott will be a Harvard graduate soon; he’s very handsome, pleasant, good
company, caring and a whole bunch of other things. Don’t lose him. I have Neil,
and I wouldn’t give him up for anything. Someone else could scoop him away if
you’re not careful. I love you, Lisa, please get some help.” Her eyes were
tearing. “Please, Lisa, do it for me. For me to be happy, I need you to be
happy. Do it for our future. What would you tell me if the roles were
reversed?”

“I’d tell you, you were a fool, and
you need to get professional help.” She couldn’t help but laugh. “You’re a true
friend, Judy, and you shouldn’t have worried about upsetting me. You could
never do that.” She still wondered why Scott hadn’t called. Could he have
someone else already?

How was she going to convey what
happened to her? Could she ever tell anyone?

Their hugging was interrupted by
banging on the door. A young woman’s voice boomed, “There’s another call
downstairs for Lisa.”