Distractions (3 page)

your car.”

Although he was trying his best to

hide it, I could sense his distress over

the situation.

“He’s my boss; I didn’t think

anything of it, either. I am not hurt and

you did nothing wrong. Go home and try

on your present. Also, tell the missus

thank you for the cookies.”

I gave a forced smile and reached

out to shake his hand. He squeezed back

briefly before Officer Stayton gave an

impatient cough. Rory rolled his eyes

and tapped on the top of the car as we

were driving away.

***

arrived. I was a sobbing mess as

everything hit me in the ten minute ride. I

was led to a small room to give my

statement, where Jack was able to hear a

recount of everything that had taken

place. His eyes grew wide as my words

poured out, clenching his fist until the

knuckles turned white in his lap.

Dr. Robertson was our mentor. We

spent over ten hours a day together, most

of the time crammed into the small lab,

running samples for him. If it weren’t for

the fact Jack liked other men, I wouldn’t

have been surprised if something came

of us. But he was like a brother and we

had our own cozy, little scientific

family. For some reason though, Doc

gave me the hard drive, not him. I

realized what it was while on the road.

It’s not exactly comfortable riding

around with one of those in your panties.

I wanted to see it, but not now.

I still didn’t want to press charges.

The only one who didn’t look at me as if

I were nuts was Jack. They left the two

of us alone for a few moments while

they processed my statement before

releasing me. Once the door shut, Jack

shot up like a lightning bolt.

“No,

you’re

fucking

kidding.

You’re fucked up – you’re wrong.”

I started to cry even harder then, to

the point of heaving. Jack paced back

and forth for several minutes before

kneeling down next to me.

“Tell me you’re kidding – that this

is a joke.”

I closed my eyes again. I knew this

was killing him; I was lying to one of the

most honest people I knew. Whatever

Doc gave me to protect was destroying

everyone and everything around me.

“I’m sorry, but no, I’m not. I wish I

were.”

He slumped over the hard chair and

started to scream into his elbow,

pounding his fist into the worn faux

leather.

“I need to talk to him, Vy. I will be

back to take you home.”

Standing up to grab my coat, I

followed after and grabbed his arm.

“Don’t, Jack…not tonight. Can we

please deal with this in the morning?”

His chest was heaving with anger.

“No, Vy, I need to do this now

while he’s here. You didn’t deserve

that.”

Jack’s blue eyes were nearly all

pupil, black as night. Exhaling deeply, I

felt his warm thumbs gently wipe under

my eyes. Reaching up to hold his palm

against my cheek, I was thankful I was

not in this alone, at least for tonight. I

knew Jack was flying home to New

York to be with his family tomorrow

night.

I nodded in agreement, knowing

this would eat away at him. I was also

curious to hear what the Doc would tell

him about it and why. Surprisingly, they

allowed him to talk to Doc for a few

moments. Jack came back with heavy

eyes and outstretched arms to pull me

tight.

“What did he say, Jack? Did he tell

you why he did it?”

Jack pulled me tighter and cried

into my shoulder, causing me to become

more upset. Whatever he said must have

been bad for him to go from fury to

anguish in five minutes.

“He didn’t say anything; he just

looked past me, like I didn’t exist. I

screamed in his face and pounded the

table, but he didn’t say a word. It’s like

it wasn’t even him. The officers told me

to leave and just as I was walking out,

all he said was, “Good-bye, Jack.”

I stayed in his embrace until a soft

knock at the door called our attention.

Officer Stayton came in with a paper for

me to sign, then told us we were free to

go. Doc would be released in a few

hours since I didn’t press charges. I had

a feeling it was far from over, though.

Jack placed his hand along the small of

my back and guided me to his car. We

rode in silence until I realized we were

near my house.

“I forgot – Doc told me not to come

home tonight. Can I just stay with you?”

Looking at me curiously, he slowly

turned a corner and headed back

towards the highway.

“Yeah of course, Violet, but you

didn’t tell the police that. I think that’s

probably important.”

Closing my eyes as my head banged

against the seat rest, more and more

began to float to the surface. My head

began to pound and all I wanted was a

drink and some aspirin. He wasn’t trying

to chastise me, but I knew that I would

have more to explain, just not tonight.

Once we arrived at his house, he poured

me a tall glass of Cabernet and lit the

fire to warm the cold living room.

“I need to finish packing, Vy. Will

you be okay?”

I simply nodded and he waited for

a second before heading off to his

bedroom. Without making it to the

guestroom after finishing my glass of

wine, I fell asleep on the sofa next to the

fireplace. The last image I had before

drifting off was the flicker of blue

flames dancing on fake logs.

The next morning I awoke to Jack

frantically shaking me out of sleep.

“Vy, get up! It’s bad!”

I tried unsuccessfully to cover my

head with the blanket. As Jack ripped it

off my body, I yelled.

“What the...?” My impending rant

stopped as soon as I saw his face.

Jack’s eyes were red and full of

tears. I rubbed my forehead to encourage

a more alert state.

“What is it?”

“Rory called me. Doc’s gone and

something happened last night. No one

can find him and there is blood all over

the lab. We have to go now!”

Chapter 2 - No

Turning Back

Although it was ten o’clock in the

morning, the dark gray skies made it

appear as if the sun decided not to rise,

leaving us to mourn in shadows. The

wind howled as it whipped around and

through the narrow alleys of the historic

row houses. Even my steaming coffee

grew tepid rather quickly from the chill

inside. Normally, I would bundle into a

thick sweater and slippers, but today, I

would be wearing black polyester and

flats. The poached eggs and Canadian

bacon remained untouched before me,

my appetite completely absent. If it were

my choice, I would be in bed, still drunk

with no contact to the outside world, but

yesterday changed all of that.

“Good morning,” he said solemnly.

“Is it?” I replied

“I was just being polite, my

apologies.”

He stood across the island from me,

wearing a slim cut black suit that

stopped me dead in my tracks. His face

was full of concern – too much for a

young man – yet it did not take away

from how handsome he looked. His blue

eyes pierced beneath long dark lashes.

His shiny chocolate locks were carefully

styled into a clean look.

“Shepard, never apologize for

being polite, or to me, period. I doubt

you could ever do anything to offend me.

I should be the one to apologize for

being such a pessimist. Forgive me?”

I offered a slight smile, which

returned a hundred fold. Without any

persuasion, he circled the island slowly

and pulled me into an embrace.

“I can’t imagine what you are going

through right now. You are excused from

any grief driven behavior, no matter how

disdainful I may find it.”

“How old are you again? Who talks

like you?” I cocked my eyebrows at him

and giggled.

“You really should be out drinking

cheap beer and having sex with hot girls

on your holiday break, not tending to

some train wrecked neighbor.” I tried to

laugh some more but he didn’t appear

amused.

“We both know that I don’t do

either of those things, so do not try to use

it as an excuse. I am not here because I

have to be, but because I want to be.”

He was allowing me to grieve, but

he wouldn’t let me plummet. I figured

that out when he knocked on my door

yesterday afternoon. He confronted me

about the liquor bottles on the curb and

was truly angry. It did not take him long

to see that something was wrong. I

invited him in and told him the story –

the edited version.

“I get it now, the drinking, but don’t

stay here,” he said.

“I don’t know what else to do, it

hurts so much.” I began to cry

uncontrollably when he moved towards

me on the couch and just held me for

hours. I must have fallen asleep because

it was evening when I came to. My head

was lying across his lap, his arm

wrapped protectively around my waist.

“Do you want me to stay?” Shepard

asked as I started to move.

“You don’t have to. Really, it’s

okay, but thank you for coming over. I

am sorry I lost it in front of you; I didn’t

mean to.”

I felt myself wanting to cry again.

Inhaling deeply, my breaths came out

ragged, holding in my emotions.

“Nonsense, Violet. I am glad I

came by. I knew something was off when

I didn’t hear from you. I will stay if you

need me to; you know my dad doesn’t

care.”

I watched his face grow sour from

his last statement. I knew he loathed his

father and his behavior – why he came

back here for breaks I never understood.

More often than not, his dad was never

home. Changing the subject, I really was

curious how his Christmas went.

“Did you do anything on Tuesday?”

I tried to sound hopeful.

“I went to my grandmother’s for

dinner. My father claimed he was tied up

and would be unable to join us.” He

could not hide the sarcasm in his tone.

His face then softened slightly.

“I always love going to see my

grandparents; they are very special to

me. They are paying for my tuition, and I

owe them so much.” He smiled down at

me, and then looked at his watch.

“I am going to go then, but I will be

back for the service tomorrow. I will

take you.”

“Thank you, I would appreciate

that.” I gave my bravest face as he

shifted beneath me.

He watched for a moment as I

stared off into the distance.

“I am right next door. Call me if

you need anything.”

“Okay, thanks.” I closed my eyes

and fell asleep again, welcoming the

respite.

I scraped the eggs into the garbage

disposal, and then placed the plate into

the dishwasher. Shepard watched me

like a hawk as I lazily moved about,

getting ready. I was not in a hurry to part

ways with my beloved mentor. They

never found the body, yet with the

amount of blood strewn across the lab,

there was little hope he was alive.

Since I chose not to press any

charges and Doc disappeared the same

evening, the campus police were

rendered mute. As I had no desire to

drag his reputation through the mud and

chose to remain closed mouth about that

night, the university decided to hold a

candle light ceremony in his honor.

Shepard had already grabbed my

coat from the front wooden rack that

stood next to the door and held it open

for me to place my arms through. He had

this uncanny sense of knowing what I

needed just before I moved. He stayed

quiet and ready if I should need anything.