"Heaven Beside You" -- Alice In Chains

So there was discussion of having a death date party. No? You didn't think that was amusing? Hmm. Well, perhaps you would be interested in knowing that a certain day is approaching that marked the end of life as we all knew it. So, instead of getting super bummed out, I say we all get some popcorn, MGD, and watch Mama's Family. Oh wait. "Laughter through tears is my favorite emotion." Yeah, we could watch Steel Magnolias, Terms of Endearment, and then The Burbs. 


Okay, okay. I know that you want to hear me whine some more don't you? Oh. Well, fine. I didn't want to complain about my dead mother anymore either, thanks.

The Square Shoulder of a Man Named Butch

XI

Claire flicked on the television in the corner and grabbed a pitcher of orange juice. She was pouring juice in a tumbler when the news anchor introduced a live report.

            “Hello, Gina Flynne reporting from the Sherwood Nature Preserve five miles south of the city: a body has been found in the river, tangled in the driftwood and leaves. We have here, the nature observer who happened to spot the body in the river. Mr. Thornton, how did you happen to spot a body in the river?” the reporter leveled her microphone at a back-pack laden whose khakis and polo shirt were damp, his tennis shoes dirty. His tan skin gave the soft pallor of fear, a sickly white color under all that bronzed skin.

            “Well, I was just out here checking out what animals I could see for this class project. I’m doing a chart of all the different animals that I could see while walking about a three mile roundtrip hike. I began by spotting and identifying all manner of animals that live in this environment. On my way down, just about a half mile into the hike I spotted something in the water. I had seen some otters in the river earlier, so I walked closer to the bend in the river and I saw something. But it wasn’t moving, except lapping with the leaves in the current. The river’s been down a bit since there hasn’t been much rain, ‘cept that good shower we had last weekend. That was the first good rain we’ve had since August.”

            “Yes, Mr. Thornton I believe it was,” Gina the reporter turned to face the camera as it zoomed in on her, catching a section of flapping caution tape in the distance, “At this time authorities have not released any information other than that it was a body, and that it was found in the river…”

            Gina Flynne rambled on in corner of the kitchen, and Claire plopped down onto the loveseat in the breakfast nook, “I can’t believe this. What if that’s Roxanne? What if she got swept away in the flash flood?”

            Mark handed Claire a slice of buttered toast and sipped his own juice. Licking the orange pulp from his lips he said, “Then I guess you have one less case you have to worry about before you go off to your new job. And I have one less on the docket next month,” he said with a smile.

            “You are so terrible, that’s not funny,” She narrowed her eyes at him as he leaned over to kiss her, “I mean, she’s out there somewhere, who knows what might happen? That really could be her. In the river,” Claire’s eyes drifted away from him, un-focusing as they slid upward. Maybe she should call that guy, that private detective who’d found her friend’s runaway son. Her son was living in a homeless shelter five states over when he found him. A real knight in tweed armor, she thought of Margo’s tears trailing through her blush as she recounted the tale. She reached in her mind for a name, but Mark was repeating her own name, snapping attention back into focus on his face, and she could not remember.

            “You know, Claire, we can help people by keeping the law offenders off the streets and their kids in decent homes. What we do is important. But we can’t save everyone from everything. Even if we put in 110% every day, there always seems to be something else that could be done, something more,” he saw that she was drifting out of the conversation again.

“Listen, I forgot that I had this brunch meeting with Margo this morning, so I think I will skip the toast.” She shoved the toast back into his hand, downed the remainder of her juice and slid on her jacket. As she gathered her things, she tried to ignore Mark’s half-hearted objections.

            “Okay then, I guess I’ll just go play some golf. Call me when you get home from brunch,” he reached for her and he managed a quick peck on her cheek before she breezed by him and out the back door. Her footsteps down the stairs faded, and Mark wondered why she was so bothered by the runaway.  

[Unfortunately, this is the last serial post for this book, at this point in time. Perhaps more, or another, will be featured here in the near future. Thanks for reading, I hope that you enjoyed!*Laura Beth]