Fade (20 page)

seek out the answers. You do this so well in your work. Why don"t you

follow that same line of logic in your personal life? You"ll need to talk

to Cabel if you want answers. Endless speculation only leads to dead

ends.”

Janie closes her eyes. Rests her head on the headrest. “I"m sorry, Captain.

You"re right. I swear I won"t let this mess affect my work. Working for

you is the best thing in my life. I feel like I can actually make a difference, you know?”

Captain gives Janie"s arm a quick squeeze. “I know, kiddo. And I"ve got

big plans for you, if you"re game.”

“Captain?”

“Yes.”

“How am I going to get anywhere if I"m not supposed to drive?”

Captain sighs. “I haven"t figured that one out yet.”

“Did you know Miss Stubin had a car crash because of a dream?

She

killed three innocent people.”

Captain slows the car and glances at Janie. “I knew from her background

check that she was in a terrible car accident once. I didn"t know it happened because of a dream.” Captain pauses. “She was sixteen when

it happened.”

Janie sits in stunned silence.

Captain continues. “She was convicted of vehicular manslaughter, Janie.

She lost her license and did three years in a women"s correctional facility. It would have been more if she hadn"t been a minor at the time.

This is serious stuff.”

Janie"s stomach churns. “I almost hit some school kids yesterday,” she

says softly. “Some little kid on the bus was dreaming.”

Captain shakes her head resolutely. “Well. That settles it. If I catch you

driving again, Janie, I"ll write you a ticket myself, I swear to god. Meanwhile, if I need you somewhere, I"ll drive you or send a car. I don"t

want you wasting dreams on some damn city bus.”

Janie feels like she just got put in a cage. “What about school?”

she asks.

“I"ll have to take the school bus. What am I going to tell people?

Cabel

will figure it out. This is such shit.”

Captain gives her a hard look. “You know what shit is? Killing three

innocent people. Think your life is bad now, try living with that.”

Her

voice is harsh.

Janie"s quiet.

They head back to Fieldridge.

When Captain"s cell phone rings, she glances at it and answers.

“Komisky.” She pauses. “Yes, I"ve got her.” Another pause. “Yes, she"s

just fine.” She nods, glances sidelong at Janie with a grim smile, and

then hangs up the phone.

“Juuust fine,” Captain repeats, her lips pressed tightly together in a thin

line.

12:36 p.m.

Captain drops Janie off at home and gives her a swift hug. “You call me

if you need to talk more about this stuff,” she says.

“Thanks, Captain.”

“And it"s your call, what you want to tell Cabel, if anything. Be assured

it"s not my place to tell him unless it directly affects your work as partners, and even then, I"d ask you to do it. As for you not driving, I

think Cabel will take that very well. He worries enough about it. Blame

me.”

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Janie waves weakly as Captain pulls away. She looks sadly at Ethel,

quiet and alone in the driveway. Turns and enters the house. Not quite sure what to do now.

She goes into her room. The green notebook gleams menacingly from

the place on the bed where she left it open.

Carefully Janie closes it and puts it in the box in the closet. Drops to the bed and lies there, staring at the ceiling. 2:23 p.m.

The cool, damp wind blows briskly through Miss Stubin"s dusky Center

Street purgatory.

“Now you know as much as I know, Janie.”

Janie sits silently next to Miss Stubin. Tears trickle from the old woman"s blind eyes.

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There are no more words to say. Only an understanding, a resolution, a

small strength, passes and grows between them. And a release. Miss

Stubin"s work is done.

This is good-bye.

Slowly Miss Stubin squeezes Janie"s hand with her own gnarled fingers.

“I must go see my soldier now.” And then she begins to fade away.

“Will I ever see you again?” Janie calls out anxiously.

“Not here, Janie.”

“Somewhere else, then?” Her voice is hopeful.

But the old woman is already gone.

Janie looks around. Bites her lip. In front of the dry goods store strolls a

young man in uniform and a bright-eyed young woman who turns to

look over her shoulder. She blows a kiss at Janie as they turn the corner

into the alley and disappear from sight.

Janie remains seated on the cold, wet park bench. Alone.

March 31, 2006, 2:25 p.m.

Cabel dreams of layering clothes and more clothes on his body. Janie

pulls herself out of it. She can"t stand to watch him. She knows what the

dream means. He"s trying desperately to protect himself. His heart.

When the bell rings, Cabel startles awake. Janie watches him. He glances at her, looking worried. She pleads with him with her eyes across the vast library.

He drops his.

Turns.

Goes.

April 6, 2006, 8:53 a.m.

It"s spring break. Janie awakes to a late spring snowfall, five fresh inches on the ground. Vows, one of these years, to go to Florida for

spring break. Even if it means falling into dreams on the plane the entire

way there. Even if it means spending the whole week alone, watching

other people having fun.

She gets dressed and waits for the car Captain is sending. Brushes off

Ethel so that the “For Sale” sign shows from the window again. Shovels

the sidewalk and begins on the driveway. The snow is heavy and wet

with the late-morning sun shining on it.

When Carrie bursts from her house next door and sprints through the

yard, Janie grins.

“Hey,” she says.

“Janie Hannagan!” Carrie says. “How dare you sell Ethel! Poor girl.

Stu"s a wreck over it.”

Janie has been ready for this question. “I can"t afford the insurance and

the gas anymore, Carrie. Tell Stu I"m really sorry.”

Carrie grins impishly. Whips out a wad of cash from her coat pocket.

“How much?” she asks. “I"m selling my piece of junk. Ethel told me she

wants to stay in the "hood.”

Janie"s eyes light up. “No way!”

“
So
way!” Carrie giggles. “How much?”

Janie hops up and down in the snow. “For you? Twelve hundred bucks.

It"s a bargain!”

Carrie whips out twelve one-hundred-dollar bills and shoves them at

Janie. “Sold!”

“Oh my gosh. I can"t believe you"re really buying Ethel!”

“Stu lent me the moolah until my car sells. He"s probably happier than

anyone. Now, take that sign out of the poor girl"s window before she

gets a complex! I gotta go call Stu and tell him we"ve got a deal. We"ll

figure out the paperwork later, cool?” Carrie lopes back to her house

without waiting for an answer, while Janie, grinning, removes the sign

from Ethel"s window and lovingly pats the snowy hood. ı

It"s Detective Jason Baker who picks her up, in his soccer-mom van.

“Hey, little dreamer,” he says with a grin. “I saw what you did to those

bastards out on Durbin"s deck. Remind me not to get in your way.”

“I wish I remembered it,” Janie says. She likes both Baker and Cobb.

“Still no memory of any of it, huh? Yeah, that"s the way it is with those

date-rape drugs. That"s also why so many rapes go unnoticed or unreported. The memory loss allows sickos, like Durbin and his ilk, to

get away with that shit time after time. You really saved the day, Janie.”

Janie blushes and looks at her hands. She doesn"t feel like much of a

hero.

Inside the police station, Janie knocks on Captain"s door.

“Come!” Captain yells, as usual.

Janie grins and enters.

Stops short.

Cabel is there too.

His smile is formal and strained as Janie gathers her composure and sits

down next to him.

Captain gets down to business immediately.

“Stacey O"Grady will be returning to Fieldridge High, after all. Her parents are now satisfied that all the perps have been arrested, and

Stacey really wants to put everything behind her and come back to

graduate with her classmates.”

Both Janie and Cabel nod. Janie"s glad to hear it.

“There are several lawsuits in the works from various angry parents—and I don"t blame them. But I"m afraid we"re likely going to

need you to testify, Janie. The hearings are set for June. You"ll meet

beforehand with the DA to go over your testimony. It could be difficult.

So be prepared for some horrible questions to be asked of you by the

defense attorneys. And you"ll have to do it while Durbin, Wang, and

Crater are sitting there, staring you down. You understand?”

Janie presses her lips together to stop them from quivering. “Yes, sir.”

“Atta girl. We"ll do everything within the law to keep your dream-catching ability a secret. However, it"ll likely come out that you

were at that party on assignment and working undercover for me. We"ll

need your story and your drug-tester sheets as evidence. If the perps are

too stupid to plead guilty once they see the pile of evidence we have,

we"ll go to trial and your cover for Fieldridge assignments will probably

be blown. But you need to tell the truth if asked, and we"ll deal with it.”

Janie"s eyes widen. “So, um, if my cover is blown…will I…will you…”

Captain smiles. “You"ll still have a job. No worries. Martha had a few

close calls too, but her secret was never revealed on the stand. Defense

attorneys don"t know about dream catchers—They never think to ask the

right questions. So, let"s not fret about that right now, okay? I want you

to take a little time off to relax and rejuvenate until school"s out.”

Captain swivels in her chair and continues seamlessly, “And, Cabe, I"ve

got some minor assignments for you starting Monday after school. Alone. Is that clear?” She looks at both of them.

“Yes, sir,” Janie and Cabel say in unison.

“Will you two be able to work together again in the future, or do I have

to reconfigure my plans?” Captain asks bluntly.

Janie looks at Cabel. Cabel looks at his shoes.

“Yes, sir,” Janie says finally. Daring Cabel to answer.

“Of course,” Cabel says. He doesn"t look at Janie. Captain nods and shuffles the papers on her desk. “Good. Janie, see if

Cobb or Baker or Rabinowitz is out there to give you a lift home. I"ll

talk with you soon.”

“Yes, sir.” Janie stands up, her face burning. Feeling like a baby in front

of Cabe. She flees out the door, leaving Cabel and Captain standing

there, and decides to walk home rather than beg for a ride. She doesn"t get far before Cabel"s car whizzes past her, snow flying in

his wake.

He slows.

Stops.

Backs up.

Janie glances longingly at the bushes, wishing for a place to hide. Cabel lowers the passenger window and peers out at Janie. Smiles

grimly. Bites his lip. “How about a ride, Hannagan?”

Janie nods coolly and gets in. Knows they"re going to have to talk sometime if they"re going to keep working together. “I can walk from

your house so it"s not too much trouble for you,” she says civilly. They ride in silence the entire way.

Cabel pulls into his driveway.

They get out.

Stare at each other for a minute, until Janie looks away, emotions welling up. She"s angry. Still doesn"t understand why he broke up with

her so suddenly. Feels like it was because the teachers touched her.

Wants to know the truth. But doesn"t want to get shot down again.

“Thanks for the ride,” she finally says.

When he doesn"t speak, doesn"t move, she turns slowly and starts

walking home.

GLIMMERS

“Wait,” Cabel says.

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Janie"s been waiting. Waiting for answers. Waiting for him to admit that

he can"t touch her because she"d been violated by the creeps. Janie

doesn"t want to wait anymore. She walks faster.

He hesitates, and then runs after her. Stops her in the middle of the road.

“Come inside with me,” Cabel says. He looks tired. “Please. We need to

talk.”

Janie"s eyes flash, but she follows him inside. Maybe at least she"ll get

some answers.

Janie sits on the edge of the living-room chair, leaving her coat on. She

takes a deep breath and decides to get it over with. “You have three

minutes to tell me that it"s not because those bastards touched me.”

Cabel reels. “What?”

Janie looks at her watch.

Cabel begins to pace.

“I can put up with the pacing,” Janie says after a minute goes by.

“I can

put up with you having some issues you need to work out. I can even put

up with you saying you just don"t love me. I mean, I thought this weird

dream curse would probably keep me from ever having a relationship, so

I guess I"m lucky it lasted as long as it did. But when you suddenly decide you can"t touch me anymore immediately after a bunch of jerks

try to rape me, well, I just need to know if you are really that horrible.

And if you are, it"ll be a hell of a lot easier for me to walk out of here

in”—she checks her watch—“one minute and twenty-four seconds.”

He stares. His face is fraught with emotion. He walks over to Janie,

kneels in front of her. His hands quiver as he touches her face. She watches him solemnly. Gives him a chance.

“Janie,” he finally says. “Is this the way it"s going to be with you?”