Final Act (38 page)

“And Camira
, what did she do to deserve death
?”

“That was fate; she was in the wrong place at the wrong time. 
She s
potted me getting in the cab.  I couldn’t let her stop me from killing Catherine.  I laid her out as attractively as I could you know, like the set design
arrangement
of the actress who killed herself because the public had scorned her. 
I
t
was a s
hame she had
die; I
liked her.”

He drove past the container ship
s
and into the park. 

“I know you had access to the poison that killed Jeffrey.  But I’m curious, how did you get the morphine you injected Camira and Catherine with?”

“Simple.  I
broke into the hospital and stole the drugs.  Cased the place well, told them I was doing research for a play we were going to mount, and needed to have a look at how drugs were secured. 
I stored
them in a cool, dry, safe place until I was ready to make my move.”

As he
was passing the canteen, she ordered him to circle around and park behind the building. 

Damn, she’s thought this out, no chance of anyone spotting the car until daylight.
 

He turned the engine off
.  She instructed them both to step out of the car.  Once outside, she
motioned with
the
gun for them to start climbing the
hill that led into
the heavily treed woods.  Roger
took Hazel’s arm and helped her up the hill.  When they came to the top, Eleanor
directed them to
t
he gravelled path to their left.  

There was a full moon.  The night was clear and cold. 
Small rustling sounds could be heard in the woods but no human
noises
could be heard
other than their own footsteps crunching on the gravel
.

Hazel broke the silence. 
“I’m glad
I
met you, Roger.  You’re special; you see people. 
I c
an’t think of any better company
I’d rather leave this world with.
”

He felt tears sting the back of his eyes. 
Life is so unfair. 
This woman took to the streets because of violence and its violence that will hurtle her off the streets.

“
I feel the same way,
Hazel.
  You are a courageous woman, and a hell of a lot of fun to spend time with.
”

“
Cut the sentimental speeches, you two.
Turn right.  We’ll start our descent now.”

Roger guessed
where she
was leading them – close to the
Dingle where
her home is.
She
won’t even
need to back track; that’s why she didn’t ask for the car keys.  A fifteen minute walk on a moonlight night and she’s home. 

He slowed his pace,
Hazel
’s breathing was
becoming more laboured, shallow sounding.
 

“Give us a rest for 5 minutes, Eleanor.  She won’t be able to go on without one.

Her laughter raised
the hairs on his neck.
 

“Not likely.”

“
If you won’t give a rest, then I’m going to run. 
Do you really want the sound of a gun echoing
down
to the
people star gazing
in the cars on the waterfront? 
Y
ou won’t have time to make it home before you’re caught.”

“Okay, five minutes.”

Roger
eased
Hazel
onto the fallen log. 
He
looked down the path and longed for a cigarette. 
Gave them up eight years ago
but now he wanted one, desperately.
He thought about his
car, how he would never race again, or drink beer with Randy, make love with
Sara
, or give his mother the grandbabies she wanted.  It was too late.
His thoughts must have carried him away for the next thing he heard was Eleanor telling him it was time to go.

He walked over to Hazel who was struggling to get
to
her feet.
  The walk was downhill easier and the progress faster.  Roger wanted to slow it down but knew he couldn’t.  He knew each step they took brought them closer to death.
Twenty minutes later they had made the descent. 
He
could hear the waves hitting the shore.

“
We’re heading to the shelter area, it’s to your right”, Eleanor said.

Roger and Hazel walked side by side into the wooden structure, stood against the back wall as instructed, turned and faced Eleanor.  The hand holding the gun was steady.

This reminds me of what happened to Dosteskii, brought before the firing squad
,
then reprieved at the last minute. 
Only difference, there will be no
reprieve
for Hazel and I. 

Blindfolds would have added a nice touch don’t you think
”, Eleanor asked.

Why is she talking and not pulling the trigger.  If she’s in the mood for conversation, here goes.

“
Eleanor, you’re a reasonable woman.  Hazel is an innocent woman.  She did nothing to your daughter, she didn’t even know her. 
Why don’t you let
her
go?  Do you think
Sybil
would approve of her death?  I don’t think she would.”

He could see doubt flit across her face and two seconds later, watched it die.

“No, Sybil is still a child.  She trusts her mother to take care of things.  She doesn’t question my decisions.
  No, it won’t work Roger.  I’m a reasonable woman but not a stupid one.  Why would I leave a witness behind?
”

“I’m ready to go Roger.  I’m tired
.  Besides, I got people waiting for me
”, Hazel said
.

“Take two steps to the right, Hazel.  Roger goes first
”, Eleanor said. 
 

He watched her
aim the gun and heard the shot.  He fell to the ground and felt a great heaviness on his chest
. 
He op
ened his eyes
.  Hazel was on top of him, her warm blood soaking into his jacket.  She had taken the bullet for h
i
m.
He waited for the second shot.  It didn’t come. 
He rolled
Hazel
off him and ran.  He could hear
the sound of
running feet
close behind him. 
He zigged-zagged through the trees hoping to obstruct her aim. 

“Roger.  Stop.”

Is she crazy?  I’ll stop when I see you in hell.
  He ran faster.

“Roger, stop, you don’t have to run anymore. You’re safe.”

S
afe as partridge fleeing a fox. 
Does she think I lost my wits?

H
is heart and lungs felt as though they would burst.  He felt his right foot catch on the root of the tree and he slammed hard to the ground, the breath knocked out of him. 

Unable to move, he lay there and waited for the end.  He could hear her running and minutes later saw the toes of her shoes next to his head.  He breathed Hazel’s name, stared at the shoes and waited.

What the hell?
  It wasn’t shoes he was looking at, it was
ballet
flats
.  He’d know those hot, pink satin
flats
anywhere. 
He had made fun of them
once when she dashed out to his car to pass him a package for work.  

He took in a breath of air and managed to say, ‘
Kate, is that really you?
’ before he slipped into the encroaching darkness. 

Epilogue

Kate, Roger, and Shirley stood together at the gravesite
.  Hanya, decked in full regalia – elb, stole and collar,
performed the funeral rites
.  None of them saw Old Crow who stood watching from a distance.  Once Hazel’s remains were laid to rest, Hanya said good bye to the mourners and left for the University to deliver a lecture. 
   

“I think Hazel would be pleased with this resting place”, Shirley said.

“Of course,
it’s
on the crest of the hill with George’s Island, the harbour, and
the
Halifax waterfront
laid out
at her feet
”,
Kate said.
“What’s not to like.”

“I ordered the grave
stone
r
”, Roger said
.
“It s
hould be read
y
in two week
s.  I
have to let them know about the inscription by tomorrow.  I’ve been racking my brains trying to come up something.  I was prowling around
the townhouse until well after
midnight
trying to come up with something suitable
.”

Kate looked into his
pain filled eyes
and felt compassion for the man and the burden he would carry the rest of his life
. 

“Relax and sleep on it
Roger and it will come.
  If it doesn’t, there are lots of wonderful sayings to pick and choose from.  You’ll find something suitable whether it’s yours or someone else’s.
” 

The wind, blowing out of the northwest, was getting stronger.  The
y
huddled closer together. 

“I’ve got to get back to the office”, Shirley said.  “I need to finish the report on the robbery job.” She gave both a hug and
headed for her
car.

“Time for a drink
before we go back”, Roger asked. 

“Sure. 
Is the
Irish bar okay with you?”

“Perfect.”

Kate ordered the house draught, Roger had a whiskey sour.

“The past three days have been a blur, Kate.  It’s like
being the
drunk on
The Lost Weekend
.  Words, shouts, guns, sweat,
and
fear,
they’ve been
my constant companions. 
I can feel t
he weight of Hazel’s body. 
I see t
hose
ballet
flats
of yours in my sleep.  I didn’t know you took ballet?”

“
I certainly did, from age 3 to 17.  I loved it but didn’t have the talent to
go professional. 
I wear
the
m
around the condo.  When
Alexis
called me, I
didn’t give a thought to what was on my
feet;
I just
grabbed my coat and r
an
to the car.”

“
I owe you an apology
, y
ou’ve got a good gut.  I’ll pay closer attention to your instincts in the future.  That’s a promise.  When did you spot us?”

“We
were going against the traffic and passed you about two blocks from the hostel.  I turned around and jockeyed into the traffic but you were 15 car lengths ahead of us.  That was too far so I radioed for patrol cars.  They put one on the first and second intersections.  We knew then that we couldn’t miss a turn off.  Once you had made the turn, I put the police light on and shut it down
once we were a
block behind you.   When you passed the Lieutenant Governor’s mansion,
I knew you were heading for the park. 
I p
ulled back a bit farther
because traffic was thinning out fast and I
didn’t want to spook whoever was in the back seat.”