Marja McGraw - Bogey Man 02 - Bogey's Ace in the Hole (7 page)

“What?”

“To church with you and Mikey.”  He sounded defiant, like he was waiting for me to say something, and he’d used our son’s given name.

Actually,
I didn’t know what to say.  I’d always told him if he wanted to accompany us, he was more than welcome, but he’d never taken me up on it.

“Cool,” Mikey said, fingering his knife and fork.

“Why?” I asked.  “I don’t want to look a gift horse in the mouth, but…”

“I want to watch the Church Ladies in action, and Lila made me promise I’d come
listen to her sing.”  Chris sat down at the table and clammed up – his jaw muscles working double-time.

Deciding not to push
my luck, I went back to cooking pancakes.

“I’ll be there with you, Dad,” Mikey said.  “You won’t be alone.  I’ll even stay
for the sermon today instead of going to Sunday School.”

“Thank you,
Son.”  Chris smiled a very tight smile at Mikey.  He normally enjoyed lounging around on Sunday mornings while we were gone, watching sports and reading the newspaper – and having a little alone time.  When Chris married me he got a readymade family, and I understood his need to have a little time to himself.

This Sunday morning was going to be a new experience for all of us.  I was surprised to realize how much I was looking forward to him accompanying us.  I glanced over my shoulder at Mikey, and he was grinning, looking very much the way I was feeling.  Neither of us said
another word to Chris.  We wanted him to be comfortable with his decision.  And, after all, it was only one Sunday among many.

When breakfast was over and the dishes were cleaned up, I picked up my purse and bible, thought of Addie, and headed for the Jeep.  Chris and Mikey followed behind, taking their time and talking about an upcoming NASCAR race.  I sighed and climbed into the front seat, waiting for them to catch up to me.  By the time they reached the car, they’d moved on to baseball
and football.  At least they were going with me.

Arriving at the church I took note that the parking lot seemed fuller than normal, or maybe
that was my imagination.

We trooped in and found seats
next to Constance.  Chris sat between Mikey and me, and I held his hand.  The service began, and after opening prayers, the choir sang and we warbled with them.  The pastor gave a sermon on the Good Samaritan, and I couldn’t help wondering if he knew something about what had been going on.  At least it was something that Chris was interested in hearing.

And then Lila’s big moment came.  Pastor Findlay announced that we were in for a special treat on this particular Sunday, and he introduced her.  She walked up to the edge of the stage and cleared her throat.  The music began to play, but Lila took a step backwards.  The music stopped.  She cleared her throat again and stepped forward.
  She looked so small and alone up on the stage.

I could see Jasmine and May sitting in the front row.  Their back
s were straight and they leaned forward slightly.

I glanced at Lila and saw her
gaze at her friends, fear showing on her face.  The music started again.  Lila opened her mouth, and after a brief hesitation, the voice that came out was not that of the teeny tiny, shy woman I’d come to know. It was huge, and beautiful, and inspiring, and I saw her fear melt away.  While she sang I saw the years drop away from her face, replaced by peace and soft lines.  She sang
The Lord’s Prayer,
as I’d never heard it before.  She wasn’t just singing it – she was
feeling
it.

Halfway through the song I glanced at
Chris.  He was smiling a Chris smile, not wearing Bogey grin.

I turned back to Lila and watched her intently.  I knew there were some notes that were hard to
hit because they were so high.  I’ve heard the expression about someone having the voice of an angel so many times, but in this case it was true. As she came toward the end of the song where the words were,
For thine is the Kingdom, And the power, And the glory
, I held my breath.  Her head pointed upward, her eyes were closed, and her hands were lifted up toward heaven.  She hit each and every note like a pro.  I knew that
Forever
was an even higher note yet.

Realizing
I was squeezing Chris’s hand in anticipation, I let it go, only to tent my hands and place them against my mouth.  Lila sang the high note with ease and grace, said a soft
Amen
, and lowered her head.

Not a
single sound came from the congregation – until Mikey started to clap.  Chris glanced at him and followed suit.  Pretty soon everyone was clapping, not something that happened often at our church.

Lila appeared to be embarrassed and backed away.

Pastor Findlay grabbed her arm and pulled her gently forward.  “Lila,” he said, “I hope you’ll sing again at a future service.  You’ve blessed us today.”

Lila rejoined the choir
, quietly accepting smiles and hugs, and the pastor said a last prayer before everyone stood up and began filing out the door.

Chris, Mikey and I waited outside the church to tell Lila how much we’d enjoyed her solo.  Jasmine and May joined us.

“I’ve never heard her sing by herself before,” May said.

“She’s been hiding her light under a bushel,” Jasmine
commented.

“She’s definitely got talent,” Chris added.

“Even
I
liked her,” Mikey said.  That was quite a compliment, coming from my son.  When I sing around the house, he either plugs his ears and runs outside to play or turns up the TV, and I’m not all
that
bad.

Lila joined us after a few minutes.   She was smiling from ear to ear, and looking happy.  The Church Ladies hugged each other while other people came up to thank Lila for her contribution.  It was, well, heavenly.  Lila was having
a moment
.

Pastor Findlay and his wife joined us.  “You’re not going to believe this,” he said, “but a woman
who was walking down the street heard Lila singing and came in to see what was going on.  She said she was so touched that she’ll be back next Sunday.  She’s new in town and she’s been looking for a church to attend.”

“Well, hallelujah,” Jasmine said.

“Amen to that,” May added.

“Because of my singing?” Lila asked in wonder.

“I wish we’d recorded it,” Chris commented.  “You really need to hear yourself.”

“We did,” Pastor Findlay said.  “We always record the whole service.  Would you like a copy?”

“You bet,” Mikey said.  “Now I gotta go find my friends.”  He left us on the run.

Chris and the pastor chatted for a moment, and Chris visibly relaxed.  Our pastor was a
man of God, but he was also a man who could talk about anything.  He never pushed a soul to attend church, but gently prodded when the opportunity presented itself.

“Pastor Findlay, if you don’t mind me asking, why did you preach about the Good Samaritan this morning?  Any special reason?”  I glanced at the Church Ladies who looked everywhere except at me.

“Jasmine happened to mention a friend of hers who’s been trying to help someone that she doesn’t even know.  It inspired me because we should all do more for our fellow man.”

“Did Jasmine happen to mention what her friend has been doing to help this person?” I asked.

“No, just that it was a selfless act.  Is there something I should know?”

He waited patiently for an answer, which wasn’t forthcoming.

“Well, Pastor, we’ve got things to do.  We’d better go.”  Jasmine grabbed Lila’s hand and began pulling her away from the group.  May followed.

“What did I say?” Pastor Findlay asked.

“Nothing.  They’ll tell you what they’ve been up to when they’re ready, I’m sure.”  I didn’t want to be the one to blab about Addie’s great adventure.  Besides, I didn’t think he even knew Addie.

Chris and I excused ourselves and took out after the women.  Silly of me, but I didn’t trust them.  I had a feeling that even though their friend was back and safe, and it was time to let go of the situation, they weren’t going to stop trying to help Vic.

Jasmine looked over her shoulder and saw us following, and stopped abruptly, causing Lila to trip.

“So what’s today’s plan?” Jasmine asked.  “Are you going to follow up on finding Victor?”

“What would you suggest we do?” Chris asked.

“Why, look for him.  He needs to be warned,” May said.

“He’s in danger,” Lila added.

“And didn’t you say you ha
ve an address for him?” Jasmine asked.

“We have what
could
be his address,” I said.

“So you’re going to drive over there and talk to him.  Right?”  Jasmine was pushing.

I had a feeling that I knew what was coming next.

“And you’re going to take us with you, right?”

Did I know my Church Ladies or what?

“No!” Chris said.  “We’re going alone.”

I almost laughed because I could tell by the look of chagrin on his face that he hadn’t meant to confirm our agenda for the day.

“Well, no you’re not,” Jasmine said.  “We’re going with you.  We started this whole thing, and we want to be in on it
when it’s finished.  I guess Addie actually started it, but she’s exhausted.  She won’t be going with us, but I know she’ll want
us
to go.”

“What about Mikey?  We can’t take him with us.   Who knows what we’ll be walking into?  We simply can’t go today.”  I figured that would put things into perspective.  We actually couldn’t go until Monday when Mikey would be in school.  Problem solved.

All heads turned to me.  Chris appeared to be relieved.  The ladies had other ideas, and turned their backs on us while they whispered amongst themselves.

Turning back, May said, “Addie can keep Mikey while we’re gone.”

“I thought you said Addie was exhausted,” I reminded them.

“She’s never too tired for children.  She has ten grandchildren and she says they’re what keeps her young at heart.”  Jasmine appeared to think that would settle the matter.

“We have to go home and take care of the dogs, too,” I said.

“You can do that while we go home and change clothes,” Jasmine said.

“And then we’ll all meet at Jasmine’s house,” May added.

“After lunch would be best,” Lila suggested.

Chris tucked his upper lip under and pulled on his earlobe before placing his hands on his hips.  “You dames ain’t goin’ with us on this caper.  Not today and not tomorrow.  See?  I know you think I’m being a heel, but that’s the way it is.  You’re makin’ me goosy, and I ain’t at the top of my game when I’m feelin’ goosy.  If I was in a jam, and we could end up in a jam here, I don’t want you church ladies for back-up.  See?  End of story.”

~ ~ ~

You know what they say about the best laid plans…

After we dropped Mikey off with Addie, I pulled the address out of my purse and gave Chris directions while the Church Ladies sat in the backseat of the Chevy and buzzed like little elderly bees.

“I was a mailman, Pamela.  I know this area like the back of my hand.”  Chris was not in a good mood, and I decided not to push.

He found the street we wanted
after taking a shortcut that took us out of our way, and turned right.  Things were quiet in the backseat while the ladies took in our surroundings.  I watched the street numbers, but I soon realized there was something wrong.

“Is this what they mean when they talk about the
other side of the tracks
?”  Lila was staring at a prostitute standing on a street corner.  The hooker stared back and Lila looked away first.  The woman on the corner laughed as we passed by, knowing she’d won the war of the wills.  “Right about now those big dogs of yours are sounding pretty good.  Maybe we should have brought them along.”

We were definitely in a seedier part of town.

“This can’t be right,” Chris said, pulling into a parking lot.  “The address on that piece of paper is a sleazy motel, not a house.  I thought we were looking for a house.”

Chapter Ten

“Well, maybe we’d better go in and see if there’s a Victor staying at that sleazy motel.  This is the address those two men at the diner were interested in.  There has to be a reason that they were discussing it,” I said.

After some lengthy discussions, we finally talked the ladies into staying in the car while we walked to the office to ask about Victor.

The office was empty, but there was a bell on the desk.  Chris rang it, but no one appeared from the back room.  He rang it again.  Nothing.  He rang it
twice in rapid succession .

“Hold your horses,”
yelled a gruff and gravelly female voice from the other room.  “I’ll be there in a second.”

We waited patiently and finally a scrawny woman of indeterminate age poked her head around the door frame.
  Her greasy blonde hair had turned to yellow, and she was as thin as a rail.

“We ain’t got any rooms right now,” she said, turning to go back to whatever she’d been doing.

“We’re not looking for a room,” Chris said.  “We’re looking for a person.”

She popped her head around the door frame again, got a better look at Chris, and ambled
over to the counter.  “Well, look what the cat dragged in.  Ain’t you the one?  Anybody ever tell you that you look like – ”

“Yeah, yeah.  I’ve heard it before,
cupcake.”

I could tell by his tone of voice that Chris was in Bogey mode.  He was going to play it up with this woman for all it was worth
– and she’d eat it up.  There was no doubt in my mind, because I’d seen him use this act before, and it always seemed to get results.

“What can I do for ya,
sweetcakes?”  She moved forward and leaned on the counter, smiling.  She was missing a few very prominent teeth, and those she had left were spotted with dark red lipstick.  Her face was drawn and it looked like she was at the tail end of recovering from a black eye.

I got a very strong whiff of cigarette smoke and backed up a step.  I don’t generally have a problem
with people who smoke, but this woman reeked.  I noticed her fingers were stained a nicotine yellow, much like the part of her teeth that showed through the lipstick.

Chris rolled his upper lip under and pulled on his earlobe. 
“We’re lookin’ for a Joe.  You got a sap named Vic stayin’ in this flophouse?”  He rolled back on his heels and stuck his hands in his pockets.

“Whaddaya want him for?” Ms. Nicotine asked
, suddenly sounding suspicious.

“Nothin’ you’d care about.  We got some personal business to take up with him.  You got anyone by that name or not?”

“Nah.  I gotta a Dick, and I had a Nick, but no Vic.  Say, why don’tcha lose Red and come on in back with me?”  She was pointing at me when she suggested he lose Red, but she never actually looked at me.

Chris made a clicking sound out of the side of his mouth. 
“No can do.  This here is my Gal Friday.  She goes where I go.”

The woman thought about it for a moment.  “Nah, I ain’t into threesomes.  I like a one-woman man.”

“That’s exactly what I am,” Chris said, taking my arm and leading me out of the office.

We walked toward the car and never looked back
, although I was sorely tempted.

“I feel like I need a shower,” I said.
  “Did you notice how dirty that place was?  I’ll bet they haven’t vacuumed or dusted in years.”

Chris started to laugh, but stopped abruptly.  “Hey, who’s that standing by the car?  Is that the hooker we saw standing on the corner?”

I took a closer look and began walking faster.  “It sure is.  And those screwball Church Ladies are out of the car and talking to her.  I know we told them to stay in the car, no matter what.”

I noticed Chris’s step picking up, too.

We reached the car and Chris stopped next to Jasmine in a protective stance.  “What’s going on here?”

The tall blonde hooker wore an extremely short skirt with a skin tight blouse.  She had on enough make-up to choke a horse, but when I looked closer I could see that she was very young.  I wondered if she might be one of the runaway teens you hear about from time to time.  She hadn’t
developed a legitimate hard look yet, although the make-up helped.

“Oh, lighten up
,” she said.  “These ladies remind me of my grandma.  We were just having a little chat.”

Lila smiled angelically.  “We were just telling her about Jesus and how much He loves her.”

“And how she needs to get herself out of this environment,” May said.

“I think she was listening until you came back,” Jasmine said,
her words almost sounding like an accusation.

“Well, it’s time for us to leave,” Chris said, trying to herd the women back into the car.

Jasmine pulled away from him and handed the girl a piece of paper.  “Here, young lady.  This is my home phone number.  If you want to talk more, you can call me any time.  If I’m not home, leave me a message and I’ll call you back.  I wrote the number of the church on there, too.  And you know that your grandma would probably agree with us.”

“I’m sure she would.” 
Before I could grab the paper, the hooker stuck it in her bra.  “You ladies take care,” she said, walking away.  “I enjoyed talking to you.”

Lila was beaming.  Jasmine and May were looking pretty happy, too.

“Such a nice young woman,” Jasmine said.

“Do you understand what she does for a living?” Chris asked.

“Love the sinner, hate the sin,” May said.  “Yes, we know.  And she’s still one of God’s children.  She’s just lost her way for now.”

He sighed, helping May into the car.

“Let’s get out of here,” I said.  I’d noticed what looked like a young gangbanger watching our vintage Chevy with longing in his eyes. 
Not today, kid
, I thought.

Chris
stopped the car at the parking lot exit and waited to turn left, out into traffic.

I had a sudden epiphany.  “Hey!  What if Vic is at this same address, only at the west end of the street instead of the east end?
  This is a major boulevard, so I’ll bet the numbers repeat to the west.”

I didn’t think Chris had heard me until he
turned right and headed west.  I sat back and relaxed as the scenery began to perk up, which included more houses and better businesses.  We found the right address, and it was a nice, older home, white with green trim.  Chris pulled up to the curb.

He turned and pinned the three women in the backseat with a no-nonsense look.  “Ladies, do not speak to women of the night, bums or anyone who looks like a gang member.  Do not try to convert anyone while we’re here. 
In general, do not speak to strangers.  And above all, do
not
get out of this car!”

“Yes, sir,” Jasmine said
, looking at Chris with big, innocent eyes.

“Okay,” May responded.

“Not on your life,” Lila added.

Chris and I left the car, and I glanced
at the house across the street where I saw a sweet little old lady in her front yard watering her flowers.  She waved at me before wiping the sweat from her forehead with the back of her gloved hand.

“You probably should have given the Church Ladies that speech at our
last
stop,” I said.

I smiled and waved back at the woman.

I saw Chris’s eye twitch and his jaw clench, and decided to let it go.

We climbed the front steps and Chris pushed the button for the doorbell.  We waited, but no one responded.  He pushed it again.  Still nothing.  There was a win
dow by the front door.

Chris leaned over and tried to see inside.
“The curtains are too heavy to see anything.”

“I have an idea.  Wait here for a minute,” I said.  I walked over to see the woman who was watering her plants.

“Good afternoon,” she said, looking at me.  “Can I help you?”  She fanned herself with her hand.  It was warm out.

“Yes, ma’am.  I wondered if you can tell me if a man named Victor lives in that house.”  I pointed at the white house where Chris waited for me.

“Oh, yes.  That’s Victor’s house alright.  Are you looking for him?  Because if you are, he left about an hour ago.  He’s retired, you know, so he comes and goes when he wants to.  He got to retire young, at fifty-five.  He’s been a nice neighbor and he’s always helping me out with little things.  Why, he fixed my faucet for me just this morning.  Nice man, nice man.  I don’t have any family, at least that I care to talk about, so I guess I’m pretty lucky to have him for a neighbor.”

I held out my hand.  “I’m Pamela Cross.  That’s my husband, Chris, waiting for me over on Victor’s porch.”

The woman set down her watering can.  “I’m Florence Nash.  It’s a pleasure to meet you.  I can tell Victor that you were here,” she offered.

“Oh, that’s okay.  Do you have any idea when he might be home?”

“In the evening.  He’s always home in the evening.  He doesn’t like to go out after dark, from what he tells me.  He always chats with me while he fixes things around here.  You know, these old houses always have something going wrong with them.  Yes, he really is a good neighbor.  I always offer to pay him for his help, but he won’t take my money.”  She wiped her brow again.

“Well, thank you for your help, Florence.  I don’t think we can come back tonight, but maybe we’ll stop by tomorrow.”

“Oh, I’ll look forward to seeing you,” she said.  “I so seldom have company.  I’ll make some cookies for you, and tea.  You will come back to see me, won’t you?”

“I’ll make a point of coming to see you tomorrow.”
  I glanced at her face and noticed that her cheeks were turning pink.  “It’s awfully warm out here.  Maybe it’s time to go inside?”

“I think you’re right.  I should have started watering earlier.  It does seem warmer than it should be for this time of year.”  Florence picked up her watering can and headed for the front door of her house.

I walked back to the car and motioned for Chris to meet me.  Looking in the back window of the car, I could see three faces watching me expectantly.  I didn’t have much news for them, except that we’d found Victor’s house, and I knew that would be a disappointment since he wasn’t home.

Chris and I stood by the car and talked for a moment.  “Florence, Victor’s neighbor, said he won’t be back until this evening. 
From the way she described him, he sounds like a genuinely nice guy.  I can’t imagine why someone would want to bump him off.  Anyway, I can’t keep leaving Mikey with friends.  Do you think Victor will be safe until tomorrow?”

Chris looked at me like I was out of my mind.  “How would
I
know?”

“Well, I guess you wouldn’t.”  I grinned at Chris.  “I’ll ask the ladies to pray for his safety tonight.”

Chris made a noise that sounded similar to a growl.  I chose to ignore it and climbed into the car.

“Chris and I will have to come back tomorrow,” I explained
, “so please say a prayer for Victor’s safety tonight.  You ladies, I’m sure, have other things to do tomorrow.  And we can handle this by ourselves.”

“We have nothing to do tomorrow,” Jasmine said.  “What time do you want us to be at your house?”

The noise that Chris made this time sounded a lot more than just similar to a growl.  I hadn’t rolled my eyes in a long time, so I decided now was as good a time as any.  I threw in a sigh, too, for good measure.

“I think we can handle things by ourselves tomorrow,” Chris said.  “You ladies sleep in and enjoy your day.”

I hoped the ladies would pay attention to Chris and take his advice.

And I hoped we’d be in time to save Victor.