Chapter 6
Georgie didn’t care for being in a jail cell. She had been in and out of jail since she’d been about ten, so it wasn’t this jail that she hated but them in general. This one wasn’t too bad. It was clean, and there were certain things about it that made it seem homey. But she didn’t want homey, she wanted out. And the sooner the better.
“When is the judge coming to town? You said it would be this week sometime.” She’d been asking every day about this supposed judge coming to town and setting up so that the few people in the cells could get their day in court. “I shouldn’t be in here anyway. I know my rights.”
“He’ll be here tomorrow. But I’d not count on getting to see him. He’s going to be taking people in order of arrest. You’re way down on that list.” She asked him who she had to blow to get to the top of the list. “Christ, what a thought. Nobody is gonna want you to go…when was the last time you brushed your teeth? You’re disgusting. You’ll have your time when it’s your time. Your brother will have his time before you do.”
He walked away, shivering at the thought of her going down on him. It didn’t matter if her teeth were brushed or not; it was the end result that got her what she wanted. Leaning back on the wall where her cot was, she thought about everything that she’d learned about Mandy. The woman was going to regret taking her kids from her brother. She was going to raise them, and that was final. The money would be awesome, and she wondered if she could get some of the perks that her brother had while married to Betsey. A house and all the money could come in handy right now.
Betsey hadn’t been a bad person to Samuel. Samuel had been a right bastard to her, however. There were times when she could almost feel sorry for the other woman. Not that she’d help her out, no that would just bring his anger down on her, but she did feel for her when Samuel set his sights on beating the shit out of her. And them boys too. She wondered if it was true that Betsey would hide them around the neighborhood to keep Samuel from hurting them. It would be just like her to do something like that.
Nobody had kept her from being knocked around when she’d been a kid. Hell, even now, she had to learn how to hold her own when Samuel was in a mood. Her parents, long gone thankfully, didn’t hold back either when they had some kind of beef with her or someone else. She was convenient for them and they had about used her all up.
Samuel, too, but as he got bigger, they tended to leave him alone. That’s when they’d take their worst temper out on her. When Samuel wasn’t around for them. She was bigger now, too, and men didn’t bother her much anymore either. Not to mention, she carried a weapon now, and that would end any kind of argument they had with her.
“Georgie, you there?” She asked her brother where else she’d be. “I was just thinking about them boys of mine. When you get out, you’re going to raise them to be just like us, right? Not taking any shit from anyone around? I don’t want me any pussy boys running around.”
“I’ll raise them to be just like we were raised. Maybe a little worse for wear on them, but they’ll turn out all right. Why you asking?” He told her, shouting over the other inmates in the little jail. “Nah, I’ve not turned all mushy on you. Just waiting for my turn to see the judge in the next couple of days. They said that you’d be out before me. You thinking of collecting them up too?”
“They’re my kids, ain’t they?” She didn’t say anything else when he didn’t. “I got me an idea that I’m not going to be getting out of here anytime soon. My lawyer said that they’re going to toss the book at me on account of me killing Betsey. It don’t matter, he told me that it was her fault, I’ll be the one that has to pay for her being dead.”
“But like you said, it was her fault. Can’t blame you if she was stupid enough to get herself killed when you were there. That could have been anyone beating her to shit.” He said that he’d been caught and he’d said some things when the police arrived. “Like what? You mean about killing the boys? That’s not your fault either. They were there egging you on, you tell them. I don’t want you in prison, Sammy. I’m going to need you to get out so that I can figure out this welfare shit. There is a great deal that’s out there that I’m going to miss out on when it comes to getting my fair share.”
“You’ll be just fine. I’m going to try my damnest to get out, don’t get me wrong, but something you might be prepared for is me coming back here being in trouble. I don’t know how long they can keep me, but I’ll only be right here if you need me. And who knows, something might happen that sets me free sometime. You never know. You know they’re building a new jail. I might get lost in the shuffle of them moving me around. You just never know.”
She’d heard that too. Not about him being lost in the shuffle, but that they were building a new jail. She didn’t see anything wrong with the one that they were in, but then she wasn’t up on what sort of rules there were in building one and the new rules in place to house inmates.
The next morning, people were being shuffled out of their cells and onto a big bus. She saw her brother for the first time since being arrested and thought that he looked terrible. He needed a haircut, not to mention he looked like he’d lost about fifty pounds, weight that he could ill afford. When he waved at her, she waved back. Boy oh boy, he looked like a hard wind could knock him over without much in the way of effort.
She was told to be ready that things were going faster than they thought. When she asked about her brother, she wasn’t given any information on what happened at his hearing. She was almost afraid to know, what with him looking so poorly. But by the time five rolled around, she was told she wasn’t going to be able to see the judge until the next morning. Whatever. She knew that she’d be getting out on account of her not having done anything but a bit of trespassing. Weren’t no cause for her being in jail for that all this time.
When the bus brought a bunch of the inmates back, she didn’t see her brother. No amount of asking or threatening would get her any answers, either. As soon as the lights were out, she started yelling down at the end of the lane to get his attention, to no avail. Damn it all to fuck and back, where was he?
The next morning wasn’t getting her any closer to getting answers either. He either got into more trouble and they sent him on to prison or something else had happened to him. There wasn’t any way that she was going to let it go either. She had to know where he was, or there wasn’t going to be any peace for anybody.
Finally, it was her turn, and she asked the judge straight up what had happened to her brother. He looked pissed off for a minute and she didn’t care. It was her only family left, and she wasn’t going to have him tossed away like they do some inmates. He asked her what business it was of hers.
“He’s my brother, and I’m responsible for him. Wherever you put him, I need to know.” The judge shuffled some papers around on his desk, looking for a file or something. “He was in here for supposedly killing his wife. When it was all her fault. After living with him for all those years, she should know not to rile him up more when he was pissed off.” She was told to watch her language. “I won’t. This here is serious business. He’s missing, and I want to know what you did with him. He no more killed Betsey than I did. She harped on him, and that’s what got her killed.”
“I remember him. He also asked to kill off his sons who were present when she was murdered as well. Asked officers of the law to turn their backs so that he could end their lives as well.” She told the judge that was a lie. “A lie? I don’t think so, young lady. I have six witnesses to the fact that he said those very words to them. If not for their aunt, he might well have harmed them in some way.”
“She’s stolen them from me. I’m going to raise them and get the benefits that Betsey had. It’s not fair that she gets them when my brother is the one that knocked Betsey up and got them.” He told her to watch her mouth. “Why should I? They’re gonna be my brats as soon as you get your thumbs out of your butt and turn them over to me. They’re mine to raise.”
The gavel came down quickly, and she jumped a little. “Now you see here. I’m running things today and not you. I’ll say where those boys go. And I have. I’ve given temporary custody to their aunt Mandy.” Georgie told him that he’d better be taking that back, that she’d hate for him to get hurt. “Are you threatening me, missy? If so, there are ways to get you into trouble too. I’ll not stand to be threatened in my own courtroom.”
“Well, then get your head out of your ass and do what’s right. I want them boys to live with me. I didn’t do shit wrong to end up here in the first place. Those people got a burr up their asses like you do and called the cops on me. Trespassing? What kind of crime is that anyway? I should be able to stand and walk where I want to. I pay my taxes, too.” She didn’t. Georgie hadn’t had a job where she got paid above the table since she was sixteen. Working to pay taxes was for the fools that liked getting money back. She just cut out the middleman and got money back for not working at all. She was living the American dream.
“Let’s just see how you like waiting on me to come around again, young lady. I’m remanding you over for the next time I come to town.” He banged his little hammer again, like that was law or something. She was still complaining as they were dragging her out of the room and back onto the bus. And she still had no idea where her brother was.
“He’s been sent to a bigger jail. There is no hope for him getting a trial around here on account of him killing someone around here that the town liked.” She asked the cop what that was supposed to mean. “It means he’s going to be going to prison with the big timers. He should have kept his mouth shut, same as you. Now you’re both in deep water, and there isn’t going to be a thing that either of you two can do about it. Besides that, Miss Wilson had about as full custody as I have of my own children. You people need to keep your mouths closed, and things might well go your way. Not that I see it going your way now, you’ve done messed up. Samuel is going to be spending the rest of his life in prison, and it looks like you’re going to be right there with him.”
Since she didn’t know what to think about that, she did keep her mouth shut. Once she was back at the jail, she was able to get more answers from the others who had been there. They were right in saying that he’d been sent to a bigger jail, more like a prison. And not only did that happen, but he was going to be awaiting a trial for his involvement in not just killing his stupid wife but the attempted murder of his sons and sister-in-law too.
It was just unfair of them to have this sort of thing happen to her brother. He was an all right guy when he wasn’t drinking—she’d tried already and wasn’t able to get any beer into him or herself since being here. More than likely, that was why he’d lost so much weight. He wasn’t getting his nutrition from a can or two with each meal. Heads were going to roll if they didn’t get up off their asses and help them out. What did they do that was so terrible? So, Betsey was dead. It wasn’t like she was an upstanding citizen either. She was on welfare, and that should have given her a bad name, too. People? She just didn’t understand them at all.
When dinner was brought to her, she was told that she had a visitor. Since she didn’t want to miss her food, she opted to sit in her cell and talk to the other person. She was shocked when it was Mandy. But she wasn’t alone. She had some big guy with her. His name was Demitrius Erikson. Whatever the hell that meant.
“I’ve come to tell you that I’m getting married. Soon. And once I am, we’re going to adopt the boys, both Teddy and Martin.” She said that wasn’t going to happen. “Oh, but it is. The judge told me that once I was stable in a relationship with Demi, we could adopt the boys so that they’d have a good and stable home.”
“You mean living in one of those government homes.” She said that Demi had a house that was theirs that they were all four going to live in. “So you’re not going to be taking advantage of the shit that’s out there for you. Are you stupid or what? It’s there, you should be taking as much from the government as you can. I sure would be.”
“No, we’re going to be on our own. The boys are happy and healthy. They don’t have to worry about their father or you anymore, and I hope they grow up to be outstanding citizens. Maybe even president someday.” Georgie told her that she was just sucking up. “To who? I have everything that I need to get by in life. Especially since you and Samuel are going to be going away for a long time.”
“They only got me on trespassing. I don’t think they put people away for that dummy.” She said they were exhuming the bodies of their parents. “Who said they could do something like that? You tell them to stop that right now. They’re dead and buried. There is no reason to be digging them up after all this time.”
“Your reaction makes me think that we should have dug them up sooner. I know that my sister always thought that you guys killed them off. Tell me, Georgie, did you do it all alone or did your brother help you? It would do my heart good to know that both of you were going to get life in prison.” She told her that she’d better be thinking about what she was doing. “Oh, I am. I’m thinking really hard on what I’m doing. I’ll do what it takes to keep you and Samuel out of our lives for the rest of yours.”
“You bitch. You’re going to regret ever meeting me.” She said that she already did. “Good. You go on being regretful all the time.”
That sounded better in her head. It seemed like she was forever having that trouble. Things coming out of her mouth before she had a chance to make sure they didn’t sound stupid. When she laughed, Georgie stood up and slammed her body against the bars. She was a big girl, so slamming her body against them made them shake a little. Good, maybe she’d keep that up to get out of here.
~*~
Demi knew that Mandy was still upset with him. He was at himself, too. But she was at least talking to him, and that was more than he could have hoped for at this time. She was also talking to him about his home and how she’d move back in when things were settled. He didn’t dare ask what settled meant, but he was hoping that he could get her back in the house before Samuel or his sister were free. And that was looking more and more like it wasn’t going to happen anytime soon.
The judge had pulled them aside and told them what they needed to do to adopt Martin and Teddy. It wasn’t a long list, most of it they’d already done. Like establishing a home for the two of them. Getting them into school or some kind of educational structure. Also, to put them in a place, not necessarily a home, but a loving and settled kind of family. His did that for them. Then he suggested that they get on their way to getting married. Mandy didn’t think that was fair. Single people adopted all the time, but he said that since they were already sharing a home, it wouldn’t be that far of a leap to get them to take the next step. She said that she’d have to think about it. So that was where they were now.
“I have to get with that attorney that called here and let him know that Georgie’s reaction was far more than it should have been for her having nothing to do with her parents’ deaths.” Demi asked if she thought that they’d both been killed by them. “I have no reason to doubt his thoughts on that. If they did both kill them, or even just Georgie, then they’ll put her away as well. I know that the judge is one of those three times you lose sort of people. He said that Samuel and Georgie both have spent time in prison before. I just don’t understand how they think that they can get the kids and all the benefits of welfare too. Like they’re entitled to it or something.”
“They more than likely think that they are entitled to it. It’s free to them, and others are getting it, so why shouldn’t they?” She told him that was just crazy. “Are you still going to put the money you get for keeping them in the bank? I think that’s a wonderful idea. They can use it when they head off to college or something.”
“That was my plan. I’m not going to force them to go to college, but I’m going to be very disappointed if they don’t go. They need to make something of themselves for their mom’s sake. She gave up a lot for them to be free to make the decision to go or not.” She had too. She gave up her life to protect them both. “That reminds me. I need to call and get her headstone set up. I’ve been saving for it since I’ve been working for your family. I have enough now.”
“I would have given it to you.” She told him that she had it now, but was grateful for him saying that. “If you need anything else, just let me know. I have enough funds to keep you and the boys in whatever you need.”
“They’re not going to be spoiled. Just putting that out there. They’re going to work for what they want, and I’m not going to be giving them anything and everything that they want. I don’t want them to have it all so that they’re spoiled rotten kids like some rich families are.”
“I agree with you on that. I don’t think that any of us will spoil our kids. We’ve had to do without. I don’t mean that we won’t give them things that they need, especially for school, but I don’t want them to be rotten any more than you do. They’ll get what they need and, like you said, work for the rest.” She nodded, and he could see her mind working on that, too. What sort of things they’d give them to make their lives better, but not too much.
Demi didn’t have anything. Not even a new car. He’d gotten himself a second-hand car when he’d needed it, and he’d not gotten himself any new clothing in years. He wore what he had until it wasn’t even fit for a rag. It was just the way they were. Locke even bought second-hand, too, and he had all kinds of money. But he thought of things now.
They needed a more reliable car to get the boys back and forth to school. Also, the house was about half-filled out, and he wanted them to have their own things. Taking the bunk beds from the little house had been on his list of things to do, just so they’d have more room in their own rooms. Also bikes. The two that they had were rusty and worn, and he was afraid they’d get hurt from them. There were a great many things that he wanted to get for them that were a necessity.
He started a list of things that he wanted to take care of, and he noticed that Mandy had one as well. They needed new backpacks. The ones that they’d been given were in bad shape, and he thought that one of them had been his when he’d been taking classes at the university. They needed one better than he’d had.
“I have things that I can use for the house at the little one if you’d not mind bringing them over.” He asked her what they might be. “Well, one thing that I need is the coffee maker. It arrived just before I left here, and I’ve not set it up. I do need a cup of coffee once in a while, and it’s a really nice one. Also, there is the couch in the living room. It’ll be too small by itself in your living room, but it’s at least something we can sit on. There are lamps, too.”
After they’d gone over their lists, he was impressed at how much she wanted to bring to the big house. There were things that they were going to have to buy, extra towels and linens and such, but they had plenty of time to get some of the things that the boys needed too, like computers. They would need them to do their homework on. A great many of the classes they were going to take were online and could be done at their own pace. He loved that idea, too.
Demi also made sure that she had some credit cards with her name on them. He only had the three major ones and hadn’t felt like getting anything more after Alex had gone through their credit when she’d first come to the family and gotten them narrowed down on what they were spending money on each month. He’d been spending money on two cable accounts in the same home. And one of the others had been paying to have his suits pressed monthly when he didn’t even wear a suit to the tune of five grand per month. They’d been had, and thankfully, she’d been able to get things taken care of for them in less time than he would have thought. He knew that he’d put it off until he forgot about it again.
There had also been a limo service that they were being charged for, which none of them used. They would have driven or walked to most of the things and places that they needed to go. He would be forever grateful to her for looking outside the box for them.
“Mr. Demi? Can we just call you Demi?” He told Teddy that he’d like that too. “I know you’re not our dad on account of you being nice and all but someday we might want to do that too. You’re way nicer than he ever was to us. Aunt Mandy said it would be up to you what we called you. Is that all right?”
“It is. Calling me Mr. Demi makes me feel kind of old.” Martin pointed out that he was old, and he tickled him until he screamed. “What do you call my brothers? Mr. Locke? I think it’s safe to assume that they’re going to be your uncles soon, so you can call them that. I know you call Alex your aunt.”
“Yeah, she said that calling her Miss Alex made her feel like she needs to be having a lot of cats. I love cats, so I don’t understand that.” He told him that he should ask her sometimes. “I will, but she uses big words and I don’t understand her any more than I did before. Aunt Shipley kind of scares us. I don’t think that she’d hurt us, but she always has a gun, and that’s sort of scary to the two of us.” Martin nodded like his head was on a bobble. “Aunt Mandy is the best to us. She sits us down and talks to us about everything. I’m glad. She even explains things so that we understand them too. All kinds of stuff. I asked her for a dog and she sat us down and told us that a dog is a lot of responsibility and that if we wanted one, we was going to have to work for it. That’s what we’re doing. Showing her how we can be responsible human beings before we can be responsible for another being. I love that she called us human beings. Because you know why? Cause that’s what we are. Isn’t that funny?”
“That is funny. And I agree with her about being responsible for something else. That’s a good plan to have.” Martin said they already had a name picked out for it. Snoopy. “That is a great name. I like it.” Mandy had made two kids who hadn’t had a thing in their lives want something to take care of. And he had no doubt that they’d do a good job of it, too, simply because of how they were being raised.
Something that he’d been asking himself since she’d moved back into his house, and he’d realized that he loved her, was why he ever thought that he didn’t. Every day since then, he’d been finding new ways that he loved her, new things that would have him gushing about how wonderful she was. Christ, he loved her with every breath he took.
She made it easy, too, to love her. She was kind, compassionate, and loving. She took care too that those around her had what they needed from her and then some. She was also happy. He loved hearing her singing through the house. While she was outside with the boys or simply hanging out with him. She gave joy wherever she was, and he loved every bit of her.
Tonight they were having make-your-own pizza. And he was looking forward to that more than he was any six-course meal that he could have whipped up. It was the simple things in life that were giving him such joy now, and he didn’t even care who called him a sap.