Chapter 8 #2
Brian turned around and leaned forward. “Judging by the state of his car, he’s been spending a lot of time in it lately.
I suspect that he’s been looking for you and somehow figured out you were staying at Eddie’s.
Then, the other night, he probably saw the neighbor kid come home and trip the motion sensors.
He did the same and used it to lure Eddie out into the garage.
Then he knocked him unconscious on the garage floor and began looking for you.
We have a ton more questions, mostly about why he didn’t kill Eddie, but maybe it was something as simple as he didn’t want to take the time or take a chance on making the noise if he shot him. ”
“I had no idea all of this would happen that night when I called Eddie. Hell, I keep wondering if I should have kept my mouth shut. At least I’d have a job.”
“Hey. My dad used to say that bad things happen when good people do nothing. You did something, and you did what was right. So stop beating yourself up. Eddie is going to be fine, and Kevin will be behind bars one way or another. The department is still working to put all the pieces of the embezzlement and the murder together, but we will.”
Marty just wanted all of this to be over. He wished that Kevin would confess and lay everything out the way they did on television, but that was probably too much to hope for. “Thank you and the guys for everything.”
“You did the heavy lifting and made sure we had our suspect. It’s we who should be thanking you.” Brian stood and patted him on the shoulder as Eddie returned to the room.
“Does he still have a brain?” Marty quipped.
“Har, har,” Eddie said as the orderly slid the bed back into place.
“Did everything go okay?” He took Eddie’s hand once again, sitting next to the bed.
“I’m fine. It didn’t take long, and they put me through the MRI machine. I just closed my eyes and let it do its thing.”
“I suppose we have to wait for the doctor now,” Marty said.
“I’m going to head out and get a handle on all the paperwork. Marty, I’ll need you to come in soon to make a statement for our case files.”
“Okay. I’ll come in tomorrow,” Marty said, and said goodbye, not wanting to release Eddie’s hand. He sat back and closed his eyes, finally feeling more like himself than he had in a while.
“It’s over. I know it is. You got the guy who was following you, and I’m sure we got the man who shot your boss.” Eddie’s phone dinged, and he unlocked it and handed it to Marty. “My eyes are still a little blurry. They said that will pass.”
“It’s a message from Davis. They’re still running the DNA. They got a partial print. It was definitely Kevin in Bryce’s office.” Marty lowered the phone. “Where did you get the print?”
“Off the baseball on your boss’s desk. Apparently it was too much of a temptation not to touch.”
“My only question is how can you be sure it’s from when he killed him as opposed to the time I saw him leaving the office? You know a defense attorney is going to attack that in a huge way.”
Eddie leaned forward. “When did your boss get that particular baseball? We went through everything about him, and your boss has a real weakness for that sort of thing. And it seems that particular ball was delivered to him at home the day before he died. He took it into the office that morning and replaced the one he had on that stand. So, we know that if Kevin’s DNA was on it, then he handled it the very day Bryce was killed.
We found the old baseball in a plastic box in his lower desk drawer.
We were also able to validate the ball and timing from the company he bought it from. ”
“Kevin is in custody, and all we need now is for you to feel better so you can come home. That’s all I want at this point.” It felt anticlimactic in a way, and yet he was so glad this was truly over.
They moved Eddie to a private room an hour or so later.
Marty stayed with him, sleeping in the chair next to the bed for the night.
His back ached when he woke in the morning, but that hardly mattered.
Eddie looked better, his eyes were brighter, and he sat up with a smile when they brought in something to eat.
“What about you?” Eddie asked.
“I’ll go down and get something once we see the doctor, and we know what’s going on.” He figured he’d bring the truck around when they were ready to discharge Eddie.
“Has there been any news about your job?” Eddie asked.
“No. But I’m assuming that it’s gone. I have to.
The boss is behind bars, and it’s going to take months to get things straightened out, if it’s even possible.
Nope. I need to move on and find a place to work that’s going to make me happy.
And the first thing on my list is to talk to your captain and chief to see what they might have to offer. ”
“Good.” Eddie turned his head toward him and took his hand. “You make me happy.”
Marty grinned. “And you showed me that I deserve to be happy. I guess I never really understood that, or what it felt like. I guess I’ve filled my life with second-best things up until now.”
“Well, that’s over.”
“Yup. I’m only going to settle for the best.” He met Eddie’s gaze and languished in it.
Someone knocked on the door frame. “Am I interrupting?” the doctor asked with a slight smile.
“Just our pledges of undying devotion,” Eddie said with a smirk, and Marty rolled his eyes.
“Don’t listen to him,” Marty said gently as the doctor shone a light in Eddie’s eyes and spoke to him about how he felt.
“No lingering headache?”
“Nope. Actually, the only thing I am is tired. I ate a little and don’t feel sick or anything. I just want to go home.”
“Good. We’ll have you stay until this afternoon just in case.” He made notes on the computer in the room and then said goodbye and left.
“Okay, where were we?” Eddie asked once he was gone.
“You told the doctor you were expressing your undying devotion. I think you should get on with it.” Marty snickered, kidding him, but Eddie took his hand.
“Marty, I don’t want to be without you again.
You make me happy. I was stupid to leave you before, and I’m not going to do it again.
You’re kind, thoughtful, honest, and brave as all hell, and I want you in my life.
” He tugged Marty closer. “I’ve loved you for years.
I loved you when I didn’t have a right to, and I still do. ”
Marty swallowed hard. “God, you took all the best stuff.” He leaned forward. “So, I’ll just say I love you too.” Sometimes the simplest thing was the best.
Later, Marty got Eddie home and into bed.
He tried to fuss around the house, but Marty was having none of it.
He thought of moving the television from the living room into the bedroom, but the thing was way too damned big.
It almost took up the entire wall. If he didn’t know better, he’d have thought Eddie was compensating for something, but in truth, he had nothing to make up for—he just liked a big television.
Instead, Marty placed a laptop at the end of the bed so Eddie could see it and gave him a mouse so he could stay still, relax, and pass the time.
“We can watch Heartstoppers if you want,” Marty suggested.
“What’s that?” Eddie asked, and Marty found it on Netflix.
“It’s set in a British secondary school, and it’s about two boys who fall in love.” He settled next to Eddie. “It’s beautiful, and it’s the kind of experience that every gay kid wished they could have had.” He took Eddie’s hand and started the first episode.
Marty wiped his eyes as the episodes continued, and he found himself cheering inwardly at the first kiss, knowing the kind of courage it took to take that chance.
“Do you remember our first kiss?” Eddie asked.
“Yeah. It was in your dorm room. You kissed me, and your roommate came in.” Marty smiled. “You pulled me to you, kissed me again, and your roommate wolf whistled, which drew half the dorm.” He rolled his eyes. “You never did back down from anything. That’s how I knew you truly cared.”
“I always did. Even when I was far away, I found myself looking for you in crowds.” Eddie sighed, and Marty was about to lean in for a kiss before starting the next episode when someone knocked on the door. Marty answered it and let Brian and Kerry, along with the boys, inside.
“They wanted to see that Uncle Eddie was okay,” Kerry explained.
“Of course. Uncle Eddie hurt his head, so you can’t talk too loud,” he said.
Phillip nodded seriously. “I drawed him a picture.”
Marty smiled at him. “He’s going to love it.” He led them to the bedroom. Eddie was trying to get out of bed, and Marty glared at him until he lay down once more.
“Hi, guys,” Eddie said. Phillip climbed up on the bed and sat next to Eddie, giving him the drawing.
“I made this for you,” he said in a whisper. “It’s you and Mr. Marty for when you get married like Uncle Daddy and Papa Kerry are gonna.”
Eddie grinned. “You’re going to make it official?” He took Brian and Kerry’s hands. “That’s so wonderful.”
“We were wondering if you’d perform the ceremony. Phillip is going to stand up with me, and Henry will stand up for him. But we’d like you to perform it in uniform,” Brian said.
“I’d be honored,” Eddie said.
Marty turned away to wipe his eyes.
“Are you crying?” Phillip asked. Marty was about to say no, but it seemed Phillip was asking Eddie. “Are you sad?
“No, I’m not sad,” Eddie said, blinking.
“People cry because they’re happy sometimes,” Henry explained in that wiser, big-brother way before coming around, getting on the bed, and lying on the other side of Eddie.
“Is there other news?” Marty asked.
“Yes, and it’s all good. The bad guy tried to bargain, but the DA isn’t having it.
We were able to find the passwords on your boss’s computer and transferred all the remaining cash back.
Since we can now prove it was gotten through illegal means, we’ve confiscated all of it.
The bad guy was denied bail, so he’s going to be locked up for a very long time. ”
Kerry came around and hugged him. “I know exactly how you’re feeling,” he whispered. “And it’s truly over.”
It was. Except for the fact that he had no job, it was over, and he—no… they—could move forward with their lives.
Kerry released him. “Boys, say goodbye to Uncle Eddie. He needs his rest. You’ll see him soon, I promise.”
“Can we bring Pebbles next time? He misses him too,” Henry asked.
“I’ll be better in a few days, and then I’ll come see all of you and Pebbles too. Okay?” Eddie said, and each of the boys hugged him before climbing down off the bed. Kerry guided them out of the room while Brian stayed behind.
“What else is there?”
“Haver’s board met and declared bankruptcy,” Brian told him.
“Not a surprise,” Marty said.
“I suspect they’ll be getting touch with you about working with the attorney for the creditors to help manage the liquidation.
That will keep you busy for months, and by then, you should be able to get another job.
Also, there going to be an opening in the department if you’re interested.
It should be posted soon.” So it sounded like something was definitely happening in the department. That was good.
“Thanks, Brian.”
“I had little to do with it.” He smiled and left the bedroom. Marty showed them out and locked the doors behind them.
“It looks like you’re going to be busy,” Eddie said.
“As long as they ask me to help.”
“They will.” Eddie coaxed him onto the bed and put an arm around him. “Now, where were we?”
“We were about to watch another episode,” Marty told him, cheekily.
Eddie swallowed and shook his head. “I didn’t mean that, sweetheart.” He drew Marty closer and kissed him.