Chapter 19 A Light at the End of the Tunnel
A LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL
The next morning, George went on his usual morning run while Andi was still napping.
He was weaving his way through the small park close to their hotel.
Although ‘park’ was a rather big word for the circuit with a dozen sad-looking oaks and maples and small strips of green interspersed with benches that had seen better days.
Still, it was better than jogging alongside the streets chock-full of morning traffic.
Oh, how he missed their neighborhood back home where each garden was more vibrant than this so-called recreational park.
With Andi, there would never be children.
George was sure of it because his lover’s geschenk was the equivalent of four children, and George had never thought about having more than one to begin with.
Plus, he didn’t even like children that much.
And Andi downright detested them, with the exception of Tyler, who was so much like Andi that George wondered if he even counted as a ‘normal’ child.
Then his mother would chomp on the work partner bit.
She would harp about the gay bit, though she wasn’t homophobic—this was purely from a career point of view—and she would emphasize the mixed-race angle.
And George knew she would be right—was right.
Well, not regarding the work partner thing because they had clearance from their bosses.
On that front, at least, they were safe.
But the other points were valid. Homosexual detectives didn’t have it easy.
The force was still a difficult place for everybody who was different.
As for the mixed-race problem, it amplified the homosexual quality of their relationship.
Nobody would bother to stop and ask if George might be bi or pan—he was by now pretty sure he was pan—or what Andi’s sexual orientation could be.
That remained a mystery. He was demi, definitely, but what else was impossible to tell.
In short, in the eyes of his mother and most of society, their relationship was an accumulation of problematic circumstances without the monetary wealth to shield them from the worst, just waiting to explode in their faces.
And still George couldn’t find it in him to care.
He didn’t know if this was because he simply hadn’t faced the kind of hatred and hostility all these things could bring.
He’d had his fair share of racism, of course, and he had learned to deal with it.
He’d also seen or heard about the aftermath of homophobia, but so far, it hadn’t been a part of his life experience.
It was also entirely possible that Andi had consumed his entire being so wholly that he was ready to fight the world for him.
George chuckled. Who would have thought that a grumpy white detective with more layers than he’d ever encountered and more baggage than one person should have to carry was the one to snatch George?
And without actively trying to. It was beautiful and terrifying and wonderful all in one, just like Andi and his geschenk.
George finished his last round and made his way back to the hotel. He still didn’t know how to deal with his mother, he still hadn’t gotten any idea about their case, and he still wanted to strangle Savalle and DeCapristo.
He had done his morning sport though, which was a positive start to the day.
When he entered their room, he expected Andi to still be asleep, but his partner was upright and talking on the phone, his face a little pinched. Obviously, he wasn’t too keen on that conversation. He waved at George. “Chief Norris? George just came in. Is it okay to put you on speaker?”
Chief Norris? George hadn’t seen that one coming. Norris must have consented because Andi put his cell on a pillow between his feet.
“Good morning, chief.” George went to the wall left of the bed and started stretching his legs.
“Good morning, Detective Donovan. Detective Hayes has just confirmed that you know about Tyler’s latest…
case?” Her hesitation at the end of the sentence made clear how conflicted she still was about her son’s ability.
And in light of what George now knew about her father, he could relate.
It didn’t change the fact that she had treated her son in a shitty way, but he could see how her own experiences with her ghost-talking father had put her on a single track of firm denial.
“Yes. I was there when Tyler called, and since it seemed to be a case, my input was wanted.”
The chief sighed deeply. “It definitely is a case. A very cold case from over fifty years ago but a case.”
“You don’t sound too happy. Has anything new come to light?” George now had his lower right arm pressed against the wall, his body at a right angle to get a good stretch in his shoulder and chest.
“After my husband made sketches following Tyler’s description, Miss Owen was able to find the male via NamUs.
His name was Boyd Winters, and he went missing in August 1976.
Tyler has confirmed his identity, but we still don’t know who the woman is.
Apparently, the ghosts are still not talking, just making random appearances and stressing my son.
” The resentment in her voice was clear, though George wasn’t entirely sure to whom it was directed: the ghosts for bugging Tyler or her son for seeing them in the first place.
“Has Tyler tried to connect with them again?” Andi sounded absolutely pragmatic.
George knew this was his way of dealing with the chief’s attitude in an attempt not to lash out.
His lover’s patience for people who didn’t get how insanely difficult life was for people like Tyler and him was as low as ever.
The chief must have picked up on it because she huffed.
“I’m not angry with Tyler, detective. You can stop being growly. I’m just pissed that I can’t do anything to help.”
Andi took a deep breath. “You can help. Tell him to try and do the meditation exercises I showed him. Now that he has one of their names, maybe he can forge a stronger connection, one where he will get more concrete answers.”
“And if he does?”
“Then you’ll have to dig up some bones, I guess.” Andi didn’t sound as if he were particularly sad about the chief’s predicament.
“And how do I explain this? Do you have any idea how difficult—” the chief stopped, inhaled loudly, then exhaled even louder. “You do, don’t you? I hate this.”
“Welcome to my world,” Andi muttered low enough not to be heard over the phone. Then aloud he said, “The way I see it, it’s the only way to get rid of these ghosts. They have come to Tyler for a specific and important reason, and what can be more important than solving a murder?”
“Not being plagued by the spirits of the murdered?”
If George didn’t know better, he’d say Chief Norris was trying to be humorous. He went down to the ground to do his pushups. No reason to be slacking.
“Maybe talking to Agent Gelman could make this easier. Though I wouldn’t necessarily recommend it.
” Andi sounded cautious, reminding George that his partner’s relationship with the agent was still on shaky ground.
George himself was torn about what to make of Luke.
On the one hand, having the help of somebody who believed him would be good for Tyler, but on the other hand, it could condemn the boy to future services for the offices.
And while Gelman had been adamant about not forcing anybody with a talent, George was sure the office had its tricks to ensure cooperation.
“I’ve been thinking the same, but I’ve decided to try and keep this office out of my son’s life for as long as possible.
” There was a short pause. “I’m going to talk to Tyler again.
I guess you can expect another call from him soon.
” Another pause where they heard Norris’s heavy breathing.
“Thank you, detectives. Bye.” She disconnected so fast, they didn’t get a chance to say anything.
“Wow, do you think she lost a piece of her soul when she thanked us?”
George rolled onto his back and started doing crunches. “Could…puff…be…puff…entirely…possible…puff, puff…if…puff…she had…puff…a soul.”
Andi laughed, a short, dry sound full of gallows humor. “I guess we’ll find out when the devil comes to claim her.”
George rolled onto his back for his twenty-second break. “Are you sure the devil will want her? That woman could give him a run for his money.” He started with the next set.
“At least she’d be occupied.” Andi leaned back on the bed, clearly tired after this interaction with somebody he didn’t like that much to begin with. George kept on doing his crunches.
He was almost finished when his own phone rang on the side table where he had put it when he’d come into the room. Andi looked at the screen and arched his brow. “It’s a number from Spartanburg.”
“Can you get it?”
Andi swiped his thumb across the cell. “Hello, this is Detective Donovan’s cell, Detective Hayes speaking.”
Since he couldn’t hear what the person on the other end was saying, George went on with his training. No reason to stop when he was almost finished.
“Yes, we were there. We had permission from the daughter Rosalie Byrnes.”
That name immediately caught George’s attention. He stopped mid-crunch.
“She insists? Of course we can come over. In say, forty minutes?”
Without waiting for the call to end, George got up and went into the shower. Ten minutes later, he came out freshly washed to find Andi had laid out some clothes for him. With a short peck to his lover’s cheek as a thank you, George got dressed while Andi filled him in.
“That was Paradise Home for the Elderly. Seems Tamika has remembered us and wants to see us. The nurse said she’s agitated, and though she’s not sure what this is about, Tamika is adamant that we come and talk to her. I just hope this will yield some results.”
“Yeah. Me too. We could use a break in this case.”