aaron_the fall of america_chapter_47

Chapter 47

In the morning I was sleeping in a stolen car in the parking lot of Bob's grocery store. I had no intention of seeing Bob so soon. I knew Shelly would be to work before him so that I could talk to her.

But I forgot to wake up. It was Bob's face that was peering in the window that started my day.

"What the hell are you doing here, Eddy?" he asked when I sat up and rolled down the window.

"I thought I came to kill you but I'm not sure if I want to anymore."

"Let me know what you decide but stay away from Shelly, she's my girl now."

Before I had time to think what he meant, I grabbed his head and smashed his face into the door a few times before getting out of the car and putting him in the trunk. He wasn't yet dead. I thought I'd like to talk to Shelly first.

"Eddy!" Shelly bellowed when I went in the front door.

"Are you glad to see me?"

She got up and hugged me.

"Are you back?"

"No. Just for a little visit on my way north. I wanted to see you again if you have time and aren't busy with another man."

"Eddy, you're only been gone a little over a week."

"It seemed longer. Do you still have the keys to my apartment?"

"Yes."

"Can you give them to me and I'll make you a nice super?"

"I'd like that."

"Isn't Pattie working?"

"Yes, but she's covering your job in the morning now."

"Then I'll likely see her as I do some shopping."

I kissed Shelly a little before starting my shopping. I filled the cart with just about anything. At the meat counter I got an assortment of fresh shellfish. There was a woman working behind the counter.

"What happened to the man who worked here?"

"I don't know."

"Okay. Well have a good day."

"You too."

After talking with Pattie in the back room, I went back to see Shelly with all my food.

"How are you going to pay for that?"

"I don't intent to."

"But Bob will be in any minute."

"He can eat me arse."

Shelly responded by giving me a few bags to pack my food.

"Will you come back and get me?"

"Yes, I'll just take these things home, do a couple errands and after a little nap, come and visit with you, maybe pack a couple bags."

"I don't think Bob will like you doing that."

"Fuck him."

"I'd rather not."

"Okay, you won't have too. See you soon."

After I took my groceries up to my apartment and put the perishables in the refrigerator, I walked around the apartment until I came to my bed. I decided just to lay down for a few minutes while I thought what to do with Bob. It was something I had never done, to premeditate a murder. It wasn't so easy. Bob could easily make me furiously angry but to think about how to kill him when he wasn't even talking to me was difficult. I knew if I went and took him somewhere, that I could do it without any trouble. I just needed him to provoke me.

After dosing off a few times, I finally made a decision with little conviction to stick to it.

I drove out to a quiet orange grove not so far away and dragged Bob out of the car and offered him a drink of whiskey. I knew he liked whiskey.

"Drink Bob. If you stop drinking before the bottle is finished I'll break your leg."

He obviously didn't believe me because half way through the bottle I had to break his leg. With a third of the bottle left, I had to break his other leg.

We didn't talk much. I asked him for his car keys, telling him he was in no condition to drive. He was certain he was but when I punched him in the face he gave me his keys.

After he had finished his bottle, I drove out to the road and put Bob behind the wheel. I wedged his leg against the accelerator and with the car pointed down the road and his body over the wheel holding it straight, I knocked the gearshift from neutral to drive. The car took off so fast that I couldn't get the stick out that I had used to knock the gearshift back.

I walked the other way. It didn't matter to me if he died or not. I could try again. I had all the time in the world.

I heard a sound and turned to hitch a ride but the sound was the crashing of Bob and a small truckload of fruit. The truck had tipped and oranges rolled over the road. A man crawled out of the cab and went to look into the remains of the car to see if Bob was alive.

I ended up having to walk to the main road before I could get a ride. A young woman with a beer in her hand picked me up. She offered me one and I drank it as we road into town. After thanking her for the ride, I walked the remaining distance back to see Shelly.

I went in the back way to visit Bob's office before seeing anyone. I searched through his things for entertainment more than anything. I had no idea what I wanted until I saw what looked like it might be Bob's safe. It was a heavy metal box with a brave shiny lock on it. I held the lock in my hand and wondered what I would need to break it. A metal grinder or even a large pair of bolt cutters. It all seemed too much work considering I had no tools. I was about to forget about it when I stood up and put my hands in my pocket and remembered I had Bob's keys. I checked and found one that worked on the lock.

Inside was another little box with a lock on it. I also had a key for that lock. The box contained thousands of dollars. I emptied the box into my pockets, put the lock back on and returned it to the safe. In the safe, I also found some explicit sex books that I looked through. I decided I'd put them in the car in case I had to look at them again and also it would be better if when they found Bob dead, his wife didn't find contraband in his safe.

The rest of the contents of the safe didn't interest me so I closed it up, took the magazines to Bob’s car and went through the front door to see Shelly.

"Do you know what I miss more than anything, here?"

"Hi, Eddy. No. What?"

"Good Rock and Roll music."

"I hope for you there is such a thing and you find it one day."

"You will here it too, one day soon, or I'll come back and take you out of this country."

We talked about music and freedom of speech where you could say what you wanted not just what you were told you wanted. Shelly was interested in the underground organisation and wanted to help. She couldn't remember any government other than the one she grew up with but she was certain it could be better.

Because of the frequency of customers coming through, we kept our talk light. I made myself a little lunch off the shelves and packed a few bags before taking Bobs car and putting it in the underground parking at my apartment.

Shelly and Pattie had mentioned that Bob's car was in the parking lot and Bob never came in but they hadn't bothered to do anything about it. They both told me that they hated him. I wasn't certain if he raped them both but I knew he abused them both.

I took Bob's books up with me to look through once more before having as much sleep as I could get before Shelly came over. I was looking forward to holding Shelly and feeling her love. I was going to try to make it a beautiful evening for her. I wanted her to have fond memories of me.



read on. book_04 chapter_48



by Joanne B. Washington

© 2001 | the jose wombat project