Slow Dance in Purgatory

“Johnny...I don’t know if you know this, but your mom got married a few years after” - how did she put this – “after Billy died. She married the police chief. His name was Bailey, I think. They looked happy in their picture…”

Johnny shook his head slowly, digesting her words. He seemed shocked at the news, and Maggie cringed inwardly, wondering if she’d made a terrible blunder.

“Married? Married…that’s good, right?” He questioned feebly, and Maggie nodded her head eagerly, her eyes never leaving his face.

“Clark Bailey? Well I’ll be…. That’s good…Chief Bailey was a good guy...“

Johnny’s voice broke, and he walked several paces and then stopped. Leaning back against the wall at the end of the aisle, he sank down to the floor, as if his legs could no longer hold him. He dropped his head into his hands, running his fingers through his hair in vexation and finally fisting them there. Maggie was unsure of what to do. His posture screamed “leave me alone,” but he had been left alone for far too long. She moved to where he sat and sank down on the floor next to him. She waited quietly with him for some time, resting her hand on his knee, letting him know she was there. He didn’t lift his head, but when he finally spoke his voice was thick with emotion.

“I’ve always wondered what happened to her. How did you know she married Chief Bailey?”

“When you saved me from falling I thought it was you, but I just couldn’t believe it. I thought if I could find a picture of you I would know for sure, so I went to the city library. They have newspapers from the last 100 years, all catalogued on a computer. There were articles, dozens of them, from when the tragedy occurred. They told the story – at least as much of the story as anyone knew. That’s where I found your picture, and when I saw it…I recognized you. There were other pictures and more articles, some of them pretty wild. The wedding announcement came much later, but I was happy for your mom. I thought you should know that your mother had someone to love her and take care of her, after all.”

Johnny nodded his drooping head and then lifted it, regarding her soberly, his eyes bright with unexpressed grief.

“Thank you, Maggie.”

“You’re welcome,” Maggie whispered. The silence in the library was broken by a rattling at the library door. Maggie rose to her feet nervously, and Johnny perked up – listening intently. After a second, he sighed and met her gaze. He stood and tucked her glasses back into her front pocket.

“Gus is looking for you. He’s worried because he can’t find Shad, either.”

“You can tell what he’s thinking?” Maggie said, startled.

“No,” Johnny shook his head. “Strong emotion puts off a lot of energy, though, and some emotion is easy to interpret.”

“I better go.” Maggie turned to leave but hesitated briefly.

“Go on now; I’ll see you soon.”

“Promise?”

“Promise.”





9


“TO KNOW HIM IS TO LOVE HIM”

Teddy Bears - 1958





Friday morning, Maggie woke to an actual natural disaster, not one of the ghostly variety – though disaster might be too strong a word. Heavy winds had rocked Honeyville over night, knocking down a few trees and power lines and spreading branches, loose shingles and debris far and wide. To make matters worse, the rain hadn’t let up, and the streets were wet and treacherous.

School had been called off, and Maggie considered rolling over and grabbing a few extra Z’s. Unfortunately, Aunt Irene had other plans. The Cadillac was acting up, and she had some shopping to do. Maggie was informed she was coming along.

An hour later they were creeping down Main Street with a few other cars, the windshield wipers frantically sweeping rain from the Caddie’s broad window. The Cadillac chugged and lurched a little, and Irene moaned in response.

“Hang in there, Belle,” Aunt Irene worried, patting the dash.

“Belle?” Maggie tried not to laugh.

“That’s what I call her because she’s the ‘Belle’ of the ball. Always has been, always will be.” Irene patted the dash again, and the Cadillac sputtered sickly. “Not much further, Belle. Gene’s is right around the corner!” Irene urged the car down one more block and made a shaky right into the parking lot of an old red brick building with two grey service bays. A big sign featured a pretty blond hanging out the window of a classic car in aquamarine blue. Big bubble letters spelled out ‘Gene’s Auto Body’ across the bottom. A few cars waited patiently for their owners, and a Neon Chevrolet sign buzzed and flickered in the front window. The power must be back on. This had to be the same place Johnny had worked once upon a time, but surely Gene wasn’t still around.

“This is where Johnny worked?” Maggie asked out loud, and then wished she could take it back.

Aunt Irene looked at her blankly.

“Uh, didn’t Gus say that Johnny stole a gun out of a car when he was working at Gene’s?” Maggie couldn’t remember if he had, but she hoped Aunt Irene didn’t remember either.

“Johnny who, dear?” Irene was completely lost.

“Johnny Kinross. Remember?”