Most often people talk about being in the right place at the right time. Maybe they achieved a beautiful photo of a sunrise, or the antics of children or animals. Maybe they found something someone lost and received a big reward when it was returned. But how often do they talk about being in the wrong place at the right time? If they do, it’s often about the death of someone or maybe witnessing a crime. And if this is the case, they are sad or horrified. Walter Williams often is in the wrong place at the right time, though his reaction to the incidents he encounters is much different than anyone would expect. And, life-changing.

As everyone left the conference room, Kathy continued holding onto her mom, Terry doing the same with Kathy, as they started walking down the hallway to the office doors. Peter pulled out his cell phone and dialed Shelby’s number, telling him what was happening when Shelby answered his phone. “I’m not surprised, Peter,” Shelby told him, “Kathy and I have been gently telling her she needed to open up during our meeting with Jenny and Beverly, but she kept telling us she was fine.” Then he chuckled, “I guess now we know where Walter got his ‘up and at ‘em’ attitude after encountering a situation. I’ll let everyone here know I’m leaving and meet everyone at the hospital.”

Margot watched as a distraught Terry, holding onto a very concerned Kathy, walked by her desk, Kathy acknowledging Margot as they passed. The two were followed by Jenny, who was followed by Bobbie and Robert. Peter stopped at Margot’s desk and told her, “Margot, I’m going to the hospital with Terry and Kathy. Terry popped her cork one too many times, and Jenny’s putting her in the hospital for a few days, hopefully so Jenny and the hospital psychologist can learn why she gets so wound up lately. So, if you would, make sure everything is locked up before you leave. Or kick out those hanging around.” He smiled when he said the last part, he knew some of the kids would come and talk with her, Tina, or one of the others in the office. They all acted as unofficial counselors.

Kathy helped guide Terry to Jenny’s car, Peter and Marge would take his own car to the hospital; they’d figure out something with Terry’s car later. Jenny opened the back door of her car, waiting until Terry and Kathy were inside before closing the door, then going around to the driver’s side and getting into the driver’s side of the car. As Jenny backed out of the parking space, she saw Terry had her head on Kathy’s shoulder, and the two were holding each other. Terry didn’t see the tears slowly sliding down Kathy’s cheeks, or her trembling lips. No one said a word all the way to the hospital, or when they’d arrived. Jenny parked her car, Peter pulling in beside her. After the five got out of the cars, and started walking to the hospital entrance, it took Terry only a moment to see Shelby standing in front of the hospital entrance. She let go of Kathy and almost ran to Shelby, embracing him as the rock he’d become for her all the years they’d been married. Kathy watched her parents show a love for each other she’d seen her entire life. She caught up with them, put her arm around her mom again, and the three followed Jenny into the hospital and to the floor for the psych ward. Marge and Kathy had to wait in the waiting room, as Shelby filled out the necessary paperwork, while Jenny took Terry to the room which would be her’s for as long as Jenny deemed necessary. Terry remembered the two nurses who’d been with Kathy, and chuckled when they handed her the same type gown to put on. Terry went into the bathroom, changed into the gown, then gave her clothing to the nurses. Terry’s clothing was neatly folded before being put into a plastic bag, which left with the nurses as they left Terry with Jenny.

Jenny led Terry over to the bed, had her sit down on the bed, then told her, “The usual suspects will be visiting you this evening. Vampires, a quack who’ll be giving you a complete physical, and I mean a COMPLETE physical, you’ll get your usual last meal before you’re put before the firing squad, and you’ll be allowed to say goodbye to your husband and child before the prison closes its gates for the evening. Any questions?” Terry laughed before telling Jenny, “You wait and see if I invite you to my wedding. You’d probably want to examine everyone there.” Jenny banterted back, “Good, I wouldn’t come anyway. You already have one excellent husband, you don’t need another one. Plus, you have an adorable daughter.” Then Jenny got serious, telling Terry, “We’re going to take blood samples to check all of your body’s chemical and enzyme levels. Marsha will be coming up to give you a complete physical, it’s been a while for you, hasn’t it.” Terry nodded before Jenny continued. “Your evening meal will be smuggled into the hospital, the last thing I want is for you trying to escape after you taste the hospital food. After Shelby gets all the paperwork sorted out, I’ll bring him and the girls back and you can have them for a while. Then I’d like you, me, and Beverly to chat a little bit this evening before you go to sleep. And you will go to sleep because you’ll be given something to help you go to sleep. Terry, whether you see it or not, you have a lot of people worried about you. You have five who love the hell out of you.” Terry gave Jenny a quizzical look before Jenny said, “Tina.” Jenny then told Terry she’d be right back and left Terry in her room with her thoughts. Thoughts which were running around in her head like six-year-olds at a birthday party. Thoughts which had a core but couldn’t be seen at the moment. Thoughts which needed prioritized and shifted through. Thoughts which Terry needed to come to grips with. It wasn’t long before Beverly came into Terry’s room, followed by Shelby, Marge, and Kathy. It was hard to do, but the three managed to all hug Terry at the same time. Jenny brought over the box of tissues sitting on the chest of drawers in the room.

A short time later Peter came into Terry’s room, guided there by one of the nurses. Terry happened to look up and spotted Peter standing near the door, tears falling from his eyes, his lips trembling, and his hands crossed together at his stomach. He looked much like he did when he heard their parents had been killed in that car accident. Terry told her group, “Please, let me get up. It’s important.” The three moved back as Terry stood and walked over to Peter, who she took into a hug and let him cry on her shoulder. It’s the same thing he did that day too.

When Peter could speak, he told Terry, “I hate to see you in here, but you’ve kept things bottled up for too long. You kept our parents’ deaths there, you kept how you found me that day there, and you’ve been keeping Walter into Kathy there. You need to tell them everything, EVERYTHING, you understand? And believe me when I say I saw how you having to become my parent affected you during that time. That’s when you started packing everything away in your private box, and passed that ability on to Walter. It’s what almost caused us to lose Kathy, because she didn’t know how to share. Tell them everything, please?”

Another set of arms encircled Terry and Peter, each receiving a kiss on the cheek. “We’re going to get through this, you two. I love both of you very much.” Terry and Peter looked at the new person with them and saw it was Tina, who had a sad look in her eyes but a smile on her face. “Both of you have stories to tell, stories you’ve kept to yourselves for far too long.” She then looked directly at Peter and said, “And Terry isn’t the only one who’s buried his feelings in his own private vault. I think it’d do you good to visit a certain lady while you’re at school. Wouldn’t you agree it’s time all of you stopped storing all of your memories in your vaults? Treasured ones, sure. But not the ones that threaten to rule your lives if they escape confinement. And because of recent events, some of those memories you’ve locked away have escaped, and are at this moment causing all of you loads of grief. My sweet ones, these two women,” and she nodded her head towards Beverly and Jenny, “are two of the most trusted in the profession in this area. They won’t condemn you for anything you tell them. They won’t make you feel terrible about yourself because of what you tell them. They are compassionate and will walk you through a process that will help you feel better about yourselves in the end. I know, I’ve had to use their services several times in the last few years.”

Tina let go of Terry and Peter and said, “And now, if you’ll give me a minute,” and she walked back out into the hall before returning with several bags, “it’s dinner time.” And she held up the bags for everyone to see.

A nurse came into Terry’s room after a cheer emanated from the room. She took one look at the various items sitting on the table, snorted, turned, and left the room. No one heard her say, as she walked back down the hall, “Lucky stiffs.”

Once everyone had finished eating, Beverly broke the news that it was time the family group left so she, Jenny, and Marsha, who had just come into the room, could get down to business with Terry. Beverly walked Peter and Shelby out of the room, stopping in the hall with them, telling both, “We’ll keep in touch. Not much is going to happen the rest of the evening, it will start in earnest tomorrow. Now both of you understand something. Neither Jenny or I will be able to get into details with either of you. If Terry wants to tell you anything that will be her decision. Don’t press her for information, give her time and space. She’s not a China Doll, but she’s awfully close to it right now. As it stands right now, she’ll be with us for a couple of days, I think it will take that long for her to get past her built-in defenses. It’s something similar we experienced with Kathy. I’ll let you both know something tomorrow evening, okay?” Both men nodded their heads, hugged her, thanked her, turned and followed the girls down the hallway. Neither man had to ask the other the questions about Terry they both were thinking about, they knew the answers.

One question both men didn’t know the answer to was how the girls would get to school and back home. As if that thought had been projected around open space, Shelby’s cell phone rang, it was Dorothy, Marge’s mom.

“Hello, Dorothy. How are you doing?” He wasn’t prepared for Dorothy’s response, but grateful anyway.

“I’ll come straight to the point, Shelby. The girls will stay with Tom and me while Terry gets her head screwed back on. I know what time you normally leave for the office, and that’s way too early for the girls to be at school. OUTSIDE, by themselves. I’ll take no arguments from you or your brother-in-law, it’s a done deal, so says Kathy and Marge!”

All Shelby could say was, “Um, Dorothy, could you hold on for a moment?” When she told him she could, he looked to where Marge and Kathy were standing, smiles on both of their faces.

Kathy saw the look of displeasure on her father’s face, and told him, “Yes, daddy, Marge and I talked it over. With you worrying about mom, and us needing to get to school so we could walk safely into school, Marge called her mom and asked if she would watch after us while you concentrated on being there for mom.”

Peter finally caught on to what the call was about, and softly told Shelby, “Damn, Shelby, she’s more concerned about you and Terry than herself. That’s a heck of a daughter you got there.” Shelby cleared his throat and replied, “Yesh, she is. She even surprises me sometimes.”

Shelby put his phone to his ear again, and told Dorothy, “Uh, Dorothy, seems like I’ve been out voted by you ladies. And I want to thank you for doing this for us. Terry would have my head on a pike in the front yard if I left those two alone at school before it opened. I’ll take Kathy home to get some things then bring them by. Okay?”

Dorothy was nodding her head at the other end of the phone, but told Shelby, “That will be fine, Shelby. And you’re to come over for dinner until they spring Terry. Shelby, in all honesty, you and Terry have done so much for Marge this is the least Tom and I could do for you two. Right now you need to be concentrating on your wife, and let us deal with the girls. After all, I suspect we’ll become in-laws one day.” Dorothy said her goodbyes, then cut the connection.

Shelby walked over where the girls were standing, pulled them both into a hug, telling them, “If you two don’t beat all.” Both Marge and Kathy felt drops of water hit their blouses.

Before Peter and Shelby drove their separate ways, it was arranged for Shelby to meet Peter at the high school, after dropping the girls off with Dorothy, so Peter could drive Terry’s car home. Shelby would then take Peter back to the high school so he could pick up his car to drive home. What should have taken about an hour to complete, took a bit over two hours, as both men sat in the high school parking lot and talked, Peter telling Shelby his story after his parents were killed.

Meanwhile, back in Terry’s psych ward room, Beverly walked over to the door, slid the marker mounted on the door from ‘open’ to ‘do not disturb’ then shut the door. Then it was Marsha’s turn as she told Terry, “Okay, lady, strip.” Terry gave Marsha ‘the look’ but was told, “Sorry, Terry, that look doesn’t work on me. I looked through what medical records anyone has on you and it’s been quite some time since you had a complete physical. So, Strip. Or the three of us will help you reveal your outer beauty.” Jenny and Beverly had no trouble seeing how frosty Terry reacted by being told to do something she didn’t want to do, and maybe another reason why she becomes easily upset. It would be something they’d explore with Terry tomorrow.

Marsha had spoken to Beverly before either had come to visit Terry, agreeing not to use kid gloves with Terry. Both had seen Terry when she was upset, and knew a clam could be opened easier than Terry when she was upset. “Come on, girl. Strip. It’s only us women in this room, and you are going to get a physical with or without your cooperation.” She then walked over to Terry, who was pouting like a five-year-old child who couldn’t have a cookie instead of broccoli, sat down on the bed next to her, and told her, “Terry, I’m not going to pretend I know how you’re feeling at this moment. I’m not going to pretend I know how you feel every time something happens and Kathy’s involved, maybe one day I will. But I can see how wound up you are and it isn’t healthy. Before these two headhunters,” and she pointed to Beverly and Jenny, “have a crack at you, they need to know there’s nothing physically wrong under the hood. And that’s where I come in.” Marsha got off the bed, took Terry’s hand, pulled her off the bed and told her, “So, strip, Terry.” Terry gave Marsha a weak smile, nodded, then pulled the gown up over her head, then pulled down and stepped out of her panties. It was Beverly who said, “Hub-ba hub-ba,” followed by Jenny’s “No wonder Shelby walks around with a smile on his face. And a hard on in his pants. Girlfriend, you look spectacular.” Terry seldom undressed in front of other women because the circumstances never arose, so she blushed at the compliments paid to her before saying, “Too bad you ladies won’t get the opportunity to see what I get stuck with.” Jenny, Beverly, and Marsha all looked at each other for a minute, before getting the double entendre Terry had just made. The three slowly turned to look at Terry, who had that innocent school girl look on her face, before all four burst out laughing.

When Marsha could finally speak, she told Terry, “Gads, woman, you’re terrible.” She chuckled before having Terry sit back on the bed and began her cursory exam of Terry. Once Terry’s ears, eyes, nose, and throat were examined, Marsha then palpated under Terry’s jaw, checking to see if there were any swollen glands or other abnormalities. She then listened to Terry’s heart, her lungs, even thumbing Terry’s back, listening for any unusual sounds. Masha then palpated Terry’s breasts, checking for any unusual lumps or overly sensitive areas. She tested Terry’s reflexes, inspected her hands and feet, then she surprised Terry by going to the foot of the bed and lifting up two stirrups which had rested down near the legs of the bed. Marsha looked at Terry and told her, “You’ve been here before and know the drill, so assume the position.” Terry stuck her tongue out at Marsha before lying down at the foot of the bed and putting her feet into the stirrups.

Beverly and Jenny chuckled when they heard, “DAMN, that thing is cold,” coming from Terry. They nearly lost it completely when Terry asked, “Do you doctors keep that thing cold on purpose, or just to test other reflexes.” And Marsha replied with, “No, we keep it cold so you won’t get aroused while we play with you.” While the two psychologists held it together, Terry lost it completely, and started laughing a deep throaty laugh, which ended with Terry crying. Marsha took Terry’s legs out of the stirrups, went around and sat on the bed next to Terry, picking her up and cradling her as she cried. “It’s okay, Terry. It’s going to be okay,” she told Terry as she held her. Beverly and Jenny watched the smirk form on Marsha’s lips, then heard her say, “Terry, everything looks good, you’re a healthy woman. Your pelvic exam looks good, so you can continue to be stuck on Shelby.” It took a moment for Terry, still crying, to stop crying, look at Marsha through tear laden eyes, and seeing the innocent look on her face, tell her in a choked up voice, “Oh gawd. Now who’s terrible?” Marsha had been just holding Terry as she cried. Now both women were holding each other, a bond forming that would last for years to come. Then Marsha told Terry, “Come on, let’s get you dressed then get your face washed.”

Marsha helped Terry get off the bed, handed Terry’s panties to her, then her gown. She then went into the bathroom with Terry and stayed with her in case Terry needed any help. While the two women were in the bathroom, Jenny told Beverly in a low voice, “I think it’s fair to say those two will be close friends for some time to come. Something that girl needs. She’s so like Kathy, all balled up inside.” Beverly nodded her head and replied, “But I don’t think she’ll be as quick to open up as Kathy was during her stay. She’s hiding something, something that’s really affected her up to this point in her life.” Jenny just nodded.

After Terry and Marsha came out of the bathroom, Beverly opened the door, slid the slide to show ‘open’ on the plate, then the four women sat and chatted. It wasn’t long before they heard a knock on the door, turned to look, and saw a tech standing there in the doorway. “Um, doctor Taylor. I’m here to get the blood samples you wanted,” the young woman said. Marsha looked at her watch and saw it was two and a half hours after Terry ate, so would be a good time to get the samples. “Okay, Sandra. Here’s the victim, do your worst,” and Marsha had pointed to Terry. Terry had slowly turned her head so she was looking at Marsha when she said, “You’re loving this, aren’t you. Just remember, I’ll know where you live.” Marsha laughed, nodded her head, then said, “Oh, girlfriend, you know I am.” Sandra came over where Terry was sitting, set her carrying case down, took out an elastic band and wrapped it around Terry’s upper arm, just above her elbow. She took an alcohol swab and swabbed the area just below Terry’s elbow on the inside of her forearm, then, “OUCH, damn that hurt,” Terry cried, as Sandra inserted the needle into the vein in Terry’s arm. Sandra filled one tube, switched to another and filled that one, before removing the needle from Terry’s arm. She then taped a gauze pad over the puncture, removing the elastic band and telling Terry to leave it on for about an hour, before picking up her equipment and leaving the room.

By now, it was around nine-thirty in the evening, and time, Marsha thought, for Terry to get some much needed sleep. It wasn’t long before a nurse came into the room, right at nine-thirty, and proceeded to get a glass of water from the bathroom, before giving a pill to Terry. Terry held the pill in her hand, a dubious look on her face as she looked at Marsha. All Marsha said was, “It’ll help you sleep. Even I can see how tired you are right this minute, and I don’t want you tossing and turning, worrying about something instead of sleeping. So be a big girl and take the pill.” Once again Terry stuck her tongue out at Marsha, before popping the pill in her mouth, swallowing it before drinking the glass of water to wash the pill down. The nurse helped Terry get into bed, asked if she needed anything, seeing a smirk form on Terry’s lips, and hearing Marsha say, “Don’t say it,” before she left the room. It was Beverly who then told Terry, “Breakfast is at eight, then we get to work on your problem. Keep in mind, Terry, it’s all up to you how long to visit us here. So being completely open with Jenny and myself will be in your favor.”

Jenny and Beverly left the room, while Marsha sat with Terry until the sedative started taking effect. They chatted about the girls, their relationship, Terry’s concerns for their future, and Shelby. Marsha had a feeling Terry never heard her name mentioned, because it wasn’t long before Terry’s eyelids started drooping. Marsha leaned down, kissed Terry on the forehead, and wished her a good night’s sleep. Terry never noticed when Marsha left the room, or when the lights were turned off, or when the door was partially closed. Terry didn’t remember anything until a nurse was gently shaking her, telling her it was time for breakfast. Terry told the nurse, holding the tray of food, that breakfast could wait for a few moments, as Terry got out of bed and made her way to the bathroom. It was a strange place for Terry to make a realization, but she realized how rested she felt. And as she thought, in those first moments of waking, she hadn’t had one single nightmare or dream. Terry was still chewing on that particular thought, as she came out of the bathroom. The nurse had sat the tray of food on the small table in the room, and Terry, still mulling over the dreamless night, sat down and mechanically ate her breakfast. This was something she’d have to ask Beverly and Jenny about. It was nine in the morning when Beverly and Jenny came into Terry’s room, Jenny moving the slider until ‘Do Not Disturb’ was displayed. The work on Terry’s mind had begun.

Terry sat on the bed with her legs hanging over the edge, and Beverly and Jenny pulled two of the six chairs in the room over to her bed. Jenny started off by asking, “Do you have any questions before Beverly and I start peeling your brain apart?” They watched Terry as she formed her words, then heard, “I don’t remember dreaming or having any nightmares. Why? Was it because of the sedative I was given?”

“Yes it was,” Beverly said. “You see Terry, we wanted you fresh this morning, not bothered by any dreams or nightmares, something we’ll talk about, so I had you given a sedative which shut down your thinking process. Most people, when they sleep, are constantly thinking about this or that, which can precipitate dreams or nightmares. And because they don’t have a sound sleep, they’re draggy the next morning. You mentioned nightmares. What are they about? Do you have them often? Is there a pattern to them?”

Both women watched as Terry scooted back from the edge of the bed, then brought her legs up until they were tucked into her chest. They both also saw the look of despair on Terry’s face, the look of helplessness. Terry then wiped her eyes with the back of her hands, but remained silent. Jenny had an idea what Terry’s nightmares were about, and decided it was time Terry got it out into the open. “Terry, Peter told me about the accident and what almost happened to him, but I don’t think Beverly has heard the entire story. I think it’s time you told it from your perspective. I think it’s time you face the demon which has been haunting you since the death of your parents.” Jenny stopped talking and watched Terry go through a series of emotions, again wiping her eyes with the back of her hands.

Both women had discussed how to approach Terry, how to get her to open up. How to get Terry to finally release everything she’d been pushing down all these years. And because Terry was a strong willed woman, they both felt the direct approach was best. There’d be no kid gloves, no beating around the bush. They were going to confront Terry and force her to face what she’d been afraid to face since the death of their parents. Her emotions.

It seemed an eternity before Terry began to speak. And when she did, her voice was broken with emotions as she spoke. “I...um...don’t remember where mom and dad were going, but according to the police report, they were at a controlled intersection and had stopped for a red light. When the light turned green dad started the car into the intersection. Coming from their left was a semi truck hauling a heavy load, and coming to the red light for his lane. According to the driver’s report, he downshifted and stepped on the brakes, only to realize the air brakes hadn’t engaged. He downshifted again and kept pumping the brake pedal, but couldn’t get the air brakes to work. The load he was hauling gave the truck so much interia that it was impossible to stop the truck without brakes. He downshifted a third time, still pumping the brakes, but shot into the intersection. Mom and dad were right in the truck’s path in the intersection, and the truck drove right over the top of the car, killing them instantly. When the investigators inspected the brakes on that semi, they found the linkage from the brake pedal had been sawed almost all the way through. They figured the brakes would have worked for a time until that linkage finally broke where it had been sawed.”

Terry paused to clear her throat, take a drink of water, and wipe her eyes again, before going on with, “They then went to the company the driver drove for and started going through the company’s security footage, and found the video which showed someone tampering with that truck. They then had the date and time, and unknown to the man sabotaging the truck, they also got a good, clear, picture of his face. Once they identified him, and learned where he worked, they paid him a visit at his home. It wasn’t in their report, but one of the investigators told me, when they showed him the security footage of him sabotaging the truck, he wet himself. And when they told him he was going to be charged with two counts of murders, he sang like a canary. He told the investigators, ‘if he was going down, so was the bastard who paid him for the job.’ It seemed the company the driver drove for was making a name for itself for fast, on time, deliveries. And for how they treated the cargo they hauled. The owner of the other company, the one where the man who sabotaged the truck worked, was losing money because he wasn’t willing to put up with crap from any of his customers. His drivers didn’t care if they arrived on time, or if their cargo was damaged or missing. In fact, as the investigators discovered, some of those drivers had been selling some of their cargo on the side, then claiming it was stolen while they stopped to rest. Plus, that company was having trouble retaining drives, because the owner shortchanged them every time they went out.”

“The investigators now had a video confession from the saboteur, telling them everything. Even how much he’d been paid. They then confronted the owner of the other company, who denied everything at first. But when he saw the video of the sabotage taking place, and the video confession, he became belligerent, telling the investigators they were full of shit. That the man on the video confession had been fired some days ago. The investigators produced documents showing that was a lie, that the man still worked for the owner. The real kicker was when they produced a thumb drive the man had given the investigators, one with a video the man had secretly recorded. On that video, as clear as day, was the owner handing the man ten thousand dollars and telling him to sabotage one of the other company’s trucks. It suddenly smelled funny in that room, but no one could figure out what it was or where it was coming from. It wasn’t until the police were escorting the owner from his office that they noticed the owner had messed his pants. Both men were facing two counts of murder, and pled guilty, hoping to get lighter sentences. It didn’t work. Because of the nature of the crime, both got life in prison. Peter and I, and our attorney, had no trouble with the insurance company mom and dad used, they paid out almost immediately. The other company’s insurance provider balked at what our lawyer was asking, until our lawyer told them if we went to court she’d be asking for ten times that amount. Needless to say, they paid what our lawyer had asked for, and Peter and I have nothing to want for as long as we live.”

Tears were running down Terry’s cheeks, and her lips were trembling, but she continued with, “The courts appointed our grandmother, my mom’s mom, as our guardian. I think mom got her attitude from her mom, that was one sweet old lady. But you didn’t want to get on grandma’s bad side, never. Grandma took Peter and I to the mall, one Saturday, to get clothes for school. Grandma took Peter into a store that sold boys’ clothing and let me window shop while they were shopping. I was looking at the display in the window of this one store, when I heard two guys start asking me questions. One guy wanted to know if I knew how to be a woman to him. The other asked if I gave good head. The first time I turned around and told them to get lost, to stop bothering me. But they just laughed, and kept following me as I continued to window shop. I ended up back at the store I first encountered the assholes, and those two were starting to get downright scary. People around us couldn’t help but hear what they were saying, they weren’t whispering. Just after one of them told me to let him fuck me so I’d be a real woman, both suddenly screamed, and I heard a voice I always dreaded hearing. Grandma was behind me and them. I turned around and grandma had grabbed one boy’s right ear lobe, and the left ear lobe of the other boy, pulled them down so they were sideways to her face, and asked them in that bear like voice, ‘Don’t you assholes understand when someone tells you to go away?’ One of those boys, I think it was the mouthy one, made a mistake and said to grandma, ‘Hey, you bitch, let go of me.’ Now grandma was all of five foot five, six, seven if she was wearing her favorite shoes, but when she was mad she was seven feet even. That mouthy boy never had a chance, as grandma did let go of his ear, and just as quickly, reached between his legs from behind and grabbed that boy’s crotch. Talk about a high pitch scream, that boy sang loud and long. And she had him up on his tip toes. Then she asked him, ‘What did you say, asshole?’ You never saw a boy back step as fast as that kid did. He told grandma he didn’t say anything, nothing at all. It was funny. Grandma then maneuvered both until they were facing away from me and told them next time it’d be worse. Boy, did those two beat a hasty retreat. We didn’t know three mall security guards were watching us until they started applauding. Grandma turned to look at them, and received three thumbs up. And in grandma’s fashion, she bowed twice to those guards.”

“We visited more stores, and were on our way out of the mall when grandma spotted those same two boys, doing the same thing only to another girl. She handed me her purse, and packages, walked up behind those boys, and reached between their legs from behind and grabbed each boy’s crotch. I could tell she was squeezing as she held them, cause each boy was screaming in pain. Then grandma told them, ‘I told you the next time would be worse,’ and proceeded to maneuver the boys until they were facing the direction where the security guards had been. She whistled that high pitch whistle of hers, got the attention of the guards, and yelled, ‘They’re at it again,’ and marched them down to the guards. As grandma turned them over to the security guards, and was walking back to Peter and I, she had a smile on her face as the mouthy one screamed, ‘Keep that crazy bitch away from us.’”

“Peter and I stayed with grandma for two years. She’d come into our rooms in the morning to make sure we were awake and getting ready for school. She’d have breakfast waiting on the kitchen table and kiss each of us as we left for school.” Terry stopped speaking, she indicated the tissues on the nightstand, received them from Jenny, wiped her eyes, drank more water, then continued with her story. “I can’t tell you why, but I woke up one moring with a strange feeling in my stomach. I knew grandma should have come into our rooms to wake us up and make sure we got ready for school, but she wasn’t there that morning. I left my bedroom and went into the kitchen, but nothing was on the kitchen table. I then went to grandma’s bedroom, knocked on the door but she didn’t answer. I opened the door, went into her bedroom and saw her lying in her bed. I went over to her, called her name, shook her, then realized she was cold and had a bluish tint to her skin. I called 911, told them about grandma, and when the paramedics arrived they said she’d been dead for some time. The coroner said she died of a brain aneurysm, and had died some time during the night.”

“Peter was still sleeping, somehow, given the sirens the ambulance had on when it arrived at grandma’s house. I woke him, tried to prepare him the best I knew how, then told him grandma had died some time during the night. And I found her that way this morning. He cried on my shoulder, then got up and started getting ready for school. I told him I’d call the school and tell them what happened and that we wouldn’t be in school that day. But he was adamant, he was going to school. I called the school anyway, and talked to the principal. He said we didn’t have to come back to school until we’d got my grandma’s arrangements made, and her estate settled. I told him Peter was adamant about going to school, so I would go as well. I couldn’t let Peter go along, especially after...I just could let him go alone. Dad’s folks helped us get things settled, grandma’s funeral, her estate taken care of, and wanted us to live with them. I told Peter what they said, and he almost threw a fit as he said no. So they helped us get me appointed Peter’s guardian. Grandma left us everything. Her house, and furnishings. All the savings she had in the bank. She even left us what the life insurance paid out because of her death.” Terry hung her head, sniffed her nose, then said, “Gawd, we do miss that old lady.”

It was Jenny who pressed the point when she said, “That’s about the same story Peter told me. But you left something out didn’t you? Something that happened shortly after your parents were killed. Why are you avoiding it? Beverly needs to hear that part as well.”