A lot of people thought there ought to be more to Brass' apology after Genetic Disorder. That got me to thinking and this idea was born. I have three or four other stories in the works right now but this one is the one calling to me. Let me know what you think.
Judy Robbins sat in her kitchen sipping tea and chatting with her friend, Lori Messing, when her doorbell rang. Her surprise when she opened the door and saw who stood on her porch was audible. "Jim? Ah…come in," she invited uncomfortably.
Detective Jim Brass stepped into the house, also visibly uncomfortable. "I um, well…I talked to Al…" he started. Judy nodded and motioned for him to follow her into the living room. They were standing in the middle of the room, next to the sofa when Jim started talking again. "Like I said I talked to Al, but I thought I should come by and tell you…"
"Hello," another voice interrupted.
Judy shifted uneasily in her spot. "Oh Lori, I'm sorry. This is…"
"Jim Brass," he interceded. "I work with Al."
"I'm Lori Messing. You work with Al… at the morgue?" Lori asked, her curiosity peaked.
"Well not exactly…I'm a detective." Jim explained. Then sighing, he looked across at Judy. "Maybe this isn't a good time," he said carefully.
"No, it's alright," Judy smiled. Then turning to Lori she asked, "could you give us a minute?"
Lori looked from one somber face to the other, her face flushing slightly, and nodded. "Yeah, I'll go pour myself another cup of tea," she said as she headed back to the kitchen.
Turning her attention back to Jim, Jim smiled wanly. "Would you like some tea? And please, do sit down."
"Ah no, thanks though. This will only take a minute. Like I said, I talked to Al. But I wanted to talk to you too. I um…well, I guess I came across pretty hard during the investigation. You were a suspect and…well, I was doing my job. But I am sorry that I jumped to conclusions…about an affair, I mean, before we had a chance to do a little investigating. I'll be honest, I walked in your bedroom and saw…" he swallowed heavily, "what I saw and my first thought was an affair."
"Al told me you had apologized to him. And I do appreciate that you came by, Jim. Its easy to understand why you thought what you thought, but… I'll be honest; I didn't appreciate your treatment."
Jim shrugged and smiled self consciously. "Most suspects don't. And actually, after Al gave me what for in my office, I was treading a little lighter than usual. But I like I told Al, I was wrong for jumping to conclusions before looking at the evidence. And I'm sorry."
Judy studied the man standing in front of her intensely. He stood stubbornly, entrenched in his spot, his fidgeting fingers the only outward sign of his discomfort. But she could see his remorse in his eyes and she knew he was sincere. "You don't apologize very often, do you Jim?"
He sighed and grinned awkwardly. "No, I don't."
"I can tell because you're not very good at it. Don't misunderstand," she said as he shifted to respond. "I know you mean it. But, you're not comfortable admitting that you are wrong."
Jim's shrug was barely noticeable. "Don't know many people who are, do you?"
Judy laughed. "No, I don't. But thank you…for coming by and for your apology. The whole thing has been…"
"Ugly?" He offered.
"Yes. And you coming here today; it helps."
"Okay, well… I'd better get back. And um, thank you."
"For what?" Judy asked, surprised.
"Not slamming the door in my face," he said as he walked out.
"You're welcome, Jim." Judy closed the door and shook her head in amazement. She'd known Jim Brass for years and she and Al had socialized with him at department functions. He'd even come to a couple of their dinner parties. Al and Jim often were at odds with one another but she knew Al respected the detective and counted Jim among his friends. Knowing all that she knew about him made his visit today a real surprise.
"Who's the bulldog?" Lori asked from the doorway to the kitchen.
"What? Bulldog?" Judy asked as her friend's question brought her out of her musings.
"That man? Jim Brass?"
"Oh yeah. Like he said, he works with Al."
"Right. But that doesn't explain him showing up on your doorstep in the middle of the day."
"Uh no. He was the detective handling the case when…"
"Oohh…" Lori drawled as she caught on. "And you let him in the house?"
"He was doing his job, Lori. I was a suspect and he had to ask questions."
"So did you make him grovel?" Lori asked mischievously.
Judy laughed. "You don't know Jim Brass. He doesn't grovel."
Lori smiled. "He's kind of cute actually, in a bulldog kind of way."
"Yeah well, be careful. That bulldog has one hell of a bite."
"Still…" Lori said thoughtfully.
It wasn't difficult for Judy to know where her friend's mind was going. "Be careful, Lori…in fact, don't even think about going there. Jim Brass was quite the player in his day and while I imagine he's slowed down a bit, he's not the long term type."
"Maybe he just hasn't met the right person," Lori teased.
"Al says he was married before he came here. Says it must've been really bad because Jim never has anything nice to say about his ex but it is evident that it still hurts, even after all these years. Al thinks some of Jim's reaction to the case was because he didn't want to see Al hurt the way he was."
"So, he's loyal?" Lori asked.
From the stories I've heard, he can be the best friend you could ever ask for…or the very worst enemy. But Lori, seriously, after everything you went through with Dave, do you really want to go fishing in troubled waters?"
Lori sighed. "You're probably right. But still, there's something about him…"
"Get over it," Judy advised.
I wasn't going to post until I had it completely wriiten because I'd had so many computer fiascos with Dum Spiro. But I got impatient and decided to go ahead and start posting. Some of the chapters will be short, some longer. I do hope you enjoy!
