Chp03 ghost hunting
I lay in this dam hospital bed for two weeks. I'm frustrated at my memory loss, family, and myself. How did I allow myself to get here? I am pissed, embarrassed and completely screw up. worse every time I close my eyes; Angel appears and the waif. I can't get them out of my head. I haven't told anybody about it. I need to find her, and him. Her because she fires my soul and heart and him for saving my dumb ass. Tomorrow, I'll get Taylor hunting.
next morning:
Taylor brings my breakfast from Gail. I smile, it smells delicious. "Jason sit, please"
I take a bit, heaven. "I want to see the police report, photos of the witness and any video Barney can lay his hands on."
"What are you looking for?" Jason ask
"A chestnut hair, blue eyed, Angel, who call 911 and waited for the EMT to arrive. A homeless boy, street musician probably, who beat up my attackers."
"The two eco-terrorists aren't talking; the Police report doesn't say anything about a girl or a boy being there. It possible you dreamed it." Jason asks questioning my memory.
"I remember the attack, and she was there as well as the boy." I'm pissed this is not a fantasy. "get me what I asked for!"
He leaves.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Taylor-pov
This is bullshit, first he losses selective parts of his memory and now I'm hunting fantasy of his broken, fuckup mind. If he woken me to run with him, this wouldn't of happen. I review the police reports, it all straight forward. Nothing to find. I double check, calling the Ambulance service, two of the EMT's are on vacation, the one is on a run, the last is at home. I call him.
"Hello, My name is Jason Taylor, head of Grey Enterprise security, I'd like to talk to you about Mr. Greys Attack?"
"I don't know what I can tell you, I was the second EMT to response. We arrived with the Police. Robert and I worked on the criminals."
I scan the report "You mean you and Ed, arrived a minute behind Robert and Tom. After the police?" I ask, afraid of the answer
"No, Robert was late. Tom and Ed left early, their boyfriends, ahm. We switched at the scene. The police arrived with me, Tom and Ed already had Grey on the gurney when we arrived. Ahm, that the true sequence. If the police report is wrong, it wasn't us." He starts to ramble afraid for his job
"Thank you, I suggest you file a corrected call out sheet, and advise your boss. We are not pressing any charges or making any assentation, we're just double checking to make sure the attackers have no loop holes, or legal challenges, again thank you."
After three hours and long distance yelling match to Kauai Hawaii were the love birds are sunning for two weeks, I have to admire their commitment to patient confidentiality. I dispatch Sawyer to get the information. I interview the dumb police, I'll need Carrick to kick some ass, so the eco-nuts don't walk because the police were embarrassed by the EMT beating them badly to the scene. Can this day get worse?
Gail took Christian his dinner, while I work the phone. None of the so-called witness saw the attack, most arrived with the police or after the EMT had back boarded Grey. I hope Barney gets something. My cell rings, speak his name three time and he shall appear, or at least call.
"Barney give me some good news man?" I beg
"Sorry, the six-camera looking at the attack were all disabled the previous day. The police are looking at the fact they were all vandalized. Also, the cops found no car at the scene or a twelve-block radius. So, someone dropped them off. I have a very blurry long range shot that shows the attack from the about ¾ of mile away. You can see Grey go down, and a fourth person swing a blurry stick. But it's all you got. I have camera farther out on the main access roads, with 47 cars right after and about thirty minute after the attack. I've emailed you the list, mepg, and a web traffic about and leading up to the Assault. sorry, give Christian a kiss from me and the staff." Barney gleeful ends the call.
I fume and review the whole can of worms.
Xxxxxx
Two days later:
Sawyer plane broke, so he was delayed getting to the lovebirds on Kauai. Finding a lawyer and getting permission from their company. If I ever need EMT I'm hiring these two guys. My phone rings, finally.
"What have you got Sawyer?"
"Good news and bad. Which you want." He teases me, someone doing garage duty for a while.
"Garage duty boy. Get to the frigging facts."
"The girl is real, Brown hair, blue eyes, petite dressed in jeans, converse sneakers, and a pullover sweatshirt with "Hardly Bluegrass 2009". They didn't see the boy. The girl was holding him, singing to him when they arrived. They said everyone showed up with the second EMT rig. That's it, I'm on the 4am out of here. ETA Seattle 9:30pm good luck" Sawyer says hanging up. Now I have to tell Christian.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Christian is obsessed with the girl and boy. We're back in Portland at the River Place for Graduation tomorrow. Grey has a pair of binoculars, searching the Waterfront Park every morning. It's like he's driven to find her. We drove around all the homeless camps and major gathering points. Sawyer and Parks have spent the last two weeks scouring the cities street performers looking for the girl and boy. I don't have any hope.
2Pm WSU Vancouver Civic Art auditorium:
The graduation is over, but Grey is freaked out. The girl was in the Graduating class. While handshaking the Graduate's he found her, and lost her. The description doesn't help one dam bit. A homeless girl, with dirty on her face, grease hair, smells and ran away. Sawyer and I scoured the hall, and student photos, nothing. The Auditorium CCTV system works great. The video recorders, using VHS tapes, died some time ago, so no video. It's a dead end, without more information. All Grey can say for sure, she called his eyes steely. I pull my hair.
XXXXXXXX
Two days later:
We pull out for home in three hours. So, I try one more long shot. I stand at the crime site and stop the early morning joggers. I get no luck till I stop two guys, boyfriends, one very much younger than the other. I identify myself and ask for help.
"WE didn't see the attack, we pass by here about 20minutes before" say the older one.
"I'm interest in the boy, maybe homeless, playing Guitar on the bench." I ask
"There was no boy playing guitar on the bench" the older one states. So, much for this goose chase.
"A girl was playing guitar on the bench, petite, young, jeans, sweatshirt, chucks, brown hair, watch cap black with a military flash on it." says the younger one.
"Did you see the eyes? or a car?" I ask
"No, but she definitely not homeless." The older one says
"What do you mean?"
"the guitar was a custom handmade thing, with a custom carved rectangle case. And she had a custom build small guitar amp. All handmade, custom work, my late wife's nephew is a studio musician in LA. None of those things is cheap. I wonder?" he drifts off.
"Wonder what?" I ask in earnest.
"There was a Four door sedan parked over behind the restrooms, it had California plates, and a Country of Jones slogan on the hood. A trio of guys was standing around, like it was broken." He rambles.
Yes, the Terrorist ride. We can narrow down the vehicle.
I thank them, getting their names, just in case. As I walk back to the hotel, I wonder about the Girl. could she be a terrorist, got cold feet, a long game, honey trap, or just dumb luck. I ponder the scenarios as I lean on the railing admiring the water flowing by. What do we Know. The two terrorists, eco or something different. Country of Jones is the opposite from the Eco-guys. Something not right there. It's too pat, to easy. Why use the Eco-angle? I'll need to double check with FBI team. Why would a girl with a custom guitar be here in the park at that time of morning, the duo, said she was profession quality, a late-night gig? A busted ride? But she disappeared during the confusion, or did she? Her ride could have arrived, or something else. I need Sawyer to check with the local clubs about any busted or canceled acts the night before Greys attack.
Lastly, I have to brief Christian, hopeful the parents aren't here yet. They flew down to drive back with him. It's touching and very Grace mother-henning the poor guy. Has I turn away, I remember something from the first time we jogged here. A birder had set up a wildlife camera watching the river and two grass areas. I spot the camera. They might have caught something.
Xxxx
I walk in to the Suite, the Grey's are eating breakfast, I see my lover and friend Gail. I smile and sit down, looking at Christian. He's not going to like me outing him, but it needs to be done. It effecting his mental state. And my love life.
"Christian, the girl is real" I say watching his temper flare and boil over, the only thing keeping him from attacking me is Momma Grey. Her head snap up so hard, I wonder if she has whiplash. "What girl. Christian?" she demands as Cary cringes at her tone. Christian freeze caught between firing me, again. Or answering. I decide to put him down.
"A girl saved his life at the attack, she was comforting him when the EMT's arrived. Somehow, she disappeared during the confusion. We been looking for her." I sweetly say, watching him squirm.
"A boy and a girl saved my life Mother, I want to reward them." Christian says, bullshitting mommy won't work, we all see the spark in your eyes talking about her. I feel Gail's hand on my shoulder calming me.
"Sorry, Christian there was no boy." I start to say as he cuts me off. "Taylor! I was there, I saw him take out the eco-nuts, it's not some false memories or fantasy. I paid you to find them."
"Christian, there is no BOY! There was only the girl. She's the one who attacked the terrorist with her Guitar. Remember you describe her originally as waif, without gender. Her Watch cap must have come off in the fight. So, you thought two separate people, when in reality it was just her. I cornered a couple of joggers this morning. We will refocus or search, check WSU music department and the local club scene. We have some new leads, hopefully we can get better results."
He stews for a while. He insists we drive over to WSU and check the music department, which is closed on Saturday. He wants to check the local clubs, which are close Saturday morning. Finally, Carrick demands we drive out to Ft. Clatsop National Park. The Grey tour the old fort at Astoria. Arguing and talking pushing Christian wheelchair about. A nice lunch in Astoria and traffic back to Seattle.
Near Tacoma as dusk settles in heavy rain, thru Heavy traffic we pass several stranded motorists. Grey gets agitated by a poor kid standing by a burned-out wreck of an Old VW bug. He gives us the finger during his meltdown. I can understand his rage. Standing in the pouring rain, all your possessions next to you, watching your only transportation burn to the ground. It's a bad day. Christian insists we drop of the parents first.
"Christian, I understand your need for closure. But we're your parents, we will support you no matter what. We hope you find the girl. really we do." Grace begs her son.
"Thanks mom, dad. See you next week" Christian says. A very awkward pause, silence fills the air. I drive home. Gail has beaten us by hours.
Xxxxx
The month since the Graduation has been nerve racking, Grey is seeing the girl everywhere he goes. Particularly, now he on crutches. He been scouring the malls, and the Space needle area where the street musicians play. Some asshole in WSU leaked that Grey is looking for a specific girl from WSU graduating class. Suddenly all these want-a-be's WSU Coed Cinderella's are pounding on the door of Grey house, Escala, even Grey Manor. The WSU music department was a bust, and the club scene in Portland didn't give any useable leads. Back to chasing ghost.
Xxooxooxooxooxooox
A-pov
After a terrifying, nerve racking month of being dead poor, and jobless. I have a job, tomorrow is my second week. I feel stoked by the prospect of a steady job, and money. Wickers is a gentle soul, lost in numbers and formulas. After two days, I corner Andrea. "John needs more support in his life. He needs a housekeeper at home. And I need more support from the accounting staff, specifically stop bypassing me to load him with work. He simply grabs the top folder to work on, so the slackers in the office simply shuffle the pile to get him to do their work, while his suffers."
"The housekeeper?" Andrea ask
"His mother died last year, she was keeping house for him. It means without any family, he's not eating right, clean cloths don't exist. I spend all last night at his house, cleaning and doing laundry. He needs help." I plea
"I didn't know. I'll arrange a cleaning service as we look for a housekeeper, I'm sure Gail, I mean Mrs. Jones, knows a qualified person for the job. Thank you for bring these issues to my attention, and helping John last night. He is a special man. We will support him." She says dismissing me. I go back down and remove the pile of projects that appear any time I leave the area. Check which project he should be on, a switch the folders. I'm very tempted to just dump them in the trash. I think about it and do so. I've told them to stop, and they continue to do it, pay the price.
An I leave the building Friday evening, I look about. Adonis has been haunting me all over Seattle. Every copper hairs man reminds me of him. He hasn't contacted me since graduation when I gave him my name. I walk home, stopping at the Pikes Market to browse, buy some dinner. Elliot and Kate are final back Wednesday from Barbados. A good book and a quiet weekend inside, at least my fantasy of Adonis is good to a triple X form.