Chapter 19

Lydia felt as if her whole body had been put in a blender and whipped on high. She turned sideways in the hospital bed and looked down at the bruises that covered about 70 percent of her body. At least the swelling had gone down and her feet no longer looked like two plump melons. Sucking her top lip in and holding it in place with her bottom teeth she edged forward to put feet to floor. Tenderly and using her hands to balance she stood and took a step forward. "Shit!"

She felt her body topple as she fell forward to suddenly be swept up in a pair of strong arms and to peer into the most incredible blue eyes. "Do you always make it a habit to fall for big strong types?" He smiled and she felt her the rapid beat of her heart.

"Not normally, but in your case Mr. Stiles I will make an exception."

He moved to set her on the edge of her bed. "By any chance did the nursing staff know you were going to make this monumental challenge of exiting your bed after being in a coma for a week. Which by the way I find as a very poor excuse for getting out of dinner with me."

Lydia laughed, "Well believe me I would have rather been to dinner with you than laying here not aware of where I was."

He leaned over and kissed her nose. "I would have rather had you for dinner than having you here."

He wiggled his eyebrows and then winked. Looking around the room he smiled again, "I see you got all my flowers."

She had noticed the room was filled with fresh cut roses and had tried to read the cards and now he had confessed he was her ardent admirer. "Thank you for your kind thoughts and generous offering."

He pulled a chair over to the bedside and sat. "So how long until you get to blow this joint?"

Lydia laughed, "Not anytime soon if I can't walk. My sister in law told me that if I asked for pain medication and was not up and walking the doctors were not about to release me."

He stood, "Then allow me madam." He offered her his arm to steady her self. She pulled herself up on his arm and then with his other arm, he slid it with familiar ease around her waist and helped her to stand and balance. "Now shall we dance or would you prefer to walk?"

Lydia leaned on his strong body and found the experience a new one and enjoyable. "I think baby steps at first."

He nodded, "Then baby its steps for you."

She loved his glib sense of humor as he bordered on corny. He helped her out of her room and walked slowly with her down the hallway and back, some of the stiffness was leaving her body as she moved and by the third pass down the hall across the back and up again to the nurse's station she forced a cheerful smile on her lips. "So, ladies please note I am walking and no pain medication today! Would you please tell Tim I am being a good girl and really want to blow this joint."

Nora Johnson snorted, "Guess you did not hear about last night?" Lydia leaned against the desk and looked to Nora to explain her statement. "No what happened last night?"

The other nurses left, as Nora seemed to prepare herself for a full head of steam and rant. Some of the other ladies shot Lydia a sympathetic glance as they scurried off down the hallway to their patients.

Nora snorted, "Like you would care. You pretending to be a police officer when you can't even take care of yourself. Never should have put a woman on that force to begin with and you getting your head caved in. "

Lydia felt her face flush with embarrassment and then had to remember Nora's son had challenged her brother in the last sheriff's race and lost. "Nora, for once can you put your protective mother's apron away and just answer the question." Gerard had studied the woman taking her cheap shots and watched her begin to bristle.

"Is that an order officer?" She had accented the word officer and Gerard felt Lydia begin to tense as she looked at the older woman.

"Madam, I am Gerard Stiles, Attorney at Law, and right now it would seem to me you are bating Detective Patterson for your own personal gain. Now, if there is information you wish to impart, then do so. If not then leave us to our pleasant walk, or rather previous pleasant walk until you interrupted us."

Lydia felt grateful that he was trying to take up for her but reached for his hand. "Its ok Gerard, see Nora has a problem with my brother because her baby boy, who by the way is the number one person of interest in an accidental or deliberate drowning of his girlfriend had tried to run for sheriff. The problem was no one in Collinsport trusted him to run for the county line let alone an office of some authority that would have allowed him to destroy any files on the incident previously stated."

Nora puffed her chest up, "Rodney did not drown his girlfriend, and she fell overboard and went under his boat and hit her head."

Lydia smiled tightly, "Then he ran over her with his outboard motor chopping her up to make it look like she had not been hit by his jib before she went over."

Nora flushed deep red and glared at Lydia. "Well that is not what the coroner found."

Lydia smiled sweetly, "Not at this time, we just have never closed the case because currently it's pending his final decision."

Nora sputtered and slammed her files on the desktop. "You are a self righteous bitch and will pay some day for your high and mighty attitude. You and that Collins family think your shit don't stink well it does and someone is going to show all of you that you ain't no better than the rest of us."

Gerard turned and fixed that very chilling and direct stare at Nora Johnson, "And you madam are bordering on insolence and slander, if I were you I would give up and shut my mouth. I happen to represent the Collins Family and I do not take kindly to your attitude."

Feeling somewhat threatened and having suffered diarrhea of the mouth; Nora used the call sign of a patient down the hall to turn and march away. Gerard held onto her as she teetered on her feet. Holding her close he whispered, "You have moxy. I like that."

Moving with him down the hallway she happened

to glanced up to see Ben Hadley's wife standing in the hallway. "Martha?" The lady Lydia had just called Martha paused and she looked up from where she waited while the nurse attended her husband. "What are you doing here?"

Martha sighed looked down and then felt frail and tired of being brave. "Ben was in surgery most the night and they said his heart quit beating on the table at least once."

Lydia paled hearing her husband was hurt, "What happened?"

Martha sighed, "Your brother came by last night and said he and Warren had been attacked, that Ben was really beaten up bad and that Warren had a broken arm and three cracked ribs and a punctured lung."

Lydia felt her head buzzing as she listened to what Thom has told Martha. "He said that Jess had to be flown out to Bangor to be operated on, they still don't know if he is going to live. That Rucker's was destroyed and that it looked like a bomb had hit it."

"How did this happen? Do they know who did this?"

Martha shook her head and leaned in to whisper softly, "Your brother said that by the time he got there it was almost over and that they think it was a wild bear. He said the squad car Ben and Warren were in was destroyed. He said that the State boys were on the scene of and they have the State Police going over everything to see if they could find some evidence. But what I heard from the rumors running around is that it was some kind of fish beast that had horrible body odor and bad breath and that it just tore everyone and everything apart."

"They kind of have a lock down on information on this one Lydia, its gone hush-hush under the term 'on going investigation.' And no one is suppose to talk about it to anyone."

Lydia glanced to Gerard who had quietly listened. "Listen Martha if you need anything at all please call me and the same for Ben. If you talk to Melanie tell her the same thing and the same goes for Warren."

Martha dabbed at her eyes with her knuckles and nodded, Gerard reached into his pocket and pulled out his kerchief. "Here you go my dear." Martha looked grateful accepting the kerchief. "Thank you Mr. ?"

Gerard turned on the charm, "Stiles Gerard Stiles, I am a friend of Lydia's and I wish to express my sincere condolences for the tragedy you have suffered."

Again using the edge of the kerchief, "Thank you again Mr. Stiles, I do appreciate your kind words and concern."

Then she turned and laid a hand on Lydia's arm and with a kindness rarely given to Lydia, Martha said, "Thank you too Lydia I appreciate the offer and I hope you get better soon."

Lydia hugged the other woman and then turned to Gerard, "Come on you are going to help me get out of this place, I need to be with my brother to help him with this mess."

Gerard let her lean on him but he softly cautioned, "Do you really think you should be out there in the field fighting mysterious monsters with a fractured skull?"

Lydia turned that gaze on Gerard and her manner had suddenly changed from lighthearted flirting to the professional cop. He could see the strength of her resolve as she spoke, "My town needs protection, I am in far better shape than either of those two men and I am going to do my job. My question is are you going to argue with me or are you going to help me?"

Gerard thought a moment then said softly, with a hint of that flirtatious manner, "Do I gain more favor from you for helping you escape from here?"

She smiled, "Yes, you will be properly rewarded."

He lifted her and carried her back to her room. "Then my lady, may I offer my services just tell me what you wish me to do."

Lydia laughed, "Well it is going to be really difficult but I do need you to help me get dressed, then go to the Emergency Room and get my sister in law."

He cocked an eyebrow and smiled his easygoing charming smile. "My lady requests my services, who am I to not grant her request." He leaned into her and spoke softly, "Now how do we blow this Popsicle stand and get you the hell out of Dodge?" Lydia laughed as he helped her dress with as much decorum as they could with her being in a hospital gown and in a hospital environment.

Thomas sat at his desk looking over the pictures of Rucker's and sighed, closed that file, took the one under it and opened it and looked at the pictures of Sadie's wounds. He shook his head and sat back. Three cases in less than a week, his sister, Sadie and now Rucker's which was now being called Rampage at Rucker's by the local media that had been picked up by the news feed and gone National along with pictures. Thom was trying to contain the information to that of a bear that had gone rogue and broke in and trashed the store and his squad car.

He closed the folder and sat back. Chewing on his bottom lip, he rubbed his forehead. God he was tired and he was growing more fatigued with each passing minute. Sitting back he pinched his nose and rubbed his eyes. He had not been to bed in over thirty-six hours.

He was short two men and had to call in reserve as back ups for second shift. Hearing his door opened he glanced up to see Lydia being helped into the office by Gerard. "Hey what are you doing out of the hospital?"

Lydia frowned, "Why didn't you tell me about Warren and Ben?" He looked down at his files. "You are not going to drive with a fractured skull."

Lydia pitched the paper on his desk. "I have been cleared by Tim, he says for a couple of days desk work then I can be back out on patrol and by the way; you look like warmed over shit."

Thom stood up and moved to get him another cup of really bad over warmed up coffee. "Thanks you look nice."

She followed him into the little kitchenette and leaned against the counter, "When was the last time you ate?"

She took the coffee from his h hand and dumped it in the sink, then moved to put on a fresh pot of coffee. "I think it was last night. Look Penny, you gotta take it easy, I can't afford to loose you too." Lydia sighed and shook her head.

"Thom, if you try to continue on in your current state you ain't gonna be of use to anyone. You need to go home, get some sleep and eat something. Then take a bath you stink as bad as that thing that attacked me."

Thomas smiled at his sister kissed her cheek, "Yah well that thing attacked and ripped Sadie's throat open last night. She nearly bled out."

Lydia turned to Gerard who had taken a seat in front of Thomas' desk and smiled listening to the sister brother repartee. "Sadie the dock whore?"

She asked to verify which Sadie he was referencing. "Yes, Sadie the Prostitute, you got a mouth on you."

Lydia folded her arms over her chest. "Hey I say it as it is. She plies her wears on the docks, last I heard she had dropped her prices because the drugs are taking her looks."

Thom pushed past her and she got a good look at her brother and he did look like a warmed over turd. Lydia followed him still harping about his condition and how he looked. "You think you can ride a desk for a couple of days?"

She turned to Gerard and smiled, she knew she had him where she wanted him and that was not opposing her return to work. "See he can't do with me and he can't do without me."

Gerard looked at Thom and nodded, "She has a point, your bags under your eyes have bags. You need to get some sleep bud, and that uniform is covered in dried blood, sure can't be healthy or comfortable."

Thomas looked down and saw the state he was in and sighed, "Ok, ok, ok, I will go home get a couple of hours sleep then shower and I will be back here as long as you make sure she does not do any more than she absolutely has to do."

Gerard nodded, "Sounds like a good deal to me. So do you need someone to drive you home?"

Thomas looked at his sister, "You don't leave here and when I call you send one of the day shift guys to pick me up."

Lydia nodded and regretted she had nodded but hid her pain behind a smile. "Sure thing brother, now go away you stink."

Gerard stood, "I will be right back and you had best be sitting in your office and nothing more agreed?" She smiled and like the fact she had a man as great looking as Gerard giving her orders. "Sure."

She watched her brother and Gerard leave his office and she went to collect the folders from Thom's desk and moved down her office and gingerly set down in her chair and sighed. "Ok lets see what we have here. Good grief it does look like a bomb hit the place." She studied the pictures of Rucker's. "What the hell is that." She had spotted something that caught her interest in the picture and what she saw sent a chill through her body.

In the corner of the pictures was the outline of a figure in a grey suit with tiny green dots outlining the body. "Have we fracking been invaded?" She pulled her magnifying glass out and looked at the picture closer. Pulling the light down she stared at the figure and found something vaguely familiar to the stance of that figure and sat back.

She was going to have to think about this, she thought she knew who that or what that thing was standing in the shadows of the picture. There was no way it could be whom she thought it was and then she looked again. That figure had a distinctive way of standing but what the hell was she wearing? Throwing the picture down she had to chew on her lip a minute to think about where her thoughts were going and she did not like it one damn bit.

Then her phone rang and she answered the call from dispatch, Gerald Rooney had just reported finding a dead body in the dumpster behind the Blue Whale. Leaning forward she opened her desk drawer pulled out her car keys and stood to be suddenly overwhelmed with a wave of dizziness. "Get it together girlfriend, you have a dead body to investigate."

Pushing up and away from her desk, she made her way through the office and headed to the car pool, stopping briefly to look at the second shift car and shook her head. "Josette what the hell are you up to? Why would you be on site of a bear attack dressed like some damn high tech ninja? Pushing those thoughts from her mind she navigated the car out of the car pool area and headed to the Blue Whale, it felt good to be back at work and feeling useful.

Gerald Rooney opened the back door of the Blue Whale to take out the trash and stopped dead in his tracks. In the dumpster he looked at the pale white arm and hand that hung limply out of the covered dumpster. He edged forward and peaked into the dumpster and saw of what was at one time a lovely young woman.

Her body was devoid of any color and was nude. Backing up he turned to rush to the phone and called the sheriff's department. He was so excited and upset by what he just discovered that his voice was quivering as he told the dispatcher what he had just found.

Hanging up the phone Gerald poured himself a stiff one and downed it. Looking up at the door as it opened he looked at a man that looked vaguely familiar. He walked to the bar and nodded to Gerald, "Hi, so what time does this place start to liven up?"

Gerald looked at his drink, poured another one and then asked, "What will you have?"

The man of medium build, intense dark eyes and a sly easy smile slapped the top of the bar in a rap a ta, tap, tap, as he chuckled, "What your having must be pretty good for you to be drinking it before noon."

Gerald put another shot glass on the bar top and poured. The man laid a five on the bar top and sipped his drink and watched the sweat bead the bartender's face as his eyes became glassy. "That is a fine blend me bucko, now when does this place start to get lively"

Gerald looked up as he saw Lydia pull up out front, "It is about to get really lively, excuse me." The man turned on his seat and watched the lovely young woman that moved rather precariously around her car to open the bar door and look to Gerald. "Hey Gerald where is it?"

The glint of her badge alerted him that she was the law and he quickly curtailed his desires to strike up a conversation with the woman so he hunkered over his drink avoiding eye contact and she moved past him to the back door of the bar. He heard her call over her walkie-talkie looking out the back door. "Karen, we need the coroner and call State we have another one."

This brought the attention of the man back to the lovely lady watching her move back out to her car and with some difficulty lift a heavy case from her car and gated her walk heading back out to the rear of the bar. Gerald stood nervously shifting from one foot to another as he anxiously watched the front and then the back door. "What is going on Bucko?"

Gerald sighed and looked at the stranger, "Dead body in the back."

The man sipped his drink and tapped the bar. "Another if you please. Like you said it is about to get more lively I see."

He pushed his merchant's sailors first mate's cap back on his head and looked around the bar and watched as the ambulance, and a coroners car pull up then around to the back of the bar. "Yep this place is definitely going to be hopping soon." Laying another five on the counter he sat back resting his arms on the bar top. "So you serve food here?"

Gerald nodded, "Pearl will be in later." He nodded, "Well I will take me drink over there and when the lovely cook comes in tell her I want the special."

Markus McGuire lifted his drink and moved to the corner seat and sat down. He just wanted to wait for a while and get something to eat then wait for the locals show up so he could start pursuing his search. He had a lot of footwork to figure out what happened to his father. The last his Ma had heard he and Willie Loomis had parted ways and he was here the last anyone heard from him or seen him. Shortly after their arrival here his mother had not received any child support. Nor had any more letters been sent to him from his dear old Da.

Jason McGuire had just appeared to fall off the face of the earth. Disappeared was another word he had grown used to hearing his Ma say as she watched the mailbox daily for some word from his Da. Well he would just have to see about that.

After her death, Markus had found the letters his father had sent his mother up to the time he disappeared. They were postmarked Collinsport. He had no idea what his Dad was doing here but more than likely it was a scam of some kind. He had written about his best friend Willie Loomis.

Well he would find Willie Loomis if he was in the area and find out what he knew about his Dad's disappearance. He might even have to file a missing person's report here in Collinsport with little Miss Sweet Cheeks out there getting herself all nasty and dirty with a dead body.

Yeah he was not going to leave this town until he had some answers and someone was going to pay if anyone had hurt his Da. He had not been much of a father figure but hell he was the only one he had. He owed him that much. Sipping his drink he smiled at a bleach blond walked to his table and he put his most charming smile on for her. "So you want the blue plate special?"

He nodded, "And a side of you for desert."

He grabbed her hand and kissed it and she flushed and fluttered her false lashes. "Oh you are a cute one." She took his order and blew him a kiss as she walked slowly back to the kitchen. Yeah he was going to like this town a lot.