Something's Burning: Chapter 16
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Anything familiar is JE's but this plot is mine. I'm not making any money but having fun playing in this Plumverse.
Warning: some angst
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Decision made, I quietly crept out of bed and went to the bathroom. Ironic! I would happily battle with Edna for dibs on the bathroom right here and now but that's history now. I showered and dressed in peace. After making some sandwiches and a picnic lunch with some cake, cookies and a piece of fruit, I left the house and went for that drive, that space and thinking time. Headlights on and I was off into the quiet of the night.
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Frank:
Dawn was lighting up the sky as he neared his destination. He was feeling hopeful and the closer he came to the coast the more uplifted he felt. Anticipation was his driving force. The sun was about to rise over the Atlantic Ocean at Point Pleasant as Frank Plum drove into the parking lot. He stepped out of his car, taking a deep cleansing breath. Leaving his shoes and socks behind he walked down to the beach towards the water's edge with the waves gently rolling in, paddling his bare feet in the shallows with his trouser legs rolled up. He and Helen had done this walk often he recalled, before the girls were born. Family times at the beach here in summer brought fond memories to mind with the girls and happy times on the boardwalk. He smiled to himself. The girls were all grown up now, adults and independent.
The gentle breeze blew in his hair and he felt the fuzzy cobwebs clear from his overcrowded brain. He breathed in the fresh sea air as some seagulls wheeled around above and ahead of him. The screeching and strident calls of the gulls reminded him of Edna. His heart was heavy and his thoughts were filled with Edna's scorn and sarcasm. Guilt was also taking up substantial space.
He walked around aimlessly in the shallows and just above the watermark, kicking the water and letting himself sink into the damp sand as the little waves washed up and over his feet. He began to pace up and down this stretch of beach to the rocks and back, to the place level with his car. He contemplated his options, revisited past memories and analysed his current situation. He deliberated for quite some time as eventually the sun rose and pierced through the clouds lurking over the horizon. It did not bode well, even though the sun was bright, the clouds looked ominous.
Edna had set a trap for him but he just didn't see it coming and he took the bait hook, line and sinker. He had had an epiphany that perhaps they could live together in a new accord with Edna keeping house and preparing his meals for him. Realising how stupid that actually was he strode back to the car for a break.
Unpacking the thermos and eating a sandwich he stopped mid chew after he had taken his third sip of the delicious hot coffee. It took that long for realisation and understanding to hit him. He looked at his thermos, the sandwiches which he had made himself and the homemade cookies and the pineapple upside down cake. Once again he contemplated his circumstances, past, present and future. In disgust he threw away the remaining unfinished sandwich which was swiftly swooped up by a horde of screaming gulls. He sipped the coffee but that too had lost its flavour and he tossed the rest away.
He was despondent and downcast. In fact, he was downright miserable. Absentmindedly he packed the rest of his picnic back into the bag, climbed into his car and slowly turned back towards Trenton and the Burg. Fortunately there was very little traffic en route as his mind certainly was not on the road but somehow he made it home safely.
Edna:
Feeling free for the first time in decades, Edna was feeling contented and happy in herself … well mostly. A load was off her mind, a couple of loads in actual fact. Well, she was instrumental in a few things that went down and she smiled smugly to herself. But still there was that niggling feeling in her bones that made her feel slightly uneasy. Her Hungarian intuition told her something was off or something was about to happen.
She had given Helen a piece of her mind earlier in the week on a number of occasions but her daughter was annoyed and irritated at being chastised. She would not listen to reason. The last straw had been when Stephanie had denounced Helen's worthiness as a mother for the second time which she, Edna, had also reinforced. A mother does not repeatedly feed that malicious gossip mill that is the Burg adding to her own daughter's misery behind her back whilst drinking her "tea" and ironing. A pang of guilt fleetingly nudged her conscience. She shoved it aside for the time being. It was remarkable that there was always food in this spotless house and lunch and dinner were prepared like clockwork. Helen had chosen to ignore her warnings and it was then that her decision to escape and move out had been made. Edna felt satisfied with her Houdini act right under Helen's self-righteous nose.
Taking Frank to dinner and letting him pay was almost too easy as he played right into her hands. He had walked blindly into her trap. Taking him to task and reaming him a new one was one of her greatest moments which she will reminisce over with great relish. His dumbfounded expression was beyond her expectations. Their 'chat' had been long overdue. Leaving him sitting at the restaurant table like a stunned mullet to catch her cab to Millicent's was another memorable snapshot.
Millicent was very welcoming but it was soon obvious that the two of them inside her small one bedroom apartment was going to be rather challenging. For one thing, sleeping arrangements were limited to a single bed for Millicent and a fold out sofa bed for Edna which was very uncomfortable for her bony frame. Edna's visions of a Thelma and Louise experience was soon thwarted when Millicent indicated her budget allowed only enough gas for her car to go to the store and back a couple of times a week. She was reluctant to take her to the funeral parlour for the viewings that Edna had put into her own schedule for that evening. In fact, despite their long friendship, they had very little in common. Edna realised that her budget too was restrictive and didn't want to go into her savings just yet. So she stayed home, reluctantly and disappointed. Not all things were going to plan.
However, not having a television surprised Edna. "I'm not paying for stuff I don't want to see," was her explanation. So she had pawned the TV set along with a few other items and bought a computer instead. Millicent was satisfied with that and kept up to date with the news and enjoyed her daily dose of politics. That's enough entertainment in itself.
Once again Edna reflected on her Houdini decision. The possibility of an available apartment in this block had fallen through. Edna realised it would have made a serious dent in her savings anyway. Maybe going it alone was not such a good choice and sharing with Millicent and being her roommate was now swiftly becoming a regrettable ill-considered decision. A lot of things were not going to plan. In actual fact, it was slowly becoming uncomfortable in an annoying kind of way. In the small apartment there was very little room for personal space. For the short term it could be okay but Edna was already starting to go stir crazy.
Her phone rang and she eagerly snatched it up recognising Stephanie's designated ringtone.
"Hey Baby Girl! How's my baby grand daughter and that handsome hottie with the package? I need some inside information cos I'm going totally batshit crazy here. I need details, Baby Girl. And spe-"
"Grandma! That's enough! I've had a gutful of all this crap. You should know that by now. I don't want to hear any more. I am no longer gossip fodder! Ranger is off limits and I do NOT discuss personal details. What we do is private and you should respect that, Grandma. I am very disappointed. Do you understand? It's bad enough that my own 'mother' perpetuates this gossip but you too, Grandma? Seriously?! It's over, now and forever! I thought that you at least would have my back. I'll talk to you later … maybe. I just rang to let you know that I'm okay but you are more interested in living vicariously. Not on my watch."
Stephanie had hung up on her and Edna immediately regretted her actions and words. Feeling shattered and guilty, she sat down heavily on the sofa and cried. Devastated. What had she done? She was no better than her own daughter or Frank for that matter. She was suddenly very tired. She packed her worldly possessions and rang for a cab, thanking Millicent for her hospitality.
Helen:
"Where the hell is everybody? Oops."
Helen crossed herself quickly and sat alone at the kitchen table, sad and forlorn. The phone was off the hook. It had been ringing incessantly and suddenly she wasn't in the mood. She had come downstairs to find an empty kitchen. She wasn't aware initially, not until she had made them breakfast. A quiet bathroom had already made her curious and now suspicious. Her intuition and instincts told her something was wrong with that picture.
Her coffee was now cold with only a few sips taken. The eggs and the pancakes sat on their plates, waiting. She had gone upstairs to check and even checked the shed and the garage for any sign of Frank. Seeing his car gone sent warning bells. It could be that he had an early fare, perhaps, to or from the airport maybe. That could be right. It was logical. It made sense. But Frank would usually leave a note. Again her intuition was going haywire.
She searched for a note. Nothing. She noticed his thermos was gone and dishes in the sink indicated he had made sandwiches. She checked the fridge. Confirmed. Hmm? The bread, too. He must have made a sandwich. Frank made a sandwich. Some cake was freshly cut. The cookie jar had moved and was not in its exact spot. She sat down heavily. That was when she couldn't stand the phone ringing. She was not in the mood to talk to anyone. They would just assume she was busy, on the phone.
She had woken up in a grumpy mood and was prepared to take it out on someone, anyone. She always felt better after that, relieved and refreshed. But there was no one. Her mother was not in her room. Her bed hadn't been slept in. It looked the same but there were some things missing. Photos. Her overnight bag. Her toothbrush and hairbrush. Where had she gone? She didn't understand. Frank is gone, in the car. Edna isn't here and it looks like she has been gone more than a day or two. Now she was really worried and feeling very alone. Not a nice home alone feeling but an anxious, uncomfortable, fretful alone.
When she came back downstairs, she covered the eggs and the pancakes and put them in the fridge. She emptied her cup and did the dishes and tidied up the kitchen after putting a load of linen in the washing machine. She busied herself with household chores, anything to take her mind off the desolation she felt. The beeping of the phone could be heard in the silence of the empty house. It was her home. It didn't feel homely at this point in time. Her mother's words swam through her mind, warnings and admonishments. Always about Stephanie! Why me? Why couldn't she be more like Valerie? She checked herself, recalling Stephanie's words, disowning her as a mother. She can't do that? Can she? Surely it wasn't that bad? She'll come around. She will soon enough come for dinner to scrounge an easy home cooked meal. You'll see. She was trying to reassure herself but even then she didn't feel convinced. In the back of her mind she felt uneasy. But she shook it off and carried on regardless.
She decided to bake some cookies while the laundry went into the dryer. When that was done she could do the ironing. In the meantime she set about washing the windows and another load went into the washing machine. The cookies were made and the house smelt more homely. Baking always chases away the demons. Angst demons were lurking, hiding, teasing, taunting, confusing. So she mixed a batch of cupcakes for the grand daughters to decorate.
It was after she'd made a second batch of cupcakes and set them on the cake rack to cool that she was on the front porch sweeping when Frank arrived. She breathed a sigh of relief. She shook the door mat and beat it firmly with the broom before setting it down in front of the door. The mat took an extra beating, this time. She went inside, washed her hands and set about making lunch and put the kettle on.
A cab arrived after Frank came in and had gone upstairs.
"Lunch will be ready shortly," she called up the stairs. She heard a grunt of acknowledgment.
She stood at the porch door as Edna emerged from the cab looking a little more frail. She waved goodbye to the cabbie and came inside.
"Helen," she acknowledged quietly not ready to make eye contact, either of them. She slowly went upstairs to put her things away.
Lunch was eaten in miserable silence. Edna went upstairs for a nap and Frank sat in his armchair to read the newspaper. Helen cleaned up the lunch dishes and made plans for dinner. Frank had put reset the phone and all was quiet in the Plum residence.
The Chief of Police:
It is with regret that we inform you of the passing of Detective Joseph Anthony Morelli. Due to the injuries sustained from Benito Ramirez with cracked and crushed ribs, a broken radius and ulna, a broken femur, a punctured lung, bruised and damaged kidneys, a ruptured spleen, a broken sternum and the gunshot wounds, he never regained consciousness from the induced coma. He died this morning in the CCU after coding three times.
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The dominoes have fallen and the demise of the Plum household has rocked their world as they are stuck together, like it or not. Frank did not find his cojones. Edna had her brief escape. Helen had the shock of her life. Perhaps their door should have a sign saying Egypt, Land of Denial. The Plum family just fizzles into nothingness, no one of relevance any more... nonentities.
Her Burg standing and influence will plummet.
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I know, it's not the date and it's a miserable chapter. Don't be too angry with me. Some social justice was appropriate and needed to be meted out.
So now you can look forward to the date. :)
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