Author's Notes: Hi, readers. Here is chapter twenty-one of 'Into the Shadows.' This chapter introduces Karen. I am glad to have finally brought in Bruce's wife and Mike's mother. Not all parents stick by their children after they commit terrible crimes. Some can even sense evil coming from them. Stay tuned for chapter twenty-two.
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Chapter 21: Cafeteria/Tension/Small Talk
Two men and a woman walked into the cafeteria eighteen minutes later. The cafeteria was rather large. It had a long table that had two coffeemakers and a stack of styrofoam cups sitting upside down. An empty food line stretched across the room. Eighteen round tables were scattered throughout it. Each table had six chairs around it. Coke and vending machines were near the entrance.
Walter, Bernard, and the Quileutes sat at two tables located near the coke and vending machines. Walter, Jacob, Leah, Billy, and Quil were at the first one. Bernard, Harry, Seth, and Embry were at the second one. All nine of them had coffee-filled cups. Quil looked around the room. He returned his attention to the others and sipped his cream-filled coffee.
"I say this is a nice-sized cafeteria," Quil commented.
"Yes, it is. It's neatly organized too," Jacob said and put his hands on his cup to tap his fingers against it.
"I recall my high school cafeteria having three dozen round tables. They had six to eight chairs at each one. The food line stretched across the room," Walter commented.
"My high school cafeteria had ten long tables and four short tables. The long ones had twenty chairs on each side. The short ones had eight on each side. The cafeteria had two lines on either side," Bernard said, running his tongue over his teeth.
Embry chuckled lightly. "Cool."
"Did either of you get into arguments with your friends over who would sit where?" Seth wondered.
"I did a few times, but they never turned into fistfights," Walter responded, taking a sip of his coffee.
"I got into a few arguments as well. None of them turned into fistfights either," Bernard added.
Leah scoffed in annoyance. "I find it silly to argue with someone over a seat."
"You said it, Leah," Harry agreed.
"People sue each other over everything these days," Bernard muttered and rolled his eyes. "In 1991, a man named Richard Overton sued Anheuser-Busch. The reason is their advertisements featuring men scoring with beautiful women don't illustrate the reality that consuming beer will not get you laid. He claimed the advertisements caused him emotional and physical distress along with financial losses of $10,000."
"That's so stupid!" Seth blurted out. "That guy has only himself to blame for his problems. I bet he tried hitting on women while he was drunk."
"They probably smacked him when he did that," Leah said with a snicker.
"If any of those women were already in relationships, I hope their boyfriends or husbands gave that guy good punches to the face for hitting on them," Billy commented.
"The main reason for filing frivolous lawsuits is money," Walter said bitterly. "Plaintiffs want to live the high life without ever having to work for it."
The others voiced their agreement. Just then, Emmett, Jasper, and Charlie walked in and headed over to them.
"What's going on, guys?" Quil asked, raising his eyebrows.
"We came to tell you that Renee called back. Bella talked to her after Edward suggested that allowing her to hear her voice might bring her peace of mind. It did until Bella learned that Renee was coming to get her next Thursday. They got into an argument over that. We heard Renee yelling over the phone," Emmett explained.
"Oh, my," Embry mumbled, wincing to himself.
"There's more. Bruce, Angela, and Jessica finally made contact with Charlie. They denounced Mike's crime and sent their condolences to Bella. The Newtons, the Webers, and the Stanleys are on their way to the hospital," Jasper added.
Bernard, Walter, and the Quileutes sighed in much relief. They were glad to know that Bella had more people on her side, especially Bruce and Karen. However, they couldn't help but wonder about the reactions of the rest of the townspeople and La Push residents once news of the rape started to spread. They noticed an uneasy look forming on Charlie's face.
"The unfortunate thing is we had to listen to Bruce yell over the phone. He was so angry over what his son did to my daughter," Charlie muttered.
"I don't blame him, Charlie. Then again, it makes me wonder what made him turn on his son," Billy replied.
"I don't have the slightest clue. Perhaps we'll know when Walter and Bernard question them," Charlie suggested. "Angela and Jessica kept their voices low, but I could still hear the anger in them."
"We believe they didn't want to scare Bella," Emmett added.
"Speaking of Bella, I need to get a diet coke for her. She's thirsty," Charlie said and went to the coke machine. He got out three quarters and inserted them. He pressed the button for diet coke. The diet coke came into the hole, allowing him to take it. He returned to the others. "I'm going to take this back to Bella before she starts wondering where I am."
"Jasper and I will join you in a minute. We want to talk to these guys," Emmett said, motioning toward the Quileutes and the detectives.
"That's fine, Emmett," Charlie answered and walked out of the cafeteria. He headed right while singing nonsense.
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Bruce drove down a forest road in his truck. The truck happened to be a Ford. It was dark green that happened to be somewhat faded in a number of places. The windshield had a tiny crack in the middle of the bottom. The bumper possessed a small dent in the middle of it. Dirt could be seen along the bottom on both sides. The driver's door had a scratch underneath the handle.
Fifty-five-year-old Karen slid her hand along the door handle before laying it in her lap. She was Caucasian and had rather light skin. She was petite and had a lean frame that had a little muscle to it. Her dark red hair was short and curly. Her eyes were light blue. Her left cheek had a small scar on it. Her face had very few wrinkles.
Bruce tightened his grip on the steering wheel. He was so angry at what Mike did to Bella, as was Karen. They had been aware their son was jealous of Edward and Bella's relationship, but they didn't think he would hurt her, as he was always nice to her. They recalled all the times he referred to her as a great friend. They thought his resuming his relationship with Jessica would help him get over his thing for Bella, but it didn't work as the teens broke it off again. They knew he ceased to be their son the moment he decided to rape her. Rape was an unforgivable crime for them.
Karen looked out her window toward the moon as he loosened his grip on the wheel. It seemed to hang just above the trees. A thin cloud moved over its center, followed by a slightly thicker one going over its top. The stars around it seemed to twinkle one at a time. She propped her head up with her elbow on the door.
"What a beautiful night sky," she whispered sadly. "Why did Bella's rape have to happen under that? In fact, it shouldn't have happened at all."
"I can't argue with that," he agreed and sighed in frustration. "I wish this truck could go faster, so we could get to the hospital more quickly."
"Me too," Karen mumbled as tears formed in her eyes. "Thank God that Edward and Alice found Bella. If the Cullens hadn't come home early, she wouldn't have been found until—"
"I know, darling," Bruce said, his body beginning to tremble. "The thought of her lying on that kitchen floor—I just don't want to deal with it."
She wiped the tears from her eyes. "I have a feeling that Bella will take a bit of time off from work and school to deal with what happened to her."
He looked toward her. "I don't know how long that will last, but I do know one thing. We won't pressure her into coming back to work. She will come back when she is ready."
Karen nodded in agreement as her husband turned his attention back to the road. She cupped her chin in her hand, thinking deeply. Suddenly, a horrific thought came to her mind.
"Bruce, do you remember all those times Mike sneaked out of the house at night to take walks due to sleeplessness when he was fifteen?" Karen asked, turning to him.
"Yes, I do," Bruce answered. "We could never get the truth out of him regarding the walks because he went on more of them than we ever did as teens. Why do you ask?"
"I don't want to scare you with this question I want to ask you," Karen said.
"What question?" Bruce replied.
"Do you think it's possible Mike raped girls on some of his outings?" Karen wondered.
Bruce looked at his wife with much fear. He didn't want to think Mike did such a thing. However, he believed the boy was capable of anything after that fiasco. He ran his hand over his hair three times.
"To be honest, Karen, I believe Mike did rape girls on some of his outings," Bruce said firmly as he focused on the road. "I do hope I'm wrong."
"So do I," Karen answered and became a little guilty. "I'm sorry I asked."
"Don't be. We need to share this with the police," Bruce said urgently. "It could help them in their investigation."
"Do you think we should let them search our house?" Karen wondered.
"Yes. That is if they ask to," Bruce answered.
"Good," Karen declared. "Perhaps they'll find something that could help them figure out all of this."
Bruce breathed slowly yet surely. He removed his foot from the gas pedal and twirled it around to get the blood flowing better. He put it back on and moved his hands to the bottom of the wheel.
"I won't be surprised if we hear people talk about Bella while they're shopping in our store. That is after they figure out she was Mike's victim," Karen said, turning a bit tense.
"That's the biggest downside of living in a small town such as Forks," Bruce commented, scoffing irritatingly. "Rumors spread much more quickly."
"Some people spread rumors just to ruin the reputations of people they don't like," Karen grumbled and made a gagging sound while sticking her finger into her mouth.
"It's sickening people can be that cruel," Bruce growled fiercely. "They put others down to make themselves feel good."
"I know one person who has been guilty of spreading rumors. It's Lauren Mallory," Karen said.
He rolled his eyes. "That girl has an even bigger mouth than Jessica does. She loves talking about herself. She thinks she is the prettiest girl in town."
She chuckled humorlessly. "Give me a break. Everyone knows Rosalie is the prettiest girl in Forks. Lauren doesn't even come close to her."
"When people say that to Lauren, she goes off on them. She can't stand to be told she is wrong," Bruce said, swallowing hard. "She really does see herself as superior to the other girls."
"She couldn't believe Bella was able to attract Edward. She says Bella is too plain for boys to pay attention to her," Karen said.
Bruce shook his head. "Bella is far prettier than Lauren can ever hope to be. It's due to her wonderful personality. Jessica told me that Rosalie commented on it once, despite the latter isn't too fond of Bella."
"There's one thing Rosalie has that Lauren doesn't have. It's a boyfriend by the name of Emmett," Karen pointed out.
"That's right," Bruce agreed. "Emmett wouldn't touch Lauren with a one hundred-foot pole."
Karen formed her hands as if she were holding a pole. "Nor would any of the other boys."
Bruce winked at Karen as she laid her hands in her lap. He moved his hands to the top of the wheel and tightened his grip on it somewhat.
"I will tell you one thing, Bruce. I will do whatever I can to help Bella to heal from this," Karen declared.
"So will I, Karen. So will I," Bruce responded in determination. She leaned over and kissed his cheek. He hugged her tightly. She settled back in her seat as the truck passed a jackrabbit chewing on grass blades.
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Bella sipped her coke in her hospital room thirty minutes later. She placed it on the table. She ran her tongue all over the inside of her mouth. She smacked her lips twice. Charlie and Edward stood to the left of her. Bernard and Walter were on her right. The other Cullens and the Quileutes had decided to head home twenty minutes ago.
Bella clasped her hands together and twirled her thumbs around. She was getting anxious to see the Newtons, the Webers, and the Stanleys. She wished Port Angeles wasn't more than an hour away. Charlie, Edward, Bernard, and Walter sympathized with her. Moreover, the detectives wanted to get the questioning with the three families over with. They hoped they would get useful details from them. Bernard cleared his throat.
"How about I tell you about my dad's crazy drive to the hospital when my mom was in labor with me?" Bernard suggested.
"That sounds like a good idea," Bella answered.
"I agree," Edward added curiously. "Tell us."
"My parents were living in Boston at the time. Dad was a high school teacher. He taught driver's ed in the summer. Mom went into labor while he was giving a student his driving test. Mom was lucky Grandma lived nearby and took her to the hospital. She was nervous he wouldn't make it there in time, though Grandma reassured her she would," Bernard explained.
Bella appeared to be in awe. "Wow."
"Yeah. Dad sped to the hospital in the driver's ed car. He scared his student out of his mind. He ran a stop sign. He drove the wrong way on one street. That street was actually clear of any vehicles," Bernard said with a laugh.
"It's ironic. The driving teacher committed traffic violations after teaching his students not to," Edward said.
Bernard crossed his arms and smiled widely. "Yep. He made it to the hospital ten minutes before I was born. I was glad he didn't get into an accident on the way there. He would have likely missed my birth because the doctors and nurses would've been treating his injuries if he had any."
"Childbirth is weird. Some women have very long labors. Others have short ones. Some experience great pain. Others have little to none at all," Walter said.
"Some couples accept they can't have children after trying for years. Then they find out they are expecting a baby like mine did when they were in their middle forties," Charlie said, chuckling quietly.
"Nature works in mysterious ways, huh?" Walter asked.
Charlie winked at his friend. "Yep."
Bella drank the rest of her coke after picking it up. She crushed the can in her hand. Charlie picked up the trashcan, allowing her to put it in.
"Thanks, Dad," Bella said.
"You're welcome," Charlie replied and put the trashcan down. He placed his hands on his sides. "Do you want to me get you anything else?"
"No, I'm good," Bella whispered. "Besides, everyone knows it's not good to drink too much of anything because you'll end up running to the bathroom every ten minutes."
"It won't be very easy for you to go to the bathroom since you're attached to that machine," Charlie pointed out and motioned toward the heart monitor.
"I'll manage, Dad," Bella said, biting her lip. She touched the area where the IV needle was inserted. "You are lucky you have never had to be attached to this thing."
"Neither has Phil," Charlie added.
"That's true, but that could change since he is a baseball player," she commented. "Everyone knows baseball can be dangerous, especially when a pitch is coming at you at ninety miles an hour."
"Getting hit by such a fast baseball would leave a huge bruise," Bernard commented, wincing loudly.
"It'd leave a black eye as well," Walter said.
"I remember reading a story about a ballplayer who got hit in between the eyes by a baseball. He went blind as a result," Edward said, touching the area between his eyes.
"Oh, damn," Bella mumbled and cringed badly.
"Mm-hmm," Edward replied. "He had to relearn everything, including reading and writing. He managed to overcome his blindness."
"That's great," Walter said, a small smile crossing his lips.
"At least the heads of ballplayers have protection from the helmets they were. Imagine what kind of damage their brains could suffer if they didn't wear them and got hit by baseballs," Bernard said.
"It's likely it'd be really bad," Bella said, swallowing hard.
"They'd probably be reduced to a vegetative state," Walter muttered.
"Their loved ones would be pondering with whether or not to keep them alive," Charlie said in seriousness.
"That's something no one should have to face in their lifetime," Bernard said and straightened his jacket. He began talking about a prank Charlie played on him.
