Date: Mon, 13 Apr 2009 21:18:41 -0700 (PDT) From: Joe Parker Subject: I think I'm in trouble. Part 1, Chapter 18 I THINK I'M IN TROUBLE PART I Chapter XVIII This chapter is dedicated with so much love to Chuck, the sweetest single bear anywhere! - Happy Birthday to you~ (Miss Carol) I rest in a land that is fashioned somewhere tween day n' night. I cannot tell whether it be dawn or twilight. Rainbow colors sparkle all-a-roun and a cool hazy canopy of mist protects us from the radiance of a much closer sun. A white pathway wanders away in front of me and the boy. Mist makin it hard to see where it leads now. But what I sure do know is that this path is set for me.., it ain't for de boy at all. "Turn back baby, go on now, turn back and go to the world before" Lil boy whines and grips my hand even harder.., "Please Miss, I don't wanna go back there, let me come with you pleeeeease!?!" His shining blue eyes glisten with fear and the memory of pain - Memories he thankfully cannot truly remember. "Where I be goin, aint no place for a lil boy like you now darlin" He clings to me even harder and trembles so I kiss his sweet lil head and turn him by the shoulders aiming him backwards, homewards to where his past will make him older and sadder than ever he has been before. "Yall's Momma and Daddy love you very much chile and they ain't seen you in a coons age! If I take you with me they alls gonna be so sad and red hot mad at Miss Carol now you don' wan' that do ya?" "Nah-uh" he shakes his lil head slowly and I can see that he thinkin of his folks, missin them. All of a sudden he folds his arms, tears up, stamps his foot on de crystal ground and begins to wail. "I want my Mommy!" "Good - go on then honey, she waitin on y'alls just back that a ways a lil now give Miss Carol a kiss and go on home, but I want y'all to promise me one thang" I kiss and hug the lil sweetheart then give him a gentle push in the right direction. "I promise, whatever it is" He looks at me earnestly and my heart rips at the thought of what I am bout to ask him to do. "Clarke.., I want you to promise to remember" He frowns not really understanding, I did it proper when I took his memory from him. Without drastic action he woulda given in long time ago. "Miss Carol knows who the one is that causin big trouble down in de world and as soon as you see that one who done caused this trouble you must REMEMBER and you must TELL" "Remember what? - Tell who?" "No more questions now baby, go tell them I am going on home darlin. You go on now and please... please tell them how much I love them and how much I loved serving them all! - All my family, all my lil childrens and all the babies!" He is walkin away from me now, head nodding as he promises to remember my message. "Don't cry Miss Carol, I promise to tell them what you said, I'm a big boy now and I won't forget" And very soon, he will herald his own return into that lost and dyin ole world. And there he will announce my own imminent departure. Returning a favor to me, one that I booned him when he was in direst need and nobody knowed it. The night I announced his emergency to his father. Last thang I hear as he fades into the white haze is the sound of his nimble feet skipping. Skipping back to a place I wish I never had to send him. I give a benediction into the mist and kiss it out to the world left behind.., "The Lord be with you always!" A blaze of light cuts me off from the terrestrial plane... I finish off my benediction regardless. "And may He grant you comfort and succour all the days that you shall walk the Earth.., as He has me " I turn and begin to walk on to the place that was promised to me. I begin to smile as the years fall away, the ailments leave me and I begin to fly, seeing as with new eyes, joy flooding my soul as I soar into the sunlight of a paradise sublime. I sing as with the voice of an angel.., The cool flutter of feathers soothe and caress me as I rise up with wings like the majestic eagle of lsaiah. I am surrounded by angels who call out with voices like rolling thunder across the Heavens.. "Those who sow in tears shall reap in joy!" "REJOICE!" An eternal voice rings out before me.., "Well done good and faithful servant!" My last Earthly thought escapes me as I complete my transformation into a new being... 'Weep not for me beloved, for I have gone to join the Angel band' ********************************************************************************** (Clarke) "Mommphhha?" I thought I was speaking but there's something in my mouth, so I spit it out. It was some tube thing. "Mmmmmmm!, Mmmmmmm!!, Mmmmmoooomm!!!!" Mommy drops the magazine she was reading and stares at me with a weird face. My eyes are dry and I can't stop blinking. What has happened to me? I can't feel most of my body. I blink at Momma who puts eye drops in my blinky eyes with one hand and is pressing a white button lots of times with the other.., why? Where am I? "Mommy?" my voice is really weird like I aint been talking in a long while. "Oh baby, Clarke my baby thank GOD!" My Mommy kisses me lots of times and holds my hand carefully. My left arm is in one of those cast things. How did it break? - Did I fall out of the treehouse? - Was it a little league accident? "Honey I love you, I love you!, I love you sweetheart!" My mouth feels really yucky and Mommy notices and lets me drink from a long straw. I can feel gaps in my teeth, has my teeth fallen out? Jake said there ain't no such thing as the tooth fairy, but to pretend there is for as long as you can so that you can still get money! Nurse ladies and doctors come rushing in and they look at me really weirdly... "Mrs Griersen how did he?, he's not meant to be able to wake up like this!" says a man with a bald head. Daddy comes running in and does a real cool skid hehe. Hey him and Mom look kinda old! Junior says that hospitals are where bad things can happen and people can die here! "Son.., SON YOUR'E AWAKE!!!" Dad yells. "Hush Jeb, he's right next to you" says Mommy. The doctor guy then speaks... "Mr and Mrs Griersen, can I ask you both to let us stabilize Clarke?" They back off but their eyes make me feel so good inside and all wiggly. "I LOVE YOU CLARKE, I LOVE YOU BABY! yells Daddy... The doctor and nurse people start checking things and pushing cool looking buttons. I'm not afraid, my Mommy is right here with me just like Miss Carol said she would be! Even Daddy is here too, he's usually at work. Wow! - I almost forgot about Miss Carol's really important message! "Mom, Dad it's Miss Carol!" Their heads jerk like puppets and Dads mouth opens and closes several times. "What's that about Miss Carol dear?" says Mom coz Dad can't talk. "I was just talking to her in a beautiful place and she said to tell you that she is going home now and she loved being a servant or somethin..." The doctor speaks.., "It's okay guys, delusions are a common side affect of his meds" Mom and Dad just look at one another for a moment and then my Pa rushes out of the room, where's he going? The last thing I remember saying before I blacked out again was asking for a Happy Meal from McDonalds. *** (Jake) Thursday I was not long home from wrestling practice and had just finished my shower after running up the hill when Mr Williamson overode the security codes to my quarters and entered my bathroom.., "Jacob, we tried paging and calling you several times. You'd better get dressed now and hurry on down to level 4" He said evenly. It was Miss Carol. I don't remember dressing but I suppose I must have. I do remember racing to the elevator, cursing in frustration at how long it seemed to take just to go down one measley level. It seemed rather ominous that all the double doors leading into her quarters were wide open. I remember calling out to Felix in my heart, wanting him to be here with me. And he would have been, if not for that Aimee Kohl lady and her extra assignment project. He was out there somewhere, playing at being Sherlock Holmes trying to gather information about the rape and attempted murder of Clarke. Momma Dee Dee, Miss Carol's daughter in law is there with 3 of her own children and several of their kids, some of whom had kids of their own. They are scattered around both sides of the bed. Dispersed between them are my own Grandparents, my father, my uncles and their wives and Mr Williamson (Head of Hosuehold Staff) and his wife. Elroy and his folks Mr and Mrs Haydon are present too. We give each other a silent panicked stare. Mr Taylor the preacher is also there. "Come on honey, over by me" - Miss Dee Dee takes me into her embrace as I kneel beside the bed, the deathbed of Miss Carol. I sense my Daddy taking up position on my other side as the doctor just stands there looking helplessly at Miss Carol. She is sitting up and her eyes are wide open. She looks like she is having some kind of asthma attack. I look angrily at my Grandfather and send a message with my eyes - why aren't they doing something!?! "She was able to talk just before son and she told them to let... to let her g- go..." Grandfather's voice cracks on the last few words. I look at Grandmother seeking some kind of denial but she just nods her head sadly, her own eyes filled with tears. "N-noooo!!! I yell to the room, at myself at Miss Carol... She is beginning to settle down now, lying back into her pillows. Her eyes opening and closing with every final beat of her heart. I reach out and hold her hand, my hand touches other hands, all reaching out to our Miss Carol in her final moments. I can feel awesome charges of strange energy pulsating out of her in waves. Is this her life force? Is this why she's dying, coz her life force is leaching away? It's certainly very powerful and my whole body sizzles with it. Her rheumy eyes meet mine and I feel great love. A flurry of activity breaks our gaze and I feel my beloved slip between my father and me, nestling himself into the crook of my arm. A huge feeling of relief sweeps over me and I bury my nose in his hair, my eyes once again meeting Miss Carol's. She smiles aprrovingly at us. Momma Kath and Uncle Gary are here, even my Jarrow grandparents are here. Momma Kath has brought the kids.., is that such a good idea? "Ahhhhhhhh" Miss Carol sighs as the children are placed on the bed into her arms. The children are silent, amazingly compliant and calm. Abigail nestles into Miss Carol and Lil Shaun coo's gently beside her. The old lady looks at Grandmother and nods. "You mean both?" says Grandmother. Miss Carol nods again. This confuses me, I don't know what she is talking about. And then with one enormous last effort she speaks. "The Lord be with you always!" "And with you" I hear emotion filled voices murmur around me. She smiles one last time and quietly slips away into the ever after. My head begins to shake as my eyes start to swim with tears. She's gone.., she''s actually gone! How could she leave us at a time like this? A time when we need her so much! I can't believe this! The sounds of sobbing and weeping echo around the room as Mr Taylor begins to recite the Lord's Prayer and we all join in. I hold my baby to me and raise my eyes to the sky outside. In my mind I shake an imaginary fist at Almighty God. 'You took MissCarol, don't you dare take my Felix away from me!' My life will never be the same again. I am helpless. *** (Ryan) I can't think straight, I don't know how to get my mind to a better place right now. In my muddled mind I can hear Miss Carol telling me that it's okay to feel like this, to just let it all out and bawl. I really want to do just that but my natural reserve causes me to hold it in. I just want to be alone right now, I want so much to be alone but I know that's gonna be impossible. I want to grieve, I want to scream, I want to pour out the anguish that floods my soul. But there are responsibilities too.., I have a distraught son who needs me. Miss Carol's own family, my parents, brothers, housestaff.., Kathleen. We of course forsaw this event was coming closer as Miss Carol's march slowed through the years and so we made plans. I was given the responsibility of taking care of the household staff and keeping them in the loop about everything that was going on. Mother was going to work with Miss Dee Dee and Miss Carol's immediate family and my brother Michael was going to liase with the town and State authorities. Miss Carol was well known not only across Maxson county but throughout the state. Her patronage of various charity, education and heritage initiatives meant there was going to be a lot of official level presence at her funeral. Miss Carol herself had outlined exactly how she wanted her funeral to occur. She wanted to lie in state here at the Eyrie for three days with a final service and committal to be held on the final day. She would be buried in the Garfield Mausoleum in the town below. Henry Taylor was to conduct the final service and give the eulogy and over the course of the two days prior to this there would be music, singing, and reminiscing time. It was going to be very different from the usual funeral service but this was how Miss Carol wanted it to be and by God that's what she was going to get. I have been unable to face going into her solarium over the past few days since she slipped into her comatose-like state. I now regret it bitterly but I just could not face the fact that she was not within herself anymore. One thing we all agreed on was that Miss Carol did not seem present at all these last few days. I only visited with her during the 7 PM prayer services but that was all I needed to know that she had moved on or at least was gone for a while. As it turns out she was gone for just a little while but when she returned this afternoon, it was to say a final goodbye. She spent most of those final few minutes looking deeply into our eyes and communicating to each of us her love and affection. I held her hand and reflected back to her the immense love and admiration I held for this woman who had devoted the vast majority of her life to ensuring the comfort of us fickle and largely undeserving Maxson's. Have you ever had the honor of knowing anyone such as this? Miss Carol was so service oriented that even after she exceeded the one ton mark she was still as busy as a dynamo, showing interest in and giving nurture to the lives of all those who lived alongside her. It is going to be a solemn and enormous task to do any sort of justice to the legacy she is leaving behind for us. There is going to be a certain celebratory aspect to her slightly protracted funeral and although I don't feel very celebratory at the moment, I'm going to try my best to honor her and be involved in everything. Something about Gary's two beautiful children has caught my attention too. Kath has been bringing them and Ma and Pa Jarrow up to visit with Miss Carol and us every day. I cannot explain it but Miss Carol seemed to ease each time the children were nearby playing or even resting on her bed. They seem to be totally at ease with her but more than this. They appear to be interacting with the old lady in a way I can't explain. It's kind of a weird sight to see but the kids often stop playing or whatever and simultaneously they will stare at Miss Carol their heads cocked. I look at Kath for an explanation but she does hushes me gently and shakes her head. She doesnt know either. Two people who do seem to know are Mother and Ma Jarrow. Exactly what they know though is not something they are willing to share with me. Women and their secrets. They need to have their mystery, without it - we would soon lose interest. I feel like I'm not getting enough time alone with Kathleen. I know this is a very selfish thought but I am frustrated and want to take our relationship to the next level. As soon as everything settles down I want to ask what she considers us to be. If it looks like there's a genuine chance I'm going all out. I don't want to just be friends, I don't want to go on occasional dates and be left on the doorstep with chaste kisses goodnight. I want everything, good, bad and the ugly. I want her, but does she want me? Time to use some of my sons fearless bravery and get ready to find out once and for all. Jake seems to be coping better than I thought he would. It's been a double blow for him, his childhood friend and his nanny both felled in the same weekend. I am going to have to keep an eye on him but I have to say, Felix is doing a great job of keeping him calm, rational and positive. But now with Miss Carol leaving us.., I think there are going to be some big emotional moments coming from my son. His eyes are so close to black these days. When Jake's eyes turn black.., he's angry. He usually just explodes and lets it all out but I get the distinct impression that he's just simmering below the surface. Almost as if he's waiting for some secret signal, some future moment known only to him when he will erupt with lethal and unimagonable force. I hope that when he does, he remains coherent enough not to hurt Felix. I hope that Felix has the forsight and fortitude to be able to withstand Jake lashing out. Perhaps I need to have a wee chat to Felix. Yes that's just what I will do. It's been a very surreal last few days with Clarke being sexually violated and near beaten to death in some kind of sick and psychotic physical attack. We have been instructed not to tell anyone about these details to aid with the investigation. Jake, Mark and Felix know of course but have promised to keep 'Mum' about it. The mere thought that so many awful things were done to Clarke scare me to the bone. I am conscious of my own son and concerned that this crackpot might be targeting the young men in this area. From what Jeb told me the attack although seemingly frenzied really was not. It was measured, calculated and deliberate, designed to disfigure, destroy, denude and disenfranchise Clarke from everything that made him beautiful,valuable and male. The full psychological profiles are not available yet but there can be no doubt that they are going to paint a picture of some kind of pathological monster. When called Jeb asking for me I freaked, the only reason he could have possibly been calling was because something else had befallen Clarke. What he had to tell me was both brow raising yet unsurprising. Anything to do with Miss Carol often bordered on the extraoridnary. He was very excited because his son had woken up against expectation and with total disregard for the heavy sedation he was meant to be under. "Ryan he's awake and he, he, he's coherent and he's just alive!" Jeb's words rushed out through the phone in a torrent, reminiscent of more childlike days. "Wow Jeb that's great news and we need some of that don't we!" "Oh yeah man but hey!.., he said.., he said that he had been with Miss Carol..." Jebs voice becomes perplexed. "What do you mean Jeb?" "He said that he was in a beautiful place with the old lady and she had a message for him to give to you guys" "What message Jeb?" "Something about her being ready to go home, Ryan I think she's finally ready to depart..." My throat catches, a sudden pain in my heart and a splintering sensation in my brain. "Ryan?" says Jeb. "Ryan?.., Ryan! are you there man?" "Hey Jeb.., I gotta go man, thank you for telling me about Miss Carol and hey.... I'm really glad to hear about Clarkey okay?" "Okay Ry..." "And Jeb?" "Yeah Buddy?" "If he wakes up again please tell him that Uncle Ryan is thinking of him and Jake can't wait to see him fit and fighting again aight?" "Aight Ry, keep in touch okay?" "Okay Jeb I will buddy..." As I walk away from my desk my nose fills with ozone and my eyes begin to burn. My feet are taking me to level 4 without being asked. This time I won't be loitering around the edges... it's time let her go. ********************************************************************************************* On the other side of town where the lights are dim and the road is unpaved, Lenore Rivera lies in the arms of her construction worker lover thinking about her other lover Clarke. "You know Brad, Clarke's about the straightest boy I know..." Builder Brad yawns and stretches, lighting up his 20th cigarette of the day. "Yeah so?" he answers, "Everybody thought Jake was straight too but ummm he sure ain't heh heh!" He blows smoke out, laughing at his own observation. Lenore wrinkles her nose at the offending smoke. She clambers out of bed and begins hunting for her long ago scattered clothing. "So I think either Clarke accepted the company of someone who then took him by surprise and attacked him immediately, or he let his guard down and trusted the person who then took advantage of him later on..." "I don't read you honey" Brad really is lost... Lenore snorts... "It may seem obvious to SOME... but whatever it was, it either happened straight away.., or later on. I think he accepted a ride somewhere and was taken to a place where he could be attacked. Felix hinted to me that Clarke was physically attacked but also more" "More what?" says Brad. "I think he was sexually violated. Now I really don't think he would have readily accepted a ride from a man unless that man was known to Clarke. And there isn't anyone from round here, not even Beth or her family that would do this to Clarke.., Nope this was the work of a stranger! Lenore's green eyes flash as her agile mind flies over the combinations of possibilities and suspicions and assumptions. If a man picked Clarke up I think he would have pretty much attacked him straight away. But Clarke aint no skinny runt either and regardless of his emotional state, Clarke would have fought long and hard against any overt attack!" "Hmmmm yeah, okay babe" Brad has already become bored with something he doesn't understand. "I just bet that they found no marks or signs of struggle on Clarke's body. All they will find will be injuries performed upon him.., and tell me Bradley! -- What is Clarke Griersen's biggest weakness???" "Hehehe oh I know this one babe.., it's WOMEN!" "Exactly Brad! - I think that Clarke was abducted by a woman and she was the one who violated and beat him. Either that or she took him to someone else who possibly helped her do it - or they abused him instead of her... Whoever she is.., she is either the courier, or she is both..." "No way in hell would I let some whore break all the bones in my body for kicks!" declares Brad, not realizing the unintended pun he just uttered. "He'd have to be on drugs or somthin!" "And that my dear Watson is exactly how it happened!" laughs Lenore, her rich voice pealing like a bell of discovery. "Bradley you are an absolute genius sugar!" "Haha lets not get too far ahead of ourselves now baby!" he laughs back sexily. "Now come back to bed and lets 'consurate' our killer detective skills" Lenore picks up on his second unintended pun. "Yes I think this deserves another round darlin" she coos... She climbs into bed and removes the sheets from his tumescent penis. She feels no guilt that he mind is currently filled with the thoughts of a woman, not the man to whom she is making love right now. A strange woman who just entered town this week... but maybe she was here all along.., or here-abouts. 'Yessss,' Lenore thinks to herself... 'I think Daddy will be most interested in what I have to say about this...' 'MOST interested indeed!' She swallows Brad's copiously delicious cream as she contemplates the identity of an attempted murderer.., or perhaps that should be murderess. Lenore swallows and smiles, she is the cat who got the cream, and the canary. She is the one who got the cake and ate it too. She slides up to her lovers mouth and shares some of his cream with him. He laps it up hungrily. (Felix) This last session has gone a little overtime, well a lot overtime actually. By the time it finished, school had been out for nearly an hour. I was meant to go play ball in the gym with the boys today and then I was gonna go up top to visit with Jake and Elroy. But it was not to be. Once we finally did get out from what was a really fine lesson, Jessica asked me to go do some location photography for her outside Fast Eddie's diner which was one of the last places Clarke was seen. So I was also gonna be late getting back up top to my baby who must be sore from wrestling practice today. I was gonna give him a massage and maybe a lil somin else... My mind has never felt so stimulated! These sessions we are havin with Miss Aimee have opened up my eyes to a whole new world. Investigative Journalisn ain't just about snoopin round and searchin through people's trash. Miss Aimee says it's all about how well you know yourself an all. I did not get this at first, not until she explained bout putting ourselves in the shoes of the subject and then analyzing what we would do if we were in their place. The better we know our own responses, the better we know ourselves.., the better we can guess, estimate and predict what our actions and behaviors are gonna be. It's jez like bein a detective! I was like WOW! - an all because once you translate the same pattern over to the subject you are investigating BINGO! The better you know your subject or y'alls target.., the better you can predict not only what they are about to do - but what they have done in the past! You can predict how they respond to pressure, the places the like to frequent and the people they like to mix with. I am having an epiphany every day in this class, and it's a pity Jake don't wanna hear bout it coz I think he wouold looove the kind of stuff that we are studying and talking about. I like the practical elements to.., putting together a story, outlining, editing and sub-editing our own work, research and follow up work asking the right questions.., we ain't done all these things yet but I'm suddenly finding that 2 periods a day ain't enough! I learned to use my camera today! We gonna have 2 sessions in total on how to use these amazing contraptions. They are hybrid digital and old school mechanical Nikons and they RAWK! I have never been the first one asked to take photo's, I have a tendency to chop folks heads clean off! Any photograph woth the heads missing has usually been taken by me... In just 10 minutes Miss Aimee had all of us clickin away like seasoned pro's. I have taken her advice seriously when she said we should always have our camera's with us everywhere we go coz we aint gonna be all that happy if we miss gettin pics of the scoop of the century are we? We discussed our projects after that. Each of us has to do a project to pass this course, call it an assignment. Jessica is gonna investigate what happened to Clarke and how it has affected his class and schoolmates. Kim is gonna do a big article on Miss Carol and the massive contribution she has made to the school and the town. And I have to get Uncle Ryan to grant me an interview! I must say I did get a lil uncomfortable when she started talkin bout our "Local resident superstar".., (her words)... "Ladies, gentleman.., right here in your midst lives one of the most enigmatic, celebrities in the world. In fact he is not just a celebrity, he's a genuine superstar!" Jessica scoffs at this flowery announcement from Miss Aimee. "Oh but it's true young Jessica dear!" she gushes. "To you he is just the rich guy up on top of that hill.., your ex-boyfriend Jake's dad, Felix' uncle.., yes I have taken my own advice and done my own research people!" Our eyes have widened at her nascent all knowingness. "So to you he's just one of the regulars, someone you have known all your lives. But to the outside world he is the gorgeous tragic hunk who went one or is that two better than James Dean and won 2 Oscars for two incredibly left field films!" She is so passionate when she speaks, her hands flying about wildly while she paints word pictures in our minds. "You have to be objective! Why if I was you, I would be angling to get an interview with him for your own website or the local paper!" It doesn't even matter if it's about something mundane like local politics or the weather.., this is Ryan Maxson! He is a superstar and you would have one of the biggest scoops in many, many years! An interview with Mr. Maxson is one of the Holy Grails of entertainment journalism. Felix, I know that Shonta Maxson-Jarrow was your Aunt, but she has a story waiting to be told. Ryan can tell her story for her and probably would if he had the right person to tell it to! The world cares about Ryan and Shonta and they want closure too. They loved those two special people, they were the golden couple of Hollywood"... Wow! - my mind is whirling with images of me interviewing Uncle Ryan and helping him lay to rest all the ghosts of the past.., I tune back in to Miss Aimee. "Felix the press have tried to talk to your own family but no success, and certainly, we have never gotten anywhere with the Maxson's But if you are thinking of all the reasons why you should not at least try to broach the subject with your uncle, I ask you to at least think of the many reasons why you SHOULD!" I look around the room, Kim seems just as excited as I am but I notice that Jessica's eyes are cold and forbidding, Miss Aimee notices too. "Felix honey, others will ask you not to do it, I say DO IT! - GO FOR IT!" I gulp, I really wanna do it! "And Felix, if they ask you WHY you should say WHY NOT? If they tell you NO you should say YES! If they say you CANNOT do it.., you should be thinking.., 'Why can't I? -- Like hell I can't!' It is important for all of you to develop a strong sense of objectivity about this work. Now I know you may not necessarily I would really love to interview Uncle Ryan but I'm still scared though.., I can hardly string two words together when I'm around him. Some deep down part of me will always know him as Ryan Maxson the movie star! Yes he's Jake's dad, he's my uncle.., but he's also the superhot, wickedly talented, mega-private icon of tragedy and mystery. I reckon that in some ways it's much easier to work with or investigate somebody who is a stranger. When you know them it's hard to remain 'objective' as Miss Aimee says. I have to formulate a way to get him to talk to me. It's gonna be scary but I'm just gonna plain on ask him and see what he says. Besides, I really am genuinely interested in Uncle Ryan's life and I want to tell his story from the point of view of a nephew shooting the breeze with his famous uncle. I think I will talk to Jake bout it and see if he wants to help out. It can't hurt to ask.., He can only say no. Suddenly I get a call from Momma. "Howdy Momma!" "Hi baby, you'd better get up to the Eyrie please darlin, it's Miss Carol!" "Oh, has she died Momma?" "Naw not yet as far as I know but it looks like she may be about to leave this life honey. You'll be needed up there" "I'm on my way Momma! See you up there" "Okay baby, don't drive too fast!" "I won't..." It will be one of my biggest regrets that I never spent enough time getting to know the wonderful old woman who has provided so much direction and love to everyone here. I say a prayer for her as I rush to be by my baby's side. (Jessica) Aimee Kohl has expressed concern about our wanting to discover the identity of the person who has hurt Clarke. She says she does not want us obstructing, misleading or getting in the way of the official investigation. We must go directly to her if we hear anything because the school could get into trouble if we lead the law on a wild goose chase or offend the family involved. We also need to learn to always keep our information close to our chests. The police by all accounts would be just as likely to take our information and then obstruct us from publishing it. Whilst I do realize that this is common procedure in the media world, something about it just does not sit right with me. Until I know what it is, I will do as Ms. Kohl asks regarding my own assignment. In the meantime I will continue with my own clandestine project. Learning all I can about the wondrous Ms. Aimee Kohl.., investigative journalist extraordinaire. The identity of the rapist of Clarke is a mystery, and the background of the intriguing Ms. Kohl is likewise a mystery. One way or another, I intend on getting to the bottom of both mysteries before me. She may ba a fantastic purveyor of her vocation but I can't shake the feeling that if I dig deep enough, I will discover something about Ms. Aimee Kohl that is going to cause front page headlines all on their own. I cannot prove it but there's just something about Aimee... Please join me for the next chapter~ My new reading group has been established~ Contact me -- jjptex@yahoo.com