Previously, On Concrete Shelves
- Kirsten took her anger out on Caitlyn.
- Cassie remembered Inez was at the bar.
- Somebody shot Patrick.
- Ryan came back to town...
[.....]
[.....]
Scene One:
980 Cutler St., Stone Creek. Faustino Cottages #7
Charlie, Kirsten & Megan’s Home.
Rolling over in bed Kirsten Sutton rummaged around for her husband but only felt the coldness from his side of the bed. She took note to the fact that Charlie retired late last night to bed. Sitting up she wished she knew what was going on with him.After things were settled with Adrian, Charlie was back to his old loving self. She recalled them making love at least three times a week and even pondered if having another child was right for them. But for the past couple nights, everything changed.
Charlie was getting in bed late or not at all. She sighed as she heard the shower turn off and figured it was Charlie.
“Good Morning.” He spoke as he entered the bedroom in a towel.
Kirsten smiled. “You didn’t sleep again, did you?”
He shook his head. “Not really. I’ve been staying late at the Inn recently. If you haven’t noticed, the numbers aren’t matching and I just needed to figure it out. After having the Founder’s Ball at the Inn, things were good. Everything was going fine.”
“But?” Kirsten asked, slipping out of bed.
“Business is slowing down again.” Charlie sighed as he got dressed. “But I don’t need you to worry about it, I’ve got this under control. I had some of the guys working on the advertising aspect and with the little money we are turning over, I think I can save the Inn.”
“Maybe you should hire someone else to help out?”
Charlie scrunched his nose. “I don’t think that’s a possibility.”
“Well something is going to need to happen." Kirsten stood across from her husband, wrapping her arms gently around his chest. “I miss you being in our bed.”
Charlie kissed his wife. “I miss being there too. But I have to go right now. I love you and I will make this up to you, okay?”
“Okay.” Kirsten sighed, letting her husband leave.
[.....]
Scene Two:
Stone Creek Memorial Hospital
Patrick’s Room.
Charlene Sutton pushed back her husband’s hair as she watched him slowly wake up. “Good Morning sleeping beauty.” Her words etched in strain.“What happened?” Patrick asked, groggily. He tried to sit up, but he winced instead. “Am I at the hospital Charlene? I don’t understand what’s going on.”
She patted his chest and retrieved a cup of water from the table. “Right now I think it’s best if you hydrate yourself Patrick. After the surgery you went into a slumber of sorts. I guess that’s just the recovery process, but now that you’re awake-”
Patrick stopped her from talking and sipped on the water. “How did I end up in the hospital? I don’t understand that part! What the hell did you do?”
“I didn’t do anything!” Charlene’s defense went up. “The janitor found you in your office bleeding out from a gunshot wound. Patrick, somebody tried to murder you the other night and the police are in a frenzy trying to find the suspect.”
“Murder?” He gasped, trying to recall the other night. “Charlene, the last person I remember talking to was Kevin.”
“Is that so?” Gideon Wilkinson asked from the doorway.Charlene looked between the two men. Her heart, whatever was left from her fight with Kevin, dropped. There was no way Kevin would have shot Patrick, she knew this. But now she had to convince everyone else that he was innocent.
Gideon walked into the room, greeting Charlene and then looking at Patrick. “I’m here to collect your statement about your shooting. So please, if there is anything you can tell me that will give my men leads, please do so Patrick.”
There was a snide expression on Gideon’s face. As if the man was secretly humored by the fact that Patrick Sutton was in a hospital bed. Although they knew each other in grade school, neither was a friend to the other. Patrick sighed, ready to give his statement.
[.....]
Scene Three:
2634 W. Parker St., Stone Creek. Callahan Condos #15
Marina, Cassie & Lucian’s Condo.
“I’m sorry that I can't take care of Lucian today.” Marina Thurlow spoke, rummaging through her closet for her things. “I just have been getting this weird feeling from Ian lately and my boss wants me to do some reporting for the paper.”Cassie walked into the room. “That’s fine, I completely understand.”
Taking her best friend’s hands, Marina hugged her. “I will make it up to you, okay? Sometime this week when you have to do school work I will take Lucian off your hands. It might be good for Ian and I to take care of him. Like a practice baby.”
“As much as I would love for our children to grow-up together, you better not have any for awhile Marina Annette Thurlow.” Cassie warned, a smile forming on her lips. “Did you say something about reporting? I’m glad they are starting to look at you as a good reporter these days.”
Marina shrugged. “Sometimes you need someone to believe in you a little bit.”
Cassie sighed. “I’m just really glad that you are pursuing everything that you have wanted to. I feel like it has been too long since either of us had got anything good going.”
“Nonsense,” Marina lingered. “What about college and Lucian and even Clifton?”
“I don’t date married men.”
“He won’t be for long.” Marina grabbed her bag. “I don’t know if I’ll be home tonight. I might just go over to Ian’s house and cool things over.”
Cassie scrunched up her nose. “Big fight?”
“I don’t even know.” Marina hugged Cassie once more before leaving the apartment and hurrying down the stairs. She was in such a rush that she didn’t even say sorry for knocking over the puerto rican woman in the stairwell.
Rolling her eyes at Marina’s carelessness, Catalina Cortez looked up the stairwell towards her target’s apartment. Things needed to stop spinning in her head. Things needed to be set right.
---
Our love. Our fights. Our friendships.
On Concrete Shelves.
Forever, they shall be remembered.
---
Scene Four:
Sage Garden’s.
Alice’s Haven Cafe.
Holding her cup close to her, Caitlyn Thurlow slowly drank her tea. It had been so long since she enjoyed the day before her. Without worrying about what Damien was going to do or how he was going to turn their daughter against her.
Caitlyn closed her eyes, a deep breath in, she then opened them again and watched as the community of Stone Creek continued with their lives. This was her town now, her family and she wouldn’t let the devastation of knowing that Abigail Jenkins’ wasn’t her daughter keep her down.“Caitlyn.” The voice tore her from her thoughts. “May I sit down?”
Her step-daughter, Kirsten Sutton, took the seat across from her. “How have you been Kirsten?”
“With all do respect, I should be asking you that.” Kirsten tried to make conversation, but hadn’t a clue to apologize to Caitlyn about not telling her the truth. She thought back to the other night when they set-up an intervention of sorts.
“I’m alright.”
How could they have known that Abigail would find out first and seek out both Caitlyn and Damien. Kirsten felt like such a fool when Caitlyn barged into the cafe and accused everyone of lying to her. The warmth of the cafe blew out the windows.
“I saw my father this morning, he feels so bad about what happened. He didn’t tell me anything, you know my father, he usually keeps those things to himself until he has a way to fix them.” Kirsten touched Caitlyn’s hand, but the woman rejected the touch.
“There isn’t anything to fix Kirsten.” Caitlyn, looked around the cafe. She knew that word was spreading around town about how Abigail wasn’t her daughter and how Damien duped them all. Caitlyn just wished that Damien would leave town.
“What can we do?”
Caitlyn forced a smile on her face. “We can forge forward as a family.”
“That’s all we ever wanted.”
“Well Kirsten, that is the only option I have left.” There was a coldness in Caitlyn’s words. It sent shivers down Kirsten’s spine as if there was still so much more ground to cover and there would be a lot of time put into the project.
[.....]
Scene Five:
Sage Garden’s.
Stone Creek Community Park.
“What are these?” Marina asked, looking over the file that Ryan Bauer had brought her. She stopped when she saw an article about Jared Marlowe. “Ryan, what is all this?”
“Remember when I told you that I was working with somebody for a campaign?” Ryan asked, he pointed at the picture of Jared Marlowe. “If Jared Marlowe is going to win this election again, we need to get all of his skeleton’s out into the open.”Marina looked confused. “But Ryan, isn’t that like campaign suicide?”
“Things have evolved.” He informed her. “Marlowe’s first campaign was all about getting the citizen’s of Stone Creek to trust him. This time it is all about getting him on the same level as his voters. I know in the past people in this town have turned away from lies, but with the way things have turned out recently, wouldn’t you vote for someone you feel is as human as you are?”
Thinking it over, Marina took the file. “Did you come to me with this because I am a good reporter or did you come to me because I am your ex. girlfriend?”
“I know what this could do for your career?” Ryan stepped closer to her. “Look I am going to set-up an interview between yourself and Mr. Marlowe. I will have a list of questions I want you to ask him sent to you. Your job is to infuse the interview and these articles together.”
“Alright.”
“Good.” Ryan smiled slyly.
[.....]
Scene Six:
2634 W. Parker St., Stone Creek. Callahan Condos #15
Marina, Cassie & Lucian’s Condo.
Putting Lucian in his crib, Cassie Lakhani, slipped into the living room and crowded her laptop. She was glad that today was filled with online classes and that she only had one class scheduled at the college. It helped her when it came to Lucian.Things seemed so much easier now that the pregnancy was over.
Cassie grimaced at the fact that she wanted to abort her child, her baby boy who was sleeping in the next room over. To think that she would be modeling right now for Helen Schmidt instead of feeding Lucian at odd hours of the night, it frightened her.
Holding back tears, she continued with her course work. Cassie was so happy to finally start getting her life on track, that it never hit her that school work had always been a thing of the past and diving right in was challenging.
But a knock at the door distracted her.
Looking at her watch, she knew Marina wouldn’t be home soon, nor would Clifton be coming over to help watch Lucian until later tonight. “Who is it?” She called, getting up from her couch and walking to the door. “Hello?”
No answer.
Looking back to the room where Lucian was sleeping, Cassie grabbed the bat at the door and gripped it tightly. “Who is there?” She asked one more time, then opened it. Her look of terror turned into confusion as she saw Audrey Briggs on the other side.
“What the hell are you doing here?”
There was a slight hesitation in her expressions, as if she was thinking of the right words to say. “I just needed to come over. Can I come in?”
Gripping the door, Cassie shook her head in confusion. “No, you cannot. I don’t know what you want Audrey, but you aren’t allowed in my house!”
How could she be so cold? Cassie was about to close the door when Audrey held her hand out, pushing her way in. This cause Cassie to grip the bat even harder than before, behind her back. “What the hell are you-” Then she saw it.
There wasn’t much time to react.
Audrey pushed herself into the apartment and out of the way to make way for somebody else. Somebody else who was more deadlier than Audrey could ever be. Although the barrel of the gun was what should have caught Cassie’s attention, it did not.
The face, it was so familiar and it caused Cassie’s heart to drop. “Inez.”
Catalina Cortez smirked. “The one and only baby. Now why don’t you put that bat down and let’s have a very civil conversation, shall we?” Cassie put the bat down and tried not to look at the room where Lucian was sleeping, hoping that he wouldn’t make a sound.
“I invited Audrey over, I hope you don’t mind.” Catalina motioned to Audrey to stand next to Cassie. “I think the three of us have a couple things to catch-up on. Audrey actually has a very amusing story to tell us, don’t you Audrey?”
Cassie looked to the older woman, completely confused. Trying to keep her attention on Audrey and holding her head from turning a couple inches away to the room that Lucian was sleeping in. Her baby boy, the one she almost aborted. He needed to be safe.
[.....]
Scene Seven:
Stone Creek Memorial Hospital
Patrick’s Room.
Stepping into the room, Charlie Sutton watched his father sleep. He didn’t know if he should wake him up or if he should just let him sleep and take it as a sign. It was s weird to watch the man who had power and control over everything look so helpless.
“How long have you been there?” Patrick asked, waking up.“Not too long.” Charlie replied, taking a seat next to him. “Long enough to realize that even the ones with power can end up in a hospital bed. How are you feeling?”
Patrick scoffed. “Like a bullet went through my chest. But other than that, I think I fell pretty good.”
“Well maybe I should let you rest up some more?” Charlie spoke. He played with his thumbs as he sat there, then he got up from his seat. There really wasn’t more that he could say.
“No, stay.” His father commanded and he took note that even his father could command things even in a hospital bed. “You came all this way to talk to me about something and since we aren’t on the best of terms, I’d actually like to hear what you have to say.”
It took him a moment to get his words in order. “You told me that a Thurlow killed Alice. I have been thinking it over and I know you didn’t want me to bring it back up, but I can’t look at Kirsten the same way anymore. The things she says sometimes.”
“Like?”
“That’s not what I’m here to talk about Patrick.” Charlie sat back in his once occupied seat and looked sternly at his father. “I need to know how Alice died. You never really told me the whole thing. What happened to her? There are things on record at the courthouse that don’t make sense.”
Patrick sat up in his hospital bed. “You went to the courthouse?”
“I needed answers.”
The awkward silence dug at both men, Charlie could see his father fighting with himself. “Alice was an amazing woman, from what I’ve been told. Everyone in Stone Creek loved her and the woman wasn’t even from here. I think it was the way she presented herself.”
“If everyone loved her, then why did someone kill her?”
Patrick sighed. “One person in particular loved her too much.”
“Joseph Thurlow.”
[.....]
Scene Eight:
Lakeside Inn.
Wildwind’s Restaurant
Kevin Saunders looked across the table at the therapist.It had been awhile since he actually saw Deborah Nelson, especially for a meeting. But they were having lunch together and it felt as if old friends were new again. “How has my ex. wife been progressing in her therapy sessions?”
Deborah raised an eyebrow, her fingers passing over a couple files. “Actually, that’s the reason why I called you here. There’s a couple things we need to talk about Kevin.”
Kevin’s face fell.
“It’s nothing bad.” She assured him. “Melanie has actually made a lot of progress and it seems that she is even moving on with her life. I can’t delve into her session too much, for confidential reasons, but I want you to know that Melanie is doing just fine.”
“Then what are these?” Kevin asked, opening the manilla folder.
Deborah eye’d the files in her friends hand. They were all that were left of a marriage that Deborah thought was on solid ground. But she had no intentions of judging, she just filed everything away and kept herself informed of the signs for her marriage to Frank.
“Melanie is leaving the city.”
“I see that.” Kevin found her signature at the bottom of the last piece of paper. It had been months but he could recognize the way his ex. wife signed her name. It was so majestic, the classiest of signatures and it made him smile.
He then looked up at Deborah. “She requested to end our services and I can’t blame her. Melanie was never sick, nor was she ever suffering from depression. Your ex. wife was very maculate with the way she used my services. If she were to have stood in school, she might have made a good therapist.”
Kevin smirked. “I told her that many times myself.”
There was hurt in his words. Deborah could tell that Kevin wasn’t fully over Melanie and although she didn’t know the extent to their problems, she knew they could have pulled through if they had tried harder. She made a note to try harder with Frank.
[.....]
Scene Nine:
Sage Garden’s.
Alice’s Haven Cafe.
Watching as Caitlyn Thurlow grabbed her bag and turned away from her step-daughter, Greta Wilkinson, greeted the older woman and let her go on her way. There was a certain animosity between the women that made Greta confused and once she caught Kirsten’s eye she knew something was wrong.“We are trying.” Kirsten spoke, “I think after finding out that Abigail isn’t really Danielle and even after finding out that everyone knew but her, Caitlyn just hasn’t been the same.”
Greta turned around to see that Caitlyn was long gone. “Things will get better, you just have to stay strong as a family. I hate to say it, but I feel sorry for Abigail and Damien the most. Neither ever got to realize that the Thurlow’s are great at comforting family.”
“He will never be apart of this family.” Kirsten spat.
“Either way, they’re unlucky at not being able to have you to lean on.” Greta eye’d her friend, there was something different about her composure. “Is there something else that is bothering you? When I got your text earlier, I didn’t expect to see you so, gloom.”
Kirsten shrugged. “When is the last time you had sex with Miles?”
For a second, Greta’s face grew red. “What’s this have to do with-” Greta tilted her head. “Is this what has you so worked up? The fact that you and Charlie are slowing down on the whole sex routine?”
“Slowing down?” Kirsten sighed. “More like stopped completely.”
“We had sex last night. I know that isn’t what you want to hear!” Kirsten snarled. “Miles and I have been really moving along with our lives. He is getting better with his depression, I even think he might be getting a promotion soon.”
“That’s good.”
Greta reached for her friends hand. “Every marriage goes through their slumps Kirsten. Maybe the two of you have just been really busy with work?”
“He has been spending a lot more time at the Inn.”
“Well, there you go.” Noticing that her friend still wasn’t believing the excuse, Greta added. “I think if you brought it up to Charlie, things could change.”
“You’re probably right Greta.” Kirsten took a sip of her drink. “I just keep feeling like something is wrong, you know? Like there is something that Charlie isn’t telling me.”
[.....]
Scene Ten:
Stone Creek Memorial Hospital.
Patrick’s Room.
There was a time when Patrick Sutton had wished, even behind closed doors, that he could share a couple hours of conversation with his children. But today, as the leaves outside begin to blossom for the Spring and the cool breeze hits him just right through the window that Charlene had cracked open earlier, was not one of those days.
He took a deep breath and looked at the blue skies. “Not exactly.”
This response caught Charlie’s attention by the thread of it’s existence. Patrick watched from the corner of his eye as his son begged for an explanation. “It was true, Joseph Thurlow was also in love with Alice, but he would never kill her.”
“Well if Joseph didn’t kill her father, then what happened?” Charlie could feel Patrick straining to get his story together. He knew all too well that the hospital’s beds weren’t the most comfortable of beds, but he could tell there was something else eating at his father. “Why do you hate the Thurlow’s so much.”Patrick smirked. “When Alice came to town, she was on the arm of her husband, Harold Laverne. He was a powerful lawyer at the time and was in town to aide your great great aunt Delia in one of her crazy schemes. But that was a long time ago.”
“So what does this have to do with Alice?”
There was hesitation in his voice, but Patrick sighed. “Both your great grandfather, Claude Sutton, and Joseph Thurlow fell in love with Alice. She was a vivacious woman at the time. She carried out affairs with both men but chose to keep her’s with Joseph because of his faith to her.”
“So Claude got angry?”
“This family has an awfully lot of pride.” Patrick chuckled. “When Claude found out that Alice carried on the affair with Joseph and not him, he went to Harold and befriended the man, hoping that he could help him ‘see’ what his wife was doing.”
“How does this family get away with such actions?” His father pondered the same question, sitting up in his bed. Charlie locked eyes with Patrick. “Wasn’t Claude married at the time? Clearly this woman, Alice must have known this.”
“Listen, Charlie, they were ruthless back in the day. Sometimes, if you just look into things a little more, you can see how ruthless people can still be. I am sorry for anything I have ever done to you. I see the error of my ways now. Now that I almost lost my life.”
“Continue the story.”
“Right.” Patrick proceeded. “Once Harold found out, he beat Alice and didn’t allow her to leave the house unless he accompanied her. Although this angered Claude, he kept his distance from Alice in hopes that he would soon win her heart.”
“One night, Joseph snuck in to see Alice and from what I understand wanted to run away with her. She agreed to, but Harold was keeping an eye on her and forced Joseph out of their lives. There was an accident the next day, nobody truly knows what happened. But Alice’s was found in her bed, with a bullet to her chest.”
Charlie perked up. “Who killed her?”
“The police said it was Harold Laverne that pulled the trigger, they found him in the bathroom with a shotgun and a bottle of Jack.” Patrick relived the memory as if it was one of his own. “But if Joseph Thurlow would have left her alone-”
“That’s not fair at all!” Charlie stuttered. “But I thought you said Alice wasn’t the reason why you hated the Thurlow family. How could you hold a grudge that belonged to Claude Sutton for so long father?”
“The Thurlow family didn’t kill Alice, no, it was Harold Laverne. But the Thurlow family were the reason why Shannon Thurlow left town without me.”
[.....]
Scene Eleven:
2634 W. Parker St., Stone Creek. Callahan Condos #15.
Marina, Cassie & Lucian’s Condo.
People have told stories all the time of how they found god through crisis like this. Well maybe not crisis like the one Cassie Lakhani found herself in right now, but similar. With the tape on her mouth, it helped her from letting the prayer’s slip out of her mouth.
She thanked god that Lucian wasn’t waking up.
Her eye’s caught the attention of Audrey Briggs who was tied-up and gagged on the couch right next to her. Both women had been stuck together for hours, which was ironic since neither had any intention of being in the same room with the other.
Cassie tried to clam Audrey down, who was already shifting into panic mode. Then her attention fell on Inez. The woman before her was the same woman she met in Clifton’s club and was the same woman who drugged her. But she didn’t know the full story.
Inez wielded the gun in her hands, sifting between thoughts and nonsense. The constant jabber coming out of her mouth was irritating Cassie more than when she started pacing around the room. Then she stopped and looked at Audrey.This caused the African-American woman to shake her head, tears filling her otherwise confused eyes. Inez straddled the woman and sneered wildly. She placed the gun to Audrey’s cheek and ran it down under her chin as slowly and precisely as she could.
Cassie could almost feel the heat radiating from Audrey as she closed her eyes. “Now, I’m going to take the tape off your mouth but you’re not allowed to scream, alright?”
Inez then looked at Cassie and pointed the gun straight to her head all the while her eyes were still glued to Audrey’s eyes. “You make a peep and I will blow her brains out.”
This caused Cassie to stiffen with fear, there was a chance Audrey would take Inez up for the challenge.
Inez ripped the tape and watched as Audrey gasped for air. “Now we are going to play a little game of truth or dare. Tell me Audrey, is it true that you don’t like Cassie Lakhani and would like to see me shoot her in the head. Let me remind you, if you tell a lie, then I will shoot you.”
“Why are you doing this?” Audrey cried.
“That’s not what I asked you.” Inez sighed putting the gun closer to Cassie’s head. “Should I shoot her and leave her child without a mother?” Inez bemused the idea. “Do you remember when you wanted to be a mother? Now that is a silly thought.”
“I didn’t pay you to kill anyone!” Audrey barked.
This caught both Inez and Cassie’s attention. Their eyes darted to Audrey’s sweating body. Cassie tried to calculate the words. But the room was starting to spin around her. What was she going to do? She caught the attention of someone walking into the room, slowly.
“You’re right,” Inez gleamed. “You just paid me to drug this bitch and that pitiful husband of yours!”
Clifton Briggs covered his mouth so that he wouldn’t make a sound. The sight before him was heinous. His soon to be ex. wife was tied up on a couch next to the mother of his child with a woman straddled on top of her. A woman with a gun pointed at Cassie’s head.
But the woman had no idea he was there.
“We can work something out!” Audrey pleaded, but Inez wasn’t taking it. “There has to be something I could do to help you out. I don’t have much money, but I can help you, I promise. Just let us go and we wont say anything Catalina, we wont say anything!”
Inez slapped Audrey with the gun. “You stupid bitch!”
This gave Clifton the chance to swoop in, he tackled Inez to the ground and fought for the gun. They struggled, she kneed him in the stomach and he tumbled off of her. Angry and full of rage she aimed the gun at Clifton but was forced down by Cassie who managed to waddle off the couch.Clifton got to his feet and grabbed the gun away from Inez.
“You stupid bitch!” Inez spat, blood dripping down her cheek. “You ruined my whole life! How could you bring me here? How could you let these bastards take everything from me? They killed my sister! They stole my money!”
“What the hell is going on here?” Clifton asked, pointing the gun at Inez.
The woman was a mess, her tears stained her cheeks as she found herself in a distant memory of her life. This gave Clifton enough time to untie his ex. wife. His attention still on Inez as she sat idly on the ground like an abused dog.
Shaken, Audrey went over and helped Cassie out of her ties. “I-I’m so sorry...I didn’t mean to hurt-”
“I don’t want to hear it Audrey.” Clifton hollered, causing all the women in the room to jump and the light cries of Lucian could be heard in the room. “I don’t need to hear it.” He said more calmly.
Cassie ran to her baby’s aide while Audrey called the police, her breath caught in chokes.
“Everything’s gone.” Inez muttered, her eyes focusing on Clifton. “Do you know what it feels like when you have nothing left? Because I do. It makes you want to make everyone else kneel down to your level. Makes you want them to fall to their knee’s.”
The eeriness of the whole situation catching up Clifton, he felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand to attention. The woman before him was broken and at the end of her ropes, which made her the deadliest woman in Stone Creek. It made him feel sorry for her.
“The cops are on their way.” Audrey seethed, looking down at Inez and then diverting her attention to the window. The cool Spring breeze wasn’t enough to make the dread in her soul go away.
[.....]
Scene Twelve:
2300 Cranberry St., Stone Creek. Stone Creek Apartments #18
Bentley & Ryan’s Apartment.
Passing his best friend a beer, Bentley Wilkinson was happy to have the entire gang together again. It felt like it was a blast to the past. He used his crutches to get around the couch and then sat next to his girlfriend, Emily. “Thanks for letting me stay here again.”
Bentley smirked. “Please, this place was getting lonely without one of the musketeers around. Besides, this apartment is yours just as much as it is mine.”
“I just hope you don’t mind me being here a lot more.” Emily spoke, rolling the die, and moving her car the amounted spaces she was allowed to go. “I wont disturb your sleep patterns and I am a decent chef.”
Ryan chuckled. “You have me sold.”
“Have you talked to Marina yet?” Ryan’s attention fell onto Greta Wilkinson, who was cuddled up to her boyfriend, Miles Fowler. He shook his head no and then looked at the game board. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to bring it up.”
“Yeah you did.” Bentley accused.
“That’s okay!” Ryan interjected. He knew very much how the siblings could quarrel over the littlest of things. “Marina and I have a very long past, but I don’t think we belong together anymore.” He spoke, although he felt as if he had to convince himself.
“Well,” Miles spoke up. “We are just glad to have you back buddy.”
“I’m glad to be back!”
Bentley grabbed the die from the table. “Now that we are done with all the sappiness can we continue so I can kick your ass at this game?”
The group chuckled, spurting out different remarks challenging Bentley to the words he had just said. This left Ryan a little time to think about Marina Thurlow and the fact that he will be working closely with her for the next couple weeks.
He knew he had to make them count.
[.....]
Scene Thirteen:
510 Auburn Rd., Stone Creek. “Nelson Home”
Frank & Deborah’s Home.
“What are you doing?” Deborah asked in the doorway to the den. She watched as her husband Frank sat at the computer. She found him quite exquisite with his reading glasses on. Deborah walked over to him and rubbed his shoulder’s, peering at the computer screen. “I thought we agreed not to bring office work...” Her words trailed off as she saw him booking tickets on a plane, a plane that would take them to see their children. “Frank, do you really mean this?”
Her words caught in the lump in her throat.
He turned his chair so that she could sit upon his lap and kissed his wife gently. “I wouldn’t have this any other way Debbie. We have talked about seeing them and we have put it on the back burner for so long. Now that James is back at the office, I think it is time.”
“This means the world to me.” Her eyes watered, wrapping her arms around her husband. There were few times that Deborah showed this side to her, mostly only when her children were involved. “Oh my Frank, we get to see our grandchildren!”
Frank smiled. “I heard little Ava looks just like you!”
Deborah looked at the screen, and helped Frank book the flights. “Colin is starting little league, did you know that? I spoke to Michael on the phone the other day, maybe we can go see a game? That would be lovely, wouldn’t it?”
“That would be amazing!” Frank gleamed.
In that moment Deborah forgot about Kevin and everything he was going through with Melanie. In that moment all she could think about was dollhouses and baseball games and her children; Michael, Laura & Christopher.
[.....]
Scene Fourteen:
Stone Creek Memorial Hospital.
Patrick’s Room.
“You look like you are a million miles away.” Charlene Sutton spoke as she walked over to her husband’s bedside. She combed a hand through his hair and kissed his forehead. “Visiting hours are almost up so I have to go home soon, but I just wanted to come back and thank you.”
“For what?” Patrick scoffed.
His wife sighed. “For not telling Gideon that the last person you remember being in your office was Kevin Saunders. I don’t know why you backed up for him, but I just want to thank you anyways.”
There was a fire in Patrick’s stomach as he withheld his rage. “I didn’t do it for his career Charlene. One day, I am going to get the chance to prove to you that I want to work all of this out. That day you better remember that I saved your precious Kevin.”
She smiled weakly. “Patrick-”
“Visiting hours are over Mrs. Sutton.” A young nurse spoke. “I have to check on your husband before he goes to sleep, I hope you don’t mind.”
Charlene nodded her head and stood up. “I will come see you tomorrow morning, alright? Get some sleep tonight Patrick. There is a lot that we need to talk about. Good night.”
He turned away from his wife as she left the room. the whole conversation he had with his son Charlie was stuck in the back of his head. Trying to come to light, slowly he began to close his eyes as the nurse checked his vitals and replenished his liquids.
Slowly he drifted off to sleep.
-----
The night was cold, so Patrick Sutton handed the young blond his fine threaded Letterman Jacket as they both looked up at the stars. He felt a sudden rush of emotions fall over him as he gripped her hand. It had been a week since he finally got her to admit her feelings for him.
At first she was just an item to wave around in everyone’s face.
But tonight, as her face glowed beneath the stars, he felt like she was so much more. “Everyone in school keeps telling me that you are dangerous, even my brother is warning me to stay away from you. He keeps telling me that the Sutton’s are nothing more than poison.”Patrick faced her, lifting her head to meet his. “I would never hurt you.”
She buried her face into his chest. “I know that Patrick Sutton. There is a side to you that nobody in this school has ever seen, but I’ve seen it and I know that you would never hurt me. Do you think that somewhere behind those stars there is life?”
“I don’t care what is behind those stars.” Patrick admitted. “I only care about this pretty blond girl wrapped up in my Letterman Jacket. She makes me want to be a better person.”
The girl chuckled. “I know the guys are trying to get you to have sex with me. Gideon’s older sister Isabelle told me what they say to you when I’m not around.” She recalled the conversation she had with the skinny cheerleader. “I just want you to know, that I’m not ready yet.”
“I would wait forever.”
She kissed his cheek. “I wouldn’t make you wait that long.”
“Even still.” Patrick smirked. “I’m falling in love with you Shannon.”
There was a time when Patrick Sutton thought he’d never say the words to a girl. Especially since he was the captain of the football team and never had a problem getting the girls at school. The moment his eye’s set sights on Shannon Thurlow he knew everything was about to change.
Patrick looked down at his girlfriend but found nothing but bones, His eyes grew big as the wind blew the bones to dust.
-----
Patrick Sutton shot up in his hospital bed, his forehead soaked with sweat. Taking a moment to look around, he found himself not under the bleachers of the football field but in the hospital. The memory of himself and Shannon caught him off-guard.
There was an eerie feeling that he was left with. It was enough to send him into a panic. Slowly he tried to catch his breath and he recalled the nightmare he just had. What was going on? All that talk about the Thurlow’s he had with Charlie brought back all of his past feelings.
Slowly the man laid back in bed, trying desperately to cool down. To get his mind off the nightmare he just had and to get some sleep before morning.
In the back of his head he knew something was wrong.
[.....]
Next Time, On Concrete Shelves
- Natalie looks at things in a new light.
- Abigail makes a decision.
- Penelope voices her troubles.
- Deja Vu worries one Stone Creek resident...
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