Doris
Cook was a wonderful mother, grandmother and great grandmother.
She was very beautiful for her age. Her grayish blue hair would
swirl about her head as she wore it in the 50s style of a beehive,
but when at home she would have it neatly up in a twist. If you
met Doris on the street, you would be enchanted by her sweet personality
and voice. She was majestic teller of stories of life in the south
from World War II to the civil rights movement. She lived it all.
Doris
was a widow. Her late husband was a soldier who made it through
the second World War and the draft. He lived into his old age
until he passed. They were very much in love. She adored him,
would do anything for him. She was a wife that any husband would
love to have. Once he died, her family worried about her. She
became a shut-in. She would never leave the house. Many thought
she had died. Her family agreed for the welfare of their beloved
matriarch, she need help. They hired a live in.
Patricia
Hutton was a undergrad who studied nursing at a prestigious college.
She was known as a good girl around the town but her boyfriend
was the bad boy she fell for. Many saw Patty as a girl who would
be brought down into drugs or worse, prostitution, if she stayed
with her bad boyfriend. She couldn't break it off. To hid the
facade of her relationship, she volunteered to work for Mrs. Cook.
* * *
Patricia
stood in the cramped kitchen of the small but comfy house. She
stirred the pot that held the simmering stew. Her curly brown
hair hung in a ponytail. It swung as she left the kitchen. She
walked through the brown ling area to the brown, dingy hallway
to the main bedroom. Knocking softly, Patricia entered the room
to see Doris looking into a book endearingly.
"Mrs.
Cook,..." The older woman quickly hid the book.
"Yes?"
"The
stew is ready and I am have to go home now."
"That's
fine." Doris stood with her hands behind her and closed the
door. A crack was left between the door and the frame. Spying
through the line of view, Patricia saw as Doris looked into the
book longingly and slowly close it. Patricia rushed to the living
room and grabbed her bag.
"Patricia!"
Doris called as she walked down the hallway.
"Yes,
Mrs. Cook." Patricia noticed the book was not in her hands.
"Did
you call the safe company?"
"Yes,
ma'am. They will be here tomorrow at 2 pm. I will be here when
they get here."
"I
won't need you here. I will be fine."
"But,
I..."
"No.
You may stay home or go out. Whatever you do went you are not
busy."
"Yes,
ma'am." She left the small house, locking up the woman she
watched everyday. Patricia looked around the dark street as the
streetlights began to flicker on. She looked across the street
to a black car as its engine roared. She quickly skipped to the
car and climbed it the passenger seat.
A
lean built man sat low in the driver's seat. He looked over to
Patricia.
"So?"
"I
searched that house and I can't find the damn money. It has to
be in her bedroom, which she keeps locked. Or in that damn book."
"You
have to think of a way in." His gruff voice sounded.
"Me?"
"Yes,
you." Patricia rolled her eyes. A smile crept upon her face.
"I
might not have to. She is having a safe delivered to the house
tomorrow."
"Good,
you can get the combination."
* * *
"Bad
thing is she gave me the day off."
"Can
she do that?"
"No
worry. I can get in." The gruff man turned to Patricia as
she sat high in the seat. He grabbed her face turning her to him.
He softly kissed her lips. She smiled.
"We
will be living large." He said.
* * *
Patricia
sat in her boyfriend's car as the workers left the house in their
armed truck. Doris stood at the door watching them leave. Once
gone, she returned inside locking the door. Patricia waited a
few seconds before approaching the house. She pulled out her key
to the small white house. She entered quietly. She looked around
as she held a white frosted cake . She walked to the kitchen,
setting the cake down near papers from the safe company. Looking
through, she found what she had came for. Taking out a pen from
her pocket, she scribbled the numbers from the safe that had been
set into the basement.
"Patricia?"
She scribbled the last number and secretly placed the papers back
and scooped up frosting with her finger.
"Why
are you here, Patricia?" Patricia smiled as she licked the
frosting from her finger.
"My
mother wanted you to have this cake."
"I
can't have sweets."
"I
told her that but she says wanted to make it for you." Doris
looked at her helper suspiciously.
"Thank
you. You can leave now." Patricia smiled as she left the
house. She hurried from the front porch of the house back to the
car.
Inside
the car, the lean man looked over to Patricia who smiled.
"Got
it." She said opening her hand revealing the numbers. The
two drove off for the night escapade.
* * *
Patricia,
dressed in black, walked up to the white house. The street was
dark as only a few streetlights shone down. With her extra key,
Patricia entered the house. Not a sound was heard, Patricia made
no effect to was time and made her way down to the basement. The
pitch dark basement was terrifying to Patricia. She never liked
going to it during th day. She made her way to far wall as she
clicked on the overhead light. The single lightbulb swung as Patricia
made her way to the small safe in the wall.
"What
the hell can she fit in here?" She said as she pulled out
a small slip of paper. As she slowly turned the knob, a squeak
was heard in the silent room. Patricia stopped, to listen again.
She began again until the last number. The safe slowly creaked
open. Patricia looked in excited but became disappointed with
what she saw. She removed the only item in the safe, a book.
"This
book. It better have money in it." She opened the book. She
drew in a sharp breath as she looked at content of the book. Dropping
the book, she backed away. She turned to run but stopped.
Doris
stood before Patricia with a menacing look. In her hands was large
rusted ax. She rose it high and came down swift onto her helper.
After
dragging the body to a closet, Doris returned to her book as it
sat on the floor. She lifted book with a smile.
"You
were right, sweetheart. She was all wrong for us." She said
as she looked down at the severed finger that wore a golden wedding
band."
"Now,
go back to sleep. I will take care of her like the rest."
She closed the book and returned it to its place of rest.
