Page 28 of Jake

Jake knew that at some point he was going to have to leave the living room. He wasn’t in any kind of hurry to do so. When Forrest came to sit with him, neither of them said a word as they held hands. Things were just too intense right now for them to speak.

Chapter 12

Carol paced the little cell. Why she wasn’t given a bigger area was beyond her, but they said she wasn’t going to be moved or her room enlarged. Not that she had any idea why she was in here, but some officer told her that she was going to stay until her trial. Carol wanted her husband there.

She heard someone coming through the doorway to the area she was in. There were other people around. None of them as important as her, she knew this, but they seemed to have lots of people coming to see them. When an officer stood in front of her cell, Carol didn’t even bother standing up. He would put out the nasty food then come to get it in an hour, he’d tell her. It was the way he did things.

“Ms. Lane?” She told him for the millionth time it was not Lane, but Winslow. “Yeah, that’s why I’m here. There is an attorney here to see you. He’d like to talk to you about your divorce. But he said he won’t if you don’t behave yourself this time.”

“Where is Jake, my husband?” He only rocked back on his heels. “You are the most annoying man I’ve ever met. I want you to tell Jake where I am and that I need him to come here and get me out. I have to get to my house.”

“You’re not going to get out any time soon, and he’s a little busy right now. There has been a shooting at his home.” Carol told him it was her home and asked about the walls. “I’m not sure what you mean. What about the walls?”

“Were they damaged? When I have things repainted when I get home, I need to know if the walls were damaged. They’ll have to be fixed before the painters can come in. I think my husband might have had the walls redone, but they won’t be right.” He said nothing but stared at her. “I asked you a question. Are the walls damaged from any sort of blood or bullet holes? These are things I have to know.”

“Mr. Winslow, Jake’s father, shot and killed his mother. I guess he was aiming at Jake, but I don’t know the particulars on that right now.” She asked about Trina. “I’m afraid that she’s dead as well. Cut her wrists in the bathroom when she was told her husband was being taken away.”

“She didn’t like me either. And with Jenna gone, Jake and I will inherit that old bitch’s money as well. We’re going to be so rich.” She was trying to think how much money that might be with her daddy’s money, and looked at the police officer when he cleared his throat. “Is someone else dead that you know of?”

“No, ma’am, not that I can tell right now. You do know that these people are your relatives, right? That Jenna Winslow was a wonderful woman who was well thought of. Mrs. Winslow wasn’t nice, but she is still a person that is dead.” Carol asked him why she should care about them. “They’re all dead.”

“Yes, I’m aware of that now. Thank you for telling me. Do you think that someone could bring me a phone? I need to set up painters and workers to move into the house now. The downstairs powder room is going to be a challenge. I think people will just want to come over to use it just because they’ll know that someone died in there.” She started pacing again, her mind working on how to best use this to her advantage. “I could play it up a bit. Have the walls sponged in a nice dark red to highlight the things in the room. Perhaps I can use some of the crime scene photos on the walls. What do you think?”

“I think you need to realize how cold you sound right about now. Don’t you think people will think you’re strange for not getting at least a little upset about any of this?” She asked him why they would. “Because not only are both your parents are dead, one of them by your hand, but your in-laws are too.”

“Okay, first of all, Jenna was a royal bitch. Not to mention like eight hundred years old. She looked good for her age, but she had to go sooner or later, and now suits Jake and me better. My mother was a nag and she was kicking me out of their home. Not to mention she really held Daddy back from things. I think she was the main reason that he didn’t treat me as well as he should have.” She thought about Trina. “Jake’s mother wasn’t really a bad person, but Christ, she was depressing as fuck to be around. Crying all the time. Whining about this or that. I just couldn’t stand her, and maybe, had I really thought of it, I might have helped Jacob out with her like I helped my daddy.”

He looked around and she noticed that he was looking at the camera there. Carol had no idea if it worked or not. She wasn’t worried about it, however. There were more important things going on than a stupid camera that might be recording her naked or something. She asked him when Jake was coming in.

“I don’t think he is. I’m pretty sure that he has enough on his plate right now without coming to see you. Tell me again why you think you did your daddy a favor by taking care of your mom.” She asked him if he meant by killing her. “Yes, I guess so.”

“I didn’t, you know. Kill her, I mean. I just beat her up really badly. She should have died, I guess. I lost my temper again.” He asked her about that. “Oh, when I was younger there was this couple that took the last ticket to a movie I wanted to see. I asked him really nicely to give it to me—I am Carol Lane, after all—and he gave me this sob story about how it was his and his wife’s anniversary and that they’d saved and planned this night for ages.” She snorted. “I didn’t have to save, I had the money right on me. So when he didn’t give it over, I had to hurt him for it. I think his wife was hurt too…died, I think. And you want to know something? I didn’t even get to see the flipping movie. The police took me downtown and in one of these cells.”

“Then what happened?” She asked him what he meant. “You didn’t go to prison. You never had a trial. Why is that?”

“Oh. Daddy. He handed out money all the time when I messed up or got caught.” The officer asked her how many times she’d messed up. “Well, if you don’t count Mother, three times. I only meant to make them understand me, but this guy just didn’t want to do things my way. Then there was the teacher at the school. That’s when Daddy bought me Jake.”

“Excuse me?” Carol looked at him. “Your dad bought Jake? You mean he paid him off for something?”

“No. Jake’s daddy sold him to my daddy. For a lot of money too. I’d been in trouble, again, and Daddy said it was marry me off to change my name or I was going to have to move away. I had seen Jake at a friend’s party and I knew that I could get him to do things the way I wanted, so I told Daddy that I wanted him.” She smiled at the officer, thinking this was sort of fun, telling him about how wonderful her daddy had been. “So when he went to Jacob to tell him what he wanted, Jacob said he wanted money. A lot of it. Something about being ashamed of his son for something in college. Anyway, Jacob signed his son over to my daddy, who gave him to me. I need him here. Do you think you can get Jake to come here? He is mine, and I need him to come here.”

“I’ll work on that.”

When he walked away, Carol thought of the other things her daddy had given her when she’d married Jake. Money, sure, but that didn’t last long. He was also supposed to make sure that she and Jake got everything they wanted when they wanted it. But he never did that. Not even giving her credit cards when Jake had told her no. Her mother had caused that, she knew it. Carol decided right then and there that when she and Jake were back together, he was to never say that word to her again.

It was getting dark again, and one more night in this place wasn’t in her plan. And she realized that no one had brought her a phone either, or a computer. How the hell was she supposed to order things for her new home when no one was helping her? She’d have to get someone to help her or she’d never have the house done by Christmas again. That was the time to show off, she knew.

She was just getting up to bang her shoe on the bars that held her in when she saw a man coming toward her. Carol thought it was Jake, but there was something different about him. Then she noticed the man with him.

“I know you.” He bowed before her and she had to smile. This was the way to treat a woman. “If I wasn’t married to Jake here, I’d get someone to make you marry me.”

“Not on your ever loving life would I even entertain the thought of touching you, much less wedding you.” Carol wasn’t sure if he’d just insulted her or not, so decided not to ask. “You requested for Jake to be here. And as his attorney, I’m going to advise him on what to say to you or not.”

“Why would you care if he spoke to me about things? Not that it matters, I guess.” She turned to Jake. “You have to pay them off so that I can get home. I want to get the house ready for the holidays. And I do hope that you got rid of that ugly stuff you brought in when I was gone. Jake, you have no sense of style at all.”

“You’re not coming to my home again, Carol. I think I made that perfectly clear when I filed for divorce.” She waved him off and told him to be serious. “I’m dead serious. I’m not going to allow you to be near me, much less in my home.”

“Jake, I’m not sure why you’re treating me this way, but I won’t stand for it. I want you to go give those people whatever it takes to release me. Mother and Daddy are both gone now, so it’s not like you don’t have the cash to settle things up for us.” Jake just stood there. “Oh, you can’t say anything in front of your lawyer. I get it. Just send him away and we can make plans. I have so much to do. Did you know that they won’t even give me a phone in here? You’ll have to give me yours so that I can get some things done while you’re working on the rest.”