Reprisal

December 8,1978

Two patrol cars and an ambulance in her driveway. Carol dashed toward the kaleidoscope of red and blue flashing against the front of the house.

More than a house. A three-story mansion. The former pride and joy of an oil company executive, with a pool, lighted tennis courts, even an elevator from the wine cellar to the third floor. They'd bought the place last summer. In the five years since he'd begun managing the inheritance, Jimmy had increased their net worth to twenty-five million dollars. He no longer felt the need to remain in the Arkansas boondocks, so they'd moved here to the outskirts of Houston.

"What happened?" Carol cried, grabbing the arm of the first policeman she saw.

"You the mother?" he said.

"Oh, my God! Jimmy! What's happened to Jimmy!"

Shock ran through the fear coiling within her. Jimmy was so self-contained, so self-sufficient, she couldn't imagine anything happening to him. He seemed almost indestructible.

"That's some boy you've got there," the cop said. "He's fine. But his grandfather…" He shook his head sadly.

"Jonah? What happened?"

"We're not sure. He was in the elevator shaft. Why, we don't know. But whatever the reason, he was trapped in there when the car came down."

"Oh, God!"

She pushed past the policeman and ran toward the open front door. She stopped when the ambulance attendants appeared, pulling-pushing their wheeled stretcher. A black body bag was strapped atop it. Blood oozed from one of the zippered sides.

Carol pressed a hand over her mouth to keep from screaming. She'd had her differences with Jonah, and many times had wished he'd pack up and move out on his own. But this!

She slipped past the stretcher and into the house. Something had been going on between Jonah and Jimmy lately. Jonah's previous deference and almost slavish devotion had undergone a strange transformation during the past year or so. His attitude had become challenging, verging on threatening.

"Jimmy!"

She spotted his short, slight figure, dwarfed by the pair of policemen flanking him. Her impulse was to run to him and gather him in her arms but she knew he'd only push her away. Affection was repugnant to him.

"Hello, Mother," he said softly.

"Some boy you've got here," one of the cops said, tousling the boy's dark hair. Only Carol saw the glare Jimmy leveled at him. "Kept his cool and called us as soon as he saw what happened. Too bad we couldn't get here in time."

"Yes," Jimmy said with a slow shake of his head. "He must have been in such terrible agony for so long. If only I'd found him sooner."

His eyes reflected none of the sadness in his voice.

"What happened, Jimmy?" Carol said when the police and the ambulance were gone.

"Jonah had an accident," Jimmy said blandly.

"Why did he have an accident?

"He made a mistake."

"It wasn't like Jonah to make mistakes."

"He made a serious one. He was supposed to be here to guard me. But he started believing he could be me."

As a numbing frost gathered in Carol's marrow, Jimmy turned and walked away.