Post by jeannerené on Oct 25, 2009 22:03:53 GMT -8
Second Step Down from the Porch -- conclusion
Synopsis: ... a family story of tragic consequence continued
Part 1
poetichorizons.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=story&action=display&thread=3076
Part 2
poetichorizons.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=story&action=display&thread=3106
Part 3
poetichorizons.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=story&action=display&thread=3208
Part 4
poetichorizons.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=story&action=display&thread=3240
Part 5
poetichorizons.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=story&action=modifypost&thread=3282&post=14557
Part 6
poetichorizons.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=story&action=display&thread=3304
Callie waited with Babe on the second step…for what she didn’t know. She patiently brushed the tangles from her doll’s hair. Then she saw her skipping down the long forsaken road. Skipping faster than the wind kicking up the dirt. Manda was smiling and waving to Callie. She skipped right up to the old oak and stopped, bouncing in place on her toes.
“Callie, come on now,” Manda laughed. “Come on. Come play with me.”
Callie looked over her shoulder when she heard her father‘s footsteps come across the porch.
“Can I go daddy?”
“You go, baby girl,” her father answered.
“Can I take Babe?”
“No, he can’t go yet. Soon, but not yet.”
Headlights were coming down the road, another dented pickup that honked as it went by. They watched it bump down the road and when it all but disappeared Callie jumped up, dropping Barbie, and ran over to Manda.
“Manda, you’re here,” Callie giggled.
Sheriff Vilenti walked heavily up to the front of the MacFarlane house and approached his deputy. “What have we got here?”
“Double homicide and suicide … the mother killed her husband and daughter. . . a knife. . . Jamie and Callie MacFarlane. . .little girl is about nine or ten. . . the mother killed herself with the same knife, big ol’ butcher knife… Jesus, I never seen such …. such a … damn! … mother’s hand is still wrapped around the knife in her stomach,” the deputy could barely get his words out. “There was a two-year old. . . boy. . . upstairs unharmed.”
“Who found them?” the sheriff asked looking over the steady caravan of pickups that kept arriving and pulling up near the house.
“A Mr. Johnson. He’s real broke up. . . said the little girl used to be his daughter’s best friend. . . You remember reading about that little local girl died of leukemia last year …the girl’s school held a special memorial in the park … my sister’s kids went … that’s his daughter and the man’s really broke up right now . . . real broke up,” the deputy pointed to a black man sitting in back of a patrol car that had driven up to the gate.
“Yeah, I can imagine.”
“But Sir, we got a couple of strange. . . ah. . . unusual stories hear,” the deputy looked up from under his hat at the Sheriff.
“What exactly do you mean, strange?”
“Well,” the deputy looked over at the neighbors pointing this way and that, “You see, Mr. Johnson says that he was heading out to work just before dawn and as he come by the house here . . . he swears the old black lab darted out into the road and he thought he hit it. . . the dog. . .couldn’t believe it, he thought to himself because he knew it was an old dog that never darted out like that. . . but he stopped . . . looked around the car. . . no dog in sight, but he thought he’d better tell the folks here, case the dog had run off hurt round the house. He said as he was going up to the house he could hear crying coming from upstairs . . . he noticed that the door was open and he could see lights on through the screen door. He says then . . . ah. . . that he called at the door . . . but got no answer. . . he went on in and that’s when he saw it. . . dad lying almost on top of the little girl. . . the mother was nearby.
The sheriff looked annoyed. “What is so strange, Deputy Willis?”
“Well, you see sir. . . the dog . . .the one he thought he hit . . . was lying there . . . dead too. . . next to the bodies. . . But anyways this dog been dead for a whiles. . . but it ain’t been stabbed. . .sure wasn’t hit by no car. . . must have died of a heart attack. . . I mean. . . I guess a dog could die of a heart attack. .”
“damn it, son. . . I don’t know if a dog can have a heart attack. It could have been another dog he hit . . . a stray. . . neighbor's dog run out into the road,” the sheriff answered not buying into anything strange. “Anything else?” Any one hear anything. . . see anything?
“Look, Sheriff, we got two people say they saw the little girl. . . Mr. Cochran, over there in the 49er's jacket . . . said he was coming home late last night about 11:00 p.m. and . . . he swears he saw the dad and the little girl . . . Says the little girl was sitting on the steps holding a doll….the dog was sitting next to her and the dad was on the porch. . . thinks he saw another little girl too standing over by that tree there, but maybe that was just a shadow. . . said he honked at them,” the deputy stopped, waiting for the Sheriff’s response.
“You said there were two people,” the sheriff stared at Willis.
“Yeh… a Mrs. Lopez . . . said she saw the little girl sitting on the step with the dog about 6:20 p.m. . . . the coroner estimates it was between 5:30 to 7:00 p.m.” The deputy continued, “and the doll . . . they bagged a doll found on side of steps here . . . the doll is soaked in blood.”
Sheriff Vilenti looked up and surveyed the steps and porch. He bounded up to the porch and over to the front door, peering through the screen. “There doesn’t appear to be any blood trail, Deputy,” he said with his back turned.
“Exactly sir. There’s a lot of debris on the porch, but at first glance there’s no blood anywhere 'cept in the kitchen, and on this doll.”
The sheriff looked back at the deputy. “Hum . . . that so. . . thank you, son.”
“Sheriff, Sir . . . ”
“Something more, son?”
“It’s . . . It’s ah . . . It’s pretty bad inside. Why do you think a mother do something like that … why do you think……..?” the young man voice broke off and he lowered his eyes as he attempted to warn his superior.
The older man did not respond. With a hand clutching the latch, the sheriff warily surveyed the porch and down the steps, then pushed open the screen door and pitched it back with a bang.
The End
Synopsis: ... a family story of tragic consequence continued
Part 1
poetichorizons.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=story&action=display&thread=3076
Part 2
poetichorizons.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=story&action=display&thread=3106
Part 3
poetichorizons.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=story&action=display&thread=3208
Part 4
poetichorizons.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=story&action=display&thread=3240
Part 5
poetichorizons.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=story&action=modifypost&thread=3282&post=14557
Part 6
poetichorizons.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=story&action=display&thread=3304
Callie waited with Babe on the second step…for what she didn’t know. She patiently brushed the tangles from her doll’s hair. Then she saw her skipping down the long forsaken road. Skipping faster than the wind kicking up the dirt. Manda was smiling and waving to Callie. She skipped right up to the old oak and stopped, bouncing in place on her toes.
“Callie, come on now,” Manda laughed. “Come on. Come play with me.”
Callie looked over her shoulder when she heard her father‘s footsteps come across the porch.
“Can I go daddy?”
“You go, baby girl,” her father answered.
“Can I take Babe?”
“No, he can’t go yet. Soon, but not yet.”
Headlights were coming down the road, another dented pickup that honked as it went by. They watched it bump down the road and when it all but disappeared Callie jumped up, dropping Barbie, and ran over to Manda.
“Manda, you’re here,” Callie giggled.
~~~~~
Sheriff Vilenti walked heavily up to the front of the MacFarlane house and approached his deputy. “What have we got here?”
“Double homicide and suicide … the mother killed her husband and daughter. . . a knife. . . Jamie and Callie MacFarlane. . .little girl is about nine or ten. . . the mother killed herself with the same knife, big ol’ butcher knife… Jesus, I never seen such …. such a … damn! … mother’s hand is still wrapped around the knife in her stomach,” the deputy could barely get his words out. “There was a two-year old. . . boy. . . upstairs unharmed.”
“Who found them?” the sheriff asked looking over the steady caravan of pickups that kept arriving and pulling up near the house.
“A Mr. Johnson. He’s real broke up. . . said the little girl used to be his daughter’s best friend. . . You remember reading about that little local girl died of leukemia last year …the girl’s school held a special memorial in the park … my sister’s kids went … that’s his daughter and the man’s really broke up right now . . . real broke up,” the deputy pointed to a black man sitting in back of a patrol car that had driven up to the gate.
“Yeah, I can imagine.”
“But Sir, we got a couple of strange. . . ah. . . unusual stories hear,” the deputy looked up from under his hat at the Sheriff.
“What exactly do you mean, strange?”
“Well,” the deputy looked over at the neighbors pointing this way and that, “You see, Mr. Johnson says that he was heading out to work just before dawn and as he come by the house here . . . he swears the old black lab darted out into the road and he thought he hit it. . . the dog. . .couldn’t believe it, he thought to himself because he knew it was an old dog that never darted out like that. . . but he stopped . . . looked around the car. . . no dog in sight, but he thought he’d better tell the folks here, case the dog had run off hurt round the house. He said as he was going up to the house he could hear crying coming from upstairs . . . he noticed that the door was open and he could see lights on through the screen door. He says then . . . ah. . . that he called at the door . . . but got no answer. . . he went on in and that’s when he saw it. . . dad lying almost on top of the little girl. . . the mother was nearby.
The sheriff looked annoyed. “What is so strange, Deputy Willis?”
“Well, you see sir. . . the dog . . .the one he thought he hit . . . was lying there . . . dead too. . . next to the bodies. . . But anyways this dog been dead for a whiles. . . but it ain’t been stabbed. . .sure wasn’t hit by no car. . . must have died of a heart attack. . . I mean. . . I guess a dog could die of a heart attack. .”
“damn it, son. . . I don’t know if a dog can have a heart attack. It could have been another dog he hit . . . a stray. . . neighbor's dog run out into the road,” the sheriff answered not buying into anything strange. “Anything else?” Any one hear anything. . . see anything?
“Look, Sheriff, we got two people say they saw the little girl. . . Mr. Cochran, over there in the 49er's jacket . . . said he was coming home late last night about 11:00 p.m. and . . . he swears he saw the dad and the little girl . . . Says the little girl was sitting on the steps holding a doll….the dog was sitting next to her and the dad was on the porch. . . thinks he saw another little girl too standing over by that tree there, but maybe that was just a shadow. . . said he honked at them,” the deputy stopped, waiting for the Sheriff’s response.
“You said there were two people,” the sheriff stared at Willis.
“Yeh… a Mrs. Lopez . . . said she saw the little girl sitting on the step with the dog about 6:20 p.m. . . . the coroner estimates it was between 5:30 to 7:00 p.m.” The deputy continued, “and the doll . . . they bagged a doll found on side of steps here . . . the doll is soaked in blood.”
Sheriff Vilenti looked up and surveyed the steps and porch. He bounded up to the porch and over to the front door, peering through the screen. “There doesn’t appear to be any blood trail, Deputy,” he said with his back turned.
“Exactly sir. There’s a lot of debris on the porch, but at first glance there’s no blood anywhere 'cept in the kitchen, and on this doll.”
The sheriff looked back at the deputy. “Hum . . . that so. . . thank you, son.”
“Sheriff, Sir . . . ”
“Something more, son?”
“It’s . . . It’s ah . . . It’s pretty bad inside. Why do you think a mother do something like that … why do you think……..?” the young man voice broke off and he lowered his eyes as he attempted to warn his superior.
The older man did not respond. With a hand clutching the latch, the sheriff warily surveyed the porch and down the steps, then pushed open the screen door and pitched it back with a bang.
The End
