Shy (Alternate Ending)

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…Life was much different there than it was at the prison down south. Death row was there and there were so many “lifers” stationed there it was somewhat frightening. You had to watch every step or somebody would plant a knife in your gut. As far as I could tell everyone there was a criminal. The guards just wore a different uniform from the inmates. We got one hour a day for recreation time outside in the yard. It was no place to try and relax as everyone was trying to get an advantage over everybody else.

I did my best to stay under everybody’s radar and mind my own business. After a year I started my countdown to my release. Before I was ready there was less than twenty-four hours to go. 

I hadn’t heard a peep out of Robyn and had the faint hope that I’d seen the last of her. But that hope was easily dashed one morning when I had a visitor. 

The guard peered into my cell and asked, “James?”

I looked up to see a tall burly guy staring down at me. I replied, “That’s me.”

He gave me the once over and then said, “I’ve got a message for you.”

That’s when I noticed his name tag read “Edward Bell.” I stood up and moved over to the bars. “It’s from her, isn’t it?”

“Yep.”

“You’re her brother, Teddy, right?”

“Right again,” he said. “I work up on the third floor and I don’t get down here too much. But, she wanted me to tell you something.”

“It figures,” I smirked. “She’s got the warden at the other joint and she’s got you here.”

“Yeah, she knows him through me,” he explained. “I used to work there. He’ll do anything for her. I don’t know why. They don’t say and I don’t ask.”

“He’s probably deathly afraid of her,” I surmised.

Teddy laughed and said, “He wouldn’t be the first. But, anyway, she wanted me to let you know that she’ll be out front tomorrow when you get out.” 

I stood there for a moment and then grabbed the bars and pleaded, “Help me, man!! I can’t take it anymore!! Please, won’t you help me?”

He grinned. It reminded me of his sister’s. With a smirk he said, “Man, she’s done a job on you.”

“You’re her brother!” I kept pleading. “You can talk to her. You can reason with her. She’ll listen to you! You can get her to leave me alone!!”

“No, I don’t think so,” he replied.

“Come on!” I shouted. “You can do it!! Do it for me, please!!”

He shook his head and said, “No, I can’t.”

“Why not?!?”

He shrugged and replied, “It’s better you than me.” With that he turned and walked away. 

Time kept moving at its relentless pace and I was powerless to stop it. I’d thought of everything I knew to do to avoid that meeting. 

I didn’t want to assault another guard and add even more time to my sentence. It wasn’t their fault I was in such a mess. They were just pawns like me. I’d thought of suicide but I didn’t want to die. I’d thought of murder but that would just lead to me dying. I’d thought about trying to deceive her again and then make my escape at the first convenient time. I had serious doubts as to whether that would work as she’d be even more suspicious of my actions since I’d already tried deceiving her once. I’d thought about faking an illness and being taken to a hospital, but I knew she’d just find me. I’d thought about just refusing to go with her and staying put. But, in reality, I had nowhere else to go. I couldn’t call my family and ask them to rescue me as they had absolutely nothing to do with me since I was sent to jail. I had no friends left to call for help. I had no one, but her. 

At twelve hours before my release, I was on my knees praying and begging God to help me find a way to avoid her. With eight hours to go I was raving and ranting like a mad man as I yelled and cursed at the inevitable. Two hours to go found me begging God again, this time, to end my life right there in my cell. One hour left and I was asking Him to bring the world to an end. 

Then it was time. With a heavy heart and sullen look, I went through the motions of being released. The guard checking me out smirked, “Man, most guys are ecstatic to get out of here. What’s your problem?” I simply shrugged and didn’t reply. My life no longer had any meaning and the only energy I could muster was the amount it took to keep breathing. 

My legs felt as heavy as lead as I forced them to move and take me to the curb just outside the prison walls. No one was there waiting for me. Could it be? Was it possible that she had forgotten me, or even better, tired of playing games and had moved on to someone else? I barely let myself hope as I glanced up and down the road and saw no car approaching. 

With optimism soaring and my strength returning, I started to walk down the street when, out of the corner of my eye, I spotted a yellow VW Beetle coming around the corner. I wanted to run but knew escape was hopeless. It was her. 

I held my breath as her car came to a stop. She quickly slung open the door and hopped out. With that wicked grin on her face she yelled at me, “Mike! I was afraid I’d miss you.”

With no emotion I said, “Hello, Robyn.”

“Well come over here and give me a hug,” she ordered as she held her hands out. “We might as well be friendly.” 

I dropped my small bag of personal items and obediently crossed the street to her waiting arms. She held me tight but didn’t try to kiss me. Suddenly, the passenger door of her Beetle flung open, and a short stocky man emerged. 

“So, this is Mike!” he bellowed.

“This is him,” Robyn answered as she held onto my arm.

The man scurried around her car and held his hand out as he approached me. “It’s great to finally meet you,” he beamed. “I’ve heard so much about you.”

He grabbed my hand and vigorously shook it until Robyn chimed in, “Mike this is Mitch.”

“Hello, Mitch,” was about all I could think to say.

“Well, I know you two want to catch up on all that’s happened,” he declared. “I just wanted to meet the man who’s meant so much to my little woman.”

“Your ‘little woman?’”

“Yes, that’s why we stopped by,” Robyn revealed. “Mitch and I are on our way to Vegas to get married and we wanted you to know. I hope you don’t mind getting a taxi instead of us taking you to your new place. We really need to hit the road.” 

I was stunned beyond belief. Could this mean I would finally be rid of this evil person in my life? I had to be dreaming. It was unreal and too easy. 

“You two are getting married?!?” I stammered.

“You bet we are!” Mitch almost yelled. “This little woman is going to make me the happiest man in the world.” 

I studied her face for any indication of the game she was playing. She had her usual poker face on and I couldn’t tell what her angle was. I knew she had to have one, it was her nature. 

I couldn’t help myself and blurted out, “What’re you trying to do, Robyn?”

With a smirk she reached up and kissed my cheek. “There’s no need for you to be jealous.”

“Jealous?!?”

“We had our time together, but now it’s over,” she continued. “I’ve moved on and you should, too. I know you’ll find someone else, but please don’t forget me.” Then with her hyena laugh she declared, “I know I won’t forget you.” 

With that she turned and climbed back into her VW. Before closing the door, she barked, “Come on Mitch, I don’t want to be late for the preacher.”

“I’m coming, I’m coming,” he said as he blew her a kiss. He winked at me and declared, “Ain’t she something? Your loss is my gain, buddy.” 

All I could do was stare at him as he rounded the car and dove into the passenger seat. Giving me a slight wave, Robyn started the car, and they drove off together. 

I watched until they were out of sight. My mind was confused and racing to compute all that had just happened and to figure out if it was for real. I did the only thing I could do. I slumped to the pavement and cried like a baby. 

My body was shaking with emotion as I vented a lifetime of anger and frustration mixed with a newfound sense of relief when I felt a hand on my shoulder. I glanced up and Teddy was looking down at me. 

“Let it all out, man,” he offered. “You deserve at least that much.” 

Finally, I was able to bring my emotions down to a few sniffles. He helped me to my feet and brushed the dirt off my knees for me.

“Is it really over?” I blubbered.

“Yes, she’s gone,” he confirmed. 

I closed my eyes to let the moment sink in. Then it dawned on me. “Mitch is in for a world of trouble,” I almost shouted. “We’ve got to warn him!!”

“Oh, he’ll be okay,” Teddy declared. “He’s not going to marry her.”

“He’s not?”

“No,” he restated. “They’re probably coming to the roadblock as we speak. She’s going to jail for a very long time.”

“They’re being arrested?” I asked as once again I was shocked at the turn of events.

“No, they’re not,” he answered. “She is. He’s working undercover for the FBI. I understand he’s one of their best.”

“He’d have to be to fool her,” I offered.

“Yeah, but he pulled it off,” he continued as he looked at his watch. “And there should be an ATF and FBI team knocking on the door of your and my favorite warden about now. He’s going down, too. I would’ve told you earlier, but it was all hush-hush.”

“Wow,” was all I could say. “What did they do?”

He smiled and put his hand on my shoulder, “It might be best if you didn’t know all the details. Besides, what he helped her do to you would be enough, wouldn’t it?”

“Yeah, but how, I mean…”

“Hey, it’s all for the good,” he laughed. “Someone in the know must’ve heard enough and pointed the feds in the right direction.”

“You?”

“That’s another thing it might be best you don’t know,” he replied. “Family ties are strong but even those have their limits, especially if you start being afraid for your own safety.” 

I smiled for the first time in years. “You’re a good man, Ted,” I offered.

“So are you, Mike,” he stated. “Look, I’m on my way home, so can I give you a ride?”

“Thanks, but I think I’d like to walk to town,” I replied.

“I understand,” he said. “While you’re walking you might want to think about something.”

“What?”

“She’s going away for a long time,” he answered. “But, one day she’ll be getting out. If I were you, I wouldn’t want to be anywhere near here.” 

In my excitement I hadn’t thought of that. It left me cold. “Yeah,” I acknowledged. “I’m going to have to disappear.”

“Well, it’s not something you have to do now,” he asserted. “But it is something you’ll need to think about.”

I thanked him, we shook hands, and he walked to the parking lot leaving me deep in thought on the sidewalk of the prison. My day had started with dread and was ending with a hope for the future. I just needed to figure out how to take advantage of the opportunity given me. 

My attention was diverted by the flashing blue lights as five police cars sped by me. In the back seat of the third was Robyn glaring at me as they flew by. I waited until they were out of sight before I started shouting and hollering and laughing as loud as I could. 

A car pulled up beside me and Ted rolled down his window. “You know you might want to tone your celebration down a bit,” he laughed. “They’ve got a psych ward inside those walls.”

I joined in the laughter and then asked, “Do you mind if I take you up on that ride after all?”

“Not at all. Hop in.” 

We drove away to a new hope and a new life. 

Two years later I moved to a new town and started that new life. I was in another state far away and no longer on parole, I changed my name and found a decent job. Everything about me was new. So, to a certain degree, I was still enslaved to Robyn as I had to hide from her. But I didn’t mind as she was serving 25-40 years in prison and according to the word Ted had sent me, she wasn’t fitting in very well. I wasn’t surprised. In a morbid sort of way, it was good news, as any misconduct on her part would just add to her sentence and keep her there that much longer. 

About six months ago, I was at the local supermarket when a storm came out of nowhere. I rushed to my car, quickly loaded my bags into the trunk of my car and turned to take my cart back to the holding area. When I turned, a young woman walking toward the store offered, “I’ll take that for you.” At first, I stared at her, but then quickly recovered, “Sure. Thank you.” 

The raindrops started falling but I couldn’t help but stare after her. It was a nice gesture on her part. It was a good deed. I raised my face toward the sky and let the rain pelt my face. It was cool and refreshing. All was finally the way it should be.

THE END

Copyright ©2014 by Jerry W. Crews