Written 2014

"Peggy, I've been thinking. . ." began Marty Brown. He sat on a neglected love seat in the lobby of a hotel in Hawaii. The love-seat was a disturbing gray color; Marty had been thinking it may have originally been white but had dulled in color over time. Marty was on a honeymoon with his new wife, Peggy, in Honolulu. So far, they had visited two aquariums with breathtaking sharks, pink jellyfish, shining fish, and much more. But now, they were doing nothing, which provided an opportunity for Marty to think further ahead into his future.

"Marty, honey, it is rude to just stop in mid-sentence," said Peggy, eager to hear what her husband was thinking. A tropical visit to a rain-forest came to her mind. Brightly colored parrots flew from tree to tree. Colorful tree frogs sang. Marty holding her close in a banquet of sunlight.

"I've been thinking that I'd like to. . . murder," Marty wiped the sweat from his brow.

"Oh dear, baby, have you been drinking?" asked Peggy, concern quickly spreading throughout her face.

"No, no, Honey, I can't fight the urge! I want to plot and have the joy of succeeding. . ." said Marty.

"I'm calling the doctor," said Peggy. She set her chipped cup of cold tea on the coffee table and approached the old phone hung on the wall in the corner of the lobby.

"Sugar, I'm fine!" said Marty. The man behind the desk put his stack of papers down and left.

"Trust me, this is for your own good!" said Peggy. She jerked the phone from the wall and dialed. Marty approached her but she gave him a warning look and he stopped, his hands on his sides. Peggy put the telephone to her ear.

"Hello. . .yes. . . he thinks he needs to murder someone. . . yes. . . yes. . .no . . .yes . . .OK . . .Mental issue? Saturday?. . . now?!. . .Marty Brown . . .my husband. . .thanks!"

"Okay, Marty, they are ready now! Come, come," said Peggy, smiling, pretending all was well.

"I can't... they will call me insane. I'm not going." said Marty.

"You have to."

"I'm sorry but,"

"Marty, please!" tears spilled from Peggy's eyes like tiny crystals of fear and anger and sadness. Rolling like tiny stones down her rosy red cheeks.

Marty stood and proceeded towards the lobby door. "You leave me no choice, Peg,"

"Marty please!!!" Peggy wiped her eyes with her fists. Anger and fear and sadness consumed her.

19 years later

A man. A baby. A woman. The baby cries and delivers his bowl of milk and cereal to the floor. The woman does not pause to see how the cloudy silhouette on the floor appears to be a perfect cat with its back arched and its tail high. Instead, she washes the floor with her red apron. The man smiles and the woman smiled back. She bounces down carpeted stairs to a laundry room where she inserts the wet apron into the washer.

The man and the woman and the baby all sit on the couch, the baby slobbering on the woman's lap.

"Peggy," said the man, quite suddenly, "look at this!"

"I am, Jason, I am," said Peggy. A man in a cream-colored suit sat behind a glass desk on the screen. He spoke in a low voice.

"Today, the police investigated a crime scene, the murder of Darwin Harper. Darwin Harper's loyal co-worker, Toby Robbin, has joined us to express what he feels about his lost friend."

"Thank you, Henry. I am happy to be here this beautiful morning. My friend and coworker, Darwin Harper was innocently walking through a path in between cubicles. A masked man jumped out from one of the cubicles and stabbed him through the heart. I was there. It was the most horrible sight of my life. I recall crying and crying and crying. Luckily, my lovely wife Marge, was there every step of that morning and night." said Toby. He wiped a tear from his eyes.

"Thank you, Toby, that was... emotional," said Henry Hawk. "It appears that there is but only one suspect, Marty Brown. He apparently has told his ex-wife that he would like to murder someone. Three days later he was found hiding in an ally in Honolulu and was diagnosed with a severe mental illness. Now the weather."

Peggy's body tensed. She reached for the remote.

"Jason, the Super Bowl is tonight. . ." said Peggy. "Are we having a party?"

"Um, I was thinking that Berry is too young and the party would keep him awake." Jason's eyes wandered over the baby who held a pipe cleaner and twisted it and turned it in plushy hands.

"How about we have Molly babysit Berry and we can go to Frederick's party?" suggested Peggy. She rubbed Jason's leg.

"Why do you want to attend or have a party so bad? Yesterday you were saying how you didn't want to make such a big deal out of the Super Bowl," said Jason. He looked into Peggy's eyes thoughtfully and saw fear spread like fire in her deep black pupils.

"I'm just trying to get my mind off of some things." Peggy shifted uncomfortably and Berry started to ball and he threw the pipe cleaner on the carpet. "Shhh, it's okay," said Peggy.

. . . .

That night Peggy went where she always went when she needed to be alone. Carter Warehouse, her grandpa used to work there. She remembered playing hide and seek with her sister, Jamie when she was little. She paced around until she heard a sound of pure anguish from another room. She knew exactly the person who owned the sound. "Marty! Marty!" Peggy's voice echoed through the dark, empty, building. She heard what sounded like a chair falling backward in a room to her right.

"OOF!"

"Tell me, Brown!" sobs. Peggy whipped around. The sobs belonged to her former husband! She crept to the open door and peaked in. Jason had his hand against a chair which Marty was tied to. Jason's hand was the only thing preventing Marty and the chair from falling on the ground. Peggy did not have a view of Marty's face but she saw blood was dripping down from behind his curly orange hair into the crimson puddle in front of him.

"Next is your heart, Brown! Two words!" yelled Jason. The cords on his neck turned blue. Peggy put her hand to her mouth and tears rolled down her cheeks, similar to the ones she had cried the day Marty withdrew from her.

"Stop! Just stop, please!" yelled Peggy howled in a teary muddle. Both Marty and Jason's gaze rested on her. Marty had slits in his eyelids, the tip of his nose was gone, the tips of his fingers were gone, his feet were bare and the bottoms were quickly shedding blood. Peggy bit her bottom lip, trying not to scream in horror.

"Why do you do this, Jason?" asked Peggy. The corners of Jason's mouth rose. He positioned the stained knife on the cement floor.

"You don't entirely understand, M'lady. You see, Marty murdered an innocent man, dear. I had to do something, you can't blame me." said Jason in a smooth voice.

"Let's stop this crazy nonsense and take helpless Marty to the hospital," said Peggy. Jason smiled bigger.

"You're right, we should. I don't know what I was thinking. We can call the police and sort things out when we get there." he said in a gentle voice, obvious trickery in his voice.

¨No, Jason, no police. I will not stand this! Marty did not do anything erroneous!¨ Peggy shouted.

¨I am afraid that tone of voice is unacceptable when I am around,¨ said Jason.

Peggy felt like a droopy farm dog being punished. She sat in a locked, decaying, barn behind the warehouse. Her legs and arms were bound with scratchy yellowing ropes. Marty was next to her. He fell asleep. Peggy loved watching Marty sleep. Her Marty. No, Peggy! Marty and you are done, DONE! Peggy started to look for a way out. Not the door, it was locked. Maybe a window. They were all closed. A tunnel? Yes! She could dig one!

Peggy had found a car bumper and began pushing it into the ground near the wall. Sticking it farther and farther under. She pulled the bumper out using her bound hands. She stuck it under in several other places and farther under too. She finished in about a half hour.

Peggy's eyes grazed over Marty. His chest rising and falling like waves crashing on the seashore. She approached him and caressed his cheek with her index finger his cheek had its bumpy imperfections. Marty wasn't handsome, he was elaborate, elaborate isn't supposed to be handsome. She could not bring herself to leave him. She shook him ever so gently. His eyes flickered open and he grinned.

¨Peggy,¨ he said.

¨We must go. I dug our freedom.¨ she replied. They crawled through the hole and into the night. The stars appeared to diamonds stuck to a black velvet square.

"The night is so beautiful," said Marty. He stared admiringly up at the sky. Peggy followed his gaze. Marty was right, the sky was outstanding.

"Where is the moon?" asked Peggy.

"I don't know, the moon is a mystery. It hides and when you discover it, it reveals great secrets," said Marty. He closed his breath and smelled the fresh air.

"We should keep moving or Jason is going to find us," said Peggy knowingly.

"Good idea," said Marty. A little ways through the journey Marty groaned in pain and put his hand on his face. He fell to the ground.

"Marty?" Peggy bent down next to him. "Marty?!" he was losing blood quickly. his pulse slowed.

"Peggy. . ." Marty reached up and caressed her cheek.

"MARTY! I'm not losing you again!" Peggy yelled. She wailed. She was in pure anguish.

"NO, NO, NO!"

"I love you. I always have," said Marty his face went pale.

"No. . ." Peggy searched for a pulse. Nothing. Nothing at all.

. . . .

"She is lying. Her love just died, she must be lying. There is a million reasons," said Jason.

"SILENCE!" said the judge. "Peggy Martina, speak."

"I heard screaming. I recognized it as Marty's when I walked in the room he was there, all bloody, oh so bloody... I have proof. Before Marty died he tucked this in my pocket. I found it when I went to the police station,"

My dear Peggy,

Every day since the day I left I've thought about you. If you want to know why I didn't come stumbling back to you here is why:

An informal letter was taped to the note.

If you don't tell the police you were the one who killed Darwin I will come for you. You will suffer so much. The police would believe it if you were the one that killed him! They know about your mental illness! Don't even try to avoid me. If you choose to ignore this letter you will regret it. I would be watching where you step, Brown!

JASON MARTINA

"I see," said the judge. The jury leaned in.

. . . .

13 years later

Patricia's hand felt soft in hers. Peggy looked at it and traced the creases with her finger.

"Your not a nobody," said Peggy. Patricia sniffed. "Shhhh. . .I love you. Nobody should have a reason not to," said Peggy. Patricia wiped her eyes with her tiny fist and smiled.

"Your right, Mama," said Patricia.