ashleyleigh | [post] mortem Chapter Five: Heartless Part I (Reply)

“Early this morning the heir to the Meditech Pharmaceuticals Simone Barclay was released on one million dollars bail in the case of the murder of her boyfriend Jackson Samuels, and I Clint Vandelay was right there so I could bring the story to you. As soon as Simone and her attorney emerged from the courthouse, they were swarmed by photographers, and what began as a simple press conference became what can only be called a media circus.”

The screen then switched to footage of the press conference.

“My client would appreciate nothing more in the world than her privacy,” Delia said. “She is devastated by her boyfriend’s death, and that she has been accused of perpetrating the crime has only made matters worse.”

“I didn’t do it btw,” Simone added.

“As you can see, she maintains her innocence, and we are sure she will be acquitted,” Delia said.

“But you know, if I did do it, I had every reason to,” Simone said.

“Simone, cut it out.”

Simone pushed Delia aside as the strains of “Cellblock Tango” from the Broadway musical Chicago somehow filled the air.

Delia asked, “Does anyone else hear that?”

But no one else seemed to think it was odd that Simone was hijacking press conference with a musical interlude. In fact, several people emerged from the crowd to back Simone up.

She sang:

You know those kinds of guys who think everything is about them?

No matter what happens, it’s always ‘Me, me, me’ all the time.

Jack was like that.

Everything he said started with I.

I want food. I want sex. I want to play X Box.

And one day I’d had just about enough of I.

Of course I can’t remember exactly what happened. It’s all such a blur.

But I know he never said I ever again.

Her back up dancers joined her in the chorus:

He had it coming
He had it coming
He only had
Himself
To blame.
If you'd have been there
If you'd have seen it
I betcha
You would
Have done
The same!

Simone said, “I think that’s about it. Questions?”

Delia awoke with a start on her couch.

“What the hell?”

~~________________________________________~~

Meanwhile, Phil stomped down the stairs yelling, “Turn that damn music down!”

He stopped yelling as soon as he saw Chuck awkwardly dancing wearing a completely disastrous all leather outfit. But what he found most appalling was his hair. Gone were the only slightly terrible blue highlights; replaced by a full head of bright blond hair.

“Oh, dear God, what have you done?”

Shouting over the music, Chuck asked, “What? You don’t like it?”

“No one would like it,” Phil answered. “You look like you just walked out of 1985. No one should repeat that year. No one.”

“People still dress like this,” Chuck said.

“Well, they shouldn’t,” Phil said. “It’s bad enough that you used my credit card without my permission to go on an online shopping spree, but to spend my money on bad clothes. I just…I can’t.”

Chuck burst into laughter.

“What? What’s so funny?” Phil asked.

“You. You’re funny.”

“I’m not the one dressed like an idiot,” Phil said.

“That can be debated,” Chuck said.

“I have two hundred years of fashion knowledge in my head!” Phil snapped. “Don’t you dare try to insult me when it comes to clothes!”

“All right, all right. I’ll leave it alone.”

“Let’s just leave everyone’s clothes alone,” he said. “You can wear…that, and I’ll dress like a sane person.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

“I’m glad we agree,” Phil said. “Please keep the music down.”

As he turned to leave, Chuck said, “It’s nice to see you’re no longer scared of me.”

“Bad clothing trumps all,” Phil said. “And don’t even get me started on your hair.”

Then he breezed out of the room.

With a chuckle, Chuck returned to his dancing.

~~________________________________________~~

“And now I’m having dreams about it complete with musical numbers,” Delia explained as she ate lunch with her brother outside the police station the next day.

“Maybe it just isn’t worth it,” Ray said.

“What’s wrong with you?” she asked. “Of course it’s worth it.”

“I know you want to make partner and everything, but have you ever really thought about what that means?”

“It means more money, a corner office, and giving orders instead of getting them,” she replied. “Am I missing something?”

“Probably not, but you already push yourself so hard,” he said. “If you make partner, you may never sleep.”

“I love you little brother, but you have to let me live my life my way,” Delia said. “You said you wanted me to be happy, and making partner would make me very, very happy.”

“All right, all right.”

“But you are allowed to pester me just a little,” she said. “Because every once and awhile you just happen to give out good advice.”

“Every once and awhile,” he said with a nod. “I’ll take it.”

When he saw Max walking by, he quickly excused himself from the table and ran after him shouting, “Max, hold up!”

“I guess we’re done here,” Delia mumbled to herself.

Reluctantly Max stopped to talk.

“What are you doing here?” Ray asked.

“I took a few nights off, so the chief put me on the afternoon shift today,” Max answered with a sigh.

“Look at you complaining,” Ray said. “You’re like the only detective I know who’s on a first name basis with the chief of police.”

“It’s not as nice as it sounds.”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever.”

“Well, I kind of have to go…”

“Wait, I haven’t even gotten to why I came over here,” Ray said. “Are you busy tonight?”

“Maybe.”

“Don’t worry, it’s just a movie,” Ray said. “A group of us are going after work.”

“I don’t really do group stuff,” Max said.

“You mean you don’t do group stuff with my friends,” Ray said.

Max shrugged. He’d been found out.

“Just think about it okay,” he said. “We’re meeting at my place for a little pregame at seven.”

“You drink before going to the movies?” Max asked.

“Who doesn’t?” Ray said with a shrug.

“I’ll think about it.”

“Great! See you later.”

When he returned to the table, Delia was on her cell phone.

“Simone,” she mouthed with a sigh.

Ray nodded and pointed in the direction of the police station.

As he walked off he mouthed back, “Take a break.”

~~________________________________________~~

That afternoon, Vanessa arrived at Phil’s house. She breezed right past Phil and down into the basement while she talked to Max on the phone.

“Seriously, I’ve got this,” she said. “You’re still mad at him about the biting incident anyway.”

“That is true, but you’ve been on Chuck duty all week.”

“One more day won’t hurt,” Vanessa said.

“Okay, but you know my number if you need any help.”

“I won’t be using it,” she said. “In fact, I hope you’ll be out having fun tonight instead of waiting for my call.”

“I have a night of reading planned,” he said. “I’ve been meaning to finish The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo for months now.”

“Oh, come on Max!” she said. “Go out and have some fun.”

“And how do you suggest I do that?”

“I don’t know. Just…”

She trailed off when she saw Chuck in the basement, still wearing the outfit given two thumbs way down by Phil hours later.

When Chuck saw her he stopped what he was doing and stared back.

“I’ll have to call you back,” she said before ending the call.

They then both asked almost simultaneously, “What are you wearing?”

“This is what I wear to work at the consignment shop,” Vanessa said. “But you have no reason to look like that.”

“I think I look good,” Chuck whined.

“You don’t look like you,” she said.

“How do you know?” he asked. “You don’t know me that well.”

“It’s just a feeling,” she said.

He sighed and said, “I just wanted to try something new. Maybe reinvent myself.”

“Something wrong with the old you?”

“It’s just an experiment. No need to head shrink me.”

“Fine, forget I said anything then,” she said.

He nodded and said, “What’s on the menu for today?”

“Monopoly?” she suggested. “Maybe some Clue?”

“Maybe, if you don’t cheat,” Chuck said.

“I can’t promise you anything.”

“Fine, whatever,” he said with a sigh.

She asked, “Well, do you have any better ideas?”

“I’m so sick and tired of being in this basement,” he said. “I want to get out of this house.”

Vanessa nodded and said, “Maybe I can swing a short trip to the outside world.”

“Are you for real?” he asked.

“Phil and Max may think you’re dangerous, but I’m starting to think you’re just misunderstood,” Vanessa asked.

“I like the way you think,” Chuck said. “But what are we going to do about Phil?”

“I’ll take care of Phil,” she said. “You just need to worry about your clothes.”

“I thought we agreed to leave that alone.”

“We have to do this incognito Chuck,” she said. “That outfit is so not that.”

Chuck nodded in agreement.

She looked at the clock and said, “Well, we’ve still got a few hours until sunset. You think maybe we can fit in just one game of Clue?”

“Why not?” he said with a shrug.

“Okay, I’m going to go change and then we’ll play,” she said.

“You know, you don’t have to change,” he said.

She rolled her eyes as she walked off.

~~________________________________________~~

A few hours later, Delia tried her best to relax on the sofa in her apartment. But she kept looking back to all the papers piled up on her desk. There was so much work she could have been doing, but she also knew that Ray was right when he suggested she take a break. Maybe if she got her mind of the case, she wouldn’t have any more weird dreams about it. But even though she found a way to avoid actually working on Simone’s defense for the time being, she couldn’t stop thinking about every single little detail of the case.

When she heard knocking on her door, she jumped up to answer it. Maybe the distraction she’d been hoping for stood on the other side.

“Max, what are you doing here?”

“I’m supposed to go to a movie with your brother and his friends, and when I showed up he was in the shower so he shouted at me to just come up here to your place until he got ready. I’m beginning to wonder why I ever listen to him because when I say it out loud it sounds like a terrible idea.”

“I have never heard you talk that fast before,” Delia said. “Now you have to come in.”

“You wouldn’t happen to have any water would you?” he asked as he walked in.

“Just out of the faucet,” she said with a shrug.

“Fine with me.”

“You know, I kind of thought you’d be a little pissed at me,” Max commented.

“Why?”

“I did arrest one of your clients two days ago,” he said.

“You were just doing your job,” she said with a shrug. “The same way I was doing my job when I got her out on bail.”

Max nodded and said, “I was never that good at separating work from the rest of my life.”

She said, “I just turned work into my life.”

“So I’m not the only one then.”

Then Ray burst into the apartment.

“Ray, next time you invite people over, be dressed when they show up,” Delia said.

“Sorry, but at least I didn’t send Tony up here,” he said. “Come on Max.”

“What movie are we going to?” Max asked.

“Hell if I know,” Ray said with a shrug. “But it’s got guys with guns and explosions, so I’m all for it.”

“Fantastic,” Max said with absolutely no enthusiasm.

“Why don’t you come Delia?” Ray suggested. “It’s not like you’re doing anything.”

“I’m relaxing,” she said. “Wasn’t that your idea?”

“You know good and well you’ll be on that laptop in less than an hour,” he said. “Come on.”

She was about to say no when she saw Max pleading with her with his eyes. He looked so desperate, and she had to admit, cute, that she sighed and said, “Sure, why not?”

As he pulled Max out of the apartment, Ray called out, “Be ready at eight.”

~~________________________________________~~

A few hours later, Chuck and Vanessa emerged from the local bookstore.

“Well, that was creepy,” she said.

“Yeah, I wasn’t expecting a life size poster of me,” Chuck said.

“On the bright side, most of your books are sold out,” Vanessa said.

“True.”

“But then again, you’re never going to see any of that money,” she said.

“Someone will,” he said. “I’m sure it’ll all go to good use.”

“If I had your money, I’d buy a Rolls Royce,” she said. “And someone to drive me around in my Rolls Royce.”

“That’s not even kind of energy efficient.”

“Oh, you’re one of those,” she said. “Did you have a Prius or something?”

“Prius’ are so pedestrian,” he said. “I had a Smart Car.”

“I had a Smart Car,” Vanessa parroted behind his back as they walked off.

~~________________________________________~~

Meanwhile, Max and Delia stood outside the movie theater.

“You so owe me,” she said. “I think that is the worst movie I have ever seen.”

“Have you ever seen ‘Gigli’?”

“Yes, unfortunately.”

“Then that definitely was not the worst movie you’ve ever seen.”

“Point taken, but you still owe me.”

Max nodded and asked, “What’s your favorite meal?”

“What? Do you mean my favorite food?” she asked.

“I mean like breakfast, dinner…brunch…”

He trailed off when he saw the look on her face.

He sighed and said, “I am trying very unsuccessfully to ask you out to dinner. Or any other meal if you feel so inclined.”

“Like a date?”

“Whatever you want it to be.”

He tried to make a nonchalant facial expression to go along with that statement, but it didn’t quite come off that way.

“You totally suck at playing it cool,” Delia said as she tried to suppress a laugh.

“That might be because I have never been cool once in my entire life,” he said with a sigh. “Please, save me some embarrassment and say yes.”

“Yes,” she said. “Definitely.”

At that very moment, Chuck and Vanessa were walking by the movie theater. When Chuck saw Delia, he stopped in his tracks.

“What, what is it?” Vanessa asked.

“It’s her,” Chuck replied. “My ex.”

“You only have one ex-girlfriend?”

“Just the one ex-fiancee.”

“Oh.”

Chuck went silent as he stared at her. He’d seen her here and there over the years. They did live in a fairly small city. But he always made sure to stay out of her way. That was especially difficult the one time they happened to be on the same elevator about a year ago. He was pretty sure she saw him, but just pretended not to.

But now, now all he wanted to do was run up to her, talk to her, touch her.

“What’s her name?” Vanessa asked.

“Delia,” he said. “Her name’s Delia.”

“That’s a pretty name.”

Chuck nodded and asked, “Can we go home now?”

She nodded and led him away as quickly as she could.

~~________________________________________~~

By the time they arrived at Phil’s house, Chuck’s sadness was turning into anger.

“There’s no O negative in here!” he shouted, more like growled when he couldn’t find his favorite blood type in the refrigerator.

“I can hit up the blood bank for you if you want,” she said. “But you have to calm down.”

“You don’t have to do that,” he said. “I’m fine.”

“You’re not fine,” Vanessa said. “I know it must have hurt to see your ex.”

“Not as much as I hurt her I’m sure,” Chuck said. “I broke off our engagement two days before we were supposed to get married.”

He continued, “I always thought I’d get the chance to make it up to her, to fix things. Even though we haven’t spoken since that day, I always thought one day, some day, I could get her to forgive me. I just hit me when I saw her that that day is never going to come.”

Sniffling, Vanessa muttered, “I’m so sorry.”