Shattered Edge(54)

Not receiving an answer, I knocked again.

Well damn! I wondered what was going on. Then I thought maybe he was sleeping here. Maybe my mom had kicked him out or something and he couldn’t afford a place to rent. I opened the door a crack just to make sure he wasn’t asleep on the couch. I could see the couch and no one was on it. So I opened the door wider and...

Started screaming and screaming. There was my dad, with half of his head blown off. His brains were splattered all over the wall. I started heaving and took off running for the bathroom, throwing up all over the place.

Ohmigodohmigodohmigodohmigodohmigodohmigodohmigod....

My hands were shaking so badly I could barely get my phone out. I hit Justin’s number and he answered all sexy like and I could only gasp and heave.

“Terri! Where are you?”

“Office!” I threw up again.

“I’m on the way. Don’t go anywhere and don’t hang up!”

“Police...police...” I couldn’t even formulate a coherent sentence. My throat felt like it was closing up except when I was hurling. I couldn’t seem to get any air into my lungs.

“I’m in the car now baby. Just hang on.”

“Can’t breathe.”

“Babe, I’m gonna put you on hold and I’m calling 911. Stay on the line, okay?”

I can’t recall the next few minutes. The passage of time seemed to move in slow motion or stop altogether. I was on the floor in the reception area thinking about how bad the carpet smelled against my nose when Justin came running through the door and tried to pick me up off the floor. I couldn’t speak...couldn’t say those awful words so I just kept pointing him to the back. He finally understood what I was trying to tell him. He ran back there and came out with a knowing look on his face. By then the police were streaming through the door and I was still on the floor trying to breathe and feeling that scratchy carpet against my cheek. Things started swimming around and my hearing started to go. I must’ve passed out or something because I woke up on an ambulance bed with Justin’s face in front of mine.

“Terri? Are you back with us?”

I looked around, confused. For the briefest minute, I’d forgotten that I’d seen my dad sitting at his desk with his brains blown out. Recognition and a vivid image of that horror show stung me as I squeezed my eyes shut and started sobbing, crying out, “No! No! No!”

I grabbed Justin’s shoulders and sunk my fingers into him.

“Why would he do that?”

Justin pulled me into a sitting position and said, “I don’t know honey. I’m so sorry you had to be the one that found him.”

“Oh God, I’m gonna be sick.”

The EMT handed me one of those little bags they have in hospitals for patients to throw up in, and I heaved again.

“Honey, the police need to ask you some things.”

I nodded. All they needed to know was if I noticed anything unusual.

“Oh not really, unless you count my dad with his brains blown out all over the walls. What the hell kind of question is that?” I screamed.

“Ma’am, we’re really sorry. I guess what I should’ve asked was if you noticed whether the lock had been tampered with or if the place looked like it had been broken into?”

“Oh shit. I’m sorry.” I rubbed my eyes again, I don’t know why, maybe thinking it would help me concentrate or something. “No, I didn’t pay attention to that. I came in and went straight to his office. The front door was locked like it always was before hours.”

The one officer looked at the other and said, “It looks like a suicide.”

All I wanted to do was scream. I’d been picked up by a tornado and deposited in the land of morons.

Justin must’ve known my reaction was going to be volcanic because he squeezed my hand, hard. I didn’t care. I was quite beyond caring. I suppose when you find a loved one, even though it’s one you’ve been extremely pissed off at, with their gray matter in bits and pieces everywhere, all bets are off.

“I know it’s a suicide, you fucking moron!” Then I looked up at the sky and screamed, “Scotty, beam me up now!”

Justin picked me up in his arms, cradling me against his chest as I started laughing hysterically. He took me to his car and put me inside. I saw him run back to the police morons and hand them a card. Then he was back in the car, listening to my cackling.

My laughter soon turned to tears and I cried all the way to his house. I was on the edge...getting ready to dive off, head first. I couldn’t get the picture of my dad out of my head.

“Justin, I’m gonna be sick!” I cried out.