Violent Times 2: Mary

The bus bounced and twisted as the suspension slammed another pothole in the worn out city street. Pete squeezed the handrails as he continued to walk towards the back of the bus passing several open seats. The first one was next to a large man with a thick beard and a shaved head. He had hundreds of tattoos from his shoulder down to his knuckles.

Pete didn’t know that this mans name was Lars and that he was riding home from seeing his grandmother. Lars went to the nursing home every Sunday to take his grandmother to the chapel. Afterwards he stayed and ate lunch with her and they’d play chess and catch up on what’s going on in Lars’ life. They would drink chamomile tea and discuss politics, while they didn’t always agree, they were both always civil.

Pete looked at the large man with the beard and the shiny head and kept moving. Pete judged that man too harshly and decided he was uncomfortable sitting next to him. As he continued down the rubber coated aisle of the crowded city bus he next came upon on open seat next to an angry looking business man. He was wearing a long brown coat over his expensive suit.

The business man was furiously tapping away on his phone with his briefcase held tightly on his lap. Pete couldn’t have known there was a loaded revolver under that black leather lid. He also would never know that later than night Carl would blow his own brains out with that revolver. Carl felt so alone after his wife left him for another man and had Pete sat down next to him then would have had a good conversation about local politics. Pete couldn’t have known that the conversation they would have had would have been enough to save Carl’s rough yet still valuable life.

Pete moved on down the aisle until he finally came to a young woman with beautiful blonde curls that bounced down to her shoulders. Her hazel eyes looked up from under her fancy black hat and met Pete’s. He smiled at her as she clutched her mustard yellow hand bag tightly.

“Mind if I sit here,” he asked politely.

“Of course not,” the young woman said nervously as she lowered her gaze back to the floor.

Pete sat down next to Mary and felt safe. He saw Lars’s shiny bald head and was happy he didn’t have to sit next to the man he wrongfully assumed was dangerous. He looked at the angry business man and was happy to not have to be next to someone he assumed would be mean. Pete was happy sitting next to the beautiful young woman, not knowing a thing about her. How could he know, he never paid any attention to the news.

Mary had been in love, and that is where it all began. Pauly was a young successful man making big money working for his parents construction company. He was as handsome as he was kind and Mary had known he was the one since he first kissed her hand. They had dated for nine magical months before he got down on one knee and gave held up a beautiful ring with an impossibly large diamond. Within six moths they were married and living out a fairytale life together.

Mary wasn’t dumb, she knew the family business was more then just construction, but she kept her nose out of it and they had no problems. She figured is she needed to know, Pauly would tell her, she never had any reason not to trust him after all. It was never an issue, until that night.

Pauly came home early, just as the sun was almost finished setting. He rushed through the front door yelling for Mary to pack up her shit because they needed to leave. For a moment she froze but after a deep breath she reached down flicked off the stove and ran for the bedroom.

“Just the essentials,” Pauly said breathlessly as he threw open a second suitcase.

“What’s happening,” Mary asked as calmly as she could as she grabbed clothes and stuffed them in the empty suitcase.

He stopped for a moment and looked at her with eyes full of pain. He looked ready to cry, Mary had thought.

“We were double crossed,” he had told her. “Someone from inside out hits out on us.”

They were silenced by flashing lights that filled the room. Pauly walked over to the window and pulled down on the blinds.

“Shit,” he whispered. “They’re here.”

“The cops?” Mary had asked, feeling confused.

“Corrupt cops,” Pauly had told her as he opened his dresser. He pulled out the biggest pistol Mary had ever seen and stuffed it in the back of his belt. “You stay here,” he instructed, “I’m going to see if I can talk to them.”

She could hear it in his voice, he was scared.

Mary’s mouth opened but she didn’t know what to say. She wanted to tell him to stop, not to go. She wanted to tell him to leave the gun. She wanted to ask what was happening. But before any of it could come out he was gone.

The flashing lights danced back and forth on the walls of their bedroom and Mary watched through tear filled eyes. She heard car doors close and the front door open. She looked out the window Pauly had peaked through moments before and saw him standing on their front porch. His hands were raised and he called out to the four men approaching him. Mary couldn’t make out what he was saying but it was cut short but the sound of gunfire.

One of the officers was still holding his service revolver at eye level and the smoking barrel was still aimed to wear Pauly had just been standing. Mary felt the strangest knot well up in her chest. It felt like a softball had just grown inside of her and inside her head was some strange far off screaming that seemed to drown out all coherent thought. As Mary looked down on her porch that was now a deep red, she saw the dead body that was once her husband.

Mary fell to the floor and began to sob she curled up and waited for them to find her. She didn’t care anymore she preferred they killed her now, life seemed unlivable from here on out. But as she heard the voices in her house and heartbreak turned to rage Mary decided living was the only option now. She would fight to live everyday in Pauly’s name and she would fight to get revenge on the scum who killed her husband.

They were at the top of the landing now, coming for her. She crawled under the bed and struggled to breathe quietly as the first set of black boots entered the room.