Homeless – CHAPTER 12

Adult story: Homeless – CHAPTER 12

by senorlongo

There were two men in cheap suits standing in front of reception as we walked up. “Detective Garcia,” I asked.

“Dr. Preston, good of you to see us. This is my partner, Tim Rooney.” I shook hands lefty and introduced Jennie. We walked together into the Plaza’s food court where we were seated in a booth. Jennie and I ordered breakfast and they ordered coffee even though I invited them to join us.

“At these prices I’d be broke in less than a week. What kind of work do you do, Dr. Preston?”

“Actually, Det. Rooney—I’m officially retired although I did get an assignment to write a short program last week. That’s what I do—write computer programs. I wrote all the programs in the ‘Idiot’ series.”

“Those are really good. I used one to learn Spanish.”

“Yeah, but you still speak with an Irish accent. I can barely understand you.”

“What would you know? You were born in Brooklyn; talk about an accent!”

Jennie and I laughed. “I suspect life with you two is never dull.”

“We have to make jokes when we can,” Det. Garcia explained. “Sometimes our work can be really morbid. Why don’t we get to business?” He stopped for a moment to stir some real cream into his coffee. “Mmmm…that’s good. Okay…we got the report from the vet on your dog. I’m sure you know it came back clean. We learned that your assailant was high on meth—methamphetamine. He’s still in Bellevue in the prison ward and his arm is a mess. The doctors put several screws in it, but they still think he’ll have trouble for the rest of his life. Of course, the whole thing was entirely his fault so I doubt that any of us have even a tiny bit of sympathy.

“We’ve spoken to the DA in charge of the case and he’ll go to the Grand Jury next week. There’s no reason for you to attend or testify, but I can tell you that he’s going for attempted murder in addition to assault with a deadly weapon. There’ll be some other charges thrown in; there always are. I have your cell number so I can contact you, if necessary.”

“Do you think I’ll have to testify? And Jennie?”

“It’s hard to say. It might go to a plea bargain because he has no criminal record. This guy had a great job on Wall Street so he has plenty of money—maybe too much. I assume your suit was ruined. Any idea how much it cost? We’ll ask the judge for you to be compensated for your loss.”

“Actually, I do know. I had just bought that suit from a tailor in Hong Kong. It cost me $3,000 and the shirt was $250, both of them custom made for me. I’m more concerned with Jennie’s dress. She tried to stop the bleeding and it was covered with blood. I gave it to the hotel for cleaning so I expect to get it back today. It was brand new…just bought that day. Do you remember what you paid, Jen?”

“Yes, just over $2,000 with tax, unfortunately. I loved that dress.”

“Well, if it’s ruined we can see about getting a replacement. We can go to the store and ask them to order one just like it.” Jennie responded by leaning over to kiss my cheek. The detectives left a few minutes later, but not before Det. Rooney said, “I wouldn’t mind getting a dog like this for my family. Mind telling me what you paid for her.”

“I think a shelter pet is more in your future. Lady cost me $65,000.”

Garcia laughed like hell as he slid out of the booth. “Tim, get a goldfish and I’ll spring for a bowl.”
They shook hands with me and left, still laughing.

“They seem like good guys, Doug.”

“Yeah, they probably are, but I don’t envy them their jobs. They see the worst of humanity every single day. We had a neighbor who was a cop when I was growing up. His wife couldn’t stand the uncertainty of his going to work and never knowing for sure if he was coming home alive or in a box. She left him and took his three kids. A few months later he took his own life. I can still remember the sound of the shotgun in the middle of the night.” Jennie’s eyes showed the shock she was experiencing.

We finished breakfast and returned to the suite just in time to see the bellman walking down the hall with her dress. Jennie took it out of the plastic bag, but even I could see that they were unable to remove the bloodstain completely. Jennie was almost in tears when I asked her for the receipt. A minute later I was on the phone with the store. I explained what had happened and, like everyone else in the city, the manager had seen the report on the news. She said she would have to contact the supplier, but would get back to me as soon as possible, probably sometime this afternoon.

After ending the call I sat in the easy chair and gazed out the window. “What would you like to do this afternoon? I think we should do some sightseeing. Most of the people who live here have never been to the top of the Empire State Building or taken a cruise around Manhattan. There’s also the American Museum of Natural History only a few blocks away or the Central Park Zoo. It’s one of the world’s best.”

“Let’s wait until the doctor has examined you. I’m not taking any chances with your health.” And then in what I was sure was her sternest voice, “And neither are you. I’m planning on growing very old with you, having lots of kids and even more grandkids. We’ll have other opportunities to sightsee.” Then to show me how serious she was she leaned down to kiss me.

It was almost eleven when the maid knocked. Jennie answered the door and the maid said she would return later. “No, come in…please; just take care of the bedroom and bathroom today.” I rose and gave her a ten dollar tip. This was a big suite and I always tipped the maid every day. I didn’t think that ten bucks was too much when the suite was running me $5,000 a night.

Jennie and I relaxed as we waited for the doctor to arrive. Fortunately, he was a few minutes early. He handed Jennie a card that gave his name as Henri St. Claire, M.D., Internal Medicine, with a Park Avenue address. He explained that he was technically retired, but kept his hand in by working when needed for the hotel. Taking note of my sling he asked me to remove it so he could examine the wound.

“Ah, I see the doctor inserted a drain,” he said once he had peeled the bandage away from my skin. “That was an excellent idea. These days these kids who think they’re practicing medicine don’t take the time or effort to do things right. It will take only a few minutes to remove it.” Digging into his bag he removed several paper towels and dropped a long thin flexible tube that he pulled from the wound into them, dropping the mess into a waste basket. Then, using his nose, he sniffed all around the stitches before nodding with satisfaction.

“Had there been an infection there would be an odor of mortification…of the decaying pus created by the body fighting off the bacteria. That’s the biggest concern with a knife wound. I’ll bandage it again for you and all you’ll have to do is see your own physician in another week to remove the stitches. Do you need any additional pain medication?”

“No, I still have some and I prefer not to use them. They make me woozy and I can’t stand it. What about this sling? Do I have to use it?”

“I think you might wear it for another few days until you get home again. The city is crowded and you could be jostled.” I was dejected by that, but Jennie was elated. She was going to take care of me even if it killed me. Dr. St. Claire was with me about twenty minutes and left, telling me that his charges of $250 would be added to my hotel bill. I thanked him as he strode out the door.

“See—I told you to wear that sling.”

“I give up; you win.” I was a bit dejected until Jennie carefully replaced my arm into the sling then wrapped her hands around my head and kissed me deeply. The kiss went on and on until she broke it, asking if we could still make it to the zoo. I got my backpack from the closet and put Lady’s bowl into it even though I knew there were places for dogs to drink where we were going.

It was still morning so I suggested we go up to the Bronx. “We have plenty of time so why don’t we go to the Bronx Zoo. It’s bigger and—I think—better than the one in Central Park.” Jennie agreed, saying that she would defer to me since I had much more experience here than she did.

Once out on the street we crossed over Central Park South so Lady could take care of business then we walked a few blocks east until we reached the subway station for the 5 train. Using my credit card I bought a Metro Card with six trips on it, paying for Lady even though I knew she would be entitled to a free passage. The trip north took less than thirty minutes. We walked up onto East Tremont Avenue very close to the Asia Gate of the Bronx Zoo. I knew this area well; it was where my father had often brought me years ago before I learned that he was a serial cheater.

Jennie and I had a ball. She loved the zoo and many of the children asked if they could pet Lady. The highlight of the day came when we accidentally stumbled onto feeding time for the tigers. The trainer dropped a huge slab of what I assumed was horsemeat into an empty cage. It was on the left of three in a row. He lifted and dropped a door that led outside from the center cage. About three minutes later a tiger—a BIG tiger walked in and turned toward the meat. Once he was in a door we hadn’t noticed before dropped between the two cages, sealing that one away. Next the trainer dropped another slab into the cage on the far right. The door outside dropped a few more times and an even bigger tiger walked in, moving immediately toward the meat. Soon that cage was isolated, leaving only the center cage empty. The process was repeated, but everyone present gasped when this tiger walked through the door. It looked to be twice the size of the first.

“Excuse me, sir,” I asked as I approached him while we exited. “Do you know how much that tiger weighs? I don’t think I’ve ever seen a cat that big before.”

“You’re probably right. He’s the biggest one I’ve ever seen, too. He was weighed a few months ago…619 pounds. Did you know that the tiger is the largest cat, followed by the lion and the jaguar third? They’re all capable of being man eaters, but the tiger is the worst, by far.” Jennie and I thanked him and went on our way, eager to see what was next in line down the path.