Chapter 3

Archie had spoken to Carrie twice since he'd gone to the police station. The first time was when he asked her if Shelly had any tattoos or marks on her body to identify her. While he could make out her face, too much damage had been done to it for a one-hundred percent identification. The turtle tattoo on her left hip, as well as ‘Douglas' written around her ankle, was the perfect help he needed to claim her body and have her sent to the funeral home after the police were finished. After he collected her things, a necklace as well as her birthstone ring, the other things were left behind for the criminal case against Douglas. In addition to the clothing, she had a gun on her that they were hoping had been used in other crimes around town. It had gone to be tested just after he did his part in claiming her body for burial.

"How long have you known that Douglas was with her sharing an apartment, Archie? I mean, I have to have something for my records on it." He told the officer the truth, or at least a part of the truth, saying that Shelly had spoken to Carrie at some point. "That'll be easy enough to find out. I don't think any of us thought that he had a full-time girlfriend. I didn't think that anyone was stupid enough to be that monster's girl. But then, when she ended up at the hospital, I think the doctors said that she'd been in there quite often before that day, in fact, several times a month. I wonder all the time why women stay with men like that. I know, too, that there are women out there that beat on me. I just don't understand it."

"I don't either. Not at all. But then, I grew up with my mom beating on my dad a great deal. He never hit us. I genuinely think that he saved our lives when we were children by taking her on. Then her father started in on us. I've only recently found out that he tried to have Mother abort us by means of throwing her down the stairs a few times, and she was all for it. He did kill Dad, he told us, because he'd had sex with her. It's small wonder that any of us grew up to be halfway normal kids." Scotty laughed and said he was sorry. It didn't bother him as much as it used to, people knowing their business. As Sunny was so fond of saying, they had made them into the great men that they were now. At least, he hoped so.

"We'll go and pick him up tomorrow, but keep an eye on him until then. He'll be starving by then without her picking—you know, I wondered all the time how someone as tiny as she was could put away as much food as she would have delivered nightly. Now, I guess we all know what she'd been doing. Sharing everything with him, including her income too. Even though she's dead, they'll try her the same as if she weren't. Poor girl. She was surely beaten to crap by him." After he left there, he set one of the faeries that had been following him around to keep an eye on Douglas. Archie didn't want anyone hurt, and if they were waiting until tomorrow to arrest him, he might be desperate enough to hurt them more when they showed up.

Archie made his way to the building, where Nash said that he was with Carrie. He was both nervous and excited to be living with her as his mate. However, he was just as terrified. It wasn't as if he hadn't had sex before. It was just that he'd never had it with a mate before. Archie wanted it to be as romantic as he could make it. He spotted the florist just as he was coming out of the post office after having his address changed.

Archie had always loved rooted plants more than cut flowers. Mostly the green type, but he also loved the fragrance that flowers gave off. His favorite smell was gardenias. The tart smell they gave off reminded him of his dad and the way he would take care of those very plants outside their home. It surprised him, too, that people thought that they only came in red when they had a variety of colors. Mom was never keen on there being flowers around the house. So, as soon as he was declared dead, Mother had all the flowers destroyed by the lawn mower that were surrounding their home. Next spring, he was going to have the entire house encircled with flowers and plants year-round in honor of his dad. He thought that once he told his brothers what he was doing, they'd more than likely do it as well. Archie was also thinking of putting in a few trees, fruit ones as well as flowering ones in the back yard as well.

After getting a beautiful bouquet of flowers for Carrie, he detoured to the next house they were seeing and sat down on the floor to wait for her and Nash. He was thinking about the house that they were living in when a child wandered into the building and seemed to be making himself at home. It wasn't until he pulled a puppy out of his jacket that he thought that he knew what was going on. And who the boy was.

"Mikey? Is that you?" He looked so terrified that Archie put up both hands so that he'd see he was his friend. "It's all right. It's me, Archie Sheppard. What do you have there?"

"A dog. Mom won't let me have one at home on account of them eating everything in sight. But I thought that I could save him bits of my lunch and stuff to bring him. He's a pretty dog, and I thought that I could teach him to warn us about my daddy coming around." Mikey slapped his hand over his mouth and stared at him wide-eyed for a moment. "I was only kidding, Mr. Sheppard. I really do…I mean, my daddy don't hurt us much. I was just joking around."

"Sure you were, kid. I understand more than anyone how parents can be mean to us. It's all right. I won't tell a soul what you said to me." He scratched the dog behind the ears and was rewarded with a lick to his hands. The dog was so wiggly that he was sure that Mikey was going to drop the little pup. But he held him tightly like he was used to having the dog be happy like that. "Where is your daddy now? Jail again?"

"No, he's out. I'm going to tell you right, Mister. He's making things hard for my mom and sister. I can sneak out before he gets too drunk sometimes but I can run on account of me putting me a pair of shoes I can grab and go." Mikey, about ten years old, looked up at him. He had a shiner that looked fresh. He asked him about it. "You're the only one that knows about my daddy, I think. Nobody does anything about him, so I'm thinking they don't see it or hear him when he's home. Last night he beat up my momma and sister so bad that Sissy had to go get some stitches. Momma told me to stay away until he left. I don't mind doing that for me, but I worry about them. He sure does hate my sister for her being a girl and all. It's not her fault she was born that way. I think that he's mean for blaming something like that on her. Don't you?"

"I don't understand that at all either. However, I know what you're saying about leaving your family to fend for themselves. You don't want to be hurt anymore, and you hate that you have to leave your family in order for you not to be. I'm sorry he's like that. I think he and my mother could have used a few lessons on hitting people that are smaller than themselves." Mikey agreed. "All right, buddy. How about I keep your pup at my house. He doesn't seem to have much trouble with what I am."

"On account of me being a bear, too. I thought he'd run when he smelled me, but he didn't do nothing but come right to me. Maybe his smeller is broken." Mikey grinned at him, knowing that he'd said it wrong. "I like you, Mr. Sheppard. You're all right. Momma said that you guys are better off without your momma. She told me that if there was a family that needed a break more than you guys did, she didn't want to meet them. I don't know what she meant by that but I think she meant it in a good way."

"Thank you. And I'm sure that she did." He held onto the pup and tried to look it over at the same time. It was the wiggliest dog he'd ever been around. Once he touched the little guy's left back paw, he whimpered but didn't bite him. "I think we should run him by the vet. Just to make sure that he's healthy. I'd really hate to take him home and find out that he was sick. My new wife would murder me."

He told Nash and Carrie where he was headed, and Carrie decided to come along. She said that if a puppy was going to be living with them, then she should get to know it. However, as soon as she got to the office, her smile dropped, and he had a feeling that there was someone else there that only she could see.

It bothered him a little that he couldn't help her when someone showed up. But then, he didn't know what he'd do if a dead man was around either. Smiling to himself, he decided that he could be as helpful as she needed by being there for her. Sometimes, he thought, it was easier just to be ready for something that happens rather than create trouble because you've been left out, like Mikey, that made better sense in his head.

"He's got an infected toenail that can be easily fixed. You said that you found this little guy?" Mikey told Brandon that he'd found him while walking back from the barn. "If I were you, I'd check out the barn more. I'm thinking that there might be a couple more dogs out there, too. I've heard tell that Mrs. Adaline's pregnant dog has gone missing. I don't know if anything happened to her cherished pet, but it's not like it to not come home. If you find her, let me know, and I'll make sure that she's all right. Even if she's not, someone needs to take care of the pups. I might have to keep him here for a couple of days. You can come by and visit him anytime you want. I'd welcome the company."

"I'll head out there now. I should mention that he wasn't fearful of either of us. Mikey is a bear, and I'm a jag, but he didn't run off when he smelled us." Brandon said the dog had a slight cold, too, and that was why, perhaps. "If we continue to take care of the little thing, will he stay with us even after the cold is gone?"

"I see no reason that would make it so that he'd not want to be in a nice house with people around. Just be nice to him and the others if you bring them home and they'll stick around. However, let me know if you decide not to keep them all. Being kind to animals is all they need to be your best friend. Not to mention a couple of good snacks, too." Brandon looked at Mikey, and he looked so serious. "It's a big responsibility for someone to take care of a puppy for you, Mikey. That'll mean that you are smart enough to know that you can't keep the little guy from being hurt by your father. If he does hurt any of them, you bring them here, and I'll call the police. Cruelty to animals isn't going to be something that I'll tolerate. Understand? And the invitation still stands about you coming to visit them all the time."

"Yes, sir. I will do that." He petted the puppy, and Archie noticed that he was more than a little upset. "Dad tried to kill him off yesterday by giving him rat poison. I knew he was going to try something, but I was able to save him. I might not be able to the next time. I'm glad that Mr. and Mrs. Sheppard are going to be able to keep him safe for me." He looked at him. "I'll work too, Mr. Sheppard so you don't have to be out a bunch of money for food. Momma said that dogs are expensive, so I'll make sure I work for him."

Archie started to tell him that he could afford the dog, but it was Carrie who spoke to the little guy. Telling him that he had to come by when he'd not get into trouble but to always come by and get some food for himself and his momma.

"I don't want to have you getting sick while paying for his food, young man. So you come by the house when it's safe for you to do so, and we'll fill you up. Then you can take some things home to your momma and sister too so they don't get sick. All right?" Archie thought Mikey had a loose screw in his neck for as hard as he was nodding. "Also, if your daddy hurts you again, you come to me. I'll take care that he understands that you work for us."

Mikey looked up at him. "If I was my daddy, I'd be more afraid of Ms. Carrie than I would be of you, Mr. Archie. She seems all nice and everything, but I know she can whop him hard enough that he'd remember his manners around her. Then, you'd take over when she was finished up with him. If'n there is anything left of him."

Even after Mikey left, he still laughed about what he'd said. Yes, Carrie was very protective of the little boy but so was he. Again, he didn't understand why people would knock around their children. It wasn't fair, nor was it very nice.

~*~

Carrie asked to use the bathroom and went there to talk to the ghost that was hanging around the vet. She was an elderly woman, she'd bet in her mid to late eighties, and there didn't seem to be any trauma surrounding her. But she did realize that maybe poison wouldn't leave any kind of markings, so she waited to be told what she wanted and how she could help.

"That's my great-grandson out there. Brandon Lipscomb. He's a bad man." Carrie asked her what she meant and then sat down on the closed commode. "I've been trying to make it hard for him to be alone with little kids, but he's a nasty man and gets away with it by telling them that he'll let their pets die if they don't let him do what he wants with them."

"You have to tell me what it is that he does. I'm sorry, Ms. Lipscomb but I need more than him just being a bad man. I think that Mikey's dad is bad, but he beats the little boy and—"

"He makes them touch him in his private parts. His dick, I guess you young people would call it. Sometimes, he'll offer them a drink of soda or something that has medicine in it. They fall asleep, and he strips them down to take pictures of them while they're naked." That was more than Carrie had thought. On the outside, he looked like a nice guy. "He's a bad man who got those ideas from his daddy when he was the vet here. No one ever thinks that…you have to stop him. He's going to hurt that little boy out there on account'a him getting away from him a lot. I don't think that young Mikey knows what he's about either."

"No, I don't think that he does. Or he wouldn't have wanted to come here no matter what. Do you know of any other kids that he's done this to?" Instead of answering her, she pointed to the ceiling. It was a tile-like ceiling, and she was told which one to pull down. "I'm going to have to get the police to do that. He could say that I did it if I just suddenly know about it. What's up there? Or do I want to know?"

"Pictures." That's all she needed to hear before she told Ms. Lipscomb that she'd take care of him. "I'm gonna wait and make sure you don't fob me off, young lady. You're new at this, and I know that. But this is as serious as the heart attack that killed me."

Reaching out to all the brothers and Archie, she told them what she'd found out. Sunny was at the police station, finding out what kind of permits she'd need to have a big hometown picnic before the weather got too bad. She said she'd take care to make sure that the station knew about it.

"Carrie, you're going to have to come clean about what you can see and hear. They're going to get suspicious about all the information that you have just out of the blue. I think you should just talk to one officer, I'd recommend you talk to Larry Knocks. He's a good guy with an open mind." She said that she'd have to talk to Archie first. "That's a splendid idea. Yes, talk to him. In the meantime, I'm going to talk to Larry and see what he can do about it."

When she left the bathroom, she noticed that Brandon was talking to Mikey about how he'd have to come by once a day to do chores so that he'd be able to pay off his debt for taking care of the pup. She was so happy when Archie said he'd pay the bill. If she'd not been looking right at Brandon when the flash of anger was on his face, she would have missed it. She had a feeling that Archie had seen it as well.

"How much does the bill come to?" Brandon said that he thought that since it was Mikey's pup, he should be made to take care of the bills. "No. He's saved the little guy and I think that is payment enough. Just tell me how much it is, and I'll pay it now."

Brandon tried several times to make it so that Mikey had to work it off, but in the end, Archie put a hundred dollars on the table, and he and the little boy left the office. She hung out, waiting for the police to show up. Carrie was glad that Mikey wouldn't see whatever was in the paneling in the bathroom.

When the police showed up, they slapped a warrant into Brandon's chest and started tearing the office apart. She didn't know what they were about but when they started to poke at the panels in the office they were in, she watched as tapes fell from the ceiling and onto the floor. Brandon was put into cuffs when he tried to say that they weren't his. It surprised her so much that the man didn't figure out that he was going to prison. He kept saying that he'd not known there was anything up there, and then the police started to take down all the ceiling panels one by one, documenting what they found by recording it with one of the officers holding a camera on all the things that were being put into evidence bags. Christ, she thought, it was going to take forever to sort through all the things that they were finding. There had to be several hundred tapes and other items, and they'd not even gotten to the bathroom yet. Ms. Lipscomb asked to speak to her, and she made her way outside, and the woman followed her.

"You've made it so that I can move on now. I can't thank you enough for doing this. I'm thrilled that he's going to be in prison. If he makes it that far. I'm thinking that once he's put into jail he'll be joining me in the afterlife. I want that to happen, too. The bastard deserves whatever he gets." She agreed with her and smiled. "You're a beautiful young lady. Inside and out. I know that you'll do good things for us. I'm going to make sure I tell everyone that I know—perhaps I won't tell everyone. I'll just tell the ones that need your help that are hurting because of something that happened to them."

"Thank you for that. I do hope that you have a good afterlife from now on. You should be proud of what you've done for a lot of children. It's going to come out, and there will be no place that he's not safe from. I hope he gets everything that he deserves." She said that she knew that he would. "Don't do anything that will get you into trouble. I would hate to have to send you away."

"Oh, I won't have to. I know of a few of the children that he hurt on my side. They're just waiting for him to get to them so that they can make sure that—it's in the rules. They can harm him if he did them in real life. I made sure before I let them know that I was working with someone on the other side." Carrie told her that she had just learned all the rules. "Yes, I would imagine that you'd have to have them all memorized. Good for you. And I can't thank you enough for what you've done for us. I'm going to go on now."

She simply faded away. It was a wonderful way to watch someone pass into the next part of their journey. Feeling good about helping someone, she made her way home to get ready for Archie. He'd told her that he was with the police and that he'd be home at dinner. Thinking about that, she decided that she'd figure out what his favorite meal was and have it made for them. Carrie knew that she couldn't cook what he wanted, so she did what she could to make him feel loved. Because she did love the man very much.

"His favorite meal is pork chops simmered in gravy with mashed potatoes. Bread too. For sopping up the leftovers. Candied carrots as well." Carrie asked Beau if it was his brother's or his favorite meal. " His. Mine is spaghetti and meatballs. Lots of meatballs. Garlic bread, too. Yum. Now I want that. But he had the chops once at a diner that we found when we'd gone to Columbus once. Every time we go there, he gets the same thing. Also, cherry pie warmed up with ice cream."

"That sounds really good, too." Beau asked her if she was cooking that. If so, he was coming over for dessert. "No, thank you. I'm going to be his cherry pie with ice cream."

She thought that she might have said too much but when he laughed, telling her how much he loved her, Carrie smiled. It was nice having brothers around all the time, and she thought that she could get used to teasing them, too. She thought that they had turned out well, considering what they'd had to grow up with. Carrie was glad that their mother wasn't going to be causing any more trouble and that the grandfather was gone as well.

Realizing that it was later than she'd thought, Carrie made sure that things were ready for dinner before going to their room to make sure that it was all ready for a night of debauchery and fun. Everything was just how she wanted it, including the fruit that she had brought to the room and the bottle of champagne. Smiling to herself about what she was going to do to him, Carrie made her way downstairs and was just heading for the kitchen again when Archie came home.

He looked beat. Hugging him and telling him that dinner was ready, he looked too exhausted to make his way to the food. Telling him what they were having perked him up a bit but when he sat down, Carrie knew that he was going to be falling asleep in his food if she didn't do something.

She had no idea how to be sexy and especially didn't want to make a fool of herself in front of him. Putting her feet into his lap, she wiggled her toes over his hardening cock until he looked at her. Smiling, she asked him if he was all right.

"You keep that up, and the food will be wasted. I'm exhausted but not that tired." She thought about what she'd said to Beau about being his dessert.

"If you clean your plate, I'll spread fruit all over my body for you to nibble on then do the same for you. I already have the next part of dinner all ready for you." He asked her what she meant. "I have cherries that I'm going to put on my nipples. Some pretty strawberries on my pussy, then I'm going to—what are you doing now?"

"I'm taking you to bed. I'm suddenly starved for you and not food." He dragged her across the dining room and to the stairs. When she nearly tripped, he put his shoulder into her stomach and carried her up the stairs on his shoulder. Once they were in their room, he locked the door and turned to her. Christ, she didn't think that he could get any more sexy than he was right then. And she loved him with all her heart. "You've no idea how long I've been thinking about you naked. Daily. No, hourly. I've wanted to take you to any hard surface and take you until we're both sated that I can't think beyond that most of the time."

"I love you so much, Archie. Please, make me yours." He kissed her, and Carrie could taste him deliciously when he swept his tongue along her lips and then into her mouth. It was the most wonderful thing, having a man that you loved to make love to your entire self.