Chapter28 Jean-Louise Wadell

As he pulls in their driveway, Anna…who's playing on the front porch…calls to her parents, "Mommy! Daddy! Sheriff Faulkner's here!" Anna runs over to the car and, as the sheriff gets out, beats him to the greeting. "Howdy, Sheriff Faulkner. Good day to you." She giggles. Tipping his hat to Anna, "And, a howdy and good day to you, too; Ms. Annabeth. Now, that's a mighty pretty little doll you've got there." "My mommy got her for me the other day." "That's mighty nice of your mommy to get you such a pretty doll. Does she have a name?" "Yes." "And, what would that be; Ms. Annabeth? Wait…don't tell me; let me guess…Ms. Annabeth Jr.!" She laughs, "No, silly!" The sheriff takes his hat off and scratches his head; acting as if he's confused. "Well shoot; then, I don't know…what is it?" Anna looks at him and smiles. "Her name's Jean-Louise Wadell." The sheriff turns pale; as a stone-cold expression sets on his face. Beth and Martin get there as this transformation takes place. "Hi, Lloy…" Beth realizes something's terribly wrong with the sheriff. "My God, Lloyd, what's the matter; what happened?" Sheriff Faulkner doesn't acknowledge Beth and Martin's presence. He kneels down in front of Anna and asks, "Annabeth, tell me; how did you come up with that name?" Anna's frightened by the sheriff's appearance. "I…I don't know. It's just the name I gave her." The sheriff looks to the ground, shaking his head; then, looks back at Anna and asks her, "Are you sure you gave her that name…or, did someone else come up with it for you?" Anna doesn't say anything. "Damn it, Annabeth; who told you to call her that?" Anna jumps and starts crying. Beth kneels down and hugs her while scolding the sheriff, "Don't you dare yell at my daughter like that! Sheriff or not, you yell at her again like that, so help me Lloyd, I'll smack that damn Texas accent right out of you!" Beth's admonishing snaps Sheriff Faulkner back from his spell. "Beth, I do apologize. Ms. Annabeth, please forgive me for my uncalled behavior; I don't know what came over me. I truly am sorry for yelling at you like that; it won't happen again. Texas scout's honor." He extends his hand out to shake Anna's hand. She accepts his gesture and gives him a smile back to seal the deal. He tips his hat to seal his end of the bargain. "Why don't you go inside now, Sweetie?" Beth gives Anna a kiss on her head. "Okay, Mommy. Goodbye, Sheriff Faulkner. See ya!" He tips his hat as she runs off. Anna stops on the porch, turns and calls… "Sheriff Faulkner." "Yes, Ms. Annabeth?" "My doll's name…Jean-Louise Wadell…it was Mary who came up with it. I thought it was a beautiful name; so, I decided to use it. Sorry if you don't like it." "That's okay, Ms. Annabeth. You call your doll whatever you want." "Thanks. Bye again." Anna goes inside while Beth, Martin and the sheriff remain out front. There's an uncomfortable silence among them as Sheriff Faulkner slowly turns to Beth and tips his hat. "Beth." "Lloyd, what the hell was that all about? Have you gone fool; how can you yell at Anna like that? So help me, Lloyd, one more time and…" "Now, hold on there, Beth; I apologized. I didn't mean to yell like that; I truly am sorry. That name just threw me for a loop; that's all." "I don't get it, Lloyd;" Beth asks, "what is it about that name?" The sheriff explains, "That name that Mary gave Anna for her doll…Jean-Louise Wadell…was the name of that eight-year-old girl who was killed down in Galveston; the one I was telling you about, where we brought in Madame Chybovsky." "How could she have known that?" Martin asks. "I'll be damned if I know. Oh, by the way, while we're sort of on the subject; I spoke with Madame Chybovsky, and, she's agreed to come out here." Beth lets out a sigh of relief. "Thank God. When, Lloyd?" "Next Tuesday." "She couldn't make it any sooner?" "Sorry, Beth. That's the earliest she could make it. It's only five days." "I know; I just want this thing to be over." Martin interjects, "Beth, Hon, you do realize that just because Madame Chybovsky agreed to come out here doesn't necessarily mean that this whole thing will be over with?" "I know that; but, she may be able to make some sense out of all this." "And maybe not, Beth." The sheriff tells her, "There are no guarantees that Madame Chybovsky will even be able to make contact with them; let alone get answers." "Why shouldn't she be able to contact them, Lloyd? Anna and I don't have any psychic abilities; but, we can talk with them." Martin cuts in, "But, they chose you and Anna to talk to. I still haven't had any contact with them…knock on wood. And, Anna's only spoken with Mary; she still hasn't met Chelsea or Tommy." "Martin's right, Beth;" the sheriff agrees, "whatever reason you and Anna are able to speak with them probably has nothing to do with psychic ability. They're probably just reaching out to the both of you." "You boys sure know how to rain on a gal's parade. Thanks a lot guys." "Now, we're not saying she won't be able to help, Beth;" the sheriff tries to console her, "Martin and I are just trying to keep you from getting your hopes up too high, in case you don't get the results you're expecting…that's all. Ain't that right, Martin?" "Yeah, Hon; I don't want to see you get too disappointed if it doesn't work out." "Whatever, Martin." Beth asks Sheriff Faulkner, "So, is that why you came all the way out here, Lloyd; to let us know about Madame Chybovsky? You know, a phone call would have worked just as well." "I know." The sheriff looks to the ground. "That's not exactly the reason I've come out here." "So; what then?" Martin asks while wrapping his arms over Beth's shoulders. "Look; why don't we go around back, and I'll tell yawl why I'm here." The sheriff starts walking around the house; while Martin and Beth look at each other with puzzled-looks on their faces. Once around the corner, the sheriff stops in his tracks and looks at it in amazement. "What in the tar nations? The barn! How? When?" Beth calls out, "Sorry, Lloyd; I forgot to tell you that the barn's back up." "Well, I can see that. How?" "Don't know." Martin adds, "But, it does have nails in it now." "Lloyd, not to change the subject," Beth's anxious to find out, "but, you were going to tell us why you came out here." "Right." The sheriff takes another look at the barn and shakes his head before turning to Beth and Martin. "Beth, I've been thinking you may be onto something…about Delilah having a twin sister." "Oh God, Lloyd, Delilah; is she dead?" "I'm not sure, Beth." The sheriff explains, "I went to the diner this morning to talk with Delilah…or Delores…whoever it is…and, some things she told me just didn't make any sense." "Like what, Lloyd?" Martin asks. "Well for starters, she changes her story from going out to help her sister with an abusive boyfriend to saying that she really went out there because her sister killed herself." Beth's stunned. "What? No way, Lloyd!" "I didn't buy it either. Then, she went on building up some cock-and-bull story of why she made up the abusive boyfriend story; because, she was too embarrassed to tell everyone her sister committed suicide. She said that her sister was in therapy for years, and heavily medicated on anti-depressants and anti-hallucinates." Martin cuts in, "Sounds more like one of those TV after-school specials." "Yup; and here's the kicker. When I was leaving the diner, I happened to notice a medicine bottle on the counter. When I asked Gus about it, he said he thought it was Delilah's." "Wasn't there a name on the label?" Beth asks. "It was scratched out; but, I was able to make out what the prescription was." "What?" "Prozac." "An anti-depressant!" Beth concludes, "Then, she's Delores! And, Delilah's dead! Jesus, Lloyd, did you go check out the old Johnston farm for her body?" "That brings us to the next thing I have to tell you; and, it's not going to be easy for me to tell you it either." "Why am I starting to get a bad feeling about this?" Martin takes Beth back in his arms. "I couldn't find any Johnston farm on any of the maps I got from the county's surveyor's office, so I started asking some of the deputies if they knew where it was; but, they all claimed they never heard of it. Then…and, I know you're not going to be happy with this Beth…I asked Hopkins if he…" "Lloyd! I told you Mary said he was there that night!" "Now, wait a minute, Beth; did Mary specifically tell you it was Mike? You just said that she saw a deputy there; and, you were pretty sure it was him. But, you weren't positive; you said you thought, right?" "Yeah; but, who else could it have been?" "That I don't know…for now. But, I do know it wasn't Mike." "How can you be so sure, Lloyd?" "Because Mike was the only one who told me where the old Johnston farm was located. Now, why would he tell me where it was if he buried a body there?" "Are you sure he told you the truth?" "Yes I do, Beth." The sheriff takes off his hat and rubs the back of his head and neck. "Hopkins can be a real pain in the ass, and have a real nasty attitude at times…and, he's pissed at the world because I was picked to be sheriff instead of him…but, I don't think he'd lie about something like this." "Okay, Lloyd…fine…if you believe that he gave you the right location; then, we'll trust your judgment." Finally, Beth asks the question that he's been stalling to answer. "So; where's the old Johnston farm?" Sheriff Faulkner rubs his head again while looking around their property. "Beth…I'm at the old Johnston farm…we all are." "What are you talking about, Lloyd?" "According to Mike, your house was built on the old Johnston farm; at least part of the farm. The rest use to be where those woods are." Martin exclaims, "Jesus Christ! Then, Mary was telling the truth about seeing Delilah being buried at the old Johnston farm; because this is it!" Martin looks at Beth standing there showing no emotion on her face whatsoever; thinking she may be in shock. "Beth, Hon, are you alright? Can you hear me?" Beth stands there for a moment before saying, in a low voice, "Those bastards. Those, fucking bastards." She goes back into the house; leaving Martin and the sheriff out back looking at each other. "So, Lloyd;" Martin wonders, "Mary said she saw a deputy bring the body. Any idea which one it was?" "Martin, at this point, I ain't got a clue as to who it could be. For all I know, they're all in on it; all of them except Hopkins that is." "You really don't think he had anything at all to do with it, Lloyd?" "Not at all, Martin." "Why's that?" "Because, quite frankly, Mike hates the town's officials so much that he wouldn't get mixed up in anything they do; or, even take the time out of the day to associate with those assholes." Martin and Sheriff Faulkner watch as Beth approaches carrying shovels and flashlights. When she gets there, she passes them out. "Come on, let's go." Beth heads into the woods. "Beth, Hon; where exactly are we going?" "Where do you think we're going, Martin? We're going to find Delilah's body; it's the least we could do for her. Now, come on."