Geraldo by Abby Moran (best historical fiction books of all time .txt) 📖

table. I could’ve invited my son over with his wife and my grandkids. But instead, I was threatened into taking these ghastly, horrid pictures of a murdered little boy which the purpose was unknown to me. As I’d finished taken the photographs that seemed equally important, I took the boys hands, kissed them once, and placed them on my forehead for several minutes before telling the guard I’d finished my few words to him.

 

The guard walked in formally and slowly. Each step he took could be heard as an individual stomp on the floor.  He had a look which longed to show empathy but still remained as an unshaken face he’d been commanded to do. He had his hat at his side and gave me a slight bow out of respect. “Are you here to claim him as well?” he said rather gruffly. “He hasn’t been claimed and you’re the only person to come in here to see him.” I thought this through for a moment but claiming him would mean that I’d have to actually know him or be related in some way or another. I of course was not.  So I shook my head and started to walk towards the exit but the guard grabbed my shoulder and twirled me to face him yet again. “If you had no means of claiming him, then what for I dare ask was your purpose?” I started to sweat robustly as if I were a sprinkler. “I mean no harm I just wanted to give a blessing to the poor boy. It’s so sad what happened to him and I couldn’t bear with myself not to.”

 “So you don’t know this boy?”

 

“Not in the slightest.”  I mean this wasn’t any sort of lie because I really didn’t.

 

He murmured to himself a few things which I couldn’t quite make out and then his tight grip loosened and he escorted me out of the building. Something told me he probably wasn’t supposed to do that but it didn’t matter because the issue was dealt with and I was done. I could go home and eat my dinner in peace and never have to deal with this situation again. I was relieved and sweaty but I was done. So I started to look around for those two strange men who gave me this very strange task but, they were nowhere to be found at least from what I could see. I looked all around and finally I found them concealed by a large shrub not too far away from the morgue.

 

I gulped and then started to breathe heavily yet again. I started inching closer and closer to the shrub my heart pounding within each step I took.  I finally got to their shrub when a hand grabbed my ankle and pulled me more behind it out of the public’s eye. This was just what my arthritis needed. Sure enough, there sat those two strange men who’d threatened me early all calm and relaxed as they asked for the camera.  My hands shook as I handed them the polaroid and each of them grinned as if this was their Christmas present. They told me I could leave now and without even thinking about the other pictures I took on that camera I raced away. Some things are more important than others, I know this all too well.

Chapter 14 (Back to Jim POV)

 

Chapter 14 (Back to Jim POV)

Well mission accomplished Mike. We got pictures but what are we to do now? I thought to myself as we made our way back to our condo. Mike was silent the entire time as was I. He seemed in deep concentration, not on the road of course though, on the case he put himself in to investigate. What was I thinking? Well……

 

“So when do we eat Mike?”

 

“When we get back to our condo Jim”

I twiddled my fingers for a bit and tried to speak again.

 

“How far are we?”

 

“Twenty minutes.”

 

“Alright then maybe we should talk about something to make the time pass.”

 

“Why don’t you take a look at those photos and tell me what you see? Two birds with one stone.”

 

I didn’t really want to look at Geraldo’s body. Now I just felt guilty that I watched him get murdered. It ate away at my heart and my soul.  It kept me from sleeping at night. But I wasn’t going to refuse my brother in this state. So I pulled out the polaroid and pushed the power button at the top.  I had never seen one like it before. The ones I have had the pictures come shooting out at the bottom but this had so much more. This stored the pictures until you wanted them and then it would come shooting out. I could tell this was an expensive little electronic I was holding.

 

Scrolling through useless partying photos, I finally got to the Geraldo pictures. The first was of his head and neck region.

 

“It looks as if there is a large deep cut in his neck.. probably the cause of death. A slit of the throat.”

 

“Anything else like a sign of struggle?”

 

“No there are absolutely none. No signs of a struggle or huge fight.”

 

“So he either knew them or it was a surprise attack.”

 

I told him I was getting sick so he nodded and the polaroid was turned off. I could tell he was trying to be empathetic but really didn’t care at this point. He just wanted to know what happened to his kid. After a long wave of silence we finally reached our condo. I heaved a sigh of relief as we got out of our car and opened the door.

 

“Mike there is a message on the answering machine!”

I said aloud for he’d already gone up to his room with the pictures.

He came down the stairs, each stomp seeming to be harder and louder than the last. He sat on the last step and nodded for me to hit play on the answering machine. My mouth dropped and Mike’s brow furrowed.

 

Hello Mike and Jim Bunsen. Oh wait I’m sorry, Joseph and Geraldo. Did I get that right? As you can see I know very well who you two are problem is you two don’t know me. It’s quite unfair in my eyes. So I’ve been following you. Don’t know who I am? C’mon Jim think back to that day at the lake. Did you not tell Mike yet? You know Jim, that you were there and all. Surely you would tell your brother you witnessed his kid die. Well you two look great anyhow with the new look. If you want to see how I look however come to the alley between Fourth street and Third street. You can’t miss it, it was the place the news talked about recently. The place where two men were murdered. Oops I’m sorry that’s going to be the new headline when I’m finished with you two. I’ll see you there if you have the balls to show up.

 

There was nothing but silence. I slowly turned to look at Mike who was looking right back at me with a death glare. He was back to the old form. The one before the coma and the one that killed Mae Bunsen.

Chapter 15

 

“Mike…….”

 

“Save it.”

He started to make way for the door, grabbing his jacked from the coatrack. I saw something peeking out from his pocket but didn’t pay too much attention to it whatsoever.  Without thinking, I forcefully grabbed his shoulder and tried to pull him backwards. He spun around though with a knife in his hands and pointed it directly at my throat.

 

“Mike you can’t go there….he’ll kill you.”

 

“I care more that you didn’t tell me you witnessed his murder than that he might kill me. Frankly, if you don’t let me go I will kill you. Understand?”

I could tell this was really no joke at all. He was my brother, but if I stood anymore into his way then he would’ve really killed me. I eased my grip and slowly brought my hand to my side. He put the knife into his pocket and left. He didn’t even ask me to go with him….maybe he didn’t want me around right now.  I thought about it for a little bit longer until I figured I should go after him. Whether or not I killed was not the concern. The concern was if Mike was going to get himself killed.

 

I don’t know what I have turned into but considering Mike had taken the car I needed to find a new source of transportation and rather quickly if I might add. I looked all outside and the answer was right across the street. Our neighbor’s black mustang was the perfect choice; it was fast and right there. So I walked over and just simply bashed my hand at the window until it shattered so I could unlock it and drive off. The owner decided to leave the keys on the seat. The perfection of the whole situation was a little overwhelming. Not only did this guy keep his keys in his car, but had a baseball bat inside. Maybe he was a baseball player but who really cares? All I understood was how to make the car move and that’s exactly what I did.

 

As I drove off, I started to notice little specks coming down from the clouds in the sky.  Nothing huge or anything to worry about but just something you notice. I cleared them off with the windshield wiper and more would appear. Then, they’d come down harder and harder from the sky, making many tapping noises on the windshield and roof.  Harder and harder they fell continuously unto the car as I sped along disregarding any speed limit signs. Then came the dark clouds that held within them bellowing sounds of rage and electricity that stomped on the ground periodically. It was just like in the movies when something bad would happen to the characters and you could tell this by the thunderstorm. Especially in the horror flicks.

 

I quickly looked at ever alley I passed until I came upon the darkest one I could find. Standing in the alleyway, was a man in a jacked. Mike. He was alone so the other man had not showed up quite yet so I sat in the car just waiting for something to happen. I waited a few minutes but pretty soon my sanity was tired and I ran out of the car to him.