Leaves

The Stories Ya'll dragged me in here. Askin' me a bunch of questions. I tell ya if I want to and if'n I want to drag it out Is will! Some of ya's know me most of ya too new, so here I go............... I'm one of those people. Ya know, the one no one wants to admit knowing. No one talks to. No one invites anywhere. Nobody sees, but I see. I'm always here, always around. Mostly I go through the garbage cans at the local Mini Mart and the taverns. I haul in the pop and beer cans. I turn them in for the cash. Between that and my disability check, I do ok for myself. Mom left me the house. There's a little estate that pays the taxes every year. So everythings fine and dandy. I don't need the town and the town doesn't need me. You wants to know about Judy. Sure, I know her. She was one of the few people in this town worth knowin'. At least till she married that Hicks kid, Rath. Rat I always called him. Called him that to his face back in High School. Not someone you could rightly trust. Cheated on a test a few times. Made it look like I cheated, that's when I called him Rat. Got myself punched in the face by him and I was kicked out of the school. Just never went back' I didn't need it. Knew I wasn't going anywhere no how. Judy, Yeah, kinda funny her marrin' him. I mean, if you knew her and knew Rath. Rath went through his parent's money like it was his. Well, you all knew about that. But did ya know about the money owed in Amboy? At the card rooms? Heheh. Didnt did cha? Ha! You guys checked up White Salmon Way, but not the other way. Did ya know about the lady friend in Amboy? See, sometimes it pays to be invisible. How'd I know all this? Like I said Judy was the only person in town worth knowin'. We'd talk sometimes. Oh, never when there's anyone around. I wouldn' want anyone in town looking at her the way they look at me. But we'd talk here and there. You can think what you want. I didn't kill him. You aint found a body? so for all you know he's just run off, right? Thank you for the coffee, Carol It'll go right just bout now. Boy! You sure make it hot! What did Judy and I have to talk about? Legend and things. Mom being who she was, taught me about stuff like that. You never heard about my mom? Yeah, that might be before you moved here. You've only been here nine years or so. Mom is what you would call in the old days a witch. Don't look at me like that. You got your Taro card readers and psychics over in Portland. She could do that. And she'd get it right on. She predicted a lot of stuff here in town. Sometimes she didn't even need the cards. Roy, you remember better than me. I was about eight or so. Look I know it seems like the LONG WAY ROUND, but you all dragged me in here and I'll tell it my way. Roy remembers the Gilmore kid. Two or three years old, snatched right out of his yard. Mom wasn't even called for she just went right out there while everyone was boohooin . She picked up the kid's toy and told you and Hank what color and make the car was. What road it was on even the guy's first name. You got him, didn't you? Before he even got to the next town. Everybody loved her then remember? Roy Surly you do. She told a lot of town people what they wanted to know, an few what they didn't. Then the "Mrs Hicks" showed up and had to hear bout her precious Rath. Mom told her don't leave no money to your son, told her he'll has it gone in four years Seems like it was all gone sooner than that.. His momma didn't like that none. Bad-mouthed mom all over town and country. People stopped coming around about then remember? Nah, you probably don't do ya? When you don't live something it is kind of hard to remember things as they happen. And Roy? You were right though it doesn't matter none now. What do you mean right about what? Rath. He killed his parents. Mom about had her self a heart attack. She was out in her garden, pullin' weeds and she fell over. I ran out to her. Got her to set up. She just kept sayin' he did it and warned her he did it She kind of passed out. I called 911 they sent out the ambulance. But by the time it got here, she was OK. She never would talk about how he did it, but he did it and you know he did. Judy always wanted to write. Did a lot of short stories all through school. She sent a lot off but never got published. She wrote some of them romance stories. Now, them she got printed in one of them women's magazines. It was always enough to keep her hopin' and wantin' more. She worked over in Cascade Locks as a waitress. I guess when Rath started lookin' her way. She knew all about him. Him and his buddies. She just thought she saw something that wasn't there. Thought she'd change him. She was a dreamer. She saw good in everybody or tried too. She married him. She put on blinders and bricked up her ears. You couldn't tell her anything bad about her man. It took a while, but she slowly opened up about Rath. You know that undeveloped land, up Kauffler road, attached to the state park? I liked to go there. You don't see many people there. And the few that do, don't bug you. She started going there about once or twice a month. She liked to write there when she went there. She'd be there for hours. That's when she showed me her writing. It was good but I could see where most people wouldn't like it most of it was kind dry history-type stuff. I asked her what Rath thought about her writing. She looked like she wasn't going to answer. Well, she says 'You know Rath, he doesn't really like to read.; I think that when I realized she knew she made a mistake marrying him. She told me before when I asked about him that everything was fine, fine and dandy. But not this time, no sir. You askin me if I made a pass at her. I wouldn't have made a pass at her any more than I would have to your momma. Give me a break! She was someone who had made a mistake marrying that man and just needed a friend to talk to. No, I never talked her about leaving him. Let's get back to what we were talking about. I asked her why didn't she write stories about local legends and things. She seemed surprised that there were local legends. Stuff that only happens here. I guess normal people don't believe in our stories. My mom did. She believed in them and passed the stories down to me. You know the stories, Ray, and don't none the rest of you roll your eyes and think I'm a loony. There's no law that says I'm crazy because I believe. So I told her about why I went to the park. You see I didn't go to that park to just be alone I went there to watch them. You know the leaves. Judy didnt believe in the beginning either. Roy you just stop right there you grew up here so you know better! your mom and dad always told you like my mom told me. To be careful in the woods and not to disrespect the woods. And it ain't because of no elves or trolls or gnomes or Bigfoot. There ain't none of those, never has. People who tell about seeing them are either crazy about seeing things, or High, Stone, Shoomin'. What they see if their seeing, is the leaves. You know what they're seeing. Judy didn't believe at first either. She must have come back to that patch of trees ten times or more. But for all the times she went there, it wasn't at the patch she saw them, really saw them. She told me she was driving down Hy 14. It was dark. She'd had another argument with Rath. He was down in Camas, at a bar. She had to work the next day and he didn't think it was time to come home. Well, that night Judy had had enough. She got in her car and started home. Maybe the fact she wasn't thinking about the leaves or anything about them. She was thinking about Rath and how he'd been since they got married. She told me that she felt he married her because she had a job. Granted working as a waitress didn't pay much but enough that he didn't have to work. She was starting to really resent it He wanted her to party, party, party. Keep house, s*x him up 'and' work her job. She finally told him that he'd have to get a job, or at least help out at home. He reminded her it was his home and a woman's job to 'take care of her man'. Anyway, She's driving home. It's dark, her mind is elsewhere. She notices how many trees seem to have lost a lot of leaves because the leaves are all along the roadway. At first, she thought that the wind from the car was making them move along the road. At this point, she laughed, remember she had such a pretty laugh. She watches the leaves along the road and comes up on Tucker Road. She turned down that road so she could drive with her brights on and not have to worry about anyone coming toward her. The leaves danced, That's the word she used OK? Danced. She stopped the car and watched. They fly up to the sky and come back down. And never alone always in groups. Like one piece, all together but individually. You can see separate pieces but they are all one. It was like they were calling her. She slowly opened the door and got out of the car. They were touching her. gently, timidly, mind and her soul. They soon had her dancing with them. Twirling and swirling around her body. She laughed her lovely laugh. She felt wonderful. She went back to her car got in and went home she knew it was all going to be good, soon. Rath, I guess, decided it was time to let the little woman know who was in charge. I think by now you have found out he had an insurance policy on Judy right?. Quite high-end insurance. Not something Judy would have bought for just herself. Something that a husband who is thinking of murder would.. Rath got by with murder once and he thought he could do it again and hide the body in the same place as his parents. Rath was flying down Hy 14 speed limit is 50, and 55 most of the way but Rath was doing 70 and 80. He was always lucky when it came to the police on this road. He never seems to ever get caught. Not far from Tucker Road, almost where Judy first noticed the leaves dancing. He thought he saw Judy standing along the road. And Rath well, when he saw her, he saw red. How dare she tell him it's time to go home when she's out here playing in the woods. He parked the car and followed her through the woods. He yelled for Judy. The moon was full so he could see her dancing away from him, looking back at him smiling. By now his rage knew no bounds.. He screamed at her. He was going to kill her. Tonight he was ending it! But as he is following her further out and while there are leaves all over the ground, it's getting harder to see Judy. She really isn't getting away from him, she always seems to be the same distance from him. But it seems darker and darker. He ran faster and faster but she seemed just out of reach. He lounges for her and she skips away. He roars her name. By now the years of drinking and smoking have killed his lungs. He stops to catch his breath. She couldn't go around him without him seeing her so he wasn't worried about her getting away. She must have stopped too because he couldn't hear her moving. He looked around for something to use to hit her with. There are branches all over the ground, but when he reaches for them the leaves cover them. He moves the leaves away but they keep covering the branches. He's looking at the ground and watching the leaves move. There's no wind. The leaves are moving up his legs. Actually crawling up his legs. Now his running again only this time for his life. In his drunken panic, he's forgotten the cliff into the Columbia River Gorge. So if you really want to still look for Rath I suggest you get a diving team. I am sure the currents have carried the body downriver. Now wasn't that a better story than he said, she said. Though my throat is quite dry now and I really could use a drink of water. Certainly, I'll excuse you, I know you will need to talk about what to do next, so just leave a little draft of air I really hate closed doors. "This Roy Arron up here in Skamania County, I going to need the State police up here. Carol will you stop screaming!!. I'm talking the state police I can't hear them over you, Hank! get her calmed down. I know there are leaves all over the floor, Can you guys get up here now? Carol!! godamn it. I can't do anything about the leaves. Yeah, my suspect escaped and I need you guys. Carol! I tell you the leaves aint dancing!!!"