Detective Mike

Chapter 12

"Hon, have you got the negatives of that one terrific shot of us on the cruise ship? Do you remember the one?"

"You want a framed enlargement for the girl's room?"

He laughs, "How did you know?"

"I see what you are thinking, lover."

Mike feels the side and back of his head. "Is there a hole or a window in there?" He ducks her swat and slips a hand up under her robe to quickly feel her bottom.

She pushes back against his hand and says, "I'll give you two hours to get your hand out of there!" Mike does a little feeling around and she squeals, "Mike!" as she runs away from him to the sink. He dives after her and she whirls with the dish sprayer hose in hand and lets him have it. She laughs triumphantly as he ducks away, "That'll teach ya!"

He peeks at her around the doorframe and calls, "Now you be careful with that or you'll get Emma wet!"

"She's laughing here and cheering me on. I bet if she could talk she'd be hollering 'soak him'!"

Mike just laughs and says 'could be' as he turns to leave, "I'm going up and get dressed. Most of the stuff we want to pack is groceries and bedding, I guess. We don't need clothes anyway." He stops, "Did you fuel up the station wagon?"

"I sure did! It's a good thing I didn't wait for you to do it, you'd be heading out on fumes. I can just see you with the kids pushing the trailer to get you to a gas station."

He ducks his head back around at her to stick his tongue out and she gets him with the water again. He dashes at her and tries to wrestle the water hose from her getting soaked. She squeals, "Mike! Michael, you stay back now. Mike!" He captures her hand and redirects the water down inside the front of her robe. She shrieks, "Michael, that's cold! Stop! Oh Mike, stop!"

He lets her hand go and the hose flashes back into it's recoiled position on the back of the sink. She scolds, "If the kids did that you would holler bloody murder at them. Shame on you!"

"Who started it?"

"You did with your hand up my p***y!"

"You mean like this?" He slides his hand up her wet legs and up between them. She reaches out to kiss him and they cling wetly together in a puddle in the kitchen before he goes to get dressed.

Marlene says to Emma, "Now don't you go getting ideas, young lady." She wags her finger in front of the baby and she laughs with her struggles to catch the finger. She mutters, "Guess I better get the mop."

When Mike comes down she has brunch on the table and some negatives are with the pictures on the table. He lifts them and spots the one with the two of them by the rail near a life preserver with 'SS Sweden Brilliance' on it. He smiles and puts the negatives with the pictures into an envelope she has put with them. If he remembers right it was Janine that had taken that picture when they were on the Alaska Cruise.

Marlene sits down with him to eat. He glances in the basinet and says, "She's still awake. I'm surprised. Has she been fussing?"

Marlene shakes her head; "She's often quite bright like this in the morning. We chatter and gurgle at each other while I do the dishes or prepare lunch."

"She's getting a bit big for that basinet, I think. I guess we better dig out a crib and the playpen next week. What are we gonna do out at the club?"

"Top drawer of our dresser by the bed. I got it all figured out."

"What about Sam?"

"A drawer in the other one, I guess."

"We'll have to be careful with her, she can almost climb out. I guess we'll have to move the bed right up against that one so she can't fall except on the bed."

"She should be walking soon. Keep an eye on her if you want to catch her first steps."

"I hope I have the camera near by." They finish their brunch and Mike helps her do up the few dishes. He watches Emma while Marlene goes to check on bedding and a few clothes (in case it rains or turns cold).

She comes back upstairs. "I put the pile of bedding on the dryer. There are a few clothes down there and I have some upstairs. If you want to load that stuff up I'll sort out some groceries for you."

He nods as he goes down to the laundry and comes up packing a large armful of bedding. He puts it on the table and goes back for another load. Then he starts taking it out to the trailer. He makes up the bed in the rear bedroom and stows the rest of the sheets in a bedding chest.

Then he goes back for the rest of the clothing. When he brings them out he leaves them in a box on the floor in the bedroom for travelling. One last trip for sleeping bags the girls will use up front and Rick might use in his room. He checks that the kid's pillows are all in and packed away.

By this time Marlene has two boxes of groceries packed for him and a third box to go in the freezer. Mike takes it out first and puts the contents right in the freezer. Then he fetches the other two boxes and settles them on the floor in the kitchen area for travelling. He consults a checklist and looks into the boxes. Towels; he finds them amongst the bedding. Tea towels and dishes, wash clothes are with towels, cutlery in its drawer. All seems to be in order but he knows they will arrive back home after the weekend with a list of things forgotten. He checks his watch and it's just after two. He decides to hook up the station wagon and check the lights, batteries and brakes.

He swings the wagon around and backs it in until he lightly feels it touch the tongue of the trailer then lets it ease ahead an inch. He gets out and check then hops in again and moves the rear end over about an inch. This time when he checks he sees he can let the hitch down and it will slide over the ball correcting itself about a quarter inch as it goes. He does that and then hooks up the wiring.

It's time for an electric trailer brake check so he eases it ahead and tries the trailer brake. He feels the drag and is happy with it. He eases it back and does the same. This time the grip is firmer. Once ahead again and this time the brakes pull him to a stop. He smiles and goes to check lights. Clearance lights first and then signals, the brake lights he will leave until one of the kids are there to check them for him. He has to replace one clearance light and another one he taps to help it get a good ground. Everything looks good.

He goes inside to make sure the freezer is working on the batteries and that they are charging. He wraps up his extension cords and hoses then stows them away in the boot on the trailer. One last walk around the trailer checking tire pressures, awning securely in place, no water leaking under it, hitch is secured. He hops in the big black Buick LeSabre station wagon and settles back for a snooze as the batteries charge.

In about fifteen minutes he rouses himself and shuts the wagon down. He then goes to move the Mustang so it will be clear when he pulls out. He heads back into the house and catches Marlene nursing the baby.

"Hi, pour yourself a coffee. It's fresh. I'm trying to get her done before the kids get home from school so I can see you off."

"Okay love." He pours coffee and asks if she wants some. She shakes her head as she attends to Emma. He brings his cup into the living room where she is and asks, "Did I get any phone calls?"

"It rang just a few minutes ago but I was busy and didn't catch it in time. It should be on the machine."

"Okay, I think it's a client I asked to call before three." He goes down to the office and flicks the review button on the answering machine. It is Mrs. Montgomery voice and she says for him to call her, she's alone at the house. He dials her number and she answers promptly.

"Hello?"

"Mrs. Fred Montgomery, please."

"Speaking."

"I have some preliminary information for you that you might not have known. We are still digging but this is what we have now. You will get this in an official report as soon as possible along with any new information we might gather."

"That's quick. I'm quite pleased you have something already."

Mike outlines things for her, "Okay, Lydia is his third wife. He's deep in debt and everything he makes goes to his ex's. His lawyers take the rest. They live on her income. Though she's supposed to be on a sabbatical, she has a number of incomes from past work and some mysterious sources."

"This movie he's working on, 'Canso Crossing' is legit. He has a couple of production companies working on it and it seems to be on schedule and within budget. His casting is not complete though. He had trouble with one of the principles and has a casting call out now."

"Wow, you have been busy. When can I expect more?"

"As soon as we uncover it. I would think by midweek at the latest."

She mulls that over then says, "And what about the rest of the report?"

"Uh, that's all we have so far."

"I mean about Ginny. She did show you around the grounds. How far did you get with her?"

"Uh, that's not really part of my report."

"Oh come on, I expect a report there, too. You kissed her?"

"Well, we did kiss."

"I knew it! She really had her eyes on you! Ha ha, did you feel her t**s? They're nice and big, aren't they?"

"Ma'am, that's between me and her." She's making Mike very uncomfortable.

"Tell me if you made them hard. Did she want you to f**k her? Did you...?" Mike cuts her off.

"Ma'am, I'll be in touch when we have more information." He hangs up the phone.

Mike sighs in relief and notices the girls going by his window coming home from school. He smiles and gets up to go meet them. The phone rings so he turns back and answers it. "Hello."

"Mike, you can tell me the details. I won't tell anyone. Where did she take you? To the hot tub?"

"Mrs. Montgomery, I am not going to relate to you what we did and that's final!"

"Did you handle her breasts and make them hard, Mike? Did she wiggle a lot when you fucked...?" Mike hangs up. He waits a few minutes but the phone doesn't ring again.

Jan calls down the stairs, "Hi Daddy, we're home."

Mike goes to the stairs and says, "I saw you come in, princess." He goes upstairs and notes that she is hopping around all excited. Marlene shushes her so she won't wake the baby who she has just gotten off to sleep. "Your Mom has everything packed for you but you better check and see if there is anything we forgot."

Marlene adds, "You'll see your small travelling case on your bed. Put anything else you want to take by it and we'll sort it out later." She says to Mike, "Her toothbrush and stuff like that is in it. I thought you would put that in the back of the wagon." Mike nods as he hears voices outside.