Suzie’s House 413 : Reading the Riot Act

“Hey, it’s the detective guy. And Walter. Where you been, Walter? You’re lunch is in the fridge.” Donny smiled, and his words were chipper, but his voice was raspy as he stubbed out a cigarette.

Drew couldn’t decide if Walter’s care taker had actually been crying, or if the red eyes and voice had something to do with the smell of pot in the air. Then, thinking about how negligent Donny was in his job, Drew decided he didn’t care.

Walter, on the other hand, had become somber and obedient since they left Emma’s house.

“Hey, Mr. Detective. Want some coffee?” Donny offered, but didn’t bother to get out of his seat in front of the TV.

“Drew. The name is Drew. I’ll help myself to a cup. Thanks. Walter?”

“No. I….” His eyes cut toward his bedroom.

“Keep me company for a few more minutes. All right?”

“Sure.” Like a man walking to his own execution, Walter headed for the kitchen.

Drew kept silent as he poured a cup for each from a coffee machine that had the look of something in perpetual use. He took a sip, and grimaced over the bitterness.

For the entire walk from Emma’s house to Walter’s, the two men had kept their thoughts to themselves. Before he’d gone to New Mexico, Drew would have been quick to read the riot act to Walter. Now the words that first came to mind all struck him as sanctimonious and irrelevant.

He didn’t know where to begin. He knew he needed to make Walter see things differently, but Drew could no longer be sure what the best thing would be. He could see Walter’s side too easily.

“We shouldn’t have gone to that girl’s house,” Walter said, breaking into Drew’s continued waffling.

Drew nodded. “Emma’s house. We had no business being there.”

“It’s just that sometimes this house feels more like a prison camp than a home. I want to go out so I feel free. I know it’s dangerous. Who knows when I could have an episode?” Walter’s jaw tightened, and he looked away.

Drew nodded. He swallowed bitter coffee.

“Crawling around her living room… I really thought I was back in Viet Nam. I made a complete ass of myself.”

Drew forced a smile, but felt sad. “It could have been me.”

“You’ve never been to war,” Walter scoffed.

“I told you about New Mexico. The drugs I took did something permanent. It’s been pretty good lately, but when it was really bad I did some crawling around, too. I never know when it’s going to hit, either. That’s why I had to stop driving. Who knows when it’ll hit? That brings me to what I really need to say to you.” Drew set his cup of coffee on the counter.

“I want you to know that I will always come when you call. If I can. If I’m not zonked out of my gourd. If I can get to you without driving. Just hang on to that phone and I’ll find you. But….”

“…But don’t do it as a game. Don’t play around,” Walter interrupted.

“That, too. But what I wanted to say is that once I find you, you have to agree to go home. Most of the time my home is as good, or better, than yours. Suzie’s a great land lady. She would understand if anything weird happens with either of us. The rest of the people at the boarding house are great, too. It was just this once they had an important meeting going on.”

Walter nodded, but didn’t say anything.

“So, next time you call, I won’t accept any argument. As soon as I find you, you go home.”

“Yeah.” Walter nodded like a naughty little boy, not an 80 year old man with Alzheimer’s. “All right. When you call, I’ll go.”

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