Happenstance ⌱ Jim Hopper

[ 16 ] STRAIGHT TO HELL

[ 16 ]

THE PAYPHONE CLANKED as Jim pushed his quarter into the pay slot. He hesitated for a moment, but punched in The Hawk's number.

The line rang three times.

"The Hawk, what do you want?"

Jim chuckled a low, humorless huff and placed his hand on the top of the payphone, leaning casually as he replied. "Do you always answer the phone like that?"

Her playful, soubrette voice lashed a quick-witted reply. "Only for the hunky rouges."

Grinning, Jim shook his head and cleared his throat and ignoring Jodie's flirtatious words.

In the back of his mind, Joyce's probing question echoed, souring the feeling. It was a self-conscious worry; he changed the subject.

"Just got done at Terry Ives's." Jim went into short length of what they'd learned, trying to fill Jodie in as best as possible. "They drugged the hell outta this woman back in the day. Anyway, Jodie, she's practically catatonic. The woman could barely watch the damned T.V., let alone tell us if she knew where her daughter was these days."

"So, we're not anywhere closer to an answer." Jodie heaved a heavy sigh. Jim could hear a shuffling on her end of the line, and he wondered what she was up to. "Damn it."

"I won't exactly say that."

Jim continued: "Her sister was there, told us that Terry Ives' daughter Jane never made it. She miscarried in the third trimester."

"—What?"

"Said Terry believes Jane is still alive somehow, though. And that her daughter is special... born with abilities."

"Abilities..."

"Telekinesis, telepathy, you name it. Apparently, this kid's got it," Jim said.

"Fuuuck," Jodie said, stretching the word out with a long, overdrawn stammer. "What do you think, Jim? Just another psycho, or... well,.." Jodie scratched the side of her head.

Jim could picture he face, with her soft eyebrows arched high as she thought over the possibility. Jodie's voice sighed through the receiver.

"Abilities, Jodie? I don't know. Do I believe that the CIA would steal a kid to cover up decades, and I mean decades, of corruption?"