Ramblings and Ruminations

Part 3 - The Reckoning - (Time)

Camila was edgy.

There had been no boom. No sirens.

She felt in her heart that she had done the right thing, but she couldn't really talk about it with anyone. Least of all, her pastor.

Some of the girls were going out for coffee after the bible study. Camila was tempted. She dreaded going home. Afraid of what she would find.

Instead, she decided to walk home by way of the park. She needed time to think; to try to figure out her next move.

A faint scuff of shoe on pavement alerted her that she was not alone. She stopped in a pool of light and looked into the darkness, ready to face whatever was coming. "Who is there?" She was not prepared for the answer.

"Matias," Her brother said as he stepped into the light.

"Mati! What are you doing here?" She ran to her brother and hugged him.

"Gabriela sent me. She said you were in trouble." Gabby was the cousin who had supplied the special tea. "Why didn't you tell me it had gotten so bad?"

"Because you would have flown up here from Peru and confronted him. And then there would be trouble. Did you...?"

"No. I went to the house first but two men had Harvey outside. Cam, what is going on?"

She led him to a bench. "Sit down. I'll tell you everything."

~~~

Harvey was starting to feel like his old self; which is to say gnarly and antagonistic. "What are you waiting for? The bitch tried to kill me. Go arrest her."

Detective Barto patted Harvey on the shoulder. "Once you gave us permission to search the house, it took a little time to pull a team together. We are still collecting evidence. Just sit tight for a bit longer." Barto stepped out of the interrogation room to answer his cell phone.

Five minutes later, he was back.

"Harvey, I've got some bad news and some good news. We didn't find any evidence that Camila tried to kill you."

"If that's the bad news, what's the good news?"

"That was the good news. The bad news, for you at least, is that we found some blood stained clothes in the laundry room. The clothes match those worn by a serial rapist we have been hunting for. Can you tell me where you were on the night of the eleventh?"

~~~

Camila took a breath and let it out slowly. "And then I left for bible study. I am supposed to wait until I hear from the detective."

"Why didn't you just give the clothes to the cops?"

"I needed Harvey to know that I am not a victim. I needed him to fear me. I needed him to feel helpless. I needed to do it for me. Does that make sense, Mati?"

Her brother put his arm around her and pulled her close. "I think you accomplished all of that, mi pajarito feroz. But what are the cops gonna say about trying to blow him up?"

"Yes, I turned the burner on, but I had closed the shutoff valve while he was feeding his face. He was never in danger."