Christmas at Joes

3. Christmas Present, Joe's Bar

    It was the week before Christmas. As he had every year before for the past ten years, he came in and sat at the lonely table in the back corner of Joe's Bar and Grill. As she always did, Jolene the bar's manager came up to take his order.

"Your usual?" she asked.

He grunted as a response which she took as a yes.

His was not the only dour mood in the bar that was normally more upbeat. The rumors that the bar might be closing had brought everyone down. Joe the owner was trying to think of a way to brighten the mood. He brought out a box of Christmas decorations and took it to the bar where Miri was sitting with her friend Ethereal. The bar was not very busy.

Joe put the box on the bar saying, "Miri, these ornaments have a problem."

"Oh?" Miri asked, looking in the box.

"Yeah, it's an addiction problem. They've been hooked on Christmas for years."

"Joe, do you ever get tired of dad jokes?"

"Miri, we've got to brighten this place up. My girl Joanna is coming to town, and I want mistletoe hanging in every doorway, the front door, the back door, the entryway to the special event room, even the storage room. If there is a doorway, I want to see mistletoe. I want every excuse possible to kiss her," he laughed.

"Every doorway? Joe, no one wants to kiss in a restroom doorway."

"Are you sure?" he laughed.

Miri gave him a friendly punch in the shoulder. "Alright, I'll hang one from the ceiling in the hallway between the restrooms."

"I'll help you," Ethereal offered. "I love decorating for Christmas.

Ethereal used to work at the bar before becoming the time-traveling companion of the famous chrononaut, "The Professor." She was in town visiting her friends at Joe's.

As they began decorating at the front of the bar and out of hearing distance of the back corner, Ethereal asked, "What is with the grouch in the corner?"

"I'm not sure. He only comes here once a year and only around Christmas time. He has come here every year since I've been here. Jolene always serves him. Don't know why she puts up with him. He never tips and if he speaks at all it is just to complain."

"There has to be a story behind this." Ethereal pondered possibilities as they strung garland over the front door.

"Coming here is probably just his Christmas present to himself," Miri told her.

"Speaking of Christmas, is the bar going to have its annual Christmas party this year? I was thinking I might hang around for it."

Miri sighed. "I expect so, but this may be the last one. Things have been really tight since Covid. You can only go so long with no customers. All the restaurants are struggling. Joe is looking for an investor just to keep the bar open. We all have our fingers crossed.

At that moment Jolene came up and began to help them. "What are you two talking about?"

"I was telling Ethy that Joe was looking for an investor for the bar."

"Yeah, we are all sweating that. I don't suppose that your traveling companion could give Joe some stock market tips?"

"Probably not, he is really hesitant to give anyone previews of the future that might have far reaching effects. You know domino effect and all," Ethereal answered and then quickly changed the subject. "Hey, what can you tell us about Scrooge in the corner."

"Ebbie is not really a scrooge. He's just had some misfortune," Jolene sighed. "He is an Ebenezer though. But his last name isn't Scrooge. It's Dabedo.

"So, he's Ebbie Dabedoo like the Flintstones' yell? That is sort of funny"

"Well, there is nothing funny about this Ebenezer's story. It is actually rather sad."

"So, can you tell us?"

Jolene sighed, took a deep breath and began, "It was ten years ago the week before Christmas that the love of his life disappeared."

"What happened?"

"We don't really know. She and Ebenezer were having dinner here when she ran out to get something out of the car. She never came back. Someone came in and told us there had been a hit-and-run in the parking lot. We went out to check, but there was no evidence of it. Just what might have been a little blood in the street, and it could have come from anywhere."

"She just disappeared?" Ethereal asked, giving Jolene an incredulous look.

Jolene shrugged and explained, "There are a lot of ideas. You see, Ebenezer was sort of a benign crime boss. He pretty much ran the drug trade in this area. It is possible the hit and run driver was from a rival gang."

"But what happened to her body?" Ethy asked.

"At first, we speculated that an ambulance from the fire station across the street picked her up and rushed her to the hospital, but there is no record of it, and no one remembers it. The driver of the vehicle may have taken her. But again, no record at the local hospital. Many believe she used it as an excuse to disappear from Ebenezer's life and his criminal activities. See, she did not approve of them and had been trying to get him to change his ways. Ironic because after she disappeared, he did completely abandon his criminal ways. Anyway, I don't believe she just ran off. They seemed too much in love to me."

"Maybe she was kidnapped," Ethereal suggested. "There are those who traffic in women to be used in prostitution, especially young women with no apparent family who may not be missed. Did she have any family?"

"She has a brother and like Ebbie, he was completely devastated. Ebbie takes care of him now as if he were his own brother. Sent him to college and everything. He got a job in the bay area, so they don't see each other very much anymore, but they are still good friends."

"Maybe the brother has learned to live with the loss of his sister and may not want to be reminded of it," Ethy wondered.

"Ebbie certainly hasn't learned to live with it. He comes here every December not only because this was where he last saw her, but also because this was where they first met. She disappeared during our annual Christmas party. Christmas is his birthday. I think he keeps hoping she'll come back through that door and come back to the party with him."

"Wow, that is a sad story. Has anyone else tried to find out what happened to her?"

"Her brother filed a missing person report, but no charges were filed for the hit-and-run since there was no evidence of it. So, the police just wrote the whole thing off. They didn't even try to find her. I suspect Ebenezer tried and he has more resources than even the police. He inherited money in addition to his ill-gotten gains from his drug trade. But even with all his money, he didn't turn up anything, so he just withdrew into himself. It's a shame. I'm pretty sure there is a nice guy beneath that gruff exterior," Jolene concluded. She paused briefly then began hanging baubles from the garland.

"He may have money, but he doesn't have a time machine," Ethereal said tapping her chin formulating a plan.

"What are you thinking?" Miri asked Ethereal.

"I'm thinking The Professor owes me a favor and I really have to know what happened to that girl."