13 WINDOWS

Chapter 13 Part 2: The TRUTH

The next day Rupert walked towards Rosedale, crossing the bridge on St. Clair Avenue near Mt. Pleasant Road. He looked down into the ravine as he crossed, thinking about Terry. He wondered if he was out there somewhere. Even if Rupert assumed he was hallucinating the vision of Hans, the real Hans could still very well be alive. If he could find the real Hans, then maybe they could locate Terry as well.

Why hadn't his mother told him she knew who the man was? he wondered. The question just kept circling in his head.

When Rupert arrived at the Rosedale homestead he found his mother in her usual place; in the attic with a bottle of booze and a reefer. He sat down on the floor with her.

"Mom this isn't good for you," Rupert said.

"Yeah. Look whose talking," said Sandra shooting him a look.

"Yeah well touché. Give me some of that then if you're not going to listen to me," he said reaching his hand out.

Sandra smiled and passed the joint over to her son. They had never smoked together before.

"A bonding moment between mother and son. Fresh from the garden!" announced Sandra proudly.

"The family that tokes together stays together," Rupert said and then coughed as the harshness of the hot burning dry weed hit the back of his throat.

"Let me tell you something Rupert. Those psychiatrists you see are just filling your head with chemicals. This shit is natural."

"I know mom. But Nina isn't a psychiatrist. She's a psychologist. She doesn't give me drugs," Rupert said trying not to cough through his sentence.

She waved him off. "They're all the same thing," Sandra said stubbornly. His mother was always wary of authority figures and institutions.

"You're such a hippy mom. That's why I love you," Rupert said.

"Ahhh. I love you too, sweety," Sandra said, her eyes gleaming.

"But mom," he said, with his tone turning more serious. "You know you need to get some help. You know this."

Sandra's face turned red. Her tranquility was broken, and she suddenly barked loudly at her son, "NOT NOW! I DON'T WANT TO TALK ABOUT THIS!" she stumbled to her feet.

"Whoa Mom! Settle down. Listen. Just listen for a moment." Rupert stood up and spoke to her as directly as he could manage. "You're a survivor. And you've been bottling this up for years! That's why you're like this. Don't you see?"

Sandra held her hands over her ears with her eyes wide with terror.

"Mom please! Don't do that. I'm sorry," Rupert said reaching his arms out trying to calm her down.

She lowered her hands and then spoke quickly. "I talked about it once and I never talk about it again. Okay? Got it? FINISHED!"

"Fine Mom. But please." He paused. "I understand but I need to know one more thing about Hans Schiller."

"What then?" she said impatiently, beginning to pace the floor nervously.

"Why didn't you tell me that he was the same person that Terry and I saw in the window?"

Sandra stopped pacing and closed her eyes. "Hush!"

Rupert gave his mother a concerned look.

She opened her eyes slowly and stared forward. In her mind's eye she saw Hans again, with his wave of blond hair to the side.

"Rupert. I told you. He wasn't bald when I knew him. I didn't know it was him until...." She started breathing heavily. It turned into a sob.

"Okay Mom. You don't have to go on. I shouldn't be the one doing this. You need to see a professional. I'm not a professional..."