Chapter 6

After I returned to Iowa Erica and I continued to talk daily and things seemed to have finally righted themselves, both with she and I, and with Joey Falcone. Erica seemed happier when I would talk to her, as she bragged about acing test, after test, and moving ahead rapidly in her college career. It felt good to finally be falling back into a regular flow with her. We were both happier, in fact, than either of us had been for many months. I started to believe that, perhaps, we could simply hold on and maintain this momentum until Erica graduated and found a medical school near me. Sometimes, though, you find the storms of life. Other times they find you.

And this was the case when the phone rang early one morning in early May. I was standing in the kitchen making my lunch for the day when the phone on the kitchen wall began to ring. I glanced at the stove and the little digital display read “7:06.”

“Who’s calling this time of morning?” I spoke aloud to myself as I walked over and picked up the handset.

“Hello?”

A girlish voice with a thick accent spoke from the other end of the line. “Is this Harmony?”

They pronounced my name “Ar-moan-knee.”

Thinking this was some kind of joke I responded, “Who is this?”

“It’s Remi, Harmony. Something has happened.”

I felt the sinking chill of panic immediately wash over me, and I braced myself against the kitchen counter, before saying, “Remi?”

“Oui,” she responded, “It’s about Erica.”

After a pause she added, “And Joey.”

No, I thought, as rage immediately flared within me, white hot. That was handled. What could have happened? What has happened?

I swallowed hard before saying, “What’s he done?”

“I was gone last night, and Erica was here by herself. Joey came to our room and confronted her. She says he put one of his hands down her pants before she could shove him out of the room.”

I felt as though my legs had turned to water as my grip on the handset began to falter. Grabbing one of the kitchen chairs I pulled it out and practically collapsed in it. My greatest fear had come true. He had actually assaulted her.

“Let me…let me speak…” I stammered. I couldn’t finish the sentence.

Remi seemed to guess what I was trying to say and responded, “She isn’t here. She’s decided to be brave, and she went to class this morning. Harmony, I was up all night with her, telling her to call you, but she’s planning on not telling you, or anyone else. She said she just wanted to forget about it, and that nothing would be done anyways."

My heart broke at her words, and I felt hot tears of anger and helplessness well up in my eyes. My Erica. My everything. The girl who survived a tornado along with me, broken and scarred, and had risen above all of it to make something positive. The girl who’s smile could almost stop my heart and took my breath away. My whole world now violated. So hopeless and ashamed was she that she was prepared to bury what this evil person had done to her. I sobbed, no longer able to contain my emotions.

I heard Remi say, “Harmony? Are you there?”

After a few moments I cleared my throat and said, “I’m here, Remi.”

“I think you know what needs to happen. You talked to him, but now this happened. I leave for summer break next week, and Erica will be here alone. Harmony, he’s staying for the summer too, and there’s never that many people here for classes.”

After a pause she said, “I have an idea though.”

Seething anger had filled me as I thought of Erica hurt, and alone, so far away from me and trapped on campus with that little maniac. “What do you have in mind Remi?”

“Well, can you be here tonight?”

With only a moment’s hesitation I said, “I’ll be there.”

***

The plan was simple enough. Remi was to find Joey and invite him to The Tilt that night, and around ten o’clock she would convince him to walk down the block to a vacant building where I would be waiting, and then, I would give him the beating of his life. It didn’t take much to convince me to go along with it. The more I had thought about Joey Falcone so viciously attacking Erica the more I wanted him to feel true fear, and pain.

I made no mention of any of it to Lyric, but as I walked into the garage that morning, he could tell that something was wrong. Approaching me he put both hands on my shoulders and with a serious tone said, “Sis, what’s wrong with you? I can tell by the look on your face that you’re mad as hell.”

“I’m ok, it’s nothing,” I replied.

He looked at me doubtfully and said, “Harmony Katrine.”

“Seriously, man, I’m good. I promise.”

He shook his head at this and replied, “I know you better than that, but when you’re ready to talk, you know I’m here for you.”

“I know Lyr, thanks.”

After he had walked away, I quietly made my way to the cash register in the lobby and opened the drawer. I removed a paper wrapped roll of quarters and squeezed my fingers around it, hefting it, and feeling the weight in my hand. If I was going to do this, then I was going to work Joey over really well. I felt a twinge of guilt as I slipped the quarters into my pocket. I had never stolen from my family before, but I hoped that when all of this was over perhaps Lyric would understand.

I walked outside to my car without speaking to anyone and took a final lingering glance at the garage before sliding behind the wheel. Pulling out into the street I pointed my car towards Minnesota.

***

It was eight o’clock before I arrived in Duluth. My legs were stiff from the long drive, having only stopped once, to use the bathroom, and I took a moment to stretch upon exiting the car. I was two hours early, but I still made my way to the meeting spot as Remi and I had discussed. Three lots down from The Tilt I found the abandoned shop she had told me about. The inside was cool and dark, and appeared to have been gutted by fire. I heard broken glass crunching beneath my feet as I paced back and forth, and from somewhere in the darkness at the rear of the building, I could hear the sound of rodents scurrying here and there.

My mind began to wander as I waited there in the blackness of that abandoned space. How had we gotten ourselves here? I thought back to the days of high school when Erica and I were both learning, together, what it was to be girlfriends. No deadlines, or distances, or stalkers. Just two girls in love. As I considered the swift events of today, I felt older than my nineteen years. And tired; so tired. I longed for those days of innocent love and happiness. Instead, though, here I was, prepared to bring a sound end to Erica’s latest nightmare, and swiftly pay back the person who had taken yet another piece of her life away.

Those two hours passed like a matter of seconds, and from beyond the doorway, I heard a familiar voice that caused my body to begin to shiver. It was Joey.

“Are you really going to let me touch them, Remi?”

“Mais enfin! Oui, Joey! They’re boobs, not the crown jewels, calm down,” I heard Remi reply.

They walked a short distance past the doorway, and I could see them through the opening at the front of the building where a plate glass window had once been. Joey was staring at Remi’s chest, wide eyed, as I slipped my hand into my pocket and gripped the roll of quarters tightly. As he began to grope Remi’s breasts, I made my move.

Stepping from the building I yelled, “Hey asshole!”

Joey spun around towards me, where I already had my left arm cocked back, and upon seeing me he said, “What the fuck are you doing here?”

I swung hard, swiveling at the hips like Lyric had taught me when I was a little girl. Months of working on cars, hauling parts, and lifting tires, had added mass to my once thin frame, and this only helped me as my fist made solid contact with his jaw. I felt a satisfying pop somewhere in his face as I followed through, causing the roll of quarters to explode from both ends. Change went flying in all directions. It seemed like both of his feet left the ground as he flipped over, striking the sidewalk with a resounding thud. As he laid there, face down and unmoving, I was actually disappointed that it was over so fast.

Suddenly from the middle of the road I heard Remi’s voice screaming, “Help us! She’s going to kill both of us!”

Confused I looked in her direction. She was waving her hands above her head as we were both bathed in the strobe of flashing blue lights. The police car sped to a stop directly in front of me and two officers sprung from it yelling, “Don’t move! Keep your hands where we can see them!”

Looking back to Remi I noticed she was regarding me with a mocking grin. The look of betrayal on my face only made her smile more. One of the police officers grabbed my arms, pulling them roughly behind my back and slamming me into the brick façade of the abandoned building. I felt a smart sting as my face bounced off of the mortar. He held me there, his partner cuffing me tightly, as two more squad cars roared to a stop in the middle of the street. From down the street a crowd was pouring out of The Tilt onto the sidewalk to see what was going on. I felt tears beginning to form as I realized that I had been horribly deceived.

As the police read me my rights I simply nodded. They placed me in the back of the first car to arrive on the scene, and through the lowered window I could hear the wail of an ambulance’s siren approaching. A host of emotions coursed through me, accompanied by a fearful pit in my stomach. After a few minutes I heard a voice at the window. Looking up I saw Remi standing there, still smiling.

“You played your role well, imbécile. I knew I could count on you.”

I noticed that all of the police were gathered where Joey was now being loaded into an ambulance on a stretcher. Looking at the small girl who was gloating over me I said, “Why, Remi? Why did you do this?”

“It’s simple you see. You don’t deserve Erica. You could never appreciate someone that amazing, that intelligent, and beautiful,” she said, and then spitting the words, “Her with a mechanic. Merde.”

After a moment she continued. “With you around, I could never gain Erica’s affection. Now, that won’t be a problem. When she hears what you’ve done, she will be so angry. She’ll have all summer alone to think about it, while you rot in a cell. And when I return in September, she will be ready to move on, and I assure you, that will be with me. This worked out perfectly Harmony. I even called the police from The Tilt, telling them how you were going to kill me and Joey, and they arrived with amazing timing.”

“Erica was never assaulted, was she?”

Remi shook her head, smiling sweetly.

“You little bitch…”

“Ah, temper petite fleur, you don’t want more charges. Adieu, Harmony.”

As she walked away slowly, she looked back one last time and said, “By the way, you’re not the only one who has seen Erica naked.”

With this she disappeared towards the police. I started to cry, fear rising like a black wave with in me. I whispered, “I’m so sorry, Erica. God, I’m so sorry Erica.”