rated *

Are You Sure You’re Alone?

by Kay Lynn

Chapter 1

"Where do I start?" Honey Belden asked herself, looking around at the chaos that was her new home.

There were bags and boxes everywhere. In one corner were she and Brian’s clothes. In the middle of the floor there were personal items, furniture and the many, many shower gifts she had received before and after the wedding. She had only been married one week and two days. While trying to decide what to do first, she thought back over the last two weeks and all that had happened since. She remembered the day Brian had called her and told her that he wanted to buy the old Martin place. Up until that moment, it had been years since she had even thought of it. She fondly remembered the day that she and Trixie had discovered it, quite by accident. They had bicycled to the swamp to gather some wild herbs and plants for a teacher at school. This was when they had first met old Ms. Rachel Martin, who lived in this adorable, dainty little two story cottage right near the swamp, referred to as Martin’s Marsh. The cottage then had a neatly manicured lawn, beautiful flowers that grew in neat and tidy flowerbeds, a little vegetable garden out back. Honey fell in love with the place right then.

At that time, the city council was forcing Ms. Martin go to a nursing home, because they were confiscating her property to build part of the new super highway on. After Trixie had discovered the jewelry box that Ms. Martin had given her was constructed from solid gold, Ms. Martin had sold it and moved into Sleepyside, where she could sell her quilts, jellies, jams and herbal products and she had created quite a lucrative business for herself. Later, after she had gone through all the trouble of buying a new home and moving, the city changed their minds about building the new highway. As a result, a conservation committee had bought all the land around Ms. Rachel Martin’s and had declared it a natural resource. Ms. Rachel had then, refused to sell her little piece of property, until now. Brian’s father was the first one to hear about the older home and it was such a good deal. The payments would be cheaper than the apartment they planned to rent, after Brian moved back to Sleepyside for good.

As Honey surveyed the room, she thought back to two weeks ago, when she had seen the property for the first time. She had ridden out to the house with Brian, expecting to see the neat little house, with the trim, tidy flowerbeds and white picket fence that she remembered from all those years ago. Instead, the house had paint peeling off of it and off the small part of the picket fence that was still standing. Rotten shutters hung from broken windows where the wind had blown them askew. There was so much tall grass and weeds; you could no longer see the neat little brick sidewalk or the flowerbeds that had once thrived there. The inside, if anything, was worse than the outside, the old fashioned bathtub was rusted as well as the kitchen sink, kitchen cabinets hung by their hinges, dust and spider webs covered everything.

Brian had two weeks off and he, Mr. Maypenny, Regan, Jim, Dan and Mart had worked from daylight to dark, making the little house livable. Mart primarily worked on the yards and when he finished, they looked like a picture in the magazine Better Homes and Gardens. The outside of the house was painted white, with brand new mint-green shutters. The flowerbeds had been cleared and Mart had set out flowers, he had tilled the back yard and the grass had been cut, giving the place a neatly manicured look. On the inside, they had installed a modern bathroom in one of the big walk-in closet upstairs, off the master bathroom. The guys had sanded and painted the bathtub, as well as replaced the sink and commode. Brian didn’t have money to purchase the brand new cabinets he had seen at the building supply store, nor could he purchase central heat and air, that would have to come later. All he could do was repair what was already in the house. And they would have to use fans in the summer and the fireplaces in winter, at least for awhile.

When Honey and Brian had decided to marry back in January, the original plan was for Honey to continue to live at Manor house. The reason for this was that Brian was working full time at night in the hospital emergency room’s clerical office and doing his internship Monday through Thursday in New York City. He, Jim and Dan were all finishing their last year of college and they shared the apartment that Mr. Wheeler kept there.

Brian took the commuter train home every Thursday night, after he got off work and spent the weekend in Sleepyside. He would awaken early Monday morning and take the commuter train back into the city. Monday through Thursday, his days began at five a.m. and didn’t end till almost midnight. This was difficult, but in one year he would be finished and then he would come back to Sleepyside permanently, to set up a private practice.

Honey, on the other hand, was working as a part time receptionist at the Sleepyside Police Department. The reason she didn’t give her job up and join Brian in New York City was because a good job in the small town of Sleepyside was hard to find. The pay wasn’t bad and when Brian came home to start his practice in one year, they would need her job to tide them over financially. She and Trixie still had plans to open up their detective agency here in town. But, for right now, by mutual consent, the plans were on hold. Trixie had a full time job at the police department as a police officer, so she and Honey hung out when Trixie worked the day shift. When she wasn’t working, and when he was home from college, she was seeing Jim Frayne. The job and Jim consumed most of her time, so she didn’t feel that she had the time right now, to put into a private practice. Honey, on the other hand, would not be able to put time and effort into getting their detective agency started, till Brian came home for good next year and his practice was up and running.

 

Chapter 2

And that brought Honey to where she was now. Brian and the others had not had time for painting the walls of the little cottage nor refinishing the hard wood floors, or sanding and re-finishing the beautiful hand carved oak stair rail, and there had been no time for unpacking anything, but just the bare essentials. They had bought the house, as a last minute decision, one week before their wedding. So, in effect after the guys had finished with the house, and the honeymoon was over, there was still much to do.

"What do I do first?" Honey once again asked herself, looking around the room.

She had worked that morning at the police department, as she did every week day morning for four hours, and had just gotten home. She had just returned from her honeymoon Saturday, and early this morning had taken Brian to the depot to take the commuter train back to New York City. She loved her new little cottage and couldn’t wait till she had everything just right. But that would be awhile. I think, I’ll go outside and pull some weeds out of the flowerbeds, I’ll tackle this later, she finally decided. She went upstairs and took off the navy blue pantsuit she had worn to work and put on a pair of short cutoff jeans and her lime green bikini top. Before doing that, she threw together a quick broccoli, chicken, and yellow rice casserole and put it in the oven. Mart was stopping by later to hang a shelf in the kitchen, and she had promised him dinner.

Once outside, she put on her yellow work gloves and was on her hands and knees pulling weeds from her flowerbed. Man, it’s hot today, she thought, brushing sweat from her forehead with her arm. At that moment, she saw a shadow cross over her and she looked up, shielding her eyes from the sun with her gloved hand, expecting to see Mart standing there. But, this wasn’t Mart; this was some man she didn’t think she had ever seen before. He was very unkempt and unshaven, she was briefly reminded of the way Mr. Darnell had looked all those years ago.

Alarmed, she quickly stood up and he swiftly began speaking. "I’m sorry ma’am," he began, "I didn’t mean to startle you. My buddy and I are camping in the woods over near the new highway and we don’t have anything to drink, if it wouldn’t be too much trouble, could I please have a glass of water?"

"Sure," she said, her eyes filling with tears of compassion.

The homeless had become a plight in Sleepyside, just like they had in the rest of the United States and a lot of them camped over by the new highway. Matt Wheeler and another group of businessmen had donated money to erect a new shelter, and her mother was hosting a benefit ball to raise money for the shelter.

"My name is Honey Belden," she said, holding out her hand.

"Just call me Rick," he said, taking her hand and holding it just a little too long.

"Just wait one second," she told him, pulling her hand away, "and I’ll get you a glass of water." She turned and went into the house, planning to bring him the water outside. She stood at the kitchen sink filling the glass with water and when she turned around, she almost ran right into him. He had quietly followed her into the house and was standing right behind her. Apprehensively, she handed him the glass, expecting him to back up, to drink it, but he didn’t. She was pinned between the kitchen counter and him. The odor of unwashed hair and body assaulted her senses. She had at first thought he had dark hair, but since he was standing so close, she could see that his hair was actually quite blonde, it was just dirty. Quickly, he drank the water down, while still standing much, much too close to her.

I wish I had grabbed a shirt and put it on over my bathing suit top when I came in, she thought uncomfortably.

After drinking the water, he hesitantly asked, "Ms. Honey, could you maybe spare some food?"

The delicious smell of the casserole she had in the oven was wafting through the house. For just one moment, she had a strange sense of déjà vu, like she had experienced something like this before, but just as quickly, it passed.

"Me and my buddy," he continued, "we haven’t eaten in awhile, we lost our jobs in upstate New York and we’re starving."

"Sure," she said, wishing he would go back outside.

She grabbed Brian’s button up shirt, which he had left on the chair only a few hours ago before he left for the city, and threw it on over her bikini top.

While Rick stood watching her, a thoughtful look on his face, she rummaged around and found a brown paper grocery bag. She put in a loaf of bread she had just bought that day, a small jar of mayo, a pack of individually wrapped cheese slices, a few plastic knives, and a bag of potato chips. Then she got out the small turkey breast that Brian had grilled for her yesterday so she could make sandwiches for herself this week. She wrapped it up and stuck it in the sack also, along with some of Mrs. Belden’s fresh garden tomatoes.

"Let me find you a knife to cut the turkey and the tomatoes with," she told him, rummaging through a drawer of odds and ends. She didn’t want to give him one of her new steak knives, which was a shower gift or one of her new kitchen knives.

"Oh, that’s all right, " he told her. "I have a knife."

Once again, he was close behind her. She turned around quickly as he took a pocketknife out of his pocket. He smiled. He flicked the knife open and held it up. It seemed incredibly big and sharp to Honey's eyes. He waved it in front of her face and smiled as a glazed look came over his vivid blue eyes.

 

Chapter 3

It was right then that she heard a knock at the front door.

Thank God!

"That’s probably my brother-in-law," she said, quickly moving around him and heading for the door.

The stranger stopped smiling and quickly closed the knife and stuck it back in his pocket. He and Mart nodded wordlessly at each other as he sauntered past Mart and went out the door with his groceries. Honey breathed a sigh of relief, as Rick took a left down the driveway and walked out of sight.

"Who was that?" Mart asked distastefully, stepping inside.

"Oh, I think he’s some homeless guy, you know they stay over in the woods near that new highway near here," Honey said, still looking in that direction.

"And you let him in your house?" Mart asked incredulously.

"Well, actually, I was working in the flower garden and I looked up and he was just there. He asked for a drink of water, and I came inside to get it and once again, I turned around and he was just there, again."

"Honey, this has been at the back of my mind, since I found that you and Brian were buying this place, but, I’m really concerned about you staying way out here alone, why don’t you come and stay with Diana and me? We’d love to have you, and we have plenty of room, you can stay out here on the weekend, when Brian’s home."

"No, Mart," she replied, taking a firm tone. "This is my home, I’m staying here. Besides, I want to get everything done before the holidays this year and I have a ton of stuff to do."

"Well, Honey," he said, "I’m at least going to talk to Brian about getting you a dog. One of my friends has a German shepherd he wants to give away. Once Brian hears about this, I know he’ll want you to have some sort of protection."

"Brian is not going to hear about this," she told Mart. "And neither is anyone else. You know what would happen, they would all overreact because I’m staying out here alone. I believe that guy was harmless. He was just some poor soul looking for food."

As she unlocked the door to her house, the next afternoon, she thought wistfully of Brian. At least today is Tuesday, I only have two more days and then he’ll be home and I’ll have him to myself for the whole weekend.

She climbed the stairs to her bedroom, hung up her mint green sleeveless dress, kicked off her dress shoes and pantyhose and then, changed into cutoffs and an old tank top. She then got to work on the kitchen, which she had decided to make her first project. Honey spent the afternoon painting the walls and the cabinets; she planned to have the kitchen fully completed when Brian came home Thursday night. Later that evening, she was very tired, but very proud of her accomplishments. The white walls and cabinets shone. Now tomorrow, she promised herself, I’ll make my curtains and varnish the counter tops. I’m so tired, I don’t feel like making dinner. But, I do wish I had some of Mrs. Belden’s soup.

She poured herself a glass of milk. In the downstairs bathroom she lit some candles and poured scented bath oil in the old fashioned tub. She took off her paint-spattered clothes and sank down into the luxurious warm water and relaxed.

She fell asleep quickly, and when she awakened later, she felt chilled because the water had grown cold. She let the stopper out of the drain and climbed out of the tub. She slipped on her robe and walked into the kitchen and glanced at the clock. Goodness, I’ve slept for almost two hours in the bathtub.

She jumped when the phone rang.

"Hey baby," said a deep, sexy voice, when she picked up the phone.

"Oh Brian, it’s so good to hear your voice."

"I can’t talk long sweetheart, but I just wanted to tell you how much I love you and miss you. Are you doing okay?"

He sounds so tired, she thought. "I’m okay, other than missing you." she told him. "I’ve spent the afternoon and evening painting the kitchen and then I fell asleep in the bathtub. I wish you were here."

"I do too, sweetheart, but it’s only two more days now and I’ll be home for the weekend. Sweetheart, don’t work too hard on the house." After telling each other goodbye, and exchanging love words, they hung up. She locked the doors and prepared to go up to bed. She looked around proudly at her old fashioned kitchen. It’s amazing what a coat of paint will do to a place, she thought, smiling. Then, she heard something at the kitchen window. It sounded like something fell.

I wonder what that was, she thought. Maybe there’s a stray dog in the neighborhood or something. She finished turning out the lights and went up to bed.

 

Chapter 4

The phone beside her bed rang shrilly, waking her from a dream. It was a good dream. She dreamed Brian had come home early. When she picked up the receiver, nobody said anything. She could just hear a faint, clicking sound in the background.

Huh? she thought. I wish if people have to dial a wrong number, they would at least do it at a different hour. She looked at the clock, it was three a.m. "I can’t go back to sleep, so I may as well go ahead and get up," she said, climbing out of bed.

She fixed a light breakfast and then cleaned the downstairs bathroom. She took her shower, put on her make-up and prepared to greet the day.

Today was Wednesday and instead of coming straight home after she left work, she and Trixie would meet at Wimpy’s for lunch. This past year this had become a tradition for the two of them;  a chance for girl talk since they were both living such busy lives right now.

"What are you wearing to the benefit ball?" Trixie asked her, taking a bite of her Wimpy’s famous hamburger.

"Well, whatever I can find at Crimper’s, or that other little store in town, you know, the one where you bought your dress for the Valentine Party that year."

"Oh, that horrible white dress with the Peter Pan collar and the pleats?" asked Trixie, her face growing red with embarrassment.

"Oh Trixie, the dress wasn’t that bad." Honey laughed.

"Yes, it was, " said Trixie, "it was simply hideous. I’m still embarrassed that Jim saw me in it, and I cannot believe to this day that I let Moms talk me into wearing a girdle that night. Anyhow, I thought you would be going to New York to buy a designer dress."

"No," Honey told her. "To tell you the truth, I wish I didn’t have to buy this one."

Honey took a sip of her chocolate milkshake; her thoughts then turned to Brian. She and Brian kept one credit card for emergencies. But with the benefit ball coming up, he insisted she use it to buy a new dress and to have her hair and nails done. Brian was a totally selfless man. He would live off of peanut butter and jelly, or bologna sandwiches just to make sure she had what she needed. She wanted him to spend money eating right, which, when he was in New York, he didn’t. He would not even buy himself a car until he finished up school and his internship and everything, because he was saving every bit he could. The remodeling and repairs on the old house had wiped out his savings though. He would not accept a cent from her father who would like to do more for them, but Brian’s determination to take care of Honey himself caused Matt Wheeler to have great respect for Brian.

For these reasons, she didn’t want to spend money on a new dress. She could always borrow a dress from Diana, who had plenty. Before Honey had married Brian, she had given away her prom and evening gowns because she didn't have room for them. But Brian wouldn’t hear of her borrowing a dress. So, she planned to hit the sales racks at Crimper's and the other little dress shop.

As the two girls prepared to leave, Trixie said, "One night next week, why don’t I pick you up after I leave work and you can show me what all you’ve done to the house and we’ll go shopping. Maybe have dinner at that little tearoom at Crimper’s."

"It’s a date," replied Honey.

"I have to run," said Trixie. "I’m working this afternoon."

When Honey arrived home she was pleased to see the paint in the kitchen had finally dried. She changed into a pair of white cutoff jeans and a pale green faded tank top and began the process of sanding and varnishing the old wood countertops. She worked diligently for a long while and then she suddenly noticed it had grown dark and that she hadn’t had anything to eat since lunchtime.

She quickly fixed herself the last of the casserole she had made for Mart the other day and a garden salad from the fresh vegetables Mrs. Belden had given her. She ate and started her stencil around the top part of the kitchen wall. It was peach-colored roses, with pale teal-colored leaves. The work went quickly and soon she had finished the border and her wooden countertops gleamed. She unpacked her white canisters and put them on the countertop along with the toaster.

She admired her work. "Beautiful," she said. Tired, but happy, she went upstairs for a quick shower and then slipped into her pajamas. After setting the clock, she was asleep almost instantly.

The jarring of the phone beside her bed awakened her.

"Hello," she said drowsily.

"Are you sure you’re alone?" someone cackled.

"Huh?" she said, struggling to awaken.

"Just remember, you’re not as alone as you think." The person then laughed like someone deranged. She could hear that same clicking noise in the background, just like she heard the other morning.

Prank callers, Honey thought, as she lay back down. Didn’t people have anything better to do with their time, like sleep?

She looked at the clock and it was almost midnight.

 

Chapter 5

"Yay!" Honey cheered to herself the next morning. "Brian’s coming home tonight." She was getting ready for work with an extra spring in her step this morning. "I get to see my guy tonight," she sang as she danced through the bedroom.

Work passed quickly and Honey rushed home to finish her kitchen. Her curtains were hemmed and ready to hang, so she took care of that first. Then she stenciled bouquets of peach-colored roses and teal-colored leaves on the cabinet doors. She mopped the white tiled floor till it shone. This was one of the rooms in which they had decided to put tile since they felt it would be practical in a kitchen. She unpacked and put away boxes of kitchen items. The end result was beautiful and she couldn’t wait for Brian to see it.

Brian arrived home about ten o’clock that night. Since Brian had to commute home on Thursdays, his boss would let him go as early as possible.

Honey flew into his arms as soon as he walked in the door.

"How’s my one and only sweetheart?" he asked her.

Honey remembered what he said the day they got married. "We’ll always be sweethearts," he told her. And she believed it. Being apart these four days had made them miss each other tremendously.

He loved the kitchen and what she had done to it and Honey beamed with pride.

The next morning, he took her to work since he needed to use the car to run some errands around Sleepyside. She could hardly wait for work to end. 

"My man’s home," she told Trixie.

"You got it bad, don’t you?" Trixie laughingly asked her.

Later, he picked her up at work and they had dinner with his parents that evening. Her folks were spending the summer in Europe. After dinner, they met Trixie and Jim (he had also come home last night; Brian had caught a ride with him) at the pond and had a moonlight swim. It was so beautiful there. The moonlight cut a path over the silvery water,  stars dotted the night sky, and the night sounds of crickets and whippoorwills could be heard in the distance. A night for young lovers.

Saturday, after she and Brian awakened, they planned to get some work done on the house. Honey insisted on cooking breakfast, but they didn’t have much in the house to cook. Brian drove up to Mr. Lytell’s and bought some bacon and eggs and she made omelets and they ate them with orange juice.

"Your car is about due for an oil change," Brian said. "I’m going to go ahead and take care of that." Brian was quite a mechanic, as well as an almost doctor, and he done most of the work on her car to save money.

She went with him out to the old barn to get his tools. She hadn’t been out here much and they had just used it for storage. They couldn’t find the tools anywhere. They were quite an expensive set which his family had given to him one year for Christmas, back when he still had first car, commonly referred to as the "jalopy".

"I could have sworn we put them out here," Brian said, looking around.

"I’m sure I saw that red tool box recently," said his wife.

"Look, Honey," Brian said, laughing. "Something tore out my old ratty dorm room blanket and pillow. I thought I put that in the garbage to throw away."

"I think there’s a stray dog in the neighborhood." She told him about the noise outside the window.

Later on, she was working in the garden and she noticed two cement blocks at the kitchen window, one had fallen off the other. She decided the falling of one of the blocks was  probably the noise she had heard.

 

Chapter 6

All too soon it was Monday and time for Brian to go back to New York. This time, she wouldn’t have to take him to the commuter train; he was riding back with Jim. She insisted on getting up early to make him a nourishing breakfast even though he told her that she needn't. As  they ate, he brought up the subject of her staying there alone.

"Honey, this place is so isolated and there are no neighbors nearby, do you really think it’s a good idea for you to stay here alone?"

"Oh Brian," she said.  She had already discussed this with Mart and didn't want to discuss it again.

"Look, Honey," he continued, "you know you would be more than welcome to stay with my folks, or at Manor house, even with Trixie, or better yet, you could come back to New York with me." His voice was hopeful.

"If I did that, Brian, this house would be a year away from looking the way I want it to look. And if I just stayed here on weekends, it wouldn’t seem like home."

"But just think, Honey, if you were in New York with me, we could see each other every day."

"Yeah," said Honey, thoughtfully. "We could watch each other sleep. Come on, Brian, the way you work, we would have no more time together than we do now. I want to stay here. I want this house finished in time for the holidays and you know I need my job.   An office position is hard to find here in Sleepyside, if I give mine up, I may have a hard time finding another one next year when you come home for good. And this is our home. This is the place where we will bring our first child home from the hospital, where we will put up our Christmas tree every year and you will shovel snow off the walk in the winter time. This is home and this is where I need to be."

"I never would’ve thought you were such a stubborn woman, Honey Belden," he said smiling. "At least promise me you will keep your doors and windows locked, Honey. Just be careful."

"Why are you so worried about me?" she asked him, playfully punching him on the arm.

She felt a little melancholy when Jim stopped by to pick him up. They kissed goodbye and once again, he was gone. Last night, he insisted on buying her groceries, filled her car up with gas and left her twenty dollars. She told him she could eat at home and didn’t need money, but he insisted on her having it.

This evening was her date with Trixie.  Honey had worked so hard getting all the clothes out of the living room and into drawers and closets yesterday, that her energy was drained. She planned to take it easy tonight.

She stopped by Mrs. Belden’s on the way home from work as she usually did on Mondays. Mrs. Belden loaded her down with fresh garden vegetables and a couple of jars of her freshly canned soup. She loved Mrs. Belden’s soup. She would rather have Mrs. Belden’s fresh garden vegetable soup and chocolate cake made from scratch any day, than the manor house lobster bisque and Baked Alaska.

When Honey arrived home, she realized that she felt tired. I have been working extra hard lately, she thought, yawning and stretching.  She decided to take a short nap. She fell asleep on the living room couch which she had finally uncovered. When she awakened, she was hungry. Immediately she felt stressed knowing she had little time to get ready before Trixie arrived.  She put some soup on in a little pot on the stove. After it was heated, she took a small spoonful of soup, right out of the pot and then went to the bathroom to take a shower and get ready to go. She ate a couple of more spoonfuls and started to get ready. She alternated between eating soup and getting ready until she heard Trixie’s car in the drive.  After another spoonful of soup, she headed out the front door.

 

Chapter 7

Honey and Trixie visited the dress shop where Trixie had bought the Valentine dress back when she was fourteen. When Honey couldn’t find anything that suited her there, they went to Crimper's.

Honey picked out a strapless, pale yellow, short gown Trixie picked out a similar gown except hers was royal blue. Trixie insisted on buying dinner for them at the tearoom, even though Honey had the twenty Brian had given her that morning in her pocket. Over Crimper’s famous chicken salad croissants and eggplant Parmesan, they made small talk.

"Honey, I just can’t get over this feeling that you’re keeping something from me. Are you?" Trixie finally asked her, taking a long sip of her tea.

"Why would you think that?" Honey asked.

"I just feel like there is something you want to tell me and need to tell me, but you’re avoiding talking about it."

"No," said Honey. "I don’t know where you’re getting that idea from."

Actually, Trixie had hit the nail on the head. She wanted to tell someone about the two strange phone calls, but she was afraid to. She was afraid she would have to leave her house and she was determined not too.

The phone calls are probably just some kid playing a prank.

When Trixie dropped her off later that night, she remembered that she needed to put the pot of soup up. There was probably quite a bit left. But the pot was on the stove and all the soup had been eaten. "Did I eat all that?" Honey asked herself. "I could have sworn that there was about half a pot full before I left."

 

Tuesday, Honey got off work ready to finish up in the living room. She got home and put on a pair of short overalls and went outside to put some stakes up for the new tomato plants Mart had set out for her. While out there, she glanced down the driveway and saw Rick coming up the drive. Honey didn’t want to feel aggravated, she wanted to have compassion for those less fortunate than her, but  she just felt plain annoyed.

"Do you have any work I could do around here?" he asked her, while staring down at the ground. "Even if it’s for a small amount of money. I mean, I could mow the lawn or something."

She really didn’t need him to mow the lawn. Mart was planning to do it Thursday for free. Mart had volunteered to mow the lawn every Thursday so she and Brian could have their weekends free. As she stood there, she hated to think of anyone being hungry and maybe this would help some of this poor man’s self respect and self esteem to return.

"All I have is one twenty-dollar bill," she told him reluctantly. No matter how hard she tried not to, she resented the feeling that she had to give him the twenty dollars, while Brian would do without little essentials this week because he wanted her to have the money.

"I’ll mow the lawn for the twenty," he said.

She wanted to leave, she didn’t like staying here with him alone, but she had things she wanted to accomplish today. She locked her doors and worked in the living room, while he mowed the lawn. Finally, she heard a light tap on the front door. She opened the front door without unlocking the screen. He was standing right outside the door, of course.

"Hang on," she told him. "I’ll get your money." She went to her purse and pulled out the twenty. She briefly unlocked the screen door, handed it to him and shut it and locked it really fast. She knew she was being rude but she didn’t want him in the house with her and she remembered that first day they met.

"Good day," she told him, dismissing him.

"Ms. Honey," he said, before she could shut the front door. She stopped to hear what he had to say. "Could I trouble you for a ride to the store?"

"I’m sorry, but I can’t Mr., uh, Mr. Rick," she replied apologetically, calling him mister because he was probably over twenty years older than her. She just wished he would go. "I’m expecting company."

"Do you live out here all alone?" he asked her, continuing to stand there, even though he obviously knew she wanted him to go.

"No," she replied. "My husband lives here with me, good day, Mr. Rick." She closed the door firmly.

I hated being rude to him, she thought. But, I hope this time he gets the hint and doesn’t come back. He gives me the creeps.

 

Chapter 8

This had been a productive week for Honey. She had gotten the downstairs floor sanded and had a fresh coat of polyurethane on it. She had cleaned out the ancient fireplace and had some wedding pictures and candles on the mantle. She couldn’t wait for Brian to see it.

She hadn’t had any prank phone calls this week, and she had chalked it up to maybe some teenager playing tricks.

It was Thursday morning. As she was getting ready for work, she thought about how beautiful it was here. The emerald green grass, the flowers growing. She could hear the birds singing.

The phone rang.

"Hello, beautiful," said the sexy, deep voice of her husband when she answered.

"Hello, handsome. You never call me on Thursday morning. You aren’t calling to say you can’t come home this weekend are you?" she asked, worried.

"Oh no," Brian answered. "But, I won’t be able to get home as early as usual. I have to work until the last minute and I’ll be catching the last train home, which means it will be around two-o’clock in the morning when I arrive. I wanted to know if you would ask Mart to pick me up?"

"There’s no need to bother Mart like that. I can meet you," Honey told him.

"No, sweetheart," he said. "I don’t want you on the road late at night and the depot is not exactly in the safest part of town."

She thought for a minute, then said, "I know, I’ll ask Mart or Trixie to follow me and I’ll leave my car at the train depot for you. That’ll work won’t it? You have a spare key."

"I hate for you to be without a car Honey," he told her.

"What am I going to do with a car at two o’clock in the morning, Brian? I’ll be fine."

Trixie drove her home from work that afternoon. She came inside to see what Honey had done to the house. "I love what you’ve done with the kitchen and living room," Trixie said, as they sat at Honey’s kitchen table sipping ice tea.

"I can’t wait to get this place livable enough to entertain," Honey told her, looking around.

"Doesn’t it get a little lonely out here Honey, especially at night?" Trixie asked. "I mean, it’s so isolated."

"Please, don’t you start, too, Trixie," replied Honey. "Both Brian and Mart have tried to get me to move.  I stay so busy that I don’t even notice it."

After Trixie left, Honey spent the afternoon sanding and refinishing the old stairwell. This was one of her favorite times of the week, because she knew Brian was coming home. She knew she would never stay awake until two in the morning, though, so around nine o’clock, she prepared for bed. She bathed in her scented bath oils and painted her fingernails and toenails. Then she brushed her hair till it shone like pure gold. She went to her closet to pick out some lingerie. Thanks to a huge lingerie shower, she had lingerie in every color and style imaginable. Teddies, short nightgowns,  long gowns,   and pajamas in solids, stripes, colors, and prints. 

But, she thought, casting aside the red teddy, with the garters and the black lace trim. Brian was more into feminine than sexy. She chose a simple, very thin, short, white gown with spaghetti straps. It had a V-neck and a tiny pink rosebud in the V, with matching white panties, trimmed in one little rosebud on each leg.

I can’t wait to see Brian, she thought as she sprayed on his favorite cologne. She went to bed secure in the knowledge that when she awakened, Brian would be there.

 

Chapter 9

Honey fell asleep almost instantly. She dreamed Brian came home, she felt him standing by the bed, she felt his hands on her body. "Oh Brian," she murmured. She went to breathe in the scent that was uniquely Brian, but all she smelled was a terrible body odor. This doesn’t seem like Brian, she thought when he bent down to kiss her. His face felt like it had a rough, scratchy beard. She murmured a protest.  She felt like she was suffocating and she wanted Brian to get off of her and he wouldn’t. She was in that state of trying to awaken, but she just couldn’t. A voice whispered, "Later, my love, later" and then the suffocating feeling was gone.

She awoke with a start and was terrified. The touch and the feel of someone kissing her and lying on top of her was so real. She glanced at the clock beside her bed, it was three o’clock in the morning, and Brian should have been here by now.

Maybe he is here, she thought. Maybe he’s downstairs getting a glass of water.

She went downstairs calling his name, but when she went into the kitchen, all she saw was that the back door was wide open and the screen door wasn’t even locked. How did I go to bed without locking the doors? she wondered. She looked out front and her car wasn’t there.  Brian wasn’t home.  Fear gripped her.  The dream had left her shaken and unnerved. Oh God, what if something’s happened to Brian? She knew that Trixie was working the graveyard shift tonight. She quickly dialed the number of Trixie’s cell phone.

"Trixie!"

"Honey, is something wrong?"

"I don’t know. I just had a terrible nightmare." Briefly Honey described her dream. "And Brian was supposed to be home over an hour ago and he’s not here. I just hope nothing’s happened."

"Honey, if something was wrong, you would have heard by now. You know how he has to work; he probably didn’t get to leave in time and missed the last train. Why don’t you go to my apartment? That dream sounds like it was horrible."

Honey didn’t tell Trixie, but if she had her car, she would do just that.   "I don’t have a way to go, remember? My car is at the train depot, waiting for Brian."

"I forgot," said Trixie, "why don’t I ride out there and check on you?"

"Oh Trixie, I can’t let you do that.  This isn’t your beat and if Sergeant Molinson found out about it, he would have your head. I’ll be fine, I just wish I could hear Brian’s voice."

"Honey," said Trixie, "try to get some sleep. When you awaken, I’m sure Brian will be there."

 

Chapter 10

Brian had indeed missed the train, and it didn’t run again till the next morning. Honey was up getting dressed for work when he arrived. She flew into his arms for a kiss. They kissed over and over; they couldn’t get enough for each other.

"I was so worried about you," said Honey.

"I was stuck at the train depot in New York, all night, the pay phones wouldn’t work when I tried to call you," Brian told her. "I missed the last commuter train by five minutes."

"I know you’re tired," she said, "after you take me to work, why don’t you sleep in?"

"That's what I plan to do, sweetheart," he said, planting a kiss on her forehead.

"I wish I could stay home with you," she told him as she kissed him goodbye.

 

Friday night, the two of them spent a relaxing evening at home. They went to bed. Brian kissed her and they began to make love when suddenly, she thought she saw someone lounging in the doorway watching them. She pushed Brian off of her and sat up, focusing her eyes. But if it there was someone, he was gone.

"Honey, what’s wrong?" Brian asked, very concerned.

"I thought I saw somebody standing in the doorway," she told him, fearfully.

"I'd better go check.  You stay here by the phone."

He looked all over the house, but he didn’t see anything.

 

Saturday, Brian was going over to see his parents.  Honey was upstairs straightening up their room and  he was downstairs preparing to leave when the phone beside their bed rang.

"Hello," said Honey, hoping this wasn’t "the caller"

"Hello, my favorite wife," Brian said, "it’s been so long since I saw you last."

"Yes, dear husband, it has been all of five minutes," she laughingly replied.

"I can’t find my black tennis shoes, Honey. Have you seen them?"

"I think they’re in the downstairs bedroom. Brian, where are you calling from?" she asked, perplexed.

"Our living room," he replied. 

She had noticed that strange clicking noise the phone was making. "Brian, do you hear that clicking noise?" she asked.

"Yeah," he said.

"What causes that?"

"I think it has something to do with the way the phone is grounded," said Brian.

 

It was another wonderful weekend with Brian, but it was over all too soon and he had to return to work early Monday morning. That evening, there was a black storm cloud in the sky. While Honey was painting the upstairs bedrooms, the phone rang.

It was that awful cackling voice again. "Are you sure you’re alone?" the person asked, with the strange clicking noise in the background.

Honey, tried to stay calm, finished up the area she was painting and went downstairs. It was thundering and lightening outside, as it had been for the last hour.  Just then, the electricity went off and the storm broke. Even though she loved her home, the terrible nightmare the other night, the phone call she had just received, and the fact that there were no lights, sounded like all the makings of a psycho movie to her. One she didn’t want to star in. Quickly, she picked up the phone and dialed Trixie’s cell phone.

"Hello," Trixie answered on the first ring.

"Does your offer of crashing at your place still stand?" Honey asked.

"Of course, Honey, it always does. You know that. The only problem is that I want be there to entertain, but I have to work tonight"

"I don’t care, Trixie. The lights just went out here and I don’t want to be here in the dark."

"Honey, you know where my key is hidden, hurry and leave so you can get into town before the storm gets worse."

Honey ran back upstairs and quickly fumbled around for something to wear to work the next day and a nightgown. She then grabbed her make-up bag and her purse. She made record time getting out the door and into her car.

 

Chapter 11

As Honey drove into town, she felt foolish for giving in to her fears. She almost turned around and went home . "Why am I letting a prank phone caller and everyone’s concern about me being alone at my house, put so much fear in me?" she asked herself.  She thought about turning around and going back home.   No, she decided,  I want to be where there are lights, and I want a nice hot bath.  The homeless man, the phone calls, and Mart and Brian always voicing their concern about me being out here alone has made me scared and paranoid. If the homeless guy wanted to harm me, he knows I’m alone most of the time. And he couldn’t be behind the phone calls, not unless he has a cell phone and judging from the looks of him, that’s highly unlikely.

She spent the night at Trixie’s and went to work from there the next morning. Later, back at her house, she felt stupid for being so afraid.

The next day, Tuesday, she decided to talk to Trixie about the phone calls. She didn’t even mention the man, Rick, because she felt certain he had nothing to do with them.  He was probably long gone by now.

"Well," Trixie told her. "It's possible that someone has randomly picked your name out of the phone book and is making those calls.  His idea of a sick joke.   That happens a lot. But in this day and age, we can never be too careful. Officer Rodriguez is the one who puts taps on phones. How about if I get him to unofficially put one on yours? This way, we can find out where the calls are coming from and we can go from there. If it is someone just playing around, which it probably is, we’ll be able to take legal action."

"Um, Trixie," Honey said. "Could you please not mention this to Brian? He and Mart are so worried about me out there alone. He wouldn’t want me to stay there alone anymore, and I don’t want to leave my home."

"Sure thing, Honey," said Trixie. "But if it does turn out to be something serious, I do expect you to do what you have to do to be safe."

That afternoon, while Honey was on her hands and knees on the floor sanding the upstairs rooms with Brian’s electric sander, Officer Rodriguez and Trixie came to install the tap on the phone upstairs. This only took them a few minutes and then they had to leave.

"Honey, I’m on duty tonight," Trixie told her, "so, I don’t have time to stay and visit. But don’t hesitate to call if you need me. Even if I can’t come out here, we can send a patrol car."

Later, when Honey had just gotten out of the shower and was drying her hair, Diana called her and wanted her to come over for dinner.

"Well, I have a lot to do here," Honey hesitantly told her.

"Oh Honey, you work so much on that house, I never see you. Just come on over."

"Okay," Honey finally said, looking forward to seeing Diana and Mart. "But I can’t stay to watch movies or anything, because Brian always calls on Tuesday night at nine. And I’ve got work tomorrow." Honey looked forward to eating at Diana’s, not only for the company, but because Diana’s latest hobby was cooking. What she cooked was usually delicious.

She returned home from a delightful dinner just in time for Brian's weekly call.

"How are you sweetheart?" he asked her.

"Fine," she said. "I spent the afternoon sanding and varnishing the upstairs floors and I had dinner with Mart and Diana."

"Honey, I’ll sand the floors," he told her. "I don’t want you working so hard."

"The little bit of time I have you at home, Brian Belden, I want you to spend with me, not working around here."

They both laughed and after exchanging a few more pleasantries they hung up.

"Now," Honey told herself, "up to bed."

After locking the house, she tiredly climbed the stairs. She changed into her nightie and brushed her teeth. She settled into her bed, leaving on the small reading lamp that Brian had installed for her. Diana had given her a new book tonight and she couldn’t wait to start on it. She was reading and becoming very drowsy when the phone jangled. This time, she let the answering machine answer. This was something she didn’t like to do, but Trixie had advised it.

"Are you sure you’re alone?" the voice said.

She turned off the light and snuggled under the covers to get some sleep. The phone call really didn’t bother her too much. She really believed it was a prank. 

She began to drift into sleep. The phone rang again causing her to stir.  Honey vaguely heard Trixie’s voice on the answering machine. . "... call me when you get there and let me know you’re safe."

How strange, Honey thought dreamily, falling back to sleep.  I wonder where Trixie thinks I’m going.

Sometime during the night, she began to have a nightmare. She dreamed about the homeless man. She dreamed that he was in her house while she was sleeping. He started talking and, at first, his voice sounded like the prank caller, but then she realized his voice was one she remembered from the past.  A familiar voice that belonged to a person who had tried to break into her home the first summer after she and Trixie had met, right after they had found Jim and he had come back to live with them.

Honey awakened abruptly and very, very frightened.  She sat up in bed.   Several things she had been ignoring all of a sudden became crystal clear. She knew who Rick the homeless man was.  They had met before. He had been a chauffeur for her family that summer twelve years ago. The guy who had stolen the diamond she and Trixie had found when they first discovered the gatehouse!

"Oh my God," she breathed.

Something else dawned upon her. She remembered this past weekend when Brian called her from the extension downstairs and the clicking noise on the phone. She wasn’t in the house alone. This man had been coming in the house and calling her from the downstairs phone.

"Are you sure you’re alone?"

She wasn’t alone. The cement blocks at the kitchen window ...  he was probably standing on them peeking in. The night she had the nightmare that someone was touching her and lying on top of her, it wasn’t a dream, it was him.

Honey played the message Trixie had left on her machine while she slept

"Honey," Trixie said frantically. "Get out of the house now. I can’t send someone out there, because there has been a major incident on Hawthorne Street and every single police officer is out here. The strange calls were being made from your own phone. Either go to my house or to the station. But get out now! Call me when you get there and let me know you’re safe."

I’ve got to get out of here! she thought. What do I do?   She jumped out of bed and slipped on her robe.

"What do I do?" she said aloud. "I know, I’ll call Mart, He can come and make sure I get out of here safely."

She picked up the phone. The line was dead.

Honey tried to fight the fear that was enveloping her. "I have got to get out of here. My purse, my purse, where is it?" She frantically searched. It was on the dresser where she always kept it, but she couldn’t think. After what seemed like an hour, she grabbed it and ran down the stairs, two at a time. She ran through the dark living room, out the door, and jumped off the high porch. In her panicked state, she didn’t even use the steps. Her car was locked and she frantically fumbled in her purse for the keys.

"Is this what you’re looking for?" Rick stepped of the shadows.

She fainted.

 

Chapter 12

Brian Belden had gone about his day like a robot. He used to really enjoy his internship and his job, but since he married Honey, he just wanted to get this year over with. He missed her too much. Now, his job was something to endure until the end of the week when he could go home to her. This evening, though, he had some sort of premonition, a sense of dread in his heart. He had already talked to Honey this evening, but he decided he was going to call again. He was pulling a double shift in the ER tonight, because the person who usually worked his post had called in sick.  It was very late and he knew he would be waking Honey. He dialed the phone number.

"This line has been disconnected," an electronic voice informed him.

"Dang!" he said. "If I could just hear her voice." He just couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong. He had felt this before when his sister or Honey had been in trouble.

"Honey’s in danger," something inside told him.

He went to the night manager where he worked. "I have to go," he told him.

"Brian," he said, "we need you. The ER is really busy tonight because of that shooting over in the Bronx, all kinds of people need to fill out medical forms. There is no one to work but you."

"I have to go, I’m sorry," Brian told him, already walking out the door.

"You may not have a job to come back to!" yelled the manager.

Right now, Brian could not care less. He ran to the employees lounge and picked up the phone.

Jim Frayne answered on the first ring. "Hello." 

"Jim, this is Brian, I need you to pick me up at the hospital and take me to Sleepyside."

"Brian, is something wrong? Is Honey sick?" he asked anxiously.

"I don’t know, I just feel something is wrong, and I need to leave now. It's a very bad feeling. I know you think this is crazy, and I may be wrong, but I have to make sure she’s okay."

"I have classes tomorrow, but if you feel this strongly it's better to be safe than sorry. It’ll take me thirty minutes to get across town."

"Just get here as quickly as you can," Brian replied. "I’ll be waiting by the front entrance."

Brian tried to call Mart; all he got was his answering machine. He tried to call Trixie at the station, but they said she was out on call. He asked if they could send someone to his house at Martin’s Marsh. The dispatcher said it would be a couple of hours, because all their officers were on an emergency.

"Oh man!" he said running his fingers nervously through his hair. He went out to wait for Jim.

 

Chapter 13

Honey awakened tied to a chair in an old abandoned shack. She had no idea where she was. Nothing looked familiar.

"Well, well," said Rick alias Dick the Dip (as Trixie had nicknamed him that summer), "I guess Sleeping Beauty has finally awakened."

Honey was aware that she was in the room with Rick and another guy, presumably the buddy he mentioned that first day.

"Are you sure you’re alone?" Rick asked with that crackly voice.

"You crack me up when you do that man," his buddy said gleefully.

"Will you please let me go?" Honey asked, trembling with fright. "My daddy has lots of money.  He’ll pay you whatever you ask, but please let me go."

"Now, there’s an angle we haven’t thought about," Rick snorted at his friend. "Ransom."

He sneered at Honey. "Sweetheart, the only thing on my mind is another R word. Revenge. I don’t need money, What I need are you and revenge. The two work together." He smiled, taking out the wicked-looking knife she had seen the first day they were together. "You know, you could have made this a little easier on yourself if you had treated me differently. You have all your father’s big bucks, and you gave me a loaf of bread and a slab of turkey that day at your house. That day I mowed your lawn you gave me twenty dollars and then wouldn’t even take me to the store. Your father’s a millionaire!"

"I don’t depend on my daddy’s money," Honey told him tearfully. "I’m married now and my new husband and I live off the money the two of us make."

"I couldn’t believe my luck that day," Rick continued as if he didn't hear her, "when I came up in your yard and saw you working in the garden. You’ve grown into quite a beautiful woman, Ms. Wheeler; I would have recognized that golden hair anywhere. I came back to this dead town to take revenge."

Honey shivered.

"How is your fresh friend Trixie? You and she were responsible for my being behind bars for the last twelve years of my life," he spat out viciously. "I lost my wife and my daughter because of you. I could have sold that diamond and had plenty; you took that away from me! I had my future planned, but thanks to you and your nosy blonde-haired friend playing detective, I lost all that."

"I can’t get your wife and daughter back or make up for the years you’ve lost, but I can get you money, lots of it. Please, just get me to a phone and let me contact my father." Tears spilled down her face as she begged.

"No, I have plans for you," he said.  He slid the sharp edge of his knife across her cheek drawing blood.

It was too much for Honey.  She slipped back into darkness.

"Hey man," said his friend. "Maybe she’s got something there; her old man’s rich. She can get us money."

"Don’t get greedy on me, Lew," he told him. "Revenge is far more important than money. I learned that during my wonderful stint in New York State Prison."

"What are you gone do to her?" asked Lew. "I mean, I agreed to go along with you when you said you wanted to scare her. I went along with us stealing those tools out of the barn to sell, even though it could have gotten us arrested, because we needed the money. I even agreed to camp out in her barn, and to help you scare her. But killing or anything else, I’m not in for that."

 

Chapter 14

Brian and Jim arrived in Sleepyside in the wee hours of the morning. They drove straight to Brian and Honey’s home. What they found there was disquieting. The front door was wide open and Honey’s car was in the drive, her purse lying beside it. Brian ran through the house, calling her name.

"Jim, she’s not here!"

Jim helped a shaky Brian into the car. "Let’s find Trixie," he told Brian. "She may be with her. Let’s not panic, until we’re certain there is reason to."

Trixie’s car wasn’t at the apartment, so they drove to the police station where they assumed she was working the midnight shift. There they found a tearful Trixie, Mart and Diana.

"We think Honey’s been kidnapped!" Trixie told Brian. Then, Trixie told them about the phone calls.

 

Once again, Honey awakened to what she was sure was her own personal nightmare. She had so many self-recriminations. If only I had listened to everyone when they didn’t want me to stay out there alone, if only I had taken those phone calls more seriously, if only I had made more people aware that something wasn’t right. How could I have been so stupid! She looked around the shack. Rick (Dick the dip) had fallen asleep over in a corner; his friend was guarding her. She refused to look at him.   And now, I’m going to die. My body may never be found. And there is no telling what’s going to happen to me before I die.

Wait a minute, she thought. Think of Trixie.

Trixie had gotten out of so many situations like this one. She always kept her head. Once, Honey and Trixie were thrown into the back of a car, inside of a net, tossed into the Hudson River. She was panicky, but Trixie figured a way out. When Diana’s phony uncle kidnapped them, she and Mart were in the back of a camper trailer; they threw pots and pans at a police officer.

I have too much to live for. I have Brian and my family and friends, I have my future children and future career, and I have my home. She felt determination spreading though her body. There is a way out.  All I have to do is think of how Trixie would handle this situation.

Dick the Dip, alias Richard, was fast asleep.

"I have to go to the bathroom," she told his friend.

"Uh, let me think," the friend said. "I guess I could take you out back."

He untied Honey and they went outside. Honey read the street sign. One-twelve Hawthorne Street. Once out there, she became braver than she ever had been. She kicked the man where it hurt and took off running. He had a gun and he shot at her. She'd known that was a possibility, but she had decided if she was going to die, she would die fighting.

She heard Richard come out."You idiot!" he exclaimed to his friend. "You should have watched her."

Honey was in a maze of old rickety, abandoned buildings. She crouched down behind an old metal trash can.

"Where are you, my love?" Richard called mockingly.

Dick the Dip wasn’t going to let her get away easily. She crouched down shivering from head to toe and trying not to breathe loud. He was so close to her, she could see his shoes. He kept looking for her.

"Come out, my darling, I have plans for you," he sang.

She shoved the old metal garbage can into him as hard as she could and ran. She finally found the main section of Hawthorne Street. Honey spotted a patrol car. The officer was making his last round before going back to the station. Honey jumped out in front of the car.

The officer slammed on the brakes.  He jumped out of the car.

"Honey Belden," he said, "boy, are some people going to be glad to hear from you."

 

Chapter 15

An APB was put out and the police department easily found Dick the Dip and his partner. He had stolen a car that night, and this was what they had used to transport Honey to the old abandoned shack on Hawthorne Street. The stolen car was what got them stopped by the police and they were arrested. With any luck, Dick the Dip would be behind bars for a long time.

Honey was dancing with her brother at the benefit ball for the homeless. It had been a week ago that she had been kidnapped, but she was okay. She would always feel a little funny when she was alone, but she was determined, as ever, that she would not allow that to run her life.

"So, do you have any plans for moving now, after what happened?" Jim asked with concern.

"Nope," Honey said. "I’m not leaving my home. But I am going to be a lot more careful and not ignore the obvious ever again. And I’m going to have some company out there."

"Yeah," said Jim smiling, "I already heard about that. Trixie’s moving into one of the spare rooms, at least until Brian comes home for good."

"I hope that doesn’t invade your privacy, big brother," she told him.

"Not too much," he said. He was so glad that Honey wouldn’t be alone all the time.

Honey looked over his shoulder and saw her adoring husband.  She smiled. It’s good to be alive, she thought as her heart swelled with love for him.