Mr. Big (20 page)

Jennifer put on her boots and almost had to run to keep up with Nelson as he headed toward the car.

She shut the door, and the car was already in motion. He was almost speeding when he finally caught up to the police car.

“I don't think this is a good idea,” Jennifer told him. “You're going to piss them off.”

“I'm the one that's pissed off,” he said.

Nelson continued to stay close to the police car. When the car signalled left, so did Nelson. In fact, he was following them right to the police detachment. The police car pulled into the parking lot, and the driver looked over at Nelson and Jennifer.

Nelson got out of the car first. The officer opened his door as Nelson walked toward him. Jennifer could see them exchange words, and then the officer made Nelson turn around. That's when she saw he was putting handcuffs on him.

They were both brought into the police station and put in a small interview room.

“Mrs. Hart, we want to talk to you about this situation with your husband here,” said the officer. “First of all, we understand you were recently talking to your mother.”
Jennifer was shocked. Why were they saying this in front of Nelson?

“Did you explain to your mother that Nelson had assaulted you? Punched you in the face, to use the exact words?”

“I didn't say anything like that to my mother,” Jennifer lied. She hoped Nelson couldn't tell she was lying.

The officer sat silently looking at Jennifer.

“Okay, that's enough for now, but we still need to ask you a few questions, Nelson,” he said.

The two officers stood and waved Nelson outside, leaving Jennifer alone in the room. She was stunned. Why would they ask her that in front of him? Suddenly, the first officer walked back into the room and sat in front of Jennifer across the table.

“Why did you say you weren't talking to your mother?” he asked. “Do you know that she called us right after you told her that Nelson punched you in the face?”

“There is no way I would admit that here in front of Nelson,” Jennifer snapped. “He'd go out of his mind, mad, if he knew I told Mom that. I was afraid he was going to slap me right there.”

There was a look of realization on the officer's face.

“I'm sorry, Jennifer. I guess we could have been a little more considerate,” he said. “So, is it true? Did he assault you that day?”

“Yes, he did,” replied Jennifer.

“Well, he is going to be charged, and he'll have to go to court,” said the constable. “But you need to be somewhere safe. Tonight you will be staying at the transition house. Tomorrow you'll be on a flight back to Newfoundland.”

That night the police drove Jennifer back to the house, where she gathered up her few belongings. Most importantly, she got the two tubs containing Karen and Krista's precious belongings.

She made the police promise to have them returned to Newfoundland safely. Before Jennifer knew what was happening, she was back on the island.

61

She could hardly believe she was back in Newfoundland again.

After landing at Gander Airport, her mother and Pat picked her up and brought her to St. Alban's to stay with them.

And once again, the police secured a room at the transition house in Gander. She understood that Nelson had also moved back by now. But this time she would not be lured back to Nelson, because she longed for a place to call her home. This time she would have her own place.

With some help, Jennifer moved into a small basement apartment after being in the transition house for a little more than six weeks.

It wasn't much, but it was hers. It was comfortable, clean, and, most of all, peaceful.

Not long after, she got her first phone call.

“Nelson just wants to go for a coffee.”

As she always did, eventually Jennifer gave in. She already felt defeated as she made her way to the local Tim Hortons. She knew Nelson was there waiting. And she also knew that once they began talking, it was only a matter of time and they would be together.

She made each step knowing that it was against the advice of the police. It was against the wishes of her own family. Everyone was convinced that he had killed Karen and Krista, and deep down Jennifer believed it, too.

“Hi,” she said. Nelson was waiting for her at one of the tables. He had already purchased her a tea and some cookies. If there was one thing Nelson was good at, that was making amends.

But maybe
. Just maybe, he had changed. Jennifer hoped.

62

“Come on in,” she called. Jennifer had just made a fresh pot of coffee, and she was cooking up a meal of spaghetti.

She'd been living on her own now for the past month, and she was quite proud of the little home she'd made for herself on Corrigan Street. And although she had no intentions on getting back with Nelson, he was now visiting at least once a day.

Nelson opened the door and stepped inside. He took off his jacket and hung it on the doorknob. Jennifer was already busy plating their dinner.

“How did your day go?” she asked him.

“All right, I suppose. Mom's getting on my nerves, though,” he said.

Jennifer knew that Nelson and his mother's relationship hadn't improved at all over the past few months. He often talked about how hard it was for them to get along.

“I need to get out of this town,” he said. “I need a break from all this.”

“What do you mean?”

“Mom is driving me crazy, and everywhere I go, people are looking at me strange,” he said.

Jennifer knew it was true. Over the past several weeks he had shared stories about people making him uncomfortable. She'd even heard one story about a man at a local bar who punched him three times. Once for Jennifer, and twice for each of the girls. A part of her pitied him, even though her memories of being struck weren't far from her thoughts.

“Well, I won't be moving anymore,” Jennifer said bluntly. “I'm not moving away from the girls' graves ever again.”

“It doesn't have to be that far away,” he said. “I'd be happy enough in Grand Falls, I think. At least nobody out there knows me.”

Jennifer had no desire to move. Not even an hour away in Grand Falls. In fact, she didn't care to live with Nelson at all. But each day, he came by for a visit. He seemed to be a changed man. There were no moods, and he was mostly polite. Each day he told the same story about his uneasiness and worries, until finally Jennifer agreed to move once more.

She wasn't sure whether it was pity or love that put her back on the same old course. Back with Nelson.

63

During her time in her own apartment, Jennifer had at least managed to gather up some more furniture. So starting over in Grand Falls wasn't as difficult as it had been on the mainland.

She and Nelson moved the furniture into an older building on Lincoln Road, and she was hoping that this would be the time her life would change for the better. For weeks now there were no mood swings. The only time he seemed to have a problem was when she wanted to talk about Karen and Krista. It was a subject that Nelson avoided.

They carried their furniture up the stairs, and by that same evening Jennifer had unpacked enough for them to have their first night in a proper bed. But the next morning, Jennifer felt anything but rested.

“Did you hear that scratching?” she asked Nelson.

“No, I didn't hear anything.”

“I'm sure I could hear rats running through the walls all night long,” she said. “There was no way I was going to sleep.”

“Oh, it's probably just some noise the neighbours are making.”

Jennifer got up, showered, and dressed. Breakfast wouldn't be an issue since there was no food.

“We're going to have to get some groceries, Nelson,” she called out as she was fixing her hair.

“Well, I've got some things I want to do first,” he said.

Jennifer wasn't sure what he had in mind, but Nelson was ready to go.

“Maybe I could stay here while you do your work,” suggested Jennifer.

“No, come on, let's go,” he replied.

Jennifer hopped into the passenger side of the car. She wasn't able to drive the car, which was a five-speed stick-shift transmission.

From their building, Nelson drove in the opposite direction of the grocery stores, to a local hotel.

“What are we doing here?” she asked. “It's only quarter to ten in the morning.”

Nelson didn't say anything. Jennifer got out of the car and followed him into the hotel. At first he tried to open the door of the lounge, but it was still closed.

He pointed to a couple of oversized chairs in the lobby. “We can wait over here.”

Jennifer was really hoping this wouldn't take long. She was hungry, and they still needed groceries. She also knew what Nelson had in mind, and she was really hoping he wouldn't spend every cent they had.

As soon as the door to the bar opened, Nelson was out of his chair. He no longer even noticed Jennifer. He walked straight forward to a video terminal on the left. He handed Jennifer a dollar. “Go get me a Pepsi, will ya?”

Jennifer brought his drink back and placed it on the side of the video lottery terminal. Then she sat back at a table and waited.

She wasn't sure how much money he had put into the machine so far, but he was making minimum bets trying to win the bonus. She knew this was going to be a long day.

By lunchtime, she was getting anxious.

“Nelson, why don't you give me a ride home, and you can come back here,” she said.

“No, stay here with me,” he said. “I won't be much longer.”

If she were able to drive the manual transmission, she probably would have left already. Instead, she was forced to wait.

By mid-afternoon, she figured she'd try once more.

“Come on, Nelson,” she pleaded. “Let's go get something to eat.”

This time he didn't respond, and Jennifer knew this wasn't a battle she could win.

“I'm walking home,” she said.

“No, you're not,” he said. “You'll stay here and wait for me. You don't have keys to the apartment, anyway.”

“Well, give me the keys,” she said.

He turned to give her a warning glare. “That's my apartment, and these are my keys,” he snapped. “You can wait.”

Nelson continued to play the machine until after midnight. Then he sat and watched the machines to see which ones had accumulated the biggest bonus. The plan was to come back in the morning as soon as the doors opened. That was his strategy for winning.

But for Jennifer there was no winning. She quickly realized that things had not changed at all. Now she was back with Nelson again, despite knowing the difference. Deep down she knew nothing would change. She knew there was a possibility she could be physically hurt. But here she was, doing exactly what she knew she shouldn't.

64

Jennifer poured herself a cup of tea while Nelson got his coffee. He used the last couple of slices of bread to make toast, and Jennifer got dressed. She was expecting the usual routine of hitting the bar so Nelson could try and grab the bonus off the machine. But Nelson had other plans today for the first time in weeks.

“Let's go for a drive to Lewisporte,” he said. Jennifer wondered how he had money for gas when they didn't have a bite to eat in the house. But she didn't question it. She was just glad to get a break from sitting in the bar and watching Nelson playing the slots for hours on end.

Nelson didn't bother gassing up before they left Grand Falls–Windsor, and when they hit the highway she noticed the gas gauge was reading about a quarter tank. She assumed they would have enough to get out there.

But after a quick drive around the town of Lewisporte, Nelson was ready to head back. He pulled into the local gas station.

Jennifer stayed in the car and watched the dollars and cents roll away on the old pump. Fifty dollars in total. Nelson made his way into the gas bar, and Jennifer watched as he pushed the buttons on the debit machine.

He walked out and sat in the seat with a sigh.

“My debit card isn't working,” he said.

Jennifer wasn't surprised. He started the car and started to pull away from the gas station.

“You can't leave!” she yelled.

“I told them I will come back tomorrow with the money.”

But Jennifer knew he had no intentions of following through. And in the days and weeks ahead, the phone was constantly ringing. It was the owner of the gas station demanding his money.

“Nelson, you have to pay them for the gas,” she pleaded. “If you don't, they will never stop calling. Let's go to the store, get a money order, and at least send them a payment.”

But the payment wasn't enough.