Slumbered to Death

Copyright © 2012 Vanessa Gray Bartal

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

“This is the one.”

“This one?”

“This one.”

“But it’s so tall.”

“Exactly. I think it’s the tallest tree in town,” Sadie said as she gazed straight up into the sun. “It’s perfect.”

“Sadie, this doesn’t seem safe,” Luke said.

“You always say that,” Sadie accused.

“This time I mean it. What’s wrong with climbing the tree in Aunt Abby’s back yard?”

“I always climb that tree.”

“Exactly. It’s safe.”

“I don’t want safe. Safe isn’t going to get me in the record books.”

“But I’ve never even seen a kid in the record books. How do you know this is going to work?”

“Because it will. The only reason those Guinness people haven’t put a kid in the books is because no kid has been brilliant enough to think of it. I’m going to climb the tallest tree, and then they’ll have to put me in. They’ll come take my picture. My parents will be so happy that they’ll…”
They’ll stop fighting for a little while and maybe fall in love.
Though she wouldn’t tell Luke, that was the true gist of Sadie’s plan. If she could figure out a way to unite her parents, then maybe they would stop fighting all the time. Mutual pride in their only daughter was guaranteed to work. But so far getting good grades wasn’t enough to put a pause in their bickering. She needed something big, something astounding. Enter the world records’ book.

“I don’t think you should do this.” Luke stared up at the tree, his brown eyes round with worry. Sometimes he was too much of a worrywart, but at least Sadie never had to worry about him ratting her out to her parents. He might bug her about stuff, but he would never tattle.

“
You
don’t have to climb it. Just stand there and watch so in case I die you can be a witness of my success.”

“If you die, I don’t think it counts as a success,” Luke said. 

Sadie rolled her eyes and reached for the first branch. “Luke, don’t worry. Who’s better at climbing than me?”

“No one,” Luke conceded.

“Exactly. This is going to be easy. But in case I die, you can have my geodes.”

“Really? Sweet, thanks!”

He was smiling now. Sadie smiled, too, at least until the climbing began to require too much focus. She was high, higher than she had ever been, and yet she wasn’t afraid. Determination was a better word for what she was feeling. She glanced down at Luke and waved. He was beginning to look small from her great height. His fist went to his mouth in apprehension when she took her hand off the branch, and she smiled again. Luke wouldn’t be Luke if he didn’t worry like a little old lady. Then again, Abby was a little old lady, and she didn’t worry. Maybe she needed to think of a better descriptor for Luke’s worrying tendencies. Sometimes, like now when they were turned on her, those tendencies annoyed her. But sometimes when he turned to her for comfort, she liked them. She liked being the one to ease his troubled mind and wipe the anxiety from his face. Why was that? She certainly felt no need to soothe other kids. Maybe because she was sort of responsible for Luke. He wasn’t as good at sports as she was. For a while, the kids had picked him for red rover on purpose because they knew he was a weak link. Then Sadie had threatened them, and they quit. Now he always stood by her and they clotheslined anyone who might otherwise try to break them apart.

The tree was becoming trickier. The branches were close together, but they were smaller now. She had to carefully test each one before she put her weight on it. Her progress became slow as she had to carefully seek the perfect branch before advancing.

“Sadie, too high,” Luke’s voice floated on the breeze, the wind snatching his words and making them sound hollow. Sadie ignored him and kept going. If she could just get to the top, maybe everything would be okay. Even if she didn’t make it into the record books, maybe her parents would realize how hard she was trying to make them stop fighting. Something had to work. She didn’t know how much more of the unbearable tension she could take. If she could move in with Luke, she would. Tom and Maddie Sawyer never fought. Things were peaceful at Luke’s house. Why hadn’t she been born into their family? Then she and Luke would be brother and sister. They probably wouldn’t get along as well if they were family. Sadie knew kids who were brother and sister and they fought all the time. Would she rather be best friends with Luke or have parents who didn’t fight all the time? The choice was too difficult; Sadie pushed it away and concentrated on the tree.

Ahead of her loomed the perfect branch, long, broad and sturdy. First she reached out to the branch above it and secured her hands. Then she stepped out and rested her full weight on the perfect branch. It crumbled beneath her feet like dry toast. For one horrible moment, she thought she was a goner, but her hands had a death grip on the branch above. She dangled helplessly for a second until she regained her equilibrium, then she eased toward the trunk and selected another branch for her feet. Though small, it was sturdy. She was able to rest her full weight on it and look down. She expected to see Luke throwing a hissy fit. What she saw instead was Luke lying on the ground, the giant broken branch across his forehead.

“Luke!” she yelled as she began to make her way frantically down the tree. What had taken so long to scale only took a few minutes to descend. Sadie became squirrel-like in her haste to get to Luke, clambering through the branches like a chipmunk intent on an acorn.

He was conscious, but hazy. Blood gushed from a gash on his forehead, and his color was a pasty whitish gray. “Luke.” Sadie pushed the branch off him and used the hem of her shirt to swipe the blood off his forehead. No matter how much she wiped, more came to take its place.

“Ouch,” Luke whispered.

“Why didn’t you move out of the way of the branch, dummy?” Sadie said.

“I thought it was you. I was trying to catch you.”

“Can you sit up?”

“I think so.” He sounded weak. He sat up and slumped against her shoulder while she tried to think what to do. They were in the middle of the woods, far from houses or people. She would have to get him home or at least back to civilization.

“You’re going to ride on my handlebars,” Sadie said. “We’ll leave your bike here and come back for it.”

“That doesn’t seem safe,” Luke said.

“It’s the only way. Come on.” Her arm slid around his waist. He leaned heavily on her as she helped him to her bike. Once there, he hesitated again.

“Sadie, what if I fall off?”

“You won’t fall off because I won’t let you. Now get up there or else.”

He didn’t ask what “or else” might entail, not because he thought she would follow through on her threat but because he was too used to taking her orders to disobey. She propped him on her handlebars and held on to the back of his shirt so he wouldn’t tip forward. Luke closed his eyes to stop the onslaught of the blurry ground beneath them. Sadie pedaled faster than she had ever pedaled before, which was saying something because she was a fast biker; he usually had trouble keeping up with her.

She took him to Gideon. Luke wasn’t surprised. Not only were Gideon and Sadie especially close, but his parents were more emotional about things. Gideon was one of those people who always knew the right thing to do in an emergency, like Sadie. Some girls might have freaked out. Luke resentfully thought he wouldn’t have minded a little bit of freaking out considering the massive amount of blood he was losing. Maybe he would die; then she would miss him. He didn’t want to die, though, because he would miss her, too.

“I think this is going to need stitches,” Gideon said as he bent over Luke and assessed his head. “Hold steady there, Luke. You’re going to make it. Head wounds always bleed a lot. Sadie, run and get a cool cloth. We’ll get him cleaned up a little before we let Tom and Maddie see the damage.”

Sadie returned with the cloth. Gideon pressed it to the wound and began to clean. Sadie grasped Luke’s lapels and peered into his face. “The stitches might hurt a little, but if you’re brave and don’t cry, I’ll give you one of my geodes.”

He was already on the verge of tears. How did she do it? How did she remain so calm all the time? She never cried, ever. Suddenly Luke was really mad about that. “Maybe I want to cry. It hurts. I could have died. I still might.”

She smiled. “I guess you can cry if you want, and I’ll give you one of my geodes anyway.”

There was something in her smile that made his heart hurt, but he didn’t know what it was. And he didn’t have time to guess because his parents showed up, his mother in full panic mode. “Luke, Lucas, honey, are you okay? Can you talk? Can you count to ten?” In their haste to reach him, they pushed Sadie out of the way as they knelt beside him. Luke gave distracted answers to his mother’s questions, but his eyes followed Sadie from the room. Why was she going? Sadie was security. He needed her here. Didn’t she know that?

Gideon got up and followed her from the room. A minute later, someone was crying loud, horrible tears, and it wasn’t until a long time later that Luke realized it was Sadie. Her brave façade had been just that, a fake. When push came to shove, Sadie Cooper was as human as everybody else.

She was cooking again. Luke had lost track of how many mornings he had entered the kitchen to find Sadie standing at the stove wearing shorts and a t-shirt, flipping an omelet and sipping coffee. Her curls flounced with every flip of the pan, catching Luke’s eye when he tried to look away. It would be so easy to slip behind her, take the pan from her grasp, and nuzzle his face into her neck.

“Morning, Luke.”

Aunt Abby’s cheerful voice intruded into his forbidden and yet all-too-familiar daydreams. “Good morning, Abby.” He filled a glass with juice and sat beside Abby at the table. She worked well as a buffer between him and Sadie; it was nearly impossible to think of anything inappropriate with the staid and proper Abby always in attendance.

Sadie divided the omelet, gave half to Abby and slid the other half in front of him. She didn’t eat eggs. Instead she poured herself a bowl of cereal and sat down at the table. No woman but his mom had ever cooked for Luke before. He found the action both disturbing and endearing.

“What’s on today’s agenda?” he asked his companions as he tucked into the steaming pile of eggs and cheese. Sadie made a mean omelet.

“We have to help Mr. Mason find his pills,” Sadie said. The first and only client in their fledgling private detective agency was an elderly man named Mr. Mason. He lost his pills every few days and was fully convinced that someone was stealing them. Every few days, Sadie and Abby went over to help him find them again. He paid them in leftover snacks he saved from his Meals on Wheels delivery. Luke thought the old guy was so lonely that he hid his own pills in order to have some company.

“And then,” he prompted.

“And then I’m going to reorganize the office, make some calls, make some contacts,” Sadie muttered. She stared hard at her cereal. Luke tried not to feel what she was feeling—the hopelessness of her new situation weighed on her, but she tried to keep a stiff upper lip for Abby’s sake. So far Abby seemed oblivious to the fact that their new business was a total failure. 

“I’m going to the senior center. It’s my turn to call bingo,” Abby said.

Luke looked up at her in alarm. “You’re leaving?”

“Don’t you have class today?” Sadie asked.

“No, I have to work on a paper. I’m going to be here.” Their eyes met and held over the table. They didn’t spend time together in the house without Abby—it was their great unspoken rule.

“I’ve also decided we should get that weapon’s endorsement on our private investigator’s certificates,” Abby declared, forcing Luke and Sadie’s attention back to her.

“What?” Luke said. “Abby, I don’t want you guys carrying guns.”

“Luke, all good PI’s pack heat,” Abby said.

Luke choked on his orange juice and sopped it with a napkin while Sadie took over. She was on his side for once.

“I don’t know, Abby. Guns are a huge responsibility, not to mention expensive.”

“I already have some,” Abby said.

Luke and Sadie exchanged glances again. “You already have some,” Luke repeated.

“Sure. My dad loved guns. He was a great hunter. That pheasant on the mantel? He knew the man who shot that.” She finished her omelet and dabbed delicately at her lips. “If we’re going to be serious about this, then we need to know how to shoot.”

“Luke and I know how to shoot. Dad taught us,” Sadie informed her.

“Well, honey, by those standards I know how to shoot, too. But I haven’t done it in a long time, and I want us to be good, really good, Marshall Dillon good.”

Sadie shot Luke a look.
Who is Marshall Dillon?

He shrugged; he had no idea.

“Can he teach us?” Sadie asked

“Who?”

“Your friend, Marshall Dillon.”

Abby laughed and then laughed harder when she realized Sadie was serious. “Sadie, Matt Dillon.”

“Wasn’t he the guy on
Entourage?
“ Sadie asked

“No, that was his brother, Kevin,” Luke said. “What? I know things,” he added when Sadie gave him a look.

“You kids,” Abby huffed. “I’m talking about Marshall Matt Dillon from
Gunsmoke.
” They continued to give her blank stares. “
Gunsmoke
!” She smacked her palm on the table. “I swan, it’s as if I’m from another planet.” Since Abby didn’t believe in swearing, she used the less edgy “I swan” whenever she was trying to convey a point.

“We’ll Google Matt Dillon,” Luke promised.

“Google? What’s Google?” Abby said, adding a wink to let them know she was kidding. She stood and carried her plate to the sink. “Time for me to go. The old folks get antsy if Bingo doesn’t start on time.”

“At what point do you think she’ll realize she’s older than most of the people she’s calling Bingo for?” Sadie asked.

“Never, I hope,” Luke said. “So you’re really sticking around this morning.”

“Like glue,” Sadie said.

The front door opened and Abby’s car started. “How long are you going to keep this up, Sadie?”

“What?” She stood and cleared their plates.

“This charade of a job. I know you’ve been putting in hours in the chicken suit to make ends meet.”

“I had a car payment coming due, no big deal. And now that the weather is turning cooler, the chicken suit feels comfortable. I’m thinking of replacing my coat with it.”

In a typical Sadie evasive maneuver, she left the kitchen. Luke should probably let it go, but he felt prickly and irritable from too much Sadie and yet not enough Sadie. In short, she was driving him crazy. He wanted to tell her to stop looking kissable all the time, but of course he couldn’t. “Look, this was all well and good when it was just finding Mr. Mason’s pills, but now Abby’s talking about learning to shoot. One or both of you is going to get hurt. How do you think that makes me feel?”

“I don’t know, Luke. Do you want to lie down on the couch and tell me all about your feelings? I could get a pad of paper and take notes, although I have to warn you that I don’t think anything is going to be your mother’s fault. She’s too sweet. Your problems are your own, but I’m willing to help you work on them.”

“I’m serious, Sadie.”

“You, serious? Shocking.”

They faced off in the foyer. They hadn’t had a good row since she moved in, and Luke suddenly realized how much he needed one to clear some of the ever-present tension between them. “Yes, I’m serious. One of us in this house has to be with you and Abby pretending to be the latter day Cagney and Lacey.”

She cupped her hand to her ear “What was that, Gideon? I couldn’t quite hear your critical prediction of my failure. Could you repeat it for the whole neighborhood?”

Luke winced at the barb. He didn’t sound like Gideon, did he? Sadie could never do anything right in her father’s eyes, but he wasn’t like that. He was supportive in anything that didn’t have the potential to devastate or wound her. Either she would fail miserably at her new career or she would get hurt trying to prove herself. There were ten feet between them. He took a couple of steps closer. “Sade, come on. You know I’m only looking out for you here.”

“Why does you looking out for me always feel like you trying to make me into someone else? Maybe I’m going to fail at this, Luke. It wouldn’t be the first time I fell flat on my face. But Abby needs this, she needs me to try my best. We haven’t reached the end yet, and I’m not ready to throw in the towel. You can get behind us and be supportive or you can join Gideon and throw rocks. Your choice.” She crossed her arms over her midsection, but they were wrapped too tightly for defiance. Instead the gesture looked self-protective and he melted.

“All right. From now on, I’m the guy who will bring the pom-poms to your cheering section.”

Her smile had the same effect as the sun coming from behind the clouds. “It works both ways, you know. I’m front and center cheering for your doctorate stuff. Maybe I could help you. Do you want me to lure some hapless victims in here so you can do experiments on them? Nobody lures better than me.” She took a couple of steps forward. Six feet—still safe.

“I’m well-acquainted with your luring skills,” Luke said, his tone dry. “You used them on the paperboy and now we’ve been getting a free paper every day.”

“Two, actually. I take one to my room and leave the other for you and Abby.”

“Sadie, he’s seventeen.”

“So? When I was seventeen, it was a very good year. I’m making his a little better. It’s not like I actually flirt with him. I say hi and wave. Not my fault he has a crush.”

“For the sake of keeping you honest, I must point out that you waved to him while you were sunbathing in a bikini. The poor kid fell off his bike and chipped a tooth.”

“My burqa is being dry cleaned, but when it comes back, I’ll make sure to cover up at all times. Honestly, Luke, you are such a prude. And it wasn’t a bikini; it was a tankini.”

“A what? What are you talking about? Are you making up words now?”

“A tankini. It’s a tank top. Like this.” She reached out and traced the outline of a tank top on him, and that’s when he realized they had meandered within touching distance of each other.
Danger, danger, danger.

“Don’t try to make it sound modest. Your midriff was bared.” His fingers grazed her stomach.

“I have a bellybutton; now you know.”

“I learned that the day you made me see how far in I could shove a jellybean. Surprisingly far, I remember. You’re definitely an innie.”

“Don’t say innie ever again. It disturbs me. Luke?”

He shoved his hands in his pockets to remove them from temptation. “Hmm?”

“You said you had work to do.”

“So did you.”

“You should go to your office,” she said.

“You should go to your office,” he said, but neither of them moved. They lingered in the hall, inches apart, looking but not touching. Luke could feel himself standing on the precipice, dangling a foot over the edge. One hand eased out of his pocket, and the doorbell rang. He slouched in relief as Sadie jumped away from him and sprinted to answer, skidding to a halt with her fingers on the handle.

She never looked before she opened the door, of course. Leap before looking, that was Sadie’s motto. She ripped open the door and stared at a well-dressed middle-aged man with a benevolent-looking smile. “Hello, I’m looking for Atwood and Cooper Investigative Services.”

Was that the name Sadie and Abby had chosen for their business? It had a nice ring to it; Luke liked it. “I’m Sadie Cooper, the Cooper half of the duo.” She plunged her hand out and the man shook it before glancing at Luke.

“I wondered if I could talk to you. I think I may need to hire you.”

“Of course. Come in. Please forgive my informal attire.” She plucked halfheartedly at her t-shirt. “I was preparing to do some heavy lifting in the office today. Usually I dress more professionally.”

Liar,
Luke thought. The day before she had dressed like a pirate complete with a fake bird on her shoulder. When questioned, she said she was testing Halloween costumes. The man’s gaze landed appraisingly on Luke again.

“Is that the Atwood half of your company?” he asked.

“No, he’s a silent partner, and by silent I mean that he’s deaf and mute. Childhood accident, very sad.” She turned to Luke and began making random hand gestures. “This gentleman and I are going into the office to talk.”

In return, Luke made a gesture that would have been considered very rude if they were in Italy.

“Go put a dollar in the swear jar, potty mouth,” Sadie said as she made some more hand gestures and pointed to the kitchen.

He rolled his eyes as he turned and left them alone.

“Right this way to my office, Mr., I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name.”

“White, Ben White.”

Bond, James Bond,
Sadie thought before quickly admonishing herself not to make fun of potential customers.
Who gives their last name first? This guy, apparently.
“Mr. White, have a seat. Would you mind very much if I call you Ben? Because I probably will anyway. We’re too close in age for me to remember formalities.”