| Mystery and Crime Fiction posted June 1, 2020 | Chapters: |
2 3 -4- 5... 
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The plans are in place. What could go wrong?
A chapter in the book Looking for Orion - 2
The Best Laid Plans: part 1
by DeboraDyess
| Background Brothers Jack and Cody McClellan have to fight for their faith ... and their lives. C'mon! It's too early for a book summary! Just read... lol |
Previously:
During preparations for a surprise birthday party for his brother, Jack McClellan recieves a phone call that will change the lives of everyone in the family His sister-in-law, Pam, has been murdered in a robbery. Cody, a patrolman for the local police department, responded to the 911 call and finds his wife to be the victim of the crime.
Two years later ...
During preparations for a surprise birthday party for his brother, Jack McClellan recieves a phone call that will change the lives of everyone in the family His sister-in-law, Pam, has been murdered in a robbery. Cody, a patrolman for the local police department, responded to the 911 call and finds his wife to be the victim of the crime.
Two years later ...
"You need a vacation." Jack had practiced that single line half the morning, trying to sound first enthusiastic, then nonchalant, then authoritative, which he'd decided immediately was the wrong approach. Now that the words had actually been spoken aloud they sounded as ridiculous in the quiet study as a Three Stooges routine would appear in the middle of church. He perched on the corner of the huge, antique desk in his brother's home-office. It was an old oak piece from some period in Americana that Cody had taken a fancy to, about which Jack knew very little and cared even less. He crossed his arms across his chest and watched Cody raise his eyebrows and click on the desired information on his computer monitor, waiting for a response.
His younger brother's face lit with a smile, which wasn't what Jack expected. "Yeah, I need a vacation. I need a new car and a new lawnmower, too. Oh, and the dryer's getting pretty iffy, so I probably need a new one of them, too, now that I think about it. So I either need to win the lottery, which I don't play, or I need a couple of new clients. Work, work, work, you know." His tone was light and he smiled, studied the screen in front of him and rose from his desk. He stretched and looked squarely at his brother, knowing him too well to fall for the well planned, casual comment. "Where are you going with this, Jack?"
"Nowhere." Jack sat down as Cody vacated the desk. He paused just long enough for Cody to dismiss him. "It's just been a while since you've had any time off." Jack watched the ceiling fan lazily revolve above them. "Mom and I were talking about it the other day--"
"Uh, oh." Cody grimaced at the mention of a potential conspiracy, but his brother ignored the interruption.
"--and we think the last time you went on vacation was when we all went up to Colorado to ski. Don't you remember how much fun we had?" Jack received no answer.
He was talking way too fast, he realized, because he felt breathless after the brief monologue. He paused, collecting his thoughts the way he had been taught during a short, but embarrassing dip into the world of high school debate teams. He'd joined the group in pursuit of some brunette whose name and face he'd long since forgotten, but the skills he learned he used almost daily. He started again, slower, calmer. "That's the last one Mom and I can remember, anyway. That was three years ago, Code. I don't even think you've gone out of town on anything but business since then. Three years is a long time to go without a break." He paused to allow his words to sink into his brother's incredibly thick head. A picture of him, Laine, Pam and Cody in full ski gear, laughing and half-falling into each other, hung on the wall across the room from him. He smiled, wishing for a return to Colorado, to that time.
"So what's going on in that little Jack-brain of yours?" Cody interrupted his brother's wandering thoughts.
Jack made a face. "You know I hate it when you say that," he protested.
"So what's going on in that little Jack-brain of yours?" Cody repeated without a pause.
His younger brother's face lit with a smile, which wasn't what Jack expected. "Yeah, I need a vacation. I need a new car and a new lawnmower, too. Oh, and the dryer's getting pretty iffy, so I probably need a new one of them, too, now that I think about it. So I either need to win the lottery, which I don't play, or I need a couple of new clients. Work, work, work, you know." His tone was light and he smiled, studied the screen in front of him and rose from his desk. He stretched and looked squarely at his brother, knowing him too well to fall for the well planned, casual comment. "Where are you going with this, Jack?"
"Nowhere." Jack sat down as Cody vacated the desk. He paused just long enough for Cody to dismiss him. "It's just been a while since you've had any time off." Jack watched the ceiling fan lazily revolve above them. "Mom and I were talking about it the other day--"
"Uh, oh." Cody grimaced at the mention of a potential conspiracy, but his brother ignored the interruption.
"--and we think the last time you went on vacation was when we all went up to Colorado to ski. Don't you remember how much fun we had?" Jack received no answer.
He was talking way too fast, he realized, because he felt breathless after the brief monologue. He paused, collecting his thoughts the way he had been taught during a short, but embarrassing dip into the world of high school debate teams. He'd joined the group in pursuit of some brunette whose name and face he'd long since forgotten, but the skills he learned he used almost daily. He started again, slower, calmer. "That's the last one Mom and I can remember, anyway. That was three years ago, Code. I don't even think you've gone out of town on anything but business since then. Three years is a long time to go without a break." He paused to allow his words to sink into his brother's incredibly thick head. A picture of him, Laine, Pam and Cody in full ski gear, laughing and half-falling into each other, hung on the wall across the room from him. He smiled, wishing for a return to Colorado, to that time.
"So what's going on in that little Jack-brain of yours?" Cody interrupted his brother's wandering thoughts.
Jack made a face. "You know I hate it when you say that," he protested.
"So what's going on in that little Jack-brain of yours?" Cody repeated without a pause.
Jack raised his eyebrows to dismiss his brother's slur. "I took this weekend off … traded with Lou Hough. You know him? Young guy, kind of short, heavy set … moved here from Houston. He looks kind of like a Caucasian Sumo wrestler." He finished, aware that he'd begun rambling, and that Cody wouldn't be looking at him any more strangely if a spider crawled out of his nose. He smiled as if offering redemption to a fallen soul, rather than a short trip to his over-worked brother. "Anyway, I thought we'd take the three days and go camping."
"Oh, really? In case you've missed it, Jack, I've been starting a business. You can't go running off whenever the mood hits you." Cody wadded a piece of paper and arced it toward the trashcan, sinking it perfectly into the center as he spoke. He grinned at Jack, picked up one of the manila folders from the desk his brother occupied and placed it in a file.
Like his brother, Cody was tall, broad-shouldered and dark, as were most of the myriad of McClellan men he'd grown up around. The old family legend described not just a monstrous Moorish conqueror in ancient Ireland, but also an Indian maiden in more recent family genealogy. While neither brother entirely bought the story, neither one fully disbelieved it, either. It somewhat accounted for the family's dark skinned Irish descent and made for an interesting story, especially when Jack embellished it with a fictional one-legged, one-eyed, hook-handed pirate.
Cody's size and coloring, along with eyes the color of an early spring sky, made an eye-catching combination, although he never seemed to notice. When he smiled, which he didn't do often enough, people actually stopped to look. Jack had personally witnessed a woman stop him on the street to ask him if she should get his autograph. Cody stared at her, eyes wide, mouth open in surprise, the conversation he'd been sharing with his brother completely forgotten. The woman, flustered and embarrassed by his response, rushed away without another word, leaving the brothers staring at her retreating back. Jack turned his gaze to Cody and laughter erupted. Cody looked at him, never entirely sure that Jack had not set the whole thing up.
"Poor little guy, starting his own business." Jack attempted to whine the words, but came far closer to sounding ridiculous than pathetic. "Don't cry to me, Bro." He stretched out, put his feet on the desk and leaned back. "You're making more money now than you did on the force. More money than I am, some months. Besides, I thought running off whenever the mood hits you would be the big perk in being your own boss."
Cody smiled crookedly at his brother and nodded, but said, "Can't do it this weekend, anyway. Kids have school Friday. If you wanted to go camping you should've brought it up before the school year started. Besides, Michael has a soccer game Saturday and I have a class to teach Sunday morning." He shoved Jack's feet off the desk. Jack put them back up immediately, smiling as Cody started talking again. "I'm not sure I'd call a camping trip with Katie a vacation, anyway, Jack. Not really her thing, you know? She freaks out when Michael shows her fishing worms."
"This weekend's great, Code." Jack took a breath, preparing for the fireworks he anticipated would commence with his next words, and ticked the reasons off on the fingers of his left hand. "You're fixing to be in between cases and I have the weekend off. Alan Paulo said he'd take your class. He says he doubts it'll give him a stroke to teach your motley crew for one Sunday, but not to count on it." Cody slammed a cabinet drawer harder than necessary and Jack raised his eyebrows at the noise. If that made Cody mad this should really set him off, he thought. "And the kids aren't invited. Mom's taking them. I'm taking you."
Cody narrowed his eyes to cat-like slits and looked at Jack, who shifted in the leather chair, slightly uncomfortable in the intense stare he received. "I can make my own plans, Jack."
"Evidently you can't, Code. Since you don't."
"I don't have time for a big-brother lecture."
"Well, when will you have time? I'll rearrange my schedule."
"I could work you in three years from Thursday. Now, get your feet off my desk." Cody thumped the toe of Jack's shoe.
I'm sorry to cut the chapter off at such a weird place. the next good spot would make this read over 2,000 words. It will go up tomorrow.
Thank you for reading. I know this is a long novel (especially compared to my last one!) and very, very different in both style and theme. I appreciate you reading. :)
Pays
one point
and 2 member cents. Thank you for reading. I know this is a long novel (especially compared to my last one!) and very, very different in both style and theme. I appreciate you reading. :)
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