Goodbye Natalie
Chapter One: No Questions Asked
Jake Barnes watched intently from the road’s edge as the car slowly sank in the turbulent cold waters of the Pacific Ocean, one-hundred feet below. Inside the car was the lifeless body of a man he didn’t know. All he knew of the stranger was that he’d meant to do the same to him. It just didn’t work out that way.
He scanned the horizon of Highway One, both north and south. The only sounds and motion were the wind and steady comforting roar of the waves as they crashed into the rocks below. He touched the tender wounds on his face and surveyed the damage to his ribcage. Four hours ago, he’d been subjected to an hellacious beating. The stranger was a pro and obviously enjoyed his work. Efficient body shots to each side cracked a rib per blow. Quick facial jabs opened cuts on his face. He hadn’t been in a hurry and had Barnes slumped in a corner of his L.A. apartment, defenseless.
”You know why I’m here. Just give me what I want and I’ll make the pain go away.” The stranger seemed contemptuous, as if he’d hoped Barnes would’ve put up a fight. Through the pain, Barnes croaked, ”I don’t have anything. I gave the original to RW and there aren’t any copies. I NEVER MADE ANY COPIES!!”
The stranger sighed resignedly, ”OK, have it your way.” One stiff punch to the stomach left Barnes without air and on the verge of blacking out. For an instant, one momentary second he almost gave in to the temptation. The sweet release of consciousness beckoned him like a welcoming warmth. He fought it off. The stranger ransacked the small apartment and Barnes relaxed, for the moment the torture had slacked, just long enough for him to get a breath and regain his senses.
If the stranger had known that this wasn’t Jake Barnes first beating, and not nearly his worst, he might not have been so confident. Jake’s first had been at about age four, at the hands of an abusive stepfather. He’d learned over the next ten years how to make himself small, appear to be more hurt than he was, how to turn away from the brunt of the blows to avoid serious damage… and, how to look for your opening.
At age fourteen he’d taken the first opening and ran away halfway across the country. He landed in San Francisco, hungry and alone. He got caught shoplifting in a market in Chinatown and only by pleading his case to the grocer, avoided being arrested or returned. Instead, the grocer took pity and allowed him to work off the debt. She set Jake up with a job of sorts, helping out at her cousin’s place, the Magic Carpet Massage Parlor.
He ran errands, helped with the laundry, and learned things he’d never have dreamed of knowing back in the Midwest Bible Belt.
His mentor and confidant, Suki Wong, took a liking to him and showed him things. He learned about life, love, loyalty, kindness ...women. At under five feet, Suki was the wisest and most gentle person Jake had ever known. He also learned that it’s not the size of the dog in the fight, but the size of the fight in the dog that matters.
He’d been at Magic Carpet about six months when he heard a heated argument coming from one of the rooms. A drunk, belligerent customer had become violent and assaulted one of the girls. Jake arrived at the door of the room just in time to see Suki deliver a knuckle punch to the man’s throat that left him gasping for air and on his knees. In another thirty seconds he fell unconscious and from the grim whispers and flurry of activity, Jake realized he’d just seen his first dead body. What ensued was carried out with precision and minimal wasted words or effort.
Suki had Jake pull the customer’s car to the back entrance. They dragged the body to the alley and rolled it out to the car. By lucky chance it was one of those old jalopies with a roomy trunk. They drove about an hour, south of the city, down the coastal road. One of the girls followed in Suki’s car. They came to a dangerous looking hairpin turn in a desolate section of the twisting road where the cliff fell straight down to the ocean below.
Suki was businesslike and didn’t appear to be panicked at all. She parked the car close to the edge and they dragged the body into the driver’s seat. She patted him down quickly and handed a hidden gun and money from the dead man’s wallet to Jake. Expertly, she positioned the corpse behind the steering wheel and inspected her work. She then reached in, started the car, put it in gear, reached down and floored the accelerator enough to propel the vehicle over the side as she deftly stepped back and slammed the door. It was over in two minutes. The heavy vehicle slid off the side of the road into the waiting ocean below. It sank quickly in the dark depths as Suki erased footprints and they cleared the area of evidence.
As they drove back, Suki spoke soothingly and sincerely to Jake to ease his worries. ”Water deep there, they no find for long time...if ever.” She seemed almost pleased and content. ”That good place to hide bad trouble.”
The lines on Jake’s face gave away his torment. ”But Suki, what about the police? What if someone comes looking for him? What about...” She put a finger to his lips. ”You listen now. Somebody hurt you, somebody hurt your family...that not good person. Better they gone. You do good, you be good man...you forget bad things. Suki no mean to kill man, only stop him, sometimes things no go good, you no worry, you do what you have to. You forget now...Better no questions asked.” They never spoke of it again.
Jake thought about Suki now, all three years later, all the lessons learned. The memories came flooding back like bats flying from a cave. He erased the footprints on the road’s edge and cleaned the area above the same cliff where he had stood with Suki in the fog and cold as a boy. A crushing knuckle punch to the stranger’s larynx had collapsed his trachea. Jake had been calm and efficient, securing the body and leaving no evidence. The long drive from L.A. gave him time to assess the situation and develop a plan. He checked his watch and turned up the collar of his jacket. He was going to have to disappear for awhile, find a safe place. The kind of place they take you in, no questions asked. As he faded into the fog like a ghost into vapor, he estimated he could just about make the walk to San Francisco by sun up.
.... to be continued.
