Dave Zeltserman - Small crimes

'I don't have to go bothering Pop because of your bullshit delusions. But I tell you, Joe, there's going to be a price you're gonna pay for disturbing Pop. Beyond and above the thirty grand you owe me.'

'You got me shaking here, Junior.'

He took a step towards my car, his face flushed with violence. 'If you had any brains you would be shaking. You and me will settle this later, Joe. I promise you that.'

'If you have any issues with me,' I said, 'we can settle them now.'

'Nah, later, when we have some privacy.'

'We don't have to wait. If you want I can get out of the car now and kick the crap out of you in front of your two kids. Would you like me to do that?'

He started walking away from my car, his ugly grin back in place. 'That's okay, Joe. We'll settle things later. I guarantee it.'

I watched as Junior and his two kids walked across the parking lot and got into his Range Rover. I was so caught up watching them that I wasn't aware that Charlotte had gotten into my passenger seat until she closed the door shut. It damn near gave me a heart attack.

'Here you go,' she said as she handed me a bottle of water and a pill. As I swallowed the pill, I noticed Junior's Range Rover slow down and could see him getting a good long look at Charlotte. Both his boys were also staring at her, both with their pug noses pressed hard against the same back passenger window. Junior lowered his window and waved at the two of us.

'See you around, Joe,' he yelled out before speeding off.

'I think that was Mr. Vassey's son,' Charlotte said.

I nodded. I didn't like the fact that Junior saw the two of us together, but there was nothing I could do about it and it probably didn't matter.

'He doesn't seem like a very nice man,' she remarked quietly. 'I'd have to agree with that.'

She peered at me for a moment before turning away with a slight blush. 'Your swelling has gone down. Are you feeling any better?'

'I think so.'

I gave a quick look in the rearview mirror and could see she was right about the swelling. It was easier to keep my eyes open against the sunlight. As I pulled out of the parking lot and headed towards Burlington, Charlotte seemed lost in her own thoughts. She sat quietly, her brow furrowed, her small hands clasped tightly together.

At one point I thought I saw her shivering. I asked whether she was cold. She hesitated for a moment before telling me that she was fine. I pulled the car over and put the top back up.

'If the wind's bothering you, it's okay to tell me,' I said.

'It really wasn't bothering me,' she said. I could tell from how withdrawn she had gotten that something was on her mind, but

I didn't push it. After several minutes she interrupted our silence to ask me why I came to see her today.

'Why?' I laughed. I wanted to take you out on a date.'

'Why, though?'

'Because it was nice having coffee with you the other day. Because I find you attractive. And I guess because I wanted to get to know you better.'

She sat quietly after that, seeming to sink deeper into her private thoughts.

When we got to downtown Burlington, I parked in a garage and we set off on foot. It was one of those perfect fall days that send couples flocking to the stores and restaurants in the downtown area. It felt good just strolling about outside. As we were checking out the different restaurants around town, Charlotte's mood perked up. Whatever funk she had been slipping into was gone. She became more talkative and it took only a small effort on my part to squeeze a smile out of her.

We found a small French bistro that we decided to settle on. It was two thirty in the afternoon and the place was still crowded. A little after three we were seated. Charlotte ordered an apple crepe and a glass of white wine. I ordered beef bourguignon. I tried asking for a bottle of beer to go with my meal, but Charlotte became concerned about my mixing alcohol with the allergy medication she had given me, so I ended up sticking with coffee. While I wanted the beer, it was kind of sweet that she showed the concern that she did.

Charlotte started to fidget as we waited for our food. The nervousness had come back to her large hazel eyes. I could tell she wanted to ask me something. She looked away from me and stared down at her small clasped hands. I couldn't help noticing how tiny and white her knuckles were.

'Joe,' she asked, 'you're not married, are you?'

I couldn't keep from smiling. So that was what had put her in a funk earlier. 'No,' I said. I was married once, but we divorced over seven years ago. And I don't have a girlfriend. To be honest, you're only the second woman I've ever dated.'

She looked back up at me. I could almost see the thoughts running through her head.

'It's true,' I said. 'I knew my wife when we were kids. We were together through high school and got married right afterwards. I've never dated anyone else, and you're the first person I've gone out with since my divorce.'

'Joe, the only thing I'll ask of you is that you don't lie to me.'

'Everything I've told you is the truth.'

Her eyes held steady on mine again. We sat like that for a while, just kind of looking at each other. I was actually beginning to feel pretty good, almost forgetting what I needed from her. A small, easy smile had made its way onto her face. We sat like that, not really aware of anything else, until our waiter broke the spell by bringing us our food.

I didn't realize how hungry I was until I smelled the food. The only thing I had eaten that day was the powdered doughnuts, and my stomach was now rumbling. Still, though, I forced myself to eat at a leisurely pace. I watched as Charlotte cut her crepe into tiny pieces. After every few bites, she would stop to dab her mouth with her napkin. It was kind of cute, I guess. I never saw anyone eat that way before.

She coughed lightly to get my attention. 'Joe, do you have any children?' she asked.

'Two girls. Melissa's fourteen and Courtney's twelve.'

'Do you see them much?'

From her expression, I could tell what she really wanted to know was whether I still saw my ex-wife much. I shook my head. 'They're out of my life now,' I said. I won't be seeing them in the future.'

She tried to give me a sympathetic look, but I could tell there was some relief mixed in. To be polite, because it wasn't really any surprise to me, I made a comment about how I was surprised that she wasn't already married or involved in a relationship.

'I've never been married,' she said. She seemed to shrink inwards as a darkness passed over her face. I haven't dated much.'

After that I kept the conversation light, asking her about what she liked to do and stuff like that. When she wasn't working, she was usually at home reading a book or watching TV. I had a feeling that since she'd moved to Vermont her company had been almost exclusively her three cats. I could tell that I impressed her when I was able to discuss several of the books that were on her shelves. I didn't tell her that during the last seven years I probably emptied out the Bradley library – or to be more specific, Morris had emptied it out for me. Every week he'd check out between five and ten books for me. It got to the point where during the last year he'd almost always brought me several books each week that I'd already read.

I could see that there was another question dying to bust loose from her. I sat back and smiled and waited for it.

'Joe,' she said, 'you mentioned yesterday that you used to be a police officer?'

'Yeah.' I took a deep breath and made a decision. I did something pretty bad and was kicked off the force.'

An odd look flashed on her face. It wasn't surprise or shock or anything like that. I wasn't quite sure what it was. In any case, she didn't seem taken aback by my answer. She seemed almost satisfied with it, her eyes calm and holding steady on mine.