Young and Hungry - For Life - 9. Writer’s Block

When schools closed, Julia and Hannah came to an arrangement. Julia would keep their law practice running and Hannah would stay at home to supervise James during on-line study. When it came to their children, after health, education was the mothers’ main concern for their sons.

The plan worked well. With lockdown, the law office was slower and Julia could handle the load on her own. But, when necessary, Hannah could still meet virtually with her clients if they insisted. Otherwise Hannah devoted all her time to running the house and ensuring her son’s education did not suffer because of the lack of face to face teaching.

Alex was on a gap year. Having been uncertain about taking law at university, he convinced his mothers to give him a year to think about it. He secured a part-time job at a local barbecue chicken shop. That brought in some income, which he saved so he could travel in the second half of the year.

With all that had happened in the past year, Julia was surprised that a whole year had passed since Jared’s death. She was just coming to terms with having lost her first born so soon after meeting him, so it was a shock when the anniversary date popped up in her diary. She thought about having a memorial function but due to lockdown, only five visitors would be allowed to attend. She abandoned the idea when she realised she could not come up with a list of only five people, without leaving out others who had been close to Jared. Instead she thought of sending Hannah and the boys out for the evening so she could be alone with a bottle and her memories.

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“But why don’t you want to come with us and anyway where would we go? Restaurants and cinemas are closed and I don’t think it would be proper to invite ourselves to a friend’s place for no special reason.” suggested Hannah.

“Friday is the anniversary of Jared’s death and I just want to be alone and don’t want the boys to see me if I don’t cope well.”

“Julia, I’m somewhat offended at that suggestion and I think you underestimate the boys.”

“What do you mean?”

“Firstly, if you are suffering why would you not want me to support you? Then there are the boys. They were thrilled to have an uncle and saddened when they lost him so soon. Are they not entitled to share their grief with you and support you as well?”

“But...I don’t want to be seen as a snivelling wreck in front of the boys.”

“Left alone you may become a snivelling wreck, as you put it. But with sharing and support the whole experience could be a positive one.”

“Do you really think the boys would want to be involved?”

“I do, but why don’t you ask them yourself.”

“Would you help?”

“Of course, shall I call them in now?”

“Before you do that, can you give me a hug?”

As the two women hugged, Julia said “I’m so fortunate to have you Hannah, you are my rock and I think you’re right about the boys. We have been good mothers and raised Alex and James to be thoughtful and supportive young men. Let’s do it.”

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The boys were thrilled to be asked to be involved and to make the evening even more special, asked if they could prepare the dinner on their own. Then Alex added “We’ll leave the supply of the grog up to you two.”

“You cheeky young man” scolded Julia.

“Oh, I’m glad you called me young man Mum, because it reminds me that I will soon be eighteen and able to drink legally.”

“So where is this conversation heading?”

“Well, when I’m eighteen I can go out and drink as much as I like and you won’t be able to stop me, legally.”

“Yes, go on.”

“I’ve heard that some of the older guys at school have done just that and got completely shit faced, because they didn’t know how to handle their grog. So I was thinking that if you let me and James, have a drink at home sometimes, under your supervision of course, then we would learn how to drink in moderation.”

Hannah answered “I think we may have another solicitor in the family, Julia. That was very well reasoned Alex. What do you think Julia?”

“I’m not sure whether I’ve just been coerced or presented with an undebatable proposal.”

Then taking Hannah’s hand, Julia added, “Fine for you Alex, but Hannah has the final say about James.”

The matter was resolved in the affirmative, but on the condition that both boys do some online research about the effects of alcohol and responsible drinking, then present their findings to their mothers. Needless to say, the assignment was completed in record time and presented on Friday evening before dinner, so their mothers could read it while the boys prepared dinner.

***

Over dinner the family swapped memories of Jared and they were surprised at how many memories they had from such a short period of time.

“I remember when we were about to tell you about him, I was so nervous, I really didn’t know how you would take it, learning that I had that secret all those years” said Julia.

“Yeah and I got pissed off when I was no longer the big brother of the family” added Alex “And it probably doesn’t sound nice to say so, but now I am again.”

“Yes, you are and I’m so proud of the way you accept that status and responsibility.”

“Thanks Mum, I like looking after my little brother.”

“Yeah, only because you get to be Mr Bossy” added James.

“Now, behave you pair, this is a night to remember Jared” Hannah reminded them.

“Sorry Mum, I suppose he’s not so bad and he does let me wear his runners sometimes.”

“Yeah, about that; You’re supposed to be my little brother but your feet are as big as mine.”

“That’s not all.” concluded James, as he managed to simultaneously raise his eyebrows and look down.

“Ok, keep it clean boys.”

“Bye the way” said Alex, “We’ve provided you with this sumptuous meal, so when are you going to keep your side of the bargain Mums?”

“What’s that” asked Julia.

Both boys picked up the wine glasses, they had made sure were set on the table, and tipped them upside down.

“You’re right” said Hannah, let me pour for you gentlemen.”

“I can do it Mum” offered Alex.

“No, I will, to ensure a reasonable serve.” She then poured Alex a full glass of wine, James a half glass, and reminded them, “Wine is to be sipped, not guzzled. So make it last because that’s all you get tonight.”

Alex lifted his full glass and proposed “A toast to Jared’s memory.”

“And to us as learner responsible drinkers” added James.

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Later in the night, while Hannah and Julia were taking the dishes to the kitchen, James took the opportunity to top up everyone’s glasses, including his and Alex’s. The boys thought it had gone unnoticed when their mothers returned, but they didn’t notice the wink that passed between their mothers, because they were too busy holding their hands around their glasses, to conceal the real contents.

To further distract their mothers’ attention, Alex asked “What’s your favourite memory of Jared, James?”

“Um...let me think. Yes I know, it was the first time we met, when he came to dinner with cousin Justin. I’ll never forget the sight of him when he took off his jacket and was wearing the uber tight T shirt that showed off his muscles. I thought I’d cream my jeans.”

“James!’ his mother shouted.

“Just sayin’ Mum.”

“Well, find a way to say it more politely.”

“That’s how us gay guys talk, Mum.”

“Maybe, but show a little more respect for the deceased.”

“Uncle Jared would be thrilled to know he was seen that way. Us guys don’t pump up our bodies like that unless we want to be noticed.”

“You’ve got to admit” added Julia, “He was a handsome, well built young man.”

“Yeah, granted” admitted Hannah.

“So Alex, what’s your favourite memory?” asked James

“Um...it was when he agreed to be my mentor about women. It was really neat that he could advise both of us. Being bisexual must have it’s advantages”

“So are you thinking of straddling the fence?” asked James

“No, I couldn’t do it with a man, but I admire him for being able to do it with both sexes”

“OK boys, I think that’s enough of those memories” said Julia

“So what about you?” asked Hannah “Do you have a favourite memory?”

“You now, what should be my favourite memory, I was deprived of. With Alex it is and always will be the moment he was presented to me after his birth. I didn’t have that opportunity with Jared.....”

Julia paused, sniffed and wiped her eyes.

“It’s alright Mum” said Alex “Cry if you want to, it is sad”

Hannah then said “Maybe I should take my turn. It might sound a bit strange, but my favourite memory is when we had our little disagreement at the barbecue. He was so convincing with his argument that you boys needed a male perspective on some matters. I had to agree with him in the end. I like the way he kept his cool and always put your welfare first. That’s my favourite memory of him”

“Are you ready now Mum?” asked Alex

“Mine is a bit odd also. But he had a funny way when addressing me. During our first phone conversation he asked me what he should call me and I said ‘Julia is fine’ and he continued to call me Julia, but he often paused before saying it. I think he was about to call me mum, but stopped himself just in time”

“Why didn’t you tell him to call you mum?” asked Hannah

“When he asked me during that phone call, I only thought of him having another mother who had raised him all his life. It seemed to me, at the time, that I would have been causing him to be conflicted or confused. And it just continued from there. Given more time together we might have come to a different arrangement”

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Other than her one little moment, Julia coped well with the memorial dinner and was pleased she had taken Hannah’s advice. The boys kept the evening light hearted and Julia thought that was better than sitting alone, drinking herself into a depression.

***

With Divas still closed and Romel working extra nursing shifts, Edward had plenty of time for writing. The silence of Edward writing, meant Peggy could rest peacefully nearby but still be comforted by his presence. She had taken possession of an old pouffe in burnt orange, the colour of the seventies. Edward’s mother had given it to him many years ago and he had consigned it to the spare room, that now served as his writing den. Peggy turned out to be a good sounding board for Edward’s writing ideas. He would ask her opinion, she would occasionally lift her head and look at Edward, but never disagreed with him. Edward took this action to mean she approved of his suggestion and so it went into the story. If she showed no interest at all, which was more often than not, the idea remained just that.

With Peggy’s support, Edward threw himself completely into the project and churned out chapter after chapter. Every day for two months he satisfied the hunger of that begging cursor.

Broughton police retrieved the CCTV footage from the shopping mall and were able to capture the image of a person leaving the toilet at the estimated time of the murder .The image did not match any on file, so they released edited footage to the media, in the hope that they might get an identification.

A few hours after the evening news bulletins, Inspector Ramsey received a report from the Crime Stoppers hotline. An anonymous caller had identified the man leaving the toilet. The caller knew the man’s name and occupation. From this information the police quickly found his address and Ramsey went to the address to interview the suspect, Brandon Hales. While he was doing that his assistant searched through the house. He returned to the car, retrieved a large evidence bag and returned to the laundry. After bagging the evidence item, he took Ramsey aside and said “I think I have enough evidence for you to arrest him now”

After seeing the evidence, Ramsey called his office to order a search warrant for the house and vehicle. He returned to Hales and arrested him.

Forensics identified the blood on the overalls found in the laundry, and on the wrench found in the ute, as both belonging to the victim, Sam Hitchcock. The team who originally investigated the crime scene also had fingerprints from high on the partition separating the two toilet cubicles. Those prints matched Hales. After further interrogation, Ramsey was sure he had the right suspect. He presented his evidence to the Public Prosecutor, who in turn ordered a hearing.

At the initial hearing Hales was charged with first degree murder and remanded in custody until a trial date.

His trial commenced five months later. The police and forensic experts presented the physical evidence of the blood stained overalls, the plumber’s wrench and the fingerprints. The CCTV footage was screened for the court and Ramsey alleged that Hales clearly had no alibi. His wife testified as to his propensity for violence and a marriage counsellor, he had consulted many years before, backed up this testimony. The anonymous caller who originally identified Hales did not come forward but a number of other witnesses testified that they had witnessed occasions when Hales exhibited violent tendencies.

A teacher from Hales’ son’s former school also testified as to a former connection between Hales and Hitchcock. He said he clearly remembered Hales saying ‘If I ever see the man again I will take care of the matter myself’. When asked about the occasion when he was told this by Hales, the teacher detailed an incident, sexual in nature, between the victim and Hales’ son. His son did not appear in court but the police tendered a witness statement that corroborated the sexual incident at the school.

The jury took only two hours to deliver their verdict of ‘Guilty’. Hales was sentenced to 25 years imprisonment, and incarcerated in Long Bay prison.

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Edward was pleased with the progress of his book, but would not allow anyone to read it. Up to this point he had mostly followed the research he gathered from news reports about Haynes trial and conviction. But if he was going to write a murder mystery then had had to fictionalise the rest of his story.

He planned to jump forward one year in time and created a character who would have reason to murder Hales. He created a character he called Bryce, the partner of Sam Hitchcock at the time of his death.

Edward then hit his first writer’s block.

***

June saw the further easing of lockdown restrictions. Personal services businesses could now open, subject to a limited number of clients on the premises at any time.

Rani went back to the salon while Brett and Jeremy reopened Dare to Bare.

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