Honor Among Thieves

I went to the pawn shop that the detectives had mentioned. I described the ring and the guy actually remembered throwing it in the scrap jewelry bin. I anxiously went through the whole thing, and found nothing. I tried the other pawn shops in town but with the same results. The ring was gone. I was heartbroken, but there was no fixing it. I try not to dwell on things I can't fix. My concern was for George and the pile of shit he had got himself into. I guess there was no fixing that either. My job was safe, no one ever thought that I was involved in it. He stole a couple of television sets. Did a little bit of damage breaking into the building. And the dumb-ass pawned them with his own name. He was easily tracked because he was on public assistance. I guess when there is a robbery, they first look at people that work there.

Yes, I was hurt, because he stole from me. Yes, I was pissed that he might have put a job I love in jeopardy. But, I was scared about the place that George was now in. There's supposed to be honor among thieves. You don't steal from your friends, ever. And you sure as hell don't lie about it when asked directly. Ok, so that's what I thought at least. I couldn't fix any of it. If nothing else, I probably bought him some time, that's all. I could not turn my back on him. I attribute all of it to drugs and alcohol. Every single thing that has happened to me so far involved drugs and alcohol. The thing about unconditional love, I learned about it then. I loved him, we had been best friends for far too long for me to not get over it. It still hurt like hell though.

Just a couple months after that episode, I got a phone call from home. It was my sister, hysterical, telling me that our mother was in the hospital and probably near death. I had just been home not too very long ago and remembered the Cleveland Clinic appointment on the refrigerator. My mom had kind of lied to me that day. She knew that the cancer was back. I told my sister that I would be home as soon as I could.

Because I had just been home recently, I was not prepared financially to fly home. I was desperate, I called my Godmother/Aunt and explained the situation. She wired me $500 and I made a reservation. Took some time off work and went home for two weeks. My dad picked me up at the airport and took me straight to the hospital. I'll never forget what I saw. My mom, laying there with her new tracheotomy and her new gastric feeding tube. Pretty horrifying to say the least. Both of the new additions would be permanent. She already had another round of chemo and it wasn't successful. I'm informed that she has a staph infection and is recovering from that. She's terminal. Could be 6 months.

We brought her home two days after my arrival. I had to make all of the home health care arrangements. Order tube feed equipment and a hospital bed, the whole nine yards. I learned how to do everything needed to take care of her. I carefully wrote all of the instructions down so I could explain them to my dad, who wasn't looking all that healthy himself. I went over it daily with him and let him fly solo a couple times to see how he would do. He screwed up horribly; thank God I was still there.

So while I'm home taking care of all these details, George gets himself arrested. South Dakota put a warrant out for him, the county sheriff went to Nancy's and took him to jail. South Dakota was extraditing him. He didn't even know I was home. I just happened to call Nancy to update her on the situation with my mom. She tells me all of this in tears. So, I did the only thing I could do. I went to the county jail to see him. I just stood there looking at him. We both picked up the phones and both started to cry. I asked him why and he couldn't tell me. He had no answers. He apologized, and I know he was sorry that he had done it, sorry for hurting me, sorry for lying, and sorry he was going back to SD. I couldn't say anything to comfort him. I told him to fight the extradition, but I didn't think there was anything to be done. If you wanna dance, you gotta pay the band. That's all there is to it.

The day before I was to leave, I had to get all ugly with my dad. I told him that it was imperative that he follow the directions that I had written for him to a T. I put the whole schedule in a big chart on the refrigerator. I told him that I would like to go out for a little bit later that night, to catch up with some friends. He reluctantly agreed to let me use my mom's car. I went to Grandma Hatfield's and got caught up with Frank. Stopped over Sue and Greg's and let them know what was going on. Asked about Leap, and they said that things weren't good over there. I left it at that and ended up running into him at an old haunt. Also there was Bobbi, Jack's ex-wife, and a couple old Deb friends. There were too many people around for us to have a real conversation, but he confirmed that things were not good at home.

So there was a whole gang of us there, partying up a storm. I never spent a dime, it was great fun, I needed the break from all the crap I had been dealing with. When the bar closed I started home. One traffic light away from home, sitting there waiting for the light to turn green, waiting, waiting, oh hell just go, there ain't nobody in sight. The next thing I know, I'm pulled over by a CPD cruiser. The cop comes up to the window and says you just went through that red light. I said, I know officer, but it's late, there was nobody coming from either direction, I thought maybe the light was broken. Of course he smells the alcohol and wants me to do a field sobriety test. I get out of the car, and burst into tears. I told him my mom is dying and I have a plane ticket in my purse, I have to leave in the morning. I don't know if it was the tears or the hysterics, but that cop let me get back in the car with no test and followed me home. Talk about a break. If it would have been the state highway patrol, I'd have been screwed.

I went over the instructions with my dad one last time before I left. Somebody took me to the airport, I just can't remember who. Probably because I had about the worst hang over I've ever had. I was scared to leave, but mom wanted me to. She insisted that I was not to give up my life for her. So back to South Dakota I go, and George would most probably be coming very soon.

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Let It Slide
--words and music by Michael Stanley
from "Ladies' Choice", 1976, Epic Records

Here we go again, words are flying fast
Won't be the first time or the last
You're right in your way, I'm right in mine
And we're both wrong, nearly all the time...

And if it's all the same to you
just let it slide...
(ooh let it slide, let it slide on)
'Cause we're old enough to know the fare
If we care to ride...
(ooh let it ride, let it ride on)
Nobody's perfect, couldn't be if we tried
So come on over girl, let it slide
I said come on over girl, let it slide...

Here we go again, playing all our games
The more things change, the more they stay the same
(oh baby)
Nothing is easy, easy come and go
Rockin' around in circles, don't you know...

And if it's all the same to you
just let it slide...
(ooh let it slide, let it slide on)
'Cause we're old enough to know the fare
If we care to ride...
(ooh let it ride, let it ride on)
Nobody's perfect, couldn't be if we tried
So come on over girl, let it slide
I said come on over girl, let it slide