My Gal Sal

We all made it home and I asked Sal if she would go with me to my lawyer the next day and make sure this agreement was legit. Ralph was our lawyer for the farm affairs. I handed him the agreement and he told us he didn't understand why there were no support payments in it. I told him the truth, that Sal just wanted out of the marriage at any cost. He did say the agreement was totally legitimate and that the marriage should be final in a few months. He was a small town lawyer but he was honest and fair. He shook his head when he saw the name Brown's Law Firm on the letterhead. He told us he never much cared for big city lawyers.

I took Sal back to her parents' home. She kept telling me how sorry she was and how stupid she was. She asked if we could talk and I told her I needed time. From that day forward whenever I saw her, we talked a little bit more. It was about a week later that she started coming over to my parents' house. She would sit and talk with them and I would go to the pond behind the house and fish and think. The second day she came she had her daughter Bobbie with her. Of course I walked back to the pond and when I looked up, little three year old Bobbie was walking toward me. She fell on her butt walking over the uneven ground but got up and kept coming.

"Hey, Sal, your daughter's out here. You should keep a better watch on her. She could have fallen into the pond," I yelled.

I looked at the door and Sal was watching her the whole time. I should have known she wouldn't let her out of her sight.

"I knew you would keep your eye on her and protect her. She wanted to see you," replied Sal.

The little girl came right to me. She was so cute. She had blond curls and was smiling at me. "Dada," she said.

I said, "No Dada, I'm Bobby," as I touched my chest with my finger.

She touched her chest with her finger and said, "Bobbie, me Bobbie, you Dada."

She could speak a few words and also short sentences. I told her again, "Me Bobby, you Bobbie, we're both Bobbies." I felt like Tarzan talking to Jane, only my Jane was only three and didn't understand.

"Fishies, I see fishies," she said looking in the pond.

I couldn't help it. I picked up the little tyke and set her on my lap as she watched the fish. Every day after that she would waddle down to see me at the pond in the evening. I knew Sal was up to something but this little girl was just sweet and innocent.

I asked my dad why Sal was coming over everyday. He told me she was explaining some of the new techniques in growing hay. He told me I should listen to her, and we could probably save some money. He told me she really had some good ideas.

I told him that she could tell him about it and he could just tell me later.

"Bobby, can I talk to you man to man?"

"Of course, Dad, you can talk with me anytime."

"Have you ever had sexual relations with anyone besides Sally?"

"Dad, that's a bit personal, isn't it? It doesn't seem right telling you something like that."

"Bobby, I don't want to know their names. I just want to know if you ever had sex with anyone beside Sally."

"Yes, I did, Dad. There were three other women."

"Did you do it with any of them before Sally got married?"

"God, Dad, yes, one of them."

"So, you did the same thing Sally did." I cut in on Dad.

"Yeah, Dad, I did, but I didn't have their kid!" I blurted out.

Dad looked at me and took a deep breath. "Yeah, you're right, son. You didn't have their kid." He said it in a dejected voice and got up and walked away.

I won that argument. So, why did I feel so bad about it? Dammit!

The next day I had to go into town to get some farm supplies. I was in the hardware store and saw outdoor folding chairs. I bought two and then noticed a matching children's one and picked it up for Bobbie. I had a thought and went over to fishing supplies and got a child's bamboo fishing pole. They are really light and little Bobbie would get a kick out of it.

I went down to the pond and looked back and here came the little squirt down to see me. I opened her little chair for her and set it down next to mine. She loved it. Her little feet were able to touch the ground. I pulled out her little fishing pole and handed it to her. I didn't even get any bait on it when she started bouncing the bobber up and down in the water. "I'm fishing, Daddy, I'm fishing."

I couldn't get her to stop calling me daddy. So for now I just gave up. I started calling her sweetheart. It seemed so confusing calling her Bobbie. I looked up and here came Sal with the other folding chair.

"Mommy, I'm fishing," smiled little Bobbie.

"Yes, Mommy sees my little Bobbie fishing, just like mommy used to do."

While little Bobbie was so called fishing, I talked with Sal. "Why didn't you use protection?" I blurted out.

"I was on the pill ever since you and I started making love. I ran out about a week before that stupid party and just didn't think about it. I always thought that the pills were always good for a week or so after you stopped taking them. I picked up a prescription when I came home that weekend, but I guess the damage was done. I'm so sorry, Bobby."

"I know you married him because of the baby. But why did he marry you? I mean you're beautiful and all but he didn't love you; so why did he marry you?"

"He told his dad he got me pregnant. His dad told him to marry me because he didn't want some slut running around saying his son got her pregnant. He - Tom's father - wanted a political career. Believe me, I didn't know it at the time or I would have never married him. God, I was so stupid. Of course that's why there was the pre-nuptial agreement. They wanted to make sure I received nothing."

"Well, hopefully you will be free of them in another month or so and can go on with your life." She noticed I didn't say anything about us.

I went back to fishing with Bobbie. "Okay, Sweetheart, let's put some bait on it and see if you can catch a fish." I wanted her to get a bite so bad, but it didn't happen that night.

The next evening, here came my new little gal pal. She sat in her little chair and I put some bait on her hook. I was teaching her to fish. She got a bite. "Daddy, I got fish, I got fish," she yelled.

"Yes, you did. Pull it out and we'll put it in a bucket." It was a little bluegill. It wasn't much bigger then her bait but she was happy. She was yelling so loud that Sal and Mom and Dad all heard her. They all came down to see her first fish.

"Mommy, I got fish, I got fish."

"Yes, Honey, mommy sees your fish."

It was only a couple of inches long but she wanted to save it. It was still alive and we left it in a big pail overnight. She wouldn't let us throw it back in.

The next afternoon I went into the house and Mom was babysitting Bobbie. "What's going on, Mom? Was Sal here?"

"Yes, she had to take her mom to a dentist appointment and asked me if I could watch the baby."

I started out the door and Bobbie followed me. "No, Sweetheart, stay here with..." I didn't know what she called my mom.

My mom looked at me and said, "Grandma. She calls me Grandma."

Bobbie looked at me and was trying to say she wanted to put her fish back in the pond. I asked her why, and she told me so it can be with its mommy and daddy.

I took her and her fish in a pail and walked it down to the pond. She let her fish go free. She looked up at me and said, "Pee pee, Bobbie go pee pee." I thought she had to go to the bathroom so I picked her up and took her into the house. I told my mom what she said and mom laughed. "Bobby, she's telling you she already went and wants to be changed."

"So, change her, Mom."

"You change her. I'm cooking dinner. It won't kill you; it's only a pee pee diaper."

I knew it was useless to argue with Mom, so I was going to give it a try. Bobbie climbed up on the couch and lifted her legs for me to change her. She started giggling as I fumbled with the diaper. I finally got the wet one off and got ready to put the new one on. Mom told me to put on a lot of baby powder. I guess I put on too much because there was white powder everywhere. Bobbie was laughing so I blew strange sounds on her little belly and she laughed more. I looked back and there was Sal watching me. I stopped what I was doing and Bobbie ran to her mother.

"Bobby, can I ask you a question and I would like for you to be as honest as possible?" asked Sal.

"Sure, go ahead. I'll answer it," I replied.

"If you just met a nice woman and found out that she loved you, then you also knew that she was divorced and had a beautiful baby, if you had feelings for this woman, could you accept her and her child?"

I wasn't thinking and I answered too quickly. "Of course I could accept them," I answered.

"Then why can't you accept me and Bobbie?" She walked out crying, taking Bobbie home.

God, I felt bad. I had tears in my eyes as I walked down to the pond to think. A couple of minutes later my mom came down to see me.

"Bobby, there's something I need to show you. Would you please come up to the house with me?"

I walked into the house and sat on the couch. Mom went into the closet and brought out a box of pictures. She was shuffling through them when she handed me one.

"My God, Mom, who is that little girl? She looks almost like Bobbie?"

"It isn't a little girl, Bobby. It's you when you were around three years old. You looked so cute but your dad took you for a haircut the next day cutting off all those beautiful curls. I saved it because I always thought you were so cute and you're right, it does look like Bobbie."

"That's impossible, Mom, I'm sure this Tom guy being a lawyer got a DNA test done. No, I don't think so, Mom." I knew tomorrow I would have to ask Sal about that test.

The next evening I was waiting for my little gal pal to show up. I needed to ask her mom some questions. They didn't show up at their regular time. I waited an extra half hour and decided to put our fishing gear and chairs away. As I got to the porch Billy and Millie pulled up and ran up to me.

"Sally and Bobbie were in a hit and run car accident on their way here. The ambulance rushed them to the hospital. We don't have any idea how they are. We rushed over here to tell you," cried Millie.

I jumped into the car and we headed over to our little hospital. We ran in and the nurse saw us.

"The doctor is looking at them both now. Please just be seated and he will be right out."

The doctor asked if we were family. Millie told him that Sally was her sister and that I was her boyfriend. I wasn't going to argue that point right then. Billy sat back and waited for us.

"How are they, doctor? Are they okay?" I asked.

"Well, the woman is alright. She was a bit shaken up and had a few scrapes and bruises. She'll be alright. I gave her a sedative and she's resting now. The little girl is in critical condition. She had some internal bleeding and lost a lot of blood. We got the bleeding stopped but I don't know if she'll make it. She's awfully weak and needs blood."

"This is a damn hospital. Give her the blood," I screamed. I was in panic mode; I was worried about my little gal pal.

"Easy, son, it's not that simple. She's AB negative and hospitals don't carry it. It will be at least two hours before we can get her the blood she needs. By then it might be too late."

I turned toward the waiting room. "Billy, get your ass in here now. Bobbie needs our blood."

"Hold on son, she need AB negative..."

"We are both AB negative. Hurry up and take all you need, Doc. Millie, call my dad and tell him to get down here as fast as he can. He's AB negative also."

"I can't believe this. You are all AB negative?" asked the doctor.

"Just Dad, me and Billy. Mom and sis are both A positive."

He had the nurse take me and Bobby down to the hospital blood bank and told them to put an extremely fast rush on it. He came down a few minutes later to make sure of our blood type. He couldn't get over us being AB Negative. By the time I was done, my dad had arrived. He looked at me and I just nodded. He had told me years ago about us having special blood. It probably wasn't by chance that Bobbie had our type. The odds were too great.

I did ask the doctor if he would take a sample from me and check the DNA against Bobbies. He told me he would send it out but it could be a few weeks before it came back.

After giving blood, we were all in the waiting room: Sally's mom and dad, my mom and dad, Billy, Millie and me. Hank was on the road but they called him. He said he would be in later.

I went in and looked at Sal. Luckily she was sleeping through this ordeal. Bobbie was her life. Hopefully she would pull through. As I went back to the waiting room, a police officer was talking to everyone. Apparently a hit and run driver forced Sally's car off the road over an embankment and into a tree. Luckily they had on their seat belts but the impact was so hard that the belt cut into Bobbie's insides damaging her internal organs. The police officer said a witness said that the license plate was covered and that it was an expensive black car. She didn't know much about cars but she could tell it wasn't a cheap one.

This was no accident, and I was pretty sure who was behind it. The police officer told us that he had no leads but would keep us informed. Millie and Billy looked at me; I knew they were thinking the same thing. Tom Brown vowed he would kill Bobbie if Sally ever left him. He just might have been crazy enough to try.

We had all been there a few hours when a smiling doctor came out. "Thanks to the blood she received, the little girl is going to make it. We have received two more pints a few minutes ago, just in case she needs more. She's young and her body will heal quickly. She should be back on her feet in no time."

"Doc, can I see her? I know it's a little irregular but I need to see her."

The doctor took me into her room. She had all these tubes coming out of her little body. I just started crying. Her little hand was laying there open and I put my finger in it and her hand closed around it. Maybe it was a reflex reaction, maybe not. I left her room and saw Hank. I pulled him aside to talk to him. He told me he had to go to Indiana in the morning. I asked him if he was going through Columbus and he said he could. I told him I was going with him.

The next morning Hank and I were on the road. I had a copy of the video with me, just in case we needed it. He parked his truck around the corner from the Brown Law Firm building. We strolled through the parking garage and our suspicions were confirmed. Tom's black Mercedes had a damaged front end on the right side. It even had blue paint on it from Sally's car. We went back to the truck and I told Hank to drive to the government offices. While he waited for me I put a copy of the tape in an envelope and dropped it in the Mayor's mail slot. I went back to the truck and we headed to Indiana.

We came back through Columbus two days later, then we came home. We stopped by the hospital to find out the latest on Bobbie. Sally was sitting there in a chair talking to Bobbie. Sal got up and kissed me, and I let her.

Bobbie said, "Hi, Daddy," and told me in her own way that she was in a car accident. The doctors said she was doing fine and would be out in a couple more days.

The doctor told me that while he was examining her she told him she wanted to go fishing. She said her daddy takes her to the pond. The doctor kind of smiled at me. He had sent the blood test in but it would still be another week. He still couldn't get over the blood type thing.

Later that day most everyone was at the hospital to see Sally and to see how Bobbie was coming along. Billy had turned on the television and was watching the news. The reporter said that a prominent attorney was found dead at a motel in Columbus on old RT 40. He was killed with a single shot between the eyes made by a 9mm pistol at point blank range. He was discovered by the cleaning lady earlier that afternoon. His name was Tom Brown Jr. They had no other information at that time.

All of us just sat there. Most were quite shocked, but no tears were shed. My dad was the first to speak, "Good riddance to bad rubbish. You reap what you sow."

Sally looked like she was in a daze but didn't really speak. She glanced over at me. She had told everyone earlier that just before she ran off the road she saw a black car. She was wondering if it might have been Tom's. Now she was looking at the TV and learning he was shot to death.

The next morning a police inspector from Columbus showed up at the hospital to see Sally. He asked to talk to her privately but she refused. "These people are all my family and friends; I have no secrets from them. What is it you want? If you think I killed Tom you're wrong, but I'm glad he's dead. You can check with the nurses; I haven't left this hospital in over four days except to change clothes?"

"Do you have any idea who might have reason to kill him?" The inspector asked.

"Half the woman in Columbus or their husbands, I suppose. You see officer, my husband got off on using women. It was an ego trip to him. He loved humiliating women, especially married ones. So any one of their husbands could have done it, or since he was in a motel, maybe one of the women had enough of him," Sally said.

The officer looked over at us. "Do any of you own a 9mm pistol?" he asked.

I spoke up first telling him I did, then dad told him he did, followed up by Hank and Billy.

"I'll would like to see those weapons for testing," the officer said.

I laughed. "You wanting to test our guns tells me you probably work for Tom Sr. Why else would you worry about an asshole like his son? Sure, stop by the farm, we'll show you our gun collections."

The officer looked pissed. "Listen, hold off on the gun thing. If any of you shot him, I'm sure you wouldn't hand me the weapon. Look, it's my job to follow up on these killings. I never liked Tom or his father, and most good officers don't. The reason I had to come here was because of Sally still being his wife and also that we found damage to his car. Checking the hit and run accident reports for the state, Sally's accident came up. Sorry to have bothered you folks."

The officer left and we changed the subject. We had enough of the Brown family and glad it was all over, or so we thought.

Bobbie was released a few days later. Sally came over to the house to see me. She had received another document from Tom Brown Sr. asking her to sign this document and return it. We took it over to our attorney, Ralph, to take a look at it. He just laughed.

"What's so funny Ralph? Should she sign it and send it back?

"Let me get back to you this afternoon. I need to make a couple of calls first," said Ralph. "This has to do with Tom's will."

Sally and I left the attorney's office and I asked her if she would go by the hospital with me. The doctor had called me and my DNA results were back. I had never mentioned them to Sal.

Sally asked me why I needed to go to the hospital and I told her it had to do with my blood. She was a bit worried and I told her it was nothing bad, I had it tested and needed to see the results. The doctor wasn't in but the nurse handed me an envelope. I opened it and accompanying the results was a note from the doctor saying, "Congratulations, Bobby. You are the father of that special little girl."

I read it and started crying. I knew it ever since mom showed me the photo. Sally grabbed the papers out of my hand to see why I was crying. She read the note. "Oh, my God, I never thought.... Oh, my God." Sally had tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Sally, didn't you or Tom ever ask for a DNA test?"

"No, I just assumed that Tom was the father. He never got tested. I can't believe this is true. You are Bobbie's real daddy. Oh, my God, I'm so happy." She started crying again and gave me a big hug.