Chapter 10
Daniel crossed the fence with rapid ease and Jimmy handed him the flashlight and Ouija Board. Daniel stared up at the Milky Way as it's light slashed the sky like the guts of a firefly smeared on a sidewalk.
“I still don't see why you didn't drive the tractor down, it has headlights.” Jimmy complained as he climbed the gate.
“The noise ruins the calm of the night. Besides if Duncan finds out we are sneaking out at night he'll kill both of us.” Daniel was getting tired of repeating his explanation. “The exercise is good for us, anyway. So hurry up.”
“Listen to you. Last week it was all I could do to get you to walk to school. You kept trying to get your mother to drive us. You're getting muscle headed like Mr. Perfect.” Jimmy dropped to the ground and reached for the flashlight. “I'll carry that, you carry the board. Duncan's not even coming home tonight. It would have been all right.”
“This is peaceful. We’re here now, so just drop it.” Daniel snapped.
“You and your exercise.” Jimmy snapped back. “It's all these damn mountains. You're going to end up with one leg longer than the other.”
Daniel curled his lip in the faint light provide by the flashlight. “I already have one leg shorter. Want to feel it.”
“Kiss my ass!” Jimmy stomped off and found the log to cross the creek. Daniel followed closely behind to take advantage of the light Jimmy carried.
“What time is it?” Jimmy half whispered.
Daniel held his wrist near the light. “Almost ten, 'bout the same time we got here last night. You know it didn't seem like we were here over three hours but it was after one when we got back to the house.”
“I wonder if Tarla will be waiting on the hill again for us. She scared the shit out of me and all that talk of magic. Kind of weird. Blood, Gurvis, witches and even Lynda's strange. You've really come up with something—now. I knew hanging around with you would lead to some neat adventures. You're weirder than all of them.”
Daniel shrugged in the dark. What could he say, from Jimmy this was a real compliment. Even if it didn't sound like one.
“Sorry I snapped at you a while ago. My nerves are on edge.” Daniel meant it too, after all Jimmy was his only friend. Of course now he had found Lynda but that was different.
“Okay man, I'm sorry I said you were the weirdest. Even if you are but that's what I like about you.”
Daniel was feeling a little embarrassed. “Come on, let's find Lynda. She'll probably meet us at the cabin.”
“I don't want to go over there; that might have been somebodies blood.”
“Somebody probably just killed a rabbit or something and skinned it there.” Daniel headed in the direction of the cabin.
As they approached they heard a faint sob. Daniel stopped and held his breath indicating for Jimmy to turn off the light. It was coming from behind the trees where the remains of the cabin were.
Daniel crouched down moving slowly and as quietly as he could. He was pretty sure it was Lynda crying. It sounded as if her heart were breaking.
They were able to see one faint silhouette slumped over on the ground in the center of the cabin. Daniel wasn't sure it was Lynda but he felt it was. He wondered why she was crying and he felt embarrassed squatting there unseen in the dark spying on her.
He motioned for Jimmy to go back the way they came. When they got to the other side of the trees he inhaled trying to catch his breath. He hadn’t realized how shallow he had been breathing and now needed replenishment.
“What's wrong?” Jimmy whispered. “That was Lynda. Why didn't we just go over there.”
“I don't know. There's too many strange things going on. She may not have wanted us to catch her crying.” Daniel paused a second thinking while Jimmy watched him. Jimmy always let Daniel do the thinking and this was one time Daniel was glad he did. He shook his head. “We don't really know her, for all we know she may have wanted us to catch her crying. Women can do pretty strange things.”
“Okay what do we do?”
“Lynda!” Daniel cupped his hands over his mouth calling low, trying to sound as if they were further away than they really were.
“Lynda!” He called again a little louder and nodded at Jimmy. Jimmy nodded back and Daniel.
“Turn the flashlight back on and put your hand over it and just let a little light through.” Daniel whispered.
Daniel made some low walking sounds and then a little louder and then noisily went through the trees and bushes.
“Lynda?” He said again.
“Over here at the cabin.” She called back.
“Hi.” Daniel greeted her as he jumped across the three foot high wall at this end of the cabin.
“Show off.” Jimmy muttered but did the same thing, not to be bested.
Jimmy pointed the light down at the ground but they could see her eyes were red. She turned to the side deliberately trying to hide her face in the shadows.
“We thought we heard you crying?” Jimmy said and grunted as Daniel stepped on his foot. He glared at Daniel wondering what his problem was.
“What's the matter, Lynda, didn't you think we were coming?” Jimmy joked.
“No, I uh, stubbed my toe on a rock. I don't usually cry over a stubbed toe but it really hurt.” She moved her foot backward as Jimmy shined the light down on her bare feet.
“No wonder, barefoot, I'd be afraid of stepping on something worse than a rock. Don't look like it's bleeding.”
“We brought the Ouija Board.” Daniel held out the board trying to change the subject. He knew Lynda was lying; she didn't want to tell them what was wrong.
“Good.” She smiled sweetly causing Daniel to feel warm inside. “I was hoping you would.”
“Are y’all crazy?” Jimmy fidgeted. “After what happen with the flying plain shit, you still want to mess with that thing?”
“Stranger things than they have been happening.” Daniel said.
“What kind of things?” Lynda watched him closely.
He felt a flush tinge his cheeks when he thought about the women. What was he going to say? He couldn't tell her about it.
He shuffled his foot on the packed dirt floor. “Uh, we met a man by the name of Gurvis. Do you know him?”
She nodded her head accepting his statement at face value. “I know him. You're right, he is strange.”
“That's putting it lightly.” Daniel wondered if she knew very much about him. “Do you think he's funny?”
“Funny? He probably thinks he is but I don't think most people find him very amusing.”
“No. Not that kind of funny. I mean is he gay?”
Lynda's eyes narrowed in the shadows as she shrugged her shoulders in confusion. “I guess he's pretty happy. He doesn't sulk around, if that's what you mean.”
“Where you been!” Jimmy exclaimed. “Does he like the boys? For heaven's sake, is he a fudge packer?”
Daniel looked angrily at Jimmy's crudeness and saw shocked confusion on Lynda's face. “What Jimmy is trying to say is does Gurvis have sexual, uh ... attraction to boys as opposed to girls?”
“Oh!” Astonishment sparkled in her eyes and this time she blushed but nodded her head faintly. “I've heard stories he does but then I've heard stories he likes women too.”
“Bisexual.” Jimmy slung the term out like he had known it for years, when the truth was Daniel had just told him about it a couple months before. Daniel had read about it.
“Bisexual?” Lynda repeated.
“Yeah, he's ambidextrous.” Jimmy joked.
“He uses both hands?” Lynda looked as if she were trying to picture it.
“No,” Daniel explained frowning at Jimmy for getting into this subject. “What Jimmy means is he's ambisexual. He likes both sexes.”
“I saw the man without his clothes.” Jimmy spit on the ground. “Anybody hung like him has to use both hands just to handle it.
”
“That big?” Lynda's eyes widened in pleasant surprise as if she were trying to picture it.
“That's enough!” Daniel snapped. “I'm sorry I brought the whole damn subject up. Let's not sink down into gutter talk.”
Jimmy's jaw dropped in shock. He had rarely heard Daniel swear. He must really be pissed.
“Sorry Daniel. You're right.” Jimmy apologized.
“Let's change the subject, okay.” Lynda looked down at the Ouija Board Daniel had tucked under his right arm, planchette in his left hand. “Let's use the board and call up your friend, what was it, Mr. Jabberjab?”
“Jibberjab.” Daniel corrected and looked down at the ground. “Jimmy shine your light over there a minute.”
Jimmy shined the light around the ground looking for the blood they had seen earlier.
“Where's the blood?” Jimmy asked.
“Maybe it soaked into the ground.” Daniel answered.
“Nothing soaks into this ground. It's packed hard as a brick.” Jimmy bent down to examine the area where they had seen the blood.
“What blood?” Lynda asked nervously scanning the ground rapidly.
Daniel looked at her and saw fear in her eyes. Something was wrong! Very wrong. She looked like she was ready to burst into tears, again.
“Lynda what's wrong?” Daniel dropped the Ouija board and reached out and placed his hands on her shoulders.
“It's nothing. I ...” She shook her head back and forth trying to fight back tears that were welling up in her eyes. She lost the battle for a moment and her face flooded with a torrent of salty tears.
Daniel felt a tightness begin in his stomach and move up to his chest in a dull throbbing pain. He pulled her against him and put his arms around her. At his touch she burst into uncontrollable sobs.
“Go ahead.” He said patting her slender back gently. “Let it out. You'll feel better.” His voice lowered an octave and the warm base sound came out thickly masculine.
She sobbed for several moments and hugged Daniel close to her. As the tears subsided she sniffed and pulled away enough to look into his face. Jimmy had the sense to turn his back to them. The flashlight didn’t provide very much illumination but he could still see her eyes enough to see a great heartache reflecting back.
He knew Jimmy had his back to them and he pulled her close to him and kissed her gently. It was his first time he had ever initiated a kiss. Their lips met gently, sweetly, so tenderly innocent. As the kiss grew for a second, into a moment; he felt his body becoming warm, feeling himself become aroused. He pulled away from her and a tender smacking sound lingered in the air.
“Can you tell me what's wrong?” He still held her close and whispered gently.
She shook her head. “I can't.”
“Something's wrong and we can't help you unless you tell us.”
Lynda pulled away from him and turned her back. He could see her wiping her face and eyes with the back of her hand. She pushed her long black hair away from her face and tried to compose herself. Daniel stared at the back of her hair his fingers remembering its soft silky texture.
Without turning to face him she began to talk. “I can't talk about it. You wouldn't understand. Nobody understands. I don't even understand. I don't think anybody can help me.”
“We can't unless you trust us.” Daniel moved closer to her back, his hands reached out and gently touched her shoulders.
Lynda pulled away from him and turned around. “Go away. I'm sorry I even talked to you. I was wrong. I thought you could help but nobody can help.”
“Tell us what's wrong. We can try.”
“Just go away.”
Daniel's face turned red with anger. “Damn it tell us what the hell's going on. We came over here today and saw blood all over the ground and when we arrived tonight you were crying. And it wasn't because you stubbed your toe. So tell us!” His voice raised almost to a shout and Jimmy spun around.
“They'll kill me if I tell you.”
Daniel tried to see her eyes but couldn't. “You're not serious.”
She just shook her head.
“Who will kill you?” Daniel asked in disbelief.
“My family.” She moved away and sat down on the log remains of the cabin. “Daniel, I can't tell you anymore. Please don't ask me.”
Daniel moved over and sat down near her but far enough away that she wouldn't feel like her space was being invaded. Jimmy followed them over and sat down cross leg on the ground in front of them.
“If your families that crazy you've got to call the police. Come home with me and Jimmy and we'll call them for you. They have agencies that can take care of you.”
“They would find me.”
“The state will protect you.”
“Daniel you don't understand about my family. They have power.”
“Power? Tarla told us about two families that practiced some kind of science-magic. Is your family one of them?”
She nodded. “Daniel I'll tell you but you have to promise not to tell anybody.”
Daniel wasn't sure if he could keep the promise, not if she was in danger. “You can hide in my room until we get the police.”
“Your room.” She jumped in shock. “Daniel they'd find me there for sure.”
“Yeah you can stay with us in Daniel's room.” Jimmy cuts in, his hormones obviously put into overdrive.
“Shut up! This is really serious. Daniel glared at him and then turned back to her trying to remain calm. What was going on? This had something to do with the women that came to visit him in his room. He suspected that Brownie was the Red Woman but who was the Blue Lady.
“Lynda,” he began, “I can't promise something like that, not if it means your life is in danger.”
“You have to or I can't tell you.” Lynda looked up at him and he could tell by the look in her face she wouldn't change her mind. He could lie and say he promised.
“Okay Lynda, I promise not to tell anybody.” He turned to Jimmy. “Jimmy?”
Without thinking Jimmy nodded. “I won't tell anybody either, do or die.”
Daniel's face froze trying not to display any emotion. What was wrong with Jimmy didn't he understand he hadn't given his, do or die, promise. He hoped Lynda wouldn't understand.
“Okay Lynda, tell us.” Daniel said his jaw clenched.
“Do or die?” She asked. “What's that?”
“It's just something Jimmy says. It's just the way he is.” Daniel hoped she would accept it.
“Jimmy, why did you say, do or die?” She challenged, looking back and forth between the two of them.
“Uh, it's like Daniel said.” Jimmy squirmed like a young child caught. He knew Daniel was pissed and like the promise he had given Tarla last night, he didn't mean to keep it.
“What does it mean?” Her voice cracked.
Daniel sighed loudly. “It's his way of promising. It means he'll never break the promise. It his solemn vow.”
“Daniel I want you to promise me this, do or die, too.”
Daniel stood up and shrugged. “I can't keep a promise like that, not if it means your life.”
“You have too, or I won't tell.”
Daniel opened his hands several times trying to pop the bones in his fingers and sighed again flopping back down beside her. “Okay, you got it. I won't tell—do or die.”
He watched as Lynda's entire body relaxed. It was as if a great burden had been lifted from her body.
She leaned back and stared up at the sky for a moment and sighed. “I don't know how much you've heard. I don't know where to start.”
“Just take your time.” Daniel reached over and patted her hand. “We really haven't heard anything much. Tarla just told us that two families lived around here that practiced magic. And we really didn't understand what she meant by magic.”
She pulled her hand away, stood up and walked away. She sta
red silently into the blackness of the forest for several minutes collecting her thoughts. Finally she turned around and walked back over and sat down again.
“They do practice magic but it's not stage magic; it's the magic of the universe and all of it is living energies. All around us now are forces holding the world together. These forces are what we use to practice magic. We're trained to use these forces to transmute them, transform them, fuse them, transfer them, distort them, you name it we can do it.” Her voice sounded bitter and frustrated. “We can diminish or amplify the force. We're taught this from the time we're born.
“Daniel, I just want to be a normal girl, get married, have a family, and grow old and die. But I can't! Daniel if they find out I'm telling you this they will kill me.” She stared at the ground where the blood had been.
“It can't be that bad. Surely they won't kill you.” Daniel tried to reassure her.
“Daniel, the blood you saw was my brothers. They killed him before he was even born!” She broke into tears again but this time Daniel held back. She finally managed to get control of herself.
“They killed the child because it was male. They kill all male children. It was my sister's baby and they killed it.”
“Lynda, you're saying she had an abortion. That's not unheard of nowadays. I don't think this place is the most sanitary place to have one but abortions are quite common.” Daniel was shocked but tried to sound rational so she wouldn't feel more upset.
“It's not like that!” She nearly shouted. “It was a boy, so they killed it. If it had been a girl, they would have let it live.”
“Are you sure? Jimmy and I, saw the blood but what happen to it?”
“It's called the life force. It evaporated back into the universe.”
“Blood dries hard, it doesn't evaporate.” Daniel tried to explain.
“This blood does. Blood is life.” Her last sentence sounded like a quote. She wrung her hands. “They only let the females live. Don't you see? I am an entity like your Mr. Jibberjab. They only let the female entities live.”
Daniel thought she was crazy but everything that had been happening was crazy. He tried to follow what she was saying but it just didn't make any sense. “Don't you have a father?”
She nodded. “He doesn't live with us. He's an outsider and no I don't have any brothers. They kill them!”
“What about the other family, are they like you?”
“We are at war with them for the possession of the knowledge’s.”
“But Gurvis said Brownie was his cousin. They have males and females. How come you can't?”
Lynda looked up at Daniel in mild surprise. “Gurvis and Brownie are part of my family. I thought you knew that.”
Daniel scratched his head in confusion. “Then who is this other family?”
“They're more secretive than we are. I don't know too much about them except they are all males.”
Daniel stared at her in blank eyed confusion. “You said there were no males in your family and turn around and said Gurvis is part of your family. He's a male!”
“Gurvis is a female in a male's body. They can have sex but they can't impregnate. That's why he is ambidextrous.”
“Ambisexual.” He corrected and shook his head in frustration. “I don't understand this, a group of all males and all females?”
“That's the way the universe is. Positives and negatives and neutrals. We're negatives and they are positives.”
“Who's the neutral?”
“I don't know. They exist but I know less about them than I do the men. I'm still young and haven't learned too much about that yet. I'm still into basic elementary forces.”
Daniel followed her staring eyes to the spot where the blood had been. Gently he asks her, “Who had the abortion?”
“My sister.” Lynda chocked back a sob that caught in her throat. “Brownie.”
“Brownie, how far along was she?” Suspicion crept into Daniel's thoughts. He had seen Brownie earlier that day. She hadn't looked pregnant. He wondered, knowing that if she were very far along it was not only illegal but dangerous to the mother.
“A couple days.”
“Couple of days!” Daniel's jaw dropped. “How could they know that it was a boy in only a couple of days.”
“It's the charge of the entity, they know. I wasn't sure what was going on until you said you saw blood here but I suspected. That's why I was crying.”
“Couple of days.” Daniel repeated, deep in his mind he had a terrifying thought. “But if the pregnancy was only a couple days along why was there so much blood.”
“The unborn child is virtually bloodless. The blood is from the scraping of the womb.”
Daniel's stomach bound up in a knot. “Lynda, uh, I just, did ...?”
“Daniel it was yours!” Lynda practically shouted as she stared at him. “I think it was your Mr. Jibberjab.”
Daniel stood up and walked away in shock. Jimmy sat there staring in amazement, his brows raised in skepticism.
“I don't believe it.” Daniel said flatly, his back still to her.
“Daniel, I ...,” Lynda quickly jumped up. “You've got to go. They're calling me and if I don't go home they'll find us here. They’ll kill us. You got to believe me.” She hurried off. “I'll be here tomorrow afternoon. Try to meet me.”
Daniel glanced down at his watch holding it near the light. “It's almost twelve thirty. How can that be? We haven't been here that long. We left home around nine thirty. How could the time have passed so fast?”
Lynda paused as she headed towards the woods; her voice was unemotional as though she were reciting something from memory. “Time is the speed of energy transference of a body between two given points in relationship to its mass.”
Daniel just stared as she fled into the woods. “Come on Jimmy let's go so we can be home before one.”
“What's the hurry? You didn't give Tarla your, do or die, promise.”
“I don't mind breaking it but not until we have too.”
Jimmy picked up the Ouija Board and planchette. “I guess I didn't need this tonight for a little fun.”
Daniel didn't respond he just turned and walked back the way they came.
Jimmy didn't say anything else until they had crossed the gate and started up the hill.
“That's one fucked up girl.” He watched Daniel's face through the dark.
“Don't say that!” Daniel snapped.
“Give me a break. All that shit about only women, and abortions. Come on now, Gurvis as a woman in a male’s body?”
“Jimmy, she knew something had happened to me. About Brownie...? She knew. How could she have known?”
“I don't know. I didn't believe...” Daniel turned on him in anger. “Wait a minute, I didn't mean you were lying. I meant you believed it happen, a dream or something.”
Daniel's anger subsided and he shrugged. “It wasn't a dream. I can understand how crazy it sounds, but it's true.”
They walked on in silence until they crossed the second hill at the same place they were the night before.
Daniel was staring down at the ground lost in confusion when Jimmy interrupted his thoughts.
“Daniel, psst! I think Tarla's up there waiting for us again.” This time he shined the flashlight in a feeling of self-assuredness. He was glad that it was not one o'clock yet so she shouldn't be too upset.
As they got closer to the dark silhouette they slowed their pace.
“Looks too big to be Tarla.” Daniel whispered.
It was at that moment Gurvis's deep bass voice pierced the stillness of the night.
“Hello boys. I was sort of hoping I would find you out here. What you up to?”
“Not much just wanted to prowl a little.” Daniel answered as they stopped several paces from where he stood.
“I'm sorry I drove off without your clothes but I guess you found
them. I would have brought them back but I was already late getting back to work from lunch.”
“We found them. Nobody saw us.” Jimmy answered.
“Well nice seeing you but we promised we would be back in the house by one and if we don't hurry we will be late.” Daniel started past Gurvis.. Suddenly Gurvis reached out a meaty hand and grabbed his shoulders pulling him up against his body.
“What's the rush it's almost one now. You're going to be late anyway.” He gave a low maniacal laugh.
Daniel retched himself loose and turned to Gurvis trying to remain calm. “We don't uh, ―you're okay as a friend, it's just that we don't go that way.”
Gurvis reached out his hand and touched Daniel's cheek. Daniel jumped back and swatted his hand.
Gurvis stepped forward. “Daniel, I know you do go that way,” and he reached again but Daniel twisted away and ran out into the field and stopped when he didn't hear Gurvis coming after him.
He stood and watched wondering why Jimmy hadn't run too. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. Jimmy had dropped the flashlight and Ouija Board to the ground and in the dim light he could make out their shadows. Gurvis had pulled him up against him and was reaching for his pants fumbling with his zipper.
“Jimmy! What the hell are you doing?” Daniel screamed.
“Tell him to go away. If he don't want to play just you and I will play.” Gurvis had freed himself and Jimmy's hand was grasped around him.
“Go away Daniel, I want this.” Jimmy's voice cuts quietly through the night
Daniel's foot kicked a heavy rock. Without thinking he picked up the rock and walked closer. “Let him loose!” He drew back the rock and warned. “I don't know what you did to him but he ain't like that. Let him loose or I'll knock your goddamn brains out.”
Just as Gurvis's hand began to push on the top of Jimmy's head forcing him to his knees Daniel let loose of the heavy stone, slamming into the side of Gurvis's temple.
The big man released his grip on Jimmy and staggered backward. He grunted several times and then fell limply to the ground.
Daniel's heart skipped a beat as he watched Gurvis's body twitch several times and quit.
Daniel grabbed Jimmy, leaving the flashlight, Ouija Board and Gurvis, and forced Jimmy up the last hill towards the house. They paused a hundred feet away and looked back but Gurvis remained still.
Jimmy groaned loudly several times rubbing his head. “What's going on?”
“Don't you know what he was about to do?” Daniel stared through the dark in disbelieve at his friend.
Jimmy shook his head several times trying to clear his thoughts. “Oh my god, what was I―I can't believe―Daniel, I don't know what come over me, I, I wanted to do it.”
“It wasn't you. It was something else and whatever it is it has to do with them and something about one o'clock.” Daniel's stomach felt as if he were going to heave. “I think I killed him.”
They walked slowly back towards the sprawled figure. As they approached Jimmy punched at Gurvis's arm with his foot. “Daniel I don't think he's breathing.”
Daniel retrieved the flashlight and shined it on his chest. He then moved the beam up to a slow trickle of blood which streamed from his temple.
Daniel exhaled audibly in slight relief. “The blood looks like it's pulsing out that must mean his heart is still pumping but he don't seem to be breathing.”
“What are we going to do?” Jimmy wiped his hands on his trousers as if they were contaminated.
“Resuscitate him.” Daniel said.
“No way,” Jimmy backed off. “You don't know where his mouth's been. I ain't puttin' my mouth on that cock sucker.”
“Look who's calling who a cock sucker?” Daniel snapped. “I hit him to save you from doing that, the least you could do is help me save him.”
“It makes me want to puke to think where my mouth might have ended up, I'm glad you hit him and I don't care if he dies.”
“Jimmy, I don't care what he's done or was going to do. I don't want to live the rest of my life with the thought that I murdered somebody. Even if he did deserve it.”
“I can't.” Jimmy whined. “I'd barf in his mouth.”
Daniel shrugged and stooped down leaning over Gurvis's head back. “Damn it, do I have to do everything. The least you can do is push on his stomach after I blow the air in.”
“Not with that thing hanging out.” Jimmy pointed. “I ain't getting near him.”
“Fuck you.” Daniel mumbled as he worked Gurvis's jaw open and inhaled placing his mouth down and began to blow pumping his chest up.
It was at that moment, Gurvis's tongue slipped up into Daniel's mouth.
Daniel jerked away and gaged. He fell backward on the ground. “He's alive. Let's get the hell out of here.” He jumped and ran with Jimmy close on his feet. They stopped at the top of the hill.
Gurvis was standing and called to them. “I thought I had you boys. Daniel I don't know how you resisted. You shouldn't have been able to. What's that smell you're wearing, it stinks.” He laughed as they turned and ran the rest of the way home.
They didn't stop until they had climbed through the window into Daniel's room.
“We left the Ouija board.” Jimmy complained between heavy breaths.
“If he doesn't take it we'll get it in the morning before Mom comes home.”
“The batteries in the flashlight will be dead.”
“We're lucky that's not all that's dead.”
Jimmy began to strip. “I'm taking a shower. I feel filthy.”
“I don't think you can wash away that feeling.” Daniel called to Jimmy as the shower came on.
He sat on the bed wondering what Gurvis had meant about being able to resist him and something about his smelling. He sniffed at his arm vaguely aware of the aroma of the lotion Tarla had given him. He wondered if that had somehow protected him. Maybe that was why Jimmy hadn't been able to resist, he hadn't used it. That meant Tarla knew more than she was letting him know.
He undressed, slipped into bed, turned over and was asleep before Jimmy had finished his shower.