Afterwards, she nuzzled under my arm, her head lying on my chest. Her ear was right on my thudding heart. I thought she was listening to every beat, trying to be part of me. I looked around. There was nothing on the walls. Dark square marks and unused finishing nails marked where some previous tenant had hung their personal pictures or paintings. Her bedside table was old and rickety, constantly knocking with every movement. On it was a small picture. It was a picture of a very young child. The face was misshapen, deformed, but the smile was beautiful. I picked it up to look at the picture more closely. It was a young girl, whom, despite her obvious facial deformity, beamed with a positive energy and exuberance. Melissa looked up at me, and when she realized what I was doing, shrank away.
“What’s wrong?” I said. She didn’t answer. “Is it the picture? You don’t want me to touch it?”
“No, you can touch it. It’s okay. She’s not a very attractive little girl, is she?”
“Not in the traditional sense, but she has a quality—that smile is wonderful.”
Melissa sat up; a small, sad smile crept onto her lips. “Do you really think so?”
“Yes, I do.”
“I’m glad.”
She turned over, curled up, and I could see her body shaking, probably from tears.
“Who is she Melissa?”
Melissa turned around. “She’s my daughter, Heather. She was sick though. You can see she wasn’t normal. I was just a child when I became pregnant with Heather. A single teenage daughter did not fit into my mother and stepfather’s plans. They were terribly disappointed; and then, when Heather was born disfigured, it didn’t make things better. Her heart, it wasn’t right. She was always sick. She went into the hospital when she was a year and half; and she just never came out, didn’t survive.”
Melissa shrieked when the door was smashed in.
Shadows of men coming into the apartment appeared suddenly, breaking the contentment. I was caught off guard and it happened very quickly. I had fallen into a false sense of security inside the apartment--with Melissa. They moved quickly and before I had a chance to react. As one passed in front of the window, I could see they were in uniform, but they weren’t regular cops. They were elite combat troops. There were two of them and they were around us in seconds.
"Don--don't hurt me," Melissa pleaded.
"Don't worry, I'll deal with it," I said. "What the hell's goin' on?! You know I'm a cop?"
There was silence as the two stood looking at us, in military "at-ease" stance. One nodded to the other and then put his laser rifle onto his back, looking at us, his hands on his hips.
“Tyler Jonz, you’re coming with us.”
Melissa clung to me in fear, shaking all over.
“Not so fast! Who the hell are you?” I yelled.
“You should know who we are, and you should know that you’re not supposed to be here.”
"Maybe you're right, but it's an infraction--doesn't warrant a military operation."
I sat up in bed, my shock diminishing, but my anger growing.
"Jonz, this is for your own good," one said. Their faces were covered and the one who wasn't talking to me was looking around the small apartment.
"If my father knew what you were doing--"
"If?! Is that what you think?"
They looked impatient and unwilling to get into a long discussion. Both of them came over to my side of the bed. Melissa let out a shriek. They pushed Melissa aside, and then the two soldiers each took one of my arms and pretty much picked me up.
“Okay, okay! Take it easy boys, I’m moving!”
I looked over my shoulder at Melissa alone in her bed as they rushed me out. Her face had that lost look of the night before. I wanted to stay, but was getting the less than subtle hint that it was time for me to go. As we went into the hallway, I could see Melissa getting up and following to watch at a safe distance. She stayed at her apartment door as one of the soldiers pushed the elevator's down button. They both looked around impatiently. Fortunately, no one else was in the hallway.
"Don't worry," I said to her as she peered cautiously at us, "Everything's cool. It'll be alright."
I could hear her close the apartment door as we went into the elevator.