Chapter Nine
Reese pulled up the short driveway to the rear of her house at six-fifteen a.m. The night had passed uneventfully. By two-thirty the streets of Provincetown had been deserted. The bars had closed at one, and for the next hour the street in front of Spiritus Pizza was a mob scene. Predominantly men, the crowd swelled as those who had yet to find partners for the night cruised each other. There were also a fair number of men and women who just wanted to partake vicariously of the sexual energy that literally filled the air. The party-like atmosphere would be sustained for the next twelve weeks, as new vacationers and week-end visitors flooded into town, carrying the excitement of being openly gay and unafraid, perhaps for the only time all year, with them. Periodically Reese walked down one of the narrow alleys between the crowded establishments to the harbor beach, checking that no one decided to sleep off too much alcohol on the sand. High tide was at five-forty, and by then the waves, still vigorous even in the secluded harbor, would be up to the pilings of many of the buildings. Already the decks behind the Pied and the Boatslip, two of the most popular lesbian and gay bars, were surrounded by water. Reese didnt intend to have any drownings on her watch. She knew that the shadowed areas under the piers were favorite spots for quick sexual encounters, but she wasnt interested in busting two adults for a fast grope in the dark. She was on the lookout, however, for groups of teenagers hanging out on the beach. Nelson Parker had warned her that drug use, and distribution, was becoming more of a problem with the youth of the small community, and that many of the suppliers seemed to be teenagers from neighboring townships on the Cape.
Reese hated drugs, and especially those who provided it. Too often, the kids who tried it were simply acting out of the normal rebellious, unfocused discontent that seemed inherent in the nebulous world between childhood and adulthood. Unfortunately, they became trapped by the very real physical and psychological seductiveness of the drugs, and the drug culture, without meaning to. That they were victims, she had no doubt, and the perpetrators of the crime were the suppliers, not the addicts. She was determined that Provincetown would become a very unpopular place to commit that particular crime.
Reese pulled to a stop, cut the engine, and sat for a moment looking at the person huddled on her back steps. Brianna Parker stared back at her, her gaze steady and defiant.
"Youre early," Reese commented as she approached. "Class doesnt start for forty-five minutes." Reese could tell by the look of surprise on Briannas face, a flicker of expression quickly masked, that Brianna had not been thinking of their seven oclock appointment for her first jujitsu class. "Come in the kitchen and wait while I shower and change," Reese said as she passed the teenager, fitting her key into the back door as she spoke.
"If you havent eaten, theres bread for toast and juice in the fridge," Reese said as she tossed her keys on the table. She continued through to her bedroom, leaving the youth to sort things out for herself. When she returned in a clean white tee shirt and crisply ironed gi pants, she was pleased to smell coffee brewing. There was a plate of toast sitting in the middle of the breakfast bar. Reese gabbed a piece to munch on as she poured a cup of the welcome coffee.
"Thanks," she said as she leaned against the counter facing Brianna, who was perched on one of the high stools that flanked the counter dividing the cooking area from an eating area large enough to accommodate eight at the glass and chrome table.
Bri stared at the woman facing her, impressed by the taut muscles outlined under the tight tee shirt as well as her piercingly direct gaze. Reese presented an awesome figure. Bri took a deep breath.
"I came to talk to you about last night," she managed to say without a hint of the unsteadiness she felt.
"I thought you came to train," Reese responded.
"Maybe you wont want me to now," Bri said, a slight quiver in her voice.
Reese raised an eyebrow, her eyes never leaving the troubled teens face. "How so?"
Bri shrugged. "II came to ask you not to tell my dad."
"I wasnt planning to. But you should."
"Yeah, right," Bri snorted. "Like he wouldnt kill me."
"Hes got to know sometime. Maybe you should give him a chance," Reese suggested mildly as she refilled her coffee cup. "I dont know him real well, but he seems to be okay about the gay thing."
"Oh, sure - its okay with him, maybe , for some other kids - but not for me!"
Reese looked at Brianna, then nodded. "Youre right. Theres no way to tell how hes going to react. But he for sure is going to be a lot better about it if he hears it first from you."
"I will tell him! Just not now!" Her fear broke through and her eyes filled with tears. "Im only seventeen, he can keep me from seeing Caroline if he wants to. And if her father finds out, hell kill her!"
The girls anguish was palpable, and Reese suddenly realized how many additional terrors being gay added to the already tumultuous world of adolescence. It was something she didnt know much about, and in a town like Provincetown, she needed to. She decided that, for the moment at least, she didnt know enough to make a good decision, or to offer meaningful advice.
"Im not going to say anything to your father, and if I decide its necessary at some point, Ill tell you first. You can decide then whom he hears it from. In the meantime, I want your word that you and your girlfriend will stop meeting in dark alleys, or under the pier."
Bri tried to cover her surprise. How did she know about the pier?
"Its dangerous, Brianna, especially for two women." Reese raised her hand against Briannas protest. "Theres no point in pretending that you and Caroline could stand up to a bunch of guys. Thats not sexist - thats reality. One way a woman defeats a man is to use her brains - first to avoid the fight, and then if she must fight, to win the fight. Dont stack the odds against yourself."
"Theres no where for us to go," Bri muttered, knowing the truth of Reeses words. "Thats why I need to learn to fight."
Reese crossed the kitchen into the hallway beyond and returned with a folded bundle which she handed to Brianna.
"This is your uniform, your gi . It is only to be worn in the dojo , when we train. I leave for work at seven. If you are here at five forty-five, any morning, we will train for an hour. It will take time, and patience, and work, but I will teach you to defend yourself. Is that still what you want?"
Bri reached for the uniform. For her it represented her first steps toward self-determination. "Yes."
"Then lets get started."
After Bri changed into the uniform Reese had provided her, she followed Reese through the breezeway to the garage. She copied Reeses actions, bowing at the threshold before entering the thirty by forty-foot space, then removing her shoes and placing them beside the expanse of mat covered floor. She waited uncertainly as Reese crossed to the center of the mat and knelt, her hands resting gently on her thighs.
"Kneel and face me," Reese said. When Bri complied, Reese continued, "It is customary for the student to bow to the teacher, or sensei , at the beginning and end of each class. This is not to show obeisance, but to convey respect and to offer thanks for the opportunity to train. I will also bow to you, to honor your commitment to learn."
After the initial ceremony was completed, Reese stood and motioned Bri to her feet. "Basics first. You need to learn how to fall before I can teach you to throw; you need to learn how to block before I can teach you to punch and kick; you need to learn to move out of the line of attack before I can teach you how to counter an attack. These are the foundation for all that you will learn in the months, and hopefully the years, to come."
Bri nodded her understanding, eager to begin, and anxious to prove her serious desire to learn. In the hour that followed, Reese introduced her to the fundamentals of jujitsu, demonstrating forward and backward rolls, proper fighting stances, blocking drills, and the first joint locking technique. Bri was young, supple, and athletic. She made good progress. She concentrated on Reeses every move, trying to imitate the way her teacher stood, turned, and rolled. It seemed impossible to her that she would ever be able to attain the grace and power that Reese manifest with every move, but she was determined to try.
"Grab my lapel," Reese instructed. As Bri complied, Reese said, " Kata dori ," indicating the Japanese term for the attack. Reaching up, she trapped Bris hand against her shoulder, turned her wrist, and with both hands applied a wristlock. Bri gasped slightly at the pain in her stretched wrist, but held on wordlessly. As Reese leaned slowly toward her, the pressure in her wrist forced Brianna to her knees.
" Kata dorinikkyo ," Reese named the defensive maneuver.
When Bri stood, Reese grasped her jacket. "Now you."
Bri repeated the movements exactly as she remembered Reese had done, and was awestruck as Reese went to her knees before her.
"Very nice," Reese commented. Bri flushed with pride. "These techniques are powerful, and potentially devastating. They are only to be used here, in the dojo , or on the street when you have no other choice but to use them."
"Yes, sensei ," Bri answered quietly.
Reese turned away with a smile. She sensed that Brianna would be a good student, and she had enjoyed the chance to teach her.
After they had bowed to each other, and Reese had knelt to carefully fold her hakama , the black skirt-like garment worn by experienced practitioners, Bri lingered uncertainly at the door. Reese looked over to her, a question in her eyes.
"Can I come tomorrow?" Bri asked softly.
"I am here every morning at quarter to six. If you come, we will train."
Bri smiled and bowed slightly, naturally. "Thank you."
Reese smiled and bowed back, watching as Bri walked away down the drive. She remembered how she had felt, when she first began nearly twenty years before, and how her life had been enriched by her training. She hoped she could provide that, in some small way, to this young woman. At the moment, however, there were more pressing things to consider. And more that she herself needed to learn.
Chapter Ten
"Morning Chief," Reese said when she entered the station an hour later.
"What are you doing here?" Parker asked abruptly.
"Sir?" Reese questioned in surprise, halting halfway to her desk.
"Didnt you just finish the night shift two hours ago?"
"Yes, sir, but Im scheduled to work today -"
"Conlon," the Sheriff said with a sigh, "youre a civilian now. I know I told you that you needed to be available twenty-four hours a day if I needed you, but I didnt mean that you actually had to work twenty-four hours a day!"
"I know that, Chiefbut I offered to take Smiths shift without asking you, and I fully expected to work today. Im fineI slept last night between shifts. Im used to sleeping at odd hours."
He looked at her in exasperation, but he wasnt angry. She didnt have any idea how unusual she wasany other officer, no matter how good they might be, would have jumped at the chance to be relieved of a shift. She seemed to actually want to take hers. He knew she didnt have a family, and probably hadnt had much of an opportunity to make friends, but at the rate she was going, she never would. That she seemed perfectly content with her solitary life, and her work, perplexed him. It would have been odd, even in a man, but in a young woman like herhe was at a loss to figure it.
"Okay, okaybut no more doubles unless I approve it." He caught the flicker of unease in her usually impenetrable gaze. "What?"
She faced him, squaring her shoulders, unconsciously coming to attention. "I told Smith I would take the last half of the night shift until his baby is born. It shouldnt be more than a few days. I didnt clear it with you because you told me that as Deputy Sheriff I had clearance to reorganize the shifts as needed."
"I was thinking more along the lines of an emergency when I told you that, Conlon although having a baby certainly feels like an emergency at the time. With any luck his wont be two weeks late like mine was."
He shrugged in defeat, leaning back in his swivel chair to gaze up at his tall second-in-command. "Go ahead, Reesebut take time off during the day if you need it. Im depending on you to keep things organized around here this summer. Weve got a small force, compared to the crowds well have to deal with, and Smith probably wont be worth a fart in a wind storm once his kid is born."
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