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Chapter 61
October, 2005
K plus one month
Louisiana and Texas
were reeling from the effects of Rita, so it was understandable
that their attention was not on their neighbors to the south.
From October 1 to 5, Hurricane Stan, a minimal Cat 1 storm, sat
off the coast of Central America, dumping tons of rain onto unstable
hillsides. Fifteen hundred people were estimated to have died
in the floods and mud slides, proving you don't need a monster
storm for a storm to be monstrous.
~*~*~
There was no doubt
about it. The Crescent City was broke. Cash reserves were gone.
Without business and commerce and the sales tax they generated,
there was no hope of quickly restoring the city to fiscal health.
On October 5, Mayor Nagin announced that due to lack of funds,
New Orleans would lay off 3,000 non-essential employees from
the city's payroll, or about half of its workforce, over the
next two weeks.
He also said that
residents from all parts of the city, with the exception of the
Lower Ninth Ward, would be allowed to return to their homes.
He warned, however, that many houses were damaged to the point
of being uninhabitable, that there was little chance of restoration
of power soon, and that the "boil water" order remained
in effect.
~*~*~
The line outside
Pelican Park athletic center in Mandeville moved up a bit, and
like the hundreds of others queued up, Chuck Bingley dutifully
moved his folding chair.
It was a strange
experience for the one-time high-level corporate lender. A little
over a month ago, he would have been in an air-conditioned office
in downtown New Orleans, working on deals worth millions of dollars.
Today he had been in line for hours in the late morning sun,
waiting for his turn to apply for $1,265 in Red Cross assistance,
and he had hours yet to go.
Ever since the storm,
the American Red Cross had been telling people that the charity
was offering cash assistance. All people had to do was call a
toll-free phone number, and the money would be transferred into
their bank accounts or a debit card issued for those who did
not use banks. For Chuck and his family, twelve hundred dollars
wasn't the solution to all of their troubles, but it would help.
The problem was
that the phone line was always busy, no matter what time you
tried it. Chuck heard of horror stories of people who told of
being fortunate enough to get into the phone queue, only to wait
for hours and hours for an operator. Those with cell phones were
cut off when the batteries died. One family talked of being on
hold for thirteen hours before their call was handled by a human.
The Red Cross spokespeople
interviewed regularly on the radio said they were aware of the
problem, but that they had "hundreds of operators, working
around the clock" to handle the thousands of calls. They
promised to put more operators on the lines and urged people
to be patient. The Red Cross would not allow people to apply
via the Internet and denied time and again persistent rumors
they were going to set up local Relief Centers. "Just be
patient and call," was their mantra.
Though twelve hundred
dollars would not solve all of the Bingleys' problems, hearing
about it day after day wore on them. It was their money, they
deserved it, and the Red Cross was being unreasonable and cruel
to offer the money and make it impossible to collect.
Finally, in late
September, the Red Cross breathlessly announced the establishment
within forty-eight hours of a drive-up relief center in Slidell.
They warned it would only be in operation for a few weeks, and
they would only take about 700 applications per day at the facility.
People were urged to arrive early, and police would turn cars
away when they reached their daily quota.
Arriving before
five in the morning and sitting in one's car for up to seven
hours, as many people would experience at the Slidell center,
was not Chuck's idea of a good time. He waited a week until the
walk-up center at Pelican Park was established.
That's how he found
himself in a lawn chair and ball cap, sitting in line with hundreds
of others. He had been there since before five a.m. and had been
in line for five hours. He figured he had at least two hours
to go.
Everyone was good-natured
about the whole thing. Red Cross volunteers handed out endless
bottles of water, and those in line who brought food shared with
those who didn't. There was a bank of portable toilets set up,
and people were happy to hold places in line for those who had
to use them. It was a very socially-mixed bag of mostly North
Shore residents - workers, doctors, professionals, teachers,
housewives, poor people, young people, and elderly. The majority
was white and had never stood in line for anything, except the
Department of Motor Vehicles for their driver's licenses. People
joked around, shared their storm experiences, and asked for advice
from those who had sought assistance in the past. It was fascinating
watching a single mother on TANF(1) explain the expected procedures
to an accountant.
While people were
appreciative of the local Red Cross personnel, they weren't so
kind to the national office. They, like Chuck, were not fools.
They knew the Red Cross had planned for weeks to put in these
relief centers. It took time to pull together the logistics of
such an effort. Why then did the charity lie to the people for
over a month? Their spokespeople said over and over that there
were going to be no centers until the centers were going up;
then they changed their stories. Why be so cruel?
Chuck sat contemplating
cruelty. The American Red Cross weren't the only ones acting
in a way that could only be described as wrong. The expected
letter had arrived that week from Gallic National Bank. It was
a politely phrased ultimatum. His boss, Manwarring, had decided
to move Corporate Lending out of Louisiana to the Dallas regional
office. All lenders were expected to transfer to Dallas, or they
would be placed on unpaid leave until the Louisiana office reopened
- if ever.
He and Jane had
talked it over. Even with house prices jumping twenty-five percent
after the hurricane, only undamaged homes were selling. Even
if they wanted to, the Bingleys could not sell their house until
it was repaired. And they did not want to sell.
So Charles Bingley
was unemployed, sitting in a folding chair, waiting for his chance
to apply for free money. He had signed up for unemployment -
on the Internet, ironically - and a woman just told him of the
emergency food stamp program available across town. Chuck had
no false pride left, and if he finished with enough time, he
would go and get in another line later.
At least Standard
Insurance had come through. The same day the hated letter arrived
from Gallic, their settlement check from their home insurance
came in. The settlement was fair, but the check was made out
to both the Bingleys and Acme National Mortgage Company. A young
man named Karl assured him that the company would simply co-sign
the check and the $25,000 would soon be in Chuck's bank account.
In a week or so, Chuck could start looking for a contractor to
fix Hailey's window.
What was weird was
that the Prechters down the street from him were also Standard
Insurance customers and had put in their claim, but they had
seen neither hide nor hair of an adjustor. Chuck's adjustor had
explained that no insurance company had enough people to work
a major event like a hurricane and that most of the adjustors
were contract employees. They worked a set area, a county or
parish, but the insurance company wanted different adjustors
in each neighborhood. That way the different adjustors' recommendations
could be compared and keep the settlement fair. Assignments were
generated randomly. It was only by luck that Chuck was on the
beginning of the list, while the Precheters were apparently on
the end.
FEMA, Red Cross,
insurance, trees falling on your house - everything was a crap-shoot, Chuck thought as he moved his chair
up again.
~*~*~
The Army Corps of
Engineers, the levee boards, and their contactors worked like
demons to repair the new breaches in New Orleans. Soon the pumps
were operating again, and the waters receded. It would take two
weeks, but by October 11, the Corps could declare New Orleans
dry.
For some time, those
National Guardsmen not involved in assisting the police were
occupied in a grimmer and just as necessary task - recovery of
the bodies. It was a time-consuming, dirty, hot, terrible job.
Each and every structure in Orleans Parish and St. Bernard Parish
in Louisiana, and Harrison County, Hancock County, and Jackson
County in Mississippi would have to be painstakingly searched
for human remains. Damaged areas in Slidell and Plaquemines Parish
would undergo the same procedure.
Captain Buford sat
in his Humvee watching a squad from New Mexico go through the
process. A two- or three-man detail would go into a house, breaking
in if necessary, and search each room. Knowing that strange things
happen in a flood, they looked in closets and behind furniture.
Most bodies were found in bedrooms or attics, so those areas
got the most attention. As the smell was unmistakable, using
one's nose was often the best method to accomplish this gruesome
mission.
Once the inspection
was done, a large X was spay-painted on or near the front door.
This indicated that the house had been searched. In the top quadrant,
they put the date, and in the left quadrant, they put some indication
of who searched it - in this case "NMNG" and unit number.
The right quadrant indicated any hazards that future teams should
be aware of, such as unstable stairwells or missing floors. If
any bodies were found, their number and location were put in
the bottom quadrant. The teams did not remove the bodies; that
was left to the DMART teams.
Some houses had
lots of markings, since the animal rescue teams adopted the same
system; one could see X's where the team was marked as "SPCA"
and the bottom quadrant might say "1 dead dog" or "1
cat under house, left food 9/18". It could lead to confusion,
if one didn't pay close attention.
A loud shout came
from a house, followed by cursing. Buford got out of the Humvee,
unfastening his service pistol, although he had a fair idea what
had happened.
Sure enough, two
Guardsmen rushed out the front door, one of them falling to his
knees and vomiting in the grey-brown grass near the porch. Buford
put on a surgical mask as the tell-tale god-awful stench followed
the men outside.
"All right,"
cried the leader of the detail, "who opened the refrigerator?"
Buford listened
as the men claimed that it was an accident. But under the glare
of their commanding sergeant, they finally admitted that they
had disregarded the warnings and opened the appliance on a beer
bet of who could take the stink the longest. They had no idea
what food locked in a sealed container in ninety-degree heat
for two months would turn into, but they just found out.
The sergeant had
no sympathy for the retching privates and ordered them back into
the house to complete the inspection. The two sad sacks trudged
back in, and Buford had to grin from behind his mask. At least
it wasn't a body, he thought.
"Whoa!' cried
Mack from behind him. "Are you through here, sir?"
"Yeah. Let's
get back to the staging area." He climbed back in the Humvee.
"Two more days
and we're outta here."
"Can't be too
soon for me, Mack." Carrie, I'm coming home!
~*~*~
"New York."
"New York City?
You must be crazy out your mind, woman. I'm not having any daughter-in-law
of mine livin' in New York City."
"Watch your
lip, old man."
"I'd rather
watch yours. Heeheehee."
"Knock it off,
Dad. Don't worry, we're not going to New York City or Los Angeles.
Too big. Too much competition."
"Well, where
then? Mari? What's on the list so far?"
Chris and Mari sat
in the living room with Mr. and Mrs. Breaux, discussing the younger
couple's future. "All right, we've got Atlanta, Chicago,
Memphis, San Francisco, Miami, Dallas, and Denver."
"What about
Branson?" Mr. Breaux asked.
"Dad,"
said Chris, "Mari is a little young for the Branson crowd.
We want to build up her career, not bury her."
Mrs. Breaux put
up a finger. "Well, in that case, there's Orlando. Lots
of young people go to Orlando."
Mari shook her head.
"People don't go to Disney World to hear a blues singer."
"Maybe you
should change genres, cher," advised Mr. Breaux. "How
about Nashville? Country music's hot nowadays."
"Yes, I know,
and they're doing some great stuff, but it's not me."
Chris cleared his
throat. "We also need to find a place were I can get a job.
A university-run hospital or mental health facility would be
ideal."
"Austin?"
Mari nodded. "Small,
but…yeah."
Mr. Breaux glanced
over. "I think we've got enough for now. Let's talk this
over. Y'all need a place where Chris can work and grow in his
profession, while Mari builds her singing career. Looks to me
we've got us some good places. Anything stands out good or bad,
Mari?"
Mari thought about
it. "Memphis is known for the blues. Chicago, too."
"Both of them
are airline hubs. We can get out of there for gigs easy,"
Chris noted.
"What about
you, Chris?" asked his mother.
"Well…I'm
not really into children's care, but St. Jude Children's Research
Hospital is in Memphis. Really great behavioral medicine department.
As for Chicago, there's the University of Chicago Medical Center
and Northwestern Memorial. My friend, Dr. Mickey Segura, has
some contacts in the field. He can see if there are any openings."
He turned to Mari. "What about you, Mari? What's best for
your career?"
She bit her lip
as she took her husband's hand. "I can get restarted in
either place. Which ever has an opening."
"Any preference?"
She shook her head. "Okay, I'll call Mickey in the morning."
~*~*~
Saturday, October
15, 2005
The congregation
was gathered this fine, dry October day in Our Lady of Prompt
Succor Catholic Church in Chackbay. Adam Teresina, uncomfortable
in his rented tuxedo, and Mary Boudreaux, properly resplendent
in her white wedding gown, stood before the altar, their attendants
on either side, the bridesmaids in silver and crimson, as the
priest recited the Liturgy of the Sacrament of Marriage.
"My dear friends,
you have come together in this church so that the Lord may seal
and strengthen your love in the presence of the Church's minister
and this community. Christ abundantly blesses this love. He has
already consecrated you in baptism and now he enriches and strengthens
you by a special sacrament so that you may assume the duties
of marriage in mutual and lasting fidelity. And so, in the presence
of the Church, I ask you to state your intentions."
He read the names
written before him. "Adam and Mary, have you come here freely
and without reservation to give yourselves to each other in marriage?"
Each, separately
yet together, answered, "I have."
"Will you love
and honor each other as man and wife for the rest of your lives?"
Again, "I will."
"Will you accept
children lovingly from God and bring them up according to the
law of Christ and his Church?"
One last time, "I
will."
"Since it is
your intention to enter into marriage, join your right hands,
and declare your consent before God and his Church." Mary
handed her flowers to Lizzy, as the priest turned to Bubba and
had him repeat the words of the vows.
"I, Adam, take
you, Mary, for my lawful wife..." Will smiled as Bubba shook
from nervousness as he stumbled over the familiar phrases. It
was then Mary's turn, and she recited her vows in a clear, strong
voice. Never had Lizzy seen Mary glow so.
The priest raised
his hands in benediction. "You have declared your consent
before the Church. May the Lord in his goodness strengthen your
consent and fill you both with his blessings. What God has joined,
no one must now divide." He accepted two rings from Bubba's
brother, his Best Man. "Lord, bless and consecrate Adam
and Mary in their love for each other. May these rings be a symbol
of true faith in each other, and always remind them of their
love. We ask this through Christ our Lord."
The congregation
all responded with, "Amen" as the couple placed the
rings upon each other's hand. Mary reclaimed her flowers from
Lizzy.
He then moved to
his right, to stand before the other couple before him.
"William and Elizabeth, have you come here freely and without
reservation to give yourselves to each other in marriage?"
"I have,"
they said together.
William and Elizabeth
calmly recited the answers, both rather pleased and surprised
to be there. When they mentioned their desire to have as short
an engagement as possible in the wake of the storm, it was Mary
who came up with the suggestion to share her wedding day. She
and Bubba were able to convince a shocked and initially unwilling
Lizzy and Will that they did not look upon the participation
of another couple on their special day as anything other than
an exercise in family affection and Christian love.
The next two weeks
had been a firestorm of work. The cooperation from the local
parish priest had been secured, after a special dispensation
came down from the bishop in Houma. Family and friends were contacted.
Gina was able to drive in, and Richard Fitzwilliam was in attendance
with his parents, but the still grieving Katzes sent their regrets
from Maryland.
To the two couples'
relief, Lydia couldn't make it from Vegas. She promised, however,
in a phone call to Lizzy and Will, that she and Annie would do
a special dance in their honor. Lizzy was very thankful she would
never see that performance.
Elizabeth's bone
colored dress was pretty and flattering, even though it was off
the rack from a Baton Rouge shop and not the hand-made extravaganza
most people would expect the woman marrying William Darcy to
wear. The florist was able, at the last minute, to make a second
bouquet to match Mary's. Fortunately, Will owned a tuxedo.
The statement of
intention completed, the priest said, "Since it is your
intention to enter into marriage, join your right hands, and
declare your consent before God and his Church." It was
Mary's turn to hold Lizzy's flowers.
Will hardly needed
the prompting, as his dark eyes were fixed upon Elizabeth. "I,
William, take you, Elizabeth, for my lawful wife, to have and
to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer,
for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part."
Lizzy's smile could
have lit up all of Chackbay. "I, Elizabeth, take you, William,
for my lawful husband, to have and to hold, from this day forward,
for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and
in health, until death do us part." There was a slight pause
as Mari cried out in joy, unable to resist celebrating this final
stage of her dear friends' odyssey.
The priest continued,
accepting rings from Chris, who was standing for Will. "Lord,
bless and consecrate William and Elizabeth in their love for
each other. May these rings be a symbol of true faith in each
other, and always remind them of their love. We ask this through
Christ our Lord."
If anything, "Amen"
was louder than before.
~*~*~
The reception was
held in the nearby fire station. Will found it amusing that the
Fitzwilliam family was sitting on metal folding chairs, nibbling
on finger sandwiches. Jane and Carrie, both too far along in
their pregnancies to take part in the dancing, sat in a corner,
keeping an eye on their children dashing about, and talking up
a storm, thick as thieves. John Buford, back from New Orleans,
was at the bar talking with Chuck and few of the locals. Mr.
& Mrs. Boudreaux were with a group that included Chris and
Marianne Breaux, and Chris' parents danced to an Elvis Presley
song, while Kit was begging the DJ to play some Gwen Stefani.
Bubba and Mary, hand in hand, were making the rounds, while Elizabeth
introduced Gina to some of her old school friends.
For his part, Will
had his back against the wall, a glass of champagne in his hand,
talking to his Uncle Edward as he surreptitiously watched another
relative.
"Richard looks
bad, Ed."
Richard Fitzwilliam,
sitting at a table with his parents, indeed looked like the world
had punched him in the stomach.
Ed glanced at his
other nephew. "Well, that's understandable. This thing with
Olivia is tearing him up. But, what did he expect? Did he really
think she was going to leave their daughter with her folks in
Atlanta and come back to live on a boat with him in New Orleans?
Her job is gone, the schools are closed, the city is just now
crawling back onto its feet, and their house is trashed. Richard's
being unrealistically stubborn."
"She still
wants him to move to Atlanta?"
"She's suggested
he do that and try to get a law-enforcement job there or take
a position with DGS, outside of Louisiana. The bottom line is
she wants him out of the NOPD."
"And he says
no."
Ed raised his eyebrows.
"He says he'll think about it, which is the same thing as
no."
Will sighed. "Want
me to talk to him again?"
Ed put a hand on
his shoulder. "No, Will, this is your wedding day. This
is Richard and Olivia's problem to solve. Your attention should
be on more pleasant subjects." He took a sip of his scotch
and soda. "You sure you don't want to use the jet for you
and Elizabeth to go somewhere?"
He smiled. "We
both have work on Monday. Don't worry. Lizzy and I have talked
about it. We've got the rest of our lives to travel."
At that moment,
the subject of their conversation approached. "Hey, handsome.
Buy a girl a drink?" Lizzy asked as she slid an arm around
her husband. Will handed his wife his glass as Gina hugged her
uncle. They talked for a few minutes until the music changed
to Roy Orbison's version of "Pretty Woman." That brought
Kit over in a huff.
"Gina! Come
on with me," she demanded as he took the coed's hand in
hers. "We've got to talk this guy into some real music!"
Will grinned as the two made their way through the dancers to
berate the DJ.
"Care to dance,
Mrs. Darcy?" he whispered.
Lizzy looked at
him coquettishly. "Why, Mr. Darcy! How is it I always seem
to be dancing with you?"
As he pulled her
onto the dance floor, he answered, "If I have my way, you'll
be dancing with me for the rest of your life."
She moved into his
arms. "I'm counting on it."
~*~*~
The two couples
adjourned to separate rooms in the back of the hall to change
into their going-away clothes. Will and Lizzy were able to finish
changing first and were successful in intercepting Bubba and
Mary before they reentered the hall.
Will offered an
envelope. "Here, Lizzy and I want you to have this. It's
our wedding gift to you."
"What?"
cried Mary. "You already gave us those lovely crystal candleholders."
Lizzy smiled. "This
is a thank-you for today. Open it."
Bubba was confused
as he handed the paper from the envelope to Mary. "What
is this?"
Will and Lizzy grinned
as Mary stared at the paper. A bit quicker on the uptake, she
cried out, "This is a credit notice from the resort in Gatlinburg!
They've refunded our deposit!"
"What?"
Bubba took the paper back as Mary stared at the other couple.
"'Paid in full?' What do they mean by 'paid in full?'"
Mary gasped. "You
didn't!"
Lizzy laughed. "We
did."
Will put an arm
around Lizzy's shoulders. "Your honeymoon trip to Gatlinburg
is all paid for - room, meals, everything. You just go and have
a great time."
Bubba spurted, "This
is too much! We can't accept this!"
Lizzy took Mary's
hand in hers. "Please let us do this. We can never thank
you enough for sharing today with us." She squeezed her
sister's hand.
Will nodded. "Use
your money towards the down-payment on your first house."
Realization stuck
Mary and Bubba, as they had decided to put off starting a family
until they could afford a house. This gift just moved that dream
a lot closer.
"You make it
impossible to say no," Mary breathed.
"Good, then
you won't." Will's laughter turned into a grunt as Bubba
pulled him into a bear hug. Mary and Lizzy were tearing up in
each other's arms.
"Look what
you two did to my make-up," Mary giggled as she wiped the
tears from her face after she kissed Will. "Lizzy, help
me repair this damage."
~*~*~
Back at Pemberley
Plantation that evening, Elizabeth and William lay intertwined,
their bedroom lit by a dozen candles, skin glistening from the
delightful labor of the consummation of their vows.
"So long,"
Will murmured. "So long we've been on this journey. Seven
years." He turned to her, propped on one arm. "Over
seven years since I first saw you at that smoker at the Alpha
Iota House. Seven years since I fell in love with you."
Lizzy's eyes were
wide. "You fell in love with me at first sight?"
He gently pulled
back the hair from her face. "I didn't know it at the time.
Heck," he chuckled, "I fell in lust with you at Fat
Harry's a few weeks before, watching you eat those cheese fries."
She gently slapped
his chest, as she had heard this part before. "You and cheese
fries. Besides, I thought it was my great rack."
He laughed. "I
forgot about that remark! And, yes, you do have a magnificent
rack." He then showed his appreciation by kissing each nipple.
Lizzy grew thoughtful,
her eyes falling to the plain platinum band next to her engagement
ring. "I had no idea, Will. I was so hateful to you at school."
"Shush. We've
already gone over that. Besides, how were you to know? I fought
my attraction to you all semester, thinking you were too young
for me. I was a moron." He stroked her face. "You are
everything I have ever wanted."
She took his hand
and kissed the palm. "It's terrifying, in a way, isn't it,
this needing? This requirement of another person's presence to
assure your own happiness? William, never leave me. Never."
"Don't worry,
Mrs. Darcy. Me and Riptide will always be watching out for you.
You'll never get rid of us."
She followed his
eyes to the beanie, still standing sentinel over her jewelry
box. One eyebrow arched up provocatively. "Well, then, if
Riptide's here, then I've got nothing to worry about!" She
drew a single fingertip down his chest. "Though he does
a lousy job of protecting me from being ravished by a certain
insatiable beast."
"Any complaints?"
She gave him a slow,
sexy smile. "Not if he does it right - and right now!"
Will's grin widened.
"I think I can handle that." He took his beloved bride
into his arms, and the two of them made love again. As they lost
themselves in a tempest of feelings and desire, a completely
different sort of tempest was brewing in the Caribbean Sea south
of Cuba.
~*~*~
October 16, 2005
The Bingleys had
a happy surprise awaiting their return from Chackbay. After almost
two months, cable television service had been restored. While
Hailey was overjoyed at the return of Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network,
and Sesame Street, her parents were far less excited. During
their forced withdrawal from the boob tube, they had grown used
to the silence of reading a good book or a quiet conversation.
The only times they used the TV after Chuck hooked up the rabbit
ears antenna was to catch the local news and weather, not to
watch the latest inanity out of Hollywood. The return of Internet
was more profound. Chuck could again job search, and Jane could
email without waiting in line to use a computer at the parish
library. They didn't know how long this recovery from their TV
addiction would last, but they had no intention of testing themselves.
It was during the
news that they learned of Tropical Storm Wilma.
~*~*~
(1) - TANF - Temporary
Assistance for Needy Families, which replaced what was commonly
known as welfare: Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC)
and the Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Training (JOBS) programs.
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