Episode 29

MY V.I.
(a soap opera)




Wednesday afternoon found Charmaine and Cindy sitting in the office of the Village Inn chatting about all the amazing events that had taken place over the past couple of days.

Charmaine had become quite the celebrity and Brianna Bailey, a reporter for the Daily Pilot, had contacted the V.I. requesting an interview with her about how she had recognized and reported to America's Most Wanted one of their most sought after fugitives.

"So what time is this reporter supposed to be here?" Cindy asked.

"Well, I told her that we didn't open until 3:00 p.m. and I'm a little early," Charmaine replied.

While the girls waited in the office, a peculiar figure passed by out front and took notice of the fact that the V.I. door was propped open. It was Sky Bingham dressed as an Arab Sheik.


After he'd fled the V.I. the day before to avoid the police, he made his way down to the laundromat on Agate and swiped a bunch of sheets out of a dryer which he used to improvise a disguise but, unfortunately, not before he used them to wrap up in as he spent the night on the beach. The now wrinkled and dirty sheets rendered him a rather "Shabby Sheik."

Sky knew that Cindy worked on Wednesday and was thrilled to find the V.I. door ajar before 3:00. He quietly opened the door and looked inside. There was no one behind the bar so he went in and headed for the double kitchen doors that lead to the office.

As he approached the kitchen doors he heard two voices in back and stopped in his tracks to listen.

"I've been thinking about what you told me about Michelle and Trixie Louise," Charmaine said.

"Yeah, well. What ever you do - don't repeat that. You, me, Michelle and Trudy are the only ones who know the truth about it," Cindy replied.

Sky was intrigued by what he heard and moved closer to eavesdrop on their conversation.

"Oh - I wouldn't breathe a word of it. But what fascinates me about it is that she only turns into this Trixie character when she hits her head - right?" Charmaine asked.

"Yeah. Everytime she's become this other personality. . . Trixie, it's after she's bumped her head. Like I told you: first it was on the ship and a couple of times it has happened when she was drunk and fell and this last time, I'm guessing, was caused by that fight on Saturday. Weird, huh?"

"You're not kidding. That's the strangest story ever."

Sky had heard all he needed to hear and so he slipped out of the V.I. and made his way down Marine Ave. to the South Bayfront. Taking a seat on a bench facing the bay, he pulled out his cellphone and placed a call.

"Hey, Michelle - Sky. How's it going?"

Michelle said she was fine and Sky continued.

"I'm in a really tough spot right now and I was wondering if you could come by here for a minute. I have something very, very important to tell you."

Michelle asked him what it was but he insisted that he had to tell her face to face.

"I'm dressed as an Arab, if you can believe that, and I'm sitting on the bench at the end of Marine Ave. facing the South Bayfront. Will you please come . . . quickly? Please!"

Michelle reluctantly agreed to come right over.

Meanwhile, across town and high above the city; Mary Haley was putting the finishing touches on her makeup and wedging her ample bosom into her black tube top as Mayhem barged into the room and came up behind her.

He wrapped his arms tightly around her and nibbled on her earlobe. His hot breath reeked of expensive scotch and flamin' hot Cheetos as he whispered in her ear.

"Does Daddy's little naughty-puss have everything he gave her to take to work?"

Mary spun around in his arms and planted a passionate kiss on his angry lips.

"I've got the Beretta strapped to my thigh and the camera's in my shoe, baby," she replied.

Putting his hands ever so gently around her neck he asked, "An where's the stick of dynamite?"

Pushing his hands away, she smiled and said, "Oh, I've got it. Let's just say it's safe and out of sight."

Grabbing her by the waist; he pulled her tightly against himself.

"I ought to dismember you but I just don't know what I'd do without you. Go to pieces, I suppose."

He thought for a second and then threw his head back and laughed maniacally.

"Get it? Dismember you . . . go to pieces!"

As he continued laughing, Mary found his laughter infectious and soon she was laughing as hard as he.

Back on the Island; Sky spotted Michelle's car as she parked on Marine Ave. Running up along the passenger side he knocked on the window and scared the daylights out of her.

Rolling down the window she said, "Oh my god, Sky. You scared the crap out of me. What's with the crazy get up anyway?"

Sky got in the car and closed the door.

"It's my disguise," he informed her.

"Dude - you look like Osama bin Laden," she replied. "Now what's so urgent that I had to drive all the way over here on my day off, for god's sake."

Sky didn't say anything and became visably nervous as he began to look around the car.

"Dude, what the heck's wrong with you?" Michelle asked.

Scattered across the backseat of her car were several books and one with a blue and bright orange cover caught his attention and he grabbed it.

Pointing past Michelle and out her driver's side window he said, "Hey, isn't that Trudy?"

Michelle turned and looked and when she did Sky smacked the back of her head with the book.

She spun around immediately.

"What the hell?" she yelled.

When he realized that it hadn't worked he began swinging the book at her, and in an effort to avoid getting hit, Michelle threw her head back, and when she did she bumped it hard against the driver's side window.

The noise of her head hitting the window so startled Sky that he stopped swinging but he was delighted as he watched a dazed and confused Trixie Louise emerge before his eyes.

"Hank! Baby!" Trixie yelled. "I feel like dancing!" she squealed as she twisted the rear-view mirror down and took a look at herself. "Oh my god! What happened to my hair?!"

TUNE IN NEXT TIME FOR ANOTHER EXCITING EPISODE OF MY V.I.!