David returned to find the front door open and Ginny lying on the step. He noticed that her eyes were glassy and she couldn’t stand up.

“Hey, what’s wrong with you? You really need to leave. And now I’m in big shit because of you!” he said, trying to help her to her feet.

He grabbed her as she began to fall down. That’s when he noticed the marks on the inside of her forearms. Apparently her friend Crank did sell heroin. But David wasn’t sure what to do. He didn’t know much about the drug other than to avoid it, so he decided that she’d be fine if she could just sleep it off. He helped her back into the house, holding her up to keep her from falling to the floor. Marty looked up as they entered the living room.

“Oh, come on man, why is she back?” he asked, with an annoyed tone in his voice.

“I’m going to take her to one of the bedrooms upstairs.”

He quickly realized that came out wrong. Lani jumped to her feet.

“I don’t care where you put the old rag!” Lani screamed. Then she marched toward the kitchen, fuming all the way. Mickey and Stephanie were drinking beer in the kitchen at the time. They heard her coming, and quickly disappeared out the back door.

David helped Ginny up the stairs. It was a long staircase, and he nearly lost his grip on her several times. He knew the first bedroom was Marty’s, so he dragged her further down the hall to one he knew was empty. Then he pushed her onto the bed and tossed her purse next to her. This event caused considerable trouble between David and Lani, and she brought it up repeatedly after they were married. But it was only later that David realized how lucky Ginny was that night. He also gave considerable thought to how lucky he was that night. If Ginny had died, David would never have forgiven himself for not calling an ambulance. David saw Ginny from time to time after that. The last thing he heard was that she was living in a house just a few blocks over, and had a daughter named Kerry.

“Who the fuck are you?” she asked in complete surprise, looking around her. It seemed to David like she was getting ready to run.

“You don’t recognize me, Ginny?”

She squinted as she looked him over slowly backing up as she did. Then she stopped.

“You’re David Larimore,” she said.

David smiled at her. “None other.”

“Why are you here?”

“I’m here about Kerry.”

Ginny walked up to the front porch and sat down next to David.

“It’s been a long time.”

“It has. The last time I saw you, you said you were leaving,” David said.

“Things change,” she said rather bluntly.

“True, and some things don’t. We need to talk about Kerry.”

Ginny looked at him. “Fine, here.”

David shook his head. “No, Ginny, inside.”

Ginny nodded, unlocked the door and they both stepped into the house. Courtney wasn’t able to fully describe the house to him, although she tried. Kerry wouldn’t talk about it. He hadn’t taken more than two steps in the house, before he felt rather disgusted.

“Great place, Ginny.”

The only furniture in the living room was a couch and a TV. Courtney said this was where Kerry slept. There were empty cans, paper plates with dried food on them and wrappers on the floor. He walked toward the kitchen. She suddenly stepped in his way.

“Hey, stay out!” Ginny yelled.

He pushed past her. “Sure stinks, Ginny.” He opened the refrigerator. The only food was half a loaf of bread. He found a rancid bottle of milk on the inside shelf. There were stains all over the bottom and down the right side. When he shut the fridge he noticed that the floor was covered in a layer of grime. There were empty cigarette packs on the counter, along with a couple of empty and almost-empty liquor bottles. He bent down and picked up an old TV dinner carton and tossed into the garbage can.

“Kerry doesn’t clean up after herself,” Ginny said.

“Yeah, that must be it.”

He pushed past her again and walked into her bedroom. She followed close behind. What caught his attention was the paraphernalia sitting on the dresser. He walked over and picked up a small glass bong. There was a buildup of white residue around the bowl. Next to it was a long wooden pipe. He held it up to his nose.

“Wow, opium,” he said.

Then he noticed a hypodermic needle and bent spoon. Suddenly, he grabbed Ginny’s arm and pulled up her sleeve. The inside of her forearm was covered with scars and fresh tracks. One wound looked infected.

“Let me go!” she hollered, pulling away from him.

“You should get that looked at.” Then he glanced around the room again. “I wonder what the police would say about all this?”

Ginny put her hands in her pockets and looked away from him.

“Oh come on, don’t do that!” she pleaded.

They walked back into the living room. Then he looked at her.

“Well, let’s talk about that.”

He sat down on the floor, and motioned for her to join him.

“You won’t be offended if I don’t want to sit on your shitty couch!”

She sat down just as he moved a bottle of whiskey sitting in the middle of the floor.

“I know you, Ginny; it’s been a while, but I know you. And I’m going to give you one shot at redemption; maybe the only one you’ll ever get. Kerry’s been staying with me and Courtney.”

“I wondered where she was,” Ginny said. David was surprised to hear a tone of relief in her voice.

“You know, what you do to yourself is your decision. But I care about Kerry, and you’re not going to ruin her life too.”

Ginny sighed and looked away.

“Now, if you love her, and somewhere in there I suspect you do, then you have a decision to make; the most important one you will ever make.”

Ginny wiped her eyes and looked at the floor. “Ok, I agree. But if things change...”

David smiled. “If things change, then they change. Where’s her room?”

Ginny got up and led him to a small bedroom at the end of the hall. He could smell the mold before they opened the door. Once inside, he went over and ran his finger down the wall, looking at the green film on his finger. He pushed at the carpet with his foot, and it was wet and squishy.

“Heroin’s expensive, and you can’t afford a plumber?” he asked sarcastically.

He turned around and looked at her. “Get a box!” he ordered.

Ginny left Kerry’s room, and headed toward the garage. She soon came back carrying a good-sized cardboard box.

“This is all I could find.”

Ginny stood beside him holding the box. David opened each drawer in the dresser and pulled out all the clothes he could find. He put them in the box. Then he found dirty clothes piled up in a clothesbasket beside the bed. There were some shirts hanging in the closet. He put these in the box, and then noticed a bookshelf. There were a few unreturned schoolbooks and some records. These also went into the box.

David looked up at her. “Where’s her guitar?”

Ginny hesitated. “Her what?”

“She’s a guitarist, where’s her guitar?”

She pointed to the far corner. A banged up electric guitar with a small amp sat in the corner. He picked them up and carried them into living room, setting them by the front door. Ginny followed him, setting the box down by the guitar. David looked around again, and soon headed for the dining room.

“You have all of Kerry’s shit,” Ginny said.

David turned around and smiled. “Well, then you won’t mind me looking around.”

The dining room contained a table with three chairs. There was a hutch with some old plates and silverware in it. There were two oil paintings hanging on the wall. But he also noticed a small desk along the far wall. Sitting on top of it was an old photo album. He picked it up and began looking through the pages. Nothing…nothing…and then he saw a creased photograph showing Kerry standing next to two people. David looked up at Ginny.

“Who are they?”

“Kerry’s grandparents.”

He handed it to Ginny.

“Go put this in the box!” he ordered.

She pointed in the direction of the garage. “I forgot; she has a bike in the garage.”

He followed her out of the dining room, through the living room, and then stepped into the garage. The first thing he noticed was an old car with the hood up. Much of the engine was gone. There was a pile of auto parts on a large workbench. “Interesting,” he thought to himself when he saw the hood for a red car leaning up against the wall. There were a few garbage cans, an old lawn mower and a pile of hoses. Then he saw the beat-up bike in the corner. He turned to Ginny.

 “She’s never mentioned a bike.”

“She doesn’t really ride it much anymore. It was a gift.”

“From you?” he asked.

“Yes.”

“Well, if she wants a bike, I’ll get her a new one.”

They returned to the living room. David put Kerry’s things on the porch, walked up the street and drove the car into Ginny’s driveway. She stood in the doorway and watched David put the box, guitar and amp into the car. Then he returned and stood next to her.

“There are two more things. First, you will call the school and tell them that I am an old family friend. You will tell them that you want me to be the alternative contact for Kerry because you are not married, are out of town a lot and want me to share responsibility for her. Drag yourself down there if you have to.”

Ginny nodded. “What’s the second thing?”

David smiled. “You’re not such a bad decision-maker after all.”

Virginia Cooper

Known as Ginny, she is the only daughter of Ernest and Marilyn Cooper, who lived in Des Moines. She has a brother named Caleb. Ginny's uncle is Malcolm Cooper, Ernest and Malcolm being the sons of Caleb and Julia Cooper. Ernest fought at Iwo Jima and Okinawa and was discharged after losing a leg after stepping on a land mine. Malcolm led a life of crime, only to end up handicapped after being shot by the police in Omaha. His son's name is Augustus (Gus) Cooper, who follows in his father's footsteps. At one time, Ernest and Malcolm live in Westbridge. Ginny's parents swear that her attraction to the criminal element is as a result of her cousin Gus, since it is through him that Ginny meets Crank.

Ginny is a high school dropout, but perhaps a unique one among the other dropouts in Westbridge. She would return to school, drop out, return to school, and drop out again. She becomes Crank's girlfriend and he supplies her with heroin. She is older than David and Lani, but will hang around the school and could be found out back of the science building. Lani had a particularly strong hatred for Ginny, occasioned by her having seen Ginny kiss David. David has an encounter with Ginny at a party at Marty Marsden's house that causes him to feel a considerable amount of sympathy for her.

After Ginny is arrested while making a drug delivery for Crank at the Western Star mote. She is sent to the Granite Hills Center for Young Female Offenders. She is soon found to be pregnant, so she is released and sent to live with her parents until Kerry is born. But she soon returns to drugs, falls out with her parents, and heads back to Wentbridge to hook up with Crank. She leaves Kerry behind with her parents and Kerry forms a close bond with them.  Ginny later flees from Crank, who has attempted to get her to again deliver drugs for him, and returns home to Des Moines, working as a cleaner at a local hospital. A bitter argument ensues when Ginny's parents attempt to persuade her to sign custody of Kerry over to them. She takes Kerry and returns to Westbridge.

Ginny works at the Star-lite Diner, a hangout for criminals. Crank and Sullivan are regular patrons of the Star-lite, and Ginny is working the day that Sullivan and Ian Masters, a weapons dealer and rival in the West Coast Syndicate, have a strange confrontation. Ginny is busted driving home from work when she found to be in possession of heroin, however, the State Police intervene convincing Ginny to become an informant. It is for this reason that local authorities are prevented from doing anything to remove Kerry from her mother's custody...Ginny being key to the State Police's ongoing investigations. Crank and Sullivan are often at Ginny's house. Kerry is always scared when they are around. One day a thug named The Fixer is at the house and Kerry flees when he pulls out a gun and waves it at her. And so Kerry, terrified of her mother and her friends, will leave the house whenever they are around, wandering the streets of Westbridge until they are gone. Ginny has one more confrontation with her parents when they come to Wentbridge to see Kerry. Her grandmother Marilyn tells Kerry that she and Ernest are ill and will not be able to see her again. But...Marilyn predicts that things are about to change for Kerry.

In the sequel, Ginny hooks up with an outlaw biker named Stoney, who, along with members of his gang, hangs out at the Lucky Lady Saloon outside Westbridge. Following the murders of Crank and Sullivan, Stoney saves Ginny from a trio of hit men sent by Victor Briggs to kill her. Briggs has taken out top bosses in the Syndicate and, despite the fact that Crank had been the means by which Stan Griswold, one of Briggs' rivals, was arrested, Briggs nonetheless orders the deaths of everyone associated with Sullivan and Crank. Ginny finally leaves town when Stoney's gang of bikers head east.

Courtney, Kerry's close friend, brings Kerry to stay at David's house. Soon, David has a confrontation with Ginny, forcing her to agree to allow Kerry to move in with Courtney and directing her to tell the school that he is the main contact in matters concerning Kerry. Ginny shows up once more in David's life when she visits Westbridge looking for one last shot at redemption.

Ginny has a major impact on David's view of life. When Jean's cousin Kayla Swann disappears one day after seeing him one last time out back of the science building, a concerted effort is made by local authorities to find her. This puzzles David. Ginny disappears time and time again and no one ever makes any effort to find her. But, she always returns. So David believes that, like Ginny, Kayla too will return. Unlike Ginny, she never does, and he doesn't hear from or about Kayla again until much later in his life. Ginny's choices about the way she lives her life come at a high price...she is never to see Kerry again.

******************************************

“On the ground now!” they screamed.

Ginny froze. Then she dropped her purse and fell to the ground. Soon she was handcuffed and sitting on the end of the bed. The blond man went through her purse, pulled out the two bags and threw them on the bed. Then he pulled her ID from her wallet and handed it to the other agent.

“Who the hell are you?” he yelled at Ginny.

“Go to hell!” she said.

By now, the other agent was talking on a phone over by the bathroom. A few minutes later, he walked over.

“Well?”

“She’s Virginia Cooper, and she’s got a juvenile record. And our sources say she’s Crank’s piece of ass.”

The other agent was still holding Ginny’s ID.

“And she’s still a minor.”

Ginny looked up angrily. “So you can’t do shit; so fuck you!”

“Look! Stop being stupid! These are federal charges. And I can make your life miserable. So you’re gonna give me Mike Armstrong!”

Ginny glared at him for a moment. “I don’t know anybody named Mike Armstrong; and you can go to hell!”

The other agent walked over. “So the dope’s yours?”

“I want a lawyer.”

Suddenly the door to the hotel swung open, and the man with the blond hair looked toward the street.

“Oh shit!” Crank hollered as he threw the car into drive. With tires squealing, he sped off down the street, constantly looking up into the rear view movie. Two streets over he pulled onto the freeway entrance ramp and disappeared.

Suddenly a car pulled up in front of the room, and two guys with long hair and wearing street clothes and mirrored sunglasses got out. In the confusion, the fat man had run out of the room and made a phone call from one of the pay phones. The two men approached the door and stared at the blond agent. Then they held up badges.

“State police; undercover drug operations. You’re on our turf, and you just fucked up 5 months of undercover work. And if you assholes followed protocol, you’d know that Vinnie was our informant.”

The blond man glared back at them. “We’re fed…”

“We know you’re feds.” Then one of them looked at Ginny and laughed. “She’s coming with us! So’s the dope!”

“Bullshit! She’s going up on federal charges.”

The other man smiled at him. “You need to call your superiors!”

Ginny looked up at the federal agents and started to laugh.

Lani got up to have a go at Mickey. David grabbed her arm and pulled her back down. Nobody noticed that a figure had appeared from around the corner of the building, and was leaning against the wall.

“Isn’t this touching?”

Everyone jumped in surprise. Frank was about to begin pushing the beer through the gap in the fence. Lani looked up.

“Ginny Cooper; this just keeps gettin’ better! Come on over, there’s always room for one more tramp! Especially an old one!” Lani shouted.

Mickey laughed. “Yeah Lani, that’s the only reason we let you come!”

Ginny walked over and sat down next to David.

“Well, for what it’s worth, I’m not staying in this place.”

Mickey looked over at her. “You’re not even graduating, are you, drop-out? Won’t Crank be looking for you? Better not keep him waiting or he’ll knock the crap out of you!”

“Fuck you Mickey. I’m leaving tonight. I just stopped by to say good-bye.” Ginny said.

“We don’t want to hear it,” Lani said.

“Not you bitch,” she said. Then she pointed at the others. “And fuck you all!” Then she looked at David.

“Bye David,” Ginny said smiling at him.

He sat and stared as Ginny Cooper got up and went through the gap in the fence. 

***************************

It was a cool morning, about 10:00 am. David was working in the garden. He was planting new roses. There was a knock on the wooden gate at the side of the house. This probably started as a knocking on the front door. But the garage door was up, and there were other signs that someone was home.

“Who is it?” David yelled out.

The gate opened and a woman entered. She had short blondish colored hair, and was wearing jeans and a dark-colored blouse. David stood up and looked intently at her. He didn’t recognize her at first, but then he did.

“Ginny? Ginny Cooper?”

She nodded. “Can I come in?”

“If you’ve come here wanting to contact Kerry…”

“No, I’m not here for that.”

Ginny looked up at the sky, and then at David.

“I get one last shot at redemption,” she said.

“How’s that?” David asked.

“I just got out of long-term rehab. Court ordered or I’d go back to jail. If I blow it this time, I’ll go away for a long time.”

David looked at her. “What will you do? I mean, what will you decide?”

She shrugged her shoulders. “I don’t know. I don’t even know why I came back here.”

“Well, sometimes you have to close your own circle.”

Ginny gave him a puzzled look. “What do you mean?”

“Sometimes you have to go back where you started...so you can start again.”

Ginny stood up and smiled. “Hadn’t thought about it like that. Bye, David.”

Then she walked out through the gate.