guess the earlier the
better.”
“Okay, Lou and I will
see you then.”
+++
Even with an extra hour
of sleep, my stomach told me it was time to pick up Lou and head to the Blue
Moon. I had never known my stomach to lie to me, so I followed its guidance.
My luck continued. My
neighbor was nowhere to be found. Maybe she wasn’t going to show her face again
until she found a friend for Lou, and she hadn’t made a friend yet. Who am I to
spit in the face of good luck? I merely thanked God and skedaddled to Lou. I
was surprised to see him waiting at the curb.
“What’s the matter, Lou?
A skunk get into your apartment?”
“No, I knew you’d be
hungry. I wanted to save us a few precious seconds.”
“Good, you can use those
seconds to let me know God’s message for the day.”
“You will not pass ‘Go.’
You will not collect $200.”
“So what are we doing
today? Playing Monopoly or going to jail?”
“My guess is neither
one.”
“Then what does the
message mean?”
“Maybe it means we won’t
get anywhere today.”
“Then why are we out
here?”
“I don’t know about you,
Cy, but I’m out here to get breakfast.”
We continued to go back
and forth until we arrived at the Blue Moon. We were no closer to identifying
what the clue meant, but at least we managed to keep our minds off of food
until we pulled up in front of our feeding troughs.
We must’ve gotten there
early, because there were still other patrons in the diner. The nerve of some
people, infiltrating our private domain. At least we wouldn’t have to get
rough. No one was sitting on our stools.
Rosie smiled at us. We
smiled back. It’s always a good idea to smile at those who are mainly
responsible for your paycheck, and Rosie knew which side of the bread
contained her butter. Lou and I knew that we weren’t to bite the hand that
feeds us, but to smile upon the favor that God bestows upon us. I had a little
more energy than usual, so I sort of jumped up onto the stool. I wouldn’t call
my mount graceful, and I received a low score from the Ukrainian judge. I hadn’t
yet perfected the triple Salchow, and I wouldn’t try it again.
Lou, who looked like
he’d wasted away a little more each day, sidled up to his stool and mounted it
without using his hands. Poor guy! He no longer had enough strength in his arms
to lift himself up onto his stool. I wondered how long before he’d have to
check into a nursing home.
Chapter
Thirteen
Martha greeted us almost
as soon as we rang the bell. She seemed nervous and distraught. My emotions
matched hers. I looked around, saw no one else, and again asked her where she
went Monday, and if anyone saw her. She appeared not to be thinking clearly and
was no help to me. I asked to borrow the same room for questioning that we had
used before and asked her to send Jennifer in first.
The tall, pretty, young
woman with hair the color of honey walked in. She was more composed than her
grandmother.
“Please, have a seat,
Jennifer. This will take only a few minutes.”
Jennifer sat and Lou and
I took chairs across from her.
“Jennifer, tell me where
you were Monday afternoon.”
“I was in school on
Monday.”
“But you skipped your
last class. Why?”
“Actually I had the
prof’s permission, and Scott wanted me to go somewhere with him.”
“And where did you go?”
“I’ll tell you,
Lieutenant, but please don’t tell Gram. She might get the wrong idea. Scott
wants us to start a family. I prefer to wait until we both finish school. Scott
doesn’t think this place is conducive to raising a family. I think Gram would
love a baby in the house, especially now. I love my husband, but I think he’s
moving too quickly.”
“You don’t think your
grandmother knows. What about your grandfather? Did he know?”
“I don’t think so.
Neither of us ever said anything to him.”
“So where did the two of
you go on Monday?”
“There’s a little
better.”
“Okay, Lou and I will
see you then.”
+++
Even with an extra hour
of sleep, my stomach told me it was time to pick up Lou and head to the Blue
Moon. I had never known my stomach to lie to me, so I followed its guidance.
My luck continued. My
neighbor was nowhere to be found. Maybe she wasn’t going to show her face again
until she found a friend for Lou, and she hadn’t made a friend yet. Who am I to
spit in the face of good luck? I merely thanked God and skedaddled to Lou. I
was surprised to see him waiting at the curb.
“What’s the matter, Lou?
A skunk get into your apartment?”
“No, I knew you’d be
hungry. I wanted to save us a few precious seconds.”
“Good, you can use those
seconds to let me know God’s message for the day.”
“You will not pass ‘Go.’
You will not collect $200.”
“So what are we doing
today? Playing Monopoly or going to jail?”
“My guess is neither
one.”
“Then what does the
message mean?”
“Maybe it means we won’t
get anywhere today.”
“Then why are we out
here?”
“I don’t know about you,
Cy, but I’m out here to get breakfast.”
We continued to go back
and forth until we arrived at the Blue Moon. We were no closer to identifying
what the clue meant, but at least we managed to keep our minds off of food
until we pulled up in front of our feeding troughs.
We must’ve gotten there
early, because there were still other patrons in the diner. The nerve of some
people, infiltrating our private domain. At least we wouldn’t have to get
rough. No one was sitting on our stools.
Rosie smiled at us. We
smiled back. It’s always a good idea to smile at those who are mainly
responsible for your paycheck, and Rosie knew which side of the bread
contained her butter. Lou and I knew that we weren’t to bite the hand that
feeds us, but to smile upon the favor that God bestows upon us. I had a little
more energy than usual, so I sort of jumped up onto the stool. I wouldn’t call
my mount graceful, and I received a low score from the Ukrainian judge. I hadn’t
yet perfected the triple Salchow, and I wouldn’t try it again.
Lou, who looked like
he’d wasted away a little more each day, sidled up to his stool and mounted it
without using his hands. Poor guy! He no longer had enough strength in his arms
to lift himself up onto his stool. I wondered how long before he’d have to
check into a nursing home.
Chapter
Thirteen
Martha greeted us almost
as soon as we rang the bell. She seemed nervous and distraught. My emotions
matched hers. I looked around, saw no one else, and again asked her where she
went Monday, and if anyone saw her. She appeared not to be thinking clearly and
was no help to me. I asked to borrow the same room for questioning that we had
used before and asked her to send Jennifer in first.
The tall, pretty, young
woman with hair the color of honey walked in. She was more composed than her
grandmother.
“Please, have a seat,
Jennifer. This will take only a few minutes.”
Jennifer sat and Lou and
I took chairs across from her.
“Jennifer, tell me where
you were Monday afternoon.”
“I was in school on
Monday.”
“But you skipped your
last class. Why?”
“Actually I had the
prof’s permission, and Scott wanted me to go somewhere with him.”
“And where did you go?”
“I’ll tell you,
Lieutenant, but please don’t tell Gram. She might get the wrong idea. Scott
wants us to start a family. I prefer to wait until we both finish school. Scott
doesn’t think this place is conducive to raising a family. I think Gram would
love a baby in the house, especially now. I love my husband, but I think he’s
moving too quickly.”
“You don’t think your
grandmother knows. What about your grandfather? Did he know?”
“I don’t think so.
Neither of us ever said anything to him.”
“So where did the two of
you go on Monday?”
“There’s a little
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