really had to say was that Sid and Teddy had argued. That was nothing new; Sid didn’t really like Teddy and only kept him around because of Dylan and the fact Teddy had worked there so long. From things he’d overheard—you can’t work the front desk of a place like Pride Lodge and not hear things—Sid thought Teddy was a sloppy drunk and Teddy thought Sid was using Dylan, though he couldn’t say for what. In the end it was all just scuttlebutt and didn’t matter now anyway, in light of the circumstances.
“Linus!” Ricki said, pulling himself back from his thoughts. “How nice to see you!”
It wasn’t, really. Nobody who knew Linus Hern was happy to see him, unless they were being paid . . . which, frankly, Ricki was. He proceeded to glance at the pumpkin patterns, deciding which would be the best suggestion for Mr. Hern.
Back in the cabin, Kyle had finally been able to sleep for about twenty minutes before being startled from his nap by a call from Imogene, apologetic to be disturbing him on a vacation but not so bothered as to refrain from it. She swore yet again it was something she would only do in an emergency. Kyle and Danny both knew the definition of “emergency” when it came to Imogene had a significantly lower threshold than it did for most people. It might be anything from misplacing her iPhone to needing a sudden flight to Chicago, which she had shown herself incapable of arranging on her own. This afternoon it was for advice—something she relied heavily on Kyle for and as often as not ignored. She had been approached about a job in Seattle and couldn’t decide if she should consider it or dismiss it out of hand.
“You’ve been with Tokyo Pulse for what, nine months?” he said, waving at Danny to stop rolling his eyes. Kyle had started working for her when she was still with Channel 6 doing woman-on-the-street segments no one watched or cared about. Then came a year of freelancing while she burned through her savings, and finally the last-chance job with Tokyo Pulse.
“‘ We ,’” she told him. “ We have been with Tokyo Pulse nine months. You’re not thinking of leaving me, are you?”
Her insecurities challenged Kyle more than anything else about her. “Fine, ‘we,’” he said. “It’s too early to make another move, that’s all I meant. And I will be leaving if you move to Seattle. That’s not an option for me, not anymore.”
“Since I shackled you,” Danny said, getting up from the table and heading to the bathroom.
“That’s my answer then,” she said. “No Kyle, no Imogene.”
The comment both touched and alarmed Kyle. The thought of her making decisions based on his ability to stay with her was more responsibility than he wanted.
“Be sure to thank them anyway,” he said. “Just to keep that door open, you never know. Forward the email to me so I can add them to your contacts, for when you’re ready to part ways with me.”
He ended the call with her knowing it had been completely unnecessary, and knowing it was one of the things than endeared her to him. He allowed himself an image of the two of them in twenty years’ time, Imogene tamed by age but still rebellious, and himself listening to her demands through a hearing aid.
Bo wasn’t very good in crowds and intended to avoid them at the Lodge as much as possible. She fidgeted behind her neck with a small gold crucifix her mother had given her for her sixth birthday. It was among the very few things she had kept throughout her life. She had always believed we leave everything behind anyway for someone else to sort and dispose of; the fewer things we hold onto, the less we’ll have to fear losing when the time comes. And the time comes for everyone.
After the murders of her parents everything had moved so quickly. Her aunt had come to Los Angeles to identify the bodies, something young Emily thought was ridiculous. Who else would be dead in her parents’ bed? Many things were mysterious to her
“Linus!” Ricki said, pulling himself back from his thoughts. “How nice to see you!”
It wasn’t, really. Nobody who knew Linus Hern was happy to see him, unless they were being paid . . . which, frankly, Ricki was. He proceeded to glance at the pumpkin patterns, deciding which would be the best suggestion for Mr. Hern.
Back in the cabin, Kyle had finally been able to sleep for about twenty minutes before being startled from his nap by a call from Imogene, apologetic to be disturbing him on a vacation but not so bothered as to refrain from it. She swore yet again it was something she would only do in an emergency. Kyle and Danny both knew the definition of “emergency” when it came to Imogene had a significantly lower threshold than it did for most people. It might be anything from misplacing her iPhone to needing a sudden flight to Chicago, which she had shown herself incapable of arranging on her own. This afternoon it was for advice—something she relied heavily on Kyle for and as often as not ignored. She had been approached about a job in Seattle and couldn’t decide if she should consider it or dismiss it out of hand.
“You’ve been with Tokyo Pulse for what, nine months?” he said, waving at Danny to stop rolling his eyes. Kyle had started working for her when she was still with Channel 6 doing woman-on-the-street segments no one watched or cared about. Then came a year of freelancing while she burned through her savings, and finally the last-chance job with Tokyo Pulse.
“‘ We ,’” she told him. “ We have been with Tokyo Pulse nine months. You’re not thinking of leaving me, are you?”
Her insecurities challenged Kyle more than anything else about her. “Fine, ‘we,’” he said. “It’s too early to make another move, that’s all I meant. And I will be leaving if you move to Seattle. That’s not an option for me, not anymore.”
“Since I shackled you,” Danny said, getting up from the table and heading to the bathroom.
“That’s my answer then,” she said. “No Kyle, no Imogene.”
The comment both touched and alarmed Kyle. The thought of her making decisions based on his ability to stay with her was more responsibility than he wanted.
“Be sure to thank them anyway,” he said. “Just to keep that door open, you never know. Forward the email to me so I can add them to your contacts, for when you’re ready to part ways with me.”
He ended the call with her knowing it had been completely unnecessary, and knowing it was one of the things than endeared her to him. He allowed himself an image of the two of them in twenty years’ time, Imogene tamed by age but still rebellious, and himself listening to her demands through a hearing aid.
Bo wasn’t very good in crowds and intended to avoid them at the Lodge as much as possible. She fidgeted behind her neck with a small gold crucifix her mother had given her for her sixth birthday. It was among the very few things she had kept throughout her life. She had always believed we leave everything behind anyway for someone else to sort and dispose of; the fewer things we hold onto, the less we’ll have to fear losing when the time comes. And the time comes for everyone.
After the murders of her parents everything had moved so quickly. Her aunt had come to Los Angeles to identify the bodies, something young Emily thought was ridiculous. Who else would be dead in her parents’ bed? Many things were mysterious to her
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