“Looks like we have a message we need to listen to,” he declared.
He put Joe down and set the mail on the island before stepping over to the counter where the device was resting. Upon pushing the playback button, he was greeted by a familiar beep and then the customary robotic voice.
“You have one new message, received at 11:41 a.m. Saturday…” After a slight hesitation and another beep, the recording began to play.
“Hey Henry, it’s George. Say, give me a call when you get a moment. I’ve got some information on that issue we’ve been looking into that I want to tell you about.”
“Hmm, I guess I’ll have to give him a call, huh?” Henry said aloud as he returned his attention to the stack of envelopes and publications on the island. Joe was less than interested in Henry’s mail or his message. She had scampered to the side door and was loudly proclaiming that she preferred to head outside for a stroll. Upon hearing her cries, Henry walked into the laundry room to see what the excitement was.
“Now, what is this? What’s all the fuss about?” he asked her. Joe was writhing around on the brown woven rug positioned in front of the door meowing and purring playfully. When she saw Henry, she immediately jumped up and began circling in front of his feet.
“Got a little cabin fever? All right, head on out, I’ll be along in just a bit.” With that, he opened the door and Joe shot outside and took off in the direction of the garage. Henry had noticed that she was more and more interested these days in spending time outdoors, but he chalked it up to the improving weather following the cold winter months. Henry and Joe shared this trait. They both preferred to get outside whenever given a choice.
Henry spent the rest of the afternoon attending to chores he wanted to address and puttering around the estate. He had gotten a late start and before long it was already time to head to his meeting with Jake and Joe. The only complication with that plan was that one of the participants was nowhere to be found. She had vanished, as was becoming a more frequent occurrence, and it appeared that Henry and Jake would have to proceed without her. Henry wasn’t thrilled that she hadn’t returned home yet but despite that he reluctantly called the meeting to order.
He prepared his signature drink and settled into his favorite recliner before dialing George’s number on the telephone. After three rings and a swallow from his glass, he heard the familiar voice of his friend on the other end.
“Hello?”
“Hey, George!”
“Hello, Henry! You got my message?”
“Yeah buddy, I did. Sorry I didn’t call you sooner, I wanted to take advantage of the daylight and get a few things done so I figured I’d catch you now.”
“No problem. Judging by the clock I guess you’re at a meeting with the gang, right?” George joked playfully.
“As a matter of fact, I am,” Henry laughed. “Except I’m one short today.”
“Oh, really? How come?” George inquired with a slight tone of concern.
“She’s out and about again and hasn’t come back yet.”
“Huh, well that’s been going on for a while now hasn’t it?”
“Yeah, I guess it’s a little bit of spring fever. She wants to get out and stretch her legs,” Henry explained. “I certainly get that. Glad to be past winter. Anyway, what do you have for me?”
“Ok, that guy I know called this morning with an update for you.” George was referring to a friend of his named Carl Johnston who was a retired former agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Currently, Carl was putting his expertise to use as a private detective.
“Great, what did he find out?”
“Well, unfortunately, there isn’t too much to report just yet. He’s tracked down four possible candidates, but it’s going to take some footwork to figure out if any of them is the guy we’re looking for. He just wanted to let us know he was on it and said he hoped to get back to us within a week or two.”
“All right, well, that’s a decent start for now. Tell him to keep going; I’ll cover the expenses. Let me know when you hear something, ok?”
“Yep, will do. Are you still sure you want to do this before getting the green light from Millie?” George asked.
“Yes. I’d rather see if we can find her son and check him out before pushing the issue with her. If he turns out to be some sort of bum, I’d rather spare her the heartache.”
“You two haven’t spoken any more about it?”
“Nope. Not a word since that night we had dinner. Right now, I plan to keep it that way until we find out who he is,” Henry declared. He had offered to help Millie locate her son but upon reflection had become concerned about the ill-effects that may result from any number of possible negative discoveries. What if he was dead or in prison? What if he was a drug addict? Some sort of unsavory character? Henry knew that it was difficult for Millie to live with the regret of giving her son up for adoption. To find out that her decision had possibly played a part in some unhappy outcome for him might be a crushing blow. Above all, Henry wanted to protect Millie from pain, even if that meant allowing her to live with the lesser of two evils.
“I understand. Well, that’s where things stand. I figured you’d still be in town when I called, but I wanted to let you know as soon as I heard from him.”
The reference to Henry’s trip to Lewis reminded him that he had some new and interesting information of his own to share. “Say, you won’t believe what I have to tell you. I met a fascinating young gal last night and just spent the morning with her,” announced Henry with a dash of false braggadocio.
“Oh yeah?” George’s voice rose as he became intrigued with this juicy tidbit of information.
“Yeah, she’s fairly easy on the eyes too,” added Henry. “Where’d you find her, out of a catalog?” joked George.
Henry laughed. “Not quite, but damned close. She just knocked on my door last night. She’s some famous British author named Anne Francis Wagner.”
“Are you kidding me? Really?” George exclaimed, now realizing that Henry was not misleading him.
Henry was caught off guard by George’s level of enthusiasm at the news. “What? You don’t think I can meet a girl?” he needled his friend.
“No, it’s not that. Was it actually Anne Francis Wagner?” George asked excitedly.
“Well, yes, George, I just told you it was,” Henry responded, further surprised at George’s apparent glee.
“Holy cow Henry! She’s one of the most successful authors in the world! What in the hell was she doing at Oak Forest?”
“Really? She told me she’s sold a boat-load of books, but I’ve never heard of her,” Henry commented without addressing George’s last question.
“Oh yeah, like really, really famous. Claire read a lot of her books. My daughters still do.”
“No fooling?” Henry was the surprised party now.
“Absolutely. I’ve even read a couple of them. They’re pretty darned good. So, what the heck is she doing in Lewis?”
Henry proceeded to relate the events of the day to George. Besides Millie, he was the only other person on earth with whom Henry would completely let his guard down. They enjoyed a lengthy conversation about all things related to Anne, and it felt good to Henry to share his thoughts and feelings with his friend.
In the midst of things, Henry got up to refresh his glass and decided to check again at the side door for his tardy friend. Much to his delight, just as dusk had settled in, he discovered that Joe was waiting for him to let her inside. Henry celebrated by extending his meeting with Jake to a third session, a move reserved for special occasions.
*
Henry awoke to find the following morning a stark contrast to the previous day. Bright sunshine and light warm breezes had been replaced by dark and turbulent skies touched with dashes of ash and charcoal. The air was becoming increasingly cooler, too. Intermittent gusts randomly ripped tender green leaves from the trees and scattered them across the yard, fostering a sense of un
rest. Deep guttural thunder rumbled in the distance, further signaling that something ominous was brewing. In light of this, Henry decided that it was prudent to forgo his typical Sunday morning brunch in Lewis to batten down the hatches at Oak Forest instead. In short order, he turned on the radio hoping to learn more about what the severity of this storm was likely to be. He was disgusted to hear the same voice that just last evening had forecast “a fine spring day” now reporting that a tornado warning had been issued for the county and that residents should seek shelter. Jackass, he thought. He had never been a fan of the meteorological profession per se, but in his opinion this particular meteorologist frequently took ineptitude to an entirely new level. The ringing of the telephone spared the weather man any further analysis from Henry, and he grabbed the handset from the counter.
“Hello?”
“Hey there Henry, you guys doing ok?” called back Millie’s familiar and concerned voice.
“Good morning Millie. Yeah we’re just fine,” answered Henry, a tad surprised by the unexpected call.
“I just thought I’d check, since they’re saying there might be a tornado. Figured I’d rather know than sit here and worry. Besides, I know how much Joe hates all that thunder.”
It was true. Joe had always displayed a real sense of fear and panic whenever there was thunder. They didn’t know what caused this behavior, but it must have been due to something that had happened prior to her arrival at Oak Forest. True to form, with the first rumbles in the distance she had scooted to one of her preferred hiding places beneath the sofa in the family room. Henry shook his head in agreement as he acknowledged Millie’s astute observation.
“Yep, she’s holed up under the couch, safe and sound.”
“Maybe you two ought to head down to the basement, Henry,” Millie cautioned.
Henry knew that Joe wasn’t the only one who suffered from storm anxiety. Millie had few chinks in her armor, but she had a genuine and sincere fear of severe storms. As a child, she had survived a tornado that had severely damaged her family’s home, and it was not a memory she had forgotten. She once told Henry that it was like a locomotive rolled right over us. He knew that it was nothing to make light of.
“Will do, Millie. We’ll head down. You doing ok?” he asked.
“Oh yeah, I’m fine, gonna head back downstairs myself just as soon as I hang up with you,” she replied.
“Ok, well you get going and be safe, all right?”
“All right then, Henry. Take care now.”
“You too; bye now,” he said as he pushed the button to end the call. Henry had no intention whatsoever of heading to his basement, but he certainly wasn’t going to let Millie know that and add to her worry. Before he could put the telephone down, it rang again. My God, I swear she’s psychic! How the hell does she know everything? Henry was astounded by Millie’s ability to read his thoughts.
“All right, Millie, all right. I promise we’ll go downstairs,” he proclaimed with amusement as he answered the phone.
“Umm, Henry? Is that you?” came a distinctly British voice from the other end.
Henry needed a few seconds to recover before realizing it was not Millie on the line but, in fact, his new friend Anne.
“Anne? Hi there! I’m sorry, I was just on the phone with Millie and thought you were her calling me again,” he explained.
“No worries, Henry. Should I call back so you can call… Millie, was it?”
“Yes, it was Millie, she’s my housekeeper and my… anyway, she gets frightened by storms, so she was checking on me.”
“Oh, how lovely of her. Are you doing all right?”
“You bet, she’s the one who gets scared, not me,” Henry chuckled.
“Me either. I’ve been through two hurricanes and a typhoon. Takes a lot more than some noise and a bit of wind to send me to the bunker,” she laughed.
Henry noted that yet again they were like-minded on another issue. He had never been one to be reckless with personal safety, but he had also never let Mother Nature intimidate him needlessly when the situation was uncertain.
“So, what’s going on? I thought you were heading back for New York last night? Are you still in town?”
“Yes, I’ve had a slight change in plans. I’m heading out tomorrow now instead. I was wondering if perhaps later today I could pop out and see you for a bit?”
Henry was confused as to why she would still be in Lewis but welcomed the chance to visit with her again.
“Yeah, sure! Come out anytime. Might be best to let this heavy weather clear through first, but you do what you want; I’m here.”
“That’s smashing! I’ve got some errands to attend to. What would you say if I came out in time for a chat with Jake and Joe?” Henry was well aware that Anne knew from their dealings that his daily meeting was set for 5:00 p.m., and the suggestion appealed to him.
“All right, that sounds good to me. I’ll see you then,” he agreed.
“Looking forward to it. Now, you better get to your basement before Millie finds out,” she teased sarcastically.
“You’re more right than you know,” he chuckled. “You don’t know Millie.”
Within an hour, it all proved to be much ado about nothing. The skies began to brighten, and the winds subsided. Nary a drop of rain had fallen on Oak Forest and thankfully no hail or tornadoes had developed either. The storm had moved around Lewis, and potential trouble had been averted. Henry had observed it all from the comfort of his office as he forged through some overdue filing and did a bit of tidying up of his rather cluttered desk. Soon, blades of sunshine were cutting through the dissipating clouds above. Henry welcomed the change in the weather conditions as well as the news that Anne was still in town. He wondered what had prompted her to stay and why she wanted to see him but, regardless of the reasons, he was pleased by the opportunity to see her again.
With calm restored outside, Joe eventually emerged from her hiding place to assess the situation. However, she showed no signs of her recent obsession with getting outdoors. Instead, once she was satisfied that the coast was clear, she set up camp for the afternoon in the recliner. Except for an occasional glance in the direction of the office to check on Henry, she didn’t move all afternoon. She didn’t even react when he crunched sheet after sheet of junk mail into paper balls to be thrown away as he worked through the piles of correspondence on his desk. Typically, the hint that a game of fetch was available was a sure-fire way to arouse her, but today it wasn’t even on her radar. Henry attributed her lethargic attitude to nothing more than fallout from her nervous morning and continued attending to his business.
Before Henry knew it, the clock indicated that it was ten minutes before five and nearly time for his meeting with Jake and Joe. He moved a final pair of file folders from his now neatly organized desk to a drawer and then excused himself. Choosing a route through the doorway nearest the front entry, he stopped and opened the front door in anticipation of Anne’s arrival before moving on to the kitchen to fetch Jake.
He stepped to the sink and opened the door of the cabinet beneath it. Reaching inside, his right hand found the object it was looking for. The neck of the bottle felt cool and familiar to his touch as he grasped it and pulled it out.
“Hey buddy!” he greeted his old friend.
The 750 ml bottle of Jacob Patrick Jasterson’s Bourbon was half empty due to previous engagements with Henry. He placed the bottle carefully on the counter before moving to the cabinet to retrieve a pair of glasses. Before he could proceed further, a knock on the front door announced the arrival of his guest.
“Come on in!” he called from the kitchen.
The click of the door handle and the light creak of the hinges indicated that the message had made its way to the intended recipient.
“Hello, Henry?” Anne called back.
“In here, kiddo. Perfect timing, I was just getting Jake ready for our get-together.”
“Sounds wonderful to me,” she r
esponded as she set her purse and car keys on the kitchen table.
Henry turned with two expertly created concoctions to find Anne standing at the head of the table looking perfectly fetching. Her hair was pulled into a mussed-up ponytail, and her stunning emerald eyes were enhanced by an olive green sweatshirt that she had paired with faded blue jeans. Her broad smile conveyed that she was as happy to see Henry as he was to see her.
“Ahh yes, thank you!” she exclaimed as he handed her a glass.
“Happy Sunday,” Henry toasted as he held out his tumbler.
“Happy Sunday indeed,” Anne acknowledged as she tapped her glass against his before they both took a swallow.
“Still no tea around here, eh?” she quipped.
“Not a drop,” Henry shot back.
“Pity, that,” she lamented. “A dash of this in a cup of tea would be glorious.”
“Oh yeah? Never thought to try it.”
“Barbaric!” she jabbed again. Henry laughed.
“You know, Henry, Jake mingled with a spot of tea would make for a perfect English elixir.”
“If you want tea you’d better bring your own. You’ll play hell finding it around Oak Forest,” he countered with a small chuckle. “This old German doesn’t even own a teapot.”
“Well, I will have to remedy that!” Anne teased back.
“Come on, let’s sit down,” he said as he motioned for Anne to take the lead before him. With a nod of her head, she spun and walked in the direction he had suggested.
Upon entering the family room, Henry scooted Joe to the side to make room for himself in the recliner. Anne followed his lead and took a seat on the sofa opposite him. Annoyed by the unexpected disturbance, Joe quickly jumped down and began a series of stretches while displaying a distinct air of agitation at having been awakened.
“Somebody sure is a sleepyhead,” Anne observed as she viewed Joe’s exaggerated antics.
Celebrations With Jake and Joe Page 6