The Feeder

by Gayle Siebert

  “I wasn’t looking back,” I mumble, although I have to admit it’s a lie.

  He doesn’t acknowledge that I said anything, just backs the car out of the parking slot and drives to the exit. As he watches for traffic to clear, he says, “and then there was him taking off like that, wouldn’t even name a date that I might expect to hear something! You know what? I bet Lita badmouthed me.”

  I remember Finn asked Derek if he knew Lita. If he had been talking to Lita about Derek, he wouldn’t have had to ask.

  “I don’t think so—”

  “Well, I wouldn’t put it past her. You shouldn’t have cut her off like you did.”

  “But you said—”

  “I think you should call her up. Mend the fences. Get her out for dinner again sometime. Or maybe a few drinks some afternoon. Get her to bring her boyfriend. He’s the partner, right? She can put the two of us together. Wouldn’t hurt my chances at all. In fact it would be a real foot in the door!”

  I’m gobsmacked. Now he wants me to mend fences with Lita? After how adamant he was that I stop seeing her?

  “But I thought she… If I invite her again, won’t she think you… I mean, won’t that encourage her?”

  “Sure! But if her boyfriend’s there, she won’t dare make a pass at me.” He turns to face me for a second, his face alight with the happiest smile I’ve seen in months. “Call her up! Arrange something! But of course, not until that mess on your face is cleared up.” He focuses his attention to the traffic, turns up the volume on the stereo and whistles along.

  Lita back in our lives? I’m hurt, sad, and angry at her years of deception, but I have missed her. Maybe I’ll get a chance to talk to her alone. Ask her why she has been trying to get Derek away from me. And then it hits me: maybe it would be a good thing if she succeeded! Maybe she would dump her boyfriend and Derek would move in with her!

  But Derek’s right, she probably hasn’t been solo all those times she came to our place alone. Finn said he met her the last time he was here, but he didn’t say how long ago that was. If it was more than a couple of months, she would’ve had this boyfriend the last time she came for dinner. Why didn’t she say anything? It must not be serious. But then, serious enough to meet his business partner? Still. She’s been after Derek for years, and she changes men as often as her shirt. Maybe because she’s still hung up on Derek? This boyfriend won’t be a problem.

  After a double date, then maybe I make a date with her for lunch, just the two of us, and have Derek show up in my place.

  I put my sunglasses on, careful of my nose, as my mind whirls with ideas.

  Thirteen

  Lita

  MY PHONE RINGS and I glance at the screen. That unknown number again. The caller is persistent. You’d think at some point they would leave a voicemail. I conclude they don’t because the caller needs to talk to me directly in order to sell me something. I touch the button on the side of the phone to stop the ringing and decide I’m going to have to block the number.

  Even if the call wasn’t from an unknown number I wouldn’t answer it because I’m in the middle of digesting a detailed adjuster’s report. I always enjoy the reports from this particular adjuster because they’re so organized, readable, and smart. This file involves a run-of-the-mill slip and fall claim. The plaintiff claims to be so badly injured she’s unable to continue her work at a berry farm. Video shows the obese woman falling and a staffer coming to her aid. A squashed grape is located on the floor three meters from the bunk where grapes are displayed. It couldn’t have gotten that far just rolling off the bunk, so another shopper must have dropped it. The sweep logs show the area was swept four minutes earlier, well within the time the courts have found fulfills the store’s duty of care, but the video of the sweep shows the young staffer hurrying through the produce section, changing direction often and dodging customers. He swept around someone selecting onions in the area where the plaintiff fell. Understandable of course, but it means plaintiff’s counsel could argue the grape was not dropped after the sweep, but was missed in that sweep. We’ll argue the duty of care was met, but a judge may not agree, so we’ll be left challenging the severity of the woman’s injury. I’m reading what the adjuster has to say about the woman’s activities, flipping back and forth to the medical records, when the phone rings again.

  I glance at my phone and see it’s that unknown caller again. They usually only call once a day. This is unusual and it’s getting damned annoying. I push the button to stop the ringing and get back to my report, when the chime for voicemail sounds. Well, what do you know? My curiosity is piqued. I decide I need a coffee break anyway so I go to the break room and make myself a cup, before coming back to my desk to listen to the message.

  “Hi Lita. It’s Carly.”

  ***

  I’M PERCHED ON a stool at the island, drinking wine and watching Nullah squeeze a lemon over the salmon filets he poached. I love the way Nullah prepares salmon with a sprinkling of fresh dill and plenty of hollandaise sauce. I have to admit my diet has improved considerably since he’s been in my life. I think I may have to buy some bigger clothes!

  My contribution to dinner was making the Super Greens salad from a bag and boiling water for Uncle Ben’s Fast and Fancy Fine Herb and Wild Rice pilaf. For his part, Nullah is impressed with my uncanny ability to source gourmet accompaniments now that I’ve made him aware it’s a life skill that took years of trial and error to acquire.

  “Carly called me today,” I tell him. “She has a new number. I guess that’s why she never responded to any of my texts.”

  “I didn’t know you were still trying to connect with her. Just since Finn said he met her?”

  “No, I gave up before that.”

  “You’d think she would’ve given you her new number, though.”

  “You’d think so.”

  “So, what did she have to say?”

  “I didn’t call her back yet. Her message was that she’d like to get together. She talked about ‘we’ as in ‘we should get together’, so I’m guessing that means Derek’s included. I bet anything he’s the push behind it.”

  “Could be.”

  “Could be? Absolutely is! Finn mentioned me to him, so now the conniving bastard wants to make nice. It’s not me he’s interested in, it’s you. He probably wants to suck up to you in hopes you’ll put in a good word for him with Finn.”

  “That’s what I love about you, babe, you always think the best of everyone.”

  “Come on, Nullah,” I say with a click of my tongue, “what other possible reason could there be for Carly wanting to connect now? She’s had months to get back in touch and there’s been nothing but crickets. They find out my boyfriend is a partner in a company looking for a lawyer—and that there’s a pretty decent retainer involved—and all of a sudden she wants to get together? Coincidence? I don’t think so.”

  “I know, cops and lawyers don’t believe in coincidence. You’re probably right.”

  “I am right.”

  “So call her back and find out what it’s about.”

  “I’m not going to just up and ask her if she’s calling because Derek put her up to it.”

  “Maybe she just wants to talk to you. From what you’ve told me, she doesn’t have a lot of friends. Maybe you were her only friend.”

  “Pretty hard to foster friendships when you’re married to that controlling bastard! He never let us have two minutes alone.” I sip my wine while Nullah takes the frying pan off the stove and puts a filet on the plate in front of me. When he’s served himself and set the pan back on the stove, he comes around to sit next to me.

  “Well, if you want my opinion, I think you should call and see what she wants. She knows you and I are together, so she might suggest we come for dinner. You said he has a boat, right? You can say we’d prefer to meet them for lunch at the Dinghy Dock. That way we aren’t trapped with them. And I think it’s about time you had a lesson on driving the boat, besides. A ni
ce easy trip to the Dinghy Dock for your first time at the helm is a good start.”

  “You want me to take it out of the boat shed? Drive it all the way over there and dock it?”

  “I’ll show you how to start it but I’ll take it out, and once we’re clear of the marina, you can take over. Docking at the Dinghy Dock is not ‘all the way’; it’s ten minutes maybe, and about as easy as it could be. You can do it.”

  “I don’t see why you’re so anxious for me to learn how to drive it. I’ll never take it out without you.”

  “It’s just like driving a stick shift. What if something happens to the driver and you have to take over to get back to safety? What if I was incapacitated somehow? Or fell overboard? You have to know how to get back to me. Back to safety.”

  “There’s a radio.”

  “Sure, and I’ll give you a lesson on how to use that, too, but would you be able to tell anyone who was listening where we were?”

  “Doesn’t that chart plotter show where you are?”

  “Uh huh. But by the time help came, I’d drown.”

  “You always wear that floater jacket.”

  “Suppose for some reason I didn’t have it on.”

  “You’re a good swimmer. You can tread water.”

  “In twelve degree water, I’d die of hypothermia.”

  “Why would you fall overboard in the first place?”

  “Supposing I was taking a leak and a rogue wave jostled the boat. You know half the guys that drown while they’re out fishing are found with their flies undone.”

  “If you pee overboard when there’s two heads on the boat and you aren’t wearing your floater jacket, you deserve to drown.”

  “My god, woman!”

  “I know. You think I’m stubborn.” I stand and go to the fridge to refill my wine glass.

  “I’ve never said you were stubborn.”

  “Okay, determined, then.” I set my wine at my plate and ask, “you want another glass? Or a beer?”

  “No thanks. I need a clear head to argue with you.”

  Fourteen

  Carly

  WE’VE AGREED TO meet Lita and her boyfriend at the Dinghy Dock for lunch today. It’s December, so they said the place won’t be too busy, even though the deck is closed for the season so there’s no outside seating.

  Rather than making the trip in the boat, we drove to downtown Nanaimo, parked in the parkade, walked to the Boat Basin, and now we’re waiting to board the shuttle boat for the ten minute crossing to the Dinghy Dock.

  “I don’t see why they were so adamant about going to the fucking Dinghy Dock,” Derek mutters. “Eighteen bucks for the two of us to take the ferry, at least another twenty for the sitter, on top of the cost of a meal? The food better be good.”

  “We could’ve taken the boat.”

  “Go through Dodd Narrows in this weather and in an ebb tide? Honestly, Carly, it’s a wonder you survived this long. Anyway. Meeting this Smith guy will be worth it. What’s his name? Nelly?”

  “Nullah.”

  “What kind of name is that?”

  I shrug. I hope he doesn’t ask Nullah that question, or slip up and call him Nelly. Although with a name like that, he’s probably used to people wondering about it. “Can’t you put it this all on your expense account?” I ask.

  “Yeah. But that’s not the point. This is damned inconvenient when we could just as easily have gone to the Lighthouse Bistro. Or better yet, the Crow and Gate. We don’t need to see the water. It’s not like we’re tourists.”

  The Protection Island passenger ferry chugs into its slot next to the dock. A few people get off, and we’re among the half dozen or so who get in. We take seats along the side. The little boat leaves the dock for the ten-minute crossing at the posted departure time.

  When we approach the floating pub, we see a couple of small runabouts moored to the wharf, and one boat big enough to be called a yacht.

  “Jeez,” Derek says quietly, “look at that cabin cruiser! I get this retainer and a couple more good clients, and that’ll be my next boat.”

  “I guess they’re not here yet,” I say. “We’re not late but knowing Lita, they will be. Otherwise they should’ve been on this ferry.”

  When the ferry pulls into its assigned mooring just a couple of meters from the pub’s entrance, we climb off and follow the few other passengers into the pub. To my surprise, I spot Lita at a table on the far side. She smiles and waves. I lift my hand in acknowledgement.

  With her is a big man, his wavy black hair shoulder-length. He’s so much bigger than she is he dwarfs her. He’s movie-star handsome in a Jason Momoa kind of way, which is not surprising since Lita always attracted the good-looking ones, but what is surprising is how dark his skin is. My insides contract and I draw a quick breath. With all the derogatory things I’ve heard Derek say about non-whites, I have a feeling this lunch won’t go well. The unusual name may only be the start.

  “There they are,” I tell Derek, and lead the way through the tables.

  The man gets to his feet on our approach, and gives a slight bow. “Hi,” he says. “I’m Nullah. You must be Carly.”

  “Yes. Pleased to meet you, Nullah.”

  “Pleased to meet you.” He turns to Derek and says, “Derek?” He doesn’t reach for a handshake, and Derek will likely hold that against him even though it’s fallen out of favour since the pandemic.

  But Derek doesn’t reach his hand out, either. His face is set in a frown. “Derek,” he confirms.

  “Have a seat,” Lita says.

  I take the chair immediately across from Lita, which leaves Derek sitting across from Nullah. I ask, “Have you been waiting long?”

  “Nope! We just got here a few minutes ago so we haven’t even got a drink yet.”

  Nullah waves the server over and I ask for a glass of house white. Derek overrides me, makes a show of studying the menu to see what wines are on offer, asks Lita what she prefers, and ends up ordering a forty-dollar bottle of chardonnay for the two of us. Then he asks the server what’s on tap. As usual, he hums and haws, then has to hear what bottled beer they have, and when she’s rattled of the list, finally settles on a local craft brew.

  We study the menus while we’re waiting for drinks, and Derek asks, “so you got here just before we did. You didn’t come on the passenger ferry, then. Which is your boat?”

  “That one there,” Nullah says, and points to the cabin cruiser moored right outside our window.

  I can almost hear Derek choke. Then he recovers and says, “that’s a lot like my boat. You had it long?”

  “About a year. I looked for quite a while to find this one. Didn’t want to buy a new one and get killed with depreciation. Was lucky enough to get it from a guy right here in Nanaimo. In good shape, too. He’d just done a bunch of work on it, flooring, and so on. I’ll show it to you after lunch.”

  “Nullah, we don’t have that much time, remember? Maybe we order our food, and you can show it to him while we’re waiting.”

  “Oh yeah. Good idea,” Nullah agrees. “You do a lot of boating, Derek?”

  “Not as much as I’d like to. Our daughter’s discovered boys so she doesn’t want to go out with me. I’d like to spend a few weeks and tour Haida Gwaii and some of the inlets up north. I guess that’ll have to wait until she changes her mind. Or brings a boyfriend with her. What about you?”

  “I mostly just fished with my old boat. It wasn’t one you’d like to take very far. And I haven’t had this one long enough to do more than day trips. But we’re planning on spending a couple of weeks heading up to Bute Inlet in the spring,” Nullah says.

  “Maybe I could go with you, then,” Derek suggests.

  “Oh, sure, but I’ve got mates coming with me so the bunks are all taken.”

  “I meant, I could take my boat. Carly doesn’t like being on the boat so she can stay home with Jennifer.”

  “Sure,” Nullah agrees, “the more the merrier.”


  “Well, wives are going along,” Lita says. “You can’t be the only guy who doesn’t bring his family, Derek. Carly and Jennifer would just have to come too. A ten year old doesn’t call the shots, surely.”

  Good old outspoken Lita! It sure didn’t take long for her to get snotty with Derek.

  “Of course not. It’s just that Carly doesn’t like going out in the boat. Do you, Carly?” He gives me a sharp kick under the table.

  “I, um, no, I don’t,” I agree.

  The server appears at the table with our drinks, and we all order lunch. When Nullah and Derek go out to look at Nullah’s boat, I make a point of avoiding eye contact with Lita. I want to ask her why she made a pass at Derek, but I’m at a loss to know how to bring it up. Finally she reaches across the table and covers my hand with hers.

  “Carly,” she says, “you have a scar on your cheek! What happened?”

  I pull my hand out from under hers and touch my cheek, wondering how she even noticed. It’s still a little angry-looking but I thought the makeup covered it. “I, er, walked into a door.”

  “Really? How’d that happen?”

  “Oh, you know, woke up in the middle of the night to go pee and went walking around in the dark.” I pick up the dessert menu. “Death By Chocolate sounds good,” I say, hoping to change the subject.

  She’s quiet for a minute. I don’t look at her, but I feel her eyes on me.

  “Why did it take you so long to contact me?” she asks at last. “Why did you ignore all my texts? I thought you were mad at me after dinner that time, but I have no idea what I did that was so offensive, or why you completely cut me off.”

  I study her face for a second and read nothing there but sincerity.