Killer Swell

28

I walked out of the Criers’ home before it swallowed me whole.

I headed home, stopping at the deli on Law to buy a twelve pack of Red Trolley. I wasn’t sure that twelve was all I’d need to wash the day out of my head, but I figured it would be a good start.

When I walked into my place, the first thing I noticed was that the screen door to the patio stood halfway open.

Silently, I set the beer on the floor and pulled my gun from the small of my back. I checked the bedroom and bathroom and found nothing. I moved slowly toward the patio and peeked out the door.

Emily was sitting on one of the lounge chairs.

“Emily?”

She turned in my direction and stood up. “Noah.” She looked at the gun. “Did I do something wrong?”

I ducked back in the house, replaced the safety, and set it on the dining room table, then joined Emily outside.

“No, sorry,” I said. “Just being careful.”

She studied me for a second. “What’s wrong?”

I shook my head. “Nothing.”

A braid of long blond hair hung over her shoulder. She wore a red T-shirt and white walking shorts. White leather sandals matched the shorts. She stuck her hands in her pockets. “Should I not be here?”

A good question that I was having trouble finding the answer to.

“It’s fine,” I told her. I pointed to the chair she’d been sitting in when I’d arrived. “I’m sorry. Sit.”

She did, not taking her eyes off me.

“Carter’s in the hospital,” I said, sitting in the chair next to her.

Her mouth tightened. “What happened?”

I told her.

When I was through, she asked, “Is this because of Kate?”

“I think so.”

She leaned back into her chair, shaking her head. “I can’t believe it. I’m so sorry.”

I nodded, as I pulled my phone out of my pocket and set it on the small resin table. I stared at it for a moment, wondering what I would hear when it eventually rang.

“Can I do anything?” Emily asked.

“No. The hospital will call when they have something to tell me. Just have to wait.” I stared out at the horizon, the sun a faint yellow smudge hovering over the water.

She reached over and touched my arm. “He’ll be okay.”

I tried to smile. “Probably.” I changed the subject. “What’s up? Why are you here?”

A reluctant smile emerged. “No reason, really. Just thought I’d come see you. I mean, after last night and everything.”

Last night seemed like last year.

“Uh, yeah,” I mumbled, at a loss for what to say.

She tugged gently on her braid. “Weird, huh?”

“That’s one word for it.”

“But good,” she said, her eyes searching my face.

“But good.”

We watched the smudge disappear completely, tucking in behind the blue of the water.

“So now what?” I asked, breaking the silence.

“I’m not sure,” Emily said. “I was thinking we could talk about it, but now, with Carter…it doesn’t seem like the best time.”

I agreed, never being one for those kinds of discussions even when my best friend wasn’t in the hospital. “No, it doesn’t.”

“You want me to leave?”

I shifted in the chair. “Em, I’m not sure about this whole you-and-me thing yet. There’s so much going on right now that I need to go slow.”

“I didn’t mean should I stay so we can sleep together again,” she said, staring at me. “I’m all for the slow thing, too.” She paused for a moment and glanced toward the water. “All I could think about today was Kate. I felt like…I don’t know. Every time I thought of you today, about last night, I felt guilty.” She looked back at me. “So all I meant was that I wondered if maybe you wanted to be by yourself.”

My assumption made me feel silly, and I felt better that we were thinking along the same lines. I stood up, walked inside, grabbed the carton of beer, and brought it out to the patio with a bottle opener. I opened two and handed her one.

“Company would be good,” I said. “Stay for a while.”

So she did.