A Possible Madness by Macdonald Frank;

Author:Macdonald, Frank;
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Cape Breton University Press
Published: 2012-08-15T00:00:00+00:00

| 37 |

“There’s a couple here to see you, David,” Cheryl Horne said, leaning into the editor’s office. David walked to the front desk, a smile forming around the words, “Bethany. Jim.”

Bethany Burke and Jim Turner, co-workers from the Star, had been a couple since before David joined the Toronto newspaper. They had remained in touch since his departure.

“We thought for this vacation we’d come to the Far East for a dose of that Maritime wisdom you used to peddle to us gentiles in Ontario,” Bethany explained as David walked them back to his office. “Or some of that good booze,” Jim added.

“Lots of the latter, but I’m a bit short on wisdom these days,” David said as Jim picked up a copy of the Witness and perused its front page. They had become friends during his years at the Star and nothing had changed, Bethany was an investigative reporter on the political beat and Jim was a business reporter.

“This your big story this week?” Jim asked, laying the paper back on the desk. “It looks like an obituary.”

“Reads like one, too,” David said, outlining for them the precipice upon which the town stood as it looked into the future. Like his editorial, there was little objectivity in his report. “But I shouldn’t be airing the town’s dirty laundry in front of tourists. Have you got plans, or just winging it?”

“Our plans are to wing it. We checked into the Western Sunset Motel,” Bethany said, looking tentatively at David for a reaction, which was positive. “We expect to be here for a day or two, drive around the Cabot Trail, and then we want to go to Newfoundland.”

“Yeah, we were only considering going to Newfoundland but now it’s definitely a destination,” Jim added. “This Mountie stopped us for speeding and told us that the only excuse for driving that fast in Cape Breton was if we were trying to catch the ferry to Newfoundland, which he said would be understandable.”

“You’ve met Harry Noseworthy then?” David said.

“That’s the name, a corporal. Anyway, he told us where to go when we get there, a couple of good drinking spots where the music’s as good as it gets. We’ll head off the day after tomorrow,” Jim said.

“Newfoundland’s always a good idea,” David agreed, “but when I report this in next week’s Witness, that the RCMP are poaching tourists for Newfoundland, I may be able to get Noseworthy posted to Resolute Bay.”

“You’re not going to do that?” Bethany’s uncertainty made David laugh.

“No, Bethany, but I will try to scare the shit out of him. His superiors don’t need any more attention drawn to him, but we’ll get to that story a little later. Since you have just a couple of days here and I need a break from all this foolishness,” David said, gesturing toward the paper on the desk, “here’s what’s going to happen: I’m your guide and tonight we go to the Five Bucks for some fairly edible food and some music that will make your trip to Newfoundland seem wasted, and we ourselves will get wholly wasted.

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