Never Let Go of Hope by Edward Kendrick

Author:Edward Kendrick [Kendrick, Edward]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2015-06-18T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 7

Tuesday morning, Ellis tried again to sketch out his idea for a new painting. This time he was somewhat more successful, since he worked without the splint, ignoring as best he could the pain in his wrist. Right now, I wish I was left-handed. It would make this a hell of a lot easier. Still, by the end of the morning he had managed to at least get the basic idea down on the canvas. Painting however was not going to happen until he had full, painless motion back in his wrist.

After lunch, he went down to the local grocery store to pick up some items Janice needed. He realized, as he walked up and down the aisles, he was checking the time every few minutes. He knew it was too early for Martin to call, since he still had to be at work, but it didn’t stop him. Of course, he might not call. Or he could wait until tomorrow. Or…Deep breath. Relax. I’m only going to stress out if I keep thinking like this.

By the time he returned to the house, he’d managed to relax—more or less—by telling himself he was too old to let something so trivial as whether Martin called or not get to him. Still, he needed something to do and the only thing he could think of that didn’t involve taking Jive for another walk, was to find a good book to take him away from everything for a while.

“Something I should do more often,” he chastised himself while running his finger along the spines of the books on the shelves along one wall in the living room. He’d read all the novels, and wasn’t interested in the ones on art history and technique, which he had practically memorized anyway. He eventually settled on rereading The Killer Angels, a book he’d picked up at a used book store soon after he’d graduated college.

Having settled down in one of the wicker chairs on the back veranda, a glass of iced tea on the table beside him, he was deep into chapter two of the book—where Colonel Chamberlain convinces a platoon of Union army mutineers to join his regiment—when his phone rang. It took a moment for him to return to the present day and answer.

“Hi, it’s me,” Martin said before laughing. “Martin, in case you don’t recognize my voice.”

“I do,” Ellis told him, his pulse speeding up. “Are you off work already?”

“Since it’s almost six, you better believe it. I’m home, waiting for dinner to finish cooking.”

“It’s that late?”

“Yep. Did you lose track of the time because you’re immersed in a new painting?”

“I wish. I was reading.” When Martin asked, Ellis explained why he wasn’t working.

“Okay. Knowing you, that must be frustrating,” Martin said when Ellis finished.

“I’m dealing,” Ellis told him.

“Good. Now the prime question of the moment. How do you feel about taking a cruise?”

“A cruise? Like to the Caribbean?”

“No. Sorry. I meant a riverboat cruise. Dinner and good jazz. One of the guys I work with managed to snag some half-price tickets for this Saturday, if you’re interested.

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