Second Thoughts by Terry O'Reilly

Author:Terry O'Reilly
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
ISBN: 9781602727397
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 7

Nick stood in front of the mirror on his dresser, adjusting his blue-and-white striped tie. He stepped back and inspected himself: light blue oxford button down, beige Dockers, brown loafers.

Yup. Professional without overdoing it.

He had two days of new teacher orientation. In a huge district like Chicago there could be a large group of newbies. He would get his school assignment and class schedule, meet his principal and get the lowdown on how the district worked. Then would come a half day of Welcome Back speeches for all the teachers at McCormick Place. The week would end with a day-and-a-half in his school, meeting with other teachers and getting his first classroom ready. He would have Friday off, giving him a four-day Labor Day weekend, then his life as a middle school math teacher would begin. He was excited, nervous, but ready to start.

A whine and a bark from Clyde interrupted his inspection. Walking into the living room, he saw Shelby on the patio. She was sitting, looking expectantly through the glass. When she saw him, she stood, tail wagging. She raised a paw and scratched at the door. Nick opened the door. She came in to greet him and Clyde.

“What’re you doin’ here, girl?” Nick asked, bending to pet her.

He stepped outside to see if Jesse was out in the yard or common area. He wasn’t. Disappointed, Nick came back and stood with his hands on his hips.

“Well, I guess I better take you home before I go. Besides, that’ll give me a chance to see your master.”

The thought of maybe seeing Jesse made Nick feel good, although it also brought some feeling of discomfort due to the Denny situation.

The trio exited Nick’s condo and walked down to Jesse’s. He rang the bell. No answer.

He knocked on the door. Still no answer. He looked down at the two hounds seated side by side on the stoop, watching him.

“This is weird,” he said to them. He was just turning to go back to his place, wishing he had asked Jesse for his phone number, when Mrs. Kloswick emerged from her house.

“Good morning, Nicholas,” she called. “No one’s home, you know.”

Nick and the dogs walked over to her. She stooped and greeted them.

“Shelby was at my place this morning. I don’t understand why she’s out and Jesse’s gone.” He was getting worried.

“Well, just by chance—mind you—I noticed Jesse and Dennis left yesterday afternoon. It looked like Jesse was going away. He was carrying a suitcase and a garment bag.”

Nick frowned. “He was supposed to have the next couple of days off to spend time with Denny. I wonder what happened?”

“I wouldn’t know about that, being a person who stays out of other’s business, but Dennis came home alone a few hours later. Then he left early this morning…seemed to be in a big hurry, too.”

What, do you have a surveillance camera? Nick thought.

“He must have forgotten he had let Shelby out. Poor thing,” she added bending down to pet the dog once again.

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