See No More by W. B. Dineen

Author:W. B. Dineen [Dineen, W. B.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: 33 Partners Publishing
Published: 2019-06-30T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 48

I take the Amtrak from Portland and get off in Salem. There, I rent a mid-sized car and drive the rest of the way into Albany. On my way I pass signs for a local amusement park called The Enchanted Forest, and I wonder what it would have been like to have gone there as a child. I drive by quaint-sounding towns like Jefferson and Millersburg, and before I know it I’m at my exit.

I’m booked at a charming bed and breakfast in the historic district of town. The woman who greets me is a few years older than I am and has a vintage meets tattoo parlor vibe going on. She looks like Lucille Ball, back in the day, if she’d joined the Hell’s Angels. Her name is Kimmy.

Kimmy checks me in and leads me up to the large suite that takes up most of the third floor. She explains the house was built in 1889 and she’s only the fourth owner in all that time. She moved here from Portland to run a B&B out of a home that’s on the national historic registry.

I have a full night and half a day to kill before I meet the rest of our group at the lab. Since I look nothing like I did the last time I was here, I decide I’ll be safe enough to walk around downtown. I stroll down First Street and walk into a cool-looking wine bar. I order the steak, pear, and hazelnut salad, along with a gin and tonic. I’m not a big drinker, but right now the thought of copping a little buzz is exceptionally appealing.

While I wait for my dinner, I listen to the jazz trio playing in the bar and let my mind drift. This is the town where my dad grew up, the town where I would have visited my grandparents had they not been killed in a fire. I try to form a connection between who I am now and the person I might have become had everything not gone so spectacularly wrong, but I can’t.

When my dinner arrives, I dig in like I haven’t eaten in days. Suddenly, I’m famished and realize the salad won’t be enough, so I order a pizza and an apple crumble, not caring which is brought first. I consume everything I order. I should be stuffed and unable to stand, yet alone move, but I’m not. And if I weren’t embarrassed to do so, I’d stay and get something else.

The clock says it’s nine and I quickly realize I’m as restless as I was just hungry. I pay my check and walk the five blocks back to Hendricks House. I use my key to unlock the front door. When I don’t see anyone else, I continue up the stairs. I’m shocked to find the door to my lodgings wide open and the room trashed. My overnight bag is on the ground, and all the contents are spilled out, books are pulled off the shelf, and the bed has been ripped apart.

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