The Reluctant Detective by Finley Martin

Author:Finley Martin [Martin, Finley]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Nimbus Publishing
Published: 2012-01-14T16:00:00+00:00

30

Dit’s van didn’t pull into the driveway until eight-thirty. Anne was still asleep on the couch when he entered the living room. She was sleeping on her side, her hands clasped together as if she were in prayer, and they tucked under her head to form a pillow. Her hair had fallen over her cheeks, and he could hear soft breathing. His heart quickened at the sight of her. She looked so small and vulnerable. He wanted to reach out and touch her, hold her in his arms, and the thought of doing so began to stir old memories and a familiar, warm reverie, but his grip on the cold metal rims of the wheelchair quickly brought him back to reality. He lived in a world of sensation and intimacy different from the world around him. It was foolishness to think otherwise, he thought, and it was fantasy to pursue it.

Dit gathered up a light blanket, spread it out, and pulled it over her shoulders. She sighed at the touch of it. His hand drifted across her hair. Then he wheeled himself toward the master bedroom.

Anne woke at seven. She felt disoriented. For a moment she couldn’t remember where she was and, when she did, she still felt that something was not quite right. Then she heard the splash of water. Still groggy, she went onto the patio. She saw Dit in the pool.

“I didn’t know you could swim,” she said.

“You never asked,” he hollered from the far end. Then he pushed off and headed back toward Anne. She stood near his wheelchair. Steps led down from there into the water. When he turned again for another lap, Anne watched his arms bite into the water. Muscles rippled across his shoulders and back. Then she noticed a strap around both lower legs.

“What’s the strap for?”

“Keeps legs together… so they won’t thrash about… maintains stability… when I’m swimming…,” he explained in short bursts at each stroke each time his head lifted out of the water.

Anne sat in his chair and watched him continue his laps. Dit’s curls went nearly straight with the weight of the water. He swam strongly, as if in a race, and after two more laps he pulled himself onto the steps and sat in the shallows near Anne, his chest heaving to catch his breath.

“How many laps?”

“Thirty today.”

“Isn’t the water cold? It’s not even July yet.”

Dit just pointed to the solar panels.

“Do you do laps every evening?”

Dit looked at her and began to chuckle.

“What’s the big joke?”

Dit shook his head and waved a hand in the air as if to say, you’ve done it again.

“What time is it?” he gasped, still a bit out of breath.

“It’s seven, smart-ass. So what? And stop giggling at me.”

“It’s seven in the morning, not seven at night. You slept through.”

Anne looked carefully around. “Oh… I thought something about the light was different.”

An hour later Anne had showered and dressed. She towel-dried her hair and followed the smell of bacon and coffee to the kitchen.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.