The Memory Stones by Lewis Pennington

Author:Lewis Pennington [Lewis]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Silver Lining Publishing
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 20

At eight thirty the next morning, an annoying buzzing pulled him out of his first good night’s sleep in months. He jammed his hand between the backseat cushions and pulled out his cell phone. The screen read “Zoey.”

“For heaven’s sake, lady, what’re you calling me for at eight thirty on a Saturday?”

“Look here, Rip Van Winkle. It’s not Saturday, it’s Friday—a workday. Why haven’t you called me in two days? You were supposed to be back by now. I’ve been worried.”

"Hold on a second," he said, pulling on a T-shirt and rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. “Has it really been two days?”

“Uh, yeah. Are you neglecting your best friend?”

"Well, first of all, you might be my only friend, and secondly, are you sure it's been two days?"

“Yes! Pauly, are you drinking already?”

"No. I haven't really felt like it. I mean, I've drunk some, but not much. It’s so nice here. The town’s beyond charming, the weather's great, the beaches are fantastic with the softest, whitest sand, and the people…" The vision of Elisabeth at the door flashed before him. "The people are so nice and so beautiful.”

“Wait a minute. Have-have you met someone?”

“I’ve met a lot of people,” he chuckled.

“You’ve met someone, haven't you?”

“Welllll, kinda. She's a senior at the local college, and—get this—she wants to be a writer. She’s pretty good too. But the best part—she loves, loves, loves my van.”

“Marry her—now! Paul, that's awesome. How many times have you seen her?”

"Well, we've only known each other two days, and last night was, I guess, what you'd consider a date."

“Okay, you gotta listen to me on this.”

“Alright.”

“Go slowww. Two days is a blip. You come off too strong, and you’ll scare her away. And do not be that stalker guy we always see on those cold-case shows.”

“Don’t worry, I promise. Anyway, I’ll keep you posted. So why are you calling me this early?”

“I already told you—I was worried about you. Plus, I had some morning errands to run and was bored. Remember that grey jacket of yours you gave me? I hope you don't mind, but I dropped it off at a consignment shop a friend of mine owns. Man, you were right. That thing was heavy as a Chevy.”

“At eight thirty in the morning?”

“That’s not early for most people. Besides, it’s now eight forty.”

“Eight forty! I'm supposed to meet Elisabeth in fifty minutes, and I haven’t even showered."

“I like that name. Elisabeth. Very regal.”

"Sorry, Zo, gotta run. I’ll call you later.”

“Toodles.”

***

With two minutes to spare, he arrived at Elisabeth’s house. Before he could stop, she was out the front door and skipping her way across the front lawn carrying a bag of bagels.

He rolled the window down. “Don’t worry about the door, I fixed it.”

She bounced in beside him. “Wow, look at you mister handy man! This is going to be so much fun.”

He threw his head back and laughed. “Are you for real?”

“Yep, that’s me—certifiably real.”

“No, I mean, you actually enjoy research?”

“If I’m going

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