You Say Goodbye by Keith Steinbaum

Author:Keith Steinbaum [Steinbaum, Keith]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Black Opal Books

Chapter 20

Two days before the Saturday night fundraiser and four more before he returned to work, Sean sat by his pool in the late afternoon, waiting for Roger and Anita. New employee handbooks needed to be reviewed and insurance forms filled out before Monday, so Roger offered to bring them to Sean’s house, explaining to him over the phone that he and Anita had a five o’clock appointment not far from there.

Sipping on a beer, he gazed at a group of clouds braided like a horizontal question mark, symbolizing the instability of his current reality. Merissa’s killer remained at large, he didn’t write or even play music anymore, and he didn’t have much of a social life. A slow nod of his head followed the realization that a chance to sell cars offered a welcome distraction and an opportunity to relieve the boredom.

The blues guitar cell phone ring redirected his thoughts back to the present moment.

“Hightower here,” he answered, “but Roger isn’t.”

“We’re pulling up now,” Roger replied. “You still in the back?”

“Yep, side gate’s open.”

Sean heard the car approach and the motor cut off. Glancing at the time on his phone, he wondered why Roger needed to leave work early. Anita walked through the gate first, followed by Roger, apparently texting a message to someone. After a few moments spent greeting Hendrix, Anita approached Sean.

“Hi there, stranger” she said, extending her arms as he rose from the chair.

“Good to see you, Anita,” he told her as they hugged.

“Well, well, well,” Roger said, waving his hand toward the pool and then toward Sean’s attire. “The retired life suits you, my friend.”

“That’s a shame,” he replied. “On Monday, I’ll be back offering summer deals and hoping the AC works on test drives.”

Roger handed Sean the pamphlet. “Here you go, buddy, for your reading pleasure.”

“Can I offer you something to drink?” Sean asked, looking at Anita.

“No thanks. We can’t stay that long.” Looking at the time on her watch, she lifted her eyes toward Roger. “In fact, we only have about five minutes.”

Roger inhaled, nodded, and released the air in an extended exhale. “Okay, babe.”

“Are those insurance forms in here?” Sean asked, thumbing through the pages.

Roger closed his eyes and shook his head, followed by a small chuckle. “Not when they’re in my jacket pocket which happens to be in the backseat of my car.”

After a few moments spent staring in her husband’s direction as he hurried through the gate, Anita’s eyes followed Hendrix trotting back from that direction. She dropped to one knee and petted him in silence before rising again to look at Sean.

“I’ve known you a long time, you know that?” she asked. “Rebecca and I were close friends in high school and you were her little brother who always liked to show off on the guitar.”

Sean chuckled. “You could have been my first groupie.”

Anita smiled, betrayed by eyes reflecting an obvious sadness.

“Something wrong, Anita?”

Staring at Hendrix, she answered Sean as if speaking to the dog. “I don’t know how

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