by Lyn Gardner
Robin let out a sigh, and getting to her feet, she approached her friend. “Look, I’m not going to lie and say that what happened over the past several months didn’t play a part in my decision, but I’m not running away because I’m afraid of her. I’m moving because I need a change. We both know I have two very poorly written manuscripts withering away on my laptop, and I haven’t been able to get any work done on either of them because I’ve lost my focus. I’ve been doing everything in my power just so I don’t have to sit down and write, and that’s not me. I need to find myself again...and I can’t do that here.”
“But what if you can’t do it there either?”
“Then I’ll move somewhere else,” Robin said, taking Gabby by the shoulders. “But the point is, I’m not running away from anyone or anything. I’m running toward finding that author I used to be. I would think you would appreciate that given the fact that if I don’t write books, you don’t get paid.”
Gabby snorted. “This has never been about the money, and you know it.”
“I know,” Robin said, kissing Gabby on the cheek. “It was just my clever way of changing the subject.”
“It wasn’t that clever.”
“Yes, but it worked,” Robin said, waggling her eyebrows for a second before she returned to her packing.
“Sorry about your aunt, by the way.”
Robin looked up. “Thanks. I wanted to go to her service, but I had the damn flu.”
“That sucks.”
“Yeah, especially since I know my mom would have wanted me there.”
“So, she was your mother’s sister?”
“Yes, and they were pretty close, and now I’m kicking myself for never taking the time to get to know her better.”
“Why didn’t you?”
“Stupidity mostly,” Robin said as she closed the box and got to her feet. “When I was a kid, I went with Mom to see Adele a couple of times, but I always had my nose stuck in a book. Mom decided she wasn’t going to have me miss out on my childhood just because I loved to read, so she started sending me to summer camp instead. And when I grew up, I got busy with my own life. My mom adored her though, and from what I can remember about her, she was a nice woman. Quiet and little reserved, but nice.”
Gabby nodded an acknowledgment and then scanned the starkness of the empty condo. “What did you do with all your stuff?”
Robin glanced over her shoulder at the barren space. “I put what I wanted to keep into one of those cube thingies and the rest I sold or donated. I figure once I get up there, I’ll arrange to have what’s in storage delivered and buy whatever else I need.” Robin looked at the cartons at her feet. “And once I get this into the car and gather the cats, I’ll be on my way.”
Gabby’s eyes flew open and darting to the door, she peeked outside. “Oh my God!” she said, spinning around. “Please don’t tell me you sold your Z4!”
“I don’t really need a sports car where I’m going,” Robin said, smiling. “The 4Runner is more practical.”
“But it’s an SUVeeee.”
Robin narrowed her eyes. “What’s your point?”
“Soccer moms drive SUVs.”
“No, they don’t.”
Gabby flopped one arm over the other and pursed her lips.
“Okay,” Robin said, snickering. “Okay, maybe some of them do, but they have to haul kids around, and I have to haul stuff. It made sense to get one.”
“You could have got a truck.”
“I don’t need a truck.”
“Everyone needs a truck, Robin. A big, badass truck with lots of power and tons of bling. You’ll be the envy of every dyke in Florida. You can haul their Harleys. Come on. What do you say? Swap the soccer-mom-mobile for something with a little more oomph. There’re some dealers down the street. What say we drive over—”
“I don’t want a truck, Gabby,” Robin said. “I hate bling. I have no desire to haul motorcycles or be the envy of anyone, so drop it. Okay?”
Gabby let out a long sigh. “You’re really going to do this, aren’t you?”
“Yep. I’m really going to do this, but it’s not going to be easy if I don’t have you on my side.”
“You’ll always have me on your side,” Gabby said, walking toward the boxes surrounding Robin. “But don’t expect me to visit until the spring thaw.”
“Absolutely not,” Robin said, holding up her hands. “And by that time I should have a manuscript for you to read.”
“You better have two.”
“I’ll do my best.”
“So,” Gabby said, pointing to the boxes. “You want some help loading these?”
Robin’s face split into a grin. “I thought you’d never ask.”
Gabby picked up one of the boxes and immediately groaned at the weight. “Holy crap,” she groused as she lugged it to the door. “Where the hell is Declan when you need him? He’s got muscles coming out of his ears.”
“We said our goodbyes last night,” Robin said, lifting a carton. “He’s got the final edits for Emerald Axes to work on and there was no need for us to get all emotional again.”
“He cried?”
“We both cried. Declan’s my best friend, and I’m his, and I’m no longer going to be just around the corner and that...well, that hurts, but he and I both know this is for the best.” Seeing that Gabby’s eyes were rapidly becoming glassy, Robin said, “I’m not moving to another planet, Gabby, and Declan knows that. I’ll always be there for him, and he’ll always be there for me. Now chill, will you?”
“I’m not the one who’s going to be chilled,” Gabby said, summoning a smile as she sniffled back her tears. “I hope your SUVeeee has heated seats.”
“As a matter of fact, it does,” Robin said, sashaying out the door.
***
Concentration had never been a problem for Declan Kennedy. He could write with music blaring in his ears or the television screaming in the background and never miss an adjective or a noun, but noise was easier to block out than loss.
Unlike most eighteen-year-old boys, when Declan first set eyes on Robin Novak, he wasn’t enamored by her blue eyes or her blonde hair. While he couldn’t argue that her face was more radiant than any he had ever seen and her form, tall and slim, was probably the envy of many of the girls on campus, what attracted Declan to Robin were her words.
The class had been entitled Introduction to Creative Writing, and toward the end of the course, those attending had been required to stand and read aloud a short story of their own creation. His had been welcomed and appreciated, with a smattering of applause, but hers had a cadence that had mesmerized everyone in the hall, including Declan. After the class had ended, he practically body blocked those in the way as he hurried to catch up to Robin before she exited the building and became lost forever in the sea of students roaming about.
Although the woman seemed reluctant to even acknowledge the bear of a man as he towered over her five-foot-seven-inch frame babbling his praises, by the time Declan had ended his accolades, he had convinced Robin he was harmless. She accepted his invitation for coffee, and when Declan finally escorted Robin back to her dorm near midnight, they were in complete agreement. They were both writing geeks.
Declan ran his fingers through his wealth of black hair as he leaned back on the sofa. He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck, trying to relieve the tension overthinking can cause. He knew they’d always be friends. He knew it would only take a couple of flights to get him to where she would be, and he knew this was the right thing for her, but convincing his heart was another matter. He hated she wouldn’t be there when he needed to vent about dialogue he couldn’t get just right. He hated she wouldn’t be calling him at all hours of the night, excited about a new idea or one silly little line that one of her characters would be speaking. But most of all, he hated that for the first time since his freshman year in college, he wouldn’t be able to see Robin’s smiling face anytime he wanted.
“Jes
us Christ, dude, you need to get a grip,” he mumbled, pushing himself off the couch. Grabbing the empty bottle sitting on the coffee table, Declan headed to the kitchen to get another beer, but he came up short when there was a knock at the door. He glanced at his watch and frowned. There were only two people who were crazy enough to show up at his house at eleven o’clock at night without calling first, and if Robin had stayed true to her plans, she was already heading north.
Declan strode over, yanked open the door and immediately let out an exaggerated sigh. “Seriously?” he said, glaring at the woman. “What the fuck is wrong with you?”
“Where is she?”
With one hand on the doorjamb and another holding onto the door, Declan let out yet another sigh as he filled the space remaining. “That’s none of your business.”
“She won’t text me back or answer any of my e-mails, and I went by her house, and it’s empty.”
Declan jerked back his head. “What the hell did you do, peer in the windows? Do we need to add Peeping Thomasina to your list of charges?”
“Just tell me—”
“Listen, you poor excuse for a human being. She’s not replying to your texts or to your e-mails because she doesn’t want to have anything to do with you!”
“I just need to talk to—”
“She doesn’t want to talk to you!” Declan bellowed. “Are you that stupid that I need to explain to you what a restraining order is because if Robin did want to talk to you, I doubt she’d have gone to those lengths.”
“Don’t you dare call me stupid!”
Declan eyeballed the scrawny brunette and noticed that her hands were now fists. “What? You going to hit me again?”
“It’s not like you’re going to stop me,” Pamela Burton said, intruding into Declan’s space. “You’re not man enough for that.”
“I was taught never to hit a girl,” he said, glaring at the woman. “But if you do it again, I’m going to call the police—again—and you’re going to go to jail—again. So, if that’s what you want to do, then take your best shot because I’m not afraid of you, Pam. All you are is a coke head who’s gotten caught in so many lies it’s not even funny, and I, for one, am not going to waste another minute on you, your bullshit, or your threats.”
Taking one step backward, Declan was about to shut the door when Pamela Burton stuck her foot into the opening. “Not so fast.”
Declan hung his head, allowing his annoyance the time it needed to dissipate. “Are we really going to do this all over again?” he said, raising his eyes.
“I want to know where she is.”
“And I want to win a Pulitzer,” Declan said with a laugh. “But I’ll tell you what I’m going to do. When I win that Pulitzer, I’ll tell you where she is. How’s that?”
“Look, you son-of-a-bitch, either you tell me where she is, or I’ll make your life a living hell, and when I get done with you, no one on earth will ever buy one of your books again!”
Declan’s hearty guffaw echoed down the street. “Jesus Christ, do you hear yourself? Better yet, do you actually believe the crap you’re shoveling? I hate to break it to you, Pam, but you aren’t the queen of the planet, and whatever friends you do have left are probably only there because you’re a pyscho and they’re afraid to piss you off, but I’m not your friend, and I’m not cowering at your threats. My publisher has more lawyers than you have lies, Pam, so do us both a favor. Get the fuck off my porch.”
Before Pamela Burton could say another word, Declan Kennedy slammed the door in her face.
***
As they had done on the two previous nights in hotels along I-75, as soon as Robin set the carrier on the floor, the occupants announced their existence loudly. “Geez, hold on,” she said, chuckling as the meows and wails spewed forth. “Give me a second.”
Unzipping her suitcase, she pulled out the remaining cardboard tray and the last baggie of kitty litter, and after setting up the temporary litter box, she unlatched the carrier door. “Okay, guys. You do your thing, and I’m going to do mine,” she said, grabbing her toiletry bag. “And don’t make a mess.”
A short time later, Robin emerged from the bathroom with one towel wrapped around her body, and another wrapped around her hair. Before she took two steps, she was met by another chorus of meows. “Okay, okay,” Robin said, and rummaging around in the luggage, she was soon emptying two tiny cans of food into stainless steel bowls and putting them on the floor. “Here you go, sweeties.”
The two cats wasted no time in devouring their dinner, and Robin wasted no time in making a beeline for the bed. She flopped down on the mattress and stared at the ceiling. She was doing okay, but there was one question continuing to nibble at her brain. Did insanity run in her family?
Her mother had never talked about a barmy cousin four times removed who had barked at trees or a great-great-grandparent known for wearing their clothes inside out, yet Robin had packed up her life in less than fourteen days on a whim. A whim offering new. A whim offering different. A whim offering her freedom from the same old, same old. She really didn’t even think twice about it. She merely reduced the size of her world to a storage cube, a cargo hauler jam-packed with totes, and a 4Runner filled with her luggage and laptops…just like that.
Of course, some things were thought out. Robin had traded phone calls with her aunt’s lawyer to get as much of the paperwork as possible sorted before her appointment with him on Friday. She had called the local utility and cable companies to get those balls rolling, and she had made reservations at three pet-friendly hotels along the turnpike, so she had places to stay for the night as she headed north. And in between filling the cube, organizing a quick garage sale, and calling a local pet shelter to donate what was left, she had managed to spend a few hours on the Internet researching her new home, but only a few.
Robin wasn’t a total stranger to the area her mother used to refer to as a godsend. She had made the trip twice with her mom, the last time being when she was nine-years-old. Thirty-five years had passed since then, and Robin’s memories were a bit foggy, but there was one that was as crystal clear as it had ever been. Tomorrow, Robin was going to travel back in time.
Chapter Two
“Hi. It’s me.”
“Good morning,” Declan said, his voice gravelly and low.
“I just wanted to let you know I made it in all right. I was going to call you last night, but it was late.”
Declan glimpsed at the clock on his nightstand. “So you decided to call me at seven-freaking-o’clock in the morning? Oh wait, have you slipped into another time zone?”
“No, I’m still in the same time zone. I just didn’t look at the clock. I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay,” Declan said, scrubbing his hand over his face. “Speaking of okay, are you?”
“I’m fine.”
“You don’t sound fine.”
“I’m still not getting a lot of sleep.”
“You know, they make drugs for that.”
“I don’t like drugs.”
“You know, they make alcohol for that.”
Robin snorted. “Thanks. You’re just what I needed.”
Declan didn’t have to ask what Robin was talking about. She didn’t laugh easily anymore, and smiles were rare as well. Not the quick, flash of a smile when she was just being polite, but the one that brightened a room and warmed his heart. Those had disappeared months ago. Declan’s brow furrowed. He wanted his friend back. “What’s wrong, Robbie?”
Robin closed her eyes, and bowing her head, she pinched the bridge of her nose. “I guess I’m still trying to wrap my head around what I’m doing.”
“Well, if you’re expecting me to tell you to come back, that’s not going to happen.”
“Some best friend you are.”
“Is that what you want me to do? Tell you to run back to Florida?”
“Honestly?”
Declan scowled. “Do you even have to ask that?”
&
nbsp; “No, I don’t. I think I just needed to hear a friendly voice.”
“Oh yeah? Who’d you call?”
Robin grinned. “My best friend who’s over fourteen hundred miles away, but he’s giving me a hard time.”
“That’s because he loves you and wants you to be happy,” Declan said softly. “And that wasn’t happening here, and we both know it.”
“I miss you.”
“It’s been four freaking days, Robbie. Grow the fuck up,” Declan said, his merriment traveling over the phone line to Robin’s ear.
“Okay,” she said, smiling into the phone. “So, what about you? How are you doing? Did you get the edits finished?”
Declan paused for a second, debating on whether to tell Robin about the night crawler who had visited him the day she left. Clearing his throat, he said, “No, not yet, but I should have them done by the middle of next week.”
“You slacker! You usually whip through those things.”
“Yeah, well, Natalia came over the other night, and one thing led to another—”
“TMI, Declan. TMI!”
“Well, you asked.”
“When are you going to marry her anyway?”
Declan pulled his iPhone away from his ear and stared at it for a moment before placing back it against his ear. “Where the hell did that come from?”
“It came from the fact you’ve been dating her for over three years, and you love her. Why don’t you just marry her and get it over with?”
“She’s Catholic, Robbie.”
“What?” Robin said, jumping to her feet.
Instantly, Declan realized his mistake. “No!” he yelled into the phone. “No. No. No. No, that’s not what I meant. Jesus Christ, you know I don’t have a problem with any religion. It’s just that all her brothers and sisters have bambinos coming out the wazoo and we’d be expected to keep up.”
“So? You love kids, and you wouldn’t be expected to do anything other than to love her. You forget I’ve met her parents, and they love you as much as I do. All they want is for their daughter to be happy, so put a damn ring on her finger already. You know you want to.” Robin knew the connection was still good because she could hear Declan breathing. “Hello?” she said, her smile growing wider. “Cat got your tongue?”
