Nursing a Grudge: An Earl Walker Mystery

Chapter 4

The girl left him soon afterward, quietly. Earl tried his best not to think about how he had hurt her feelings. He was finally, wonderfully alone, and he planned to put the whole unpleasantness out of his mind.

However, there seemed to be a cloud of doubt hovering over him as he wheeled himself to the center of the room. He started to reach for the remote on the coffee table but instead grabbed one of the framed photos of his late wife. He stared at Barbara for a long moment. “I know, baby. But there’s no percentage in getting involved.”

The picture did not answer.

“College gets on my nerves. You always had more patience than me. I would never admit it to her, but when she forced me to get out of the apartment, I was secretly glad. I’ve been hibernating in this old rattrap for so long I’ve forgotten how to get out.”

The picture didn’t answer that, either.

“Of course, the first place she takes me to—” He stopped himself and changed the subject. “And I sort of met somebody when we went to the rec center. I hope that’s okay with you. Her name is Gloria Logan.”

The photograph of Barbara kept smiling. Her black hair framed her face just so.

Earl set his jaw, thrust out his lower lip. His breathing came heavier. “I don’t know what to do, Barbara. I can’t get involved.”

He let out a big sigh. “When a man is an island for so long, he can’t remember how to connect with the mainland anymore.”

He wiped his nose with his sleeve. “Well, you know what I mean.” He smiled weakly at the photo. “You always did.” He looked at the eyes he remembered so well in his dreams. “I miss you.”

Earl set down the photo and got the television remote. He turned on the TV and flipped through the channels. Courtroom show. Trashy news program. Sitcom. Click, click, click. He sat in front of the flickering screen for some block of time, but he wouldn’t have been able to recall what he watched.

He was almost grateful when there was a knock at the door. After shutting off the TV, he went to the door to find Mark Conroy standing there. Earl said, “Hello. You throw some kind of party.” He didn’t invite the man in.

“Yes.” Conroy forced a grin then dropped it. “I just wanted to check and make sure that you were okay.”

“Why wouldn’t I be?”

“Well, a few people from the party have been sick today. I just wanted to make sure you were fine.”

“I’m fine. We can’t say the same for Kent.”

“Oh. You heard.” Conroy stood in the doorway a few seconds, uncertainly. “By the way, I’m sorry about how Kent crawled all over you there. I hope he didn’t cause any damage?”

Earl tilted his head. “No.”

“By the way, he dropped something in my apartment—a ring. Maybe you saw it?”

“He showed it off to me. He seemed to show it off to everybody.”

“Yes.” Conroy nodded. “Anyway, it seems to have been misplaced. You didn’t happen to see what happened to it, did you?”

Earl shook his head. “No.”

“Well, if it turns up, here is my number.” Conroy handed Earl a scrap of paper with a phone number scribbled on it. “As the host, I feel responsible for making sure it gets into the right hands.”

Earl nodded. “Uh-huh.”

Conroy lingered a moment. Finally he said, “Well, I guess I’ll see you around. Glad to hear you didn’t get sick.”