-"What is it, guys? Why did you call me?" asked a perplexed Samantha.
-"We decided to start the investigation. We didn't tell you before, because you were busy teaching the kids. But now, we need your help, especially since you were his wife."
Sam swallowed.
-"Go ahead. I'm ready," she said.
-"Are you sure you can do this?" inquired Amanda softly.
-"Yes," Sam said with determination. "If I don't talk about it, I would never be able to heal."
Amanda nodded in understanding.
-"If you can't take it anymore, tell me. We'll stop."
-"That's fine, Amy. Really. My feelings are the least of my worries now."
Now, any other guy would have gone and consoled the widow of his newly deceased best friend, but I always had a lack of speech when it came to comforting people I loved.
Whenever people came to me asking for advice about how to deal with their feelings, I would go silent, clueless about what to say and what to hold back.
Always afraid of hurting people, and yet never truly able to help them heal from their current wounds: that was, sadly, one of the side-effects of being me. I couldn't help it, though. And I had learned to deal with it, over time.
So, instead of saying anything to her, I simply moved towards my friend and engulfed her in a warm hug.
Attempting to comfort Sam and make her feel better just by holding her in my arms, I tried to convey the message I wanted her to hear without using actual words or saying it out loud.
Somehow, this seemed to work, because, after a while, she lifted her head and murmured a faint "Thank you" towards me.
Right then, Emma strode in, with a pile of documents in her hands.
-"I'm finally here," she sighed. "Louis and Mathias couldn't stop blabbering and wasting time."
Amanda cleared her throat.
-"Yeah, we have to get back to work," she prompted us.
-"Oh, right. Of course. I, umm..." I started.
-"So, what did you guys wanted to ask me?" Sam questioned.
I looked at Amanda and silently urged her to speak.
-"We wanted to know if Bob recently met... What were their names again?"
-"Victor Lombard, David Carpentier, and Edgard Robespierre."
-"He did meet them, yes. One or two months ago. I don't remember why, though."
Raising an eyebrow towards Amanda, I said: "I guess that's what we're going to find out."
-"Indeed," she nodded, grimly. "And I have a feeling we won't like the answer."
I shrugged. It couldn't be that bad, right? I mean, I've seen things much worse than high school grudges and its resultant problems.
-"So, where and when did he meet each one of them?" Emma interrogated.
Ah, yes. Emma was here. I completely forgot about her.
-"I'm pretty sure he took them to Café Guillaume. Weirdly enough, he didn't meet up with the three of them altogether. He spent an entire day with every single one of them and would come back home in the evening, and never earlier. As to the time of their meetings, I'm not entirely sure, but it was towards the end of October, I think."
-"So he was with them during those three days, huh? He never told me why he didn't show up to work three days in a row."
-"Can you check the exact date and time? We need them if we want to time-travel."
-"I remember the dates," I barged in. " He skipped work from the 20th of October to the 22nd. He would come for the boss's office tour and then leave, so I'm guessing he would have reached the Café around 9 o'clock."
-"We have both the time and the place now. That's a great start."
-"Yay! I'll bring the champagne."
Amanda face-palmed. Emma sighed. But you know what Sam did? She nodded in agreement. Agreement with me, of course. Not with the girls. There was no doubt about it.
-"Paul, it's too early for that, don't you think?"
Or maybe there was. Argh, women. Always the same.
-"It was a joke, ladies. Relax. Anyway, shouldn't we prepare ourselves to time-travel and discover the truth?"
-"I don't think we can do it today. I have another meeting to attend."
-"You and your meetings," I said, rolling my eyes. "It seems like you have nothing else to do in life."
-"Sweetie, you know nothing of my life."
-"Umm, when do you want to do it then?" Sam intervened, trying to change the subject.
-"I'm busy tomorrow. But Saturday, however, I'm completely free."
-"Saturday it is, then," I stated, cheerfully.
-"When do you want to meet up?"
-"Around ten would be good?" Suggested Emma.
-"If I'm awake by then, sure!"
-"You're coming with us whether you like it or not. And you'll have to wake up around 9:30, honey. Unless you take more than half an hour to get ready, that is."
-"Damn. So I'll have to wake up at 7," I said, shaking my head.
The three of them looked at me, with their eyes wide open and their mouths forming an o. A very malformed and distorted o, if you'll ask me.
-"I'm kidding! I'm kidding! I'm not that vain and egocentric. I'll only wake up at 8."
-"Whatever," Amy mumbled. "My meeting starts soon, so I have to leave you guys now. Sam, stay here and rest, you'll need it."
-"Yeah, I can take care of the kids if you want," offered Emma.
-"Aww! So adorable! I never knew you had it in you, darling."
-"Shut up, Blind Guy. Oh! Why don't you go and spend some time with your roommate?"
-"Brilliant idea!" I said sarcastically. "I would love to do that."
-"Very funny," she commented, propping her hands on her hips and glaring at me.
-"Let's get moving now, shall we?" our sweet Samantha cut in, trying to break the tension. "Paul, go to your room. And if you don't want to spend time with Francesco, I suggest you go to the library or continue visiting the base."
-"I'll do that," I smirked, tipping my hat.
I exited the room and left the girls behind me.
After asking someone where the library was, I headed towards it, deciding to spend some time there and relax.
Greeting the librarian when entering, I followed my instinct and delved in the enormous and fabulous maze the bookshelves in front of me formed. The sight spreading before my eyes was, without doubt, the dream of every book lover. Tons and tons of novels filled these shelves, and, wherever I went, none had any space left. A few minutes passed, and my mind was already lost, unable to process this prodigious quantity of books and other paperbacks, from old and ancient manuscripts to newspapers and magazine articles.
I was so engrossed in all these books that I did not pay much attention to the guy who approached me from the back.
I did not know who it was, but I remembered in that instant Samantha's words: "And if you don't want to spend time with Francesco, I suggest you go to the library or continue visiting the base."
I guess Samantha, too, had been coming up with brilliant ideas, these days.
-"Hello there, Paul," said a familiar male voice.
Now I knew who this guy was.