Chapter 57
Jimmy asked Joshua to wait on the dock once he disembarked, to give him a few minutes to handle his remaining tasks on deck. Joshua found a pay phone at the edge of the dock. He pumped in a couple of coins and dialed Eddie’s home phone number.
The line rang four times, and then voice mail picked up.
“Hey, it’s Josh. I’m on the island now, and Bates hasn’t gotten here yet. Is everything okay there? I sent you a text message a little while ago but haven’t heard from you. I’m not getting a cell signal out here, so leave me a message on my landline, all right? Let me know everything’s cool. Peace.”
Joshua hung up. He scrolled through the list of names and numbers in his Blackberry’s address book, didn’t find a number for Ariel. He would have to hope that Eddie got his message.
But he worried. Bates was so obsessive, so damn resourceful, that no one close was safe. The quiet on Eddie’s end seemed to foretell something ominous.
Jimmy left the ferry, strolled across the gangplank to the dock and waved at Joshua. “Ready, my friend?”
“Let’s go.” Joshua slung his bag over his shoulder.
They loaded into a battered, black Ford pick up that was parked in a dusty lot on the outskirts of the dock. Like he usually did when riding as a passenger, Joshua pushed the seat all the way back to make room for his legs. Jimmy steered out of the lot and onto a narrow, bumpy road.
“How far away is her place?” Joshua asked, shouting to be heard above the roaring engine.
“About two miles. Not far.”
“Are you going to tell me now why my wife is so special here?”
That brought a grin. “Ask her. Maybe she’ll tell you.”
Well, there’s a lot she hasn’t told me, Joshua wanted to say, bitterness boiling up his throat. But he kept his mouth shut. Jimmy was right. He should put all of his questions to Rachel. For once in their relationship, she would be forced to be honest with him.
The ride was rough; the road there might have been the same one used during the antebellum era. Numerous rusty cars sitting on sagging tires lined the grassy shoulder. The sun-spangled ocean was on the left, visible through the palmettos and moss-draped live oaks that bordered the road.
Soon, they neared a white sign with blue text that read: Historic Hall Hammock. Established Circa 1857. 445 Acres. Pop. 72.
They entered a community of mostly old, modest homes and trailers that sat on high wooden foundations. A larger brick ranch house had a sign out front that advertised a bed-and-breakfast. A tiny cinderblock store sold groceries, and there was a white stucco church with a large bell.
He didn’t see anyone in the street, or in the yards, though winking Christmas lights decorated several of the residences.
“Quiet place,” Joshua said.
“Wasn’t always this way,” Jimmy said. He shook his head sadly. “Everybody’s moved to the other side. Ain’t no jobs here, no nothing. It’s dying.”
He steered around a bend in the road, and stopped at a long gravel driveway that led to a two-story, Cape Cod. The house had a fresh coat of white paint, and was in good repair. A row of palmettos ran along the back of the house, the silvery ocean visible between their narrow trunks.
“Your stop,” Jimmy said.
Joshua dug in his pocket for his wallet, but Jimmy put his hand on his arm.
“That ain’t necessary. I was only doing the girl a favor. Lord knows she deserves it for what she been through.”
“Well, thank you.”
Jimmy honked, and grumbled away in the truck.
Joshua gazed at the tree-shaded driveway, looked up at the house. In his dream, he hadn’t seen the place from the front, but this was the same model, a two-story Cape Cod on the beach. Would it have a patio and a balcony, too?
He started down the driveway. He reached the front walkway, went to climb the porch steps, and then reconsidered.
On a clear, sunny day such as today, Rachel would not be inside. She would be on the balcony, taking in the view of the sea.
He walked around the side of the house, brushing drooping palmetto leaves out of his face.
At the rear corner, he looked up. He saw the moss-braided balcony that he knew would be there.
Rachel was up there, too. Waiting for him.