CHAPTER FOUR
An Albatross
Copyright 2004, All Rights Reserved
“Oh my God,” Lucinda gasped, “Is that Sean?” Alexis’s eyes focused onto the cherry, black Chrysler PT Cruiser that pulled up onto the sidewalk behind the Library where the two of them were taking a smoke break. Sean was surprised to see his wife puffing on a smoke since she’d quit for about four months. But he didn’t want anything to spoil the moment so he ignored it. Her strong visual sense kicked in only to see her husband behind the car’s wheel. No license plate; stickers on the windshield—yup. It was new. He better not have…
“Bought it! Sean rang out as if to taunt the women. “That’s what’s up,”
“What do you mean? How?” replied and exacerbated Alexis.
“Girl, do you care? Sean, I have to say, I take back all those things I said about you. You’ve got impeccable taste.” Responded Lucinda. “You’ve got to forgive him, girl,” she continued.
“Forgive me for what?”
“It’s three o’clock in the afternoon, Sean. We were expecting you at noon.” Alexis stated sternly. “No call, no anything; you know you’re making that presentation tomorrow. We were going to edit the PowerPoint presentation today. The entire staff waited for you…and then you show up with this!?”
“Okay, okay,” calmed Sean, “Deep breaths baby. Deep breaths…”
“You better stop that now,” Alexis was in no joking mood. Lucinda tried to hold it in.
“Honey? You know we need this,” he said to comfort her.
“I know we need a car. But I thought…I mean yesterday you were…I mean why this? You barely fit in it?” she whined. Sean now changed his approach. She was noticeably referring to the “starting a family” campaign she’d been chairing since they met. “Where did you get the money for it anyhow?”
Lucinda had begun to walk away “I’m out. Leave you two love birds be,” she turned the corner with a yukity yuk yuk. The couple extended their goodbyes but not before another congratulation was sent their way by the snappy young clerk. Also a Yahtzee fan…
“That guy,” Sean confessed secretly, “he came buy today!” He continued to explain the entire exchange to her as they made their way to the local campus diner. The entire episode had taken on a fanciful element for Alexis. There were many holes that she couldn’t wait to point out but the experience of walking along the beautiful University’s walkway adorned with trees of all sorts and brimming with a youthful effervescence that she knew was keeping them both young at heart caused her to pause and just listen. This was her man. Yes, she wasn’t too happy with the compact choice he’d made and it certainly didn’t bode well in terms of having kids anytime soon but she was happy anyway. She strolled and listened to her this brilliant man that she called “husband” explain this unbelievable exchange that he’d had—something out of a Spielberg movie, she thought.
“Okay, first of all: We’ve got to call your mother to find out about this money. I mean what if it’s a normal amount? Look, fifteen thousand dollars isn’t a lot of money for a lot of people. Second, that whole ‘rotational axis’ malarkey doesn’t jive with me to well. I don’t think that’s how it works. I’m no expert but…I don’t know. What about these release forms? Did you check them out?” disserted Alexis.
“Yeah. Standard stuff. We’ll check it all out, honey. I’m going to deposit the check this afternoon…”
“What? How did you pay for the car?” asked Alexis.
“The savings fund.”
“Oh Sean…” Alexis said disappointedly.
“I wanted to surprise you. This is a big deal. I’ll replace it later this afternoon with the money. I thought I’d just go down to the dealership, buy the thing and be in by twelve. I didn’t think buying a car would take so long. Plus, we’ve got a room booked at Mussel Shoals,” he charmed.
This was the cherry on top. Alexis was whisked away by the moment. The Inn at Mussel Shoals, a dreamy hideaway off of Pacific Coast Highway up in northern Ventura County, is where the two had first made love. To return now, in their new car as newlyweds, would be like a second honeymoon. The couple ran back to the PT Cruiser. Alexis got behind the wheel and the two sped off to a romantic getaway for the weekend. This was perceptibly the beginning of a new chapter in their lives. The only thing that would bring it to a standstill lay gently in her backpack.
__________________________________________________
The wind blew through Alexis’ auburn hair. With the top down, she and Sean were cruising up that most indelible of Southern California symbols—PCH. It was originally named The Roosevelt Highway for Teddy Roosevelt but it was changed in the 1950’s to the Pacific Coast Highway. The shock of the many revelations she had just acknowledged had worn down and the cruise had taken over her senses. The two continued their conversation picking apart every bit of the exchange Sean underwent that morning with Dr. Hawke. It was nearly 3:30 P.M. and they were only thirty minutes away from the final destination when…
“Can I get some water?” requested Sean, “I think you put the bottle in your backpack,”. Alexis reached into the back seat and yanked forward her backpack.
As she opened it, “Oh geese, you’re not going to believe this,”.
“What?” Sean inquired. She pulled out a manila folder from her bag with about twenty-five pieces of parchment edging out of it.
“Where did you get those?” Sean maintained his impending frenzy.
“I must have…I remember: The Telefsens came over last night…”
“Yeah, yeah…”
“And we were cleaning up. I must’ve thrown them in there.”
“I can’t believe you…”
“What? Calm down,” she argued, “They’re just a few. Christ, there must’ve been thousands of pieces in that crate.” Sean was still fussing. “Don’t worry,” she consoled, “ I didn’t read them”. Sean pulled the car off the highway and the getaway halted.
“I don’t care if you read them or not,” he spoke firmly, “This guy just gave me fifteen thousand dollars. Fifteen thousand dollars, I might add, that’s spent! I don’t want…”
“We’ll track him down,” planned Alexis. “Do you know what hotel he was staying in?”
“He made it sound like he was leaving right away. Like back to Maine leaving” reasoned Sean.
“Let me see them,” he motioned to the documents. She handed them to her as he asked, “Did they seem important?”
“I don’t know. I didn’t read them. I’m running a major research library, Sean. I’m not trying to…” she asserted but was met with: “Sweetie. I get it. I’m sorry I’m being curt. Let’s just get through this.”
“I really don’t think it’s going to be that big of a deal: If he really needs them, he’ll notice that they’re missing and find you again, right?” she developed.
“That’s right,” said Sean, “He said he didn’t know what was in the documents. He just knew that they existed,” he paused…”What if they are essential? I don’t want this guy coming for the money…”
It’s around this point in the conversation that Alexis realized this unexpected adventure would end and they would probably head back and deal with all this stuff. It’s at this time that some of the apprehension about this partnership she fervidly set aside would furtively creep into her frame of mind. She hated it: The car would probably become the object of this odium. They squealed back onto the highway they had just ascended and made their way back to the Library. It was a Friday night but the campus was still alive. Once back in the Administrative offices, Sean hopped on-line and juggled the office phone in search of Dr. Hawke while Alexis finished brewing some cappuccino on her newly purchased do-dad; a present she gave herself for turning thirty. She guessed it was for the best. They were behind in preparation for a grant proposal presentation Dr. Brown Bromberg, the head of the History department, had arranged with the California Department of Education. Part of both her and Sean’s work involved acquiring new funding sources for developing institute projects and the such. True, the plan was for Sean to start his own practice but Alexis was well on her way up a career ladder. She’d worked long and hard to land a job like this one. Her father was a Professor Emeritus with U.S.C.’s Psychology program in the 1980’s (while she earned her Ed.D.) and begged her to come work for him. He wanted her to run the educational psychology division but she wouldn’t have it…even if it meant betraying the silly patronage her family held for a college.
None of that mattered to her. Alexis was a true-blue kind of woman with a love for education and books. She’d always dreamt of becoming the Librarian of Congress and running a major research facility was one of the unspoken requirements for the coveted position. In her youth, she was accidentally seared at her stepmother’s winter home. An unobtrusive scar embellishing her chin served as a remembrance of that auspicious December evening. She was never straight with Sean about what in point of fact happened.
Her father divorced his estranged wife when Alexis was fifteen. Consequently, she’d become a daddy’s-girl. Her high school life was sullen. Her mother was eventually diagnosed with a mental disorder and this greatly affected Alexis. Surreptitiously, she held her father liable for her mother’s craze, though she knew he couldn’t live with her anymore. Alexis dated a professional soccer player throughout college. They nearly got married but his insistence on not continuing his search for a job after injuring his leg and losing any prospect for a viable future in sports caused her to leave him. It was messy. He wasn’t an American citizen. Things that shouldn’t have been said were said.
After she received her Masters degree in Library Sciences, she started work running a library at a middle school in the Valley—the new Heart of Los Angeles. Meanwhile, she pursued a doctorate degree in education, mostly at her father’s behest, and, after achieving it, ran her father’s department’s database and research center at U.S.C. The post at U.C.L.A.’s Wasson Complex was in demand. She interviewed on a whim and was taken on the spot. She was an expert: Unremitting, enjoyable, motivated and sharp. Sean was fortunate to have her.
“I can’t believe this,” said Sean as he turned the corner into the kitchen. Alexis was pouring her newly steamed milk into their cups. “Nothing. Nothing on their site about him, and no listing. I left a message with the A.M.H.S. Should I call the police?” he asked.
“What are you talking about? Sweetie? He’s not even going to know they’re missing,” She sat beside him at a worktable and place the hot cup afore him. “You said he didn’t know what was in the crate. So just relax. You’ll find him or he’ll find you. He’s not going to pull the money…did you deposit it?”
“No! I’ve been with you the whole time!” he shrieked.
“Sean?” she worriedly intimated. “What’s the matter?
“I called my Mom about Dad’s donations. She said, to the best of her knowledge, that the most the family ever got for anything like this was about thirty-five hundred dollars—some orbed necklace from Dad’s Great-Grandmother. Here, I get rid of some papers and pull in a third of my yearly salary. Something’s up, Alexis.” The two continued the talk: Sean panicking, Alexis soothing.
Meanwhile, the answering machine at Sean’s condo picked up a call. A bright voice spoke: “Hello. This message is for Mr. Sean Allen. My name is Trudy Balm from the Atlantic Maritime Historic Museum. Your message triggered my pager. I’m on duty just in case, ey? Anyway, it’s a rarity that we get calls from the West coast. Umm…I got your message and thought I’d call you to tell you that we don’t have anyone working for us by the name Dr. Anthony Hawke. Our Director’s name is Chuck Sudillo. I’ve been working here for about eighteen years and…anyway, no Dr. Hawke. We closed our pirate exhibit about eight months ago and don’t really have anything particular about Captain Kidd. Wait. Scratch that…there is a book about him in the gift shop. Pretty nice too. Hope that’ll help. Our number is…”
CHAPTER FIVE
Chapters
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21 & 22, 23, 24, 25, Epilogue
An Albatross
Copyright 2004, All Rights Reserved
“Oh my God,” Lucinda gasped, “Is that Sean?” Alexis’s eyes focused onto the cherry, black Chrysler PT Cruiser that pulled up onto the sidewalk behind the Library where the two of them were taking a smoke break. Sean was surprised to see his wife puffing on a smoke since she’d quit for about four months. But he didn’t want anything to spoil the moment so he ignored it. Her strong visual sense kicked in only to see her husband behind the car’s wheel. No license plate; stickers on the windshield—yup. It was new. He better not have…
“Bought it! Sean rang out as if to taunt the women. “That’s what’s up,”
“What do you mean? How?” replied and exacerbated Alexis.
“Girl, do you care? Sean, I have to say, I take back all those things I said about you. You’ve got impeccable taste.” Responded Lucinda. “You’ve got to forgive him, girl,” she continued.
“Forgive me for what?”
“It’s three o’clock in the afternoon, Sean. We were expecting you at noon.” Alexis stated sternly. “No call, no anything; you know you’re making that presentation tomorrow. We were going to edit the PowerPoint presentation today. The entire staff waited for you…and then you show up with this!?”
“Okay, okay,” calmed Sean, “Deep breaths baby. Deep breaths…”
“You better stop that now,” Alexis was in no joking mood. Lucinda tried to hold it in.
“Honey? You know we need this,” he said to comfort her.
“I know we need a car. But I thought…I mean yesterday you were…I mean why this? You barely fit in it?” she whined. Sean now changed his approach. She was noticeably referring to the “starting a family” campaign she’d been chairing since they met. “Where did you get the money for it anyhow?”
Lucinda had begun to walk away “I’m out. Leave you two love birds be,” she turned the corner with a yukity yuk yuk. The couple extended their goodbyes but not before another congratulation was sent their way by the snappy young clerk. Also a Yahtzee fan…
“That guy,” Sean confessed secretly, “he came buy today!” He continued to explain the entire exchange to her as they made their way to the local campus diner. The entire episode had taken on a fanciful element for Alexis. There were many holes that she couldn’t wait to point out but the experience of walking along the beautiful University’s walkway adorned with trees of all sorts and brimming with a youthful effervescence that she knew was keeping them both young at heart caused her to pause and just listen. This was her man. Yes, she wasn’t too happy with the compact choice he’d made and it certainly didn’t bode well in terms of having kids anytime soon but she was happy anyway. She strolled and listened to her this brilliant man that she called “husband” explain this unbelievable exchange that he’d had—something out of a Spielberg movie, she thought.
“Okay, first of all: We’ve got to call your mother to find out about this money. I mean what if it’s a normal amount? Look, fifteen thousand dollars isn’t a lot of money for a lot of people. Second, that whole ‘rotational axis’ malarkey doesn’t jive with me to well. I don’t think that’s how it works. I’m no expert but…I don’t know. What about these release forms? Did you check them out?” disserted Alexis.
“Yeah. Standard stuff. We’ll check it all out, honey. I’m going to deposit the check this afternoon…”
“What? How did you pay for the car?” asked Alexis.
“The savings fund.”
“Oh Sean…” Alexis said disappointedly.
“I wanted to surprise you. This is a big deal. I’ll replace it later this afternoon with the money. I thought I’d just go down to the dealership, buy the thing and be in by twelve. I didn’t think buying a car would take so long. Plus, we’ve got a room booked at Mussel Shoals,” he charmed.
This was the cherry on top. Alexis was whisked away by the moment. The Inn at Mussel Shoals, a dreamy hideaway off of Pacific Coast Highway up in northern Ventura County, is where the two had first made love. To return now, in their new car as newlyweds, would be like a second honeymoon. The couple ran back to the PT Cruiser. Alexis got behind the wheel and the two sped off to a romantic getaway for the weekend. This was perceptibly the beginning of a new chapter in their lives. The only thing that would bring it to a standstill lay gently in her backpack.
__________________________________________________
The wind blew through Alexis’ auburn hair. With the top down, she and Sean were cruising up that most indelible of Southern California symbols—PCH. It was originally named The Roosevelt Highway for Teddy Roosevelt but it was changed in the 1950’s to the Pacific Coast Highway. The shock of the many revelations she had just acknowledged had worn down and the cruise had taken over her senses. The two continued their conversation picking apart every bit of the exchange Sean underwent that morning with Dr. Hawke. It was nearly 3:30 P.M. and they were only thirty minutes away from the final destination when…
“Can I get some water?” requested Sean, “I think you put the bottle in your backpack,”. Alexis reached into the back seat and yanked forward her backpack.
As she opened it, “Oh geese, you’re not going to believe this,”.
“What?” Sean inquired. She pulled out a manila folder from her bag with about twenty-five pieces of parchment edging out of it.
“Where did you get those?” Sean maintained his impending frenzy.
“I must have…I remember: The Telefsens came over last night…”
“Yeah, yeah…”
“And we were cleaning up. I must’ve thrown them in there.”
“I can’t believe you…”
“What? Calm down,” she argued, “They’re just a few. Christ, there must’ve been thousands of pieces in that crate.” Sean was still fussing. “Don’t worry,” she consoled, “ I didn’t read them”. Sean pulled the car off the highway and the getaway halted.
“I don’t care if you read them or not,” he spoke firmly, “This guy just gave me fifteen thousand dollars. Fifteen thousand dollars, I might add, that’s spent! I don’t want…”
“We’ll track him down,” planned Alexis. “Do you know what hotel he was staying in?”
“He made it sound like he was leaving right away. Like back to Maine leaving” reasoned Sean.
“Let me see them,” he motioned to the documents. She handed them to her as he asked, “Did they seem important?”
“I don’t know. I didn’t read them. I’m running a major research library, Sean. I’m not trying to…” she asserted but was met with: “Sweetie. I get it. I’m sorry I’m being curt. Let’s just get through this.”
“I really don’t think it’s going to be that big of a deal: If he really needs them, he’ll notice that they’re missing and find you again, right?” she developed.
“That’s right,” said Sean, “He said he didn’t know what was in the documents. He just knew that they existed,” he paused…”What if they are essential? I don’t want this guy coming for the money…”
It’s around this point in the conversation that Alexis realized this unexpected adventure would end and they would probably head back and deal with all this stuff. It’s at this time that some of the apprehension about this partnership she fervidly set aside would furtively creep into her frame of mind. She hated it: The car would probably become the object of this odium. They squealed back onto the highway they had just ascended and made their way back to the Library. It was a Friday night but the campus was still alive. Once back in the Administrative offices, Sean hopped on-line and juggled the office phone in search of Dr. Hawke while Alexis finished brewing some cappuccino on her newly purchased do-dad; a present she gave herself for turning thirty. She guessed it was for the best. They were behind in preparation for a grant proposal presentation Dr. Brown Bromberg, the head of the History department, had arranged with the California Department of Education. Part of both her and Sean’s work involved acquiring new funding sources for developing institute projects and the such. True, the plan was for Sean to start his own practice but Alexis was well on her way up a career ladder. She’d worked long and hard to land a job like this one. Her father was a Professor Emeritus with U.S.C.’s Psychology program in the 1980’s (while she earned her Ed.D.) and begged her to come work for him. He wanted her to run the educational psychology division but she wouldn’t have it…even if it meant betraying the silly patronage her family held for a college.
None of that mattered to her. Alexis was a true-blue kind of woman with a love for education and books. She’d always dreamt of becoming the Librarian of Congress and running a major research facility was one of the unspoken requirements for the coveted position. In her youth, she was accidentally seared at her stepmother’s winter home. An unobtrusive scar embellishing her chin served as a remembrance of that auspicious December evening. She was never straight with Sean about what in point of fact happened.
Her father divorced his estranged wife when Alexis was fifteen. Consequently, she’d become a daddy’s-girl. Her high school life was sullen. Her mother was eventually diagnosed with a mental disorder and this greatly affected Alexis. Surreptitiously, she held her father liable for her mother’s craze, though she knew he couldn’t live with her anymore. Alexis dated a professional soccer player throughout college. They nearly got married but his insistence on not continuing his search for a job after injuring his leg and losing any prospect for a viable future in sports caused her to leave him. It was messy. He wasn’t an American citizen. Things that shouldn’t have been said were said.
After she received her Masters degree in Library Sciences, she started work running a library at a middle school in the Valley—the new Heart of Los Angeles. Meanwhile, she pursued a doctorate degree in education, mostly at her father’s behest, and, after achieving it, ran her father’s department’s database and research center at U.S.C. The post at U.C.L.A.’s Wasson Complex was in demand. She interviewed on a whim and was taken on the spot. She was an expert: Unremitting, enjoyable, motivated and sharp. Sean was fortunate to have her.
“I can’t believe this,” said Sean as he turned the corner into the kitchen. Alexis was pouring her newly steamed milk into their cups. “Nothing. Nothing on their site about him, and no listing. I left a message with the A.M.H.S. Should I call the police?” he asked.
“What are you talking about? Sweetie? He’s not even going to know they’re missing,” She sat beside him at a worktable and place the hot cup afore him. “You said he didn’t know what was in the crate. So just relax. You’ll find him or he’ll find you. He’s not going to pull the money…did you deposit it?”
“No! I’ve been with you the whole time!” he shrieked.
“Sean?” she worriedly intimated. “What’s the matter?
“I called my Mom about Dad’s donations. She said, to the best of her knowledge, that the most the family ever got for anything like this was about thirty-five hundred dollars—some orbed necklace from Dad’s Great-Grandmother. Here, I get rid of some papers and pull in a third of my yearly salary. Something’s up, Alexis.” The two continued the talk: Sean panicking, Alexis soothing.
Meanwhile, the answering machine at Sean’s condo picked up a call. A bright voice spoke: “Hello. This message is for Mr. Sean Allen. My name is Trudy Balm from the Atlantic Maritime Historic Museum. Your message triggered my pager. I’m on duty just in case, ey? Anyway, it’s a rarity that we get calls from the West coast. Umm…I got your message and thought I’d call you to tell you that we don’t have anyone working for us by the name Dr. Anthony Hawke. Our Director’s name is Chuck Sudillo. I’ve been working here for about eighteen years and…anyway, no Dr. Hawke. We closed our pirate exhibit about eight months ago and don’t really have anything particular about Captain Kidd. Wait. Scratch that…there is a book about him in the gift shop. Pretty nice too. Hope that’ll help. Our number is…”
CHAPTER FIVE
Chapters
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21 & 22, 23, 24, 25, Epilogue
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