Blood Work полностью

And that was the problem. First thing Monday morning McCaleb would be on the hot seat, the focus of intense scrutiny. Most, if not all, of those in the meeting at the Star Center would be non-believers. But rather than prepare for the meeting or do what additional investigation he could, McCaleb was going fishing on the jetty with a woman and a little boy. It didn’t sit right with him and he kept thinking he should cancel the visit from Graciela and Raymond. In the end, he didn’t. It was true that he needed to talk with Graciela, but more than that, he found that he just wanted to be with her. And that was what brought the twin paths of his uneasy thoughts to an intersection: guilt over putting the investigation aside and guilt over his desire for a woman who had come to him for his help.

When he was done with the laundry and the general cleanup, he walked over to the marina center. At the store he bought the makings of the evening’s dinner. At the bait shop he bought a bucket of live bait, choosing shrimp and squid, and a small rod-and-reel outfit that he planned to present to Raymond as his own. Back at the boat, he put the rod in one of the gunwale holders and dumped the bait bucket into the live well. He then put away the store items in the galley.

He was finished and the boat was ready by ten. Seeing no sign of Graciela’s convertible in the parking lot, he decided to walk over and check with Buddy Lockridge about his availability on Monday morning. He first went up to the gate and made sure it was propped open so Graciela and the boy could enter the marina, then he went to Lockridge’s boat.

Adhering to marina custom, McCaleb did not step onto the Double-Down. Instead, he called Lockridge’s name and waited on the dock. The boat’s main hatch was open so he knew Lockridge was awake and around somewhere. After half a minute, Buddy’s disheveled hair, followed by his crumpled face, poked up through the hatch. McCaleb guessed he had spent a good part of the night drinking.

“Yo, Terry.”

“Yo. You okay?”

“Fine as always. What’s up, we going somewhere?”

“No, not today. But I need you Monday morning early. Can you drive me out to the Star Center? I mean like we’ve got to leave by seven.”

Buddy thought a moment to see if it fit with his busy schedule and nodded.

“It’s a go.”

“You’re going to be all right to drive?”

“You bet. What’s going on at the Star Center?”

“Just a meeting. But I’ve got to be there on time.”

“Don’t worry about a thing. We leave at seven. I’ll set the alarm.”

“Okay, and one other thing. Keep an eye out around here.”

“You mean the guy from the clock plant?”

“Yeah. I doubt he’ll show but you never know. He’s got tattoos running up both arms. And they’re big arms. You’ll know him if you see him.”

“I’ll be on the lookout. Looks like you’ve got a couple visitors right now.”

McCaleb saw that Lockridge was looking past him. He turned and looked back at The Following Sea. Graciela was standing in the stern. She was lifting Raymond down into the boat.

“I gotta go, Bud. I’ll see you Monday.”

Graciela was wearing faded blue jeans and a Dodgers sweatshirt with her hair up under a matching baseball cap. She had a duffel bag slung over her shoulder and was carrying a grocery bag. Raymond was wearing blue jeans and a Kings hockey sweater. He also had on a baseball cap and carried with him a toy fire truck and an old stuffed animal that looked to McCaleb like a lamb.

McCaleb gave Graciela a tentative hug and shook Raymond’s hand after the boy stuck his stuffed animal under his other arm.

“Good to see you guys,” he said. “Ready to catch some fish today, Raymond?”

The boy seemed too shy to answer. Graciela nudged the boy on the shoulder and he nodded in agreement.

McCaleb took the bags, led them into the boat and gave them the complete tour he had not shown them on their earlier visit. Along the way, he left the grocery bag in the galley and put the duffel bag down on the bed in the main stateroom. He told Graciela it was her room and the sheets were freshly washed. He then showed Raymond the upper bunk in the forward stateroom. McCaleb had moved most of the boxes of files under the desk and the room seemed neat enough for the boy. There was a guard bar on the bunk so that he wouldn’t roll out of bed. When McCaleb told him it was called a berth, his face scrunched up in confusion.

“That’s what they call beds on boats, Raymond,” he said. “And they call the bathroom the head. ”

“How come?”

“You know, I never asked.”

He led them to the head and showed them how to use the foot pedal for flushing. He noticed Graciela looking at the temperature chart on the hook and he told her what it was for. She put her finger on the line from Thursday.

“You had a fever?”

“A slight fever. It went away.”

“What did your doctor say?”

“I didn’t tell her yet. It went away and I’m fine.”