Retreat by June Gray Read Free Book Online

our eyes met. “I want you to listen to them.”
    “Why would I do that? Is this some form of torture?” I was being insolent, sure, but damn if it didn’t make me feel a little bit better.
    “You’re not making this easier, Elsie,” Henry said.
    “And tell me, why the hell should I make your life any easier, Henry?” I retorted.
    He pinched the bridge of his nose and took a deep breath. “You said before that it’s like you don’t even know me. Maybe you’re right. Maybe you don’t. But I’m hoping these tapes will get you started. Will you at least listen to them?”
    I shook my head. “I’m not a masochist.”
    He sighed and reached for the doorknob. “Well, keep them anyway. Just in case.”
    “When’s your flight?” my dad asked him.
    “I’m headed to the airport right now.” He turned to me, his eyes not quite meeting mine. “I can pick you up tonight when your flight arrives.”
    I took a deep breath, unable to hold onto my anger. Even when he was being a dick, Henry was still thoughtful. I decided then that I would wipe his entire slate clean. Considerate, I mentally wrote with permanent ink. That was one thing I knew about him with all certainty.
    “Please don’t,” I said hoarsely. I didn’t even know how I’d get through the night in the same apartment with him.
    He nodded. “Okay. Well, I’ll see you later,” he said and walked out, latching the door soundly behind him.

     
    ~

     
    Saying goodbye to my parents was a sad affair. Any other time, I would have felt only a little tug of regret but today, of all days, I was filled with a sadness that I didn’t know how to overcome.
    “Can you stay a few more days?” Mom asked on the way to the airport. She sat in the backseat with me for moral support “Just to give you a little while to get over… things.”
    “I can’t,” I said, wishing I were more impulsive. I was so tempted to just quit my job and just stay in Monterey. Living with my parents again wouldn’t be so bad. “I have to get back to work.”
    My mom looked pointedly at the paper sack that was peeking out of my purse. “At least listen to it, hear what he has to say.”
    “It doesn’t matter what he has to say,” I said, shaking my head. “The end of the story is still the same.”
    “This is not the end sweetie,” she said, squeezing my hand. “The boy just wants to find himself first.”
    “He’s not a boy anymore,” I said. “He’s a man. If he doesn’t have his shit together by now then he never will.”
    “Elsie,” my dad warned, giving me a stern look through the rearview mirror.
    I leaned back into the seat and exhaled forcefully. “Great. You are both on his side?”
    “There are no sides here,” Dad said. “We want you both to be happy.”
    I looked out the window, feeling utterly defeated.
    “Sweetie,” my mother said, rubbing my arm. “The only reason we’re not coming down hard on him is because we know him. We know he’s not trying to hurt you. I had a talk with him this morning after my walk, and he seemed really torn up. But at the end of the day, you’re my daughter and I want you to be happy. So if you want me to put a hit out on him, just say the word…”
    My mouth fell open at my mother’s words then I began to laugh.
    “Or we can just get someone to kneecap him,” my mom added with a tiny smile.
    I leaned over and gave her a hug, feeling a rush of gratitude towards my parents. “I love you guys,” I said. “I think I’ll be fine.”

     
    Our parting at the airport was brief by design. I hated protracted goodbyes.
    “We’re here for you, sweetie,” my dad said before I entered the short security line. “In case you need us.”
    I gave them each a hug and went on my way. Once seated in the plane, I pulled the paper sack out of my purse and tipped its contents onto my lap. The voice recorder was an old Sony model, the kind that required mini-cassette tapes. It was so old it still used an analog three-digit