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Esther
Esther put down her knitting to answer her phone, something she wouldn’t have done if it weren’t Walter on the other end of the call. Or maybe Zoe.
“Hullo?”
“Hello, beautiful.”
Esther’s heart swelled.
“I was wondering if you wanted to go ride around town looking for Derek.”
“Why, what’s wrong?”
“Nothing’s wrong, that I know of, but I haven’t made my offer to him yet. I haven’t even seen him.”
“Wasn’t he in church yesterday?” As she said the words, she realized the answer. No, he hadn’t been. “Is he even in town?”
“No idea.”
She started to worry. Not that something was wrong, necessarily. She had complete faith that Derek could keep himself alive. She was worried he’d vanished and she wasn’t going to see him again. He freaked her out, even scared her a little, but she’d also grown quite fond of him. He was becoming like family.
“But it’s going to be cold tonight, so I thought I’d go look.”
“Sure. It’s a nice night for a drive. Come pick me up.”
He was there so quickly Esther wondered if he’d called from the lobby downstairs. She quickly checked her hair and teeth in the mirror and then silently chided herself for doing so. Don’t be silly, she thought.
He held the door open for her, and she led him to the elevator. Her neighbor Milton, who she was starting to think just rode the elevator up and down for fun, looked Walter up and down with a critical eye.
Walter ignored him.
“Have a nice evening, Milton,” Esther said as she stepped off onto the main floor.
“I think that man is sweet on you,” Walter said as they stepped outside.
Esther laughed shrilly. “Don’t be ridiculous.” The theory was just that: ridiculous. Yet Esther still loved that Walter had spoken it.
They started driving.
“Probably should have done this before dusk.”
“Maybe,” Esther said, not wanting to agree with his self-criticism, “but who knows?”
“I don’t even know where to check. The bars?”
“I don’t think he can afford to drink at a bar.”
“Good point. Then where?”
“I don’t know. Have you checked with Pastor?”
“I did. He hasn’t seen him. Neither has Roderick.”
“Shoot.” Esther racked her brain but came up empty.
They continued driving in circles, and though they weren’t accomplishing much, Esther was enjoying Walter’s company.
When they were headed north on Main Street for the third time, Walter said, “He must be indoors somewhere. So where in Carver Harbor might he be indoors?”
“If he’s in someone’s house, we’ll never find him.”
“If he’s in someone’s house, we don’t need to find him.” Walter chuckled ruefully. “Unless he’s there uninvited.”
“I don’t think he’d do that.” She didn’t know that for sure, though.
“What about a business? What business would let Derek hang out inside?”
She couldn’t think of any. “All I can think of is a church.” She hated that they wouldn’t let him hang out at New Beginnings.
“I know how you feel about that, Esther, but it’s just not possible right now. And it’s silly to heat a whole building for one man.”
Maybe. Maybe not. “Wait!” Esther cried.
Walter stepped on the brake. “What?”
“The laundromat.” They’d just driven by.
“What, did you see him?”
“No, I didn’t see anyone, but I saw the laundromat, and that seems like a place that would let him in. There’s usually no one there to kick him out.”
“All right. Let’s go back and check.” He pulled over to the curb and then did a U-turn in the road.
“Gee whiz, act like you own the whole town, why don’t you?”
Walter looked at her out of the corner of his eye. “Esther, are you flirting with me?”
“Who me? Never!”
He pulled into the laundromat. “This was a great theory. If he isn’t hanging out here, then he should be. You want to go in with me?”
She basked in his praise. “No thanks. I’ll let you do the honors.”
He laughed and climbed out into the cold, turning his collar up against the ocean wind. In most parts of the world, such oceanfront property wouldn’t be dedicated to a laundromat, but here in Carver Harbor, people took ocean views for granted.
Seconds later, Walter came back out of the laundromat with Derek right behind him. Derek had a giant backpack slung over his shoulder. It probably contained everything he owned. He never had it in church, though, making Esther wonder where he stashed it when he came to Providence Ave.
Derek climbed into the back, carrying the scent of alcohol with him. “Howdy, Miss Esther!”
“Hi, Derek.” She mostly trusted him, but she didn’t like having her back to him, especially if he’d been drinking. She silently prayed for protection and peace.
Once Walter had returned to his spot behind the wheel, Derek said, “So what’s this burning question you wanted to ask me?”
“First, do you need anything to eat?”
“Nah,” Derek said quickly. “The church feeds me. What is it?” He wasn’t enjoying the dramatic suspense.
Walter turned in his seat to look into the backseat. The lights from the laundromat lit the interior of the car.
“I was thinking,” Walter began. He sounded nervous. “I live alone in a big house, and I was wondering if you might want to stay in my guest room for a while?”
At first Derek said nothing. Then, “As in sleep there?”
“Yes. Sleep there. Have you been sleeping in the laundromat?”
Unsurprisingly, he did not answer this. “What’s the catch?”
“No catch,” Walter said quickly. “I would ask that you don’t drink or be drunk in my house—”
“I don’t drink,” he said quickly.
Esther was certain this wasn’t true.
“Perfect. I would ask that you would be respectful and not cause any harm to me or my property. But other than that, you can use the room, come and go as you please. It has its own bathroom.”
Derek audibly gasped. “Does it have a tub?”
Walter nodded. “It has a tub.” Walter gave him a minute, but Derek didn’t say anything. “So is that a yes?”
Still nothing. Then, “Yes, that’s a yes.” His voice was shaking. He was obviously crying. Esther was glad she wasn’t looking at him.
“Great.” Walter put the car in reverse and backed up. “You okay to go there now?”
“Yes. Thank you.” After a long silence, he asked, “Why are you doing this for me?”
It seemed Walter was prepared for this question. “Because Jesus would do it for me.”
