When Lee awoke, the house was quiet. He hobbled stiffly down the stairs. He noticed that the letter on the coffee table to Nelson was gone. He continued to the kitchen in search of Kate and Buster, but found a note instead: "Rode bike to town. Coffee on stove. Cereal in pantry. Use as much milk as you like or anything else."
"So Kate really does want to get rid of me." Lee supposed he could let the Institute send a helicopter, but it seemed silly in the aftermath of the storm when many others probably were still in dire need of help and Lee was not. Besides, Jamie would not let him sail with the calf injury, not when Seaview would be back in port in two weeks.
Moreover, Lee was rather relishing the challenge. He could wear Kate down with the Crane charm. She wasn't immune. He'd seen the signs amidst the resistance. Then there was the mystery of whether she had some kind of relationship with the Admiral that kept him from wanting to leave just yet.
After breakfast, Lee took a magazine and journal from the coffee table upstairs to compare the handwritten notes with those in some of the books. He deduced it could be the same person's writing, based on the "yes," "no," and "?" comments, although the writing in the more current materials was much looser, larger and devoid of the cryptic shorthand. But of course Lee hadn't seen Kate write any of it. Curiosity unsatisfied, Lee returned the materials to the coffee table.
There was a desk off the front hall by the dining room. Lee found nothing of interest on top of it, not a piece of mail, a bill, not a last name on any papers, just some generic stationery. How odd, the thought. Kate - in her own home - appeared to be a woman with no last name. Lee knew there had to be more, but whatever identification she had, she probably carried with her. He opened the roll front portion of the desk and still saw nothing to give Kate a last name or to indicate she owned the home she inhabited. Maybe in her bedroom, he wondered, but that would be crossing the line of privacy invasion too far. Maybe, he had to admit to himself, he already had crossed the line by looking in the desk. Enough, Lee told himself and headed outside.
Lee exited the front door to look around the property. To the left was a barn with hens roaming about it. Lee was surprised to see solar panels atop the south side of the barn roof. Inside the barn he found numerous hand tools and stacks of electronic and motor pieces. On a small table in a corner sat a large journal replete with drawings, schematics, formulae, as if a thousand ideas had tried to jump from her head to the pages within. "Well, that answers it. They're peas in a pod, and he must have known it then. Mad scientists one and all, Harriman!" Okay. Nelson wasn't mad, but maybe she was. Or maybe she was the daughter of a mad scientist Nelson knew? Or maybe those books were some other mad scientist's? And maybe Lee Crane needed to go back to the Seaview sooner rather than later because his imagination had gotten carried away and he needed work to stop his rambling theorizing.
Lee made a resolution. If she could get him to town by car, he'd leave soon. Otherwise, he'd play it by ear. How long could it take to clear eight miles of road, anyway? Town must have an inn or something; there was one around every corner in coastal Maine. Absentmindedly, Lee picked up a bucket of chicken feed and tossed it towards the hens who had encircled him and pecked at his toes during his snooping.
That's a good houseguest, Lee. Help out. Stop digging. He walked the property, gingerly dragging the bum calf along, but flexing it some to promote healing (at least that's what he thought he was doing - Doc might disagree). He picked up strewn branches and added them to a compost pile on the side of the garden. In the garden, he picked the last of the season's green beans, cucumbers and lettuce. Back at the house, on the south side, he harvested a ripe tomato from the greenhouse that soon would lose functionality, owing to seven shattered glass panes.
Lee returned to the kitchen. He blanched the green beans, then composed a salad with the lettuce, adding a can of tuna. He filled a pot with water, placed several fresh eggs in the pot and brought it to a boil before turning off the heat. He checked his watch. Twelve minutes later, he placed the egg pot into the sink, carefully poured out most of the hot water without tipping out the eggs, and ran cold water over them for several minutes. He peeled the cooled eggs and composed them on the salad, impressed with his handiwork. Only one piece was missing, but he didn't know if he'd find them in her pantry. He smiled broadly when he discovered several tins of anchovies. "Et voila. Salade niçoise," he announced to no one.
Tired now, and conscious that the leg was complaining, Lee took his coffee mug and the pot to the chair by the stove. He drank several cups while staring contentedly at the sea. An hour or so after he sat dozing in and out, he heard the crunch of Buster's paws on leaves as the dog approached the screen door.
"Good afternoon," he smiled as Kate let Buster inside. Buster immediately ran to Lee and nuzzled him. Lee patted him in return.
"Afternoon to you. Not so good, though. The roads are a mess. Trees and power lines are still down. We had to go through a mess several times to get into town. Things weren't much better there. Most everything's closed, even the post office."
"Speak to anyone?"
"I'd lose my hermit status if I did." After a brief pause, she answered Lee. "The man who runs the post office and general store said that hopefully the power company would make it up to town in a few days, based on shortwave chatter. He offered to send a message for you if you like."
"I'm fine, really. Why don't you go get out of those things into something clean?"
"I've still got chores to do."
"I already fed the chickens, picked up sticks, harvested the garden and made lunch. That should buy you long enough to get the brambles out of your hair."
She ran her hand through her hair, hitting a bramble tangle. "I guess you have a point. Thanks."
"Come Buster," Lee said, adding a whistle. The dog responded, leaving his mistress alone. Kate flashed a look back at Lee, one that questioned how he'd acquired her dog's loyalty in a day. Lee shrugged.
Kate emerged a few minutes later. Lukewarm showers didn't give much reason to linger. Lee had lunch set out at the table.
"Nicoise salad, very nice. There are olives hiding at the back of the fridge."
"I didn't want to open it to look, but if you'd like."
"I would. I'll get them."
She quickly pulled a tub from the back recesses of the old refrigerator. "You want some?"
"Mai oui."
"And I suppose you wouldn't refuse a glass of wine either."
"I am on vacation, Mademoiselle. I can refuse nothing pleasurable."
"I'll be right back." Kate disappeared into the basement. She returned with a dusty bottle of French rosé.
"A perfect choice, Mademoiselle. Permit me," Lee proceeded to open the bottle with a corkscrew he'd found while she was downstairs. He filled two wine stems that Kate produced.
"Not your first time doing that."
"Non. And hopefully not my last either! Salud."
"Are you always this relentlessly upbeat?"
"Often, but especially so after riding out a hurricane."
They ate and sipped. Lee could see how fast the wine went to Kate's head. He could not help but like the change in her. By the second glass, she was giggly. She'd been transformed. Oh, the advantage he could take now, the questions which he might get answered.
This time it was she who turned on the transistor. "Dance with me," she said. Lee nodded. At first they moved around a bit, then it became a stationary dance. Four minutes in, she looked at him, eyes welling. "Why are you here?"
Lee didn't answer with words. Instead he kissed her on the mouth, full on. She didn't resist. If anything, she was the first to seek more with her tongue. From there to the couch took only minutes. Lee was enjoying himself, but wondered whether he'd gone too far. "Are you sure?" he asked as she rubbed up against his pants.
"Enough for now. Just promise to forgive me if I curse you later. When."
"I'll try," he smiled and moaned at the same time.
Minutes later, the two lay entwined on the floor in front of the wood stove, exhausted. Buster had crawled and nudged his way in between their legs.
Lee drifted off to sleep for a few moments, as did Kate. She awoke first. "Good grief. What the hell have I done?"
Lee had heard. "Accepted the grateful thanks of a rescued sailor?" He stroked her cheek, as he waited to see if she relaxed or exploded into self-contempt. He dreaded the latter, so he moved in close to kiss her, holding her tight just in case. He felt her body tense, heard her breath shorten.
"Swear to me you'll leave tomorrow."
"If it makes you happy, I'll swear it."
"Are you happy?"
"Positively giddy, considering that I nearly died alone at sea the other day. Instead, I'm safe and sound in an idyllic cove in Maine with a lovely, intelligent woman."
"That's not exactly happiness. It's more like a survivor's adrenaline rush."
"On top of all of that, I have a great life, a job . . ."
"Please, stop. I don't want to know any details."
"Why?"
"You'll be gone tomorrow. The less information I have to hold on to, the better."
"I don't understand that."
"You don't have to. You only have to accept it."
"On one condition."
"What?"
"Tell me, if you had only one day left on this earth, how would you spend it?"
"I don't know."
"Think."
"Outside. Sailing. Watching the water. A simple meal at dusk watching the sky darken."
"Alone?"
"Ideally, no."
"Then let's spend the afternoon doing just that."
"I have work to do."
"Nothing that can't wait until tomorrow." Lee put his hand under her chin and leaned down to kiss her.
"There would probably need to be more wine."
"Is there more in the basement?"
"Yes."
"Easily solved."
"You can't sail, not with that leg."
"You do the work; I'll tag along. Just promise to yell before you come about so I have time to duck. Come on. It's just one day." He handed her the remnants of the bottle of wine.
Several minutes later, Kate helped Lee to the dock and onto her daysailer. They didn't go far, just a little outside the cove and back and forth some, to assure that returning before dark would be easy. Kate did most of the work, but Lee couldn't just sit there. When he had the opportunity, he quietly fidgeted with the sail trim to optimize it.
"You're awfully good at this."
"I have a lot of experience. I . . . "
She interrupted immediately. "No details, please."
"Right. That's one beautiful sky, isn't it?"
"Yes."
They returned silently to the dock. She gave him a shoulder for support as he slowly took the stairs.
"How does it feel?"
"It's nothing major."
"Wait here. I'll go get a blanket."
"And some wine?"
"Right."
Soon after, they sipped pinot noir in silence as they watched the water and sky. Eventually, Lee placed his arm around her shoulders. "This is nice, isn't it?"
"Yes."
"A better way for a last day than capsizing at sea."
"Hopefully it's not your last day."
"Nor yours either." Lee kissed her on the back of the neck. Lee continued, moving towards her ear. She stared straight ahead.
"Why are you here, like some protagonist out of a cheap romance novel?"
"Sometimes life imitates art. Well, maybe not art," he laughed and resumed kissing her. "Maybe just as a reminder to you that there's more life out there."
"Not for me."
"Then for today at least." Lee pulled her face into his. He kissed her deeply. She responded, but he also felt her hesitation. He continued to initiate.
"You'll go tomorrow. You promise?"
"I promise."
That was that. Later, they watched dusk settle, with Lee's arm around Kate's back. The chill in the air soon dictated that they head inside.
"How about I make some dinner?" Lee offered.
"No, you rest."
"Really, I insist. It'll be simple."
Lee rummaged through the cabinets. "How about spaghetti with anchovies?"
"Sounds good. I'll make a salad."
"As long as you stay right here, fine."
"Why?"
"Because I asked, because it feels good." He nuzzled her neck. "Because it's okay to feel good."
"Until it all falls apart."
"If it falls apart."
"You'll be gone tomorrow, so it will."
"You could change your mind about that. I'd stay longer."
"No, just today. All will be forgotten tomorrow."
"I hope not. That would rather hurt my ego."
"Not all, just, oh shut up." She pressed her lips on his. She got up and returned with the leftover wine. "You do this often, Lee?"
"No, but maybe I should, I mean, this is damn nice." He reached over and caressed her briefly before he returned to cooking.
After dinner, they each enjoyed a last glass of wine. A certain awkwardness began to set in. They moved into the living room, Lee on the couch, leg up on the coffee table, Kate on the chair by the stove.
"Come here," Lee said. "Please, since you're kicking me out tomorrow."
Kate was reluctant at first, but yielded. Damn he was handsome and that smile was simply unfair when combined with those eyes and the curls that draped his forehead. The beard, well, she couldn't help but wonder how he'd look without it. There was also something a little bit familiar about him too, but she couldn't think what. Lee moved to put an arm around her, just as she lunged for the transistor radio on the table. To his disappointment, she turned on a.m. radio. "Weather, for tomorrow." Not easily defeated, Lee once again attempted to bring his arm around her shoulders, succeeding this time. They sat in companionable silence with Buster on the floor nudging his head between their legs.
As the bottom of the hour approached, the weather forecast was given: a beautiful day tomorrow, helpful for repair crews and those cleaning up from the devastating storm.
"Sounds like too pretty a day to get rid of a houseguest," Lee joked, "especially one who can help out with the chores."
"You promised."
"If you really want," Lee smoothed over, squeezing her a little. He felt her resistance fading.
"And now for our headlines. Down East continues to cleanup from the storm.
Dozens of people remain unaccounted for with twenty-three deaths confirmed in Maine. Tens of thousands of homes are without electricity or telephone. Utility crews are making slow progress and urge patience. Many secondary roads still remain blocked by downed trees and debris, preventing crews from accessing lines. It may be weeks before all customers return to the grid, especially those in the less populous regions Down East. Sounds like a good time to get out those chainsaws and axes and turn some of those downed trees into firewood. Just watch out for live wires, folks!
On the national front, South Carolina and North Carolina continue to dig out from the devastation caused by the hurricane earlier in the week before it moved out to sea and then re-formed over northern Maine and the Canadian border. The death toll in the Carolinas currently stands at 46, with hundreds more injured and many more left homeless. In related news, authorities in North Carolina report that most of the prisoners from the heavily damaged Beaufort Federal Penitentiary have been returned to custody. Authorities stress that Beaufort is a minimum security facility that harbors mainly white collar criminals, so that the populace should not feel unduly threatened by the convicts that remain at large. Among them are Arnold Swenson, imprisoned for forgery and considered one of the best in the world. Also at large is Dirk Christie, an industrialist who was convicted of defrauding the government by producing inferior and flawed products pursuant to military contracts, resulting in the deaths of 24 sailors on the USS Solaris."
Kate's arm brushed sideways, knocking her wine glass off the side table onto the floor.
"You okay?"
"Yes, just tired."
"Why don't we head upstairs then?"
Kate started to shake her head "no" then abruptly changed course. "Yes. Buster, stay here."
Lee wondered if that meant she was inviting Lee to usurp the dog for the night as her companion. He'd be fine with that, but it struck him as off. In the last few seconds, he had sensed her closing down.
Kate left him at the spare room with a lantern in hand. "Thanks for today."
"It doesn't need to end yet."
"You leave in the morning."
"If the roads are passable."
"We'll manage. Good night." Kate backed away too quickly for even a peck on the cheek and disappeared into her bedroom. Lee heard the click of the lock engaging.
"Good night, Kate," he said loudly. Lee washed up and prepared for bed. He wavered between feeling disappointed and insulted. He was baffled by her behavior, but had no choice but to accept her decision. He took a business card out of his wallet and wrote his home number and a note on the back. "I'm here for you, no matter what," he jotted on the back. He knew she'd reject the offer of the card in person so he left it on top of the dresser where she would find it after he was gone.
Without much thought, Lee pulled Nelson's book off the shelves and took it with him to the bed. He briefly enjoyed reading through the text and the notes written in the margin until Nelson's card again fell out. He read over the words, so similar to what he'd just written. No, Nelson couldn't possibly have known her in the same way. Could he? Lee disliked where his mind was going. Yes, he'd leave tomorrow if it was plausible. He'd promised. Besides, maybe Nelson could give him answers. If he decided to ask them. He wasn't certain yet if he would or should.