Chapter 26 [Fifteen minutes later—Jo's Apartment]
Fresh off a rapid drive from the river, Jo put a pot of coffee on to brew. Then she went for the shower and a change of clothes. She trusted that Abe and Henry would get their own cups made up to their own specs when it was ready.
Henry smiled to himself while watching her handiwork create itself. He'd definitely relaxed on the ride over. In fact he'd even shared the backseat with her while answering several questions about their condition. It's never going to be easy, Henry. You know that. At least she's hanging in there.
"Not bad is it? Opening up, I mean," Abe supposed as the coffee maker dinged at them. He poured out two mugs of coffee. Then, recalling her instructions, he found the milk and sugar in their spots and fixed his mug. "Your coffee's ready by the way, Mr. Genius."
"I'm experienced not a genius," Henry pointed out almost aloofly as he added his own touch to the coffee mug and sipped on her creation. "Mmmm…..a hearty blend of Asian bean varieties. Love the flavor."
"Love the flavor or her?" Abe teased.
Henry stiffened; his musings on the matter clearly showing across his face. And yet a new door of sorts had been opened for him. Once again he considered Jo's positive points and that she'd been remade to suit him….
Now could he update himself for her? That was the $25,000.00 question as far as he was concerned.
"It's okay to say 'all of the above', you know," Abe assured him. "And she's looking for you to be you, Henry, not perfect. None of us are."
"Yes I am well aware of my shortcomings. Thank you, Abraham," Henry expressed albeit with his own issues flavoring his tone.
"You can relax, Henry. Nobody's judging anyone. Of course that could come later," she noted while coming back into the room now dressed in her burgundy silk blouse, dark slacks and matching blazer. "Coffee good?"
"Exquisite. Thank you. Feeling better?" Henry replied before adding a sip from his own cup.
She smiled at him. "Glad to see I have your coffee tastes down pat, Henry." She poured herself a mug and fixed it as well. "And yes, the shower definitely felt great. So what are we going to tell Reece and the others? By now they have to be at the shop."
"Yes. I don't need the negative publicity. Business has been slow enough lately," Abe complained.
Henry frowned. "Someone bombed your car, Jo. Beyond that, we needed to get medical supplies. As long as you contact her, Reece will be all right with that."
"Right." She looked about the room and realized she didn't have her cell phone or purse with her. "We're going to have to figure out a way to come back with our stuff intact."
"I've been trying that for two centuries. I'd welcome your suggestions. Believe me," Henry reminded her.
"Well you've now got a detective on the case." She dialed her landline and waited. "Yes? This is Detective Martinez. Patch me through to Lieutenant Reece. Thanks."
"Detective? Where are you? We're at the antique shop. Are you and Dr. Morgan all right?" Reece demanded.
"Henry's fine. I managed to get out of the car before it went nuclear. He's treating the few burns I did get," Jo reported. "I wanted to make sure we reported in. Any clues?"
"Nothing yet. We'll get your car down to the department salvage area. Where are you now?" Reece told her.
"At my apartment. We and the shop owner, Abraham Morgan, are collecting our thoughts. We'll be right down to the precinct for a statement. Sorry it happened so fast," Jo noted.
"Very well. I will expect you in an hour at the precinct. See you then," Reece concluded before hanging up.
Jo hung up as well. "We need to go downtown after our coffee. Statement time. Joy joy…."
"Yes well we shall have to be up to task. Now won't we?" Henry supposed.
"Oh I'm ready." She took a saucy draught from her cup. "Now that I'm not feeling like a drained tea bag after that aborted trip to the other side. Is it always like that?"
"Yes. I'm afraid it is." Henry sighed deeply. He'd never expected to have that particular conversation with anyone else. "I can only speculate that the energy needed to recreate ourselves spends what we already have. Beyond that I could not fathom a guess."
"It's okay, Henry. We'll figure it out," she assured him while finishing her coffee and grabbing her trench coat. "Meantime we'll need to stash a change of clothes for each of us somewhere. Sorry but the raincoat look isn't for me."
"Streaking isn't for Henry either but he does it," Abe jabbed.
"Thank you so much for the reminder, Abe. I'm sure she appreciated it. Sorry, Jo, it was the best we could manage for modesty's sake," Henry retorted sharply.
"Oh it's okay. I know that." She kissed his cheek. "Love the embarrassed look on you by the way. Come on, Guys." She opened the door and ushered them out.
Henry shook his head. How can a relationship such as this make sense and yet be so infuriating? I will never understand Love….