Chapter 28 – Black Silk
I spent two days with Maggie Sawyer and as far as I know, Bret spent those same two days with Constance Morgan. The morning of March twenty-eighth I was in our little-used hotel room packing when Bret arrived to do the same thing. "You ready for Natchez?" I asked him, and he didn't hesitate.
"You bet I am."
"How's Constance?"
"Ready to get on with her life. And Maggie?"
"Probably glad I'm leavin'."
I picked up the coat that had kept me from freezing all winter. "I'll be happy when I can get rid of this thing."
"You an me both, son."
"What are we gonna do with all that money?" I asked him.
"Buy some new clothes," Bret laughed. Wasn't that the truth? We'd both put a dent in our wardrobes while we were here.
"Black silk," I said, and Bret looked at me. "I want a black silk waistcoat. I've never had one."
"Well by all means, get one. That does sound kinda fancy."
"No, no, no," I answered. "You've never worn a black waistcoat in your life."
"I know. Time for a change. I feel like . . . . . . . throwin' caution to the wind."
"I feel like you've lost yer mind. What has gotten into you, Brother Bret?"
He shook his head. "Don't know. Maybe it's just gettin' older. Maybe it's . . . . . I don't know."
Funny, he couldn't put it into words, and neither could I. Something was pushing us on, something that hadn't been there before. Maybe it was , , , , , , well, I didn't understand it any more than my brother did. I just knew it was time for a change.
I'd bid adieu to the poker group last night, to Maggie this morning. I'd miss them all, but not enough to make me want to stay. Whatever it was that kept us moving on, kept us playing poker and traveling around the country, had reared its head again and demanded all my attention. And I was gonna do my level best to accommodate it. Wherever it took me.
Coming Next - Black Silk Ladies
