Page 35 of Collin: Episodes 13-15
At least in Indianapolis, he could expect less facial recognition. It had been almost two weeks since he’d been able to walk around by himself. Not that he was alone. Alice and Ash were staring at him like a pair of lemmings.
“Let’s go enjoy the day.”
“I want coffee.” Alice yawned. “And lunch.”
“Coffee and lunch it is. It’s a good reason to try different places.” Collin offered Alice his arm. “May I escort you, my lady?”
She latched on. “You may.”
Ash shuffled to Collin’s other side. Together, they made their way down the street, shadowed by Holden.
They tried three different places for lunch, not because they couldn’t agree, but because they were all on Collin’s list. Alice split everything she ordered with Ash, insisting he try things. Collin bought Holden a large everything bagel sandwich with lox when he saw the security guy eyeing it.
“You caught me.” Holden grinned when Collin handed it to him.
“I figured you could eat it with one hand.” Collin shrugged. It was nice to do something for the man following him around protecting him. “Mr. Moreau said you could eat on the job when it goes long.”
“I’d be bad at my job if I couldn’t chew and watch.” Holden smirked and took a bite, his eyes already scanning the windows again.
After two hours of walking around and sampling the local food, Collin announced it was time to hit up the bar. “You can come with or go shopping, Alice. I’ll be there a while, or I’ll call you and come find you if it doesn’t go very long,” Collin said.
“Want to go shopping?” Alice asked, grabbing Ash’s arm.
“Shopping?”
“Like shopping, looking at things, trying them on for fun.”
“Um…okay?”
Collin nodded and waved them off.
Holden shook his head. “That boy is in trouble. And your sister is trouble.”
“I’m just glad she’s relaxed enough to be herself.” Collin sighed and shoved his hands into his pockets. “She wasn’t like that when we were younger.”
“What was she like?”
“Quiet as a mouse. It’s like she gets to be a young person now.”
Holden grunted. “Rough time as kids?”
“Dad died and mom had cancer. We got through it.”
“Well, if I had a girl decide to drag me out like that when I was his age, I wouldn’t have been complaining. Terrified, maybe, but not complaining. They’ll be fine.”
“So, you don’t believe those wide-eyed stares he keeps giving me?”
Holden laughed and followed Collin down the sidewalk. “You sister is a lot, but she hasn’t once touched his face or his chest. Just his arms and shoulders, and when he gets too tense, she lets go. Girl’s aware of what she’s doing, maybe more than you are.”
“Thanks.” Collin glared over his shoulder at Holden. “She won’t hurt him, but he might sleep for a week once she wears him out.”
The bar Collin was angling for had rustic American Gaelic charm with a bit of whimsy thrown in that could be almost missed. There were large screens playing sports on the wall in a couple places and some tables off to the side that were more like sit-down-and-talk spaces. It was a pretty large space. Collin studied it as his eyes adjusted to the lower light. It wasn’t hard to see why someone would be loath to part with it, even for progress.
“Want a soda or something?” Collin asked.
“Sure. I can blend in.” Holden nodded toward a stand-up table to the side. “I’ll just be over there. Getting out of the way and letting you do your job is my job.”
“Thanks.” Collin left him to it and approached the counter. Miriam, the owner, as he knew from his research, was working the bar. He ordered a coke for Holden and a virgin cocktail for himself.
