Safety Harbor. Chuck Cooper

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      Chapter 5

      Mrs. McCarthy, Father Callaghan’s housekeeper, had coffee, tea, and some biscotti ready for the Steering Committee. Father Callaghan checked off the names. Chief of Police Carmelita Biffle arrived first, then Lou, Ray Ripple, who was the grocer, Jeremy, Katye, Susanna, and finally Meriwether. Father Callaghan put a question mark behind Joe’s name.

      “Thank you all for coming.”

      Then, the priest began with a personal note. “We are all very concerned for our friend, Joe, and for his safety,” he said, “but, life must go on. We must do our best to do what has to be done. In his absence, I will chair this meeting. Joe has done us a great favor by sharing his ideas about the parade.”

      Mayor Lou spoke up. “I have never understood what is wrong with the way we have always organized the parade.”

      “Lou,” said Susanna, “some of us had a conversation with Joe one of the last mornings he was with us, and we agreed with his idea that it just seemed the right year to shake things up a bit. We’re in a rut here in Safety Harbor.”

      “Well, I don’t want anything crazy going on here.” The mayor’s voice was firm.

      “Let’s get to the business at hand. I say, sometimes this Steering Committee is very hard to steer!” said Father Callaghan.

      Meriwether smiled. “Joe did choose some free spirits to be in this group, Frank!”

      “It’s not the free spirits I’m worried about!” said Father, who immediately wished that he hadn’t said it.

      “However, I have taken the liberty to add one more person to our group. Since Joe chose Sally to carry on and left parade instructions with her, I’ve asked her to join us.”

      Everyone nodded to Sally.

      “Well,” said Lou. “Let’s get on with it. What’s in the envelope, Sally?”

      Susanna spoke up. “First, how are you, Sally?” she said. “In fact, how are we all?”

      “Look,” said Lou. “I don’t have time for the touchy-feely stuff. I’m too busy running this city. I’m here as a courtesy. I don’t see why we need to change the parade at all! It’s doggone late in the day to be discussing this.”

      “None of us have to participate in this committee,” said Katye, who had a way of keeping things on track. “I think all of us can agree that this is a volunteer group and if any of us don’t want to be here, we will release anyone who wants off the committee.”

      “I know I’m worried,” said Jeremy. “It’s bad enough to have someone disappear from our little close-knit community, but to have someone like Joe go away, well, it’s as if we don’t know who we are any more.”

      “I like that!” said Lou. “The city will go on as usual, no matter who is here and who isn’t here.”

      “Oh, I don’t think that it’s about that, Lou,” said Meriwether. “It’s a different kind of presence that Joe has among us. It’s not about our civic life. It’s about something deeper.”

      Lou dropped his eyes. “I don’t understand this. I don’t understand this at all.”

      A clumsy silence followed.

      “Well,” said Sally, speaking up with a quiver of timidity in her voice, “are you interested in what is in the envelope?”

      There was silent assent and anticipation in the air.

      They were interrupted by the tailored-suited presence of Wendell Cone.

      “This is the steering committee, isn’t it?” asked Wendell.

      “Yes, it is,” said Father Frank. “Do you want to join us?”

      “Only for a moment. I don’t want to interrupt your proceedings, but I thought this was important. I want you to know that fifty thousand dollars has been electronically deposited in the Joe’s Fine Dining account.”

      The group was stunned.

      “The deposit was made by some organization known as Gemma LLC and signed by a Ms. Evita DuPont, whose name is also on the account. She authorized Sally to use the funds for ongoing operations.

      “Hmm,” said Father.

      “Does it make sense to you, Sally?” asked Meriwether. “You knew him better than most.”

      “I would have thought he would have chosen someone who had more skills with money than I do. I can hardly balance my checkbook! And I don’t know any Evita DuPont. Not at all.”

      “I think we may safely conclude several things from this,” said Father Frank, “that Joe’s not coming back right away and he wants his work at Joe’s to be carried on in his absence.”

      “We can’t know any of that for sure,” said Lou. “Who’s to say this isn’t some hoax? Maybe he’s been taken hostage or maybe his past has caught up with him. We don’t know much about him before he came here, you know.”

      “I hardly think that kidnappers would send money,” said Susanna. “They demand money, Lou! They don’t deposit it in the bank and appoint a guardian of the funds!”

      Lou scowled.

      “I suggest,” said Katye, “that we assign the parade plans to a smaller group. There are too many of us to do this in such a short time. I think Carmelita would be the obvious choice to head it up.”

      “Look,” said Lou. “We are just too close to this parade to make any big changes. I keep saying, although I have noticed nobody listens, I think we should just move on and do it as we always have.”

      Carmelita spoke up for the first time. “It would be easy to continue the parade conversation down at the station. I’d be glad to help. Marshall can handle the crowd tonight and if there’s trouble I am always on call.”

      Sally handed off the envelope to Carmelita before Lou could object.

      “May I choose the group that will work with me on this?” asked Carmelita.

      Lou grimaced.

      “I think the committee has total faith in your judgment, Carmelita. Of course, if we have any suggestions we can call you,” said Father. “I think our work is done here for this afternoon. So, it’s onward and upward until we meet tomorrow night at Argostoli’s.”

      Chapter 6

      Rocky rested his head for a moment against the garden hoe and wiped his brow with his shirtsleeve. With the direct July sun, it was a warm day to garden. He liked working with his hands. It gave him time to think. It was this easy kind of meandering flow of his mind that seeped like water into the cracks and crevices of creative possibilities that can’t be accomplished when he was thinking intentionally.

      Life had seemed so simple until he reached his mid-thirties. Then, the crisis hit. From then on, the world seemed to grab him СКАЧАТЬ