“Are you taking Deke?”
“Possibly. I want to take you if you’ll go. Dan and Carol already want to watch Deke anytime we want them to, but he and I have bonded. I admit hating not seeing his face panting at me. There’s a complex comparison though – Carol Allison, and our friend Carol Lewis.”
“Speak of the devil,” Gus said gesturing at Ocean View Blvd bordering Otter’s Point. “Here come the old-timers now. I’ll bet the knee replacements are giving Carol trouble. They usually never get down here this early. C’mon, partner. We have to wake up and feed Danger Girl anyhow. I hate seeing those two traipse down on the beach.”
“I’m with you.” Nick drained his spiked coffee, and gathered their gear before Dan and Carol Lewis reached their location, and did as Gus described. “Deke!”
The dog interrupted his snorting search in a tide pool, saw Nick point at Dan and Carol, and streaked to meet them on the Boulevard. He pranced in front of the old couple to their undisguised delight, giving Nick and Gus time to reach them too.
Carol hugged both Nick and Gus with enthusiasm. “God… it’s good to see you two. We worried about this Middle East research trip for your book, Nick. I’m glad Gus could go along to protect you.”
Dan shook hands with both men, waving Carol off. “The Emirates is a luxury, high roller type place catering to tourists from all over the world. Only the women have to look out for themselves over there, right Nick?”
“They are hard on the women,” Nick agreed. “Gus looked out for me, and I got all my research done. You two are on an early stroll. Having trouble with the new knees, Carol?”
Carol sighed and nodded. “I’m trying to lay off the pain killers as much as possible. I have good movement, but I have to stretch them out earlier than I figured. It’s great to walk normally again. Did Nick do anything bad over there, Gus? You can tell us. He was a bad boy, right?”
Gus laughed at Carol’s joshing of Nick. “He was too busy writing, Carol.”
“This one will be a real blast, huh Nick?”
“It sure will, Dan. It’s so bad that I’m not sure if Diego’s new sidekick Jed will make it out alive in this excursion.”
“Don’t you dare kill off Jed!” Carol gasped in surprise while Dan merely chortled at his wife’s reaction to a fictional character’s demise. “I hate it when authors kill off characters we readers become invested in.”
“I told him it was a mistake,” Gus replied. “Jed keeps Diego focused, and reminds him of life other than assassinating people.”
Nick enjoyed his upbraiding while hooking Deke’s harness for the walk home. “We writers cannot always follow the direction of our readers. I’m sure Dan understands.”
“You bet I do. It could be a tragic death scene drawn out over many pages. I know you could pull it off without turning the scene into pathos, Nick.”
“I sure could.” Nick exchanged glaring looks with Gus. “We’ll see how it goes, Carol. Great seeing you two. Gus and I are going home to feed Jean before walking her to Lighthouse Elementary. Take care of those knees, Carol.”
“Don’t you dare kill off Jed!” Carol launched a parting shot as Nick and Gus walked away with Deke.
“Amen to that,” Gus added.
*
Jean glanced at Nick every few seconds while they walked toward Lighthouse Elementary School. Finally, Nick couldn’t resist, although he knew it was a setup. “Okay, Danger… what’s going on? We had tea and toast, your favorite breakfast. You keep looking at me like I’ve committed a crime.”
“You didn’t duct tape Mom into bed or put Jello in her slippers. Are you sick?”
Gus gestured at the grimacing Nick. “I’m to blame, Danger. I told him to lay off the pranks.”
“I should have been consulted first, Uncle Gus,” Jean replied in imperious tone. “Dad does it for entertainment value. If this keeps up, all I’ll have to look forward to are drab days without hearing Mom’s yelping mix of horror and disgust. Unacceptable!”
The three of them stopped to raucously enjoy Jean’s perceptive blast. Deke danced back and forth as if involved and understanding of Jean’s lighthearted pursuit of her Mom’s symbolic torture. Nick hugged Jean.
“Good one, kid. Your Mom’s five months pregnant. Even I recognize the danger of continuing with my horrible sense of humor. Gus is right about laying off her with childish pranks. We didn’t get to talk much yesterday. How have you been doing in school?”
“Real good,” Jean said, as they continued on toward her school. “I’ve been acing every writing assignment since you explained weak verbs. I need you to look in on my teacher, Ms. Kader. She’s been really freaked out lately. I think her family is messing with her. An uncle of hers came to the school shouting at her. He told her she betrayed her family. Our security guards stopped him, but I’m worried her Uncle is dangerous.”