Chapter One
A bright orange balloon floated just above the multitude of tiny, green leaves on the tall hedges that surrounded Sage Gardens. Outside the hedges the busy streets were filled with people rushing to get home from work, but inside the hedges, the community was populated by people who no longer had to participate in rush hour. Sage Gardens was a retirement community that welcomed anyone over the age of sixty-five. It was normally a rather quiet environment, but this bright, spring day it was quite active. The manicured grounds were busy with people headed for the recreation hall which stood at the end of a long cobblestone walkway. Eddy's dark blue eyes narrowed as he watched the parade of residents walk past him. They seemed to be following the man with the balloon. Each was dressed in a brighter button-down than the last.
“These people must think this is Hawaii,” he muttered to himself and rolled his eyes. He tugged his gray fedora down a little tighter over his thinning, brown hair. He was dressed as always in a simple, light brown suit. It was what he had worn for years when he worked as a detective, and it was what he continued to wear, even though he was now retired and living in Sage Gardens.
Sage Gardens stressed independence while providing a safe environment for people to enjoy. Eddy found it to be rather boring, but he could appreciate having staff on hand to help with things he would rather not do, such as mowing the lawn, or repairing the roof. Several things about Sage Gardens annoyed Eddy. Whenever there was a special event, the residents acted as if it was the party of the century.
Today it was a birthday party for one of the residents, James. Eddy didn't know James very well. He kept himself at a distance from most people, and enjoyed his time alone.
“Isn't it exciting?” a voice chirped from just behind him. He closed his eyes briefly and clenched his jaw. He knew that voice very well.
“Hello, Samantha,” he said as he turned to face her. She was wearing the brightest pink button-down shirt he had ever seen, and he had watched the entire parade walk past. Her copper-red hair was peppered with a few gray strands here and there. She wore it long and almost always had it back in a tight braid. Her bright green eyes were shining as they met his.
“Aren't you going to the party, Eddy?” she asked and swept her gaze across his drab suit.
“Sure,” he shrugged and reached up to tug at the brim of his hat. “If there's going to be cake then I'll be there.”
“I love birthday parties,” Samantha said happily and draped her arm through his.
He was a little startled by the gesture but didn't bother to fight it. Ever since Samantha had arrived at Sage Gardens she had made it her mission to cheer Eddy up a little bit. Eddy didn't want to be cheered up. He was perfectly content with things as they were. But he found that if he resisted Samantha it only made her more determined. If he allowed himself to be swept up in her happy thought of the day, then she was appeased, and he could go back to being practically isolated.
“What is the point of birthday parties at this age?” Eddy demanded as they began walking towards the recreation hall.
“What do you mean?” Samantha asked as she glanced over at him. “Don't you ever want to celebrate?”
“Sure, if it's worth celebrating,” he replied mildly. “I mean, what's to celebrate about getting another year older. After sixty, it's kind of pointless, don't you think? Happy birthday, you lost more hair! Happy birthday, you're going to need to go on a special diet to lower your cholesterol!”
“Oh, Eddy,” Samantha rolled her eyes. “You just need to relax and enjoy yourself.”
“I said that I would eat cake,” Eddy pointed out.
When they reached the door of the recreation hall, Samantha politely withdrew her arm from his. One thing the residents did at Sage Gardens was gossip. She was looking forward to spending some time, singing, laughing, and dancing. Samantha loved any break from routine, and anything that would pull her away from the endless articles she intended to write. She had retired from her career as a journalist, but every time that she had an idea about something to write she jotted it down in her notebook. As a result she had over one hundred articles that were waiting to be written. However, she had only managed a few words on each one.
Though she loved to write she found that getting started was one of the hardest parts.
Eddy opened the tall metal door for her and she stepped inside. As usual the recreation hall had been decorated for the birthday party. There was a party committee that took care of these things. Samantha had tried to sign up for it, but the group of women who ran it were very snooty and didn't seem to enjoy new people.
She had to admit, the ladies did an excellent job with their ribbons, banners, and balloons, although it struck her as a little childish. The tables were still being set up for the party. James, the birthday man himself was standing near one of the longer, folding tables. Beside him, a younger man was setting a sheet cake down on the table.
“Here's your cupcake, Dad,” Mike said and handed James a small, white box. “I had them make it special, and it is completely gluten free, so you don't have to worry about eating it.”
“Wonderful,” James nodded with a broad smile as he looked at his son. “Thank you so much, Mike.”
“Anything for your birthday, Dad,” Mike said and smiled back at his father. The two mirrored each other well. They both had straight, black hair, though James' was receding to the point of revealing most of his scalp. They both had clear blue eyes that reminded Samantha of the ocean in the morning. They were about the same height, but Mike was at least thirty pounds heavier, with most of it being in his middle. James took his health very seriously. Samantha always spotted him in the on-site gym or out for a jog around the large lake that the individual villas were centered around. Samantha admired him for it, as she found it hard to stick to a healthy lifestyle herself.
“Well, the wolves are here,” Eddy commented as he stepped in behind her and glanced over the people that had already collected in the recreation hall. Samantha didn't have to ask to know who he was talking about. There were several self- declared bachelors that lived in Sage Gardens and they were always on the hunt. Samantha did her best to avoid them.
Eddy walked over to the punch bowl to get himself a drink. He preferred to blend into the scenery at parties, but he did enjoy the free food.
“Check the cake, Dad, and make sure that the inscription is right,” Mike said with a sly smile. James eyed him closely.
“Did you have them write something mean?” he asked suspiciously. “Just check it,” Mike insisted impatiently.
James turned towards the cake and was about to open the lid to check the inscription when he suddenly froze. He was looking in the direction of the entrance of the recreation hall. A man stood in the doorway. Samantha didn't recognize him, but she did notice the way that he stared straight across the room at James. The two men locked eyes with enough tension to make the hairs on the back of Samantha's neck stand up. Eddy paused beside the punch bowl and spared a glance in the direction of the two men.
“Frank,” James said as he stared at the man. His skin had grown pale and his smile had faded from his lips.
“James,” Frank replied in a cool voice and took a slight step forward. James walked around the table towards Frank.
“Listen Frank, I'm sorry,” James said in one breath. “I've been wanting to apologize.”
“No need,” Frank said sternly and smoothed the lapel of his suit jacket. It was black and tailored to fit him. His pants matched it. His silver hair was nearly the same shade as the shirt he wore under his suit jacket. “What's in the past, is in the past, James,” he held his hand out in front of him in a friendly manner. James appeared a little shocked as he studied the man before him. Then he raised his own hand and took Frank's. The two men shook hands, and then let their hands fall back to their sides. James lingered for a moment longer as if he didn't quite know what to say.
“Nice party,” Frank commented quietly. He nodded his head towards the others nearby, then he turned and walked towards a table of refreshments. Samantha was curious about him, as he was not a face she knew. She wondered if he was a close friend of James'. She made her way over to the refreshment table and picked up a small, paper plate. She smiled at the decorative balloon shapes on the plate. She always tried to appreciate the little things. She stood close to Frank as she picked through the food.
“Hi, I'm Sam,” she said casually as she glanced over at him. He seemed a little startled that she had spoken to him. He managed a small smile that barely altered his hardened expression. His light green eyes were narrowed. Samantha could sense the tension that filled him.
“Frank,” he replied. “I'm new here. Just moved in.”
“Oh really?” Samantha asked with surprise. “You must have taken Baki's old place,” she said as a warm smile arose on her lips. “We're practically neighbors.”
“Is that so?” he chuckled in a friendly way. “Well, it's good to meet you, neighbor,” he said. “If you'll excuse me, I think I forgot something in my villa,” he stepped away from her carrying his plate of food. Samantha watched him go. She wondered if he was trying to avoid her or if he had really forgotten something. Either way she didn't care too much. If he didn't want to be friends, she was okay with that. But she had to know who he was and what he was doing at Sage Gardens. Now that she did, she felt a little calmer. Her curiosity always got her wrapped up in things she shouldn't be, but she couldn't ignore it. If she wanted to know about something or someone, she had to get to the bottom of it before she could feel settled.
“Did you get the scoop?” Eddy asked as he picked up his own paper plate and began to scope out the food.
“New resident,” Samantha explained. “He moved into Baki's old place.”
“Oh boy, I hope he didn't leave any of his rabbit's feet behind,” Eddy said with genuine laughter. “Baki hid them everywhere.”
“I guess Frank will find them soon enough if he did,” Samantha laughed as well. “Excuse me for a few minutes, Mike,” James said to his son as he stepped away from the table. “I'm just going to get something I left in my room.” “Can I get it for you?” Mike offered.
“No, it's fine, I'll get it,” James said and waved his hand as he walked away. “Well, don't be long, we'll be doing the cake soon,” Mike reminded him.
“I'll be back quickly,” James assured him.
Eddy heard the clang of the door closing and glanced up to see Walt walking through the chairs that were set up in the middle of the room. The tall and slender man was dotting a finger lightly on the back of each chair. Eddy knew him well enough from observing him to know exactly what he was doing, he was counting all of the chairs. Walt was a retired accountant and he kept track of everything. His silver, thin-framed glasses were always perched perfectly on the bridge of his nose. He always paired sweaters with pleated pants and wore the same polished brown shoes.
“Walt, over here,” Eddy said and waved his hand to the only resident, besides Samantha, he would consider more than just an acquaintance at Sage Gardens. Walt looked up at Eddy and offered him a friendly smile.
“Hi Eddy, I was wondering if you would be here,” he said as he walked over to Eddy. Eddy nodded and tilted his head towards the food.
“Anywhere there is free food, you'll find me,” he said with a chuckle. “Looks like a good spread,” Walt nodded his approval.
“Grab a plate,” Eddy encouraged him. “They're getting the party started when James comes back.”
“All right,” Walt said and carefully picked up a plate. He dusted it lightly with his fingertips to ensure that there were no crumbs already on it. Then he began methodically selecting certain foods to place on his plate.
By the time Walt had his plate piled high with food James had returned and everyone had begun to gather around the long table to sing happy birthday and get some cake.
Walt walked over to join in, but Eddy hung back. He preferred to be an observer in these kinds of situations.
“Are you coming?” Walt asked as he glanced over his shoulder. “Nah, I'm fine here. But get me a piece of cake,” he requested.
“I don't know if I can do that,” Walt said. “It's one piece of cake per person, and I'm one person. If I take two, then people will think I'm taking too much and…”
“Never mind,” Eddy waved his hand. “I'll get my own cake,” he followed Walt over to the group. As he hung back from the crowd Samantha stepped up beside him. She looked a little troubled as she shot a scowl in the direction of Naomi, one of the women who was on the decorating committee.
“Not so chipper?” Eddy asked as he glanced over at her.
“Drop it,” Samantha insisted and plastered a smile on her face as she turned to face James.
It wasn’t long before the entire group had joined in on singing the Happy Birthday song to James. James cheered in response and leaned forward to blow out the numerous candles on his cake. Everyone clapped to celebrate James' monumental achievement of making it through another year. As Mike cut the cake and began handing out plates to everyone, Samantha frowned.
“Shouldn't James get the first piece?” she asked politely.
“He has his own cupcake,” Mike explained. “Dad's gluten intolerant.”
“Oh, that's right,” Samantha nodded a little and smiled warmly at Mike. “It was so nice of you to put all of this together for him.”
“It was the least I could do,” Mike offered a polite smile in return. He handed her a piece of cake, which she accepted.
“Everyone, attention everyone,” Mike said as he tapped his glass lightly with a fork creating a light clinking sound. It did get the attention of most of the people in the room, who turned to look at him. He raised his glass in the air. “I'd like to offer a toast to my father on his birthday,” he explained and turned to face his father.
James smiled sheepishly and looked up at his son fondly. “That's not necessary,” he said dismissively.
“I want to,” Mike said firmly. “I have a lot to say actually. You see, my father and I, we didn't always get along. A father son rift, who would have thought?” he laughed. A few people around him laughed as well. “Anyway, all of that is in the past now. But when I think of all of the birthdays that I've missed it's hard for me not to feel as if I missed out on an awful lot. I missed out on the first gray hair,” he cleared his throat. “Of which he now has many.”
“That's not true,” James laughed loudly.
“I missed out on the first trip to the dentist, where he got to leave his teeth overnight,” Mike continued. His comment got a roar of laughter from the people attending the party. James balled up a napkin and tossed it playfully at his son.
“Enough!” he pleaded.
“All right, all joking aside, I feel very grateful that I will get to share this, and every birthday to come with you, Dad,” he said and raised his glass to his father. James stood up from his chair and clinked his glass with his son's. He drank down the champagne that had been provided for the party.
“Thank you, Son,” he said and clapped Mike firmly on the back. “You've grown to be a fine man. I'm very proud of you.”
“Thank you, Dad,” Mike smiled. When James sat back down at the table Samantha watched him pour himself a glass of wine and then tuck the bottle under the table by his side where his gifts were. There was plenty of champagne and other bottles of wine to drink.
Samantha helped herself to a glass of white. She was enjoying the festivities of the party. If there was one thing she felt she did right in her life it was moving to Sage Gardens. She felt secure, and there were plenty of people for her to spend time with. She hadn't quite broken into the social scene yet, but she knew with a little patience she soon would.
As Samantha walked off to talk to one of the women on the decorating committee, a gasp began to carry through the crowd. She spun around in time to see James standing up behind the table. He was clutching his chest. His eyes were wide and he looked hungry for air. He reached for his son, but before he could get a grasp on Mike's hand he collapsed and slumped down across the table.
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