He led the way into the house, again without speaking, then stood by as we explored. I opened the refrigerator, and found it stocked with milk, bread, beer, cold cuts, cheese. The freezer held ice cream and ice. The cabinets soups, canned meat, veggies, chips of various varieties, coffee, sugar, and cereals.
Beyond the kitchen was the dining room, complete with chairs and a tablecloth. Jade started to open the curtains covering the sliding glass door, and our agent spoke for the first time.
“Don’t. Keep them closed. Don’t go outside.”
Shrugging, Jade turned away. I clicked on the big, flat-screened TV in the huge, front sitting room with the remote, and surfed the channels for a moment. All the good movie channels were included. Cool. “Can we order take-out?” I asked, shutting the TV off.
“No. If you need anything, I’ll get it for you.”
Neither young nor old, our mystery agent appeared perfect for this job. He owned the sort of face you forgot a moment after seeing it. The invisible man. Sort of.
The set of stairs led to the bedrooms on the upper floor. As Anderson said, they looked comfortable. The master bedroom had its private bathroom, and a small pellet wood stove in the corner.I hope we’re not here long enough to need that.
“Is the Chinese food good around here?” I asked the blank-faced dude.
“There’s a menu in the kitchen.”
Not just Chinese take-out, but also Mexican, pizza, Thai, and a barbeque joint also had to-go options. I leafed through the menus, then asked Jade, “What sounds good to you?”
She studied the Chinese menu. “This. I’ve a hankering for pork lo mein.”
The agent departed after we told him what we craved for dinner. Inside the garage, the big door slid open, and the invisible man drove away. I parted the curtains just enough to watch him drive placidly down the street. “Is he creepy or what?”
“Very,” Jade answered. “So much that I doubt he’s a plant. I’d think someone on your dad’s side would be overly friendly, put us at ease.”
“You may be right. The opposite of thugness.”
“That’s not a word.”
“Don’t care.”
While we waited for our dinner, I sat on the sofa to find a movie to watch. Jade examined the shelves of books that stood against one wall, often picking one up to read the blurb on the back.
“I guess they don’t want us bored,” I commented, selecting an old Stallone flick and set the remote down.
“I’ll lose my mind in two days,” Jade said, flopping onto the couch beside me. “I guarantee it.”
“Maybe we’ll only be here until tomorrow,” I said, pulling her under my arm, her head on my shoulder.
“I hope Agent Creepy isn’t staying here with us.”
“What a thought you just planted in my head. Thanks.”
Agent Creepy returned thirty minutes later with bags of Chinese take-out. He set them on the dining room table.
“Stay inside, here’s my card. Call anytime. I’m available twenty-four seven.”
“Thanks,” I said.
With that, he turned, entered the garage again, and drove primly away.
“We should call him every two hours for something,” I said, standing up. “Just to drive him crazy.”
“No, we won’t.” Jade accompanied me to the table and started to sort boxes. “That’s not nice.”
“You’re too nice a person for this sort of thing.”
She took her boxes and her chopsticks back to the couch. “I want to sleep. Not drive someone bug shit.”
