"Why not? You've had twenty-four hours."
"Because I don't know if I want to."
"It's just an email. It can't hurt you."
"I'm not so sure about that."
"Don't you miss it?" Clay asked.
Despite the obliqueness of the question, he knew what Clay meant. "I played tonight for the first time since I got here."
"Really? What made that happen?"
"I'm not entirely sure."
"It's a step in the right direction."
"Or the wrong one," he countered.
"I don't believe that. I understand why you backed away from your life and everything in it, but music is a part of you."
"It felt good to play, especially since I had the ocean collaborating with me. It was better than a band."
"Just read the email," Clay said. "Then call me tomorrow."
"I'll think about it." He paused. "Did you ever hear of an artist named Anita Chapman? And her sister, Reina? They were jazz and blues singers in the fifties or sixties."
"That's before my time. Why do you ask?"
"They used to perform in a club around here. There's an old guy who's looking for information on them. But it's not a big deal."
"I could ask my father. He started our talent agency in the sixties."
"If you want. It's not that important."
"I'm just happy to hear you're interested in anything related to music," Clay said. "We'll talk soon."
"Sure," he said, ending the call. He thought about opening his email on his phone, then decided against it. He felt surprisingly good after his music session, like he'd let loose some of the tension in his soul. He might actually be able to sleep tonight, but he doubted that would happen if he read Clay's email. He'd leave that for tomorrow.
Chapter Nine
Kaia felt oddly nervous when she met up with Jax in the Ocean Shores parking lot at twelve-thirty. She knew more about him now than he realized, and that felt strange. Her discomfort with that knowledge must have shown in her eyes, because he gave her an odd look when they got into the car.
"Everything okay?" he asked.
"I don't know."
"What's going on?"
She latched onto the one thing she could share. "My boss called me in yesterday. Walter's granddaughter complained about me. She thinks I'm overstepping my job and wants me to stop. There's a chance we could get to Walter's apartment, and he won't be there, or she won't let us in."
"I don't understand why she's upset about us trying to help Walter."
"You heard her yesterday. Catherine thinks we're encouraging his delusions or something like that."
"He's been obsessed with the red door for longer than he's known us. And I think Walter will be there, and he'll let us in, because he wants to revisit his memories."
"I hope this trip will be good for him. I guess we'll find out."
