Page 3 of Ghost Town Boogie

Yet another dream that had died hard.

Coffee had called her here, but that was just a small part of the business. The rest of the shop was filled with bins of vinyl records. The walls were decorated with posters, old and new. No Sinatra, nothing that old, but there were colorful posters of well-known groups from the past twenty years or so as well as popular local bands, music festivals, and the beach. A shelf near the window displayed a few touristy doodads and there was a single rack of hanging rock band t-shirts. The vast majority of the store’s contents was records. She didn’t own a turntable, but she was still tempted to leaf through some of the stacks. Talk about memories!

“You were into vinyl before it was a thing,” she said. “Well, after and then before. Everything that goes around comes around.”

“Always,” he said, smiling as he added, “Except maybe 8-tracks.”

“Who knows? Maybe one day,” she joked. “I’m pretty sure Mom still has some of her old collection somewhere. Records, not 8-tracks.” At least, not that she’d found so far. Going through her parents’ possessions had provided more than one surprise.

“Bring them by. I know what your Mom listened to. Some of those albums might be worth a bit. I’m happy to sell them for you, if you want.”

“That would be great.” One less thing to worry about. Her Mom was having a hard time letting anything go, but she couldn’t move everything she’d ever owned to her sister’s house. There simply wasn’t room.

Anna asked for caffeine, and Colt headed for the coffee bar. He seemed to be surprised she took her brew black. Maybe when he looked at her he still saw the teenager who didn’t drink anything other than orange soda and sweet tea.

As much as she loved a good pumpkin spice latte, she simply couldn’t handle all that sugar. Taking her coffee black had been a health decision. It was all about the hips…

“Tell me about you,” she said as she walked toward the bar. “Married? Kids? Did you ever buy that house down by the beach, the one you coveted so much?”

“Not married. No kids. And that beach house I wanted so badly was taken out by a hurricane a few years back.”

Anna grimaced. She’d always liked that little house, so near the water.

He nodded. “What about you? Married? Kids? Are you still living in… Jack said you’d moved north. I don’t think he ever said where, exactly.”

Anna smiled. “I suppose you can call Nashville north. I’m an accountant for a small record company. It’s not exciting, but I’m good at it.” Still, the idea of taking care of someone else’s money for the rest of her life wasn’t exactly appealing. She took a deep breath. Did she ignore the past or meet it head on? Ignoring seemed rude. Thoughtless, even. “I was so sorry to hear about the accident. I know it’s been a while since it happened, but I haven’t seen you since… well, for a really long time. That must’ve been…” Horrific, heartbreaking, devastating. “Hard.”

“It was,” he said simply.

“And your mother! She was always so sweet to me. By the time Mom told me she’d passed, the funeral was long over. I was going through a stressful time, I guess that’s why she didn’t say anything sooner.” Yeah, the divorce had been ugly, and she’d gone a little crazy for a while. These days she had her feet firmly on the ground. Expect nothing and you won’t be disappointed. That was her motto.

“You were the daughter Mom always wanted,” Colt said with a hint of a sad smile. He handed her coffee over the counter, caught her eye, and asked, “Where’s Jack these days, anyway?”

Anna took a sip of hot coffee, in order to delay the inevitable. She should’ve waited; it was too hot. She shook her head, coughed once, and looked over Colt’s head to study a faded eight-year-old Seawolf Beach Music Festival poster. Just a few weeks until the next October event. She hoped to be long gone by then.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

“What makes you think…”

“You have the same expression on your face as you did when you were a kid who didn’t want to talk about something. In those days it was Did you do your homework, and Did you eat the last cookie, and Who spilled milk all over the floor. I’ll ask again, what’s wrong?”

Anna took a deep breath and looked Colt in the eye. His face was thinner and just a touch craggy. Up close she could see a few gray strands in his dark brown hair and in the stubble on his face, but the eyes hadn’t changed. They were deep brown, intelligent, and piercing. If she looked hard enough she could see his lingering pain.

“Dad and Jack had a nasty falling out years ago. We haven’t seen or heard from him in more than five years.”

CHAPTER 2

Colt couldn’t imagine his old friend turning his back on family. Sure, Jack had a temper and could go off on anyone about anything, but he wasn’t one to stay mad for long. He’d blow up about one thing or another and walk away, but after he cooled off he always came back. Colt knew the drill. He and his best friend from the old days had had more than a few disagreements. In the end they made up and there were no hard feelings.

They’d drifted apart years ago, as high school friends often do. Jack had moved on, doing what he did best. He made money for himself and for other people, constantly on the lookout for the next great investment. The next one would be it, the deal to make him a rich man. Colt had gotten a degree in advertising and moved to Pensacola, where he made a little money and a few new friends. He’d met Lizzie at a co-worker’s birthday party. Six months later they’d gotten married. During those wonderful days she’d been his only focus. She’d become his new family, his best friend, his reason for being. It was only natural that he and his childhood friends would lose touch. But with family…

Jack had argued frequently with his father since the age of ten, but he adored his mother and his sister. What would make him walk away and stay gone?

Colt tried to remember the last time he’d talked to Jack in person. More than five years, he thought, but not much more. Six, maybe? Jack had turned on the charm and asked if his old buddy wanted to invest in a restaurant that was sure to be the next big thing. He hadn’t stuck around long after the so-called opportunity was rejected. Colt understood his friend’s flaws too well. Jack was a charmer, a sweet-talker, you could even say a user.

Flaws he’d overlooked as a young man. Would he dismiss them now? Probably not.

Anna stuck around for a while, a little longer than she needed to. She’d finished her coffee and asked for a refill, drank the second cup slowly then browsed the depot for several minutes before saying goodbye. He got the feeling she wasn’t all that eager to return home.