Inter-Library Loan

Inter-Library Loan Part 5

Chapter 5

The cold and the shock of this possible discovery dazed Oliver. He stumbled down the stairs to his apartment door, fumbled with his numb fingers with the key in the lock, and then fell inside onto his hands and knees. Slowly he rolled over and shut the door behind him with the kick of a foot then laid back gasping for air and staring at the ceiling.

He might have stayed there indefinitely if his phone hadn't notified him of an incoming text message. He pulled the phone from his pocket and read the message from Tanya.

"Dek is coming for you in 3 hours to bring you here for dinner."

Oliver sat up, pulled his hat off, kicked off his boots, and stood to hang his coat and scarf. Though he was glad for the company the thought of eating Tanya's cooking was depressing. Overcooked chicken and undercooked rice were her staples. Oliver sighed deeply and went to put the groceries away

Exactly 3 hours later he waited at his door for the beeps that he and the boys had worked out for a notification code. He was bundled up again, as the temperature was dipping even lower down the thermometer. "Shave and a haircut" beeped from outside and he headed out his door, locking it behind him.

Climbing into the big SUV was always a bit of a haul for Oliver, but after a halting step or two, he was up and in. He nodded at Dek and looked into the back seat to see the chubby shining face of his youngest daughter in her car seat.

Dek nodded to him as he pulled away from the curb. "Francie is home with Abie, he's come down with something."

They both nodded again and then settled into a comfortable silence. About 10 minutes later they pulled up in front of Tanya's house, where Dek removed the baby from the car seat and the three of them headed up on the porch and through the front door.

"In here!" Tanya yelled from the kitchen. After tossing off their winter outerwear, the two men, with the baby firmly attached to Dek's chest headed to the kitchen at the back of the house.

A fragrant aroma floated to them as they entered and Oliver was delighted to see Dex at the stove. The young man had worked his way through college in at least 5 different restaurant kitchens, which showed as he set plates down on the table with fragrant curried rice, spiced roast chicken, and sesame broccoli.

"Oh thank god." Oliver blurted when he saw the bounty before him. The mother and her sons burst into laughter and they all settled down to eat. Very little talking occurred for the first few minutes as they scooped, shoveled, and dug into the hot food.

Tanya sat back and sighed. "I told these two about your search Oliver."

He nodded, knowing that a family conference was always her first move whenever something was troubling any of them as Tanya shared almost everything with her boys.

As he placed some rice onto the tray of the baby's chair, Dek spoke ."We can do some searching on the web. See if she's done any interviews and where."

"Yeah," Dex agreed. "There has to be a trail somewhere. Her books are famous, big sellers." He reached over to the stove and placed a basket of fragrant naan in front of them.

All of them were reaching into the basket when Oliver stated "I met her sister."

The other three froze and stared at him, as he brought the bread to his plate and began to tear it into pieces, into which he placed some chicken and then popped it all into his mouth. He looked up with a satisfied smile and noticed them staring at him.

"Whaaaaat?" Tanya screeched shaking her head at him. "Where?"

"Top's on the corner across from the University Station. She's the Manager there. I saw her picture and spoke with her."

Their surprise subsiding, they kept eating and peppering Oliver with questions.

"What's her name?"

"Caterina Paulska, C. Paul is her sister's pen name. Real name is Anna."

"Did she say where the sister lives?"

Oliver nodded no as he took a gulp of the tea in front of him.

"What did she say Oliver." Tanya, as always, got to the heart of the matter.

Taking his time, so as not to miss out on any details or the food he continued to eat, Oliver told them everything. When he got to the end, describing how he stood just down the street from the house he had surmised was the very one that C...Anna lived in, they, all three in unison put their forks down on their plates with a clatter, causing the baby, who was still shoving rice into her face, to jump and look up with surprise. She started to cry and Tanya shhhhsed her gently as she took her up from her high chair and put her into her lap.

Dek shook his wide wooly head and smiled at Oliver. "You're an actual detective Oliver."

"Seriously!" His brother laughed, "You didn't even need us pal."

Oliver smiled and said "I needed this food." as he popped a final piece of naan into his mouth. Tanya reached over and smacked him gently on the arm, smiling sweetly at her friend.

She handed him the baby and stood to start clearing plates.

"What's the next move", she asked as she bustled about. Both boys leaned back in their chairs and watched Oliver. The baby reached up and started to play with Oliver's chin, very much at home in his lap, as her eye's started to grow heavy and she snuggled in.

Oliver shrugged, unsure if he should share the idea that had grown in his thoughts as he had waited for Dek to pick him up. He looked up from the baby and shrugged again.

Dex leaned forward onto his forearms and stated "Go visit her."

"Naaah, that's like stalking," Dek responded.

"Hmmm," Tanya said as she settled back into her chair. "Maybe you could chat with the grad student?"

Oliver looked over at their faces, their familiar brown, warm faces, and nodded. "I'll have to think about it." Then he looked back down at the baby.

"Hmmm..." Tanya said, knowing full well that Oliver had probably decided just what he would do and when.