Little Red's Café

FOUR

It was late afternoon by the time I got home and I
did not have the energy to stop by the Café. I wanted to ask Aunt Ruth, or even Uncle Tom, about the gun but after lunch I had so many more questions and even little answers. It was exhausting to say the least.
Upon arriving home I went into the living room, gently put the gun on the coffee table setting the unopened white envelope next to it. I plop down onto the gray love seat across from mine and moms saphire blue reading chairs, propping my elbows on my knees and burying my face in my hands. Most nights before bed mom sat in her chair with her legs usually pulled under her and read until she could hardly keep her eyes open. I pull my face from my hands and audibly sigh.
"What am I suppose to do?" I say softly, swallowing the lump in my throat, at the empty chair, getting angrier by the second. The void of where she is suppose to be lingering.
"YOU left me! Without so much as the truth." I yell emotionally. The silence growing louder with each passing second. Standing to my feet I pace around the room. Finally not able to take the burning in the back of my throat I scream as if doing so would relieve the pain, anger and grief completely. Instead I find myself back on the couch, with my knees against my chest wrapped in a ball, crying again.

Suddenly I feel the weight of something on the couch next to me. When I glance over Trix is sitting there. She tugs on my arm with her paw as if to signal she wants a hug. So I wrap my arms around her burying my face in her soft fur and take in the way she smells. She smells like salt water and coconuts. Smiling, I pull back and kiss her wet nose. "Thank you Trixxie." She licks the drying tears off my face In response.

Grabbing the envelope I break off the seal and pull out a small key with a piece of paper attached to it by a string. The key looks like one of those old skeleton keys that either unlock really old chests or doors in old houses. The design on the bow, or the head, of the key resembles a sunflower. I run my fingers over the metal petals, it was surprisingly warm on my fingertips. I unfold the paper and all it said is, "Answers. I'm sorry. I love you Red. -Mom". Taped to the inside of the note is a much smaller key. I pull the small key off the note and inspect it.
It looked like it belonged to a padlock of some kind. On the bow of the key were some numbers engraved: 74300. "Hm," I say to myself. Trix looks at me and tilts her head to the side. I scratch behind her ear, "my thoughts exactly girl."

Looking at the chair my anger has simmered a bit, but just like before I have even more questions. The main one being, what the hell do these keys go to.

I returned both the gun and now the little white envelope with the keys to the top drawer of my dresser and head to the back door with Trix for our evening walk. Ever since she was a pup we would walk to the end of the beach and back. The bay is lined with Beach houses with decks that over looked the beach, so most of the beach was privately owned, except for the last bit of it. At the end of the sandbar sat a bar called The Plank. Their theme was pirates and the bar itself was an actual pirate ship. During the summer it's usually populated with tourists and the usual vacationers. They get a kick out of the lure behind the boats history itself. However, the second weekend of August they throw a End of Summer Bash for all of the townies of Crows Bay. Of course it's for eighteen and older. Every kid looks forward to turning eighteen just to attend this party. It's like a right of passage for Crows Bay youth. I had always wanted to go, but with everything that happened this summer I don't have the desire to do much anymore.

Trix excitedly bolts out of the door. "Trixxie! Wait up!" I yell locking the door behind me, hurrying to catch up. I laugh softly watching her jump around in the water trying to catch the waves as they crash onto the shore. Stepping barefoot in the sand, I let the warm soft sand sink between my toes. The sun was sitting low as if it's slowly diving into the water to cool off. The sky is filled with pretty pastel blues, purples and pinks. Suddenly I feel relaxed, walking in the opposite direction of the Café, the house and the place where they found my mom. I soak in the warmth of the sun, but also enjoy the coolness of dusk. I always take my time walking, just breathing in the salty air and listening to the seagulls squawk in protest as Trix chases them around . The air feels cooler in the evening as the breeze rushes off the water in waves. I miss taking these walks with mom. We spent countless nights watching the sunset together. I remember she would always say she would be reincarnated as a blue jay. "That way I could be free and fly off into the sunset." She had said quietly. I remember seeing her eyes darken with sorrow after she said it but as quickly as the emotion flooded them they receded. She replaced it with a warm smile before pressing the back of her hand against my cheek and returning her attention to the sandcastle we were building. I was nine then, but that was the first time I had seen my mom truly haunted by something.