Cherry Two

Part 28

Chapter 26

During the return trip to Carmel, Robert tried to explain advancement was all to do with understanding police departmental politics. As expected, the meeting did not go well, and Calley had seemed to pick right up on the bridled tension between himself and Kosenkov without trying.

The detective had never liked Robert from the start. Even the intervening twenty-five years did little to change his mind about the once pushy, arrogant millionaire. Kosenkov only agreed to the meet out of deference to the family connection, with the current Deputy Police Chief in LA married to Robert's surviving daughter. Coming from behind, rookie Keenan Devereux's career had soared, while Kosenkov's had inauspiciously sputtered along in low gear. Robert tried to hide his satisfaction, but it must have showed.

As he droned on, Calley's attention waned. Like Kosenkov's career, she'd come to a personal dead end—an anticlimax. The quest was now over, along with her holiday adventure. She'd see Alain once more before boarding the silver bird bound for home, then begin the process of learning to forget. The familiar world of Surrey would seem different from now on. She'd been spoiled by new horizons and new feelings. Spoiled by people that liked her, perhaps more than they should. It felt sad, not glad, to have it end this way. But end it would.

"It's early. How about a side trip?" Robert announced out of the blue as the big open car cruised along the highway in silence.

Calley snapped out of her funk, thinking perhaps Robert had noticed the gloom behind her eyes. "Um, alright. Where will we go?"

Fifteen minutes later they cruised up to the main gates and could hear the distant sound of high-pitched engines. The overhead sign announced: Mazda Raceway-Laguna Seca.

"Do you have that fancy camera in the car?"

Calley's head bobbed. "Is this where Dad came to see the car races?"

Robert waved to the gatehouse and drove on through. "Yep. They still know me here. They should, I once sunk enough cash into this place to damn near own it."

Members of a local club were practicing out on the track in small open wheel racecars. Calley cajoled Robert into posing by the rail as she tried to frame the cars zooming through the first turn with Wallace Ward's camera.

Now in his seventies and alone, Robert seldom saw himself in photographs any more. He didn't like how time and tragedy had changed his looks and etched regret deep into every line of his face.

"Well at least smile," she chided the serious old man. "This was your idea."

He beckoned over a nearby flag marshal.

"Here, son, would you take a photo of the two of us before they come around again. This way we'll have at least one pretty face in the shot." Robert took the camera away from Calley and handed it across the fence.

The bearded young guy tipped back his cowboy hat and unplugged his earpiece. "Hey, Canon EOS. I want one of these."

"Yeah? Well steal it and I'll pay your buddies to run you over."

He laughed and snapped the shot before either of them were ready.

"Oh!" Calley bleated.

Robert drew her close with a goofy smile. "Come on, guy, take-two. Be nice."

The flag marshal clearly didn't care about Robert's feelings much, or his buddies out on the course. He'd have noticed a whole bunch of things about Calley's face and body, all excellent to outstanding. In his head he'd try to guess her age and get it way wrong.