“I like it! It’s perfect — very you.”
“Really?”
“Oh, yes… very you.”
“How so?”
“Did you know you can learn more about someone by looking around their house, than you can in six months of dates and dances?”
“Go on,” Stone said cautiously.
“Well… For example, looking at your mail on the hall table tells me that you are single. There was nothing addressed to a wife or housemate. From your photographs I can see that you have never been married or widowed and that, although you seem to have had some very pretty girlfriends, you do not appear to be attached at the moment.” She looked at him and cocked an eyebrow, inviting a response.
“Correct — carry on,” Stone said with renewed interest.
“The house is clean and tidy, and that tells me you have self-respect — or a cleaning lady, but after looking in your bathroom cabinet I suspect the former. Your due invoices are pinned to a corkboard, so I know you are orderly, but your CD’s are in a mess, proving that you are not anally retentive!”
“Ah! You got me!” Stone laughed, enjoying the game. Linda carried on enthusiastically.
“The file of paid invoices tells me that you are honest, and the fact that you have let me wonder around here freely, suggests that you are a trusting person — and that means you are also someone who can be trusted. The trophies tell me that you are a black belt karate champion, and the fact that they are hidden at the back of your closet suggests that you are self-confident, but without an excess of ego. I see no karate kit or training equipment, or even papers relating to employment, so I would guess that your kit is at a dojo, where you also have an office, because that is your business.”
She turned to face him, her green eyes blazing with challenge and excitement.
“How am I doing?”
“Wow! Spot on so far,” he said smiling, anything else?”
“You have lots of books, and they’re all well-thumbed, so you obviously like to read. There are some history books, the complete works of William Shakespeare, and several biographies, but happily none by vacuous celebrities. Mostly they are thrillers that feature a clear baddie and an avenging angel type of hero. No violent horror, or ‘Shades of Grey’, that tells me that although you enjoy escapism you also have a good moral compass.
“Your trophies are all for various styles of martial arts that focus on self-defense, so I suspect that you were the target of bullies as a child, or perhaps knew someone else that was. In either event, I think that you strongly dislike such injustice. Put that along with what you did for me the other day, and I can see someone who will take a righteous stand to defend the innocent. Of course, that is just a wild guess,” she added with heavy sarcasm.
Stone held up his hands in mock defeat.
“Guilty as charged, your Honor.”
Linda smiled and carried on.
“Clearly you live well and have sufficient money. Nevertheless, most of your books were purchased second-hand from charity stores and, along with your other possessions, that you treat them with respect. That suggests that you worked hard to achieve your success and value your money accordingly.”
Stone acknowledged her continuing accuracy with a slight tip of his head. Linda moved closer and put her hand gently on his arm.
“On a more serious point, although you’re wearing casual clothes, your shoes are formal and well-polished, probably to go with the black suit that is hanging in the rear of your car.” She spoke more softly, her eyes suddenly full of concern. “I think that you’ve just been to a funeral, and that you stopped at your dojo to change. Perhaps you went there to work out, and get rid of some frustration. However, you were so distracted that you forgot to take a change of shoes. You’re a vivid and happy person Eric Stone, but there’s a deep sadness in your eyes. I believe that you’ve just buried someone very close.”
She leaned forward, wrapped her arms around his waist, and hugged him hard.
“I am truly sorry for your loss.”
Linda was a few inches shorter than he was, with the top of her head barely reaching his chin. Stone willingly accepted her offer of comfort, linking his arms around her shoulders and resting his cheek on her head. Her soft blonde hair smelled of green apples and coconut. They stood molded together, unmoving for almost a minute, before Stone took a deep breath and gently broke the embrace.
“He was my best friend, he took his own life.”
Linda involuntarily covered her mouth with her hands.
“Oh my God! How awful! Suicide seems like such a wretched waste, such a desperate act. That poor man. Do you know what happened?”
“Apparently he had an inoperable brain cancer. He was a brave man, a war hero, but he didn’t want to endure the kind of death that was going to follow. So he went home last week, took out his shotgun and… ”
Linda shook her head sadly.
“I suppose it’s understandable, especially if he was terminal. I’m sure that a lot of people… wait a minute! Last week… was he that Democracy guy?”
“Yes,” Stone nodded gravely. “His name was Charles Rathbone. He was my friend.”
They stood in silence for a moment.
“Tell me about him, how did you two meet?”
“He walked into my dojo one day,” Stone smiled at the recollection, “or should I say limped? He had lost part of his leg in Afghanistan and he wanted my help to get back on his feet — so to speak. Someone had recommended me. I was skeptical at first, but he was so determined I eventually gave in.”
“And you became friends?”
“Charles was a really affable guy, but I was drawn to him because he was just so determined. He had this incredible tenacity; physically, emotionally and politically. Perhaps he was the most ‘true’ person I have ever met. You couldn’t help but like and respect someone like that. In the dojo, I have never seen anyone push themselves as hard as he did. He would work until his stump was bleeding. In the end I had to turn out the lights to make him stop!
“As a friend, he was the sort of person that you could phone for help at three in the morning, even if you hadn’t spoken for six months, and unquestionably he would be there for you. At first I was cross with him — you know, when I heard that he had killed himself, but then I found out the truth and just felt guilty that I was so sad for my own loss.”
He raised his hand in apology.
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t be dumping on you.”
“That’s OK, Eric. From what you’ve said and the things I’ve seen in the media, it seems to me like he was a wonderful person. I think I would have liked him.”
“I’m sure you would, and I know he would have liked you as well, as a person, and because he had an eye for a pretty girl!” Stone smiled.
“Thanks,” Linda smiled, accepting the compliment in the spirit it was intended. “Come on, let’s eat. I’m famished!”
Stone sat at the breakfast bar, silently watching as Linda prepared their meal. The radio was tuned to a station playing non-stop oldies. He smiled as she sang along. His smile widened as she swung her slim hips in time to the music. She cooked them a simple omelet, with peppers, mushrooms, and parmesan cheese. She added a side salad of wild rocket, watercress, tomato and thinly sliced apple, dressed in a mayonnaise and peppercorn mustard sauce.
After they had washed and stacked the dishes, they took the wine and their glasses and moved to the sitting room where they shared the settee. Linda kicked off her shoes and tucked her feet under her bottom. Stone stretched out at the other end of the couch, with his ankles crossed and his arm placed casually along the backrest. Although he was maintaining a respectful distance, he could feel an air of sexual tension as electric as an approaching thunderstorm. He hoped that it wasn’t just in his imagination, because it was taking all of his self-control to maintain a gentlemanly focus. The wine wasn’t helping the situation — and neither was Linda.