Right 69 By Littlewing1957
"Jack, come down here!" Mrs. Twist yelled up the stairs from the living room. "Katie is here to see you!" Jack heard his mom and sat up on his twin bed. He was taking a short nap after having laid the foundation for the barn with his dad earlier that morning. He was bone weary and just wanted to sleep. But after an entire morning of enduring his dad's cold indifference, Jack began to warm up to the idea of a visitor. "I'll be right down, Ma," Jack yelled from his room. He pulled off denim overalls and a smelly blue shirt and climbed into a pair of stiff jeans and a creme colored sweater. Satisfied that he looked presentable, Jack left his room and headed for the stairs. He found Katie and his mom in the kitchen, seated at the table, sipping at cups of coffee.
Wow, what a fox! Katie thought as she caught sight of Jack in the kitchen doorway. She was quick to avert her eyes when Jack entered. No need to act too eager. "Come on in and have a cup of coffee," Mrs. Twist offered when she noticed her son. "Thanks, Ma." Jack answered as he reached for the pot. He poured himself a cup of strong java and sat down next to Katie. "How you doin, Katie?" Jack asked politely. Katie took a sip of her coffee. "I'm okay. Just wanted to see how you're feeling. You okay? Heard from Ennis yet?" Jack flinched when he heard Ennis' name. Mrs. Twist noticed and changed the subject. "Ahh...Katie," Mrs. Twist began, "How is business? I hear you're thinking about opening another shop." Katie smiled sweetly at her hostess. Jack was silent. "Business is good, thanks for asking. I have plans to open another place, but only if things go well this fiscal year." Mrs. Twist nodded. "We'll just have to see what happens," Katie added. Roberta Twist looked sidelong at her son. He was being too quiet, was being rude. She kicked him slightly on the ankle under the table. Jack perked up. "Katie, I'm glad to hear everything is going so well. I didn't even know you had your own business until you drove us there a few days ago." Jack was being sincere. "I'm very proud of you." Katie and Mrs. Twist locked eyes and beamed. "Well, I gotta go do the wash," Mrs. Twist stated as she rose from the table. She placed her cup in the sink and headed quickly for the kitchen door. "You kids stay here as long as you want. I'll be out back."
Jack rose from his seat and placed his mug in the sink. Katie was still seated, still working on her cup of coffee. She had doubts about mentioning Ennis, but she was just too curious. "Jack," Katie began, "What is the story with Ennis? You can tell me, we're friends." Jack turned and faced her. He sat back down beside her, but didn't look at her. "There's not much to tell, Katie," Jack whispered. "I don't know why Ennis ran off like that, and I haven't heard from him." Jack looked very troubled. "Do you want to hear from him?" Katie asked gently. "Yes," Jack answered soflty. "Then we should go look for him," Katie offered. "Why don't we scour the town. I hate to alarm you, but what if something happened to him?" Jack almost laughed out loud. "Katie, Ennis is a big boy and can take care of himself. We don't have to go looking for him." Jack glanced at her. "If he disappeared, it's because he wanted to. I'm sure there is no foul play involved." Katie shrugged. "Just a suggestion." Jack nodded and fell silent. "Well look, I still need a date for the dance. You still want to go with me? It'll be a good time...take your mind off things." Jack doubted that. Going to the dance would only remind him that Ennis would also be there, if things worked out. But what the heck? Life had to go on, and going to the dance sounded like fun. "Okay, I'll go to the dance with you," Jack said. "But I don't have anything to wear." "Don't worry about a thing," Katie enthused. "Look, we can go to a store in town that has kick ass men's formal wear. I'll rent you a tux for the night. What do you say?" Jack grunted. "I can rent my own tux," He stated matter-of-factly. "Of course," Katie muttered. "Look, why don't we go now. I can drive us over to the store and we can look at what they have to offer. You can try on a few suits, we can put down a deposit and pick it up before the dance. What do you say, Jack? "Well, I promised my ma I would help with dinner." "Don't worry. I already spoke with her, and she said she can manage." Katie looked hopeful. Jack couldn't think of any reason not to go. "Okay. Let me get my coat." Jack left the kitchen and headed up the stairs to fetch his parka.
Alan Sims should have been back to his job, but he asked for, and was granted, an additional week of vacation. He noticed that Jack and his dad were building something out back on the ranch. He didn't consider himself a stalker, just a man on a mission. Alan was parked on the opposite side of the Twist spread, in view of Jack's front door. He was parked there when Katie arrived, but he didn't think anything of it. Lightning Flat was a small town, and he knew that Katie and Mrs. Twist were friendly. Alan knew Katie as well, and was fond of her. But when he saw Jack exit the Twist home with Katie on his arm, Alan began to see red. He waited until Jack was inside Katie's car and started his engine. Katie pulled off onto the main road and Alan pulled out and followed. He knew to stay well behind them.