Delicate Chaos (31 page)
Authors: Jeff Buick
One of the flashlights illuminated Darvin’s corpse, but she refused to look. Her life was not about misery and suffering and
negative thoughts or images. It was about the positive things that surrounded her. It was about goodness and caring. It was
about living.
Leona closed the door behind her and looked up and down the hospital hallway. The hour was late and a solitary nurse, making
her rounds, was the only person in sight. She walked to the elevator, clutching the novel she’d just finished reading. Music
drifted down the hall, barely audible, but she recognized the tune. U2, Bono and the boys—“I Still Haven’t Found What I’m
Looking For.” She felt a warm glow creep through her bones. Her theme song for so many years. Now it was just great music.
Mike Anderson was finally ready to be released from the hospital. Twenty days since George Harvey and his men had carried
him from the house and the paramedics had rushed him to the nearest emergency room. The doctor on call had told them another
fifteen minutes, half an hour tops, and Mike would not have made it. The bullet had carved a path of destruction through his
lower intestine, but it was massive blood loss that almost killed him. He was on the mend, and that was what counted. She’d
known he was going to make it the moment he started objecting to her ripping the wood paneling out of his house. He’d finally
given in when she described his décor as early-rumpus-room.
She took the elevator to the main floor and stood outside the main doors, a warm August breeze on her face. Her hand held
the business section of the daily newspaper and she glanced at the headlines. Anthony Halladay had been charged with insider
trading. The Securities and Exchange Commission had determined he was the conduit to Derek Swanson. Leona shook her head at
the irony. She had gone to his house, to warn him of the leak. Not the smartest decision she’d ever made.
Leona slipped her free hand in her purse and touched the cell phone. It was time to make the call. She dialed the number and
leaned against one of the concrete planters as it rang. A man’s voice answered.
“Hi, Dad,” she said.
“Leona. How are you? I haven’t talked to you for a while.”
“I’m fine. Couldn’t be better actually.”
“That’s great to hear. How are things at the bank?”
“Better than you could imagine.” Great because she had quit. She’d deliver that news later, face-to-face.
“What ever happened with the insurance on the restaurant?” he asked.
“They agreed to pay. Tyler and I are working with a guy who has some new ideas on redesigning the interior.” With the bank
out of her life, she was totally focused on building the restaurant into a very successful venture.
“Good news.”
“I have something on my mind. Something I want to tell you.”
“What’s that.”
“I love you, Dad.”
There was a no hesitation. “I love you too, sweetie. Nice to hear you say it.”
“Feels good to say it.” She tilted her head back and stared at the stars. “I don’t think we say how we feel often enough.”
“No kidding.”
“Listen, Dad, I was thinking . . .”
“Yes?”
“Would you like to go fishing sometime?”
There was a definite pause. “You want to go fishing?”
“I do. But only with you.”
“Sure, that would be fun. When?”
“Give me a couple of weeks. I need a bit of time to myself right now.”
“I know a lodge in Northern Ontario, and September is the time to go. The walleye and pike will be big and hungry.”
“I’m in. Remember, give me at least two weeks.”
“Okay, honey.”
“I do love you, Dad.”
“Love you, too.”
She hung up, a hint of a smile on her lips. It had always been there, she had just never seen it. Her father loved her unconditionally.
It was her perspective that had clouded the emotions he kept locked in his heart. She had tried to fit her father’s affection
inside the box that defined
her
emotions, but that wasn’t how it worked. If she wanted to see the forest, she had to get out of the trees. Pretty simple,
really.
She loved her dad and he loved her. Mike Anderson was going to live, all appendages intact. Everything as it should be. Her
well-ordered life had teetered on the brink of chaos, then pulled back from the chasm. But while she was on the edge, she
had looked down and seen inside her own heart, her soul. Life was for the living and she was back. With a vengeance. Maybe
that’s what it took—a little chaos to realize what was really important in her world. Like the moment when she had knocked
over the glass of wine in the restaurant. Broken glass—spilled wine. A small disaster, easily cleaned up. Not a lot of chaos.
Just a little.
A delicate chaos, of sorts.
SHELL GAME
“Talk about your Byzantine storylines! This mind-boggling novel will keep you breathless and guessing until the last page. …Without
a doubt, this is one of the best thrillers of the year!”
—
RT BOOKreviews
“Fascinating and shocking,
Shell Game
will tax your brain and quite possibly your heart. Just when you think you’ve got it figured out, there are twists and coils
and bends that leave you stunned. The attraction of a complex con game with the thrill of revenge—a winner!”
—Fresh Fiction
AFRICAN ICE
“From one breathtaking, life-threatening scene to the next, you’ll feel like you’re watching an adventure movie with a less
than sure outcome…What a terrific read!”
—Fresh Fiction
“Wall-to-wall action and intrigue, with just enough tech-speak to keep it fascinating…Buick is a tremendous find.”
—
RT BOOKreviews
(Top Pick!)
LETHAL DOSE
“Full of action and danger…The author keeps the reader turning the pages long into the night.”
—Detective Mystery Stories
“
Lethal Dose
is a fast-paced, energetic, and relevant read.”
—Fresh Fiction
“…a thought-provoking, suspense-filled novel.”
—
Midwest Book Review
BLOODLINE
“Buick has created an intense, gut-twisting thriller with his brilliant debut. With characters modeled from real-life headlines,
he gives the book depth and a life of its own.”
—The Best Reviews
A LEISURE BOOK
®
February 2008
Published by
Dorchester Publishing Co. , Inc.
200 Madison Avenue
New York, NY 10016
Copyright © 2008 by Jeff Buick
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E-ISBN: 978-1-4285-0201-7
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