Chapter 7 #2
"We came to talk to you about the red door, Walter," Jax said. "The old nightclub, the Starlight Lounge, the one you told me about."
"I can't find it," Walter said. "I keep looking, but no one knows where it is."
"That's because it's not a club anymore," Jax said. "The club closed a long time ago, and it's now the basement of the bookstore."
"The bookstore," Walter echoed. "That's where it used to be?"
"In the basement," she interjected. "We checked it out, and the owner of the building confirmed that the Starlight Lounge was in the basement, and it had a red door. But that door was painted over years ago, and it's just a storage room now. That's why you haven't been able to find it."
"When did it close?"
"Thirty or more years ago," she said.
He slowly nodded his head. "I didn't know. But I kind of figured."
She was relieved to hear him admit he hadn't expected it to still be there. "Well, you don't have to keep looking for it anymore," she told him.
"I want to see it," Walter said. "Can I see it?"
"It's not the same as it was. It looks like someone's basement."
"Reina said she was going to leave me something at the club, in her dressing room, in a place no one could find. It might still be there."
"That's doubtful," Jax cut in. "The lounge became a printing facility after the club closed. The basement is filled with stuff from different decades, including printing equipment. I doubt anything Reina would have left would still be there."
"If the building is still standing, then it's possible," Walter said stubbornly. "Can you take me there?"
She hesitated. Walter now seemed quite animated and hopeful about finding an old note among the clutter, and she couldn't imagine that happening.
"It might not be a good idea," Jax said. "It will just make you sad."
"Being sad fills most of my days. I want you to take me there."
"Maybe you should check with your granddaughter," she suggested. "Is she back from her trip?"
"Yes, but she's at work. And she doesn't like to hear me talk about the past, especially when it's about people I knew before my wife, before her grandmother."
"Who was Reina to you?" she asked. "If you don't mind sharing."
Walter hesitated. "That's not an easy question to answer.
And some days I'm not sure if I remember it the way it was or the way I wanted it to be.
It's not easy getting old, the memories slipping in and out like shadows in the night.
But seeing that place again would help me, I think.
" Walter paused, wonder filling his eyes.
"I can't believe you found it. Or that you even went looking for it. Why did you?"
"It seemed important to you," Jax said. "Unanswered questions are difficult to let go of."
"That's the truth." Walter stopped abruptly as a key suddenly turned in the lock. "That's Catherine, my granddaughter."
The door opened, and a woman, who appeared to be in her late thirties, stepped into the apartment, looking at them with surprise. She was a curvy, brown-haired woman in a navy-blue dress and heels.
"What's going on?" the woman asked warily, her gaze flying to Walter. "Is everything okay, Grandpa?"
"It's fine, Catherine. What are you doing home so early?"
"I brought you a salad for lunch." Catherine held up the brown paper bag in her hand.
"A salad? That's rabbit food."
"It's healthy, and it has tuna on it," she said, forcing her grandfather to take the bag. Then she turned to them with a weary sigh. "I'm sorry. Who are you?"
"I'm Kaia Mercer, and this is Jax Ridley."
"She's the girl who comes every time your nosy neighbor calls 911," Walter put in, as he set the bag on the coffee table.
"You're a paramedic?" the woman questioned in surprise.
"Yes, I've seen your grandfather a few times. I'm glad to finally get to meet you."
Catherine did not look at all pleased to meet her. "What are you doing here? You're not in uniform."
"This isn't a professional call. We ran into your grandfather the other day, and he mentioned that he was looking for a building with a red door."
"Oh, my God, you asked them about the red door?" Catherine asked Walter. "I told you that there's no building in town with a red door. Why can't you believe me?"
"Well, they found it," Walter said, giving his granddaughter a smug look.
"Not exactly," she said quickly as Catherine's gaze turned to hers. "The nightclub is no longer in operation, and it hasn't been for decades. It also doesn't have a red door anymore, but the club was located in the basement of what is now the bookstore."
Catherine gave her an annoyed glance, then turned to Walter. "This is ridiculous, Grandpa."
"Not to me," Walter bristled. "And this is no concern of yours. These are my friends."
"Friends?" Catherine questioned, her gaze moving back to Kaia. "Are you supposed to get this involved with the patients you see on duty? What are you doing? Going along with his crazy ideas? You think that's going to help him?"
"Don't talk to her like that. She is helping me, and my ideas aren't crazy," Walter said sharply. "You don't have time to help; she does. And so does he." Walter tipped his head toward Jax, who had remained silent throughout the encounter, looking like he'd rather be anywhere else.
Catherine shook her head. "I can't do this right now. I have to get back to work." She turned to them. "I'd appreciate it if you would leave now. My grandfather needs to eat lunch, and I have to go."
"I'll eat when I'm done talking to them," Walter said. "Don't treat me like a child, Catherine."
"Then don't act like one," Catherine snapped. "Eat your lunch. And then do whatever you want."
"I'm sorry if we upset your granddaughter," she said when the door had slammed behind her.
"She's always upset. Been in a bad mood the last couple of years, ever since her husband left her, and now she's stuck taking me in. Don't mind what she said. She doesn't know what she's talking about. Now, when can you take me to the bookstore?"
"Maybe your granddaughter is right," Jax said. "Focusing on your health and your future is more productive than thinking about the past."
"At my age, I've earned the right to do whatever I want to do and think about whatever I want to think about. You don't want to take me there; I'll call a cab."
"We'll take you," she said quickly. They'd started this with Walter, and she was going to see it through. "Mrs. Danbury said she'll be there tomorrow after one, and we can check out the basement then. If that doesn't work, we can try for Wednesday or Thursday."
"I can do tomorrow. Got nothing else going on," Walter said. "I just wish I didn't have to wait that long."
"It's just twenty-four hours," she told him. "In the meantime, eat your lunch and stay on top of your blood sugar so that you don't have any issues before then." Maybe she could use the club visit as an incentive for him to focus on his health.
"All right." He gave them a dismissive wave. "I'll see you tomorrow."
Walter picked up his salad bag and took it to the kitchen table, while she and Jax made their way out of the apartment.
When they got back into Jax's car, he said, "Walter's granddaughter isn't too happy about our plan."
"I know, but I don't see the harm. Do you?" She felt like she needed a little reassurance.
Jax met her gaze. "I don't know, Kaia. But it's too late for second thoughts. We promised to pick him up and take him there tomorrow, so we're going to have to play this out."
"It will be okay," she said, trying to convince herself as much as him. "I still believe that having the chance to resolve the question he has in his head is better than him wandering around town."
"I hope you're right."
"Me, too," she muttered as he pulled away from the apartment building and headed back to Ocean Shores.