(Continued from Feb. 23, 2010)
Alice phoned us from the van, which was on its way to Aunt Dorothy’s estate. As had been expected, removing her belongings from Bob’s had been super fast.
Shortly after, Alphonse phoned me from the pub’s washroom. He said that he and Bob had been drinking at the same table. He clarified: “I was having a non-alcoholic beer and Bob is still working on a jug of draft.” He then asked: “How much time is still needed for the moving process?”
“If you are enjoying your tête-à-tête with Bob, you may, of course, continue for a while longer,” I joked. “However, all Alice’s belongings have been removed from Bob’s and she is on her way to aunt Dorothy’s, where there will be a sort of party tonight. If you can fit it into your busy schedule, you are invited.”
“You know very well that I would cancel pretty well anything for an opportunity to meet the other girls. So, I will say my ‘Good byes’ to Bob because I owe him that courtesy. The fact is that I have been toying with him a bit, about which you will be getting a full report. By the way, where is Aunt Dorothy’s estate located?”
“As a former taxi driver, you would be able to find the place fairly easily, but you will need all your energy for entertaining the ladies tonight. Therefore, your Mini can be the tail end of the motorcade.” I then explained that Elsie would drive Alice’s automobile because the latter went to the estate in the gardener’s van.
Alphonse knew the shopping center near my apartment very well; he had met me there numerous times. He had a habit of saying: “I’ll see you there in a few minutes;” and, usually, it meant that he would arrive within the next half hour or forty minutes. I did not mind at all because I always carried a small notebook in the inside pocket of my jacket. It contained vocabulary for an Asian language that I was trying to learn. I found that memorizing difficult words was more pleasant at a place where a cosmopolitan crowd passed in front of me. I knew that some of the strangers would be able to use those words in a very fluent manner.
Because our table at the cake shop was diagonally across from my usual seating area, Alphonse would notice us during his walk toward us. Therefore, I hadn’t mentioned to him about our somewhat different location.
I had looked at my watch when Alphonse and I had terminated our call and my estimate was that his earliest arrival would be half an hour later. However, Thea caught sight of him after twenty-two minutes and she took pleasure in describing his approach to Elsie: “Focus on a guy, heading our way, who has the widest shoulders you have ever seen. That is Alphonse.” I was not surprised to see him moving toward us at an unusually swift pace. He was highly motivated.
(To be continued)