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Cal got out of the truck, and they shook hands. “Thanks for this, bro,” Cal said.
“I’ve got your back, you know that,” Brett said. “Follow me, and we’ll be there in about ten minutes.”
The house was a nondescript one in a middle-class neighborhood. Nothing stood out about it: neither the beige paint, which made it look just like every other house on the block, nor the barely-there landscaping.
Brett opened the door, and Cal ushered Vic inside ahead of him. Brett must have been there before them, because the air-conditioning was humming and the house was cool.
“Pick your rooms. All the beds have sheets on them. We’re not using this house yet, we’re just setting it up,” Brett said. He tossed the key on the kitchen table. “That’s a spare, but I’ll need it back.”
Cal nodded. “Of course. Thanks so much for this.”
Brett held out his hand. “You bet. I’d better get going.”
They’d eaten a fast-food dinner so didn’t need to cook.
Cal headed down the hall. “Are we sharing a room or keeping separate?”
“How about separate and together?” she said as she followed him.
He chuckled. “I’ll go for that.” He turned into the bedroom on the left. “I’ll take this one.”
When he walked out, he noticed that she’d taken the one on the end, which appeared to be the main bedroom. There was an office-sized room and a bathroom on the other side of the hallway.
Cal climbed the stairs, and Vic followed behind him. They found two bedrooms and what could be a large game room upstairs, along with a third bathroom. This was a nice family house, Cal noticed. WITSEC had probably acquired it on a foreclosure. All the paint was a bland, off-white color, and there were no pictures on the walls.
When they went back downstairs, they found that there was no TV.
“And I can’t use a laptop or phone to pass the time, even if I had them because we’re staying off grid. I’ll definitely go nuts here,” Vic said. “Anything in that attic?”
“Nothing but cobwebs. We’re secure.” He walked over to the sliding glass doors and looked out into the backyard. “Bummer that there’s no TV.”
“I’ll be climbing the walls inside an hour, cowboy,” Vic said with a grimace.
“I may have a solution to that.” He went into his room and returned a moment later holding two decks of cards. “I bought these when I was at Target. Figured we’d need them.”
“You’re a lifesaver, Cal.” She reached for one and began picking at the plastic wrapper.
“Here, let me do that.” He took out his knife and slit the cellophane off, then handed the box back to her.
“Thanks.”
He sat down next to her on the couch and opened his deck. “What card games do you know?”
“Well, I know gin rummy and canasta and, of course, poker. I can play spades and hearts, too. How about you?”
“I know all those. My granny and I used to play card games when I visited her.” He took the cards out of his box and started shuffling them. “So, do you want to play solitaire, or should we play something together?” He was really glad that she liked playing cards. He’d always wanted to date a woman who liked to play cards but had never found one.
“Oh, definitely something together.” She was shuffling her cards. “Have you ever played bridge?”
“No, have you?”
“No, but I’ve always thought I’d like to learn.”
“I’ve heard it’s hard,” he said as he continued to shuffle.
“Me, too, that’s probably why I haven’t pursued it any further. Besides, I don’t know anybody who plays. Do you?”
“My granny does, but I’ve never really wanted to learn. Besides, there was always just the two of us when I stayed with her.”
