Greg took another puff of his cigarette and looked up at the clouded Philadelphia sky. His grandmother was inside the yarn store. Knitting with her friends and talking about who knows what. He needed to find a way to talk to Frank, he always had the answers to everything. As if on cue Greg’s phone rang and he answered, “…please press five to accept this call.”386Please respect copyright.PENANAMFMH71fpyR
Pressing five Greg waited a moment before a deep voice was heard on the other end of the line. “Hello, Greg?”386Please respect copyright.PENANAfl8A0gCTgP
“Hi, Frank…I mean Ian.” Greg said nervously.386Please respect copyright.PENANAemF1i5xy5f
“How many times have I told you to call me Ian and not Frank?”386Please respect copyright.PENANAkLGT19mBhG
“Sorry.”386Please respect copyright.PENANAhHrYbhbmm7
“Don’t let it happen again. Have they searched your place?”386Please respect copyright.PENANAOeoekc4f66
“The detectives are there now.”386Please respect copyright.PENANAgieXXg1JVW
“Did you hide the box?”386Please respect copyright.PENANAyJySt9w4FI
“Yes, I did.”386Please respect copyright.PENANACOMljGqx7W
“Good. You talked to the photographer?”386Please respect copyright.PENANAEoe8iX44mH
“You mean Ben?”386Please respect copyright.PENANATVHskklDJN
“Yes, of course.”386Please respect copyright.PENANA2asbetbMtI
“He called me earlier and the rest of the crew. They’re figuring out another plan.”386Please respect copyright.PENANAaITL6U7l3D
“Okay. You need to…”386Please respect copyright.PENANAfbXMvaAAlS
Greg could hear arguing in the background.386Please respect copyright.PENANAlLvAjRP8ub
“Everyone back to your cells!” he heard someone yell.386Please respect copyright.PENANASZflOD8Hwp
“Greg I gotta go.”386Please respect copyright.PENANA1QsTsGoldF
“What should I do?”386Please respect copyright.PENANAWPpdQJ5Eys
“This call has ended.” Greg heard from an automated voice before the line went dead.386Please respect copyright.PENANAeXTxUgEt3Z
He put the phone back in his pocket and sat on the steps outside of the yarn store. A woman who looked in her early thirties opened the door and stepped out of the shop. She wore a pair of light gray crocheted mittens and a knitted sea blue colored beanie. Walking down the steps, she bumped into Greg’s back with her foot.386Please respect copyright.PENANAG8bTw06xrI
“Hey watch it!” Greg yelled looking up at the woman. 386Please respect copyright.PENANARogn2LTkbR
“I’m so sorry. I should have been paying more attention.”386Please respect copyright.PENANAHM49TO8Yqv
“Yeah, you should have.”386Please respect copyright.PENANAg7sC4nNvph
The woman smirked at Greg as she walked down the opposite side of the steps and stood a few feet away from him.386Please respect copyright.PENANARMaWk7Nq5a
Greg couldn’t help but look at the woman and admired her beauty. He wanted her. No, he needed her. Greg smoothed out his jacket before calling out to the woman, “Hey.”386Please respect copyright.PENANA8tfydePYOb
The woman shifted her eyes towards Greg before she said: “Look I said I was sorry.”386Please respect copyright.PENANAYB2Gx3MwqH
Greg watched her fiddle with the phone in her hand, glancing down at it from time to time.386Please respect copyright.PENANAVoQ30NhMII
“What are you doing out here it’s late?”386Please respect copyright.PENANADBlmDFk66J
“It’s none of your business.”386Please respect copyright.PENANAw7QtmWcgQ3
Greg stayed silent for a minute as he tried to figure out what to say next. “Are you waiting for someone?”386Please respect copyright.PENANAyQCdYliKld
The woman frowned and stepped a little closer to where Greg was still sitting and said "My friend is picking me up. There’s an outdoor concert a few blocks away, but she hasn’t responded.”386Please respect copyright.PENANAVZLqpnSpIM
Greg looked at his watch which lit up against the night sky. His grandmother was almost done with her group. Suddenly, oh so suddenly an idea popped into his head. So daring and it wasn’t something he’d done before, but it was finally time to get something he wanted. “Well, my grandmother is almost done with her yarn group and I could take you there if you’d like.”386Please respect copyright.PENANAbM25faeIdS
The woman darted her eyes toward the ground. Before she could respond to him, Lucy and the other women walked out of the shop.386Please respect copyright.PENANAlt4iQJZ4ja
“Greg you could have waited inside it’s so chilly out here.”386Please respect copyright.PENANAsT23axvSJA
“Grandma it’s okay. I wanted some fresh air.”386Please respect copyright.PENANAObhSQgjAqy
“I see you met Odilia,” Lucy said pointing to the woman who by this point had joined the rest of the group.386Please respect copyright.PENANA4bwlJGWqHi
“I thought you were going to that concert.” Odilia’s grandmother said.386Please respect copyright.PENANAoQq9eUvq56
“I’m waiting for my friend to answer me back.”386Please respect copyright.PENANAltbG03jQ5T
“Greg, why don’t you take her?” Lucy said smiling at him.386Please respect copyright.PENANAkPjnL7OiAD
“Well, I…”386Please respect copyright.PENANAiUB3esk7UY
“He doesn’t have to. I’ll be all right.” Odilia said glancing at her phone once again.386Please respect copyright.PENANA9KpmL5zLxJ
“I insist. Greg is such a nice young man. Plus, I want great-grandchildren.”386Please respect copyright.PENANA8rtoxqhARm
“Grandma!” Greg said widening his eyes before continuing, “How are you going to get home?” he said to Lucy.386Please respect copyright.PENANAoiHTQCqMzP
“I’m going over to Odilia’s grandmother’s house. She has some nice yarn I could have. Plus, we were in the middle of a good conversation.”386Please respect copyright.PENANA8vYZcJVmpB
“Ah okay. Is that okay with you Odilia?” Greg said trying to put on his best smile.386Please respect copyright.PENANATa3dlPkkzb
“Yeah, I guess,” Greg observed the hesitation in her eyes.386Please respect copyright.PENANAWdwWUjyzMG
“Don’t worry I won’t bite.” Greg gave Lucy a hug before leading Odilia to his car. As he drove toward the concert he couldn't wait to see what the night would bring.386Please respect copyright.PENANAS4bIU7C8QH
****386Please respect copyright.PENANApOTlCwm8vT
The bright lights of the outdoor stage lit up the night as Greg parked his car near the back of the concert.386Please respect copyright.PENANA3VlrwufL44
“This is my stop,” Odilia said buttoning the top of her jacket. Stepping out of Greg’s car she continued, “Thanks again.”386Please respect copyright.PENANAlga6psYf12
As she shut the car door and walked toward the venue Greg rushed out and ran up to her.386Please respect copyright.PENANAnoEWHA1dGx
“Yeah?” she said turning around to face him.386Please respect copyright.PENANAIaIAqydsXK
“Would you like some company?”386Please respect copyright.PENANATCjr8226jT
“No, thanks.”386Please respect copyright.PENANAMhqGkFgoXC
“You sure? Concerts are always fun with other people.”386Please respect copyright.PENANAjnAkDrl4ab
“Concerts are always full of people,” she said with a laugh.386Please respect copyright.PENANAGnCVPO7cGN
“It will be fun. A time you’ll never forget.”386Please respect copyright.PENANAsR1JdSMVee
Greg could almost see the wheels spinning in Odilia’s head. She looked up at him with a soft smile and said “I guess. I need to get home by midnight. I have a busy day tomorrow.”386Please respect copyright.PENANAVOMoENqT0n
“I’ll get you home before then,” Greg said with a smile as he walked with Odilia into the crowd.386Please respect copyright.PENANAoITA7PDkxa
****386Please respect copyright.PENANAcuzTF5Y2zW
The music pulsed in Greg’s ears as he hit Odilia once more. He saw her chest slowly rise and fall. Pieces of her clothes were in a small pile near her body. He looked around and saw a beige burlap fabric laying on the ground. It probably covered some tech equipment at some point in the night. Greg covered Odilia’s body, and he casually walked away.386Please respect copyright.PENANA374FF202vw
Returning to his car he drove back to his apartment. His hands created red marks on the steering wheel as he smiled. Happy to know he finally got what he wanted and he couldn’t wait for more.386Please respect copyright.PENANA9jLkIu0k7N