'Yes,' Roger agreed, 'she's smart, all right.'
We walked back to the palms and, from there, home.
Gone Sailing
I strolled down to Three Palms and looked about. Suzanne and Roger weren't there.
Maybe they're at the sand dunes looking for the floppy-eared baby jackrabbit and its mother. I walked to the dunes to look for them. They weren't there, either.
Climbing to the top of a sand dune, I looked around. Two big, white clouds drifted across the deep blue sky, pushed by the wind. The wind rustled the high reeds along the ridge, and they sounded like whispers. A black and white gull flew low above the water, swooped, rose with a fish in its beak, and flapped up and away.
I looked out toward the horizon and saw a sailboat dipping across the waves. It was outward bound toward the islands. It looked like the sailboat that belonged to Suzanne's and Roger's parents. Suzanne and Roger must have decided to go sailing that day, and took their Mom and Dad along for company.
I looked for them each morning for the rest of the week, but they hadn't returned. I supposed they were having a long vacation.
Finally, this morning, when I arrived at Three Palms, Suzanne and Roger were there, waiting for me.
'Hello, Suzanne. Hello, Roger,' I said. 'It's good to see you back. I missed you.'