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.”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIt8jPdN40x
Pressing five Greg waited a moment before a deep voice was heard on the other end of the line. “Hello, Greg?”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZL70pUPfCL
“Hi, Frank…I mean Ian.” Greg said nervously.433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1Z7gUtnrt9
“How many times have I told you to call me Ian and not Frank?”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe7dTi3qAa3
“Sorry.”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNzNdynd549
“Don’t let it happen again. Have they searched your place?”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTFJcpd7b1D
“The detectives are there now.”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡauzh5xDKFG
“Did you hide the box?”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA3qD7pdpN1
“Yes, I did.”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4BTdEuBDhS
“Good. You talked to the photographer?”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5bTT4jUEqh
“You mean Ben?”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxLV0nwlVDW
“Yes, of course.”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnJmnXmoGWB
“He called me earlier and the rest of the crew. They’re figuring out another plan.”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFLeZL3ZR6h
“Okay. You need to…”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIePjvEpUEv
Greg could hear arguing in the background.433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbFhUHIAthD
“Everyone back to your cells!” he heard someone yell.433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ99qggRPuA7
“Greg I gotta go.”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg4zDaybdb4
“What should I do?”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAAZdYnsOpd
“This call has ended.” Greg heard from an automated voice before the line went dead.433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡguhcdUBTGP
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.433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdgYEiwpIw2
“Hey watch it!” Greg yelled looking up at the woman. 433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNmzl5JxpDn
“I’m so sorry. I should have been paying more attention.”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnOk4e2j1Qc
“Yeah, you should have.”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxmtkK60znG
The woman smirked at Greg as she walked down the opposite side of the steps and stood a few feet away from him.433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhz2V6cNhRA
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.”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDuM8crNBAN
The woman shifted her eyes towards Greg before she said: “Look I said I was sorry.”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡImKFydRDfn
Greg watched her fiddle with the phone in her hand, glancing down at it from time to time.433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJGogwsxh0W
“What are you doing out here it’s late?”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzpm02wtBJt
“It’s none of your business.”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMbHt2vRjIE
Greg stayed silent for a minute as he tried to figure out what to say next. “Are you waiting for someone?”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjIv72gAPwf
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.”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMbJW9NaTPf
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.”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFdzN5FCaeA
The woman darted her eyes toward the ground. Before she could respond to him, Lucy and the other women walked out of the shop.433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmcToBFETV0
“Greg you could have waited inside it’s so chilly out here.”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo9f0RXU95M
“Grandma it’s okay. I wanted some fresh air.”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0kOEIonFXy
“I see you met Odilia,” Lucy said pointing to the woman who by this point had joined the rest of the group.433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUNBip0nKf1
“I thought you were going to that concert.” Odilia’s grandmother said.433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMOk5EAN8Uc
“I’m waiting for my friend to answer me back.”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQirddryOzq
“Greg, why don’t you take her?” Lucy said smiling at him.433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEgcjsbwpBQ
“Well, I…”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGNdb6rO79i
“He doesn’t have to. I’ll be all right.” Odilia said glancing at her phone once again.433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxpemVDV2s1
“I insist. Greg is such a nice young man. Plus, I want great-grandchildren.”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx8ki1ny3z7
“Grandma!” Greg said widening his eyes before continuing, “How are you going to get home?” he said to Lucy.433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUYuM5vteAl
“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.”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLdCzrTsvIC
“Ah okay. Is that okay with you Odilia?” Greg said trying to put on his best smile.433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHDCezGsGba
“Yeah, I guess,” Greg observed the hesitation in her eyes.433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh0goDlH56l
“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.433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNpDBjerRU1
****433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOAzsFI6Zg3
The bright lights of the outdoor stage lit up the night as Greg parked his car near the back of the concert.433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyoFYIMOmrM
“This is my stop,” Odilia said buttoning the top of her jacket. Stepping out of Greg’s car she continued, “Thanks again.”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzCJyyVgUXc
As she shut the car door and walked toward the venue Greg rushed out and ran up to her.433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpYPi1fK5w5
“Yeah?” she said turning around to face him.433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL9ps3TozYQ
“Would you like some company?”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ5dWxhYDK8
“No, thanks.”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDu5KLVAoEP
“You sure? Concerts are always fun with other people.”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKQpWDyFGbV
“Concerts are always full of people,” she said with a laugh.433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzVoJJbAJfR
“It will be fun. A time you’ll never forget.”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNKZf29zGc8
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.”433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ71dyGVMq6b
“I’ll get you home before then,” Greg said with a smile as he walked with Odilia into the crowd.433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZKbUx0MwrB
****433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡude9NCOh3a
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.433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuSD6QwoPCO
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.433Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDTcdRdlHh1
