Untitled, Part 2

I can't believe I haven't revisited this story since October! Sorry, Bob. You've nagged me plenty of times and I let you down. Well, I finally wrote part 2 of the story and even named a character after you! If you missed part 1 or, quite likely, have forgotten it by now, here's a link:

Untitled, Part 1

And, now, for Untitled, Part 2.....

She ignored the butterflies dancing in her stomach as he entered the lobby. Had it only been two years since this had been a big part of her life? It certainly felt like decades had passed since she last crossed the threshold of a newspaper office. She gave the handle of her portfolio a squeeze, took a deep breath and approached the reception desk.

"Good morning. My name is Erin Jensen. I have an appointment with Mr. Wade."

Five minutes later, she was ushered into the office of the editor of the Oakhurst Gazette. Mr. Charles Wade, although the term "Mr." didn't quite seem to fit this particular gentleman. Raised in the small communities surrounding Yosemite, he had no interest in such formality and made it clear as soon as Erin shook his hand that she should call him Charles. The name suited him; relaxed, but formal enough to indicate authority. No, Mr. Wade would not do. Chuck would also be an unfitting tile. Charles was just right.

"So, you're interested in doing a bit of freelance work for us, Mrs. Jensen?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Charles will do fine."

"All right then, Charles."

"Let's take a look at that portfolio."

Thirty minutes later, Erin walked out of the newspaper office with her first assignment. Working for a small town paper doesn't offer a great deal of money, but a small income, along with the insurance money, ought to keep her and Sarah fed and housed. Besides, keeping busy kept her thoughts focused on moving forward, not looking back. Covering the mayor's retirement sounded like a promising beginning to the restart of her writing career. If, that is, she could come up with a unique angle. The trick would be to write the piece as assigned, but with something unexpected revealed in the story. That would be quite a challenge since Bob Cross had been mayor here for the past 15 years and a prominent lawyer for the twenty years before that. His name has been mentioned for one reason or another in nearly every edition of the Oakhurst Gazette for the past three decades.

That's when inspiration hit. She would review some of his past cases and contact a handful of previous clients. They would provide interesting quotes and maybe some long forgotten stories about the mayor to include in the article. She had a place to begin!

Resisting the urge to make a u-turn and start researching the Gazette archives immediately, she dictated some ideas into her voice recorder and headed home to share her good news with Esther and Sarah. Besides, she was ready to get out of this stuffy suit and pull her hair back into a ponytail.

She rounded the next-to-last curve on her drive home. Doing her best not to look, the memory of that night drew her eyes to the spot where a part of her died forever. Her heart ached, like it did every time she drove by this spot. She wiped the tear from her eye and turned her thoughts toward home. Sarah was waiting. That had to be enough for now.