Black Swan Read Online Free Page A
Author: Chris Knopf
broad, pretty face. Even in the dying light, I could see her bright blue eyes and slightly crooked grin. It was getting chilly, but all she wore was a burgundy tank top and jean shorts, both generously dabbled with paint in a variety of hues.
    "You haven't seen Eloise, have you?" she asked, then looked down at Eddie, whom I was holding by the collar. "How does he feel about cats?"
    "Ambivalent. But he won't hurt it."
    "Won't hurt her. She's a girl cat."
    "Haven't seen her, though I just got here. Do you mind if I use your pay phone? I've got a busted boat in the harbor and need to call the owner. I can't seem to get a cell signal."
    "Service went down this morning. All the wind. We don't have a pay phone, but you can use the regular one. As
26 BLACK SWAN
long as my father doesn't mind. You can bring the dog. My brother loves dogs."
    I followed her into the hotel. She flicked on a light in the lobby, which looked exactly as I remembered it, though somewhat spruced up with fresh paint and new drapes. The furniture was the original Victorian, and the rug the same oriental I vaguely remembered. The wall that once held the pay phone had a vintage poster of a woman in a long dress drinking a soda while peddling a bicycle.
    She told me to wait there and disappeared through a door next to the registration counter. I peered through a pair of glass-paned doors at the bar, which looked remarkably open for business, a cheerful thought. Eddie tried to pull away from my grip, but I told him to cool it, something he was constitutionally reluctant to do.
    Soon the young woman reappeared with a tall guy with a fringe of close-cropped white hair framing a bald pate, wire-rimmed glasses and large, fleshy features. I could see his daughter in his broad mouth and blue eyes. His handshake was dry and half-hearted.
    "Your boat's disabled?" he asked, with a light foreign accent.
    "Yeah," I said, "happened out there in the soup. Made for a lively trip in."
    "I imagine so. We monitor channel sixteen. Sounded very bad out there. Everyone surprised."
    "You could say that. I got a broken rudder," I said.
    "Buchanan Marina's still open for repairs. They're good mechanics."
    "What's the draft back there?" I asked, aware of the marina, located on a creek at the furthest end of the Inner Harbor.
    "Four feet max."
    I shook my head and used my thumb to gesture toward the water.
Chris Knopf 27
    "Six and a half. What're the chances of renting one of your slips?"
    He looked at me through his thick glasses, his face and light blue eyes registering the complex deliberation the situation apparently called for.
    "That's a tough one," he said. "We're closed for the season."
    "I don't need shore power. We're self-contained. I'd just rather not be moored when I'm working on the boat. And I got the dog and my girlfriend. Cash money," I added, hopefully.
    He and his daughter exchanged looks which seemed pregnant with hidden meaning, then he nodded his head.
    "Take the first slip," he said, "stern in. The power's still on. I can run a hose out for water. Fifty dollars a day."
    His daughter smiled in a way that told me whom I should thank for the overpriced concession. I smiled back and shook both their hands.
    "Sam Acquillo," I said.
    "Christian Fey," said the man, "and this is Anika. My daughter. We just purchased the Swan this September, at the close of the season. We're busy with remodeling, so can't be of much help to you, I'm afraid."
    "Been plenty of help already. Soon as I use your phone, I'll get out of your hair."
    Anika leaned over
    "You haven't seen Eloise, have you?" she asked, then looked down at Eddie, whom I was holding by the collar. "How does he feel about cats?"
    "Ambivalent. But he won't hurt it."
    "Won't hurt her. She's a girl cat."
    "Haven't seen her, though I just got here. Do you mind if I use your pay phone? I've got a busted boat in the harbor and need to call the owner. I can't seem to get a cell signal."
    "Service went down this morning. All the wind. We don't have a pay phone, but you can use the regular one. As
26 BLACK SWAN
long as my father doesn't mind. You can bring the dog. My brother loves dogs."
    I followed her into the hotel. She flicked on a light in the lobby, which looked exactly as I remembered it, though somewhat spruced up with fresh paint and new drapes. The furniture was the original Victorian, and the rug the same oriental I vaguely remembered. The wall that once held the pay phone had a vintage poster of a woman in a long dress drinking a soda while peddling a bicycle.
    She told me to wait there and disappeared through a door next to the registration counter. I peered through a pair of glass-paned doors at the bar, which looked remarkably open for business, a cheerful thought. Eddie tried to pull away from my grip, but I told him to cool it, something he was constitutionally reluctant to do.
    Soon the young woman reappeared with a tall guy with a fringe of close-cropped white hair framing a bald pate, wire-rimmed glasses and large, fleshy features. I could see his daughter in his broad mouth and blue eyes. His handshake was dry and half-hearted.
    "Your boat's disabled?" he asked, with a light foreign accent.
    "Yeah," I said, "happened out there in the soup. Made for a lively trip in."
    "I imagine so. We monitor channel sixteen. Sounded very bad out there. Everyone surprised."
    "You could say that. I got a broken rudder," I said.
    "Buchanan Marina's still open for repairs. They're good mechanics."
    "What's the draft back there?" I asked, aware of the marina, located on a creek at the furthest end of the Inner Harbor.
    "Four feet max."
    I shook my head and used my thumb to gesture toward the water.
Chris Knopf 27
    "Six and a half. What're the chances of renting one of your slips?"
    He looked at me through his thick glasses, his face and light blue eyes registering the complex deliberation the situation apparently called for.
    "That's a tough one," he said. "We're closed for the season."
    "I don't need shore power. We're self-contained. I'd just rather not be moored when I'm working on the boat. And I got the dog and my girlfriend. Cash money," I added, hopefully.
    He and his daughter exchanged looks which seemed pregnant with hidden meaning, then he nodded his head.
    "Take the first slip," he said, "stern in. The power's still on. I can run a hose out for water. Fifty dollars a day."
    His daughter smiled in a way that told me whom I should thank for the overpriced concession. I smiled back and shook both their hands.
    "Sam Acquillo," I said.
    "Christian Fey," said the man, "and this is Anika. My daughter. We just purchased the Swan this September, at the close of the season. We're busy with remodeling, so can't be of much help to you, I'm afraid."
    "Been plenty of help already. Soon as I use your phone, I'll get out of your hair."
    Anika leaned over
Readers choose
Vanessa Miller
Gerald Seymour
Dianne K. Salerni
Jennifer Blackstream
Talia Ellison
Love Belvin
Violette Dubrinsky
Michael G. Thomas
C. S. Harris
Bob Zmuda