David
was forever haunted by his night at the Green Gables Inn. He had chanced upon
the Victorian B&B during his evening walk and decided on an early dinner.
He was attracted by the irresistible smell of bread baking and walked down the
driveway into a garage converted into a small bar and eating space. In the back
was a kitchen.
As he entered the cozy cafe nestled
close to the windy beach in Newport, he saw to his right a guitar-playing duo,
a man is his early fifties and a blond woman in her mid-twenties, both
strumming Gibson guitars. The young woman was stunning, reminding David of that
mythical goddess on a white horse, her long, blond hair flowing down her front.
A harried waitress came forward and
led David to a side room which had been remodeled into a small dining area and
seated him at a table for two. He sat with his back to the wall and could see
the musicians in the bar mirror. Occasionally, the girl caught David’s eye and
he noted her intense blue eyes. There was something about her.
David studied the menu and when the
waitress returned he pointed to a glass of the Chianti, a salad, and the
cannelloni. A young man brought his wine and David sipped it, wondering about
the two traveling troubadours. He supposed they played for tips, probably also
hawking a CD.
Looking around he saw there were two couples at one
table; at another table were three older women out of an evening of Italian
food. As David settled in, relaxing and enjoying the ambiance of the Green
Gables, he noted that the blond woman suddenly put her guitar aside and picked
up a flute, a rare Mendini golden flute. She began to play and David noticed
that the other diners appeared to go rigid, as if the music transfixed them.
In the bar mirror, David saw the man put down his
guitar and motion to the diners in the main room to stand. Then the man stepped
into David’s room and raised his arms for them to stand. David watched puzzled
as the people at the two tables stiffly stood.
Trying to make sense of the situation,
David glanced in the mirror and saw the blond watching him with intense blue
eyes. Intuition told David he should also stand, not draw attention to himself.
He slowly stood and the young woman looked away.
As he stood motionless, David watched
as the man moved and opened the door. The woman rose from her stool playing her
flute and slowly led the people in the front out the door and up the driveway.
As the diners in David’s room began to shuffle forward, he got in line as if to
follow, but at the room’s door David peeled off to the left, hiding behind a
coat rack. As he huddled out of sight, he saw the man look in the room,
presumably checking to see that everyone had left.
David waited until he felt a slight
tremor, perhaps the restaurant’s door shutting. He carefully peeked out and saw
two black vans pull away from the front. David went to the phone on the counter
and dialed 911. He then grabbed a yellow, legal pad and pen from the counter
and began to write.
Officer
Joe Finley was the first to arrive at the restaurant. He had quickly called in
his findings and asked for backup. Joe was surprised when an unmarked cruiser
pulled up and the Captain got out.
Noting Joe’s surprise, the Captain
explained there had been a similar incident up the coast in Long Beach,
Washington State. It appeared five customers and three staff had vanished from
the Lightship, a small beach cafe. In that case there were no witnesses.
“At least we have an observer.” The
officer explained.
“He’s deaf and dumb?” The Captain
asked.
“Hearing impaired and unable to
speak,” Joe corrected. “But he has written the episode out in detail.” And Joe
handed the Captain the yellow pad.
“There’s this.” The Captain nodded.
“But a shame he isn't normal.”
“If he was normal, we wouldn't have
anyone.”
The Captain raised his eyebrows.
“Our witness would have followed the
pied piper into the night.”
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