LOCKED DOWN

Avril Tennet went out of his way to be a good neighbor. He was casual and cordial, never cut any corners when it came to welcoming neighbors. Then, too, he offered people their privacy. A neighbor should feel safe in their solitude, and he respected that. His obsession was simply their safety.

Don’t remember which came first…patrols, or Dorothy leaving? I believe it was  the former. Come to think of it, she threw up a big stink about it...so, yes, the patrols came first. I never took them serious, not at first, but the responsibility grows upon a man…it mounts him…and before you know it, you’re ‘covering nights’, stretching the hours, making double sure it’s locked down. Sometimes it called for going out in the dead of night, ‘cause a guy can’t sleep until he knows his neighbors are safe. It happens. Sneaks up on you.

Since Dorothy left, taking ‘Binks’ with her…don’t…let’s not get into that…well, it’s been very quiet around the house. Four years now, and nothing has changed. Nothing.

Table is still set…

So, it’s good to get out and take some pride in the neighborhood, smell the desert air, fresh with winter.

With winter your breath is vaporous, your body steams with the heat it emits. Frost is in the air, and, Neighbors tend to huddle inside, all cozy and nice…

Precisely where he liked them.

V