Ode to a Fish Sandwich Read Online Free PDF

pool and beach areas.
    Regardless, when he asked to cross the fortified security barrier, no one tried to dissuade him. He passed through without incident.
    As the gates swung shut behind him, Dr. Jones gathered his wits and stared bravely at the wild wall of sugarcane framing the empty road ahead.
    After many hours of reflection on the balcony of his smaller, less romantic room the previous evening, he’d decided to approach the narrow gauntlet as a challenge, a personal test of courage.
    He adjusted the shoulder straps to his backpack, feeling much more prepared for the walk into town.
    In his pack, he carried two full liters of water along with a set of snorkel gear he’d rented from the resort’s dive shop. The blisters on his feet were covered with ointment and band aides. He’d hooked his sandals to the side of his pack, wearing socks and sneakers instead.
    Sucking in his breath, he wrapped his right hand around the umbrella handle and marched resolutely into the creepy sugarcane canal.
    ~
    FROM INSIDE THE security tower by the resort’s front gates, the two guards monitored the doctor’s progress until his black umbrella disappeared around the far corner of the road.
    For several minutes, the pair stared out the tower’s open window. The scene’s eerie quiet was broken only by the sea breeze whistling through the sugarcane and the occasional burst of static from the shortwave radio connecting them to the reception desk.
    “Think he’ll make it into town again?” the younger man asked skeptically.
    The senior officer stroked his chin, thoughtfully tugging at an errant gray hair that had sprouted near his dimple.
    “That depends on Delilah.”
    ~
    THE THICK REEDS swaying about his head were just as unnerving the second time around, but Dr. Jones managed to maintain a pace no faster than a brisk walk on the nervous journey through the throttling cane. It took every ounce of self-restraint to keep from launching into a headlong sprint for the shoreline, but he finally emerged from the field’s opposite end unscathed.
    His chest swelled with a modicum of pride. He wasn’t the pushover everyone assumed him to be.
    His satisfaction only increased when he realized that not once during the whole cane-crossing experience had he thought about his former fiancé.
    ~
    FROM THE DARK depths of the cane field, the island’s haunting spirit monitored the doctor’s progress as he left the shadowed portion of the road and began a leisurely stroll along the southern shoreline.
    Delilah had decided to allow him safe passage through her cane domain—but not due to any benevolent change in character. A dozen years after her death, her desire for vengeance was undiminished.
    Crouching in the reeds, she plotted her next move.
    She had a specific use in mind for the diffident dermatologist.

Chapter 7
Water Wally
    BY THE TIME Dr. Jones arrived at Winnie’s lunch counter an hour and a half later, he had built up a ravenous appetite.
    He didn’t hesitate with his order.
    “Hi Winnie!” he called out as he approached the diner.
    “I’ll have the fish sandwich!”
    Peeking through the front window, he saw three youngsters playing on the kitchen floor. He recognized the group from his ride in on the ferry—although on that occasion the children had been wearing their school uniforms.
    “The kids had the day off from school today,” Winnie explained, adding wearily, “No such vacation for the parents.”
    She dusted her hands on her apron and began clearing her prep counter. “Go on out to your table, and I’ll get a sandwich going for you.”
    “Take your time,” the doctor replied as he rounded the corner of the diner’s plywood exterior and headed toward the seating area. “I’m going for a quick swim.”
    ~
    AT HIS FAVORITE picnic table, Dr. Jones slid the backpack from his shoulders and set up his makeshift umbrella stand. With the shade in place, he applied another coating of sunscreen to his nose, ears, and