Page 73 of Echoes of a Silent Song
“Are you two just coworkers?Off the record, of course.”
“Off the record ...I’m not quite sure what we are.We’re still figuring that out.”
Keira smiled.“I get that.But just between you and me, it looks like you’re really good together.Like you genuinely care about each other.Whether it ever develops into more or not, I think you’ve got a great thing going.”
“I’ll help with the chairs.”Blair’s father was already in motion.
“Thank you, sir,” Callum replied.
“Call me Mike,” he insisted.“And congratulations on the new job.I’m sure everyone has filled you in on what a great program this is and how happy we are to have you, so I’ll skip all that and just tell you I hope things are going well for you.”
A pleasant change, not to be reminded of the pressure that came with filling Vic Nelson’s shoes.“Thank you.I appreciate it.It’s ...going.”
“The standard Midwest cry for help.”Mike grinned.“I’m sure my daughter isn’t making things much easier for you.”
What on earth could he say to that?“Well, she’s very talented, hardworking, cares about the kids ...”
“And more than a little standoffish,” Mike finished.“It’s okay.You can say it.She’s been hurt, and she keeps people at arm’s length as a result.But I’ve got a good feeling about the two of you.I know she likes you, so you’ve got that going for you.”
Wait, how much did Mike know?Some girls were super close with their fathers.Was Blair one of them?She didn’t seem the gossipy type—at least, not when Joy wasn’t involved.But then again, Callum was discovering a side to Blair he hadn’t seen before.A side most people probably didn’t see.
“I planned to give these to her, but since she’s not here ...”Mike retrieved his wallet from his pocket and fished out what looked like a ticket.“Any interest in going to a concert at the U of I tomorrow night?”
Callum glanced at the ticket, recognizing the name of a professional chorus from St.Paul, Minnesota.“Possibly ...”
“With Blair, I mean.Not with me.”Mike winked.“That might sweeten the deal for you.Blair and I were supposed to go together, but I had a meeting rescheduled, and it’s one I can’t miss, unfortunately.Any chance you might like to go with her?”
Callum chuckled.“The question is, would she like to go with me?”
Mike leveled a no-nonsense gaze at Callum.“Callum, I’ve been praying she’ll move on, that she’ll find someone who’ll help her get over that scuzzbag, but she seems buried in her work.Like she’s stuck.Frozen.But ever since you arrived, and especially the last couple weeks, she’s got her old zip back.There’s a light in her eyes that hasn’t been there for years, and I’d bet every dollar to my name that you’re the reason why.I think there’s every chance in the world she’d like to go with you.”
The door opened, and Blair walked in.“Who’d like to go with who to what?”
“That concert tomorrow night,” Mike said.“I had something come up.Can’t make it.But I think Callum here would love to take my place.If that’s okay with you, of course.”
Blair gave her father one of those inscrutable expressions Callum had come to know well.At least it wasn’t just him who got those.That was oddly comforting.
“Is everything all right?”she asked.
“Perfect,” Mike replied.“Just a meeting that’s already been rescheduled twice, and it really needs to happen, and tomorrow night was the only time everyone else could be there.”
Blair’s gaze slid toward Callum.“You don’t mind the time away from composing?I know you just got your muse back.”
“I could always use a break to get some more inspiration.”He couldn’t keep the smile off his face, and he was glad to see Blair return one of her own.
“Okay then.”The bell rang, and Blair immediately jerked back into business mode.“We’ll figure it out after school.”
“You kids have fun.”Mike gave Blair a kiss on the cheek, then slipped through the choir room door just as the first students trickled in.
Callum strode back into his office, set down the concert ticket, picked up his iPad, and tried to get his brain back in gear.It had been a heck ofa lunch break.Vic Nelson was untrustworthy at best and dangerous at worst.There might indeed be a solid reason Iris’s music didn’t communicate suicidality to Callum.And perhaps most earth-shattering of all, he held in his hand a ticket to his first real date with Blair.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Early March 1970
IT WASlight out when I opened my eyes.
Light.
