The Identicals(117)

The guitar provides Franklin with friends. No sooner has he sat down than he has a trio of teenage girls asking if he knows the song “Here” by Alessia Cara.

“No,” he says. “But I do know ‘Sunshine’ by Jonathan Edwards.”

“Never heard of it,” says a girl with pink braces. “Do you know any Meghan Trainor?”

“Negative,” Franklin says. “I know ‘Free Bird’ by Lynyrd Skynyrd.”

“How about Justin Bieber?” a girl with a pierced eyebrow asks. “‘Love Yourself’?”

“Nope,” Franklin says proudly.

They compromise on “Killing Me Softly”—Franklin knows the Roberta Flack version, and the girls know the Fugees’ version, and it’s fun. The girls are good singers. From there, requests start rolling in. Franklin plays some James Taylor, some Bob Dylan, some Cat Stevens. Soon everyone in his section of the boat is singing, and some guy even offers him a ten-dollar tip. Franklin smiles as he waves the money away. He needs help, all right, but not that kind.



Reed wakes up to a round of applause coming from inside the boat. He blinks his eyes and sits up straight as Nantucket comes into focus. Lighthouse, jetty, big houses along the harbor—it’s not so different from the Vineyard, he thinks. He should be fine.

When they dock, he hangs back to let everyone else get off first. If Franklin hangs back as well, then Reed will know he’s only there to keep tabs on him. And how will Reed explain this trip? It’s folly, really. He received a visit from Harper’s twin sister, Tabitha, which almost ended disastrously—but Tabitha admitted her identity in the nick of time and ran from the house. Reed thought that if Tabitha is on the Vineyard, then Harper might be on Nantucket, with their mother.

Reed had scoured the woods behind Aunt Dot’s house for his phone. He found it, but it was cold and dead, ruined by moisture. He rode his bike to the library to use a computer and found one Frost listed in the white pages on Nantucket—an Eleanor Roxie-Frost. Is that Harper’s mother’s name? Yes, he thinks so.



Franklin is lucky enough to get a taxi right away. It’s actually offered to him by the parents of one of the teenyboppers in his audience. It’s only when Franklin gets into the taxi that he realizes he has no idea where he’s going. He checks his phone and sees he has a missed call from Tabitha. It must have come in while he was playing. He nearly calls her back, but then he thinks how much better it will be if he just shows up to surprise her.

He leans over the seat. The cabdriver is a middle-aged guy wearing a “Free Brady” T-shirt.

“Do you by any chance know where the Frosts live?” Franklin asks.

The driver nods. “Sure do.”





NANTUCKET


Eleanor and Flossie are enjoying their last happy hour together, with Ainsley for company. Eleanor sent Felipa to 167 to get the bluefish paté, the guacamole, and two pounds of shrimp cocktail. Eleanor wants to send Flossie off in style. They’re ordering in from the Lobster Trap tonight—surf and turf!

Eleanor raises a glass. “Flossie, I don’t know what I ever would have done without you.”

Flossie clinks her glass against Eleanor’s. “Probably inspired Felipa to murder you in your sleep.”

The doorbell rings. Eleanor looks at Ainsley. “Maybe it’s your mother, back already. Go see, please, darling.”

Ainsley rises, and Flossie says, “I can’t believe you make your own daughters ring the bell. Honestly, Ellie, you need to loosen up.”

Eleanor disagrees. She’s about to inform Flossie that she is loose enough as it is, thank you very much, when Ainsley walks onto the porch escorting a very handsome gentleman holding a guitar.

He bows in front of Eleanor as though she’s a queen. Eleanor loves this man already! But who is he? And why the guitar? Eleanor fears this is a singing telegram or a male stripper, something orchestrated by Flossie on her last day in order to loosen Eleanor up.

“I’m Franklin Phelps,” the gentleman says. “I’ve come in search of Tabitha.”

“Tabitha?” Eleanor says. Here is the suitor, then! The brother of the woman married to Billy’s doctor. Eleanor remembers herself and holds out her hand. “Franklin, I’m Eleanor Roxie-Frost, Tabitha’s mother.”

“And I’m Flossie,” Flossie says, offering her hand. She wants right in on the action, Eleanor sees. Typical Flossie! She can’t leave a good-looking male alone. “I’m Tabitha’s aunt.”

“Nice to meet you both,” Franklin says.

“I told him Mom’s not here,” Ainsley says. “She’s on the Vineyard.”

“Comedy of errors,” Franklin says. “I just came from the Vineyard.”

“She’ll be right back,” Eleanor says. “By morning, anyway. You might as well sit tight right here. I’ll have Felipa make up the guest room.”

“I couldn’t impose,” Franklin says.

“I want you to impose!” Eleanor says.

“Me, too!” Flossie says.

Eleanor turns to Flossie, trying not to let her impatience with her flirtatious younger sister show. “Can we offer Franklin a drink, Flossie?”

“We can!” Flossie says. “What’s your poison, Franklin?”