This story is purely a work of fiction. Any resemblance to person's living or dead, or to events that may have occurred, is purely coincidental.
The author claims all copyrights to this story and no duplication or publication of this story is allowed, except by the web sites to which it has been posted, without the consent of the author.
All of us enjoy the stories here, so please, support Nifty. Like any other Business, it takes resources to keep it running.
I appreciate you, and I know Nifty appreciates your support!
Mark Stevens
CHAPTER FIVE
Britt hurried up the steps and walked inside the Porterville library. Glancing around the big open area, he felt a sigh of relief escape him. His growing up years had been centered largely on this old building and the books it housed. The town of Porterville had gone through several changes, but each time Britt walked through the library doors, he was happy to see that the old building remained the same.
Longtime librarian Agnes Johnson greeted him warmly. "It's always such a pleasure to see you, Britt."
Britt leaned over the counter and planted a kiss on the old woman's cheek. "This is still my favorite place to hang out," he assured her.
"Are you looking for something in particular?"
"I'm needing some information for my next book," he told her.
Agnes suddenly gave him a big grin. "On that subject, see the young gentleman over there at the table? The one working on a laptop?"
Brit's eyes traveled across the room.
"I do."
"You might want to drop by and introduce yourself," Agnes suggested. "It appears you're not the only author we have in town these days," she added.
"You don't say?
Agnes gave him a nod. "His name is Justin Reynolds, and it seems he's very interested in small towns. He told me he's writing a book about towns like Porterville."
"Then by all means, let me go introduce myself. I'll catch you later, Agnes."
Britt walked across the room and stopped before one of the four tables the library supplied for its patrons use.
"Mr. Reynolds?"
The gentleman looked up from the laptop, his fingers paused against the keyboard. He eyed Britt sharply and answered, "That's me. And you are?"
Britt extended a hand and said, "My name's Britt Williams. I understand you are a writer as well."
The young man suddenly smiled. "Britt Williams." He pointed to his table and invited Britt to have a seat. "I've heard quite a bit about you."
Britt pulled a chair out and sat down. "I take it Agnes Johnson's been talking about me, Mr. Reynolds."
"Please, call me Justin. And yes, your local librarian seems quite proud of you," he added.
"I hear you are interested in small towns," Britt commented.
Justin nodded. "I am. I love digging into their early history. This is my first book. I'm still learning the art of writing."
"Who is your publisher?"
The young man seemed suddenly embarrassed. After hesitating a moment, he said, "Actually I'm looking into self-publishing."
"Nothing wrong with that," Britt assured him. "There have been lots of well-known authors that have begun that way."
"Were you one of those?"
"When I was in high school I submitted a couple of short stories to a magazine, and they actually paid me for them. In college I wrote a series of stories for a final in a writing class I was taking. My professor was impressed enough to pass me along to a close connection he had."
"You were one of the lucky ones, I take it," Justin remarked.
"Sounds like it, doesn't it? Let me put it to you this way. You may think I managed to catch a lucky break. However, I can assure you, it was nothing of the kind. While it was true my professor had a good friend in publishing, I was a long time getting work accepted. To be honest with you, I did consider the self-publishing road."
"How did that work for you? I'm finding out that's a very expensive way to travel."
"True, it can be," Britt agreed. He looked closely at Justin. "How old are you, Justin?"
"Twenty-nine. Is that a problem? Am I too damned young?"
"Not at all," Britt hastened to assure him. "There are authors out there much younger than you. Have you always wanted to write?"
The young man gave a nod. "I have."
"Then my advice to you is to set yourself a goal and work toward it. If being self-published works for you and gets you the exposure you need, then I encourage you to go for it."
"It's just so damned expensive," Justin muttered.
"I agree."
"You never did say; did you self-publish?"
"I was ready to," Britt said. "I had been out of college for a couple of years and working at first one job and then another, and in my spare time, tried writing. Lucky for me I remained in touch with my old professor from Oklahoma University. He kept after me until surprisingly enough, I had my first book accepted. Of course, by the time the publisher was ready to print it, I hardly recognized it."
"As you say, lucky for you."
"Along with a lot of sweat and hard work," Britt reminded him. "Are you from Oklahoma, Justin?"
"I was born in Oklahoma City, but in recent years I've sort of traveled around different places."
"I see."
Justin glanced at the screen on his laptop. "Speaking of work, I suppose I should get busy. Thanks for talking with me, Britt." He reached out his hand and said, "It was nice chatting with you."
Britt grasped the young man's hand. "I hope I gave you some answers. Please, feel free to give me a call if there's ever anything I can do for you, Justin." He pulled a business card from his wallet and handed it to the man. "You can reach me at the number on this card anytime."
Britt returned to the checkout counter and gave Agnes a smile. "Time for me to get to work, Agnes."
Agnes thanked him for talking with the want-to-be author. "I just thought you might be able to give him some encouragement," she said.
"I did my best, Agnes. Duty calls," he said.
"Was there anything I can help you with, Britt?"
He shook his head. "Not really, Agnes. I'm still not sure where I'm heading with this project."
"Are you referring to your Porterville story?"
Britt smiled at her mysteriously. "You just never know about me, Agnes. I'll let you get back to your books."
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
The following evening Brian Poteet was a dinner guest, invited by Alice. Over their meal, Britt asked the officer if he had had the opportunity to meet a newcomer to Porterville. "His name is Justin Reynolds," he told Brian.
Brian told him he hadn't had the pleasure of meeting the man. "Should I make it a point to look him up?"
Britt looked across the table at Devon. "I have an idea, Dev. Why don't we have a dinner party Friday evening? I'd like for everyone to meet the newest author in town."
"Sort of welcome him to Porterville?" Devon asked.
"I think it would be the thing to do." Britt turned to Brian and Alice. "Can the two of you be here?"
They both assured him they would love meeting the man.
"I'll telephone Mom later and see if she has any plans," Britt decided.
"Should there be other guests?" Alice asked.
Britt was thoughtful. "I don't think so," he finally said. "After all, I don't want him to think he's being assessed."
"But isn't he? I mean, aren't we checking him out?" Devon grinned.
"He definitely is," Britt admitted. "If we keep the guests to family members, Mr. Reynolds isn't likely to suspect what our real agenda is."
"I'm impressed," Brian told them. "I'm honored that you've placed me in the family category."
"See that you do nothing to be removed from that list," Devon reminded the officer.
"Devon! That was uncalled for," he sister admonished him.
"He knows I'm teasing," Devon explained.
Brian's face took on a serious look. "I'm not certain that you are teasing," he said locking his eyes with Alice's brother. "However, I can assure you, Devon, I would never do anything to hurt your sister. I would hope you realize that."
Britt laughed and said, "You know he's teasing, Brian. After all, he's two minutes older than Alice. It's his job as the older brother to protect his younger sister."
Devon smiled and said, "He's right, Brian. It's my job to keep her safe."
"Do you know how to get in touch with this Mr. Reynolds?" Alice asked.
"I'm going to start with Agnes Johnson at the library. Evidently Justin has been doing quite a bit of work from there. Knowing Agnes the way I do, I feel certain she knows how I can reach him."
As Britt and Devon were getting ready for bed later that evening, Devon asked, "So tell me...other than being your usual friendly self, what made you want to invite this Justin Reynolds to dinner?"
Britt shrugged his shoulders. "I can't say for sure. I've been around a lot of authors, and for some reason, Justin Reynolds just doesn't fit the bill of a writer. Hell, I might be wrong about the man. When I spoke with him at the library, his reason for being in Porterville seemed a little...I don't know... Rehearsed, maybe? Whatever the reason is, I just thought we should get to know the man a little better."
"Are you working on a story angle for a new book? Is Reynolds going to give you that angle?"
"I'll tell you the same thing I told Agnes Johnson. "'You just never know about me'."
Devon climbed into bed and said, "I always know about you, Britt Williams. I know I love you so much, and because of you, I am happier than I have ever been in my life."
"I guess you do know everything about me. I love you too, Babe."