Introduction
Gerald’s life following the death of his wife was full of drama. As the story starts, he watches her very closely as she “pickpockets” unsuspecting passengers on the train. She would later disappear into the north entrance sliding the train door behind her. One day, she pickpockets a young nervous-looking cop. She feigns to ask for a change from him. As Gerald watches, “she waves her way in between the people and up behind the cop, nicks the pepper spray right out of his belt and disappears through the same entrance” (Coben & Penzler, 2011, p. 3). He likes her audacity.
Furthermore, he also falls in love with her with the way she accurately steals from the cop. One day she steals from him. On the next morning, he tricks her into stealing from him and she goes ahead and does it. She decides to face him and they converse. He decides to call her Audi, from how he describes her as being Audacious. She unfolds her story to him and Gerald decides to shelter her. Later, he finds out that her parents have been looking for her for one year because she had been reported missing. He finds out her name to be Nikki Tyler, a girl of minor age. He later decides to take her back home to her parents. When Nikki learns of it, she disappears into the woods and Gerald finds himself alone once more. This paper recounts Gerald’s life and intrigues after his wife passed away.
Gerald meets Audi
When his wife dies, Gerald feels a sense of loneliness and emptiness in his house and it’s long since his wife’s demise. The sight of her every morning makes Gerald feel alive and look forward to the next morning. He feels that she can take the place of Dolores. After watching her movements, he learns that she is a pickpocket. She does it every morning. He likes the way she does it with acute skill. He describes her as “good, crafty, swift and clever, and not greedy as she would easily be caught” (Coben & Penzler, 2011, p.1). Gerald undergoes a face to face conversation with her. He previously was looking forward to it, just like he opens to her that he just wants some company. At first, she thinks that he is trying to hit on her. She even asks him his age. Gerald thinks that he will see her the next day. He even brings her coffee the next day. Since knowing her, Gerald goes late to work so that he can see her. When Audi tells Gerald her whole story, he decides to shelter her in his place. He tells her “You know I’ve got an extra space, if you ever need somewhere to stay” (Coben & Penzler, 2011, p.7). He feels attracted to her at first but when she tells him that he is too old to be her grandfather, he withdraws. After some time, Audi disappears for some time. He misses her so much that his thought of her fills his mind at the workplace and he worries about her way of living in the cold season.
Audi comes into Gerald’s life
A week before Christmas, he hears’ a knock on the door. He goes to get the door and to his surprise, it is Audi! Without many conversations, he puts a cup of coffee, prepares an omelet with eight eggs, green peppers, onions, and a copped-up sausage for her (Coben & Penzler, 2011). Gerald still wonders how she comes to locate his house. Gerald asks her whether she would need some clothes for the cold weather and he gets her Dolores clothes. On the next day, he peeps into her room and finds her fast asleep. Obliviously, he admires her skin as she shifts in her sleep! Gerald leaves the house to go to the office. He has a different feeling. He is motivated about something and feels a compelling force to write. He takes his latest memoir from the drawer and finds his previous literature boring. He folds the pages in half and throws them in the garbage, and gets a new sheet from the typewriter (Coben & Penzler, 2011).
Gerald decides to write something new. The story begins with his wife’s death. Strikingly, “he writes with fire, words crackling like lighting across the page.” (Coben & Penzler, 2011, p. 11). He sees himself as a man filled with emptiness and missing his dead wife, Dolores, but something changes. Audi comes into his life like “a ball of fire and fills the empty house” (Coben & Penzler, 2011, p. 11). He puts his work in the drawer and heads for home. On getting home, he finds her on the couch wearing “another outfit of his belated wife, an old sweat suit” (Coben & Penzler, 2011, p.11). He sits beside her and she scoots closer to him. He is delighted when he hears her laugh and that puts tingles in his spine. He drives the conversation and tells her about his well-spent day. Yes, he spends the whole writing about her since he was motivated by her presence in his life. Now, they are at ease with each other and she feels excited by the surprising news. He stays with her, watching television for the rest of the evening.
When he goes to the office the next day, he writes the same story. When he gets home, he shares with her. He spends “all day looking forward to his time on the couch with her, to the feeling of the weight of her head on his lap, the feeling of her breath so near on his face” (Coben & Penzler, 2011, 12). The next day is Christmas Day. On Christmas day, he gets up early to make breakfast for her. She finds him cooking biscuits on her way from the bedroom. He asks her choice of accessory on the biscuits and she says that honey is her preference. He puts biscuits in the oven, takes the honey from the cabinet, and places it before her (Coben & Penzler, 2011). Gerald feels that he can take care of her. The relationship further grows from that of “husband and wife” to that of father and daughter. They spend Christmas day together on the couch watching movies until it is dark.
Gerald finally decides to go upstairs and have some sleep and later, she pops into the bedroom. He watches Audi as she tiptoes across the carpet to the side of the bed. She cuddles up close beside him, putting one of her bare legs across his (Coben & Penzler, 2011, p.13). He feels her soft and smooth legs. She pulls his arm above his head and puts her head on his chest and wraps her arm across his stomach. He feels her hair on his chin with her eyelashes on his chest. His muscles tense! He wraps his arm around her, squeezing her around him. She responds to him, “I could fall in love with you” (Coben & Penzler, 2011, p.13). He whispers to her that she possibly cannot. He kisses her on top of her head and she looks at him and kisses him on the mouth twice and soft.
Truth about Audi
Gerald rushes to the market to fetch some milk for breakfast. He pops into one of the stores. On picking a packet of milk, he decides to check on announcements for missing children. Surprisingly, he comes across Audi’s picture! He peruses the details carefully and learns that her real name is Nikki Tyler, a sixteen-year-old girl. She had gone missing for the last year. He notes the details of Audi’s parent’s address. Gerald now knows about Audi’s past, something she had not disclosed to him at first. He has to get the whole truth out of her and he takes her to a Christmas outing. He is very concerned about her and the fact she has been missing for the last year. At first, she thinks that he is courting her by taking her out. On their way back, he confirms Audi’s parents’ address again on missing-persons notice.
He has to take her home. He feels compelled to do so. He drives slowly scanning for their address. Audi finally wakes up to find what Gerald is up to. He tells her “I’m taking you back to your parents, Nikki” (Coben & Penzler, 2011, p.17). She is very annoyed and cannot stay with him any longer when her parents are mourning her disappearance. He cannot keep Nikki as he opens to her. When he stops the car, Nikki quickly opens the door, runs away, and disappears into the woods. Gerald finally gets home after losing track of Nikki. He ponders about what would have happened if Nikki had stayed. He drifts his memories to his past life when Dolores was not dead, even the life before he met her. He ponders of what could have happened if they stayed together; perhaps be lovers or adopt her as his daughter. All the options are long gone. He feels the emptiness creep to him like before.
Conclusion
Dolores’s death causes much grief in Gerald’s life. In an attempt to evade such thoughts of loneliness, he meets a young girl. She is a pickpocket. He names her Audi for being audacious. At first, he feels love towards her. He also thinks of adopting her as his daughter. After some time, he learns she has been missing for one year. He decides to take her back to her parents. When she learns of his intentions, she orders him to stop the car. Nikki quickly runs away and disappears into the woods not to find her again. Gerald’s story offers two important learning lessons to society. First, when he discovers that Nikki is a pickpocket, he decides to take her in. He does not despise her and this is a very noble act. He decides to salvage her from that life that could spoil her. When Gerald finds out that she has been missing him, he decides to take her back to her parents. He does not ignore the fact that her parents might be looking for her and this shows clearly that he is a responsible person.
Reference
Coben, H., & Penzler, O. (2011). The Best American Mystery Stories 2011. New York, NY: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.