We passed the de Young and then quickly turned behind the museum and headed west toward Ocean Beach. I looked up at the now-empty floors of the tower, where we normally met with our colleagues. Still dark outside, the copper skin of the building was illuminated by the white glow of interior office lights, giving the building an odd, artificial color.
“It’s amazing to realize this building leads two lives,” I said as we jogged past.
“Sort of like you,” William said.
“I guess so,” I said. “All of us, really.”
“A necessary evil,” he said. “Because in this case, the truth is more complicated than the fiction.”
As we continued to run, I picked up on the distinctive caw of a raven somewhere behind us. I stopped for a moment to stretch and casually turned toward the noise, and there atop a streetlight was a trio of the black birds. William, who’d run a few paces ahead of me, realized I’d stopped and circled back.
“Why’d you stop?”
“I was distracted by the ravens,” I said, pointing. “I’ve never known them to be so bold, so early in the morning.”
He eyed the enormous creatures with disdain.
“Get out of here, you three!” he said, facing in their direction. “Tell your master you’ve been discovered.”
The ravens didn’t move, nor did they make another sound either. We were locked in a staring contest, making me feel like a character in a Hitchcock film.
“They can understand you?” I asked quietly under my breath.
“I’m guessing,” he said, never taking his eyes off the trio. “You said it yourself, these birds are normally not this active so early in the morning. I think they’re spies, shape-shifters that report to someone, perhaps Nikola.”
“That’s odd. I don’t sense anything. How can you be sure?”
“I can’t,” he said. “All I have is my instinct, but their presence is odd.”
“Let’s ignore them,” I said. “You might be right, but what can they tell him anyway?”
“OK,” William said. “But don’t say anything you don’t want him to hear.”
“You mean Nikola?”
William nodded.
“Oh, but I should like to send him a message,” I said.
“That’s exactly what I was afraid of,” he said. “Say nothing, love. Let him know nothing of what you’re thinking.”
Reluctantly, I agreed.
“Come on,” I said, turning my back on the birds. “I feel like going over to Strawberry Hill instead of the beach. We can run up the hill and look out at the Golden Gate.”
A few minutes later we turned onto the access road that climbs up to Stow Lake, and followed the pavement until we reached the opening for the trails that lead to the top of the hill. Morning was in full swing for the creatures of the lake, the ducks and geese quacking and honking, waddling back and forth as they searched for their morning meals. Small pink crayfish were crawling out of the muck onto the grass, creeping slowly toward a point unknown. I marveled at the activity as we slowly zigzagged up the dirt path, climbing up the hill, the city panorama coming into view. Our climb finished, I paused with my hands on my knees to catch my breath. I looked around for the gathering of fallen tree trunks we’d first sat on months ago after the bluegrass festival and pointed them out to William.
“Do you remember when we sat on those logs?” I asked. “I told you my story and then you disappeared.”
“That’s not exactly how I remember it,” he said.
“How do you remember it?”
“I kissed you,” he said. “I kissed you, and then I disappeared.”
“That’s right,” I said. “I was so disappointed. When I opened my eyes you were gone.”
“I was disappointed, too, darlin,” he said. “But I thought it better to leave.”
“Did you know I would find you?”
“I hoped you would try.”
“I didn’t know what I was doing,” I said, surprised at my admission. “I mean, I wanted you so badly, but I didn’t realize…”
“I know,” he said. “That is why I decided to leave that day.”
“And now?”
“Now,” he said, pulling me into his arms. “Now I know that you know exactly what I’m thinking.”
What he was thinking is that he wanted to kiss, so I obliged, several times over. And this time, when I opened my eyes, he was still there, right by my side. The moment wasn’t lost on me and I decided to make my long-term intentions clear by mentioning Paris.
“My mother has invited me to visit her in Paris,” I said. “She has an exhibition there. I told her I would come