Molly looked up and waved to a tall, dignified man with light brown skin at the far side of the juice bar.
“Viktor!” she called out. He saw them, picked up his own strangely colored juice, and came over to join them.
“Jonathan! More handsome every day,” he said, as he grasped Jonathan’s shoulders and squeezed the young man’s hand, nearly crushing it. He hugged Molly, holding her longer than usual. She felt he was trembling slightly.
“What’s happened, Viktor?” Viktor always had a huge, infectious laugh - a giggle, a whoop and a howl combined, while his shoulders and torso jigged up and down. Today, though, he had none of his usual jolliness.
“It’s Linorio. He’s disappeared. He’s gone.”
Molly felt a wave of shock pulse through her. “What happened?”
“Nobody’s seen him for over three weeks, not even on the Connect. He’s always wandered off for a few weeks every year, but this is different. His granddaughter went to his apartment last night. It’s all closed up. Apparently, he’s resigned all his official and community positions. He’s left his wrist-cell and given away his plants.”
“It makes sense now,” Molly said. “What he said the last time we spoke a few weeks ago. He said that the fame had got too much for him and he wanted to become anonymous again. And he said it was his time. Oh Viktor, I had no idea he was planning to disappear. He’s older than me, Viktor. We may never see him again. I may never see him again.”
“I know. He said something similar to me around the same time. It crossed my mind, but I should have known for sure when he gave me all his yellow oleander trees.”
Molly asked Jonathan “You never did meet him, did you?” He shook his head.