"Long Lost" - читать интересную книгу автора (Coben Harlan)

2

"AH," Win said, "the delectable Terese Collins. Now that's a top-quality, world-class derriere."

We sat in the rickety pullout stands in the Kasselton High School gymnasium. The familiar whiffs of sweat and industrial cleaner filled the air. All sounds, as in every similar gymnasium across this vast continent, were distorted, the strange echoes forming the audio equivalent of a shower curtain.

I love gyms like this. I grew up in them. I spent many of my happiest moments in similar airless confines with a basketball in my hand. I love the sound of the dribbling. I love the sheen of sweat that starts popping up on faces during warm-ups. I love the feel of the pebbly leather on your fingertips; that moment of neo-religious purity when your eyes lock on the front rim and you release the ball and it backspins and there is nothing else in the entire world.

"Glad you remember her," I said.

"Top-quality, world-class derriere."

"Yeah, I got that the first time."

Win had been my college roommate at Duke and was now my business partner and, along with Esperanza Diaz, my best friend. His real name was Windsor Horne Lockwood III, and he looked like it: thinning blond locks parted by a deity; ruddy complexion; handsome patrician face; golfer's V-neck burn; eyes the blue of ice. He wore overpriced khakis with a crease to rival the hair part, a blue Lilly Pulitzer blazer with a pink and green lining, a matching pocket hanky that puffed out like a clown's water-squirting flower.

Effete wear.

"When Terese was on TV," Win said, his snooty prep-school accent sounding as though he were explaining the obvious to a somewhat slow child, "you couldn't tell the quality. She was sitting behind the anchor desk."

"Uh-huh."

"But then I saw her in that bikini"-for those keeping score, that would be the Class-B-felony one I told you about earlier-"well, it is a wonderful asset. Wasted as an anchorwoman. It's a tragedy when you think about it."

"Like the Hindenburg," I said.

"Hilarious reference," Win said. "And oh so timely."

Win's expression was permanently set on haughty. People looked at Win and would see elitist, snobby, Old-World money. For the most part, they'd be right. But the part where they'd be wrong… that could get a man seriously maimed.

"Go on," Win said. "Finish your story."

"That's it."

Win frowned. "So when do you leave for Paris?"

"I'm not going."

On the basketball court, the second quarter began. This was fifth-grade boys' basketball. My girlfriend-the term seems rather lame but I'm not sure "lady love," "significant other," or "love monkey" really apply-Ali Wilder has two children, the younger of whom played on this team. His name is Jack, and he wasn't very good. I say that not to judge or predict future success-Michael Jordan didn't start for his high school team until his junior year-but as an observation. Jack is big for his age, husky and tall, and with that often comes lack of speed and coordination. There was a plodding quality to his athleticism.

But Jack loved the game, and that meant the world to me. Jack was a sweet kid, deeply geeky in the absolute best way, and needy, as befit a boy who lost his father so tragically and prematurely.

Ali couldn't get here until halftime and I am, if nothing else, supportive.

Win was still frowning. "Let me get this straight: You turned down spending a weekend with the delectable Ms. Collins and her world-class derriere in a boutique hotel in Paris?"

It was always a mistake talking relationships with Win.

"That's right," I said.

"Why?" Win turned toward me. He looked genuinely perplexed. Then his face relaxed. "Oh, wait."

"What?"

"She's put on weight, hasn't she?"

Win.

"I have no idea."

"So?"

"You know, so. I'm involved, remember?"

Win stared at me as if I were defecating on the court.

"What?" I said.

He sat back. "You're such a very big girl."

The game horn sounded, and Jack pulled on his goggles and lumbered toward the scorer's table with that wonderfully goofy half-smile. The Livingston fifth-grade boys were playing their archrivals from Kasselton. I tried not to smirk at the intensity-not so much the kids' as the parents' in the stands. I try not to generalize but the mothers usually broke down into two groups: the Gabbers, who used the occasion to socialize, and the Harried, who lived and died each time their offspring touched the ball.

The fathers were often more troublesome. Some managed to keep their anxiety under wraps, muttering under their breaths, biting nails. Other fathers screamed out loud. They rode refs, coaches, and kids.

One father, sitting two rows in front of us, had what Win and I had nicknamed "Spectator Tourette's," spending the entire game seemingly unable to stop himself from berating everyone around him out loud.

My perspective on this is clearer than most. I had been that rare commodity-the truly gifted athlete. This came as a shock to my entire family since the greatest Bolitar athletic accomplishment before I came around was my uncle Saul winning a shuffleboard tournament on a Princess Cruise in 1974. I graduated from Livingston High School as a Parade All-American. I was a star guard for Duke, where I captained two NCAA championship teams. I had been a first-round draft pick of the Boston Celtics.

And then, kaboom, it was all gone.

Someone yelled, "Substitution."

Jack adjusted his goggles and ran onto the court.

The coach of the opposing team pointed at Jack and shouted, "Yo, Connor! You got the new man. He's big and slow. Drive around him."

Tourette's Dad bemoaned, "It's a close game. Why are they putting him in now?"

Big and slow? Had I heard right?

I stared at the Kasselton head coach. He had highlight-filled, mousse-spiked hair and a dark goatee neatly trimmed so that he resembled an aging boy-band bass. He was tall-I'm six four and this guy had two inches on me, plus, I would guess, twenty to thirty pounds.

" ' He's big and slow'?" I repeated to Win. "Can you believe the coach just yelled that out loud?"

Win shrugged.

I tried to shake it off too. Heat of the game. Let it go.

The score was tied at twenty-four when disaster struck. It was right after a time-out and Jack's team was inbounding the ball under the opposing team's hoop. Kasselton decided to throw a surprise press at them. Jack was free. The ball was passed to him, but for a moment, with the defense on him, Jack got confused. It happens.

Jack looked for help. He turned toward the Kasselton bench, the one closest to him, and Big Spiky-Haired Coach yelled, "Shoot! Shoot!" and pointed to the basket.

The wrong basket.

"Shoot!" the coach yelled again.

And Jack, who naturally liked to please and who trusted adults, did.

The ball went in. To the wrong hoop. Two points for Kasselton.

The Kasselton parents whooped with cheers and even laughter. The Livingston parents threw up their hands and moaned over a fifth grader's mistake. And then the Kasselton coach, the guy with the spiky hair and boy-band goatee, high-fived his assistant coach, pointed at Jack, and shouted, "Hey, kid, do that again!"

Jack may have been the biggest kid on the court, but right now he looked as if he were trying very hard to be as small as possible. The goofy half-smile fled. His lip twitched. His eyes blinked. Every part of the boy cringed and so did my heart.

A father from Kasselton was whooping it up. He laughed, cupped his hands into a flesh megaphone, and shouted, "Pass it to the big kid on the other team! He's our best weapon!"

Win tapped the man on the shoulder. "You will shut up right now."

The father turned to Win, saw the effete wear and the blond hair and the porcelain features. He was about to smirk and snap a comeback, but something-probably something survival basic and reptilian brained-made him think better of it. His eyes met Win's ice blues and then he lowered them and said, "Yeah, sorry, that was out of line."

I barely heard. I couldn't move. I sat in the stands and stared at the smug, spiky-haired coach. I felt the tick in my blood.

The buzzer sounded, signaling halftime. The coach was still laughing and shaking his head in amazement. One of his assistant coaches walked over and shook his hand. So did a few of the parents and spectators.

"I must depart," Win said.

I did not respond.

"Should I stick around? Just in case?"

"No."

Win gave a curt nod and left. I still had my gaze locked on that Kasselton coach. I rose and started down the rickety stands. My footsteps fell like thunder. The coach started for the door. I followed. He headed into the bathroom grinning like the idiot he undoubtedly was. I waited for him by the door.

When he emerged, I said, "Classy."

The words "Coach Bobby" were sewn in script onto his shirt. He stopped and stared at me. "Excuse me?"

"Encouraging a ten-year-old to shoot at the wrong basket," I said. "And that hilarious line about 'Hey, kid, do it again' after you help humiliate him. You're a class act, Coach Bobby."

The coach's eyes narrowed. Up close he was big and broad and had thick forearms and large knuckles and a Neanderthal brow. I knew the type. We all do.

"Part of the game, pal."

"Mocking a ten-year-old is part of the game?"

"Getting in his head. Forcing your opponent to make a mistake."

I said nothing. He sized me up and decided that, yeah, he could take me. Big guys like Coach Bobby are sure they can take pretty much anyone. I just stared at him.

"You got a problem?" he said.

"These are ten-year-old kids."

"Right, sure, kids. What are you-one of those namby-pamby, touchy-feely daddies who thinks everyone should be equal on the court? No one should get their feelings hurt, no one should win or lose… hey, maybe we shouldn't even keep score, right?"

The Kasselton assistant coach came over. He had on a matching shirt that read "Assistant Coach Pat." "Bobby? Second half's about to start."

I took a step closer. "Just knock it off."

Coach Bobby gave me the predictable smirk and reply. "Or what?"

"He's a sensitive boy."

"Boo hoo. If he's that sensitive, maybe he shouldn't play."

"And maybe you shouldn't coach."

Assistant Coach Pat stepped forward then. He looked at me, and that knowing smile I was all too familiar with spread across his face. "Well, well, well."

Coach Bobby said, "What?"

"Do you know who this guy is?"

"Who?"

"Myron Bolitar."

You could see Coach Bobby working the name, as if his forehead had a window and the squirrel running on the little track was picking up speed. When the synapses stopped firing, Coach Bobby's grin practically ripped the boy-band goatee at the corners.

"That big 'superstar'"-he actually made quotation marks with his fingers-"who couldn't hack it in the pros? The world-famous first-round bust?"

"The very one," Assistant Coach Pat added.

"Now I get it."

"Hey, Coach Bobby?" I said.

"What?"

"Just leave the kid alone."

The brow thickened. "You don't want to mess with me," he said.

"You're right. I don't. I want you to leave the kid alone."

"Not a chance, pal." He smiled and moved a little closer to me. "You got a problem with that?"

"I do, very much."

"So how about you and me discuss this further after the game? Privately?"

Flares started lighting up my veins. "Are you challenging me to a fight?"

"Yep. Unless, of course, you're chicken. Are you chicken?"

"I'm not chicken," I said.

Sometimes I'm good with the snappy comebacks. Try to keep up.

"I got a game to coach. But then you and me, we settle this. You got me?"

"Got you," I said.

Again with the snappy. I'm on a roll.

Coach Bobby put his finger in my face. I debated biting it off-that always gets a man's attention. "You're a dead man, Bolitar. You hear me? A dead man."

"A deaf man?" I said.

"A dead man."

"Oh, good, because if I were a deaf man, I wouldn't be able to hear you. Come to think of it, if I were a dead man, I wouldn't be able to either."

The horn sounded. Assistant Coach Pat said, "Come on, Bobby."

"Dead man," he said one more time.

I cupped my hand to my ear, hard-of-hearing style, and shouted, "What?" but he had already spun away.

I watched him. He had that confident, slow swagger, shoulders back, arms swaying a tad too much. I was going to yell out something stupid when I felt a hand on my arm. I turned. It was Ali, Jack's mother.

"What was that all about?" Ali asked.

Ali had these big green eyes and this cute, wide-open face I found fairly irresistible. I wanted to pick her up and smother her with kisses, but some might deem this the wrong venue.

"Nothing," I said.

"How did the first half go?"

"We're down by two, I think."

"Did Jack score?"

"I don't think so, no."

Ali studied my face for a moment and saw something she didn't like. I turned away and headed back up the stands. I sat. Ali sat next to me. Two minutes into the game, Ali said, "So what's the matter?"

"Nothing."

I shifted in the uncomfortable bleacher.

"Liar," Ali said.

"Just getting into the game."

"Liar."

I glanced over at her, at the lovely, open face, at the freckles that shouldn't be there at this age but made her damn adorable, and saw something too. "You look a little distracted yourself."

Not just today, I thought, but for the past few weeks things had not been great between us. Ali had been distant and troubled and wouldn't talk about it. I had been pretty busy with work myself so I hadn't pushed it.

Ali kept her eyes on the court. "Did Jack play well?"

"Fine," I said. Then I added, "What time is your flight tomorrow?"

"Three."

"I'll drive you to the airport."

Ali's daughter, Erin, was matriculating at Arizona State. Ali, Erin, and Jack were flying out for the week to get the freshman settled.

"That's okay. I already hired a car."

"I'd be happy to drive."

"It'll be fine."

Her voice cut off any further discussions on that issue. I tried to settle back and watch the game. My pulse still raced. A few minutes later, Ali asked, "Why do you keep staring at the other coach?"

"Which coach?"

"The one with the bad cable-show dye job and Robin Hood facial hair."

"Looking for grooming tips," I said.

She almost smiled.

"Did Jack play a lot in the first half?"

"Usual amount," I said.

The game ended, Kasselton winning by three. The crowd erupted. Jack's coach, a good guy by all counts, had chosen not to play him at all in the second half. Ali was a tad perturbed by this-the coach was usually good about giving kids equal time-but she decided to let it go.

The teams disappeared into corners for the postgame spiel. Ali and I waited outside the gym door, in the school corridor. It didn't take long. Coach Bobby started toward me, the same swagger, though now his hands had tightened into fists. He had three other guys with him, including Assistant Coach Pat, all big and overweight and not nearly as tough as they thought they were. Coach Bobby stopped about a yard short of yours truly. His three compadres spread out and folded their arms and stared at me.

For a moment no one spoke. They just gave me the hard eyes.

"Is this the part where I pee in my pants?" I asked.

Coach Bobby started with the finger again. "Do you know the Landmark Bar in Livingston?"

"Sure," I said.

"Tonight at ten. Back parking lot."

"That's past my curfew," I said. "And I'm not that kind of date. Dinner first. Maybe bring flowers."

"If you don't show"-he moved in closer with the finger-"I will find some other way to get satisfaction. You get me?"

I didn't but before I could ask for clarification he stomped off. His buddies followed suit. They looked back at me. I gave them all a five-finger toodle-loo wave. When one of them let his stare linger past the comfort zone, I blew him a kiss. He turned away as if he'd been slapped.

Blowing a kiss-my favorite rile-up-the-homophobe move.

I turned to Ali, saw her face, thought Uh-oh…

"What the hell was that?"

"Something happened during the game before you got here," I said.

"What?"

I told her.

"So you confronted the coach?"

"Yes."

"Why?" she asked.

"What do you mean, why?"

"You made it worse. He's a blowhard. The kids get that."

"Jack was practically in tears."

"Then I'll handle it. I don't need your macho posturing."

"It wasn't macho posturing. I wanted him to stop picking on Jack."

"No wonder Jack didn't get to play in the second half. His coach probably saw your idiotic display and was smart enough not to fan the flames. Do you feel better now?"

"Not yet, no," I said, "but after I smash his face in at the Landmark, yeah, I think I will."

"Don't even think about it."

"You heard what he said."

Ali shook her head. "I can't believe this. What the hell is wrong with you?"

"I was sticking up for Jack."

"That's not your place. You have no right here. You're…"

She stopped.

"Say it, Ali."

She closed her eyes.

"You're right. I'm not his father."

"That's not what I was going to say."

It was, but I let it go. "Maybe it's not my place, if it was about that-except that wasn't it. I would have gone after that guy even if he said it about another kid."

"Why?"

"Because it's wrong."

"And who are you to make that call?"

"What call? There's wrong. There's right. He was wrong."

"He's an arrogant ass. Some people are. That's life. Jack understands that, or he will with experience. That's part of growing up-dealing with asses. Don't you see that?"

I said nothing.

"And if my son was so gravely wounded," Ali said between clenched teeth, "who do you think you are to not tell me? I even asked why you two were talking at halftime, remember?"

"I do."

"You said it was nothing. What were you thinking-humble the little lady?"

"No, of course not."

Ali shook her head and stopped talking.

"What?" I asked.

"I let you get too close to him," she said.

I felt my heart nose-dive.

"Damn," she said.

I waited.

"For a wonderful guy who is usually so damn perceptive, you can be pretty obtuse sometimes."

"Maybe I shouldn't have gone after him, okay? But if you'd been there when he yelled at Jack to do it again, if you'd seen Jack's face…"

"I'm not talking about that."

I stopped, considered. "Then you're right. I am obtuse."

I'm six four, Ali a foot shorter. She stood close and looked way up at me. "I'm not going to Arizona to get Erin settled. Or at least not just for that. My parents live there. And his parents live there."

I knew who his referred to-her late husband, the ghost I've learned to accept and even, at times, embrace. The ghost never leaves. I'm not sure that he ever should, though there are times I wish he would and of course that's a horrible thing to think.

"They-I mean, both sets of grandparents-want us to move out there. So we can be near them. It makes sense when you think about it."

I nodded because I didn't know what else to do.

"Jack and Erin and, heck, me too, we need that."

"Need what?"

"Family. His parents need to be part of Jack's life. They can't handle the cold weather up here anymore. Do you understand that?"

"Of course I understand."

My words sounded funny in my own ears, as if someone else were saying them.

"My parents found a place they want us to look at," Ali said. "It's in the same condo development as theirs."

"Condos are nice," I said, babbling. "Low maintenance. You pay that one monthly fee and that's it, right?"

Now she said nothing.

"So," I said, "to put it right out there, what does this mean for us?"

"Do you want to move to Scottsdale?" she asked.

I hesitated.

She put a hand on my arm. "Look at me."

I did. And then she said something I never saw coming:

"We're not forever, Myron. We both know that."

A group of kids rushed past us. One bumped into me and actually said, "Excuse me." A ref blew a whistle. A horn sounded.

"Mom?"

Jack, bless his little heart, appeared around the corner. We both snapped out of it and smiled toward him. He did not smile back. Usually, no matter how awful he'd played, Jack came bounding out like a born-again puppy, offering up smiles and high fives. Part of the kid's charm. But not today.

"Hey, kiddo," I said, because I wasn't sure what to say. Lots of times I hear people in similar situations say, "Good game," but kids know that it's a lie and that they're being patronized and that just makes it worse.

Jack ran over to me, wrapped his arms around my waist, buried his face in my chest, started to sob. I felt my heart crack anew. I stood there, cupping the back of his head. Ali was watching my face. I didn't like what I saw.

"Tough day," I said. "We all have them. Don't let it get to you, okay? You did your best, that's all you can do." Then I added something the boy would never understand but was absolutely true: "These games aren't really that important."

Ali put her hands on her son's shoulder. He let go of me, turned to her, buried his face again. We stood there like that for a minute, until he calmed down. Then I clapped my hands and forced up a smile.

"Anyone up for ice cream?"

Jack rebounded fast. "Me!"

"Not today," Ali said. "We need to pack and get ready."

Jack frowned.

"Maybe another time."

I expected Jack to give an "awww, Mom," but maybe he heard something in her tone too. He tilted his head and then turned back to me without another word. We knuckled up-that was how we said hello and good-bye, the fist-knuckle salute-and Jack started for the door.

Ali gestured with her eyes for me to look right. I followed the gesture to Coach Bobby. "Don't you dare fight him," she said.

"He challenged me," I said.

"The bigger man steps away."

"In the movies maybe. In places filled with pixie dust and Easter Bunnies and pretty fairies. But in real life, the man who steps away is considered a big-time wuss."

"Then for me, okay? For Jack. Don't go to that bar tonight. Promise me."

"He said if I didn't show, he'd get satisfaction or something."

"He's a blowhard. Promise me."

She made me meet her eyes.

I hesitated but not for long. "Okay, I won't show."

She turned to walk away. There was no kiss, not even a buss on the cheek.

"Ali?"

"What?"

The corridor suddenly seemed very empty.

"Are we breaking up?"

"Do you want to live in Scottsdale?"

"You want an answer right now?"

"No. But I already know the answer. So do you."