Chapter 10

“Hey man, good luck,” said Leonard Denier.

“Thanks man,” I said. “I won’t forget.” The cellmates shook hands and then Adam Barnes was led down the passageway to freedom, but also to an uncertain future.

I saw the familiar face waiting in the reception area and forced a smile, and it was forced. It was obvious, that as hard as the man had worked to help me out over my years behind bars, that he knew of my family’s betrayals, probably all of it. But he had not betrayed me by telling them about my physical condition; that was major; so I guess it was a wash. At any rate that made it possible for me to overlook what I was pretty sure he had little choice in keeping from me. Yes it did.

“Horace,” I said. “So, at least they had the decency not to come and try to pressure me.”

“Good to see you Adam. And, yes, they are going to try and honor your wishes as I expressed them to them. They, she especially, need to talk to you, that’s need. But they understand your reasoning. They will leave you alone while still hoping that you will come to them and maybe try to forgive them. At any rate...

“Got a lot to tell you and ask you. But we’ve got 200 hundred miles to go, so we do have time.”

“I guess.”

I was surprised. He was driving my ancient Buick. “Jesus, you weren’t kidding,” I said. “He did keep it in good shape.”

“I’d let you drive, but I do not have a death wish,” said Horace. “You’ll be able to get back in the saddle again when you are home and can kinda relearn to drive; you know, starting with short trips and stuff.” I smirked.

“I guess,” I said. “Can I ask? The job? I just need something so I can get by; I mean you know?”

“Yes, okay, about the job; you got it. And before you ask, just to reassure you, nobody knows about the physical thing.

“But, I did tell them that you wanted me, not them, to get you a job. And, I told them that if they got you one, I mean instead of me, that you would quit and hate me forevermore, that said. I did ask the man to point me toward possibilities. Hope I didn’t step over the line,” he said.

“Well, you did, but coming clean to me about it makes it okay, I guess. But it has to be you; him not at all. Okay?”

“Yes, okay,” he said.

“Okay, good. And the big thing is just between you and me. Like I said last month, I just could not bear her knowing that I wasn’t even a whole man anymore. Really, Horace, they kept their betrayals secret; I get to keep this one, this secret between you and me. I mean really.

“And Horace, obviously I know that you knew all about what they were doing behind my back. How could you not. I guess you were doing what you thought was right. Probably trying to save me from the pain I would have suffered if I had known what they were doing to me all of those years.

“Okay, I can forgive you that. Again, I can so long as you do not betray my secret to the two of them. You have just got to protect ‘me’ this time, not him, not her, not them. Please,” I said.

“Adam, I do promise you that. They will never learn anything from me that you do not want them to learn from me. Again, I promise. But on another note...

“Your niece just graduated from college. Last week actually. She has to take the test for the license, but she will, and she’ll pass it. She’ll be a nurse practitioner,” he said.

“A nurse practitioner? I was treated by one of them in the infirmary; a number of times actually,” I said. “You’ve met her, Emma. Uh, but niece?”

“Briana. When your brother married Riley, he adopted her. She’s an official member of the family; you’re her uncle—legally,” he said. “Actually, you are an uncle, and again quite officially, three times over.”

“Yeah, but not her daddy,” I said, kinda quietly.

“They feel bad about everything, Adam. Eventually, they’re going to kinda try and press you, bend over backwards, to get you to cut them some slack, maybe a lot of slack,” said Horace.

“They feel bad? I feel worse,” I said. “But again, what about the job? I mean the when the where the what and all of that.”

“Allied Rock and Sand. You’ll be a manifest checker for both outgoing and incoming drivers. Pay will be pretty good, $40k and good med-bennies. I was able to wrangle those for you. And as far as I know Rodney has nothing to do with it; and, the owner is aware of your record.

“But Adam, as per your family, no matter what you want, you got it. That’s from the mouth of the rich guy himself. All he is asking for, like I was saying, is a little forgiveness. Okay, a lot of forgiveness. And that for her too, more her than him even.”

“No, I don’t want anything from any of them. They dumped me, betrayed me. It’s my turn to be dumping them. Period,” I said. “And there will be no forgiveness let alone forgetfulness.”

Time crawled, almost four hours to get back to Phoenix, well, to my old digs. He pulled into my old two car garage and parked. He handed me the keys. His own car was parked next to mine.

“I gotta say, Adam, this is almost too easy,” he said.

“Easy? Easy for who?” I said. He snickered, but he knew what I meant. And, I think he was on my side.

We went inside my old place. It felt good. He gave me the tour; well, it had been forever.

“They did ask me to ask you if you would consider coming to dinner on Friday next, the 8th, 6:00 p.m.,” he said. I mean, I know what you said as we drove down here, but ... well, I’ve delivered their message.”

“No, not ever. Make sure they know that I cannot be around them, really her, not ever again if I can help it.”

“Okay, I understand,” he said. He shook my hand and left.

Horace gone, I checked the place again, my place, on my own. I smiled. The cupboards were stocked and so was the fridge. I was in hog heaven, but it was a womanless hog heaven, not what I’d hoped for. Not by a long shot.

“I like walking in the park sometimes,” said Riley. “And especially when it’s nice out like today.”

“Yes, me too,” he said. “I remember my brother used to like to walk here too.”

“His condo isn’t too far from here, maybe half a mile,” she said.

“Less,” he said. “Just before he started law school, I got him the condo. Oh, and his dream car. We were walking down this very pathway when I told him about it. He was ecstatic”

“The Buick,” she said. “Yes, he really was in love with that car. He used to bore me with stories about it back before ... well, before.”

“I can believe it. Guys have a thing about cars. And a lot of guys have a favorite that they never get over being attached to. I’m not one of them, but Adam sure as heck was,” said Rodney.

“What do you think would happen if we just walked up the hill and happened to knock on his door. I mean we do just happen to be in the neighborhood,” she said.

“Not a good idea. Horace made that plain enough. The time may come, but that time is not now. He’s only been out of the joint for two days. We need to give him his space,” he said.

“I suppose you’re right. But, Briana ... I mean, she’s twenty-two. She needs to be talked to about him. She won’t remember him except maybe in the vaguest of ways. But, with the proper prepping...”

“And, just what would be the proper prepping?” he said. His wife smirked.

“Point taken. No, it would not be easy. But I refuse to believe that it is not possible. She’s an intelligent girl. She could be made to realize just what a good man her uncle is,” she said.

“Yes, but that does not alter the truth that he may not be willing to see himself as her uncle, not when he spent near nineteen years seeing himself as her daddy.”

“You’re right of course. That is going to be a hurdle. I guess we do have to do as you say and give the man his space at least for now,” she said.