Читать книгу Twenty-Four Shadows - Tanya J. Peterson - Страница 10

Chapter 3

Isaac listened to Reese shift in her sleep. Because he had been staring at the ceiling all night, he noticed that the color was lightening slightly, but not enough yet to illuminate the thin layer of dust on the blades of their ceiling fan. He hadn’t slept a wink. His burned arms were part of the reason. They felt like they were on fire, and they stung like hell. But even worse than the physical pain, which was extreme, was the anguish of not knowing how they got there. In searching his brain to try to figure it out, he continued to come up empty. Just as with some of the old scars bedecking his body, he didn’t know how they got there, but he knew one thing: they were there as a punishment, and he deserved it. That he was resigned to it didn’t mean that he was happy about it, though. What must Reese think? What if she decided, rightfully so, that she could no longer stand him and she did what Gretchen did to Max? The difference would be that Reese would take Dominic. The mere thought of this was crushing. If he were a man capable of crying, he probably would be doing so now. Tears never flowed, though, and they didn’t tonight, either. Nonetheless, he was in agony because of the pain and the fear of what could happen.

What Gretchen did to Max was the other, related, source of his agony. How could someone abandon her family like that? He and Reese had been friends with Gretchen and Max for nearly a decade. Max and Gretchen were already living in the house next door when Isaac and Reese bought this house. They all had hit it off immediately. Isaac had always thought Gretchen was rather cool and aloof, but that didn’t explain why she left her family. Max and Elise didn’t deserve this. Max was a good guy. Better than Isaac. Far better. If either of them deserved his wife taking off, it was Isaac.

He bolted upright. He had had that thought over and over again throughout the night, a recurring, waking nightmare. Rather than becoming desensitized to the thought, he had grown increasingly agitated by it and by now wanted to wake up Reese, grab onto her, beg her to stay, and never let go. That probably wouldn’t go over well, given that she was sleeping peacefully after an exhausting weekend. He sighed and squinted at the clock, leaning closer to compensate for the glasses that rested on the table rather than on his face. Almost five thirty. The alarm would ring soon. Reese liked to wake up before him and beat him into the shower. She claimed that if she didn’t shower early, Dominic would wake up at his usual early hour, and it could be hours before she had a chance again. Isaac looked at her and smiled. He and Dominic were so lucky to have her in their lives. He thought of the way she was with Dominic. She was a terrific mother, patient and playful and always there watching over him, protecting him from harm. Not every mom was like that. Not even close.

He leaned over and kissed her head lightly. He didn’t want to wake her up. She deserved all the sleep she could get. She deserved a nice wake-up, too, to start off her Monday well to counter the horrible way Sunday had ended. He quietly slid out of bed and padded to the kitchen. Moving slowly, in part to remain quiet and in part to avoid increasing the pain in his arms, he started the coffee maker. Before putting away the bag of coffee grounds, he indulged in the pleasure of closing his eyes and breathing deeply, reveling in the fresh, earthy smell. Chastising himself for being selfish when he was supposed to be doing something nice for his beautiful wife, he rolled the bag, pinched it shut, and put the coffee back in the cupboard where it belonged. He wanted to give her something, in addition to the coffee, that would make her smile. But what? He closed his eyes and thought about it. When he opened them, a satisfied grin spread across his face. He had a silly little idea that would likely amuse Reese.

He rummaged through the fridge and found the containers of strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries. Now whistling softly and cheerfully, he grabbed a piece of bread and cut it in half diagonally. He kept one of the diagonal halves as-is but trimmed and shaped the other into a rounded triangle. From the remnants, he fashioned a crescent. Next, he placed the segments of bread together just so, added slices of strawberries for scales, and voila! He had an angel fish, perfect for Reese, his personal angel. He added final artistic touches: a blueberry for an eye, eight for a vertical row of bubbles rising from the fish’s mouth, and raspberries for a rock bed. He tilted his head and considered it. It needed one more thing to complete the effect. He stepped outside, plucked a leaf from the rhododendron bush just off the deck, returned to the kitchen, and cut it into strips to place among the “rocks” as seaweed. He smiled in satisfaction at his creation.

The last thing he wanted to do was to leave a mess, even a small one, for Reese. He put everything away. As he was wiping down the knife he had used for the strawberries, he muttered, “Yeah, this needs to be put away, not left out in the open where you could easily get at it to hurt us.”

Satisfied that the kitchen was once again spotless, he poured a mug of steaming coffee, grabbed the plate with the playful fruity fish, and padded back down the hallway into his bedroom. He set his items on the nightstand, turned off the alarm clock so it wouldn’t obnoxiously jolt Reese from sleep, and slid into bed beside his wife. Ignoring the pain it caused, he pulled Reese close to him and ran his hands up and down her back, caressing her gently to wake her. When she opened her eyes and smiled at him, he no longer cared at all about the pain of his burns. He smiled at her. “Good morning.”

“Morning? I was hoping that you were simply waking me up to tell me that we had six more hours of sleep left.” She rested her forehead against his chest.

“You don’t have to get up, Reese. Why don’t you sleep some more?”

“No. I need to get up. You know the Dominic drill. Hey, do I smell coffee?”

“Oh yeah! I thought you might need a strong wake-up call, so I brewed a pot and brought you a mug.” Isaac rolled over and reached for the coffee. He stopped in mid-grasp when he spotted the plate beside the cup. On the plate was a colorful angel fish made out of fruit and bread. Where did it come from, and how did it get here? He hung his head and sighed.

He felt Reese scoot over to him. She propped herself up on one elbow behind him and flung her other arm over his chest. She poked her head over his shoulder. “So are you going to let me have a sip of that coffee, or are you just being a tease?” Before Isaac could answer, Reese gasped, “What is that?” She wriggled onto her knees and stretched over the top of Isaac to grab the plate. “Isaac! This is amazing! It’s adorable. I still hate that it’s morning already, but this reminds me of why I love to be awake.” She kissed his head. “I love your playful side, and I cherish these fun, random things you surprise me with. You make me feel loved, Isaac, and you remind me that there are always good things in life no matter how bad things can be sometimes.” She locked her gaze onto his. “I love you a lot, you know. When I think of Max, I realize how very lucky we are.” She reached over him again, set the plate down, and returned to kiss him.

As they kissed, he wrapped one arm around her waist and laced the fingers of his other hand through her hair as he tried very hard to hide the fact that he felt physically ill. He loved Reese. He loved her more than anything or anyone in the whole world. But how could she possibly love him as he really was? She had just said that she loved his playful side, but that was terrifying because he didn’t know just what that “playful side” was. She’d said before that she loved various little things he bought for her or did for her, things like this fruit fish creation, things that he never had any recollection of buying or doing. Oh, the fish was indeed creative, and he wished he remembered making it for Reese. But no matter how hard he thought, he couldn’t remember making it. So if Reese loved the man who made it, but that man didn’t remember making it, what did that mean for their love? What if she found out that he was a flake? He was horrible, and here was more proof. Panicked, he pressed his hand more firmly against the back of her head, pulling her closer, and kissed her with increasing passion, as if to pour the intensity of his love into her so she’d know that he meant to be good, not bad.

Initially, their passions fueled each other’s, but suddenly Reese pulled away and flopped back onto her pillow. Isaac exclaimed, “Reese! What’s wrong?”

She covered her face with her hands. “Isaac, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to ruin the moment, but I’m thinking of Max.”

“Well, that’s something a guy always wants to hear from his wife, that she’s thinking of another man.” He plunked down, bouncing ever so slightly as his body settled in beside Reese.

“No. That’s not what I meant! I mean that here we are, enjoying waking each other up, but he’s over there all alone, waking up to no one. His wife left him, and she left their baby, too. He’s alone to deal with it. I feel so bad for him, Isaac.”

Isaac sighed. “Yeah. I do, too.”

Reese turned her head to look at her husband. “What should we do?”

“Just be there for him, I suppose. I think I’ll take today off work. Maybe Max is staying home today, and we can help him sort things out.”

Reese kissed him on the cheek. “You’re a good man, Isaac Bittman.”

Ten minutes later, a light blinked on in Max’s house. Fifteen minutes after that, showered, dressed in long sleeves to both protect and hide his burns, Isaac rang Max’s doorbell. A haggard-looking Max, complete with bloodshot eyes, baby spit-up on his shoulder, and holding a fussy Elise, opened the door. When Max just stared at him, Isaac broke the silence. “Hey, Max.”

“Do you need something, Isaac?”

“Yeah. Some eggs.”

“Oh. I don’t know if we…if I…have any. Go look in the fridge.”

“Max! I don’t need eggs. I came to check on you. Reese is making breakfast and wants you to come over.”

“Oh. Tell her thanks, but I can’t. I’m not going to work today, so I don’t need breakfast right now. Plus I haven’t showered, and I have Elise to look after, and…” He bounced Elise absentmindedly as he trailed off.

Isaac reached over and gently took Elise. Ignoring the searing pain Elise’s weight and motion caused his arms, he played with her. He wrinkled his nose and rubbed it on hers, causing her to squeal with delight and yank off his glasses. “Hey, kiddo! Uncle Isaac needs those to see.” With his one free arm, he wrestled them out of her chubby little hands and stuck them back on his face. He looked over at Max to see him simply standing there numbly.

“I don’t need my glasses to see that this is overwhelming. Let Reese and me help you through this, okay? Go get ready for the day. I’ll watch Elise, and then we’ll go eat whatever fabulous breakfast Reese has prepared. Okay?” Isaac attempted to step inside, but Max remained standing solidly in the center of the doorway, blocking Isaac and preventing him from entering the house.

“Why were you such a prick last night?”

Isaac sighed. Not this again. “Max, I’m sorry. I don’t know what got into me.” Max, Isaac thought, had no idea how literal that statement was. “I was angry at Gretchen. You and Elise don’t deserve this.”

Max folded his arms across his chest. “Yeah, well, Gretchen didn’t deserve you screaming at her, grabbing her am, hurting her—”

“You’re defending her?” Isaac asked, incredulous. He heard his voice rise and noticed Elise begin to fuss, likely in response to his increasing tension. He adjusted Elise on his hip and took a breath. As he exhaled, he noted with relief that his frustration dissipated. He absolutely did not want a repeat of whatever had happened last night. Apparently he had been quite angry, which he still didn’t understand. He never, ever got angry. Ever. Just as he didn’t cry, he didn’t feel anger. He pushed the thoughts away. He felt calm again, and he wanted to reach out to his friend.

Max talked before Isaac had a chance to resume. “Look, Isaac—”

“Wait.” He interrupted Max again. “Stop. Please. I’m sorry. I’m sorry about last night, and I’m sorry about now. It won’t happen again, okay? Will you let us help you through this?”

After staring at Isaac at length, Max nodded. “Yeah. Okay. For Elise.” He gave a small smile as he stepped back and let Isaac through the door. Isaac followed Max to the kitchen. As he walked, Max said over his shoulder, “I suppose I should appreciate the fact that you were just trying to stick up for me. I really wasn’t doing it for myself. Plus I’m used to your temper, so I shouldn’t have been so shocked. It’s just that I still care about her, and because of that I defended her. I’m a chump, right?” Having reached the kitchen, he went into the pantry. He re-emerged balancing a can of liquid baby formula, a box of baby rice cereal, and a few jars of interestingly colored baby food.

Isaac’s head was spinning. Max used to his temper? What temper? What did he mean by that? Too stunned to speak, he remained silent.

After placing the baby grocery store on the counter, Max turned to Isaac and said, “Well, you don’t have to be so quick to disagree with me being a chump.”

Max’s words brought Isaac’s focus back to the moment. “Uh, sorry. Of course you’re not a chump. Why don’t you go shower and stuff and then come over? I’ve got Elise.”

Max sighed. “I guess. Thanks, man.” He nodded toward the counter. “I’ll bring this stuff over when I come. See you in a few.”

Isaac was lost in thought as he walked into his own kitchen. Starting with Dominic’s party, the weekend had been nothing but one confusing moment after another. More so than usual, that is. And now Max’s comment about his temper. Isaac was beginning to worry that he was going completely crazy. The thought nagged at him as he leaned against the counter watching Reese make breakfast. Suddenly she was standing nose-to-nose with him looking straight into his eyes. He blinked.

“Isaac! I’ve asked you three times how Max is doing. Where are you right now?”

Isaac rubbed the back of his neck with his free hand. “Sorry. Thinking. About Max. And about how lucky Dominic and I are to have you.”

Reese leaned in and kissed him. “Here. Let me take the baby off your hands. Holding her must be painful.”

Isaac nodded and gently touched his arms. “Yeah. Reese?”

She placed Elise on a blanket in the breakfast nook and handed her some kitchen goodies to play with. The baby took immediate delight in shaking plastic cups with one hand and gnawing on and slobbering all over a wooden spoon with the other. “Yes, sweetheart?”

“Max said I have a temper. Do I have a temper?”

Isaac watched Reese as she cocked her head and seemed to consider the question. “Um, sometimes.” She paused and knitted her eyebrows. “I guess it’s usually more like extreme irritability. Why?”

“Oh.” He bit his lip. “I guess I asked because I didn’t mean to have a temper. I didn’t realize, I guess. It’s inexcusable, and I’m sorry, Reese.” He looked down and studied his shoes.

“Oh, honey.” She slipped her arms around his waist and pulled him closer. “You really need to stop always being so hard on yourself. Do I love it when you’re irritable or your temper flares up? No. Sometimes it hurts and pisses me off. And of course I hate it when your irritability lasts for longer periods. But it’s never been like it was last night. That was awful and I hope you don’t get like that ever again. Usually when you’re angry you confine it to stomping around and grouching. Like I said, I don’t love that, but I do love you. No one’s perfect, Isaac. I’m far from perfect, so I certainly don’t expect you to be.” After a pause, she wondered aloud, “Are you really surprised by this?”

He shrugged. Then he could only stare at her because he had no idea what to say. Reese also said nothing but just leaned in and kissed him. Some of his concerns moved to the back recesses of his mind as he returned the kiss. The moment didn’t last nearly long enough. Within minutes, the doorbell rang, signaling Max’s arrival. Minutes after that, Dominic came trotting into the kitchen. He delighted in Max’s presence, and after fist-bumping him and showing off his loose tooth, which of course he claimed was much looser today than it had been just yesterday, and his newly formed bicep “muscles,” he settled down on the floor to show Elise how to play properly.

Max’s hands flew to his head. He started to pace, and he spoke quickly, his voice rising in panic. “Oh my God. Elise! I didn’t even think of this before. What am I going to do with her? After today, I mean? She went to work with Gretchen because her firm had a daycare center. But Gretchen isn’t there anymore. She’s gone. So Elise can’t go there anymore! I can’t believe it. What about Elise? She didn’t even think of her. What am I going to do? I need to find her a daycare. Today. I—”

“Max, take it easy,” Reese cut in.

On the heels of Reese’s comment, Isaac insisted, “No daycare! Elise isn’t going to a daycare. The one she went to was bad enough, and I’m glad she can’t go there anymore. No daycare! No babysitters.”

“She needs daycare, Isaac. I can’t quit my job to be with her because I kind of need to keep a roof over our heads and stuff.”

“No daycare! No babysitters!” Isaac repeated. He closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened them, he looked at Max, imploring him to understand. He started to chew on his thumbnail. He looked at Reese, silently begging her to intervene and back up his position.

“Isaac, relax.” Reese chuckled. “You should see your expression. Wipe the worry off your face and settle down.”

Isaac shook his head rapidly. He continued to bite his nail. “Settle down, Reese? Settle down?” Rising panic made his voice higher pitched than normal. He gestured to Max. “He’s talking about putting that little baby into a daycare.” He went and stood close to Max. “You can’t do that, man. You can’t. Do you know what things can happen to kids when they’re left with babysitters? Don’t do that to your daughter! Why do you think Reese stays home with Dominic?” Isaac crossed the kitchen and took his wife’s hand in his. “She protects him. And she loves him and is giving him the best start to life a kid can get.” He leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. “Elise can’t go to a babysitter, Max. What if she’s neglected? Or harmed? What if people do bad things to her?” Agitated, he dropped Reese’s hand and resumed his pacing. He ran his hand through his hair as he did.

“I doubt anything is going to happen to Elise,” Max said.

“Something might! Babysitters aren’t nice.”

“That doesn’t make any sense, Isaac. Besides, I don’t have much of a choice.” Max stuck his hands in his pockets and stood still while Isaac paced. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Max and Reese exchange glances.

Reese walked toward Max. She spoke up. “You’re not going to convince Isaac on this one, Max. He’s pretty adamant about the evils of daycare centers and babysitters. I don’t feel quite as strongly as he does, but it is really nice to have Dominic here rather than at daycare.” She paused. Her tone brightened when she resumed. “I have an idea. Why don’t I take care of Elise when you’re at work? It’ll be good for Dominic to help take care of someone, it would be fun for me, and I really want to help out a friend.”

Once again, Isaac was by Reese’s side. He wedged himself between her and Max. “Reese, you’re a genius. And a good person.” He looked at Max. “What do you think?”

Max covered his face with his hands. “I don’t know what to think right now. I just can’t believe this happened. I can’t believe Gretchen up and left.” He paused and stood with his head in his hands for several moments. Slowly, he lowered his arms and looked at his friends. “Okay. Thanks, guys. I don’t want to be a burden, but it would be really great if you’d take care of Elise during the day, Reese, at least for a while.”

“Thank God. This is the right thing, Max. Trust me.” Isaac closed his eyes and heaved a sigh of relief. When he opened his eyes and saw that he, Reese, and Max were standing in a line against the counter, he shook his head and stepped forward to break the bizarre formation. He looked over at Dominic playing with Elise on the floor. He smiled. Dominic was a terrific kid, so caring. That gave him an idea. “Hey!” he exclaimed as he turned to face Reese and Max. “How’s this for a solution? What about Reese looking after Elise during the day?” Isaac was surprised when the two looked at each other but said nothing. They seemed perplexed. “What? What’s wrong with that idea? Elise needs someone to take care of her when you’re at work, Max, and Reese is wonderful. She’ll take great care of her, and Dominic will, too. Look.” He gestured toward the two tots on the floor. “And it will be good for Dominic, don’t you think, Reese?” Isaac looked from one to the other. “What?” he repeated, growing increasingly confused at their unresponsiveness. He shifted on his feet.

“Isaac, honey, please tell me you’re kidding around.”

He knitted his brows together. He opened his mouth to ask a question, but no sound came out. His heart pounded. He thought he was making sense, but maybe not. What had happened this time? Had he done something horrible? Again? Try as he might to behave properly, he always ended up doing something bad. He looked at Max when Max spoke.

“Dude. We just discussed this. And we settled it. Reese is going to take care of Elise while I’m at work. You were part of the conversation.”

Isaac felt sweat bead on his forehead. They couldn’t find out that he didn’t remember the discussion that supposedly had just taken place. He forced a smile. “Yeah. I know. I just wanted to try to throw things off a bit, you know, to maybe take the focus away from the elephant in the room, the reason we needed to talk about care for Elise.” The instant that was out of his mouth, he regretted it. He felt like a heel for shifting the focus back to the fact that Gretchen had left Max and Elise. He felt his shoulders sag. “Max, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.”

Max shook his head. “No. It’s okay. It’s pretty obvious, isn’t it? We can’t pretend that Gretchen didn’t leave. You guys know she’s gone. I know she’s gone. I, uh…” He looked up at the ceiling for a moment. When he looked down he squeezed his eyes shut and pinched the bridge of his nose hard.

“Max.” It was all Isaac could think of to say. He looked at Reese. She began to speak, but Max talked over her.

“It’s fine. I’m fine. Really.” He still didn’t look up, and he continued to pinch the bridge of his nose.

“Sit down at the table. Talk to Reese. I’m going to take Dominic and Elise out of the room and keep them occupied so you two can talk. Then you and I are going to hit the courts. Playing tennis today will be good for you.” He strode across the kitchen to the breakfast nook, snatched up Elise, winced at the pain it caused the raw burns, and said to Dominic, “Come on, Tiger, let’s take the baby and do something fun.”

“Okay!” Dominic leapt to his feet. “I wanna drive my new Jeep that I got for my birthday! Oh, but first, Daddy, I’m hungry.” He sat down at the table.

“Of course you can eat, little man, but I have a better idea than eating in here. Let’s have a picnic. Inside or outside?” When Dominic enthusiastically indicated an open-air breakfast, Isaac instructed, “All righty, then! Go grab the blanket and spread it out in the backyard. And can you find some of your toys to share with Elise? Things that won’t hurt her, like maybe some of your blocks. I’ll get some grub and meet you out back.”

When Dominic took off, Isaac gathered a box of Pop-Tarts, the carton of orange juice, and two plastic glasses. He threw everything into a shopping bag and slung it over his shoulder Santa-style.

“Isaac!” Reese chastised. “What kind of a breakfast is that? That’s so unhealthy. He can’t have that. Those stupid things you keep buying are supposed to be for snacks, and only occasionally.”

Isaac slid the bag around so he could rummage through it. He looked at the Pop-Tarts box then back at Reese. “These are fruit. Cherry.”

Reese rolled her eyes. “Flavor.”

Isaac glanced around, spotted the bananas on the counter, grabbed two from the bunch, which was a bit tricky with Elise balanced on one arm, held them up for Reese to see, plunked them into the bag, and said, “There. Real fruit. I think this will do for today. I’ve got the kids. You talk with Max.” He nodded toward Max, who had dropped his arms but still stood with his head hanging down.

Max began to protest, “No. I need to get out of your way. I’m truly fine, I—”

Isaac stepped over and nudged him. “Stop. Hang out in here with Reese. Maybe complain about the fact that I’m going to kick your ass on the tennis court later.” Without waiting for an argument, he turned, stopped to kiss his wife on the cheek, and then headed to the backyard for a picnic with his son and Max’s daughter.

#

To steady himself as his eyes adjusted to the sudden dimness, Isaac grabbed the pointy hat of one of the waist-high gnomes standing sentry just inside the door of Hobgoblin, a quaint little restaurant and bar tucked away along a quiet street full of other such small restaurants and eclectic, eccentric shops. He blinked a few times before looking behind him at Max. “Let’s sit out there,” Isaac nodded toward the fenced-in back courtyard. “I’m not ready to give up the sunlight.” When Max agreed, Isaac suggested, “Why don’t you go grab a table? I’ll get us a couple drinks and meet you out there.”

After receiving his drinks and snaking his way around the gnomes placed haphazardly around, supposedly to mess with patrons of the drunk variety, Isaac found Max and plopped down on the chair across from him. He slid a beer across the table to his friend before taking a swig of his own. He watched Max stare blankly at the beer. “Hey. Earth to Max.” A cat sauntered past their table. They both watched it sashay by.

Max looked up and toyed with the bottle before lifting it to his mouth. He tilted the bottle toward Isaac. “Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it. Although you should be the one buying after all the running and fetching tennis balls you made me do.”

“Hey. You’re the one who wanted me to hit out of the hopper.”

“Yeah, well, the way you were hitting, I was afraid for my life. You didn’t need to play a game; you needed to hit the hell out of as many balls as you could as quickly as you could.” Isaac studied Max again as Max resumed toying with his beer. “You doin’ okay?”

Max nodded. Then he shrugged. Isaac searched for the right thing to say. He knew how miserable he would be if Reese up and left him and Dominic, and he knew that there wasn’t a thing anyone could possibly say that would make it better. So, not knowing what to say and not wanting to say the wrong thing, he kept his mouth shut.

The heavy silence was shattered when a group of three people approached their table. “Isaac! What’s up?” Without asking, each grabbed a chair and crowded around the table. One pulled up uncomfortably close to Isaac. If Isaac had foreseen this, he would have told Max to get a bigger table. No. Actually, he would have chosen a different restaurant, perhaps the far-off Rick’s Café Américain from Casablanca, a place that made it easy to disappear, hide.

Isaac looked at the intrusive table companions and tried to determine just who they were. Clearly they knew him. Fairly well, too, or so it seemed. His heart started to pound. Was he supposed to know them? Ugh! He hated it when this happened. There were so many times when he was out in public, in a store or in a restaurant or at the park with Reese and Dominic, for example, that people seemed to know him but he didn’t recognize them at all. More than likely, it was a function of his role with the Conifers. As a marketer and event planner, he was out and about the community year-round as well as frequently present at games in the summer. Still, though, he would think that he would recognize people he came in contact with. Sometimes he did, but they felt like mere acquaintances. Too frequently he had experiences like this one, where people seemed personal and friendly with him but he had absolutely no clue who they were. He faked a happy grin. “Hey! Not much. What about you guys?”

“We just grabbed lunch and are headed to rehearsal. Speaking of which, you plan on joining us again anytime soon? I mean, I know you only play with us occasionally, and not to further inflate your ego or anything, but your trumpet playing adds punch.”

Isaac swallowed hard. He should probably feel relieved by that comment. Clearly these people had the wrong guy. He didn’t feel relieved, though. He felt nauseated. They called him by name. Why? Terrified, he risked a look at Max. Max knew that Isaac didn’t play in a band. Hell, he didn’t even play the trumpet. Or any damn instrument, for that matter. How was Max reacting to these bizarre people? Thankfully, not at all. He continued to toy absentmindedly with his beer.

One of the random chummy strangers followed Isaac’s gaze to Max. “Where are our manners?” she asked jovially. “Isaac, will you introduce us to your friend?” Oh God. How could he introduce these people he supposedly knew but didn’t? He leaned over too far when the woman nudged him. “What’s up with you? You’re acting really weird, and not in a fun way like you usually do. You don’t seem like yourself today.”

Fantastic. He faked another smile. “Sorry. I’m, uh, I’m just having lunch with my friend Max, and, uh, I—”

Mercifully, the woman turned her attention away from Isaac and onto Max. She stuck out her hand enthusiastically. “Max.” She shook his hand heartily when he extended his. “Very nice to meet you. I’m Neptune. This is Adrian and Jet.” She gestured toward each of her companions as she said their names, and each one extended his hand to shake Max’s. The one called Adrian had to lean across the table to do so, and he brushed against Isaac when he did. “We’re part of the band Your Grandma’s ’Hose.”

As the three oddballs talked with each other and drew Max into a conversation, Isaac couldn’t keep up with what they were saying. He felt extremely ill. His hands were sweaty, and he could feel the perspiration bead on the back of his neck and roll down his shirt. He tried to take a drink, but anxious tremors in his hands made the bottle shake when he lifted it. He quickly set it down. He tried once again to tune into the conversation, but the words were drowned out courtesy of the voices that had resumed their commotion in his head. This time, it sounded like a pretty intense argument. About what, though, he hadn’t a clue. The music had started playing, too. The pressure in his head was intensifying and was almost unbearable. He couldn’t show it. With tremendous effort, he focused on Max and what he was saying to the three amigos. Mercifully, he heard Max say, “Yeah. It was nice to meet you, too.”

As the three stood up to leave, the one whom Neptune had called Adrian squeezed Isaac’s shoulder and said, “Don’t be a stranger. You know the schedule.” And just like that, they were gone. Isaac stared at the courtyard door even after it had closed. He was afraid to look at Max. He had to do so, though, when Max spoke.

“Man, you sure know a lot of people.”

Isaac shrugged. “Not really. Just from my job, you know, like at games and stuff. I have to talk to people. PR-type stuff.” He wondered if his voice was as high and strained to Max’s ears as it was to his own.

“Is that how you met Your Grandma’s ’Hose? And I didn’t know you played the trumpet, Isaac. I know that you don’t play with them all the time, but maybe I could hear you some time. Based on what your friends described, Gretchen would hate the music, but I’ll sneak away with you.” Max paused, apparently realizing what he just said, and his face fell. “I guess that’s not actually an issue, is it?”

“Max. I’m sorry. I…” He was about to say that he’d love to take Max to listen to the band, but then he remembered that he didn’t know the damn band. “I just want you to know that I’m here for you. Reese, too.” Max was toying with the beer bottle again. He looked up when Isaac asked him if he was okay.

“Good God. I think I should be asking you if you’re okay.”

“Why?”

“Because suddenly you look like hell. One of your killer headaches?”

Isaac propped his elbows on the table and rubbed his forehead and his temples. Yes, he was experiencing one of his massive headaches. But he had been all weekend so it was nothing new to the moment. It was more than just that. What, though, could he possibly say to Max? He sat in silence and massaged his head. He heard Max’s bottle clink against his own. “Isaac, let’s get out of here.”

He didn’t look up. “But we haven’t eaten yet.”

“Correct me if I’m wrong, but you don’t look like you have an appetite. And I don’t have much of one either. Kinda hard to eat right now, ya know?”

At this, Isaac did look up. “I do know, and it sucks. Look. Today isn’t about me. It’s about you. I’m fine, really. Let’s stay for a while.”

Max sighed. “I appreciate that. I really do. But to be honest, I just wanna go. I keep thinking about Elise. I know she’s in good hands at your house, but I need to see her.”

Isaac nodded. “Okay. Just a sec, though.” He inclined his head to the side. “I need to make a pit stop before we go.” He strode purposefully toward the men’s room, fervently hoping that strangers wouldn’t notice him and beckon to him. When he reached his destination, he stepped in, locked the door—thankfully it was a single-occupant restroom—leaned back against the door, and closed his eyes. He sighed deeply. Everything was catching up to him: the long stressful weekend with its significant glitches; the unrelenting headache; Gretchen’s abandonment of Max and Elise; the mysterious and insufferable cigarette burns, not to mention Reese’s allegation that he had smoked; the odd people in the bar just now, claiming that he played the trumpet with them in their band; even Dominic turning five. Because his legs were weights beyond his ability to lift, his shoes squeaked as he made his way over to the sink. He carefully slid up one of his sleeves and peered under a bandage. The angry cigarette burns underneath scorned him. Quickly, he shoved the sleeve back down. He bit his lip hard to keep from crying out in pain. It served him right. Look at all of the bad things he had done just in the last few days, and that was barely a drop in the voluminous bucket of rancid water that represented his life.

He bent forward and splashed cold water on his face in an attempt to soothe the pain and confusion that burned under the surface. He focused on the feelings he had for Reese and Dominic. He loved them both deeply. He loved Max deeply, too, in a brotherly way. He hated these damn glitches of his, not just for himself but for the people he cared about. He didn’t know what they were or why they happened or how he could stop them from happening again, but at least throughout his life they hadn’t been disruptive to others. Hopefully not, anyway. But these last few days had been disastrous. He looked in the mirror and watched the water drip off his face. Was this bizarre aspect of his personality going to become more pronounced and bothersome? If it did, it would certainly become more difficult to hide.