“That's good,” said Skip. “How's Mr. Stewart?”
Red and Dan looked at each other for a second, and then back at Skip.
“He's dead,” Dan said.
“Oh, man. That's too bad. How did it happen? I don't remember much.”
Red said, “You—”
“He broke his neck,” Dan interjected.
Skip shook his head slowly. “Damn, that's terrible.”
“Yeah,” Red agreed. “Terrible.”
Skip bit into the burger and chewed as he spoke. “So, what have you guys been up to?” he asked.
“On Thursday we're running—” said Red.
“Nothing,” Dan cut in.
Red gave him a dirty look.
“Not doing much of anything,” Dan reiterated.
“Yeah, we're not doin' nothin',” said Red. “Although! Dan may have a new brother. His name is Richard Bong.”
Dan clenched his teeth angrily. “You and your friggin' mouth,” he muttered.
“A new brother?” Skip questioned. “Isn't your mom a little old for that?”
“He's not my mother's child,” Dan clarified. “He's just my father's … if the guy's even telling the truth.”
“He's Vietnamese,” Red said.
“Vietnamese twins? So there's two of them?” Skip asked. “They're attached? I'm confused.”
“That's Siamese twins,” Dan said. “This guy is Vietnamese.”
“Oh … okay,” Skip said, shaking his head. “And how is that possible?”
“My dad was stationed in Vietnam before him and my mother met. This guy's mother told him that my father was also his father.”
“Crazy, dude,” said Skip. “Richard Bong.” He chuckled. “Bong.”
“Speaking of fathers,” Red asked, “where's your father, Skip?”
“He was here yesterday, and this morning,” Skip said. “He had to get back to Jacksonville.”
“I was hoping to meet him,” said Red.
“Yeah, me too,” said Dan.
“And I would like to meet your new brother,” Skip said.
“Let me just find out if he really is my brother before I go introducing him to everyone.”
“Why would he lie about it?” Red asked.
“Think about it, Red,” Dan responded. “When somebody wins the lottery, like I did, it brings out the kooks and the scam artists. I should know: they poured out of the woodwork, until I took steps to safeguard my privacy. Money is the best reason to lie.”
“How would he know you won the lottery?”
Skip just looked on as the two men bickered.
“He said he Googled my family,” Dan reminded Red.
“But you always told me that you didn't have your name released to the media when you won,” Red argued.
“You can only remain totally anonymous in a handful of states. And New York isn't one of them. I'm sure my name is still on the lottery database.”
“I guess. But he seemed like a really nice guy.”
“You think everyone is a nice guy.”
“Most people are.”
“No, they're not.”
“He offered to ride up to West Palm Beach with you on Thur—”
“Who's going to West Palm Beach?” Skip shouted.
“Um,” Red said.
Dan glared at his big-mouthed friend.
“You might as well tell him now,” Dan said.
“Dan and I are running up to West Palm on Thursday,” Red explained.
“Why?” Skip asked.
Red looked at Dan. “Because that girl from the hotel in Haines City called him.”
“That Maggie chick?”
“That's the one,” said Dan.
“What did she want?”
“She thinks her father is trying to kill her,” Red said.
“And her boyfriend killed her mother?” Skip asked.
“No,” Dan replied. “She says it was her father who killed her mother and he framed her boyfriend for it.”
Skip scratched his head. “Yeah … confusing, dude.” He pulled back his covers and swung his legs over the edge of the bed.
“Whoa, whoa!” Dan said. “Where the hell do you think you're going?”
“With you guys, to West Palm Beach.”
“I don't think so, pal,” Dan responded. He grabbed Skip's ankles and tossed them back onto the bed. “Get your ass right back in bed.”
“Really, dude?” Skip asked.
“Really, dude,” Dan answered. “We can do this on our own.”
“Or maybe with a little help from Dan's new brother,” said Red.
“He's not going with us!”
Skip picked the half-eaten burger up off his tray and took a bite. The expression on his face as he chewed was one of total sadness.
“Sorry, Skip,” Dan said. “You can go next time.”
“I can't believe I'm being replaced,” said Skip morosely.
“You're not being replaced,” Dan assured him. “Richard isn't even going with us.”
“I hope not, dude. That would really hurt.”
Dan pulled the covers back up over Skip's legs. “You have nothing to worry about, Skip.” He patted his friend's leg. “We gotta take off.”
“Enjoy those burgers,” Red added. “We'll stop back and check on you when we get back from West Palm.”
Skip nodded his head sadly.
Dan and Red turned and walked away. When they were almost to the door, Red stopped and smacked himself in the forehead with the palm of his hand.
“Ha!” Red shouted. “I just got it.”
“Just got what?” Dan asked.
“A Stoner is worried about being replaced by a Bong,” Red answered, as he continued to chuckle. “You can't make this shit up.”
“Not funny, dude!” Skip shouted.
Chapter Four
Dan pulled into his driveway fifteen minutes after dropping Red back off at his bar. Colton Masters' tools had been picked up, and he was gone for the day.
Maxine!” Dan shouted, as he walked through the front door. “Maxine!”
“What!” Maxine hollered back from the bathroom.
“Where are you?” Dan headed for the bar to make himself a drink.
“In the bathroom!”
“What are ya doin'?”
“I'll be right out.”
Dan carried his glass to the fridge to grab some ice. On his way back to the dining room he heard the toilet flush. He poured himself a shot of tequila and topped it off with 7UP.
“Why do you do that?” Maxine asked, as she entered the room.
“Do what?”
“Holler my name every time you walk through the damn door.”
“So I know where you are, I guess.” Dan sipped his drink and then held up the glass. “You want one?”
“No,” Maxine replied. “And why can't you just look around the house for me before you start yelling? It's a small house. There's only five rooms.”
“That seems like an awful lot of work, when I could just stand there and shout your name.”
Maxine shook her head. “For you, I guess it would be a lot of work.”
“What's that mean?”
“Nothing.”
“You sure you don't want a drink? You seem like something is bothering you.”
“Yeah, and it started the minute someone started shouting my name.”
“Ouch—oh yeah, that reminds me—I have to call my dad.”
“Have to? Why?”
“Some guy showed up at Red's today and claims to be my half-brother.”
Maxine raised an eyebrow. “Really?” Her expression said why would anyone claim to be related to you?
“Why are you making that face?” Dan asked.
Maxine quickly wiped the look away. “What face?”
“Never mind. Anyway … he's Asian.”
“Asian?”
“Vietnamese.”
“Vietnamese?”
“Yes.”
“And he says he's your brother?”
“Half-brother.”
“And your dad served in Viet—”
“Yes.”
“Huh.”
“Yeah.”
“You're going to call your dad and ask if this guy could be telling the truth?”
“That's the plan.”
“Is this going to cause a problem between your mother and father?”
“My mother and father weren't married until after my father returned to the states, so, I hope not.”
“How old is he?”
“Forty-six.”
“What's his name?”
“Richard Bong.” Dan paused, then added: “Please feel free to make the obligatory drug joke.”
Maxine ignored him. “You want me to leave the room while you make the call?”
“No. Why would I want you to do that?”
“I thought you might want some privacy.”
“I may need you as back-up.” Dan reached into the side pocket of his cargo shorts and removed his cell phone. He sat down in his recliner and placed his drink on the end table beside him. He took a deep breath and exhaled. “Here goes nothing.” He dialed his father's cell.
“Hello?” said his father.
“Hey, Dad. What's goi—”
“Ha! Gotcha! Please leave your name, number, and a brief message and I'll get back to you.” Beep.
“Good one, Dad,” said Dan dryly. “Hey, I got a couple questions for ya. Can you give me a call when you get this message? It's Dan. Bye.” Dan hung up and dialed his mother's cell. Her voice mail picked up as well.
“Hello. You have reached Peg Coast. Please lea—what? I'm setting up my voice mail! This is Peg Coa—no! Quit hollering my name every time you come in the damn house! Give me a second. This is Peg Coast. Please le—” Beep.
“Hey, Mom. It's Dan. Give me a call.” Dan hung up once again and dialed his parents land line.
“Hello?” Peg answered.
“Hey, Mom.”
“Hi, Danny. Did you just call my cell phone?”
“Yes, Mom. Why didn't you answer it?”
“I thought it might be one of those scammers, like they talked about on the '60 Minutes.'”
“Didn't the caller ID say it was me?”
“Yes, but Steve Kroft said they can make it look like it's someone you know, so I haven't been answering it.”
“I wouldn't worry about it, Mom,” Dan assured her. “Is Dad around?”
“He went fishing with Mort and Victor.”
“Does he have his cell phone with him?”
“Yes, but he probably has it off.”
“Why would he have it off?”
“So the battery doesn't run down.”
“When is he supposed to be back?”
“Tomorrow night.”
“Can you have him give me a call when he gets in?”
“I guess,” Peg sighed.
“Why did you say it like that?”
“Oh nothing.”
“Mom, what's the matter?”
“Everyone just calls to talk to your father. No one calls to talk to me.”
“Everyone, like who?”
“Your sisters. They only stop over if your father's home.”
“When is he not home?”
“When he goes fishing.”
“When was the last time he went fishing, Mom?”
“Oh, I don't know. I guess it's been awhile.”
“Then how do you know that no one stops over if he's not home? He's always home.”
“Well when you say it like that …”
“Is there something you want to talk about, Mom?” Dan asked.
“No, I guess not,” she sighed once again.
Dan glanced over at Maxine. “Oh, Mom, Maxine wanted to talk to you about something.” He tossed Maxine his cell phone. “There ya go, babe. Thanks for backing me up.” He grabbed his drink and hurried out the back door before she could object.
Dan turned his Adirondack chair around so he could stare out past his yard, and over the beach at the ocean. He stretched his legs out in front of him and crossed them at the ankles. He watched as the tourists walked up and down the beach. After about twenty minutes his drink was empty and he wanted another. He thought about shouting Maxine's name, but had already been warned about that. Dan wondered if his mother and Maxine had ended their call—and if he'd catch hell for putting her on the spot.
Dan sat and people-watched as the ice in his glass slowly melted. When there was enough water, he took a small sip. He looked back over his shoulder at the kitchen door. He wished he had his cell phone so he could call Bev. Maybe she would make him a drink. He wondered where Julian Thompson was. School was out. The young neighbor boy had made Dan drinks before. He'd been there the day before to pick up the dog shit, per an agreement they'd made, but wouldn't be back until Thursday.
Dan climbed out of his chair with a groan and went toward the house. When he got to the screen, he stealthily looked inside. He saw no sign of Maxine, so he carefully opened the door and went inside. He tiptoed across the kitchen floor as quietly as he could. He knew if Maxine was still on the phone, he might have to speak to his mother once again. Dan peeked around the corner into the dining room; the coast was clear. He hurried to the bar and made himself another drink.
“What are you doing?” Maxine asked.
Dan spun around. “Making myself a drink.”
“I didn't hear you come in.” Maxine stood at the entrance to the hallway. “How many drinks does that make today?”
“I don't know. Why?”
“How many?”
“Five.”
“Put the glass down.”
Dan chuckled. “Good one.”
“Put. The. Glass. Down.”
“Are you serious?”
“Do I look serious?”
“Kinda.”
“Then put the glass down. You're done for the day.”
“Ouch. Have a nice conversation with my mom?”
“As a matter of fact, I did. She's a little ditzy, but I like her and I think she likes me. She's actually a pretty cool mom.”
“I know. After all, she gave birth to me.”
“I don't hold that against her. She asked if you were still going to meetings.”
“What did you tell her?”
“I told her you hadn't been in a few weeks.”
“Why the Christ did you tell her that?” Dan sat his empty glass back down on the bar.
“Because she asked.”
“You could have lied. That's what I do.”
Maxine cocked her head. “Really?”
“I mean … uh, not to you.”
“Yeah, right.”
“Just to my mom.”
“And to yourself.”
Dan heard his cell phone ring. The ring tone was coming from Maxine's front pocket. Maxine reached in and pulled out the cell. She looked at the caller ID.
“It's Red,” Maxine informed Dan.
Dan held out his hand, but Maxine answered the phone instead. She put it on speaker. “Hello?”
“Maxine?” Red asked.
“Yes.”
“It's Red.”
“I know.”
“Is Dan there?”
“Yes.”
“Um, can I talk to him?”
“He's busy right now. Can I give him a message?”
Dan glared at his fiancée.
“I was just wonder if he wanted to come over to the bar tonight and keep me company.”
“I'm sorry, Red. Dan won't be able to make it. He's already had five drinks today, and he's going to an AA meeting in the morning.”
Dan relaxed his shoulders in defeat and sighed.
“Oh … okay,” said Red. “Just tell him I called.”
“I sure will.” Maxine hung up the cell and tossed it to Dan. “There's a meeting tomorrow morning at the Big Pine Methodist Church at eight o'clock.”
/> “That's the place I go for my Monday meetings,” said Dan.
“And now it's where you go for your Wednesday meetings.”
“You're mean.”
“You're right,” Maxine agreed. “There's iced tea in the fridge.”
“I don't like iced tea.”
“I don't care.”
“Fine.” Dan turned and carried his glass to the refrigerator. He filled it with iced tea and took a big gulp. “What the Christ! There's no sugar in it.”
Maxine walked in behind him. “It's unsweetened.”
“Obviously.”
“Get used to it. You don't need all that sugar either.”
Dan walked toward the back door. “I want a divorce.”
“Too bad. We're not married yet.”
“Yeah, well … as soon as we are, I'm filing for divorce.” Dan walked out and let the screen door slam behind him.
Chapter Five
Dan Coast sat in one of the dozen or so metal folding chairs in a conference room at the Big Pine Methodist Church. He had sat in that exact same spot a few times during the Monday AA meetings. He didn't know if it was the same chair, but they all felt pretty much the same to him—the cold hard metal feeling of defeat and shame. The conference room was bright white and had the sterile look of a hospital operating room. The three white ceiling fans spun slowly above the group. Dan stared up at the blades of one of the fans for a few seconds, and then returned his focus to the front of the room.
A pretty brunette about the same age as Dan—who Dan knew only as Ava—stood at the podium up front. “The judge ruled that I get to see my children every other weekend now,” she announced. “So you could say it's been a pretty good week so far.”
Ava had told the group already that it had been 331 days since her last drink. The group applauded that, and then applauded again as she returned to her chair. Ava smiled at Dan before turning and taking her seat in front of him.
Dan wondered if Ava would nag him about his drinking as much as Maxine did. Probably more, he figured, given the circumstances.
Hal, the AA chapter chair, walked up to the podium and asked if anyone else would like to share. Dan looked around the room. It looked like Ava would be the last. Hal cast an encouraging glance at Dan, but Dan wasn't about to broadcast his shortcomings and triumphs to this gathering of touchy-feely strangers. Dan had spoken out only a couple times-parroting bilge he'd heard the other members spout, just to appease Hal and Maxine.
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