The Vanishing Track
Page 31
He flew to Toronto for his daughter’s graduation from a good MBA program. She didn’t know he was in the room. After the ceremony John David found a bar a few blocks away and had his first drink in two years. He woke up in the Toronto General Hospital.
His family never learned he was in the city, and when he checked out of the detox program, he caught the Greyhound and rode it straight back to Calgary. There he learned he’d been fired, and that his meager possessions had been sold at auction by his landlord to cover his unpaid rent.
He got back on the bus and with the last of his money rode it as far as Vancouver.
Years passed. He watched movies, ate candy and popcorn he found on the seats when the other patrons left, and twice a day attended Alcohol Anonymous meetings.
Sitting on the park bench that morning, his fifty-eighth birthday, his cell phone rang.
“Hello,” he answered, his throat dry.
“John David, is that you?”
“It is. Who’s this?”
“It’s Deborah.” His wife.
He was silent.
“John . . .”
“Is everything alright? The kids?”
“They are fine,” said Deborah, in a weary tone.
“What then?”
“Your sister just called. Last week. Your mother passed away. Nobody could find you.”
“Thanks . . .” he said, distracted. His eyes filled with tears as he hung up.
He caught the SkyTrain. The afternoon was dark, the sky crowded with ominous clouds that threatened rain. He found an AA meeting in the basement of the Pennsylvania Hotel. After it ended, he sat in the chair for half an hour. The man who ran the meetings asked if he was okay and John David said he was and got up and left.
It was dark and raining when he reached the street. He didn’t have an umbrella so he turned up the collar on his coat and dashed down the block. It was a Friday night and light spilled from the Cambie Hotel into the rain-slick streets like a beacon. John David followed it like a moth to the flame.
He woke up without his coat or wallet behind a dumpster in Trounce Alley. He tried to stand but couldn’t. He begged for money to buy food but bought a cheap bottle of vodka instead. A week passed. He slept in the alley. One night he woke from a dream about his wife and children. A gentle rain was falling on his bare head.
Somebody was softly nudging his arm. He tried to turn over and go back to sleep. His head was resting against the rough brick of a building and his movement jarred him awake. He tried to blink but his eyes felt as if they were on fire.
A tender hand rested on his arm. He blinked again and his eyes came into focus. A young woman was hunched down beside him. An orange backpack sat next to her.
“What is it?” he said.
“I’m Juliet,” she said. “I’m a nurse. I work for the Health Authority. Do you need help?”
He blinked again, tears pooling in the corners of his eyes. His face felt like sandpaper had been scraped across it. “I’m an alcoholic,” he said, a tear trickling down his face.
“It’s okay,” the woman said. “It’s going to be okay. We can get you help.”
WITH GRATITUDE
WRITING A NOVEL IS AN act of faith and perseverance. Many people expressed their confidence in me during the writing of The Vanishing Track, but none more than my wife, Jennifer. For her love and unwavering belief in me, I am deeply grateful.
My best friend, Josh Slatkoff, has been a constant support in the development of the Cole Blackwater series, and never more so than in the penning of this novel. I will never forget the day in 2006 when, running over the rocky dome of Victoria’s Mount Doug, Josh and I first discussed the character of Sean Livingstone.
Frances Thorsen of Chronicles of Crime in Victoria, BC, has become so much more than just a favorite bookseller. She is a champion for my work, and I am humbled by her support. As my story editor, she has provided firm, steady guidance for the refinement of this novel, and I am grateful.
Without the support of so many other booksellers across Canada, the Cole Blackwater series would not be possible. I am grateful to all those stores that have stocked my books and continue to promote them.
My gratitude to the team at TouchWood Editions, and especially Ruth Linka. Working with a publisher who shares your vision is a deeply satisfying experience, one I wish every author could have.
In particular, my thanks goes to Lenore Hietkamp, who was the copy editor for The Vanishing Track. You have my gratitude, and my sympathy.
There are many people working in the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver who are doing the hard work of making the lives of the homeless better, and they have taught me much over the last six years. John Richardson, formerly of Pivot Legal Society, David Ebby of the BC Civil Liberties Association, and Judy Graves, the City of Vancouver’s advocate for the homeless, stand out among them. My gratitude also to VPD Constable Jodyn Keller who provided me with the essential perspective of the on-the-ground effort of the Vancouver City Police to address the issue of homelessness.
And to Jennifer, Chris, David, Richard and Sharon: They are just a few of the many people I have met in Vancouver and Victoria whose lives have not turned out as they might have expected, who are living on the streets, who are suffering, and who have taught me so much.
STEPHEN LEGAULT IS AN AUTHOR, consultant, conservationist, and photographer who lives in Canmore, Alberta. He is the author of four other books, including the first two installments in the Cole Blackwater Mystery series, The Cardinal Divide and The Darkening Archipelago, as well as The End of the Line, the first book in the Durrant Wallace Mystery series. Please visit Stephen online at stephenlegault.com or follow him on Twitter at @stephenlegault.
Other books by Stephen Legault
Carry Tiger to Mountain: The Tao of Activism and Leadership (2006)
THE COLE BLACKWATER SERIES
The Cardinal Divide (2008)
The Darkening Archipelago (2010)
The Vanishing Track (2012)
THE DURRANT WALLACE SERIES
The End of the Line (2011)
For information on new books in the Cole Blackwater series, the Durrant Wallace series, or other books by Stephen Legault, visit stephenlegault.com/writing.
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Copyright © 2012 Stephen Legault
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, recording, or otherwise—without the prior written consent of the publisher or a licence from The Canadian Copyright Licensing Agency (ACCESS Copyright). For a copyright licence, visit accesscopyright.ca.
LIBRARY AND ARCHIVES CANADA CATALOGUING IN PUBLICATION
Legault, Stephen, 1971–
The vanishing track [electronic resource] / Stephen Legault.
(A Cole Blackwater mystery)
Electronic monograph.
Originally published by TouchWood Editions in 2012 in paperback with ISBN 978-1-927129-03-6.
ISBN 978-1-927129-04-3 (HTML).—ISBN 978-1-927129-05-0 (PDF)
I. Title. II. Series: Legault, Stephen, 1971– . Cole Blackwater mystery.
PS8623.E46633V36 2012 C813'.6 C2011-907337-4
Editor: Frances Thorsen
Proofreader: Lenore Hietkamp
Design: Pete Kohut
Cover image: Noah Strycker, istockphoto.com
Author photo: Dan Anthon
We gratefully acknowledge the financial support for our publishing activities from the Government of Canada through the Canada Book Fund, Canada Council for the Arts, and the province of British Columbia through the British Columbia Arts Council and the Book Publishing Tax Credit.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
TouchWood Editions
touchwoodeditions.com