by Caldon Mull
“Loud and clear! You the Boss.” Cat trotted up the pathway “Always been and always will be. Even though you look like hamburger, right now.”
“Right! I’m hitting the shower, now.” I grumbled as I headed to my room, showered and crashed into a deep sleep. Supper with Cat and Bobby was a subdued affair without much conversation, the Lodge was packed and the swirl of the guests’ noise ebbed and flowed around us. The food was excellent, but I found myself pushing it around the plate, and all I could taste was ashes in my mouth.
After dinner, I checked out and drove back to my place on the hill in Storyville, I didn’t let Bobby or Cat know where I was going. I did leave a message at the front desk for them, telling them not to worry. What more could I say to them that wouldn’t sound other than what I meant?
I drove the Jeep back home to the House on the Hill, and threw myself into work. Shane and Linda had been taking care of the place while I was away, and I was glad for their company enough for me to move into the bunker where my machines were and leave them in the house above. It did creep Linda out when the printers upstairs started their run at 2am, but then I could never explain the concept of ‘networks’ to her. On occasion, Shane would come down at midnight and invite me into their bed, and I even took them up on their offer every other occasion.
Once or twice, Shane came through by himself and we didn’t go up to Linda. It all worked fairly well for about awhile, and I got a lot of things done that I needed too. Twice a month I went out to Doctor Mason’s for supper and we had long talks about almost everything.
Apparently, Michel had been asking about me to him and Shane had committed to stopping in and dragging me out of the Bunker every so often for something social, and both of them were content that I wasn’t regressing. I pretended I was indignant, but secretly I was glad that they were checking up on me, even though I knew all the reasons I had locked myself away wasn’t purely work related. I guess I just needed an excuse to brood and if doing difficult, complex equations were a way to ease into the thought of Bobby being away from me… then all well and good. The brown study I had fallen into wasn’t noticeable to me at first, but when Dr Mason called me to wish me for Christmas, it came as a bit of a shock to me, the year was nearly over.
I did have reason to call Cat again, and this is probably one of the most difficult times of my life. It started with a call from Pete, late one winter night early in the new year, 1997. It was wildfire season in the valley, and Kyle had been hurt bad. At first it didn’t sink in, but when he said “… it’s bad, Acey, really bad. I think you should come over and bring some of his kin with you…” I got a cold, empty feeling in my gut, the same way as with Bobby.
“I’ll be right over Petey, I’ll bring Shane with and have Cat fly us through.” I could feel the muscles on my face working, but this time no-one could see me in my dark, secluded bunker.
“Yeah… ummm… well, come soon, Acey. It’s really bad.” Pete sounded very unlike his unflappable good- natured self, so I was running on that judgment call. My next call was to Cat, asking her to bring the plane out and take Shane and I through to Los Angeles.
“Sure Acey… why?” She asked innocently enough “I can still fly for a few months, but after that you need another pilot.”
“A friend, Cat… Kyle has been in a fire accident and it’s not gonna be much more time.”
“No! Acey, that’s terrible.” She gasped, “We’ll be down early tomorrow morning, and I’ll clear us straight through to LA.”
“Thanks, dear. I love you.” I meant it, I realized after I had hung up. No matter what water was under the bridge, she was always there for me when I needed someone, and so was Bobby. It was me that needed to lighten up.
I walked upstairs to Shane, he was sitting in a pair of Lyrca cycling shorts, stretched tight over his massive thighs reading one of my computer books, mouth slowly sounding out some of the words. He looked up, guilty when I startled him.
“Tank, its Kyle! Somethin’s happened to him an’ we gotta get to LA quick. Petey said it was serious.”
“Shit!” Shane launched upright, muscles trembling.
“I’ll git packed, somethin’ light and let Linda know where I’m going.”
“We got a couple hours to get to the airfield, Tank. You don’t gotta rush too much. Linda in?” I felt as much panic as he did.
“Nah. She’s out with the Honey Sisters tonight. Most likely getting wasted somewhere near the Action Bar.” Shane shrugged “She’s been doing a lot of that most recent.”
“Shit, you think it’s serious?” I walked through to the kitchen, there was some coffee left on the hot plate.
“Dunno, Andy.” Shane shrugged, following me, “It sure ain’t helpin’ us much. She’s dead in the sack for days now… only time I get something away is when I ask you nowadays.”
“Sorry Tank, I didn’t know.” I patted his ass “I’ve ‘bin in too much of a funk to notice the last while.”
“Heh!” Tank grinned “You ‘bin workin’ up a storm there, not surprised much. Andy… you think Kyle’s gonna die?” He suddenly looked very young, like a kid “I dunno if… if I…”
“Hey!” I wrapped an arm around his waist “We’ll see when we get there. Y’know there is always that slim chance… that it’d be nothin’.”
“Be a long day tomorrow…” Shane sighed “C’mon crash with me fer a few hours a’fore we off to the airport… please?”
“Sure thing, Tank.” I patted his scared face “Let’s chase out some ghosts and get some sleep. I guess tomorrow is another day, and it’s gonna get to us whether we want to or not.”
I woke much later with Shane shaking me up, and entangling his limbs from me, whispering
“Andy, it’s 5AM, they gonna be at the airfield soon.”
“Hmph, I’m up Tank.” I yawned “Let’s throw on some jeans and make a beeline for there.”
“Sure, Big Guy.” Tank flipped off the bed and pulled on a set of snug jeans, tucking his cock flat. He couldn’t hide what I was struggling to suppress. “Man, he’s half a continent away, I sure hope he’s not lonely.”
“Petey will be there, I’m sure it’s fine.” I mirrored his actions with my jeans and pulled on a ribbed T- Shirt.
“Cappy gonna be along?” he asked innocently “I heard he and Cat are an item, engaged now.”
“Yeah, I guess so. I hope so.” I sighed “Kyle was his best friend while they were in school, I can’t think any reason for him not to be. Cat’s plane is a ten seater in any case… lots of space.” I looked him up and down carefully “Well, mebbe just enough space.”
“Awww, Big Guy…” Shane blushed “Quit foolin’ around, this ain’t the time.”
“Sorry, Tank. I do think this is the right time, ‘cos I sure could use some cheerin’.”
“Guess so.” Tank grabbed his tog-bag, hefted mine. We had packed for four or five days, there really wasn’t much in them. “Andy…”
“Hmmm…?” I wheeled the Jeep down the road to the Airfield past the sleepy lights winking in the town’s windows on the main street.
“What about Connie, and the kid?” Shane nibbled on a nail “If my bro’s not gonna make it, what about them?”
“I hadn’t thought of it too much Tank, but between you ‘n me we’ll make somethin’ work. Deal?”
“Yeah… thanks, Andy.” Tank sighed deeply “Poor lil’ guy… he never got much of a break.”
“Dunno ‘bout that Tank, far as I can tell, he’s bin as happy as can be these last few years, an’ he loved the job.” I pulled into the quiet Company airport buildings and headed over to the pre-fab that served as a flight office. Shane loped next to me, nerves jittering.
“Andy… I don’t know if I c’n do this.” Shane sat on one of the ancient slatted benches, it creaked ominously.
“Tank…” I gripped his thigh and squeezed “We gotta be there for him… I could never forgive myself if I wasn’t there and he asked for me, special.”
“Yeah…” Shane dropped his head and fiddled with his hands in his lap. “I wouldn’t have bin able to do this if it weren’t for you, Andy. You a good friend, Andy.”
“So are you, Tank.” I grinned at him, he smiled back shyly “We could’ve bin in-laws, ‘member…?”
“Heh!” Shane relaxed “It would’ve bin grand, buddy. We could’ve hiked up the Big Pass together with tents an’ spent a week fishing, drinking beer an’ fuckin’, jes’ like a regular ole Summers’ family outin’.”
“I’ve bin thinking about that also, Tank.” I was relived he had calmed down. “You think we should get a group together once a year like that, Cappy, Michel, me, you, Dean, maybe also Meat, or Alex an’ Flash… perhaps we even get Will Dekker along, and do it once a year. If Kyle turns out ok, we bring him in too. We can spend a week or ten days every year doin’ jes that.”
“I reckon it’s a great idea, Andy.” Shane beamed “I was feelin’ kinda lonely with Linda, ‘cos I never get to stay in touch with anyone, except you… an’ then only in the last few weeks.”
“Yeah… you kept me sane.” I chuckled “I would’ve jes’ bin another crazy ol’ hermit if it wasn’t for you guys.”
“Guess so, the fuckin’s bin good also. I swear Andy… if it wasn’t for you toppin’ me up I’d be jes another ex-football hero waitin’ for better days.” Shane smiled shyly.
“You talkin’ through yer ass, Tank. You got the motor shop, you got the farm equipment store and the show house with that deal you made with Will, and you putting in another pump station in Local town.” I shrugged, “Sounds like to me you’re digging for sympathy.”
“Nah, buddy… not that.” Shane turned on the bench, it groaned accordingly “Jase an’ I always had that planned, an’ it’s gonna happen like that anyway. It’s jes’ bin faster along the road after the winning season… but it’s you that kept me goin’ an’ wanting to want more. Fuckin’ with you has made me see things different… an’ I don’t wanna lose that. While you bin away an’ Cappy bin away, I’ve jes’ marked time until you guys came back.”
“Sorry, Tank.” I shrugged and looked into his honest face “I didn’t think it was like that.”
“See, until we took the Cup, the outside world really didn’t come through to Storyville too often. There was you, though. Stuck up all by yerself with your woman doing heck knows what for The Company, but then no-one knew exactly who or what you were.” Shane grinned “Yeesh, Andy… the ruckus you caused not speaking to anyone, you were… Hell, you still are… prime gossip material. I guess only the ones who made the effort are the lucky ones… They got to meet you… an’ some even luckier ones, like me ‘n Flash who actually got to know you.” Shane blushed “Or better still, you got to show us who you were.”
“Ummm…” I felt he was giving me too much credit “I guess I’m gonna have’ta live with that. I reckon small town folk like people to come to them for advice an’ stuff, so they feel important. Very few folks are going to step out of general scuttlebutt to greet a stranger first. I guess I never needed anythin’ from the Storyville greybeards, an’ I still don’t. I reckon to this day, an’ after all I done they still ‘xpect me to come to them with cap in hand. I reckon they in fer a huge shock, most of the county’s business is bein’ done in the Lodge and the number of rich folks and businessmen stayin’ in the place means they gotta get their heads out of their asses pretty quick.”
“Well, see… I’m one of the ‘youngbloods’ that is comin’ in after you ‘n Cappy broke the mould. I guess I gotta get ignored like you guys have bin, only I still live here… and it gits mighty lonely sometimes.” Tank grinned shyly “But I got to have you all to myself for a few weeks, and that’s gotta be enough, I guess.”
“Hey Tank,” I knuckled his chin “I meant what I said to ya. You always gonna be my friend.”
“Yeah.” Shane smiled and looked up as the lights of the Airfield flickered on “You got the legs, man- crush… enough for always.”
“C’mon, Tank…” I gripped his hand “Cat’s here with the ‘plane. Let’s go and see our ‘bro.”
I hugged Cat as she bounced out of the cabin, all lumpy and carrying far forward while they re-fuelled the plane, and gave Bobby an awkward hug as he embarked. He looked good and was sporting a little goatee that made him look like a movie star. He held on as I tried to step back and whispered in my ear, “Don’t be shy… not now.” I gave him a grateful grin and watched as Shane gave him a huge hug, lifting him off his feet. He gingerly shook Cat’s hand, half her arm disappearing in his huge square hands. Without too much more fuss, we climbed on board and lifted off shortly afterwards. I dozed somewhat on and off, and I realized with a start our wheels had touched down in L.A, and we were there. Petey was waiting for us, looking quite plump and domesticated, but tired and with dark circles around his eyes. We climbed into the back of his Volvo and headed straight to the hospital, and he filled us in. Cat took the front passenger seat, and Cappy, Shane and myself filled up the back seat, our asses used to sharing cramped spaces with each other, like a season tour bus.
Petey kept details to a minimum, “Kyle was with a contingent that spread out to cover a back burn, and things got rough. A power line had been blown down and some tall trees nearby had caught ablaze and leapt into the back of the suburb. Kyle ran into the house and got the kids into the pool when the shingle slate roof exploded near him.”
“So… he’s… badly burnt.” Shane’s voice came out in a squeak.
“No.” Petey’s jaws ground as he weaved through traffic. He must’ve been rattled, because as drivers go, Petey was as adventurous as a granny with a back seat full of Easter eggs. “He got some burns, sure, but was in the pool before they could get too serious, second degree mostly. He’s… he’s got Strep A.”
“Strep?” Bobby leaned forward “He’s not burnt bad?”
“Strep A.” Petey sighed as he pulled into the parking lot. “They usually call it GAS, but this is a super- strep, like in a few years ago, usually you got twenty four to forty eight hours before it gets you in a fever, and he’s not responding to the drugs, like a… superbug or something. And because of the burns… he’s not healing, Acey… the infection’s gonna kill him.”
My mouth felt dry “None of the drugs…? None of them.”
“No.” Petey’s voice was quiet, almost a whisper. “When they told him, he just laughed and said to get you and Tank over, quickest. So I did, I called you.”
I put my hand over the seat and rubbed his shoulder “You did good, buddy. You did what you should have done. Thank you, Petey.” His shoulder thrummed with tension.
“I… I’m gonna miss him, Acey…” Petey sighed from deep within his body, hunched over the steering wheel. “I’m really gonna miss him.”
“Me too, Petey… me too.” I groaned and sat back to where Shane was hunched, white- knuckled hands holding each other, staring out of the window at the sights flashing by.
“They’re sure?” he croaked.
“That they can’t do anything more… yes.” Petey’s jaw muscles worked as the grabbed the parking ticket at the lot entrance. “Turns out he can’t take much more penicillin and the regular stuff they use is not working. They’re calling it ‘complications’…” Petey took a deep, trembling breath “…such a stupid word for what’s happening… he’s dying, Acey… he’s dying.”
We spent about fifteen minutes walking through the strange smelling hallways until we found his ward. The antiseptic smell intensified as soon as we walked into the room, hiding another less pleasant, stranger smell. On the bed lay Kyle, golden hair shining in the sunlight streaming into the room, cornflower eyes bright, flashing his thousand-watt smile at us.
“Hey you guys, ‘sup?” His skin was almost translucent, with dark grey circles under his eyes. Details like these you wouldn’t ordinarily notice. A swath of gauze bandages covered his right arm below the elbow, oozing pink flesh almost visible under the gauze, and ano
ther similar dressing on his right thigh. If you looked at it, it didn’t seem like it would even leave a scar in a few weeks. His chest was bare, and his right side was peppered with slashes and cuts from below his nipple to just above his hip. The little wounds didn’t look … right. The jagged edges were puckered and livid purple, when you would expect the scarlet of ordinary cuts.
“Oh… oh man, bro…” Shane groaned “This ain’t fair… not like this.”
“It don’t hurt, Tank.” Kyle smiled again and I could see the fever this time. “Kinda… uncomfortable, truth be told, but it don’t hurt.”
“I’d hope we’d have more time, kid.” I forced a grin I didn’t feel “What’s the chances you gonna turn the tables?”
“Hiya Big Guy, thanks fer bringin’ my bro… an’ Cappy too.” Kyle’s forehead broke out in a light sheen of sweat “Not really good. The fever won’t break an’ it’ll cook my brain. Sometimes… sometimes, you live… but the damage is permanent. Quack’s of the opinion that I ain’t gonna be one of those. There’s blood poisoning also… guess I’m screwed. I don’t got a lotta time before I go inta a coma, so I gotta rush you guys, ‘kay?”
“Yeah, no problem.” Cappy nodded “What you need?”
“Petey?” Kyle reached for water and gulped quickly “You tell them yet?”
“No, no time.” Pete reached into a leather briefcase on the side table and pulled out some official looking forms. “It’s all here, buddy.”
“Good.” Kyle turned to us and smiled again “Guys, I didn’t only wanna see you an say ‘bye… I gotta favour to ask.”
“Ask us, bro… we’ll make a plan.” Shane smiled at me quickly, eyes shining with tears