Burnout

by Teresa Trent

  "Thank you." I called after her, and then went upstairs to deliver Zach's surprise.

  "You just received a gift." I said.

  He sat up and smiled taking the little bear into his arms. He was probably getting a little old to have a bear, but right now, it seemed like a wonderful thing.

  "Who gave me this?"

  "Your friend, Grace."

  His eyebrows drew together as he thought for a moment. "I don't have a friend named Grace."

  "Was she certainly seemed to know you. She wanted you to feel better. Isn't she from school?"

  He pondered for a moment. "I guess there is a Grace in my math class. At least I think that's what her name is. She's really skinny, and she sits on the front row. She knows lots of the answers. I didn't even know she knew who I was."

  "It seems that she not only knows you, but she likes you enough to bring you a teddy bear. Her family owns the Galvez gift shop." I tried to draw the story out of him. "Uh, Tyler told me something about you and Grace...what was it?"

  Ignoring me he held the little bear out by its plush paws. "Oh, so she just picked this up from her family store and brought it to me?"

  "You have to admit, it was very thoughtful." Zach took the little bear and placed it on his dresser no longer wanting to hold it.

  "Don't you like it?" I asked.

  "I do. It's just that..."

  "I've never seen you voluntarily give up a gift."

  "It's just that Grace is kind of... weird. I'm afraid that if I take her bear she's going to think that I like her."

  "Don't you?"

  "Yes. It's hard to explain. If I take this bear it's like were boyfriend and girlfriend or something." Going into a supply closet together could do that to you too, I thought.

  "Zach you're putting way too much into this. She just brought you a bear. Like you said she picked it up at her store this afternoon. I don't think you have to go out shopping for rings quite yet."

  He gulped. "I really don't think I'm ready to give her a ring."

  "I didn't say that you wanted to. Just take her gift and be gracious about it. Tomorrow you can tell her you really appreciate it; then, treat her like you always do."

  "You mean ignore her?"

  "No. Don't ignore her. Maybe you'll find out that she's really a nice girl, and not just weird."

  "Mothers. What a bunch of dreamers you are."

  *****

  I laid down for a quick nap while I was waiting for Leo and was surprised to find out upon waking that Leo had fed the boys and even stuck the empty Styrofoam containers in the trash. It was awfully nice having an extra parent on the job.

  "You really are wonderful. You know that don't you?"

  "I've heard rumors." He set a plate of Kung Pao chicken in front of me. "Oh before I forget, your aunt called. She wants you to call her back."

  Smelling the chicken, I pushed it back. "Looks great. I think I'll give her a call first though."

  "Okay, but don't let it get cold."

  Aunt Maggie picked up on the first ring.

  "So, are we ready to start planning our big blended family Thanksgiving?" I asked.

  "Excited are you? Now before you start stressing out, let me reassure you that yes I will make the pies."

  She knew my baking challenges quite well. "I can keep us out of the Emergency Room anyway."

  "Could you make that one pie--the one with the bananas and the cherries?"

  "Do you mean the banana split pie? We haven't had that since, gosh. I don't even think Zach was born yet. "

  "I also wanted to warn you that Zach has the flu. It might be a good idea for you and Danny to stay away for a few days." My cousin Danny was an adult with Down Syndrome, and when he was feeling bad, he could be a handful.

  "Thanks for letting me know. You know what Danny can be like when he's sick. I appreciate the heads up."

  "Sure. I just thought it would be best to keep you away. There's always some sort of bug going around at school.

  "How's Tyler doing?"

  "Right now he seems okay to me."

  "You just keep an eye on him. Now that you have two kids you'll find out one will work his way through it, and then the other one starts the process all over again."

  "Speaking of somebody else coming down with this thing, Rocky sure was eating antacids like candy today."

  "That ain't good. It looks like the flu is hitting you on all fronts. Keep washing your hands."

  "I will. I promise." I hung up the phone.

  "Mom?" I heard from upstairs. "Can you bring up my backpack?"

  I trudged up the stairs with his blue and silver nylon backpack.

  "What do you need, Zach?"

  "My spiral. I need to work on a homework assignment." When I handed it to him I felt his forehead.

  "You're burning up."

  "But Mom, you don't understand. I have to do homework. I have a project due tomorrow."

  I drew in a sigh. "What kind of project?"

  "I have to write a biography of a scientist." My mouth hung open. "But don't worry mom, I already know who I am going to write about. I'm going to do my report on Albert Einstein. He's pretty interesting. Listen to this." He opened the notebook and held up the chicken scrawl he called writing. He says "Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow. The important thing is to not stop questioning."

  "Wow. That's pretty awesome. What do you think he was trying to say?"

  "He's saying to learn from your mistakes and never stop asking questions."

  "That sounds like advice to live by."

  "It sure does, and if I could just get a whole page out of that one sentence, I would be done with my report."

  "I think you have to work a little bit harder than that. Zach, how long have you known about this?"

  "About two weeks I guess."

  "Zach!"

  "Mom, please. I'm sorry. I know I should have thought about this before now. It just kind of snuck up on me." Zach looked like he was about to cry.

  "Okay, okay. I'll do whatever I can to help."

  "Thanks, Mom." Before he could finish his sentence, he jumped out of the bed and ran down the hall to the bathroom. Immediately the sounds of his throwing up echoed back to me. I followed him to the bathroom and grabbed a washcloth, dampened it, and placed it on the back of his neck as he was hunched over the toilet.

  "So, maybe we should get your stomach settled down a bit before we go tromping into the world of science. Do you think we could hold off on that report for a little while?"

  He grabbed the cloth from me and pressed it to his cheeks. "I guess, but I think that helped."

  "Did he throw up?" I didn't realize Leo was now standing behind us.

  "Yes, I think he'll be better now. He has to work on a biography for science.

  "If it has to be about a scientist, I'll be glad to help him with that."

  "Good. How is Tyler doing?"

  "So far he's good."

  Zach padded back down the hall to his room.

  "As long as we're talking about Tyler, have you noticed his tone lately?" I asked.

  "What tone?" Leo seemed genuinely surprised. Now I was starting to feel like I was on uncomfortable ground. Tyler wasn't speaking to his father the same way that he was to me. When Leo was around he acted differently around me. I suddenly worried if Leo would think I was making a big deal out of nothing. I hesitated before I went on.

  "I don't know; I guess I really can't put my finger on it. It's just that sometimes when he speaks to me, it's almost as if he's making fun of me."

  "Making fun, how?"

  "Oh, never mind. I'm just being silly."

  "Betsy, you probably aren't being silly, but you have to remember that Tyler is entering puberty and with that comes all of the moods of adolescence. I think we're in for it for years to come....Hey, your dinner is getting cold. Want me to reheat it in the microwave?"

  "No, I think I'll pass this time."

  CHAPTER THREE
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br />   That evening Leo pulled three of his suits out of the closet and placed them across the bed.

  "So what do you think I should wear on camera?"

  "I thought you knew all about being a TV weatherman. I mean with all that experience and everything." With his beautiful blue eyes and handsome face he wouldn't have to worry too much about what he wore. I just hoped somebody would actually be looking at the map behind him.

  "I may have had experience, but it's been a long time, and I heard some of these Pecan Bayou people could be pretty picky about their weatherman. Stan's new administrative assistant said that I could go as casual as I wanted to, still somehow I feel like showing up in jeans and a T-shirt won't give me too much credibility with the Pecan Bayou audience."

  "Hurricane Hal has set the standard pretty high for us you know. He's the ingenious one who came up with the car count of incoming evacuees scrolling on the bottom of the screen. Luther Jibbets saw it and moved the port-a-potty he rents for construction sites out on the main road and stood there with a coffee can. Those people ran out of their cars in the line, shoved a dollar in the can and used his stinky little bathroom. Ruby Green said he made at least a hundred dollars during Hurricane Ike,"

  Leo held up his gray and his blue suit jacket for me to make a judgment call.

  "I like the blue suit."

  "Sounds good." He picked it up and hung it on the hook on the outer door of our shared closet.

  "How long do you think you will be doing this?"

  "Probably just a couple of days. Hal's a pretty healthy guy. How long can something like the flu take?"

  "I guess we are about to find out with Zach. I just checked on him, and he's asleep. He drank about half of that ginger ale, and his fever seems to be under control for now. I just hope no one else gets it."

  "What is Tyler doing?"

  "He said he had to finish up some homework, and then he was turning in for the night. I guess I let him play video games a little too long. "

  "Betsy, I was here too. You don't need to blame yourself for all the parenting mistakes in this house. I'm here to shoulder all the guilt you have with you. You know it's kind of a good thing that we both had our boys coming into this marriage. Raising a child can be difficult especially on nights like this. I'm just thankful there aren't three of them. We'd never get any sleep."

  "So, we share the blame, huh? When you put it that way I think it was you that let him play video games too long tonight." Leo grabbed me and held me tight in his embrace. This had to be my favorite part of my new married life. As we sunk down onto the bed without even checking to see if the door was locked, I wrapped my arms around his neck. Just when things were starting to get very good the phone on the bedside table rang."

  Leo reached for the phone and spoke into it clearing his throat. "Hello."

  He pulled away from me and sat up on the bed. "No, Judd. He isn't here. Oh ... I see. Is there anything Betsy and I can do to help?"

  I sat up and started re-buttoning my blouse. Leo quietly put the phone back.

  "What happened?"

  "When was the last time you saw Rocky?"

  "I saw him today. Why?"

  "That was your dad. He was looking for Rocky. The Gazette caught fire. Prepare yourself Betsy. He says it's pretty bad. The fire department is there now, and they can't find Rocky." I jumped from the bed to the closet to find a pair of shoes.

  I could only hope that Rocky had finally accepted one of those home-cooked dinners he was always turning down from the single ladies of Pecan Bayou.

  *****

  It was one of the first times we had left the boys home alone, but Tyler promised to keep an eye on Zach. We drove downtown to the Pecan Bayou Gazette building. The familiar edges of the structure were now crumbling and the heat radiated towards us. The volunteer fire department was out in force and the stripes on their gear reflected from the headlights of the many cars now parked in the downtown area. The fire sprayed up from the roof; the flames licking at the pitch black of a chilly Texas night.

  My father's squad car was next to the fire engine blocking off downtown traffic. He was in a deep discussion with Jim Rogers, the chief of the volunteer fire department. He looked up when we started walking towards him and nodded a goodbye and patted him on the back.

  "You didn't have to come down here," he said.

  "Did you find Rocky?"

  "No, not yet, darlin'. I think I've made calls to every single lady over fifty in a three county radius. Nobody's seen him."

  I felt a tightening in my throat. He couldn't be in there. That was all I could hope. I knew Rocky suffered from insomnia and would sometimes go down to the paper and work late into the night. The Gazette was the only woman he ever really loved. This is where Rocky would be.

  I felt Leo's arm around my shoulders. He whispered to me, "We'll find him, Betsy. He probably left hours ago, and we'll find out he's off fishing somewhere."

  The entire wait staff of the Pecan Bayou Diner stood out in the cold, shivering in their matching white uniforms. Birdie was on the phone to her mother.

  "Yes Mama. I'm safe. They are trying to keep the fire to the Gazette....No. You don't need to come down here.... The fire department is putting up some kind of water barrier between the Gazette and the diner." She looked around, and then whispered behind her hand into the phone. "Yes, I took the money out of the register."

  I looked at the side door of the Gazette. Had the firemen tried getting in by that door? It might be unlocked. I needed to check it out. I started toward it.

  "Betsy," my father said. "You can't go any closer than this. It's not safe. Leave finding Rocky to the fire department. This is what they've been trained for."

  "Dad, sometimes you know he takes a nap on that cot he has back by the copy machine. Maybe he's back there and has passed out from smoke inhalation. Let me a least go and tell Jim." He shook his head in exasperation at my babbling.

  I walked over to Jim and tugged on his smoke stained sleeve like a small child. "You need to go in that side door. Have you looked there?"

  "Miss Betsy you really can't see it from here, but the flames are much thicker inside the building. It's just not safe enough for us to send a man in there. The building is on the verge of collapsing. We couldn't get in there if we tried."

  "What do you mean? You have to try. It's your job."

  "I told you it's too dangerous now."

  "Well if you won't go in there I will. Rocky might be in there."

  I started walking toward the building, but then felt myself being pulled back. I heard Leo's voice in my ear. "Betsy stop. He's right. Losing Rocky would be awful, but it would be even worse if I lost you. You need to think about that before you go rushing off into the fire. Understand?"

  As I listened to his words my eyes were riveted to the flames that were shooting out of the top level of the windows in the Pecan Bayou Gazette. I knew he was right, but I also knew Rocky would do everything he could to rescue me. If nothing else it was an excellent news story. Suddenly as the flames shot out of the windows, there was an immense cracking sound, and the bricks and mortar of the left-hand side started crashing to the ground. Smoke and debris filled the air as I heard Birdie screaming behind us.

  Jim Rogers shouted and gestured broadly in the air so the entire crowd of onlookers and firemen could see him. "The side is starting to cave. Everybody back up."

  We stepped back about five feet as the building started disintegrating and falling to the ground with a giant rumble. The side of the building with the antique store and the diner attached to it had remained intact. The fire hoses continued to be trained on the fire as it overtook the remaining parts of the structure. I could only hope Rocky hadn't been inside. The Pecan Bayou Gazette was no more.

  *****

  Once we were sure that there was nothing more that we can do in the search for Rocky we headed for home. They had stabilized the fire, and now my dad and Jim Rogers were waiting for the fire marshal. Until
they decided if it was arson or not it was still a crime scene. He was driving over from Dallas and would make a decision on whether the Gazette fire was an accident or arson. No words passed between us in the car until my cell phone rang.

  "Betsy? Are you all right?" Aunt Maggie asked.

  "Yes, we are fine, but we never found Rocky." I felt my voice catch on his name.

  "Oh no. This isn't good. I'm so sorry, dear. Do you want me to come over?"

  "That would be nice, but I'm exhausted. Could we wait to have this talk tomorrow morning?"

  "Sure. Do they know how the fire started?"

  "Not yet. The investigation is just beginning."

  "If it does end up being a case of arson, there might be a long line of people who would want to set that paper on fire. Rocky sure has rubbed a lot of folks the wrong way for the sake of a good news story."

  Even I had been the recipient of some of Rocky's snooping, but I still cared for the man.

  "I know you're right, but this town loved Rocky." I stopped myself when I realized I had just spoken of him in the past tense.

  "I mean they love Rocky. I can't see anybody trying to do him any harm. It was an old building. The wiring was probably shot. You know Rocky would never waste money on something like upkeep and repairs when he could spend it on running the paper."

  "You're probably right, but you still have to wonder."

  CHAPTER FOUR

  "And as we come to the end of hurricane season we can once again breathe a sigh of relief after another year of no destructive storms. This is Leo Fitzpatrick filling in for Hurricane Hal this week as he recovers from a nasty case of the flu. Oh... and Stan requests that all of the cards and flowers and casseroles you're sending his way be delivered directly to Hurricane Hal's home, and we here at the station would like to apologize about eating the delicious cinnamon rolls sent in by Mrs. Potter. Good night Weather Watchers."

  "And were out." Stan the producer of the weather segment and the manager of NUTV approached Leo and shook his hand. "Fantastic job, Leo. You're a natural on camera."