“Did I ruin it?”
“No. You can stir it now, though.” She pointed to the wooden spoon between the burners. “Let me guess. ‘Born to Run’ is your favorite song,” she said.
“No. I’m strictly a deep tracks kind of girl,” Madison told her.
“Another surprise,” Elodie teased.
Madison stirred as Elodie looked on. This was nice. It felt nice. It shouldn’t feel this nice. She was just cooking a meal with her coach, who wanted to make sure she didn’t eat crap for dinner. Why did it feel like something else entirely, then?
They ate dinner, talking mainly about archery and the upcoming invitational. Occasionally, something else entered the conversation. Elodie mentioned she’d once had a dog, but it was back when she was still in the sport, and she was never around, so she had given him to a friend. Madison told her about the two cats her family had had when she was growing up. They argued over being cat people and dog people and laughed as Elodie drank from her wine glass. When dinner was over, Madison helped with the dishes. Then, she said goodnight and walked to the office. She turned around when she didn’t hear Elodie’s door closing behind her, and Elodie gave her a small wave. She was watching her walk home. Madison kind of liked the idea of someone caring enough to check on her.
Once inside the house, she made sure to turn on the alarm. Then, Elodie texted her to do just that. Madison texted back an emoji of a face with a tongue sticking out and told her she already did. Elodie texted back an eye-roll emoji. Madison responded that she was surprised someone Elodie’s age even knew what an emoji was. Elodie texted back an emoji of a hand flipping Madison off, which Madison didn’t even think was on the keyboard in her phone. She texted Elodie, asking if she’d downloaded that on some black market emoticon site. Elodie texted back an image of a woman holding her palms to the sky.
“Yeah, right. Sure, you don’t know,” Madison said out loud and then laughed.
Then, she texted a goodnight message. Elodie texted her the same back. Madison smiled as she climbed into bed. It didn’t dawn on her until after her head hit the pillow that she shouldn’t be smiling like this. Elodie Booker was her coach. She was ten years older than Madison and probably considered her to be a child. On top of that, Madison couldn’t stop thinking about Wiley. She picked up her phone and dialed the familiar number.
“We’re sorry. The mailbox you’ve reached is–”
“Fuck,” she said as she disconnected the call.
She sometimes left Wiley messages. When something was really bothering her or went really well, Madison would call and leave her a message. She had to then delete those messages every so often to make room for more. She knew how ridiculous that was. She could talk to the ceiling, and it would be the same. She could just record the sound of Wiley’s voicemail message and toss out her phone, but she couldn’t for some reason.
“Hey, Wiles,” she said to that ceiling. Then, she sighed. “It’s been an interesting few weeks, huh? I found her. I got her to agree to coach me even when she tried to turn me down.” Madison hesitated as she pulled on a rogue string from the comforter. “She’s, I think, a complex person. She might be one step above a functioning alcoholic. I’ve seen frat guys do keg stands and not drink as much as I’ve seen her drink since we’ve met, but – I don’t know – she seems okay with that. Maybe I’m just being judgmental.” She hesitated again and then bit her lower lip. “Wiles, she’s interesting. I know she’s older than me, and she’s my coach… I know I shouldn’t be…” She thought back to Elodie walking into the kitchen. “She looked really cute tonight.” She smiled. “It’s wrong, and it’s not going anywhere, but I thought she looked cute. And she gave me this look when I first showed up, that confused me at first, but then – after I saw her come back out dressed all comfortable-looking – I got it. She might have been checking me out a little.” Madison laughed to herself. “It’s stupid. It’s probably just been a while for her or something, and she’d jump any interested woman.” Her eyes got big. “Not that I’m interested. I’m not. I just–” She sighed yet again. “Hell, she’s hot, Wiles. She’s got these intense eyes and this cute nose. I really like her collarbones. I don’t know why, but they’re really sexy to me. I know. I know. I shouldn’t think my coach is sexy, but I can’t help it. She just is sexy, Wiles. I think you’d agree if you could see her.” Madison looked down at her phone and then unlocked it, pulling up an old photo of the two of them before Wiley had gotten sick. “I wish you were here. I think you’d like her. She’s direct and snarky and, I don’t know, just interesting. She’s not exactly telling me the whole story about what happened after the Olympics, but maybe she will, in time. Anyway, I should get some sleep. I’m up at five tomorrow to go workout. I miss you, Wiles.”
CHAPTER 10
“Your parents want me to do what?” Elodie asked her.
“Come to their place for my birthday celebration,” Madison replied, giving Elodie a face that told her not to shoot the messenger.
“Why would I do that?” she asked.
“Because they’re paying you a lot of money to coach me, and they want to know what they’re paying for.”
“They’ll find that out at the invitational.”
“Maybe so, but it’s only a six-hour drive, or a forty-five-minute flight. I was planning on flying myself, but if you’d rather drive, we can do that instead.”
Elodie watched as Madison ran a towel through her still wet hair.
“Madison, I’m not going to your parents’ house for your birthday. I’m happy you’re turning twenty-three, and I hope you have a great year, but I can’t just go to their house for the weekend.”
“It’s after the invitational. They can’t come to that. My dad is out of town for a work thing, and my mom doesn’t like to travel without him. It’s a whole thing.”
“What about your brother and sister?” Elodie asked.
“My brother is in business school at Villanova. He graduated college a year early, so he’s a year into his graduate program and doesn’t come home for the summer. My sister can’t get away from work. So, my parents want to meet you at the birthday thing.”
Elodie watched as Madison dropped the towel to the chair in front of Nancy’s desk. It was well after eight o’clock. Nancy had gone home at five that day, and Matt had only been in for a few hours. Madison had actually been a big help when two walk-ins came into the office and Elodie had no one to get them coffee and keep them occupied while she was occupied with another client. Elodie had thanked her by ordering them both a pizza, and they had shared it in the office. Then, Madison had gone to take a shower. Elodie had planned to be gone by the time she came out, but something kept her there, working at her desk.
“What exactly is this birthday thing?”
“Well, my brother, Mark, and I are twins, so it’s really our birthday, but I don’t like to share.” She winked at Elodie. “Our parents just invite a bunch of friends and family over. Mark’s coming home for that, so he can’t come here for the invitational, too. My older sister, Monica, will be there as well. You can meet the whole family.”
“And where exactly am I staying?”
Madison ran her hands through her long hair and said, “In the guest room. We have two of those now. My parents moved into a huge place two years ago. I’ll be in my room. Mark will stay in his. Monica sleeps in hers. I’m pretty sure my parents will sleep in their room. You’d have one of the guest rooms. Do you need me to draw a diagram or–”
“I get it, smart-ass,” Elodie replied, interrupting. “I don’t know. Can I think about it and let you know?”
“I’m booking my flight right after the invitational. Can you let me know by then?”
“Sure,” Elodie said. “Now, I should go home. You get some sleep, okay?”
“I will,” Madison replied. “Hey, El?”
“Yeah?” Elodie looked up at her after picking up her purse from the desk.
“I was thinking about going back t
o Doyle’s, maybe.” Madison looked at the floor as if she was embarrassed about wanting to go back to the gay bar where they’d run into one another.
“Okay.”
“I don’t know. Do you go often? You seemed pretty comfortable there. Do you want to go with me or something? I don’t know much about–”
“I used to go. When I first moved here and after I turned twenty-one, but I don’t go much anymore.”
“You were there–”
“It was a blind date thing that I couldn’t get out of. Trust me, I tried.”
“Oh,” Madison said, sounding disappointed. “Okay. Never mind.”
“Madison, you should go. If you’re living here at least through the next Olympic cycle, you should get to know the town.”
“Yeah, maybe. Anyway, good night,” she said.
“Good night,” Elodie replied, watching Madison disappear behind the bedroom door.
Minutes later, Elodie set the alarm for her and left for home. When she got there, she opened a bottle of wine and poured a small amount into a glass. She knew she shouldn’t be drinking as much as she had been recently, but she needed it. Tonight, she’d have only half a glass. That was her compromise. She couldn’t go to Madison’s parents’ home for the weekend. They had known each other for weeks at this point, and just because they were paying her to coach their daughter, it didn’t mean she had to give in to their every whim. Elodie took a long drink, nearly finishing the glass in the process.
The invitational was going to be hard enough for her to get through. She hadn’t been to a tournament since she had last played; since she had lost her coach. She’d agreed to do this, though. She was being paid to do this, so she would have to, and she’d be fine. She tried to convince herself of that as she finished the glass and placed it on the counter. Then, she stared at it and the bottle next to it, poured another half glass, and took a drink.
◆◆◆
“When are you leaving?” Nancy asked.
“I don’t know. I’ll leave when I get done with the paperwork for the McLaughlin case,” she replied.
Elodie was sitting behind her desk. It was after four. Matt had just left for the day, and Nancy was wrapping up her work before doing the same.
“Isn’t she already there?” Nancy asked, leaning in the open doorway to Elodie’s office.
“She left earlier. I told her to go on without me and get settled.”
“It’s in the next town over. Why didn’t you guys just stay here?”
“Because most tournaments won’t be in the next town over. I thought it would be good for her to get the full experience: check into the hotel, get into the mindset she needs, and all that. I don’t know, Nancy. I’m making some of this stuff up here. I’ve never coached before. By the time I was her age, I was already–”
“I know. I know.” Nancy waved her off. “The world’s greatest, blah, blah, blah.”
“Anyway, there was a local tournament that I was in once. Rod made me do the same thing. Being a pro athlete is a lot of repetition and routine. If you can emulate that whenever possible, you should. So, she’s already checked in and should be watching the video I took of her the other day of her release motion right about now.”
“So, I repeat my original question. When are you leaving?”
“I’m heading there tomorrow morning. Tonight, I’m finishing up this paperwork. Then, I’m going home to pack because I’ve been so busy, I haven’t even been able to think about what I’m bringing. I’ll leave early tomorrow. We’ll stay at the hotel tomorrow night, and we’ll come back on Sunday afternoon; hopefully, after she wins.”
“Do you think she can?”
“She can. She’s that good. I don’t know if she will, but she can,” Elodie said.
“Well, I’ll wish you both luck, then, and take off.”
Nancy left a few minutes later. Elodie sat alone in her office, wondering what Madison was doing. She should be watching the video, but she probably wasn’t. Madison had mentioned a friend who was also competing in the invitational and wanting to spend some time hanging out with her since the woman was from Nevada, and they didn’t see one another often. Elodie had discouraged it, but Madison was obstinate.
Elodie had to admit to herself: she was jealous. The friend Madison had mentioned was named Sia. She was a beautiful twenty-seven-year-old woman. Elodie had looked her up online. She did so again later as she sat at her desk, looking more closely at Sia’s credentials. The woman hadn’t won any major tournaments, but she had won some local ones. She wasn’t nearly as good as Madison, though. Elodie discovered that much by watching a YouTube video of Sia’s most recent tournament. The woman clearly needed a lot of work to get on Madison’s level. Elodie could only hope Sia wouldn’t affect Madison’s game. She closed her computer, locked up the office, and made her way home to have some dinner, check in with Madison, and then pack for her early drive the following morning.
“Hey,” Madison said about an hour later when Elodie called.
“You’re in your room for the night, right?” she asked.
“Really?” Madison chuckled. “Yes, I am in my bed already.”
Elodie heard another sound coming from Madison’s side of the call.
“What’s going on there?”
“Nothing. Sia’s here. We were just watching a movie.”
“Madison, she–”
“Calm down. The movie’s almost over.”
“She’s…” Elodie cleared her throat. “In your bed with you?”
“Sia, can you grab me a water?” Madison asked.
“What?” Elodie asked back.
“Nothing. She was just getting up. I asked her to grab me a water. El, it’s fine. We’re finishing the movie. Then, she’ll go back to her room.”
“You need to get a good night’s sleep,” Elodie said.
“I will. Oh, you should see the tourney grounds. Sia and I walked them earlier. They went all out. The bleachers are already set up. I didn’t think it was that big of a deal, but I stood behind the line and practiced my stance and my release, and it felt good, El. I can win this.”
“Hey,” Elodie heard Sia say.
“Sorry,” Madison replied.
Elodie’s heart started to race, and she said, “I should let you go.”
“What time are you going to be here tomorrow?” Madison asked her.
“I’ll be there by seven. Opening round is at eight, so I’ll be there in plenty of time.”
“I wish you could have been here today,” Madison said a little softer. “It was nice, walking the grounds. I haven’t been in a tournament for a while. I don’t know. It would have been nice to experience it with you. I know it’s been a long time for you, too. We should have done it together.”
Elodie could feel her chest tighten, and she focused on her breathing, trying to prevent what she knew would come if she didn’t take action.
“El?” Madison asked.
“I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?” Elodie said.
“Yeah, I guess. Is everything okay?”
“Fine. Good night.”
Elodie hung up the phone and did her best to think about anything other than archery, competing, and Rod. When she felt the tears welling up in her eyes, she knew she was in for it tonight. She walked into the kitchen, tried to pour a glass of wine, but the bottle was empty. She grunted and threw it against the wall, watching the dark-green glass shatter onto the floor, leaving small dark-red stains on the surfaces.
“Fuck!”
She slouched against the counter and then moved down to the floor. She couldn’t do this. It had been too long. She had been through too much. She wasn’t ready to get back into it; not like this and not now. She’d lost too much in her life. She had lost her parents, she’d lost Rod, and she’d lost archery. It was too late to try to get it all back, and she didn’t even want it if she could. She wanted her small house, the struggling law practice, and her wine.
CHAPTER 11
Madison hung up the phone for the seventh time that morning. She’d called. She’d texted. She’d even emailed. There hadn’t been time to drive to Elodie’s place after she had realized the woman wasn’t there. Madison would have missed the opening round, forfeiting her chance to win the tournament. She sent another text. This one was a bit nicer; she asked if Elodie was okay. Surely, the only reason she would miss the first tournament as Madison’s coach was that she had been in a car accident or something, right? Madison could only hope that Elodie was okay, though, because she was up.
“Coach?” the judge asked.
“No,” she said, looking around on the off-chance that Elodie had shown up, and she just hadn’t noticed.
“Okay. Take your places,” he told Madison and her competitor.
There were five sets in this competition with three arrows each. If an arrow was on the line, the score defaulted to the higher number. The winner of each set received two points. The loser received zero points. If the competitors tied, they each received one point for the set. If at the end of five sets the score was tied, a single arrow shoot-off would be held, and the closest to the center was declared the winner. Normally, coaches stood behind their players and offered wind speed or direction and instructions. Her competitor had her coach standing behind her. Madison did not, and she was pissed.
◆◆◆
“Oh, good. I’m glad to see that you’re not dead in a ditch somewhere,” she yelled when she entered Elodie’s house and saw the woman sitting on the sofa.
“What?” Elodie looked over at her, dazed.
“What the hell is wrong with you? Where were you? I called you a million times.”
“I’m sorry,” Elodie said softly.
“What? You’re fucking sorry? I lost in the second round, Elodie. I lost in the second round to someone I’m pretty sure has never competed. I lost because she had her coach whispering important info to her, and I didn’t. I lost by one point because you weren’t there. You messed with my stance and made me change my release, and you didn’t even bother to show up for my first tournament when I have to use them?”
A Shot at Gold Page 7