Last Chance Hero

by Cathleen Armstrong

  When Elizabeth finally reached her front door, preceded by Sam the cat, who seemingly appeared from nowhere, she turned and waved before going inside. Jess returned the wave and after a second headed back home at an easy pace. It was beyond her how someone so frail could exude so much strength.

  9

  Well, my goodness, do you cook at all?” Juanita met Jess at the door of the Dip ’n’ Dine and showed her to a booth by the window. “Not that we don’t love having you come in, of course. But eating out every day of the week is bound to get expensive, even if you are a doctor.”

  “I don’t eat out every day of the week. I think this is only the fourth or fifth time I’ve been in this week.” How did Juanita always manage to put her on the defensive, and why did she feel compelled to explain, anyway?

  “Five times in one week might not seem like much to you, but nobody I know eats out that much, unless they have something to celebrate.” Juanita handed her a menu. “Here you go. Do you want to look at this, or should I just bring you a salad?”

  Jess took the menu. “Actually, I’ll wait a bit to order. I’m meeting someone.”

  “Oh?” Juanita perked up. “Anyone I know?”

  “Naturally.” Jess smiled up at her but offered no other information, and after Juanita waited a moment or two, her mouth got a little pinched and she turned away.

  “I’ll go get you some water. Just let me know when your friend shows up.”

  Jess watched her go. On her way to get the water, Juanita stopped at a table or two, and from what Jess could discern, she was just as brusque and plainspoken there as she was when she spoke to Jess. The difference was that the diners at those tables looked up and smiled and, after exchanging a few words with her, went back to their meals and conversations as if Juanita’s attitude was just part of the Dip ’n’ Dine ambience. And who knows? Maybe it was.

  “Think you’ll be ordering soon?” Juanita was back with the water. Her mouth was still pinched and she did not meet Jess’s eye as she put the glass on the table. “Things can get kind of backed up on Saturday afternoons.”

  Jess took a closer look at Juanita’s face. Had she actually hurt Juanita’s feelings? She’d have sworn Juanita didn’t even have any feelings. Feeling a little guilty, she tendered a peace offering. “I sure hope so. Andy said he’d meet me here right after his team meeting, and he didn’t think it would go much past noon. But if you need the table, I’d be happy to wait for the next one.”

  “No, of course not.” With Jess’s conciliatory tone and her curiosity assuaged, Juanita seemed ready to let bygones be bygones. “I’m sure he’ll be along soon. I’m not a bit surprised he’s taking more time than he expected to with those boys, though. Last night was not pretty.”

  “So I heard.” Jess pulled her glass of water closer. “I know Andy was feeling pretty low when I saw him earlier this morning.”

  “Well, he shouldn’t.” Juanita’s brook-no-nonsense tone was back. “And I’ll be the one to tell him so when he gets here. There are plenty of other games to win this season; this was just the first one. Of course, it was the one and only game we’ll play this year with San Ramon, our archenemy, so it does mean they have bragging rights all year long, and let me tell you, when it comes to bragging, no one can do it better than San Ramon. But let us just win the rest of our games, and they’ll get real quiet real quick. You wait and see.” She gave the table a sharp rap with her knuckles for emphasis.

  “All right, then.” No pressure. Just have a near perfect season and all is forgiven. “It looks like they’ve got their work cut out for them.”

  “If anybody but Andy was head coach, I might be a little worried, but I just have a feeling that once they get their feet under them, there will be no stopping that team.” She glanced past Jess into the parking lot just as the ding of a bell signaled an order ready to serve. “Here’s our boy now. You tell him what I said, and I’ll be back to take your orders in a minute. Although with you ordering those salads every time you come in here and Andy always getting a bowl of green chile stew, I could just as easily save myself a trip and go ahead and put your orders in now.”

  She headed off toward the kitchen as the door opened and Andy came in. Before he had taken three steps, someone had grabbed his attention and his hand, and he stopped for a minute to talk. His eyes lit up and his smile widened as he spotted Jess, but again someone reached for his arm as he passed, and again he stopped. By the time he reached their booth and slid in across from her, his smile looked a little wooden.

  “Whew. I’ve had backfields that were easier to get through than that was.”

  “I’m glad you made it.” Jess grinned and pushed the menu across the table to him. “At least everyone was friendly. I didn’t see any torches or pitchforks.”

  “Not this time. They all told me not to worry about it, that there were still plenty of other games to win this season.”

  “Juanita made almost the same comment. Sounded kind of ominous when she said it.”

  “It sounds ominous when everyone says it, although I’m sure they think they’re being encouraging. But you know what? I came back to Last Chance to coach the football team, not to worry about what the town thinks. Russ can do that. He’s the Booster president.”

  “Russ can do what since he’s the Booster president?” Whether Juanita was on her way to their table to take their order or whether she just heard Russ’s name mentioned and came over, Juanita clearly believed that any conversation that involved her husband involved her as well.

  “Hi, Juanita.” Andy flipped his menu open and just as quickly flipped it shut. “I was just saying that I was going to let Russ and the Boosters run interference with the town for us, so we can just concentrate on the season. You know how things can get.”

  “You don’t have to say another word.” Juanita flapped a hand at him. “Forget Monday morning quarterbacks. They’re just amateurs compared to our Saturday morning, biscuits and gravy quarterbacks. You would not believe the things I’ve heard in here this morning. They talked like the one and only thing that causes a team to win or lose is the coaching. But I just told them, ‘Give the boy some time. He just got here. We’ll get our team back, you just wait and see.’”

  “Well, I appreciate it. Glad you’ve got my back.” Andy’s smile looked forced as he handed the menu to Juanita, not that she noticed. “I’ll have the green chile stew and maybe some extra tortillas, if you please.”

  “Absolutely.” Juanita tucked the menu under her arm and pulled out her pad. “And a salad for the doctor, right?”

  “You know, I think I’ll try those chicken enchiladas we talked about last night. With green chile.” Jess tried to look nonchalant, as if she were an old hand with chile of all sorts, but Juanita’s double take and raised eyebrows as she turned to go secretly delighted her. “Oh, and please put that egg on it.”

  Jess didn’t know what she was expecting when she turned back to Andy after placing her order—maybe a “wow” or an “atta girl”—but he was just gazing out the window at an eighteen-wheeler that was rumbling its way through town. Feeling a little silly that she had expected some kind of a reaction from him just because she ordered enchiladas, Jess waited until Andy looked back at her.

  She smiled. “Still here. Where are you?”

  He shook his head as if to clear it. “Right here. Game’s over. I’m not going to think about football again until Monday morning.” He blew out a huge gust of air. “So what are you doing with the rest of the day?”

  “Like I said, just the laundry, cleaning, grocery shopping.”

  “On a beautiful day like this one? You’ve got to be kidding. Come on, we can do better than that. The laundry and cleaning aren’t going anywhere.”

  “Yep, you’ve got that right. They’re just sitting there waiting for me.”

  Andy acted as if he didn’t hear her. He leaned forward on his elbows, and for the moment, Jess could believe he actually had put last night’s game
behind him. “Have you seen the Gila Cliff Dwellings yet?”

  “No. What are the Gila Cliff Dwellings?” Despite her chore list, Jess found herself drawn to his enthusiasm.

  “It’s an ancient village built into some caves in the side of a cliff. It’s small, not like Bandelier up north of Santa Fe or Mesa Verde in Colorado. They think maybe a dozen or so families lived there back in the thirteenth century, but it’s really something to see. Let me show you around this afternoon; it would only take about an hour and a half to get there, and the drive is beautiful.”

  “The drive to where is beautiful?” Juanita appeared at their table with a tray of food. “Here you go. Green chile stew and green chile enchiladas. Careful, that plate’s hot.”

  She looked from Jess to Andy and waited. Obviously, her question had not been rhetorical.

  “I’m trying to talk Jess into going up to the Gila Cliff Dwellings with me this afternoon. She’s never been.” Andy unwrapped a thick tortilla and spread butter on it.

  “Oh, then you’ve got to go. There’s no question. And Andy’s right. It’s a real pretty drive. It’s a little early to see much color, but there might be some.” She turned to Andy. “And it wouldn’t hurt you to get out of town for a while, either. Kind of let things settle down a little bit.”

  Settle down? Maybe there are torches and pitchforks out there after all.

  Jess took a tentative poke at her enchilada with her fork. It looked so big. And it still bubbled around the edges. This would take some figuring out. She looked up when the silence told her that some kind of response was expected.

  “Sounds great. Let’s get out of town for the afternoon. We’ll just let Monday take care of Monday’s problems.”

  “All right, then.” Juanita seemed pleased that thanks to her, yet another problem had been tidily taken care of. “You two go off and have a good time. And you just tell me if you don’t think that enchilada doesn’t put your plate of rabbit food to shame.”

  After giving the table one last satisfied look and asking them if they were sure they didn’t need anything else, Juanita left them to their lunch. Jess poked her enchilada again. It didn’t look like any enchilada she had ever seen. It was flat, for one thing, spilling chunks of chicken and fragrant green chile sauce from between stacked corn tortillas, and there was that fried egg sitting on top. She took a tiny taste. The flavor of the green chile was rich, earthy—and hot! She tried to look casual as she reached for her glass of water.

  “No, wait.” Andy put his hand on her arm to stop her. “That’ll just make it worse. Here, take this buttered tortilla. This is what you need.”

  She stuffed a bite of the warm bread in her mouth, and it did help. Andy smiled in sympathy.

  “You don’t like hot food? I should have warned you.”

  “I love hot food!” Jess ate another bite of tortilla. “Indian food and Thai are two of my favorites, but most Mexican food I’ve eaten has been pretty mild. I sure wasn’t expecting this.”

  Andy laughed. “I know what you mean. It’s not the same elsewhere, is it? The thing you need to keep in mind is that this food didn’t come north through Mexico to get here. Spaniards settled here around five hundred years ago, and using the things they could get to grow here in this high and rocky place, and learning a lot from the Pueblo Indians, they came up with this. It’s probably more accurately called New Mexican than Mexican. Personally, and without a shred of prejudice, I think it’s the best food in the world. I’d be happy to eat it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.”

  “You wouldn’t have much of a stomach lining left.” Jess took another bite, followed by another quick bite of tortilla. “But I have to say the flavor is amazing, almost worth the pain.”

  “Ah, first you get used to it, then you crave it. Wait and see.” Andy spooned in a large bite of green chile stew. “Besides, it doesn’t do a thing to your stomach lining. In fact, New Mexicans have the lowest per capita incidence of stomach problems in the entire country.”

  Jess just looked at him. “You made that up.”

  Andy shrugged. “Maybe. But so what? Some of the most interesting facts I know are completely made up.”

  “Promise me you’ll never go into science.”

  “No worries. At least not the kind of science you’re talking about. I’m back where I want to be, doing what I want to do—coaching football, making stuff up, and eating as much of Carlos’s cooking as I can get.”

  Andy’s mood really did seem to lift the more they talked, and Jess found herself laughing at a silly streak he had never shown before. But when she saw a middle-aged man in boots with his belly hanging over his wide leather belt begin to make his way toward their table, she had a feeling all that was about to change. And she was right.

  “Andy? Sorry to interrupt your lunch, but I hadn’t had a chance to welcome you back yet.”

  Andy’s face split in a grin, and he stood up and grabbed the man in a half hug, half handshake. “Rob! Good to see you, man. Saw you sporting that letterman’s jacket last night. Still looking good.”

  “Well, it’s getting a little tight, that’s for sure. I’d hate to have to snap the thing up.”

  Andy laughed and turned to Jess. “This is Rob Ellis. Rob was my hero growing up. He made moves on the field you’d swear couldn’t happen. He was just the best there was.”

  “A lot of good that did me.” There was a note of bitterness in Rob’s voice that belied his smile. “But I’ve got a lot of hopes pinned on my boy. You think he’s got a chance to go the distance?”

  “Your boy?” Andy’s confused frown dissolved into a delighted grin. “Ellis! Of course! I don’t know why I didn’t make the connection. Man, you’ve got a kid in high school? I can’t believe it.”

  “Yeah, sometimes I wonder where the time went myself.” He hitched his jeans. “But here’s the thing. I really want Zach to have the chance I never had. By the time you were playing, we were right smack in the middle of the Glory Days and all over the news. Scouts actually came to watch you play. But when I played, we were just another fly-speck high school in the middle of nowhere playing other fly-speck schools just like it, and nobody gave a darn.”

  “I wouldn’t say that, Rob. You were Last Chance’s golden boy. I think if we’d have had a town square, they would have erected a statue of you right in the middle.”

  “Yeah, well, Last Chance doesn’t offer full ride scholarships to Pac-12 schools, now does it?”

  There was no mistaking the bitterness in Rob’s voice now, and Andy’s smile faded. “Yeah, I caught some breaks, all right. I’m the first to admit it.”

  “Hey, I didn’t mean to get all gloomy on you.” Rob’s smile was back, even if it didn’t quite reach his eyes. He slapped Andy on the shoulder. “You deserved everything you got and then some. But I’m thinking that just with you being here, the team’s going to get some attention, and then if they start winning, why, the scouts’ll be swarming. My boy’ll get his shot, like I never did.”

  “You never know, Rob. I wish I could look into the future for you, but I can’t.” The pleasure that had spread over Andy’s face at seeing an old friend had faded, and he just looked tired.

  “Well, keep an eye on him. He’s got all the raw talent he needs; he just needs some development. The coach we had last year was worse than useless.”

  “That’s what I’m here for.” Andy extended his hand. “Rob, I can’t tell you how good it is to see you again. I know I don’t need to ask if I’ll see you at the games.”

  “Oh, I’ll be there. I bring my own video camera to film the games so Zach and I can go over them together.” He clapped his hand into Andy’s. “It’s been a real pleasure. I’m looking to see some great things from the team from here on out.”

  With one last slap on the shoulder, Rob turned to go, but before Andy could sit down, he turned back.

  “One more thing. I just can’t help thinking that if you’d played Zach a little more last night, the score mig
ht have been less lopsided. I’ve seen him play a lot more than you have, and I know what he can do. I can guarantee you that three of those turnovers would not have happened if he had been on the field.” He raised his hand in a salute. “Well, that’s it. Good seeing you, Andy. Ma’am, a pleasure.”

  Andy slid back into the booth, and Jess watched Rob make his way back through the diner to the door. When she looked back at Andy, he was staring out the window again, watching Rob Ellis climb into his truck.

  “Is he one of the Saturday morning biscuits and gravy quarterbacks Juanita was talking about?” Jess smiled when Andy turned to look at her.

  “Rob? Maybe. I guess. But you know? Everything he said was true. He was good, more than good. He just played in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

  “Is his son as good as he thinks he is?”

  “Yeah, Zach’s good. I don’t know if he wants it as bad as his dad does, though.”

  “Did your dad turn up at the games with a video camera too? And bug the coaches for you?” Jess grinned.

  “Nope, Dad didn’t make it to a lot of my games.” Andy just glanced down at his watch and signaled Juanita for the check. “We need to get going if we want to see those cliff dwellings. They’re in a canyon, and you lose the light early.”

  10

  Andy had second thoughts about taking Jess to the Gila Cliff Dwellings almost as soon as they got in his truck and headed out. After all, if some of the other prehistoric sites had been described as cities carved from stone, Gila could barely be considered a village. It was sort of the Last Chance of cliff dwellings, but maybe that was what made the place so special to him.

  “I hope I haven’t oversold the place.” Andy glanced over at Jess. She looked good sitting on the other side of his truck, like she belonged there. “Don’t be expecting the Seven Wonders of the World. It’s pretty small.”

  “What? No pyramids? You might as well turn around and take me home.” When Jess turned to smile at him, he noticed how the sun shining through her reddish-gold hair made it seem to glow. “Actually, just getting out of town is a treat. I haven’t had time to do much exploring. I had no idea there were so many mountains here. I guess I pretty much thought it was all desert.”