Page 123 of Before We Say Goodbye
Otis studied the shadow that his head cast on the concrete as he waited in the silence.
“Is it music?” Otis finally asked, imagining how Bec would see things. “Is that what you want to do? You an artist too?”
No response.
“If that’s it, why are you out here in the middle of nowhere?”
“Life’s not always simple.”
“What does that mean?”
Time passed before Vance answered. “My mom, she has dementia. I can’t leave her.”
A spark of sympathy lit behind Otis’s rib cage. “I’m sorry to hear that. You would, otherwise?”
“I’m a painter, paint houses, but you’re damn right. I’d love to go down to LA and see if I could make something of myself.”
“Where’s your dad?”
“Never had one.”
“What’d you do? What’s the warrant for?”
“Got pulled over with a bunch of weed and then skipped my court date.”
“I see.”
A rattling of locks sounded and a clean-shaven officer about Vance’s age slid open Otis’s door. “You’re out on bail.” He clicked handcuffs around Otis’s wrists and escorted him into the lobby.
Rebecca stood there, red-eyed.
“Hey, I’m fine. Don’t worry.”
“It’s not that.”
Otis felt his inside turn watery. “What is it? The boys okay?”
“Sparrow called.” She squinted. “Carmine’s dead. One of the workers found him in the vines.”
Otis sought an explanation in her eyes, wishing it were a joke, or a ... misunderstanding. “Carmine Coraggio?”
She took his hand and nodded.
Otis wasn’t ready.
He just wasn’t ready.
Chapter 26
Otis Rising
Paul and Sparrow threw their arms in the air as Otis and Rebecca descended the escalator at SFO. A whole lot of years came pouring over Otis, reminding him of exactly where it had all begun.
Their old friends were now into their fifties. Paul still had long hair, but it had thinned some and showed a few strands of gray. He wore a shirt that read:When I die, you better ferment me.The evidence of a lifetime of hippiedom still showed in Sparrow’s jewelry and dress. She radiated calm, as if she’d been steeped in stillness, and as she hugged Otis, his pulse slowed.
“I’m sorry about your mom and Carmine,” Paul said, squeezing Otis the way he always had, like they were saying goodbye forever. Dammit, it was nice to have friends like these, and Otis wished he could have talked them into joining them on Red Mountain.
“It’s almost enough to make a man numb,” Otis said. He rested his hand on Paul’s shoulder. “They both lived big lives. I suppose that’s all you can hope for.”
