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Debra looks me up and down. “Where have you two just come from?”
Zane answers. “A wrestling match. They were about to start the female mud fights when we had to leave. Sorry to miss it. Do we smell like smoke?”
Oh, he’s good. He knows how to poke the beast just right.
Debra’s face turns red. “Don’t be ridiculous, Zane. You’re such a smart aleck.” To me, she adds, “He always has been.”
“I think he’s funny.”
“Oh, he is,” she says with a flutter. “Such aninterestingpersonality, our Zane.” She hands a wrapped gift to Zane. “I bought you something. A welcome home gift.”
Zane accepts the present. “For me, huh? How do I rate?”
He unwraps it quickly. It’s a twelve-pack package of department store socks.
Wow. Debra has a cruel streak inside of her that scares me. I can’t play in her league.
Zane slaps his thigh. “Look at that. Amazing invention. Did you know these existed, Mila?”
“Something called shirts exist too,” I tell him quietly, so Freddy can’t hear.
“Who knew?” He tosses the package on a foyer table and pounds his flip flops harder against the tile floor.
“Just a gentle reminder, Zane. Some occasions require shoes and socks,” Debra says as we follow her toward the dining room.
Our dear, sweet Freddy is at her best this evening.
Look out.
I cast Zane a glance as we cross the threshold. But his eyes are elsewhere.
James Martel is sitting in his wheelchair next to the table, hunched and defeated. His normally blank face alters when he sees Zane. A wave of recognition crosses his features, animating him in a way I’ve never seen before. His back straightens, his expression brightens, and his eyes widen.
Zane rushes to his father, engulfing him in a bear hug. “Dad.”
A strange sound emanates from James, a sort of wail and grunt combined. He does it over and over again, clearly expressing happiness in the best way he knows how.
I have to hold back tears at the sight of the reunion of father and son. All this time, I thought James wasn’t “there” at all. I was mistaken. Something inside of him absolutely knows Zane.
When I glance at Debra, her face is a mask of anger. She can barely conceal her feelings.
I don’t need to confirm the truth of what Zane told me about his life. It’s more than obvious.
“That’s enough, Zane. I don’t want him to get over excited.”
She’s such a killjoy. Something tells me it’s going to be another one of those long evenings.
chapter thirteen
~
ZANE TAKES THEseat next to his father, gripping one of his hands tightly in his own.
But James has other plans. The long, throaty noises continue to emanate from him, almost as though he’s trying to tell Zane something. I see it as a great expression of love for his son. I have to hold back tears. The two of them clearly have a strong connection.
“It’s all right, Dad, I’m home. Everything’s okay. I’m home and I’m not leaving. I’m stationed right here in San Francisco now. I’ll be here everyday to see you. That’s a promise.”
“All right, then. Let’s eat, shall we?” Debra claps her hands twice like she’s in a “clap on” commercial.
