Blitzed(35)

Yeah, you overheard Laurie right when we Skyped. Lorenzo and I, we're kind of broken up now. We tried, Dani, we really tried to make it work. I can't fault him for that. He’s a good man, but after all that time, even he could see that, despite our best efforts, there was a place in my heart that he was never going to get to. I don't need to be a psych expert like you to know why.

Yes, I keep up with him on the Net. Second round draft pick to Seattle. I'm surprised he didn't try to get a trade, considering his bad feelings for Silver Lake Falls. Then when you told me he actually bought a house in town, that old one that he and his father used to live in . . . amazing. And he's a teetotaler, which I can totally understand. He had a really good rookie year, got some quality games in, and I'm looking forward to seeing what he can do this year.

Well then, I guess I need to come out and say it. I need to know, Dani. For five years now, Troy Wood's been a ghost on my shoulder. He's been at every art gallery, every sale. Every time I closed a deal to send something to the States or bring it here from the States, I wondered if he'd have been proud of my hard work. When Laurie took her first steps, or said her first word, the first person I wanted to tell wasn't Lorenzo, or Mom, or even you . . . it was him.

Lorenzo knows it, and he says he can live with it, if I have some closure. He's my business partner anyway, so it's not like it's that strange. So, we're going to do something totally crazy. I'm going to come back home, and bring Lorenzo and Laurie with me. Lorenzo is so in love with Laurie that I couldn't deny him the way I denied myself and Troy, and I need his support right now. We’re just friends and business partners, and he’s okay with that.

Dani, I need to know. I need to see him, at least one more time. I don't know if I can talk to him, and who knows? After five years, maybe he won't even recognize me. But I need to know. I need to see him up close, and if I can, look him in the eye. I need to know if I can move on from him.

I'll call you next week with our flight details. I'll probably stay at a hotel in Seattle, at least for a while, until I know how long I'm staying in town. Maybe Mom won't mind if we crash with her for a couple of days. We can get together then, for sure. I know I want you to meet Laurie.

I love you, Sis.

Whitney





Part II





Adulthood





Chapter 12





Troy





"Foxes! To me!

I don't care, I may not be a Silver Fox any more, and looking around at the assembled group, I don't recognize any faces, but there are a a few whose names I know, kids who are the little brothers and cousins of my Foxes. Still, it feels great to call out those words again, and as the fifty-odd players in junior high school and the high school gather around, I feel like I'm the one who should be paying for the experience, and not them. Not that I'm making any money off this. The camp fee is for their t-shirts, and any overage goes to the booster club.

It's the feeling of being home again that helps, and yes, taking the two days out of my own training camp in order to do what the team thinks is a purely PR event for a little bit of rest and recovery physically as well. For someone on the line of being cut, something like this could be dangerous, since it’s the last weekend before the first pre-season game, but I'm sure of a slot on the fifty-three-man roster, so I'm happy with things.

"All right, Foxes, good work these past two days. First, I'd like to thank Coach Jackson and the rest of the SLHS staff for letting me come in and work with you guys."

There's a round of polite applause, but I don't expect much more. I run through the rest of my little wrap-up talk, then dismiss the camp, turning it over to Coach Jackson. Walking away, I feel a presence behind me, and I turn to see one of the campers, an intense kid who made an impression as much for his seriousness as he did for the fact that he's totally undersized for his position.

"Excuse me, Mr. Wood?"

I shake my head and smile, chuckling. "Nobody calls me Mr. Wood. Call me Troy—didn't I tell you guys that yesterday?"

"Sorry," the kid says, and I remember the kid's name now. Charlie, Charlie Pride. "I just had a question. Do you have a minute?"

"Sure. What's on your mind?"

"Well," Charlie says, and I can read his mind as he's thinking. He knows the truth, that at five eleven and one ninety, even if he's bulking, Charlie's football career is going to end at Silver Lake High unless he goes on a massive growth spurt sometime during his senior year. He's too short and too small to play offensive or defensive line like he camped for, and he's just a step too slow to play linebacker or defensive back. He might have an outside shot at making a minor school or maybe someone's scout team, but he knows the grim reality—the last ten to twelve games of his playing career are coming up fast.

"Well, I was kind of wondering . . . what's it like with your teammates and such in the pros?"

It's not a question I expect, and I nod my head, needing a moment to form my answer. "It's a lot different," I say, thinking. "First of all, the whole facility is a lot nicer than here, of course. I mean, we've got carpet and everything. But I don't think that's what you're talking about, is it?"