5
Late summer in Last Chance meant the chile harvest. It meant finding yourself behind slow-moving trucks piled high with deep green pods heading for the processing plant. It meant roadside stands popping up along the Last Chance Highway where you could stop and buy a bushel or two and have them dumped into a roaster and slowly turned over a gas flame while you waited. Everywhere you went, the warm, spicy fragrance of chile, roasting and fresh, permeated the air, and you found yourself thinking about heading over to the Dip ’n’ Dine to see what Carlos’s special might be. From the time he was a kid, though, for Andy, the beginning of the chile harvest had meant one thing only: football practice.
Whole different set of butterflies this year. He shut his big three-ring notebook and leaned back in his chair. There were no windows in his office, but from the clock up on his wall, he guessed it was about sunup. In less than an hour, the summer silence of the building would be broken as football hopefuls began to arrive, and a new season of Last Chance football would begin.
From down the hall, Andy heard the front door open and the soft thud of athletic shoes on linoleum as footsteps approached.
“Hey, Coach.” Kev Gallegos, his only assistant, came in and dropped his own notebook on a smaller desk across the room. “Been here long? I didn’t think I was late.”
“Nah. I got here a while ago. Might as well not sleep here as not sleep at home.”
Kev grinned. “I know what you mean. I was up at 3:00 watching those videos from last season again, and I’ve got to tell you, I’m pretty excited about our prospects this year. There’s a lot of potential there. They just need someone to bring it out.”
“Yeah, well, that’s what we’re here for.” Andy willed his voice steady and low. Nerves were for other people. The head coach needed to be a rock. “Want to make sure the locker room is ready? The guys’ll be here soon.”
“Yeah, sure.” Kev headed for the hall but stopped in the doorway. “I don’t want to get all mushy here, but I got to tell you how honored I am to be working with you. You’re the reason I wanted to play football in the first place. I was in sixth grade when you played your last game here, and you made Last Chance seem unbeatable. I couldn’t wait to get to high school and be part of that. ’Course, by then you were at U of A, and the streak was broken, and it wasn’t the same team. But you know? I keep thinking that maybe I’ll get to be part of a different set of Glory Days now. Funny how things turn out, huh?”
“Different team, different time, Kev. This is the season we need to be worrying about, but thanks.”
“Well, I just wanted you to know, that’s all.” He hesitated as if waiting for Andy to say something else, and then, shutting the door behind him, disappeared into the hall.
Andy puffed his cheeks and blew out a gust when he heard the door to the locker room close. This was going to be an uphill battle.
He went back to his notebook and was still at work when his assistant opened the door again some time later.
“They’re all here, Coach. We’re ready when you are.”
“Be right there.” He took another deep breath. Well, here we go.
The low buzz Andy could hear as he crossed the hall fell into silence when he opened the door, and something over sixty faces turned to greet him. He knew them all, even if he couldn’t put one name to a face.
The returning starters were easy to spot; they straddled benches or leaned against the lockers with an easy, territorial confidence. The others, from last year’s benchwarmers to the sophomores looking forward to suiting up on varsity for the first time, regarded him with expressions ranging from grim determination to wide-eyed, stomach-churning fear. He stepped to the front of the room.
“Good morning, men. Thanks for turning out.” He looked out over the group assembled in front of him. He had the riveted attention of most, but one of the older students against the lockers leaned over and muttered something to the guy next to him and both snickered. That was fine. Guys like that were in every locker room. And they didn’t worry Andy at all. “You have the toughest couple weeks of your life ahead of you, and I’ve got to be honest, not every one of you is going to make it. All you have to do is look around the room and see that we have about twice as many men in here as we can keep, but I promise you that if you give me everything you’ve got, you’ll get a fair shot. If you don’t, if you think we just can’t do without you, you have a rude awakening coming, because I’ll cut you no matter who you are.” He made eye contact with the two against the lockers. “Are we clear on that?”
There was an insolent challenge in the look they returned, and Andy glanced back at the clipboard he held. “Okay, the first practice of the day begins at 7:00 a.m. sharp. Get here by 6:45 and start taking laps. At 7:00, Coach Gallegos will blow his whistle and you join us on the field. If you’re not on the track, don’t bother. You’ve just missed practice. Three missed practices and you’re out. First practice of the day lasts till 10:00. The second goes from 4:30 to 7:00. Same drill; be on the track at 4:15. Weight room is open from 1:00 to 4:00.”
He paused and looked out over the boys in front of him, letting his gaze fall on one earnest expression after another. Even the boys leaning against the lockers stood with arms folded over their chests, waiting for what he had to say next.
“I’ve already told you you’re in for the roughest couple of weeks of your life, and you are. You’ll be leaving blood, sweat, and more’n likely your breakfast out there on that field every day, sometimes twice a day. But it’s worth it. Why else would a sane man put himself through all that? When you put on that uniform and take the field under those lights on the first Friday of September, you’ll know what I’m talking about. Now hit the track.”
With a low rumble, everyone shuffled to their feet and moved toward the door to the field. Andy stopped them.
“One more thing. There’s been a lot of talk in town, and I’m sure you’ve heard it, about teams gone by and what they did. But that’s old news, ancient history, and it doesn’t have anything to do with us today. This is your time and your season. Now make something of it.” No one moved and Andy waved his clipboard at the door. “Go!”
In a few seconds, the door swung shut again, leaving the locker room in silence, and Andy checked his roster, still trying to figure out who the two returning players against the lockers were.
“Coach?”
Andy looked up. He hadn’t noticed this kid, but he wasn’t one who would stand out. Not tall, not big, quiet voice.
“You are?” He looked down at his clipboard.
“Gabe Quintana. Could I talk to you just a minute?”
“Sure, Quintana. What’s up?”
“Coach, I really want to play. And I promise to give you everything I’ve got, but I might have a hard time getting here by 6:45. My mom works the night shift at the hospital in San Ramon, and I can’t leave the other kids until she gets home.”
“What time does she get home?”
“About 6:30 most days, but some days she can’t leave right on time and doesn’t get home till nearly 7:00. I’ll get here just as fast as I can, and I’ll work my tail off when I’m here, but I might be about five minutes late some days.”
“What about your dad?”
Gabe’s open expression hardened in a second, and he gave a quick shake of his head without elaborating.
“Coach, I really want to play.” His words were almost like a mantra. “I’ve been working the chile harvest for Mr. Sheppard, and he’s letting me work from 11:00 to 4:00 and on weekends so I can make practice, but I just don’t know if I can make it at 6:45 every day, that’s all.”
Oh, man. What do you say to a kid that wants it this bad? Andy took a deep breath before answering. “Well, Quintana, we have something of a problem then. You know I can’t start out making exceptions. It’s not fair to the others. I guess my advice would be to talk to your mom and tell her how important it is that you’re here on time. It’s only about three weeks, and you do get two free passes. Maybe you won’t need more.”
“Yeah, I understand.” Gabe straightened his shoulders, and the grin he gave Andy looked a little forced. “Well, just thought I’d ask. Thanks, Coach.”
He turned to leave, and before the door swung shut again, Andy saw him break into a run as he headed for the track. He really did hope Quintana and his mom could work something out. The kid seemed to be carrying way too much weight for someone so young.
He slipped his aviator sunglasses on and walked out onto the field, signaling his assistant to summon the boys from the track. Already the bleachers were dotted with men in jeans or work pants and light denim jackets, hats pulled low to shade their eyes from the sun’s rays slanting across the field from the mountains to the east. As he watched, another man emerged from the parking lot behind the field and climbed to a row about midway up. Finding his buddy, he sat down and handed him one of the two steaming Styrofoam cups he carried. Another football season at Last Chance High had begun.
Jess saw them all on the football field when she ran by. Andy had warned her that once football season started, his runs were likely to be predawn and on the track. He’d invited her to join him if she wanted, but truthfully? That really sounded hideous, especially since, thanks to him, she knew some beautiful trails to run now—after the sun was up.
Her first week at the San Ramon Medical Center had been pretty uneventful. She had taken a few back-to-school examinations and diagnosed an ear infection, but nothing major. Next week she was taking the practice of another doctor who was going on vacation, and she was actually looking forward to that. And in another couple weeks, her Last Chance office would be open.
She turned down Elizabeth Cooley’s street and slowed to a walk to begin her cooldown. Elizabeth’s yard up ahead was empty, and Jess felt a little twinge of disappointment. Elizabeth wasn’t outside every day, but when she was, Jess enjoyed the brief conversations they had, though so far she’d always declined Elizabeth’s invitations to come in for coffee.
“Well, good morning.” Elizabeth opened her screen door and stepped out onto the porch as Sam, her cat, trotted past her and down the steps, tail held high. “It looks like it’s going to be a beautiful day, doesn’t it?”
“It’ll be warm, that’s for sure.” Jess slowed to a stop at the gate. “How are you this morning?”
“Oh, I’m doing well. I’m always a little stiff first thing in the morning, but once I get myself up and moving, it won’t be so bad. Can you stop for a cup of coffee, or do you need to get up to the hospital? I’ve been hearing some good things about you.”
“Really?” Jess had to wonder whom she had heard good things from, since you could count every patient she had seen using both hands and one foot, and none had been from Last Chance. On impulse, she smiled. “You know what? If you take a walk with me first, I’d love to stop in afterward and have a cup of coffee with you.”
“Oh, honey, I’m not even dressed.” Elizabeth looked down at her robe and slippers. “Just come on in, and I’ll walk with you some other day.”
“I can wait while you put something on. Don’t feel like you have to dress up. You’re not supposed to be glamorous when you exercise.” She brushed her hair from her eyes with the back of her wrist. “Look at me.”
Elizabeth’s mouth pinched up, and it looked like she was going to find another reason to refuse the walk, but she huffed a sigh instead. “Oh, all right. Give me about five minutes, but we’d better not see anyone I know.”
While she waited, Jess stretched out, using Elizabeth’s gate for support. When she heard the screen door open again, she looked up to see Elizabeth in a lavender warm-up suit making her way across the porch.
“Don’t forget to use the ramp.”
Elizabeth veered slightly and headed for the ramp without answering.
“Is that cane going to be enough support, or do you think you need to take your walker?”
This time Elizabeth did look up, and there was no question that she had been bossed just about as much as she was going to take.
“I can manage just fine the way I am, thank you.” She made her careful way down the ramp and gave Jess a tight little smile when she joined her at the gate. “Are you ready to go?”
They had walked for a minute or two with Elizabeth navigating the sidewalk and Jess walking beside her in the street before Jess broke the silence.
“I think you’re annoyed with me, Elizabeth.”
Elizabeth took a few more careful steps before she heaved a sigh. “No, I’m not annoyed with you, sweet girl. You’re just getting the brunt of it, I’m afraid.”
“The brunt of what?” Jess kept her voice gentle.
“This.” Elizabeth lifted her cane and shook it. “This whole mess. I was doing just fine taking care of myself and my house, driving myself where I needed to go, and then with one little stumble on my porch steps, everything changed. Now I can’t take a blessed breath without someone there to make sure I’m doing it right. My sweet daughter-in-law calls me two or three times a day. Ray and Lainie, as much as I love having them with me, moved here from Santa Fe just to look after me. And have you met Sarah, my granddaughter who lives just two doors down? Well, she comes by every day after she gets home from school. She says she wants a cup of tea, but I know she’s just checking to see if I’m still upright and breathing. The only reason in the world that they don’t hire a babysitter for me now that Lainie’s working at the diner is because they make me wear this little help button all the time. Even then they don’t want me to leave the house unless one of them is with me, for all the world like I was about two years old. Well, I’m here to tell you that the only thing that has changed is that I’m a little stiffer than I was. Maybe I don’t move quite as fast as I used to, but my mind is just fine, thank you very much. And I can still take care of myself.”
Jess just raised her eyebrows and nodded without speaking. She had seen Elizabeth fuss gently at her cat, or at Lainie for not resting enough, or even at Andy for not wiping his boots on the welcome mat before coming into her living room, but this was more than that. Elizabeth was frustrated and angry on a level Jess had not seen.
Elizabeth stopped and looked up at Jess. Her cheeks were pink from the exertion of her walk, but her smile was more relaxed, if a little rueful. “My goodness, listen to me talk. I should be ashamed. I’ve got more family caring about me than you can shake a stick at, and all I can do is complain about it. I need to be counting my blessings, that’s what I need to be doing.”
She set off again with a determined gait, and Jess fell in alongside her. Truthfully, she understood Elizabeth’s exasperation perfectly. It was natural, and Jess didn’t think Elizabeth had anything to apologize for, but somehow she felt that the last thing Elizabeth wanted right now was to be set straight—again.
They reached Elizabeth’s gate, and Jess held it open for her. If the walk to the end of the block had tired Elizabeth, her slight puffing and her rosy cheeks were the only indication. Her steps were firm and quick until she reached the ramp, and then she stopped, took a deep breath, and grasping the rail with her free hand, more or less pulled herself up the ramp to the porch. Jess followed close behind, and if Elizabeth noticed her hovering, she chose not to say anything.
“Come in the kitchen and I’ll get us a cup of coffee.” Elizabeth led the way through her little house. “I don’t have any coffee cake this morning, but these cookies have oatmeal and raisins, so we’ll just call them breakfast.”
Jess sat at the table where Elizabeth directed and watched as her hostess moved around the kitchen, filling cups and taking cookies from the jar and putting them on a plate. She still seemed a little breathless.
“There now.” Elizabeth finally sat down and smiled across the table at Jess. “This was all I wanted in the first place, just a little coffee and company. Have a cookie. My little friend Olivia and I made them yesterday, so they’re nice and fresh.”
“I think I met Olivia the first night I was here.” Jess took a sip of her coffee. “Didn’t someone tell me she was part of your family somehow?”
Elizabeth laughed. “Technically, she’s my granddaughter Sarah’s niece by marriage, but we got close long before that happened. She comes over after school every day to keep me company.”
Elizabeth must have anticipated a lecture because she raised both eyebrows and a forefinger. “Now don’t you go telling me that having Olivia every afternoon is too much for me. I get enough of that from everyone else. Olivia is the sweetest little thing you’ll ever meet and the highlight of my day.”
“I’ll bet she is.” Actually, Jess had no intention of discouraging Elizabeth from having Olivia over. She had noticed the television was still on and Elizabeth’s crocheting piled in the recliner when she came in, just as she had noticed Elizabeth’s desire to fuss over and care for anyone who entered her front door. If anyone could keep Elizabeth from sitting all day, Jess had a feeling it was Olivia.
“Elizabeth, I have an idea.” Jess leaned both elbows on the table. “I come by here every morning after my run. Why don’t you plan on walking with me? We’ll take it slow at first and build up your strength. When your family sees you moving around more like your old self, I’ll bet they’ll ease up a little. And frankly, I’d love the company.”
“I thought you and Andy always ran together.”
Jess wrinkled her nose. “Not anymore. Football practice started today.”
“Ah, well, I should have known. Once football season starts, everything else around town pretty much takes a backseat.” Elizabeth took a nibble from the cookie she had just dipped into her coffee.
“So? What do you say? Will you be my walking buddy?”
Elizabeth sighed. “What time would you be by?”
“About this time every morning.”
“Every morning?”
“It works best that way.”
Elizabeth didn’t say anything. She took another sip of her coffee, gazing at Jess over the rim with a slightly furrowed brow and the bluest eyes Jess had ever seen.
Jess picked up her own cup and waited. She was neither Elizabeth’s family nor her physician, and she wasn’t about to badger her into doing something she didn’t want to do. Even if it was for her own good.
“Oh, all right. We’ll give it a try.” Elizabeth set her cup down with a little clank. “But I’d like to be back home and settled by 9:00 every morning. That’s when they run Rockford Files, and I like to crochet a few rows while I watch it.”
“That won’t be a problem at all.” Jess held her cup up in salute. “I’m looking forward to this. It’s going to be fun.”
Elizabeth clinked her own cup gently against Jess’s. “Well, we’ll see about that.”