‘Coop!’
Levi Walker waved, running after Cooper’s truck as he put it in gear. He slammed on the brakes, whirling gravel and dust into the air.
‘Hey, Levi… Hey, man. It’s good to see you. I could’ve done with seeing your face in there.’
Levi grinned. ‘My face was hiding out in the other room, bro. I love you, but not that much. Granger’s been like a lion looking for his prey. Man, I’ve never seen him so bad. I’m surprised he hasn’t just gone right ahead and burst into flames, but he always gets like this round his birthday. He even slammed the phone down on Dorothy. She was ready to come over and give him a piece of her mind.’
Cooper laughed, picturing Dorothy, Levi’s long-suffering wife, a short, stocky black woman who never wasted time on small-talk and didn’t take fools lightly. He held her in the highest regard and always enjoyed her wise and kind company. ‘How is Dorothy?’
‘Bitching my butt off, that’s how. She was born to moan. I said to her this morning, Woman, the only time you’ll stop moaning is when you’re cold in your grave, and even then I have my doubts… She was asking about you by the way.’
Grinning, Cooper shook his head. ‘Levi, you’d be lost without her, Dorothy keeps you in line. Tell her I’ll see her soon.’
‘Well make sure you do. Otherwise, I’ve no doubt she’ll call you up and give you a piece of her mind… Listen, is it true what I heard back there? You really going back?’
‘Yeah, I’ve just got to go and find Rosedale, try to persuade him to come. I’ll probably be flying out tomorrow.’
Levi whistled. ‘Coop, I don’t know what to say. I’m worried about you, man. Maddie told me what you were like over there. It don’t sound good. And you look terrible. Nothing about it sounds good. I’m not going to ask you not to go, because I’ll be wasting both our times. But I want you to think about the fact, this may be the last time I see you.’
Cooper turned away, looking across to the Granite Mountain in the distance. ‘Levi, that’s crazy talk. It sounds like something Mad…’
‘I’d say?’
Maddie stood by the 1954 Chevrolet, her hands on her hips, but a softness in her voice.
‘Yeah, I would say it, because after everything, we all still care, Tom. We love you. Levi, me, even Granger.’
Levi pursed his lips. ‘Granger? Baby, I wouldn’t go that far.’
Maddie cut her eye at Levi and carried on. ‘He does, but he’s hurt, like you’re hurt. Tom, please, don’t go. We all need you to stay. Cora needs her daddy.’
‘Don’t do that, Maddie. Don’t bring her into it.’
‘Why not? Because she’s a part of it all, like we all are.’
‘Look, I know you’ve heard it before, but this will be the last time. Okay? I’ll rethink everything when I get back. I’ll get myself cleaned up. But I gotta go, and Maddie, all those things I said back at the house I meant. I really did.’
‘Then don’t go. Stay here with us.’
Cooper shook his head. ‘I can’t.’
‘But that’s where you’re wrong. You can. Of course you can. This is crazy.’
‘Maddie, I’m sorry. For everything. I always have been.’
‘Tom, you do realize you could be killed.’
Cooper reached out of the window to touch her hand. ‘Let’s just hope I’m not.’
‘Tom…’
Cooper put the truck in gear and skidded away, speeding off down the cactus-lined dust road, leaving Maddie and Levi watching on.
She held Levi’s hand. ‘You think we’ll see him again?’
‘I don’t know Maddie. I just don’t know. All we can do is hope.’