Nothing Gold Can Stay by Ron Rash

Author:Ron Rash [Rash, Ron]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2012-12-28T05:00:00+00:00

At first they didn’t see him, just the cell phone’s blue-tinged screen.

“If he crawled up in the woods, he’s a goner for sure,” Baroque said.

Then they saw Denton hovering in the pool’s center. The ice was so clear it looked like Denton was part of a magic trick.

“His eyes are open,” Marlboro said.

“Of course they are,” Baroque said, “and he can probably see us and hear us.”

“He’s not blinking.”

“That’s because it’s like a coma, everything’s shut down but his brain. His heart, I bet it’s less than one beat a minute by now.”

“I didn’t think he’d be that blue,” Marlboro said.

Baroque took a football-sized rock and threw it into the pool above Denton’s head. The ice shattered, but Denton’s body drifted only a few feet before it snagged on more ice.

“We’ll have to go in and get him,” Baroque said.

Marlboro looked at the water reluctantly.

“I guess so.”

“Let me get his cell phone first,” Baroque said. “He’d be mad at us if we left it. Anyway, we’d better get him to the hospital. I’ve been thinking more about that show. The announcer might have said fifteen minutes, not fifty. I don’t guess you remember?”

Marlboro shook his head.

Baroque picked up the phone and put it in his pocket and they waded in, the water over their ankles as Baroque set his hands beneath Denton’s shoulders and Marlboro lifted his feet. Once on the bank, they set Denton down. Marlboro parted his legs and positioned himself between them as if hauling a stretcher.

“His being stiff does make it easier,” Marlboro said.

They made their way down the trail and arrived at the parking lot. As the day’s last light fell behind the mountains, they leaned Denton against the truck.

“Should we put him in the middle?” Marlboro asked.

“We can’t do that,” Baroque said, “not unless you want to drive all the way to town without heat. A human can’t be thawed out but once.”

Baroque opened the tailgate and they slid Denton in feetfirst, placing two cinder blocks one on each side so he wouldn’t shift as much. Marlboro took the lid off the Styrofoam cooler and wedged it gently, almost tenderly, under Denton’s head.

“And he can still see and hear us?” Marlboro asked when they’d finished.

“Sure.”

Marlboro stared at Denton.

“I can’t think of anything to say to him.”

They got into the cab and after a couple of tries Baroque found first gear and they made their way down the dirt road.

“He’s been pretty good to us,” Marlboro said. “He can be grouchy but he has let us stay with him.”

“I’ve been thinking maybe we haven’t really held up our end as much as we should have,” Baroque said. “Next week I’m going over to the community college to see about that med tech degree. What we’re doing helping Denton makes me feel useful.”

Marlboro nodded.

“If you do that, I’ll go see about an orderly job.”

The road went downhill and the woods thickened. Everything was shadowy now and at the bottom of the hill was a bridge. Baroque knew from movies this was not the kind of place where anything good ever happened.

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