Send Down the Rain by Charles Martin

Author:Charles Martin
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Published: 2018-04-05T04:00:00+00:00

23

We took I-85 out of Atlanta until it intersected I-26, where we turned northwest. Jake’s address, what I had come to believe was his primary place of residence, was north of Asheville—only a few miles off the interstate. If he actually drove a semi for a living, then it’d be a smart place to live, with easy access onto and off of several main roads. If he didn’t drive a semi for a living, it’d be a good place to not be found. Either way, I felt it was strategic.

My cabin sat about an hour from Jake’s address. Rather than drive north through Asheville, I exited at Tryon and ambled through the back roads of Rutherfordton, Union Mills, Marion, and Busick. They were prettier, and we could take our time, and with it getting dark I figured we’d just wait until tomorrow to spy on Jake. Winter was still hanging on and, unlike sunny Florida, there was snow on the ground here. Allie had not brought winter clothes. I doubted she owned many.

When we exited the interstate at Tryon, she said, “So did you really buy a carnival?”

“Sure. I quit drinking cold turkey and poured myself into making people laugh. I hadn’t done a lot of that throughout my life, so I thought it sounded like a good idea. I built it up. It thrived. While everything in my personal life was a mess, every business I ever touched turned to gold. Even my mistakes made money. I had my own booth too, just for fun. I was really good at guessing people’s weights. I was usually within two or three pounds. We really took off when I hired this group of four guys out of West Virginia with a motorcycle act inside a large cage that would make your head spin. Total absurdity, but it was fun, made people laugh. And just like the Poop Coop, it made money.

“The carnival was good for me. I was approaching fifty and thought maybe I’d laid my demons to rest. When I finally got my nerve up to come back, I walked into the restaurant, just me, no wig, and found you sitting at the bar talking to a guy with a cane and a friendly smile. Looked like he couldn’t hurt a flea. You were smiling. He had grease on his hat. And I thought, Finally a good guy, one without all the anger. I thought maybe our chances were just gone. So I backed up, got a room at the motel, and watched you laugh for three days with Jake. I figured I’d better not get in your way. I returned to my carnival . . . but truth be told, I wasn’t sleeping much at night. Bright lights and sudden noises weren’t the best therapy for a guy who didn’t like bright flashing lights and sudden noises.

“Then one night I was just minding my own business. Wasn’t angry about anything. Wasn’t really thinking about anything. I’d just gotten a kid some popcorn and helped a lady win a big stuffed animal, and this guy brought his kid in.

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