Silvis, Randall - Ryan DeMarco 03 -A Long Way Down by Silvis Randall

Author:Silvis, Randall [Silvis, Randall]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781492665601
Publisher: Sourcebooks
Published: 2019-04-25T04:00:00+00:00

Forty-Eight

He had his head back and eyes closed when she climbed into the car. Cold air was blasting through the air conditioner vents. Her body felt odd. Everything felt odd. Vivid yet dreamlike.

She said, and heard the odd slowness of her voice, “Was that really necessary?”

He opened his eyes but did not look at her. Stared straight ahead. “Sorry. I bumped the horn.”

“Long bump,” she said.

He put his hand on the gearshift but did not pull it into Drive. Squinting, he gazed out the windshield, out across the gray water. Finally he said, “The smartest thing a person can do is to learn to identify the difference between people who are more intelligent than you and the people who are too stupid to realize how dumb they really are.”

She snapped her seat belt into place. “Are you talking to me or to yourself?”

He did not reply.

She said, “I hope you take your own advice.”

She said nothing for most of the next hour, until they were off the interstate, halfway down OH-11 and still speeding south. There was too much to think about, too much to process. The portentous quality of Lathea’s last statement. The melancholy smile that accompanied her blessing.

DeMarco was driving faster than usual. Passing every vehicle they encountered. As if he intended to blast his way through space and time. Whereas Jayme felt strangely stilled. Suspended in a bubble of motionless time.

She really did not want to break that suspension, but it was difficult to sustain with DeMarco so tight and tense beside her. Lightly, she said, “So what about that whole thing with Lathea’s life partners? I mean, four of them? A ménage à quatre?”

He looked at her. Looked back at the road. Looked at her again. And apparently saw something that made him blink. Made him shake his head and blow out a breath.

She watched his hands on the steering wheel, saw his grip relax. Saw his elbows come down. He said, “There are all kinds of people in this world, I guess.”

“But what do you think of a situation like that?”

“I don’t think anything of it.”

“How do you think it works? One on one? Two on two? Three on one? Every man for himself?”

He smiled. “It’s trouble no matter how you look at it. People are too complicated for something like that. Too unpredictable.”

“I agree,” she said. Then added, a few moments later, “They all seemed fairly happy, though, didn’t they? Peaceful, even.”

He glanced in the rearview mirror. Glimpsed her out of the corner of his eye.

She said, “I’m not saying I need a foursome to be happy. I’m just saying, if that’s the kind of setup they all need to be happy, then why not? It seems to be working for them. So why the heck not?”

He rolled his shoulders. Stretched his back.

“Oh no you don’t,” she told him. “Don’t you do that.”

“Do what?”

“Listen to that little voice inside your head that’s telling you all the wrong stuff.” She reached across the seat to lift his right hand off the steering wheel, then pressed her own hand atop his.

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