The Beholder by David Bishop

Author:David Bishop
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: (¯`'•.¸//(*_*)\\¸.•'´¯)
Publisher: Telemachus Press, LLC
Published: 2011-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 28

Maddie was nearly home when she remembered this was the day her son had been pleading for her to attend his baseball game. “It’s against our biggest competitor, Mom. It’s for first place. It’s our last game. I’m gonna pitch. You gotta come. Pleaaaaase?”

She had promised her best effort, which Bradley had taken as a no. She couldn’t blame him for seeing it that way.

“I sure ain’t gonna be no cop,” he had grumbled. “I’ll be a pro baseball player. Or maybe I’ll sell stuff and make lots of money to take care of you and Grandma.” Bradley’s grandmother had been there all his life so her son simply assumed his grandmother would live forever. Maddie also realized that, on some level, she thought the same thing.

The ball game had already started when she parked in the graveled lot just east of the ballfield. The other team was at bat and Bradley looked over from the mound and smiled briefly. He was at the age where boys wanted their mothers to be there, but figured none of the other fellows felt that way, so it wouldn’t be cool if the other guys knew. After the second out, she caught her son’s eye and threw him a kiss. He sent back one of those, Gosh, Mom, I wish you hadn’t done that looks. Bradley struck out the third batter, and then ran into the dugout without looking toward the stands.

In the bottom of the fourth inning, Gary Packard walked up the levels of backless bench seats to sit next to Maddie. He took off his Chicago Cubs hat and said, “Hi. I’m sure Bradley is thrilled you’re here.”

“Hi, Gary,” She touched his arm, “it’s nice to see you.”

They stopped talking when Bradley came to bat with the score tied at two and two. They both cheered when he hit the ball. It went foul down the left field line. He struck out swinging to end the inning.

“I haven’t forgotten what you told me the other night,” Gary said. “It’s just, well, I had promised Brad—Bradley I’d come to this game a few days before you asked me to back off. He told me then he didn’t think you’d get here and that it was his last game.” Gary turned his cap in his hands. “They only play seven innings so I thought I’d get here in time to see a couple of innings. If I’d have known you were going to make it, I wouldn’t have come.”

“Look, Gary, I was confused that night by what I had heard. It was unfair of me—”

“No. No, Maddie. I’m an uncharged suspect in a violent crime in another city. You did right. When I was an officer, I told lots of parents to not take unnecessary risks with their children. And right now I’m an unnecessary risk. No need for you to apologize or regret what you said. If the situation was reversed, I’d have done the same.”

Maddie sighed. “You’re right. I guess. But for what it’s worth, I’m confident the Chicago investigation will lead to someone else.

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