Page 38 of The Woodcarver's Model
“Okay. Okay. I’m sorry. I was just… I was really surprised when I found out. That’s all. Wouldn’t you be?”
Mitch conducted them into the living room. “Let’s just sit and have a coffee and… I’ll find us something to eat.” He went back into the kitchen.
The two exes stared at each other like boxers sussing out an opponent.
“You’re lookin’ great. You work out?” Kevin asked.
“Yeah. I need to be in shape. For work.”
“Huh.” Kevin looked him up and down. “So whataya do?”
“Write.” Rob wasn’t in any mood to open up.
“I never thought of that as a physically demanding kinda job.”
“It depends on where you do it.”
“I suppose…”
They glared at each other in silence.
“So, you visit Mitch often?” Rob probed.
“Well, I like to see how the old homestead is holding up. Gotta make sure my assets are being well taken care of.”
“Your assets?”
Mitch came back in with coffees and a plate of cookies.
“What—not homemade?” Kevin asked.
Rob moved over to sit beside Mitch and put his hand on his leg. “They’re my favourites.”
“Do you have anything harder than this?” Kevin asked, holding up his mug of coffee, which trembled in his hands. “I mean, it was a long haul getting over here.”
“No,” Mitch said.
“Oh. Right. I forgot,” he replied, then to Rob added, “You gotta stay clean while you visit the queen.”
Rob could see where this was going. “So…are you planning on staying long?”
“I was thinking a week.”
“A week?” Rob said, surprised.
“Kevin usually stays here until he’s…feeling better,” Mitch explained.
“What he means is until I sober up.”
Rob knew what he had to do to save Mitch. “Of course. You have to stay. You’re family.”
Rob put his arm around Mitch, thinking,If you do anything to hurt this guy, so help me, I will kill you and they will never find your sorry-assed body.
“So, how was your trip to Gabriola?” Mitch asked Rob.
“Let’s not worry about that tonight.”
Rob could tell that Mitch had had enough for one day. Telling him the truth would only make things worse. Rob looked at Kevin and heard the voice in his head say,It's all going to slip away...just like before,and he hoped that it wasn’t true.
