Dry as Rain Read Online Free PDF

them off and handed it over. Smiling a thanks, he hurried out with it.
    â€œWhat are you doing tonight?” Larry asked.
    I shuffled papers around my desk. “Working, what else?”
    â€œI mean after.”
    â€œHopefully, sleeping on your couch.”
    Tucking in his lips, he nodded at me. “Good. Do the right thing, brother. Not just for Kyra or Danielle, but for yourself.”
    â€œWhen are you off again?” I asked picking up a pen and trying my best to look disinterested.
    â€œTomorrow and you know it.”
    â€œGood.” I pulled an invoice off the top of my inbox, scanned, and signed it.
    â€œBut just because I’m not here to keep an eye on you doesn’t mean you’re not being watched.”
    Static broke in from the overhead speaker. “Larry Wallace, please report to the service center.”
    I looked up at the ceiling speaker, then him. “That’d be you, Larry. Go take care of your business and let me take care of mine.”

Five

    My father, looking as though he’d lived to grow old, stood beside my mother and stepfather, Alfred, in the house I grew up in. In this strange dream, the three of them were a couple, which didn’t seem at all unusual to dream-me. When I held out my glass to have it filled, it was toward my dad, not Alfred. Looking dejected, Alfred shook his head and shuffled sadly away.
    I felt awful and knew I should go after him, but I didn’t. I just stood there filled with regret. I turned to my father for advice, but just like in real life, he was gone.
    I started to call for him, but instead of words, my mouth rang like a cell phone.
    Realizing the noise was real but the dream was not, I opened my eyes. In my semi-comatose state, I thought it was my phone alarm telling me it was time to get up for work. I reached over and hit the snooze button and drifted back off.
    What sounded like a tiny and distant Benji said, “Dad? You there? Hello?”
    I bolted to a sitting position and grabbed the phone off the floor. I guess I hadn’t hit the snooze button after all. “Benji?”
    â€œHey, Dad, we must have a bad connection. Can you hear me?”
    â€œYeah,” I said, feeling dazed. “What’s going on? Are you okay?”
    There was a pause, followed by, “Well, that’s why I’m calling.”
    Adrenaline slapped the sleep off me. “What’s wrong?”
    â€œThey’re making me call.”
    â€œWhat is it?” My mind reeled with possibilities, each worse than the last.
    â€œIt’s stupid really.”
    â€œWill you tell me already?”
    â€œI’m in the infirmary.”
    Even though he was still in boot camp, I pictured my son lying on a MASH-style cot, with a bandage around his head and stumps where his legs used to be.
    â€œI was bitten by some fire ants and had an allergic reaction.”
    I hadn’t realized I wasn’t breathing until I finally allowed myself to suck in air. “Thank God,” I said. “You okay now?”
    â€œYeah, I’m sort of weird looking, swollen and stuff, but I’m fine. They gave me a shot that’s helping.”
    â€œSounds bad.”
    â€œNah, it was just an allergy. The only thing is—” he hesitated—“one of the medics says they can give me a medical discharge for this.”
    â€œFor an allergy?”
    â€œHe’s kind of a smart-aleck type, so I don’t know if he was just messing with me or what. Hang on; my sergeant just walked in.” After a pause, Benji said, “He wants to talk with me. I gotta go.”
    Knowing the conversation was already coming to an end made me start missing him before we’d even said good-bye.
    My words were fast and clipped as I tried to shoehorn in the million-dollar question. “Is it everything you thought it’d be? The Navy, I mean?”
    â€œI was born for this. Hey, I really gotta go. Don’t tell Mom, okay? I