Homecoming Read Online Free PDF Page A

his bowl, surprised he had an appetite and that the stew was so good.
    James grabbed his bowl and ladled more from a pot on the stove.
    “Where’s the can?”
    Raising his eyebrows, James set the bowl in front of Will. “What can?”
    “The can this stew came from.”
    James laughed and got more for himself. “I made it myself, you dickhead.”
    “I never knew you cooked.”
    “People change.”
    James sat down as his comment hung in the air.
    Will hunched over his bowl, scooping another spoonful. “So they do.”
    James took a bite and watched him.
    Dropping his spoon with a clang, Will lifted his chin to face James. “So where’s the questions? Where’s the consolation?”
    James face remained expressionless, but he lowered his spoon. “You’ll tell me what happened when you’re ready, and you and I both know that I sucking at the comforting shit.”
    “Aren’t you wondering why I’m here?”
    “You’re here because we’ve been best friends since the second grade. Where the hell else are you going to go?”
    Resting his forehead in his hand, Will closed his eyes. “You don’t know what I’ve done. What I’ve become.”
    “I know more than you think. I still have connections. And I know you couldn’t have achieved what you have since I left you in that hellhole without resorting to some unsavory behavior.”
    “It’s worse than you think.”
    “I doubt it.”
    “You don’t know that.  You weren’t there. ”
    James rested his elbow on the table and leaned toward Will. “You’re right. I haven’t been there the last few years, but I was there long enough to take all I could stomach.” His voice lowered. “Will, I know about the school. I know it was you.”
    Will’s heart lurched. “How?”
    Dropping his gaze, James scooped his spoon in the bowl. “I told you. I still have connections. Just because I’m no longer an active Marine doesn’t mean I haven’t used my skills from time to time. I haven’t been able to count on my fishing-guide business to pay all of the bills.”
    “You know what I did and you still let me in?”
    “You’ve been my best friend for as long as I can remember. I know that you wouldn’t have purposely killed those kids. It was an accident and you can’t even live with that.” James took a bite, then stirred his stew in circles. “Look, no one is perfect. Take me, for example.” Spreading his hands out, James winked. “I know it’s hard to believe, but it’s true. Everyone screws up. Everyone makes a mistake. Even really fucked-up ones.”
    “So we’re just going to call this a fucked-up mistake?”
    “You can call it whatever you like. An accident. An inadvertent consequence. I really don’t give a shit. But let’s make sure that one thing is perfectly clear.” James’s gaze narrowed. “It wasn’t intentional. So don’t you sit there and pretend it was.”
    Will’s mouth opened.
    James pointed his spoon at him. “You forget how well I know you, my friend. Were you a naughty boy after I left and do some bad shit? You sure as hell did. See, I have eyes over there that kept me informed. But I know you so I also know that it had to kill your Boy Scout conscience. Still, I know there is no fucking way you’d ever sacrifice kids to capture a terrorist. Even as dirty as the one you caught.”
    “I disobeyed orders to get him.”
    James cocked his head. “I never said you were Mr. Perfect. But even you have boundaries. Especially you.” Picking up the whiskey, James poured more into Will’s glass. “There’s too much talking and not enough drinking.”
    In spite of James’s declaration, after they cleaned up the kitchen, he told Will about his new life in Minnesota. “The first couple of years were the hardest, so I had to supplement my income in the beginning. But now, while I’m not rich, I’m doing okay.”
    Will finished off his glass and James refilled it. Although Will knew he’d had too much, he welcomed the relief it gave