Backtracker (49 page)

"
He just said he
'
d get back to you,
"
offered Mom, placing her cup on the coffee table beside the sofa.

"
Did he say exactly when that would be
?
"
pressed Dave.

"
No,
"
replied Mom.
"
Just later.
"

From what his parents were telling him, Dave
couldn
'
t
judge if Larry had come to the house seeking help. It was possible; Larry was so secretive, he probably
wouldn
'
t
divulge such a mission,
wouldn
'
t
dole out even the vaguest of clues to anyone but Dave. Still, there was just no way that Dave could know, no way that he could confirm his speculation with nothing to go on but his parents
'
report.

He considered the fourth explanation. It was the last theory that he could think of, the only other way that he could explain Larry
'
s visit.

He
didn
'
t
like this last explanation. He
didn
'
t
like it one bit.

Its implications were terrifying. He tried to hastily dismiss it, come up with a reason to invalidate it...and yet, the more that he thought about it, the more solid it seemed. He tried to put it out of his mind, but it quickly eclipsed the other explanations which
he'd
considered. Perhaps, it was no more logical than any of the other theories...but the implications if it
was
true were staggering.

The fourth explanation: Larry had been to the house to try to prevent something bad from happening...something that
he'd
foreseen...something that involved Dave
'
s family.

Maybe, Larry had had another
"
flash,
"
one that featured Dave
'
s mother or father or brother...or Dave himself. Maybe, Larry had been warned of some impending calamity, some tragedy which was destined to befall a member of the family...or the entire family. Though he
couldn
'
t
directly intervene, and he rarely had luck in saving people by using their kin, maybe Larry had been making a last
-
ditch effort, a desperate bid to thwart fate.

Maybe, something terrible was about to happen, and Larry knew it.

Maybe, someone was going to die...and Larry knew it.

A cold, sick feeling was growing in Dave
'
s gut.

"
So, uh, what did you guys talk about
?
"
he asked his parents.

"
Oh, all kinds of things,
"
said Mom.
"
He told us about the steakhouse and how much he enjoys working with you and the gang.
"

"
He told us about some of the
pranks
you guys play at work, too,
"
said Dad, mock disapproval in his tone but a mischievous twinkle in his eyes.
"
He said he
'
s even been to Billy
'
s trailer for some of those parties.
"

"
I told him I
'
m glad that there
'
s finally someone at those parties to watch out for you wild kids,
"
Mom added teasingly.

"
What else did you talk about
?
"
asked Dave, fishing for a clue, hoping that Larry had said something which had prefigured the misfortune which might lay ahead.

"
Well, he told us about his travels,
"
reported Dad.
"
He told us stories about some of the places he
'
s been to. He
'
s really been around the world, hasn
'
t he?
"

Dave nodded.

"
He told us how much he likes the area,
"
supplied Mom.
"
He said this is one of the nicer places he
'
s lived recently.
"

"
Did he ask a lot about me, or you guys
?
"
wondered Dave, working to sound as casual as he could.
"
You know...did he seem really curious?
"

"
Why do you ask
?
"
said Mom.

"
Well,
"
Dave said sheepishly,
"
sometimes people try to dig up dirt on you, y
'
know? They try to find things out so they can tease you about them later.
"

"
Oh, I see,
"
Ann Heinrich smiled knowingly.
"
No, he didn
'
t ask to see your baby pictures, if that
'
s what you mean. We didn
'
t say anything that would embarrass you.
"

"
Uh, what
did
you tell him, then
?
"
pressed Dave.

"
Not much,
"
shrugged Dad.
"
He really didn
'
t ask a lot of questions. We just talked about the steakhouse, and how much he likes the area, and the different places he
'
s been to.
"

"
You talked about the mill a little,
"
offered Mom.
"
That
always
seems to come up, though,
"
she added, glancing meaningfully at her husband, a touch of exasperation in her tone.

"
Oh, I just told him how I got laid
-
off,
"
Dad qualified.
"
He said he used to work in a mill in Ohio, and he was laid
-
off, too. And I don
'
t talk about it
that
much, Ann.
"

"
Whatever you say,
"
sighed Ann.

"
Did he want to know a lot about where you
'
re working now
?
"
asked Dave.

"
No, not really,
"
shrugged Dad, fiddling with one of the buttons of his pajama top.
"
I mentioned that I work at the church, and that was about it. He didn
'
t ask much about it.
"

Dave was becoming frustrated; he
wasn
'
t
learning anything of importance from his parents
'
report, anything that might suggest the nature of Larry
'
s hypothetical
"
flash.
"
"
Did you tell him about your job
?
"
he asked his mother.

"
I told him I work at the bottling plant,
"
said Mom.
"
That was it.
"

"
So, what else did you talk about
?
"
asked Dave.

"
Pretty much just what we
'
ve told you,
"
replied Dad.

"
Boy,
"
frowned Mom.
"
You really seem interested in every word we said. Is there some kind of problem with this guy? Is he really nosy or something?
"

"
No no,
"
Dave answered hastily.
"
I was just curious about what
he had
to say, that
'
s all.
"

"
I didn
'
t
think
he seemed nosy,
"
observed Dad.
"
He just struck me as a nice guy.
"

"
Yeah,
"
nodded Dave.
"
He is a nice guy.
"

For a moment, Ann Heinrich studied her son, perhaps trying to determine if he was hiding something from her; then, she shrugged.
"
Well, anyway, we
'
ve told you everything that we talked about,
"
she said, swinging her feet from the sofa to the floor.
"
That
'
s really all there was.
"
Rising, she straightened the folds of her robe, tightened the sash.

"
All right,
"
nodded Dave, realizing that his fruitless inquiry had reached its finish. He knew that if he continued to pester Mom and Dad, they would grow more suspicious; he
didn
'
t
want to make his parents worry, especially since it was possible that there were no clues to be unearthed.

"
Well, then,
"
said Ann Heinrich.
"
I think we should all get some sleep. I don
'
t know about you two, but I
'
m exhausted.
"

"
Yeah,
"
grunted Bob, boosting himself out of the recliner.
"
I
'
m pooped, too. I
'
ve gotta
'
get up early for work tomorrow.
"

"
I guess
one
of us doesn
'
t have to wake up early, anyway,
"
said Mom.
"
It must be nice to be able to sleep in.
"

"
Oh yeah,
"
said Dave.
"
I
'
m looking forward to it.
"

"
Well, good night,
"
smiled Dad, ambling past Dave, clapping him on the shoulder before proceeding down the hallway.

"
G
'
night,
"
said Dave, managing a smile though he was consumed with worry and confusion.

What could he do?
He'd
learned nothing from speaking with his mother and father, nothing about Larry
'
s reason for coming to the house. Now, for all that he knew, one or both of his parents might be doomed, or his brother, or he himself. His entire family might be headed for disaster, and it might happen at any time...and he could very well be helpless to prevent it.

What could he
do
?
He needed to know more, find some kind of clue, but
he had
no idea of where to turn next.

Suddenly, a thought occurred to him. Maybe, someone else had witnessed Larry
'
s visit.

"
Uh, Mom
?
"
he said as Ann Heinrich walked toward him.
"
Is Jeff around?
"

"
Uh
-
uh,
"
she said, shaking her head.
"
He
'
s out with his friends somewhere. He was supposed to be back by now, but you know your brother.
"

"
I see,
"
nodded Dave, and then he got to the point:
"
Did he get to meet Larry? Was he here when Larry stopped by?
"

"
No,
"
said Mom.
"
I haven
'
t seen him since he ran out the door after supper.
"