The Holy Death

Chapter 15

Scott followed his brother out to the small lot behind the pub, only half hoping that he hadn't gone and done something stupid like walk off by himself to parts unknown. To Scott's half-hearted relief, he hadn't. Instead, he was standing by Scott's car, smoking a cigarette, pacing around, and talking to himself.

"Damn it, Doug! Why the hell did you go off like that? Of course the guy is suspicious. Hell, I would be. Ah, it's not like this is the first thing you've screwed up lately."

"Hey, Doug?" Scott said, catching his half-brother completely off-guard.

"Oh, hey, Scott, you damn near gave me a heart attack!"

"I think those cigarettes are a bit more dangerous than I am."

"Yeah, that's the truth. It's a nasty habit." Doug dropped the cigarette, then stamped it out with the sole of his Italian square-toed oxford. "Hey, I wanted to apologize for making a scene in there."

"No, I was rude, and I had no right to be."

"Now, Scott, you're looking out for your family and friends. I get it. I know that I dropped a heavy load on you today."

"I admit, it was a bit of a shock."

"Look, I never meant to cause any disruption. It's just that things haven't been going my way lately."

"Tell me about it."

"And I ain't getting any younger. A man starts to think back on his life. I've known success, but it's come with a heavy price. Now, I have nothing and nobody. I was hoping..."

"Hoping what?"

"Ah, hell. I was hoping that maybe I could finally find a place to settle down and call home, you know? Ah, maybe it was too much to ask."

Scott rested his hand on Doug's shoulder. "Doug, I can understand. I understand not feeling like you belong anywhere, like there's no one who can understand what you're going through. Believe me, I get it, more than you know. And I understand wanting to make that connection to someone, to anyone. But Doug?"

"Yeah?"

"I am going to need a little bit of honesty here."

"Ah, Scott!"

"No, Doug, I'm going to need you to be truthful with me. Please, Doug, please tell me, are you in some kind of trouble?"

"Scott, I'm fine, really!"

Scott pulled his hand from Doug's shoulder. "And again you refuse to be honest with me."

"What do you want me to say, Scott? Do you want me to say that okay, I may have made a few mistakes in my time? That I've had my share of legal troubles? Is that what you want?"

"I want the truth! I want to know that whatever you've gotten yourself involved in won't show up at my mother's front door! I want to know that she's safe. Is that too much to ask, Doug?"

"What do you know, Scott?"

"I know that you're in trouble, Doug. Big trouble. I don't know what kind of trouble, and I don't even care. I just don't want you bring it into my mother's house."

Doug shook his head. "I can't get away from it, can I? I just can't get away from my past. Well, look, Scott, it's been great, but it's obvious I made a mistake. I'm sorry to have troubled you. Maybe I should go."