Chasing the Bear Read online

  “Of course you were homesick. How did college go?”

  “I played strong safety,” I said. “And returned punts. At the start of my junior year, I tore up my knee and couldn’t play anymore.”

  “And you didn’t stay in college?”

  “No,” I said. “Without a scholarship we couldn’t afford it. So I quit and boxed for a while.”

  “You were good?”

  “I was good, and I got a lot of fights. The Great White Hope and a former college kid to boot.”

  “But you didn’t like it,” she said.

  “I fought a couple guys who became contenders, one became champ for a while. And I realized the difference. I was good. They were great. And the only way I was going to get to the top was to play the White College Boy thing.”

  “Which you didn’t want to do,” Susan said.

  “Correct,” I said. “So I moved on and took the exam and got on the state cops and you know how that all went.”

  “And you weren’t tempted to go back to West Flub-a-dub?” Susan said.

  “My father and I talked about that,” I said. “He was certain that Boston was where I should be and I was too. So I stayed and missed them every day.”

  “They were here,” Susan said.

  I looked at her for a moment.

  “They are here now,” she said. “With us. Wherever you are, they will be. You contain them.”

  I felt my throat tighten for a moment. I nodded slowly.

  “Yes,” I said. “With us.”