Provider's Son (11 page)

“Now you knows Im exaggerating, but you sees what Im saying.”

“Oh I sees it perfect by.”

“To tell the truth me and the ex got along good until, like I say, I retired,” he said. “All downhill from there. But thats it. What are you going to do?”

It was six in the morning when they landed in Stephenville. The captain came on and told everyone that although they were refuelling that everyone who was getting off in St. John's had to stay on the plane. The two men sandwiching Levi got off and he sighed with relief. He seriously considered lying across the seat and going to sleep but he assumed the flight attendants wouldn't let him. At least now he had leg room.

After a half hour the captain came on and reported that there was still a lot of fog in St. John's, so they would not be leaving the runway quite yet.

An hour later they were still on the runway.

“I dont know about the fog,” a fat man across from him said, “but if they dont soon let us off for a goddamn smoke Ill be lighting up one right here. Fog or no fog.”

Twenty minutes later they left the runway. And eventually they did land in St. John's.

It was foggy. So foggy Levi didn't know that ground was near until they struck it. The plane jolted, struck again, and was rolling over it with the brakes and reverse thrust on at full force, the whooshing sound filling the plane and Levi's nerves and ears still popping.

“Jesus, if they were going to land in fog like this why didnt they just do it in the first place?” the fat smoker asked loudly, followed by a few tired mumbles of agreement. Everyone seemed too relieved to be back home to be angry about anything anymore.

When they walked off the runway and into the terminal it seemed that everyone had someone waiting for them, except Levi. And this hit him so hard he felt like running in the washroom and bawling his eyes out on the toilet. But instead he went to the bus that was waiting for him and others in the parking lot. Another three hours of being cramped up in a seat next to a stranger.

The bus was worse than the plane, but Levi eventually made it to the Irving Station at Slate Line. This is where his father would have gotten off the train fifty years ago when he came home from logging in Badger for four months. But unlike Levi, who had his truck waiting in the parking lot for a twenty minute drive down over the 308 highway, his father would have had a five hour walk ahead of him.

His house never looked so simultaneously lonely and welcoming. But before he went in he stopped in his shed, turned on the lights, and looked around. The heat was still on, had to be on, as long as it wasn't too warm that it would warp certain woods he had stowed about the place. The smell of sawdust was what hit him first. All the time working in it, he had forgotten how good it smelled. He figured there must still be tiny particles of sawdust floating in the air from the first project he ever worked on. Right now, combined with thousands of other particles, he knew that he was smelling at least some part of that first chair. Why did smell, above all other senses bring back such strong memories?

He approached his latest project quietly, and stood staring at it as if it were asleep. A thin layer of fine sawdust had settled over the chair like a veil, giving the illusion that it had been sitting untouched for years. After a moment he reached out with one finger and rubbed along the length of the arm.

Levi grabbed a cloth and began rubbing the sawdust off the chair, until five minutes later it was completely uncovered. A rough section of the back of the arm caught his attention, and unconsciously he picked up a piece of sandpaper and began sanding it. Lightly at first, but gradually gaining speed and momentum.

It was a half hour before he truly realized what he was doing, that he was on his knees, sanding his rocking chair after traveling for nearly fifteen hours. He shook his head at himself, stood up, and went into his house.

He left the luggage in the porch, flopped down on his couch, and was asleep in minutes.

Levi is climbing a scaffold, and he is afraid. What's worse is that
no matter how much he climbs he doesn't get any closer to the top, as
if it extends to eternity. And when he tries to look up, to see how close
he is, he is blinded by the morning sunlight. So he levels his head and
keeps climbing...climbing...

Eventually he gives up, and stares across at the boy working without
his harness, his arms and face covered in dark bruises.

“You still climbing?” the boy says.

“How far up does it go?”

“How do I know?”

“You should wear your harness.”

“Wer not all pussies like you, buddy.”

“What are you doing here?” Levi says.

“Working, greenhorn.”

“No, I mean…” but Levi is afraid to tell the boy what happened.

“What are you staring at greenhorn?”

“Dont talk to me like that. Im old enough to be your father.”

“You are my father.”

Now the boy is Jon.

“Im not your father.”

“Sure you are.”

“I might be your father-in-law some day. But Im not your
father.”

“Honour Thy Father,” Jon says, laughing. He holds a big family
Bible in his hand and throws it at Levi. It hits him in the chest and
knocks him slightly off balance. This terrifies him because he knows
he is up high. Higher than he has ever been.

“Jon!”

Jon throws another Bible at him, laughing. “Come on, pussy. Its
just the Good Book. It cant hurt you.”

He throws another Bible and it hits Levi's hand and knocks it off
the rung. He falls but catches himself.

He is no longer on the scaffold and walks towards Jon who is
preparing to throw another Bible at him. Jon leans back in an exaggerated
baseball pitch, but before he can let the Bible fly Levi pushes
him, and watches Jon fall silently with a man screaming somewhere
on another scaffold. Then he realizes that man screaming is him.

Levi stared at the white ceiling of his kitchen after just catching the tail end of the echo of his own voice. He had been yelling. He wasn't used to nightmares. He only could remember a few in his life, and already the memory of this one was fading. He got up and rubbed his eyes. It was suppertime.

The phone rang and he picked it up to hear his mother's voice. “Youre home is you?”

“Im home.”

“How long?”

“Since this morning.”

“You should have called me.”

“I was asleep, Mom.”

“What did you have for supper?”

“Nothing.”

“What! Come over. I got a roast on.”

“No. The only way youll see me from now on is when you comes here.”

“What for?”

“You think I wants to be around Frank and Barnaby?”

There was a pause on the phone, and Levi wondered with annoyance if she was crying already.

“Levi my son, I knows brothers that stopped talking to each other, and they always wished they worked it out when one died.”

“Im finished with the two of them, Mom. Theyre off me books for good. I wouldnt even go to Franks funeral.”

“My Jesus, dont be saying things like that. If poor Jake was alive to hear this he wouldnt know what to think of it.”

“You thinks Dad would be surprised? How many times did Dad say no one in the world would get along with Frank.”

“Sure Frank was here yesterday talking about you,” she said.

Levi straightened up and laughed. “I dare say.”

“He said that if you talked to them about it sensible instead of going off your head you probably could have come to a better agreement.”

“Havent you got it figured out, Mom? It had nothing to do with figuring out percentages. They cut me down because they knew Id quit. They wanted me to quit.”

“Now Levi, you knows the difference of that. Frank said he was trying to be fair. I dont believe everything comes out of his mouth now, but Barnaby said the same thing. Barnaby dont lie.”

“Barnaby is a gambling addict! He wanted me out so he could have more money to throw in them slot machines.”

“No hes not no gambling addict. That thing thats married to him is the one with the problem.”

“No Mom. Hes just as bad. Or Worse.”

“No. No. He told me she cant handle money.”

“Whatever Mom. Im finished with the two of them.”

“You still should talk to Frank.”

Levi hung up the phone. It rang again and Levi ignored it. It rang and rang. He decided to go for a drive because God only knew how many times she would call back. She was a stubborn woman.

Driving felt good. The old novelty was there, if only for a few minutes, that particular brand of freedom and power only an engine on wheels can bring. Even if the motor was under the hood of a rusty old truck.

He prayed Barnaby, or especially Frank, wasn't at the store. Yet, it was inevitable that he would bump into them there at some point. If he saw either of their vehicles he would simply turn around...unless of course they came in behind him. Barnaby wouldn't, but Frank would purposely come into the store if he knew Levi was there. And perhaps even try to start up a conversation.

But neither of his brother's vehicles was in Missy's parking lot. Instead it was a new crew cab Dodge Ram he didn't recognize, and he knew who owned every truck in Gadus. Regardless, he found himself feeling good pulling into the pumps. Even if he was driving the same old beat-up truck he had been for the last eleven years. Not for much longer, he thought, then caught himself. It would be for a lot longer perhaps. After all, he wasn't going back out west...not likely anyway. He got out and stuck the nozzle in the truck, proud that he didn't have to think twice about the price of gas. When it was full he strolled into the store. Missy's was the only convenience store left in the five outports from there to the Trans Canada Highway. When he was a boy there had been three general stores in Gadus alone.

Missy's daughter was often behind the cash lately, but not today. Missy herself was checking in local fisherman, Bryan Collet. And behind him his brother Calvin was waiting in line with a sub sandwich and Diet Pepsi in his hand. They both greeted him and asked him what he was up to.

“Oh not much by,” Levi said, heading to the glass cooler. “Pick up a few beer I suppose.”

“Sounds alright,” Brian said. “If I whudnt on me way to Catalina Id be doing the same.”

“Whats the price this year?” Levi said.

Bryan and Calvin looked at him.

“Yes,” Calvin said, nodding. “Youre out west now. I forgot about that sure.”

“You never heard the price wer getting the year?” Bryan said.

“To tell you the truth by, Ive been closing me ears to it all since...”

“$2.50 a pound,” Missy said, checking in a can of sausages.

Levi was dumbstruck.

“Jesus...it havent been that price in years. What happened?”

“Market demand,” Missy said.

“No one really knows,” Bryan said.

“Sure youre making a fortune out west now anyway. You dont have to worry about this shit anymore.”

“Yes, the money is not bad I must say,” Levi said.

“What shift you on?” Missy said. “Me boy is out there now.

Cory. You see him around?”

“No,” Levi said. “Theres dozens of oil camps out west.”

“Hes a pipefitter. Whats you doing?”

As if the nosiest woman in Gadus didn't know. “Welding.”

“Hard work?” Calvin said.

“No by, its pretty laid back.”

“I heard the scaffolders is the only ones who breaks a sweat on them big jobs,” Bryan said.

“Not my son,” Missy said. “Cory works like a dog sure.”

The three men said nothing. If Cory was anything like his father he didn't work like a dog at anything.

Levi paid for his beer and left the store behind the two men.

“I didnt want to say it in front of that nosey thing in there,” Bryan said as he climbed up in his truck. “But I knows you got done dirty. From what I heard them oil camps gets old pretty quick. If you gets sick of what youre at and youre looking for a berth, you can come on with us. I was going to call you the other day, but I remembered you was gone out west.”

“I still cant believe the price.”

“Yes, its good to see that price again. How long is you off for?”

“A week.”

“You should dart out with us for a run,” Bryan said, grinning.

Levi laughed. “I only got off the plane yesterday. Im beat to a snot.”

“Oh. Well, Ill give you a couple hundred dollars. And if you likes it you can stay on. Ten percent share.”

“Fuck that oil racket,” Calvin said over Bryan's shoulder. “You was raised up on the water by.”

“The water havent done me much good for something I was raised up on.”

“Sure Im giving you a chance now,” Bryan said. “You might never see prices like this again.”

“Nah. Im into this now. I might as well stick with it.”

Bryan nodded. “Alright by. But give me a call if you changes your mind. That number I quoted is negotiable by the way. I knows theyre your brothers, but you got done dirty by. Nobody likes to see that happen to a fella.”

“Who you got with you now anyway?”

“Don Inleighs two boys, and the wife might dart out with us for a run. Larry Melodie too.”

“Well Ill see you around,” Levi said, getting aboard his truck.

“Here,” Bryan said, passing over his cell phone number on the back of the store receipt. “Just in case.”

Larry Melodie? Wasn't that Karen's boy that was going in to be a teacher? How desperate was Bryan to say that the share percentage price was negotiable? Or, for that matter, to even offer him the job in the first place? The boat was full of greenhorns, and to top it all off, a woman too. Levi never saw a woman on the water in his life that was worth her salt.