Callahan's Fate

by Lee Ann Sontheimer Murphy

  Cal shrugged. “I wish I could say yeah, but most of it is still recovering after Hurricane Sandy. It’s amazing how much has come back, because most of the boardwalk was destroyed. I won’t lie—it was a bad thing all around, but the ocean still rocks and it’s coming back one bit at a time.”

  A cold shudder rippled down his spine, the feeling which had always prompted his grandmother to say a goose was walking over your grave. As a cop, he’d been out there for a while to help after Sandy, and the devastation had been extreme. Worse still had been the elderly people in the vicinity who drowned in their own living rooms. They had remained, certain they would be safe, having weathered other storms over the decades. He wasn’t sharing any of those stories, though. Callahan wanted this to be another enjoyable day. To distract himself, he started pointing out a few sights along the way. Unlike most of the other subway lines, the Q train still ran a good part of the way on elevated tracks, so he could play tour guide for Raine.

  Her excitement and delight were contagious. She liked the view of Flatbush Avenue and found the platforms at the stations quaint. At Coney Island, the multi-track station made her smile, and when they descended the steps to street level, she grinned wide. “Wow,” she said. “It’s amazing now. It must’ve been totally awesome before the hurricane.”

  He tried to see it through her eyes—the wide streets, the original Nathan’s on one corner, the souvenir shop, and the rides looming large to their left. Straight ahead, the Atlantic Ocean beyond the beach and the new boardwalk teemed with more activity than he’d expected for an autumn Sunday morning. So far, it smacked of newness and lacked the vintage appeal he remembered. The nostalgic charm buildup over a century had vanished beneath the waves, and the current version seemed a little lacking. Maybe by the time I have grandkids, it will seem like the real deal again, he thought.

  “Yeah, it was,” he replied. “And here’s hoping it will be again. I’m glad you like it. Wanna go down to the beach?”

  “I’d love to,” she said. “It’s a gorgeous day.”

  Callahan had to agree. Above, the October sky stretched high and blue, the shade deep and vibrant. The sun sparkled like a pirate’s gold coin, tossed for luck. Despite the cooler temperatures last night, the day seemed warm, and the slight breeze wafting in from the ocean remained pleasant. When he inhaled, he could smell the salt tang of the sea mingled with the delicious aromas wafting from the original Nathan’s Famous Hot Dogs on the corner of Surf Avenue. From somewhere down the boardwalk, he picked up the smell of fresh popcorn and cotton candy, too. His spirits lifted higher, and he strolled with his lady toward the beach the way couples had done for more than a hundred years. Cal savored those words—his lady—and decided she was, whether she knew it yet or not.

  “After a while, we’ll come back and have a Coney Island dog,” he told her.

  Raine nodded. “Sure.”

  They took their time to reach the beach, pausing often to admire the seascape stretching out into the Atlantic. Cal enjoyed her company, and the more they talked, he came to appreciate her intelligence and soft wit. The ocean soothed his troubled spirits, too, and by the time they’d walked along the beach for a while, he couldn’t remember when he’d last felt so good or normal. With sand in their shoes, they abandoned the beach for the pier. When they reached the end, they sat down for a while, took off their shoes, and sat with their bare feet dangling above the water. Gulls wheeled toward the clouds, and their cries echoed over the land. Callahan let the peace of the moment wrap around him and yielded to the serenity.

  “This is great,” he told Raine. He wanted to better describe the wonderful way he felt, but he couldn’t.

  She smiled at him and rested one hand on his knee. “Yes, it’s very pleasant. I love this. I think I could sit here all day.”

  He felt the same. “It’d be nice. We can, if you want.”

  Raine leaned over and rested her head against his shoulder. He liked it, but her proximity also stiffened his dick. “I can’t, though. I have to get home by five or so to get my lesson plans ready for the week. I suppose you work tomorrow, too?”

  “Yeah, seven-thirty until four,” he said. “Longer, if something happens and I need to stay. I’m on duty every day until next Sunday, then I’ll be off through Monday. Where are you tomorrow?”

  “I’m in Queens tomorrow, at a shelter for families in the morning,” she told him. “Then I’m back in mid-Manhattan at a rehab center. I spend the last class of the day with at-risk kids at one of the high schools. I finish up around four, then I’m done for the day.”

  “Yeah? You won’t be too far from my place. Wanna meet for dinner or something?”

  Without hesitation, she nodded. “I’d like that, Cal, very much.”

  So did Callahan. The workweek he hadn’t been looking forward to brightened a little. “Then we will. How about you meet me at the Thirty-Fourth Street subway station? Then we’ll grab a bite to eat or whatever.”

  “Sure, then it’s a plan.”

  “So what are you teaching them tomorrow?”

  “We’re reading Betty Smith’s A Tree Grows In Brooklyn. The kids like it so far, and they can relate to the poverty and the hard life, even though it was set a hundred years or so ago. Have you ever read it?”

  “Read it? It was my grandma’s favorite book. She always swore she grew up a lot like Francie Nolan,” he said. “I’ve read it several times and seen the old movie twice. That’s cool, Raine.”

  She beamed at his praise. “I think so. It’s one of my favorite classic American novels. I haven’t seen much that looks like the things described in the book, though.”

  “You’d have to go to Williamsburg for that, doll. Most of the tenements are gone, replaced by housing projects not so different from where I grew up in Alphabet City. Some of the stores, though, they haven’t changed so much. If you want, sometime I’ll take you there if you promise to stick close.”

  “Yes, please. I guess not today?”

  “Naw, we’re way out here at Coney Island, and we’d need to plan for it, but some other time, I promise.”

  “Cross your heart and hope to die?”

  Callahan laughed. “So they say that old shit out in Missouri, too?”

  “Oh, yeah, we do.”

  Out to sea, he noticed a bank of dark gray clouds approaching. “Ever hear the one that goes Rain, rain, go away, come again another day?

  “Sure, why?”

  “’Cause I’d say it’s gonna rain sooner rather than later. Check out the storm coming this way.”

  As he spoke, the wind shifted direction and increased, cooler than before. Within moments, the sun vanished behind the clouds. Raine shivered and snuggled closer. “I hate to say it, but I think you’re right.”

  “So let’s go before we get soaked.”

  They made it as far as the comfort station across from the Coney Island entrance from Surf Avenue before the downpour hit. Raine yelped as the cold raindrops pelted them so Callahan ducked under the edge of the restroom building roof. He wrapped his arms around her and maneuvered her against the building so he could block most of the showers. “You know,” he said over the noise of the rain. “I’m beginning to think this is because of you.”

  She looked perplexed. “How do you figure that?”

  “It’s rained every time so far we’ve been together, and your name’s Raine so I figure you draw it, like lighting or something.” He kept his tone light so she’d know he kidded her. “How’d you end up with the name anyhow? Was it raining when you were born or something?”

  Pink flushed her cheeks. “Well, no.”

  “Your parents fond of rain, then?”

  Her obvious embarrassment made Cal curious, so he pushed it a little.

  “Not really,” she replied. “It’s, uh, a nickname, really.”

  “Say what? Then what’s your name? C’mon, give it up, I told you mine.”

  Raine managed a smile. “Yes, you did, but I asked. You di
dn’t.”

  “I am now.”

  She pursed her lips into a bow and blew out air. “I noticed. Oh, all right. It’s Lorraine.”

  Lorraine... Maybe a little old-fashioned, but he found it pretty. “What’s wrong with Lorraine?”

  “Nothing,” she said. “It’s just when I was very small I had trouble saying my full name and told people my name was Raine. By the time I reached junior high, everyone called me Raine, even my parents. Now you know.”

  “Lorraine.” He tested it out and she winced.

  “Don’t call me that, Aloysius,” she replied.

  Callahan laughed. It might be worth it to tease her sometime, but not now. He could tell she’d get angry if he did. “All right, all right, so I won’t. We’re even then, Raine. You’re turning out to be a woman of mystery. Got any more secrets?”

  “Not really,” she said. “What about you?”

  The question curdled his mood. He might not call them secrets, but there were things he wasn’t ready to share. Cal worried his dark truths might change her opinion of him, and he didn’t want to see her admiration turn to displeasure or worse, scorn. Maybe she wouldn’t blame him the way he did himself, but he was too chicken to find out. “Nothing worth knowing,” he said. His tone sharpened despite his effort to keep it light.

  They stood facing one another, and he watched her expression shift from complacent to anxious. “Callahan?” she said, voice soft. “Something’s bothering you. I know from a few things you’ve said, and I can see it must be something terrible. So you’ve got baggage. We all do. Won’t you tell me? I’m not going to judge you or anything.”

  His first response, which he squelched, was to lash out at her because she nailed it so well. With most people, his mask held and no one saw beneath the façade, but Raine did. Cal bit down on the hot words that bubbled to his mouth and waited a long moment. “I will, someday, doll,” he said. “I don’t want to ruin the day talking about any of it. Hell, I don’t even want to think about it. Okay?”

  Her fingers cupped his cheek in a light caress. “All right, but don’t hold back much longer. I want to see a lot more of you, and I don’t want anything between us.”

  Cal put his hand over hers. “Me, either. Thanks, Raine, for understanding. You’re great, you know?”

  He meant it. She ducked her head, nodded. “I try, Callahan.”

  “Then keep on with it, baby. I need it, lots more than you know.”

  “Then I’ll do my best.” Raine stood on tiptoe to kiss him. He expected it to be light and fleeting, but she surprised him. The kiss was anything but gentle as her mouth devoured his with a feverish passion. It awakened his desire, and he gave back all he offered with greed, tempered with a gentleness he hadn’t known he possessed. God, he wanted her naked and willing. If she kept kissing like this, it would happen sooner rather than later. Cal pulled her tighter against his body and held her close. His dick hardened and pressed against her. She had to notice, and when she rubbed against him, he almost groaned. Glad she was aware, her movements put him in something close to agony. If they’d been anyplace else, he might have lost control.

  When he stepped back to draw a breath, Callahan noticed the rain had stopped. “Hey, look!”

  As he spoke, a brilliant ray of sunshine burst through the clouds and illuminated the beach with a golden hue. “It’s like a blessing,” Raine said. “It’s beautiful.”

  Callahan agreed. The way the light played across the sand created such a lovely effect that it touched him deep within. It contributed to the faint beginning of something he thought he’d lost forever—hope—but he knew most of the credit was due to Raine Teasdale.

  With a light step and an almost merry heart, he escorted her across the beach and boardwalk back to the original Nathan’s Famous Hot Dogs on Surf Avenue. This time there was more than one kind of hunger burning in his gut. The first, he could fill here, but the second loomed large between them, an unspoken presence that would have to be dealt with very soon.

  Chapter Six

  Watching sunlight and shadows play across the beach, Raine knew one thing. She had fallen hard for this cop, and if she didn’t love him yet, she was halfway there. Callahan moved her in ways no other guy ever had. His kisses brought her from zero to eighty in seconds, her body revving like a race car engine with a wild desire and a need for speed. His dark, good looks appealed to her, but what touched her most was his combination bravado and anguish. She adored his New York accent, exotic to her Midwest-raised ears, and the way he carried himself, with a cocky swagger and a cop’s touch exterior. He spoke with both intelligence and authority. Toward her, he displayed nothing but definite interest, gentle caring, and open appreciation. Who couldn’t resist such a combination, even if he wasn’t to-die-for gorgeous?

  But he’s troubled, too. Whatever burdens he carried, they were heavy, and he bore them hard. Raine ached to take the sadness from his eyes and to relieve his obvious pain. She suspected grief and guilt were two of the demons haunting him, but until he opened up, there wasn’t much she could do to ease him.

  So far, their shared Sunday had been fantastic, although some of the joy faded when he spoke of secrets he didn’t want to share. Raine had feared the day might go sour, but when she kissed him, he seemed to let go of the darkness. When the rain showers ceased and the sun came out, it apparently moved him as much as it had her, maybe more. As they strolled away from the ocean toward the well-known hot dog stand, he had regained most of his composure. His grins were back, along with a generous helping of his good-natured wit.

  At Nathan’s Famous Hot Dogs, her appetite roused as she inhaled the delicious aromas. Callahan leaned over. “You do like hot dogs, right?”

  “Yes, of course I do.”

  “If you don’t, they’ve got clam chowder and burgers and chicken…”

  Raine interrupted him. “Hot dogs are fine. I think I’d like a chili cheese dog.”

  “Good choice. They’re great. I’m having two, I think. You want some fries or onion rings?”

  “Fries, please, and a soda will be fine.”

  “Okay. Do you mind if I get a beer?”

  “No, don’t be silly.”

  “If you wanna grab a table, I’ll get the food,” Cal said. Raine glanced around. Despite the rain, the place was crowded.

  She pointed to a vacant table for two, and he nodded. “Go get it. Pick up some napkins and straws on the way, will you?”

  Raine took a chair so she could watch Callahan at the counter. She enjoyed ogling him, but when he headed for the table with their order tucked into a cardboard box, she schooled her face to be bland. As he had before, he spoke the simple blessing she knew, and she joined him. Hard to believe I just met him yesterday morning. I feel like I’ve known him for a long time. Whatever this is, wherever it leads, there’s some kind of bond between us.

  When she tasted her first bite of the chili cheese dog, Raine knew she’d reached a new level of delight. “Wow, it’s fantastic,” she said.

  Callahan grinned. “Yeah, Nathan’s are the best, but you gotta eat ‘em here. The ones from the supermarket, they’re good, but not like this.”

  Throughout most of the meal, he sat in a relaxed pose, and after he’d finished, he drained the rest of his beer in a single swallow. “Perfect!”

  They talked about Coney Island, and he shared a few memories from childhood. Raine noticed that when he spoke of his brothers, Aidan and Anthony, his eyes darkened and his smile faded, so she wondered if they were part of his burden. The stories he told, though, were amusing and delightful.

  “This one time, see,” Cal told her. He wore a bemused grin. “All three of us were on the Wonder Wheel, and the ride jockey walked off. We were the only ones on the ride and I think he forgot about us. Maybe it was lunch break or he wanted to have a smoke or something, but we were on the ride for more than forty minutes. At first it was fun, but after a while I got scared, and Anthony did his best to calm me down.”
>
  “How old were you?”

  Cal shrugged. “Six or seven, I think. Anthony was the oldest, Aidan the youngest, and I was in the middle. Anthony had to be fourteen or fifteen, but he did his best. It was after our dad had passed away, and he tried to fill his shoes.”

  Raine noticed Callahan’s expression had sobered a little, but so far he still wore a smile. “So did he get you to chill out?”

  He chuckled. “Yeah, he made me recite the alphabet and then do it backward. I had to stop and think, so it took my mind off the fact we were stuck on a ride that wouldn’t quit. When the ride guy came back, he stopped it and laughed off the fact we’d been on so long. He told us we got a freebie so we shouldn’t gripe. I don’t think we ever told Mom either.”

  “Wasn’t she with you?”

  “Nope, she must have been working. Anthony brought us, paid for it out of the money from his part-time job. After the Wonder Wheel, he bought us all hot dogs and lemonade, then let us splash in the ocean for a while before we went home on the subway.”

  “Sounds like fun.” Raine noticed he used the past tense when he talked about his brothers, but she wasn’t sure why. Although curious, she determined not to ask, unwilling to sink his mood.

  “It was,” he said. “We had a few good times growing up. It wasn’t all bad.”

  “No sisters?”

  “None. What about you?”

  “I’ve got two sisters, one older brother. He’s in the Army, stationed in Texas after two tours of overseas duty.”

  “What’s his name?”

  “Brian,” Raine answered. “My sisters are Josette and Annette. They’re twins. We call them Jo and Annie. They’re both married, and Annie has a little girl, Sophie.”

  His face lit up, so he must like kids. “You’re an aunt, then. I’m an uncle.”

  Raine grinned. “It can be fun.”

  “And crazy, too.”

  They laughed together, and she finished the last bite of her hot dog. She blotted her lips with a napkin and wondered where the restroom might be located. When she glanced up, Callahan’s smile had vanished, and he gazed toward one corner of the restaurant. Something in his solemn expression sent a little shiver down her spine. “Cal?”