Bouncing

by Jaime Maddox

  Later, on the patio where the members of the ladies’ league were enjoying sandwiches and drinks, several people approached their table to congratulate them on their win and invite them to play again.

  A woman with short dark hair approached their table, and although they’d never met, Alex recognized her face, probably from the beach. Sal introduced her as Bree, and after they spent a few minutes rehashing their victory, Bree asked if Alex could play the following week. Coincidentally, Bree was scheduled to play Pearl and Ann Marie.

  Normally, Alex wouldn’t have considered the invitation. She still had another week of classes, and to play she’d have to miss school. Besides, confrontation wasn’t normally on her agenda. She’d won, and she had every right to be happy and walk away. She was sure Sal and Bree and everyone else in the league would think well of her for simply putting the sandbagger in her place. But Alex hated cheaters, and clearly that label fit Ann Marie.

  She’d purposely blown three holes when she realized she couldn’t beat Sal and Alex, hitting eights on every one, and Alex knew that was how she kept her handicap so high. It wasn’t right, and it wasn’t fair, and after Ann Marie had walked off the green in a huff after losing the final hole, Alex wanted nothing more than to drive to Rehoboth the next week and beat her. Again.

  “Okay,” Alex said as she looked up from her beer. “I’ll play.”

  As the day faded so did the crowd, and as the stars began twinkling, Alex and Sal were still sitting in the same place. Other members of the league had said good-bye and left, but they stayed and talked until the workers began cleaning up around them, subtly hinting that they wanted to close the bar and go home.

  They took the hint and walked toward their cars, but not before making dinner plans for the next night. Alex looked forward to their date as she drove back to her condo. Sal had been a part of her life for more than a decade, the first one Alex came out to, the one who’d taught her about basketball and winning and courage and commitment. Alex’s parents were amazing and wonderful people with whom she had pathetically little in common. Their love was unconditional and constant, but they lived in a world so far removed from hers that their ability to understand or appreciate her life was severely limited. Sal, though—she was Alex’s soul mate, and if she hadn’t been thirty years older and married to the most wonderful woman in the world, Alex might have been tempted to settle down.

  Back in her room at the condo, Alex slept soundly and awoke to a bright sun shining through dented blinds. Stretching out the kinks in her back, she stared at the ceiling, wondering how many women she’d brought to this room over the years. Many. She was like the balls she loved so much—bouncing around from girl to girl, never content with one. There was nothing wrong with that, was there? She was just a normal girl—an athlete, a coach, a teacher, and a friend. A daughter and a sister. Never a girlfriend, though, and never a partner. As more of her friends settled down, the curve was shifting, and she found that her single status placed her squarely in the middle of abnormal. She didn’t like it one bit.

  Climbing out of bed, she stretched yet again, then made her way to the bathroom. She removed a syringe hidden in her travel kit, loaded the drug into the chamber, and then leaned against the sink as she slowly delivered the poison into her body. Her eyes were closed and she could immediately feel the burn, followed by the inevitable calm and then a tremendous sense of relief. Carefully wrapping the syringe in tissue to conceal it, she placed it back into the bag and got ready for her day.

  “Honey, I’m home!” Alex shouted twelve hours later as she walked through the door. She’d spent the day cleaning the house, readying it for the summer, then enjoyed another wonderful evening with Sal and her partner Sue. Her roommates had been vague about arrival times; beach traffic was always unpredictable. Alex had been delighted to see a car in the drive when she pulled in, eager to see her friends.

  Like a dog set free of its leash, Tam came bounding from the living room, leaping into Alex’s arms and wrapping her arms and legs around her. She didn’t appear to notice Alex cringe. It was the great irony of her illness, Alex knew: inside, a deadly war was raging, but on the outside everything seemed perfectly calm. Alex was tall and in great shape and shouldn’t have given a second thought to the petite woman who tackled her, but she feared the jolt of Tam’s tackle would haunt her in the morning. Alex gingerly set her friend down and led her to the living room.

  “I see you were expecting me,” Alex said, nodding to the ice chest full of beer sitting on the coffee table.

  “Yep. Kim will be here shortly, too.”

  Alex pulled one out and twisted off the cap. “So, tell me a story.”

  Tam smiled at their ongoing joke. Alex, the English teacher, had the opportunity to read the classics, and Tam, the kindergarten teacher, was reading Dr. Seuss. Alex knew her friend loved her job as much as she did, though, and the teasing was all friendly.

  “It’s almost a shame to even go back to work. I have school Tuesday and Wednesday and then I’m done. I should just stay here and have fun.”

  “I’m coming back Wednesday. We can hang out.”

  “To stay?”

  “No, just for one night.” Alex explained the situation with the sandbagger as they put their feet up on the hassock and sipped their beers. Alex sipped, anyway. She’d had two beers with Sal and Sue and had already, in two nights, equaled her alcohol consumption for the prior month. It was time to slow down. Drugs and alcohol didn’t mix, and she needed her drugs much more than she needed the alcohol. Tam was unwinding, though, ready to open her second bottle.

  She turned to Alex with a look of eager anticipation on her lovely face. “Oooh! This sounds so wonderfully butch, you taking on the bootlegger. Can I watch?”

  “It’ll actually be rather boring. Have you ever watched golf? Or any sport?”

  Tam cocked her head, looking offended. “I went to every home game when you played basketball. No one cheered louder than me!”

  Alex smiled at the memory of her friend, dressed in a skirt and heels, sitting in the student section next to Kim and the rest of the student body, who were clad in T-shirts and sweats and jeans. Some students wore only paint to the games, but Kim was right next to them as they celebrated their common love of the women’s basketball team. Tam was a fish out of water, but she was Alex’s fish—her always loyal and loving best friend, since their first semester of college when they were paired for a project in their public-speaking class.

  “Yes, my apologies. You were always there. Golf isn’t quite so exciting, and there’s no scoreboard, so you’ll have no idea what’s going on.”

  “I can be your caddyshack.”

  Alex inhaled her beer and began choking, sitting forward as she gasped for air, fighting to rid her lungs of the liquid she’d aspirated. When she could finally speak, she started laughing all over again. “It’s a caddy. Caddyshack was a movie.”

  “Oh,” Tam said, looking terribly disappointed in herself.

  “I met someone you might like, though. Her name’s Bree and she’s kind of cute.”

  Tam’s eyes lit up. “Yeah? Tell me more!”

  “I don’t know anything else. Just her name. And she looks a little like Tom Cruise. Just your type.”

  “You don’t have a last name, an address, or a phone number? What am I going to do with you, Alex?” Tam frowned.

  “I know where she’ll be next Thursday night!” Alex turned her head and winked.

  “Maybe I will come to the golf match, then.”

  The grinding noise from the garage indicated that the last of their party had arrived. Alex kept her seat, but Tam ran toward the kitchen and into the garage to greet Kim. The sound of their laughter wafted in from the garage, and Alex couldn’t keep from smiling at the sound. As much as she loved Tam, Kim loved her more. And the feeling was mutual. Their attraction and chemistry were obvious to everyone except the two of them. Alex kept hoping they’d figure it all out. Maybe this would be t
he summer.

  Kim abandoned her suitcase in the hall before she joined them on the couch for a beer. “I wanna go to the Frogg Pond,” she said when Tam suggested refilling their bucket.

  Alex looked at Tam for a response. Her day had been easy and she was always agreeable, open to ideas and suggestions and adventure. Whatever they decided was fine by her. When Tam smiled at the idea the plan was sealed, but she of course had to change clothes and refresh her makeup. Alex and Kim were comfortable in shorts and T-shirts and caught up while they waited.

  Thirty minutes later they sat at a table in the corner of the bar, where they joined a group of friends who they knew from years of summers at the shore. It was after ten, and the bar was crowded. Alex occupied the corner, where her view of the ladies was unobstructed. It didn’t take long to notice one in particular.

  Blond hair fell straight down the stranger’s back, and as she stood at the bar, she occasionally tossed her head to keep it in place. Alex was too far away to tell the color of her eyes, but they were light, just like her complexion. She obviously needed copious amounts of sunscreen to protect that fair skin from burning, and Alex could imagine her own hands applying it. Everywhere. The blonde didn’t smile but seemed rather serious as she talked to the woman beside her. Friend? Lover? Alex watched, hoping to learn more. The last thing she needed on the first weekend of summer was a fight with a jealous girlfriend.

  After a few minutes, the woman turned her back on her companion, effectively ending their conversation, and Alex watched as the other woman shrugged and began talking to the woman on her other side. It was time to make her move.

  “Excuse me,” Alex said to her friends.

  Pushing through the crowd, she made her way to the bar and stood beside the blonde. They were nearly the same height, but Alex thought she was a fraction of an inch taller. Curious, she looked down and saw that the woman wore flats. Impressive.

  Alex turned slightly and found her eyes. They were blue, a pale, icy shade that sent a tantalizing chill through Alex. Not a word had been spoken, but Alex could tell this woman would be a challenge. And worth it. “I had to come see if you’re really as tall as you look. Or if you were cheating.”

  “Chee-tink?” she asked with a distinct German accent and a look of curiosity.

  “High heels,” Alex explained.

  “Ah, no need zoo cheat. Already I am 1.83 meters.”

  Alex laughed, both at her choice of words and the serious manner in which she shared them.

  “Really?” she said. “So how many meters do you think I am?”

  The woman looked at Alex from head to toe. “Stand straight,” she commanded, and when Alex did as she was told, the woman surveyed her again. “You are perfec for me.”

  Alex looked her in the eye again. “I’m Alex.”

  A slight tilt of the head served as acknowledgment. “Anke. Do you have house, Alex, or should ve go zoo mine?”

  Anke’s expression never changed, but Alex noticed a glimmer in her eyes as she offered the invitation. “Oh, I’d love a trip to Germany,” Alex whispered, moving close enough to feel the softness of Anke’s hair brushing her neck.

  “Follow me,” Anke commanded.

  After bidding her friends good night, Alex followed her instructions and minutes later found herself in a tiny apartment above a garage a few blocks from the beach. A double bed was the only significant piece of furniture in the room, but it was all they needed. They didn’t get out of it until noon the next day, when Alex was politely asked to leave. Anke’s job demanded her attention, but she expressed a desire to see Alex again that night. And in the interest of international relations, Alex agreed. She continued her diplomatic efforts the following night as well, and for the first time since college, she was planning to see the same girl for the fourth time.

  They set ground rules on that first morning, though. Anke was only in town for one summer, and while she’d like to see Alex again, she wanted to reserve the option of seeing other women, if someone interesting materialized. They would have no contact after the summer—they would simply go their separate ways.

  It was a new situation for Alex. She didn’t date, she had sex. But how could she argue with this proposal? Anke had been dynamite in bed. She was beautiful, intelligent, and how could you beat that sexy accent? She could have her whenever she wanted, and if someone else turned up, she could have them, too. She could have it all! Alex was willing to play the game, and if she tired of it, she could always quit—after all, that rule had been established. It might be sticky to see Anke at the bars if it didn’t work out, but she’d take that chance. After the night they’d shared, she’d be a fool not to. It was exactly what she’d always done, but with a new twist. Instead of a one-nighter, she’d have a full season.

  And so a few days later, she found herself sitting back on the patio at the golf course, staring out at a beautiful afternoon, wearing a golf shirt and shorts and a fresh-fucked look. Anke had finished work at ten the night before, and by eleven they were busy in her bed. They didn’t slow down until the sun was coming up the next morning. She’d left Anke’s and headed directly to the golf course. The back nine was on the agenda for the league that night, and Alex had decided to play in the morning to familiarize herself with the pin positions. Playing against the sandbagger, she needed every advantage she could get. The par threes were both birdie opportunities for her, and she hit several shots from the tee on both of them, deciding which club and approach would give her the best chance for an easy putt. After she finished her nine holes, she went back to the condo and crashed. Sleeping half the day recharged her batteries, and she came back and met Bree on the driving range. They headed to the patio for water before the round started.

  “Ready?” Bree asked upon returning from the restroom.

  “Oh, yeah,” Alex answered. The strategy was the same as it had been the week before, only this time, Alex knew her opponent and the pin placement as well.

  “Hello, again.” Ann Marie greeted them on the starting tee box, a polite smile briefly raising the corners of her mouth. It was the last smile Alex saw that afternoon. Alex and Bree needed only seven holes to win the match, and instead of finishing nine holes—customary but not mandatory in this format—they thanked their opponents and headed back in. Alex was glad to have made short work of the match. Her SUV was packed and she was heading straight home from the golf course. Four more days of school, though, and she’d be back to stay.

  After depositing their clubs in their respective cars, they met up on the way back to the bar. Alex hadn’t had a chance to chat with Sal and Sue before teeing off, and she hoped they’d finish their round early, too, so she’d be able to spend a little time with them. Before they could even place their drink orders, an older woman approached. She was meticulously dressed and wearing golf-club-shaped earrings that appeared to be made of real diamonds. Her makeup was expertly applied, and even her hair, half-covered by a visor, looked as if it had been professionally styled for the golf round. The woman’s manner matched her sophisticated appearance.

  “Pardon me, ladies. Are you Alex Dalton?” she asked, raising a tweezed eyebrow at Alex.

  Alex smiled cautiously. Beware of strange women who know your name.

  “Yes, that’s me.”

  The woman’s manicured hand appeared before her, and Alex was quite tempted to kiss it. Her regal bearing seemed to warrant such an address, but instead she simply took it in her own and shook it firmly.

  “I’m Evvy Whitford. Sal Conklin gave me your name. Are you available to substitute with me next week? Something unexpectedly came up, and my usual playing partner won’t be available.” Evvy looked around to confirm no one was eavesdropping before continuing. Wearing a sweet smile but with fire in her eyes she said softly, “We’re playing Ann Marie and Pearl.”

  Alex met her fierce gaze and then overtly studied Evvy. In spite of the large diamond on her left hand and the fact that thirty years separated them, the wom
an was flirting with her. Alex felt the unusual sensation of heat in her face as she blushed.

  She dismissed the thought of Evvy and instead considered her invitation. School concluded for the year on Wednesday. She’d be back in Rehoboth in plenty of time for a Thursday-evening golf match. Alex cleared her throat and assumed the appropriate attitude to respond to such a well-heeled woman. “I’m sorry to hear about your partner’s cancellation, but as it happens, I’ll be available and would be happy to play in her place.”

  Evvy smiled and lowered her chin so her gaze up to Alex was even more dramatic. “I think I’m going to enjoy my round with you, Ms. Dalton.”

  As Evvy walked away, Alex seated herself at the bar, where Bree patted her on the back and said, “I think it’s going to be a great summer.”

  Alex considered her golf match the following week, and it pleased her to know she’d have another chance at Ann Marie. Apparently the ladies of the league knew what she was doing and were all happy to allow Alex to step in for them and bring her down. What they were doing was completely legal, and her part in it made Alex feel wonderful. She’d never done anything like this before. More typically, she avoided confrontation and was happy to play her own game. Beating Ann Marie that first night had sparked something within her, though, and now she was on a mission. And apparently, so was the league.

  Alex let her thoughts drift for a moment. She pictured herself driving her Jeep, the wind blowing her short, wavy blond hair and the sun warming her face. She also saw herself spending days on the beach with Kim and Tam, and nights with Anke. Yes, Alex had to agree with Bree. It was looking to be a great summer.

  Chapter Two

  A Whole New World

  The stillness was perhaps the most overwhelming feature of this night in the mountains of Brazil. It was black, with not much of a moon to brighten it and no artificial light coming from the buildings in this part of the world, where access to electricity was the exception rather than the rule. Because they had only burning lamps for light, the people of this region kept a very functional schedule, rising with the sun and retiring with it as well, and the quiet was complete, without even the sounds of nature interrupting.