Richard Doetsch - Half-Past Dawn

L IFE IS FAR MORE enjoyable when you work with people you like and respect. I would personally like to thank the following:

Gene and Wanda Sgarlata, the owners of Womrath Bookstore in Bronxville, N.Y., for their continued support; without their friendship, you wouldnt be reading these words.

Sarah Branham for making sense of it all and for performing a herculean task in record time. Peter Borland for your encouragement, insight, and that amazing ability to understand what Im trying to say. Im truly blessed to have you not only as my overseer but as my friend. Judith Curr, the most forward-thinking professional in the publishing world, and Louise Burke, for her unwavering support and belief. I could not be in better hands. Nick Simonds for keeping it all together; Dave Brown for getting people to sit up and take notice; and especially Joel Gotler, my Obi Wan guide in the West Coast cinematic world.

And heads and shoulders above all, Cynthia Manson. First and foremost for your continued friendship; it is something I truly treasure. Thank you for your innovative thinking, your continued faith in the face of adversity, and your unlimited tenacity. Your inspiration, guidance, and business acumen are exceeded by no one.

Thank you to my family:

To my children, you are the best part of my life. Richard, you are my mind, your brilliance and creativity know no bounds. Marguerite, you are my heart, constantly reminding me of what is important in life; your style, grace under pressure, and sense of humor are examples to all. Isabelle, you are my soul; your laughter and inquisitive mind keep my eyes open to the magic of this world we live in.

Dad, for always being my dad and the voice of wisdom that forever rings in my ear. Mom, you were always my champion on terra firma, and you no doubt still are. How else can I explain my good fortune since your passing?

Most important, thank you, Virginia, for your love even when I dont deserve it.

I marvel at how you are even more beautiful than the day I spied you in gym class.

You fill my heart with hope and possibilities, opening my eyes to the joys of living that can become so obscured by the trials, tribulations, and everyday distractions of lifes journey.

Thank you for making me laugh in the darkest of hours. Thank you for raising such amazing children; they are truly a reflection of you. Thank you for dancing; I marvel at your modesty, talent, and beauty as you lose yourself in the magic, achieve the impossible, and entertain the world around you. Thank you for making our life exceed my dreams.

Finally, thanks to you, the reader, for taking the time to read my stories, for reaching out through your notes, letters, and e-mails. Your kind words inspire and fill me with the responsibility never to let you down.

Richard

FRIDAY, 6:00 A.M.

H ALF-PAST DAWN, THE WORLD slowly came to life. The sun crept along the freshly cut grass, over the scattered toys on the back lawn, and through the rear windows of the modest colonial house, the country kitchen filling with morning light as it danced over cream tiles and a wide-plank oak floor.

A tall man walked into the kitchen, his black hair mussed and astray, his lean, muscular body wrapped in a blue robe. His face was strong and intelligent, but carried a certain toughness, while his dark brown eyes had the appearance of seeing far more years than the thirty-nine he had lived.

A Bernese Mountain dog ran to his side, and he crouched down, running his hands through the large dogs black, brown, and white coat, rubbing his belly and behind his ears. Hey, Fruck, he whispered. He always loved giving his pets obscure names that never failed to become conversation starters.

He reached into the fridge, grabbed a Coke, popped it open, and drank half of it as if it were desperately needed air for his lungs. He wasnt a coffee guy, never had been, preferring his caffeine jolt cold and sweet. He looked around the kitchen, at the overflowing garbage he had promised his wife he would take out more than a day ago, at the ever-growing stack of bills by the phone, and finally, at the lack of bagels, cream cheese, and newspaper on the counter.

Heading through the hallway of the small house, he opened the front door to find the newspaper on the slate step. He picked it up, tucked it under his arm, and took a long, deep breath of the summer morning air. There was a crispness to it, fresh and clean and full of hope. Fruck charged by him, through the door, and out onto the lawn, jumping around in hopes of an early-morning romp. But that would have to wait.

Jack went back to the kitchen, tossed the newspaper onto the counter, and opened the garage door. He shook his head in bemused understanding as he saw his wifes freshly washed blue Audi parked there. He walked over to it with a smile on his face, opened the door, looked at the gas gauge, and laughed. Empty. Which explained why his white Chevy Tahoe was gone. It had been a forever pet peeve; she would drive on fumes before pulling into a gas station. The following day, without a word, Mia would snatch his car, leaving him to roll the dice on making it to the gas station and come up with an explanation for why he was late for work again.

Mia had always been a morning person, up at 6:00, down to the deli by 6:15 for coffee and bagels, back home, lunches made, the girls packed off to the bus by 7:00 and gone. Mia had probably been up at 5:30, accomplished a days worth of work, and was already on her way to the city.

Jack Keeler hadnt seen 5:30 except from the other side of sleep, when he would crawl into bed and pray for the sun to skip its rise for the day. He always seemed to hit a second wind at 9:00 p.m., his mind kicking into overdrive as thoughts about work and life suddenly became clear. But at 6:30 every morning, his body would wake, whether it had taken in eight hours of sleep or two. Of course, the pain factor would determine if it was a one- or two-Coca-Cola morning.

He grabbed a second can from the fridge and headed upstairs, peering into Hope and Saras roomthe pink beds made, toys tucked away, the room cleaner than it had been in weeks. The five-and six-year-old Irish twins were inseparable and loved nothing more than climbing all over Jack at night when he arrived home from work. It had been a ritual since they could crawl and was topped only by their love of the ocean.

Jack cut through his bedroom and into the bathroom. As he brushed his teeth, thoughts of the day began to filter in: what awaited him on his desk, what needed to be dealt with. Leaning over the sink, he finally looked into the mirror and was confused by what he saw.

Above his right eye was a scabbed-over wound, a wound he had no recollection of getting. He ran his finger over it, the sharp, stinging pain shocking him. He leaned closer to the mirror to examine it and noticed the other scrapes along his cheek and necknot as dramatic but surely something he would have remembered getting.

As he began to probe his memory, something on his left wrist caught his attention. A dark marking on his skin peered out from beneath the sleeve of his terry-cloth bathrobe. Fearing another wound, he quickly slid the sleeve up, only to reveal the last thing he expected.

The tattoo was detailed, intricate, created by an artists hands. The design covered his entire forearm, running from wrist to elbow. The ink was of a single dark color, just short of black. The tattoo appeared to be an elaborate woven design of vines and rope, but upon further examination, lettering of a language he had never seen came into a focus like an optical illusion revealed to the minds eye.

As he studied the detail, his mind searched back, and the absence of memory scared him. He had no recollection of needles on his skin, of being drunk, of being a fool. He did have a tattoo of a dancing skeleton on his right hip, a drunken mistake made when he was eighteen. He and two friends had them done at three in the morning on the Jersey shore, the alcohol-induced foolishness of youth. To this day, only Mia and four ex-girlfriends were aware of its existence; not even his parents knew. But the small skeleton on his hip was forever undercover; the markings that covered his arm couldnt be concealed, couldnt be hidden for long.