The young voice pulled him from remembering. A boy stood a few feet away decked out in Mets gear, his face angled curiously, while the man at his side looked surprised as hell.
Join the club, Gus thought, staring at his brother. A brother who watched Faith with a look Gus recognized. Something inside him fired up, and he clenched his hands into fists.
“Ford,” Faith greeted, stepping away from Gus and moving toward the pair.
It made no sense, but Gus had to physically stop himself from grabbing hold of her arm and keeping her by his side. Faith wasn’t his possession. She didn’t belong to him. He exhaled and gave himself a mental shake.
“I can’t believe we ran into you two.” Faith tugged on the edge of Benjamin’s cap and glanced over her shoulder. “Look who’s here.”
Gus forced himself to calm the fuck down. He raised his chin and walked toward them, then offered Ford his hand. The two of them shook politely, like men who didn’t know each other well. His brother was dressed casually in beige shorts and a black T-shirt; on his head, a Mets ball cap. Unlike his son, whose cap was obviously new, Ford’s was worked in — not unlike the one Gus owned.
“Where’s Taco?” Benjamin asked again, trying to see around Faith.
“He’s with Hal today.”
“Who’s Hal?”
“My boss.”
“Why is Taco with your boss?”
“Hal’s babysitting him.”
“Taco’s a baby?”
“Enough questions, Ben.” Ford rested his hands on his son’s shoulders and offered a wry grin. “If I don’t tell him to stop, we’d be here all day.”
The kid looked up at his father. “You told me that asking questions is smart.”
Ford nodded. “I did.”
“I like asking questions,” Ben replied with a frown.
“I know.” His father replied, “but the secret to the question game is knowing when to stop.”
“Are you visiting for the day like us?” Faith asked.
Ford looked from Faith to Gus, then back to Faith. “No.” He shook his head. “I live nearby and I’m home for a few days for a work thing. And this guy,” he squeezed Benjamin’s shoulder again, “has two birthday parties to attend. One this evening and another tomorrow afternoon.”
“You’ll be coming back to Fire Lake afterward?”
Ford nodded. “That’s the plan. In the summer I try to be at the lake as much as I can. And now with Dad . . .” He cleared his throat. “It’s good to spend time with him while we still can.”
“How long does he have?” Gus asked the question he’d been wanting to know the answer to since before he’d arrived in Fire Lake.
“Gus,” Faith replied softly, a small frown on her face. “That’s none of our business.”
It was rude and he knew it, but Gus didn’t care.
“It’s all right,” Ford said softly, eyes on Gus. “I’m sure everyone in town knows Dad has cancer and that it’s spread.” He paused, gaze still on Gus. “A few months, if we’re lucky.”
“Papa is going to heaven,” Benjamin said, his voice low as he kicked at the ground. “He’ll see Mommy up there, right Daddy?”
Fuck. Gus looked at the young boy and felt like the world’s biggest shit.
“He will,” Ford replied.
“And they can play Xbox like they used to, right?”
