FORTY-TWO
“You know what?” Charlie sat up the way she always sat in the hospital bed, Indian style with an ignored magazine in her lap.
James sat in the chair beside her. He faced the television. There was really nothing worth watching. Animal Planet aired Jeremy Wade’s Rivermonster reruns. James was never much of a fisherman. He and Linda had gone together a few times back when they had been dating. She’d pack a lunch and some beers and James would bring the live bait he bought at the local Wal-mart. Her father, Paul, was always happy to let them borrow poles and his tackle box.
Usually they just went to the pier where James now takes Rigs for their daily walk. They’d cast off into the river and wait for the fish to bite. It was strictly catch-and-release. The river was filthy. The fis
