CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
July 7, 2010
Late Afternoon
A plane ride across the country, a shiny green rental jeep, and an impossible quest all earned less surreal points than how Calvin felt when he saw Martin’s hands on the steering wheel of the car. They were in this together.
Calvin held the map with their route across his lap and listened to the paper’s conspiratorial whispers.
He was on his ninth stick of Juicy Fruit gum.
Chew. Watch Martin. Chew. Watch from corner of eye till head hurts. Chew. Bite tongue. Chew. Throw tasteless gum out window. Get new gum. Chew.
He kept fluctuating between a sense of calm in his father’s presence and full-blown anxiety. The anxiety usually won out. The ninth wad of gum had cemented to a hard ball when they neared a green sign with white print, telling
