Dan walked up to the front door of the art gallery with an arm around Sally and another arm around Ann. The gallery was packed with people and he paused before releasing the two women to open the door for them. He couldn't believe how many people were there for Sue's opening. He whistled and said, "It is packed."
Sally said, "Wow. There are a lot of people here."
"That guy over there is Steve Bushman. He's an art critic for Art World Magazine," Ann said staring at the man. She couldn't believe that he came there for Sue's opening.
Dan smiled and said, "Maybe we ought to invite him over to the pizzeria."
"He wouldn't be interested in pizza," Ann said looking at him. Steve Bushman was a famous art critic. There was no way that he'd go visit a pizzeria just to have something to eat.
"Maybe. Maybe not. I do think he would be interested in your mural," Dan said with a grin.
"No he wouldn't. He's interested in real art, not pizzeria murals," Ann said. The idea that Steve Bushman would actually review her mural sent a little shiver through her body. She felt that would be a dream come true.
The trio entered the gallery. Almost immediately they found they were facing the painting of Kim. Dan stared at it and shook his head. He couldn't believe what Sue had managed to capture in that one painting. It was powerful.
Staring at it open mouthed, Ann said, "Shit!"
"I'd hate to get her mad at me," Sally said staring at the picture.
Diana came over and said, "Amazing isn't it."
"Yes, it is," Dan said. The details of the face were close enough to Kim Parker's face to be recognizable, but it could have been of any woman of that basic body and facial type. He looked down at the title of the painting, but the light reflecting off the silver plate made it difficult to read. He could barely make out the letters.
Ann noticed that he was trying to read the little plate and said, "It is called The Great Reveal."
"That's a good name for it," Sally said.
After having examined the other paintings by Sue that were hanging in the gallery, Steve Bushman stepped over to stand in front of the painting. This was the most emotionally powerful painting he had seen in years. It was refreshing to see a real masterpiece after covering abstract messes that barely qualified as art. He said, "What a hideous looking woman. You can feel the vileness emanating from her. The façade she is setting aside is stunning in its beauty. The image is as emotion provoking as The Scream."
Another man came over and looked at the picture. He said, "That is the stuff of nightmares. I can just image going to bed at night with the beauty and then waking up next to that horrid creature."
Steve Bushman looked over at the other man and said, "She kind of reminds me of your first wife, Donald."
"It is nice to see you again, Steve," Donald said with a laugh. His first wife wasn't nearly as bad as the woman in that picture. It was close, but the woman in that picture was worse. There was such a raw hunger to hurt people expressed in that painting that it sent a shiver down his spine.
"It is rather strange to see you outside of the city," Steve said. Donald worked for a rather large New York newspaper with national distribution. He seldom had to travel to see a major opening.
"How are things over at that mass of advertising that you call a magazine?"
"Better than that place that produces birdcage liners you call a newspaper," Steve said with a wry grin.
Donald laughed and said, "At least the birds read my reviews."
"Yeah," Steve said shaking his head. There was a little truth to that comment.
Donald said, "Don't look so glum. Ten years from now patients waiting to see their doctor will be reading your reviews."
Steve laughed and shook his head. Looking up at the painting, Steve couldn't get over how powerful it was. He said, "Her work is as good as I've heard. Did you see some of her other pieces?"
He could see that a museum or two would be interested in hanging that picture on their walls. Nodding his head in agreement, Donald said, "Yes, I did. They are all very powerful, especially this one and that self portrait that she did."
"That's a chilling piece. I wonder what caused that pain," Steve said. The sense of anguish and loss in that one painting had been overpowering. No one should ever have to feel that kind of pain.
"I don't know, but she's good. She's captured a lot of different emotions in the pieces being shown here. That painting of the tall woman had me wanting to ask for her number. Can you imagine a woman looking at you that way?"
"Not in this lifetime," Steve said.
"A woman at work insisted that I come here. I'm glad she insisted," Donald said.
Dan led Diana, Ann, and Sally away from the pair of art critics. He heard enough to know that Sue would be receiving very good reviews from them. As they walked away, Diana said, "Sue is going to be very famous after this show."
"Yes," Dan said. He hoped that the fame didn't go to her head. He spotted Sue and waved to her.
She was surrounded by a large number of people, but she broke away from them and rushed over to Dan. She had been afraid that Dan wouldn't leave the pizzeria to see the show. Hugging him, she said, "I'm so glad that you made it."
"I wouldn't have missed it for the world," Dan said returning the hug.
"Pat and Betty are here, but they'll be leaving soon to take care of the bar," Sue said. She was pleased that her friends had gone to the trouble to make it to her first real public showing in a nationally recognized gallery.
"Ah. Pat might want to swing by the pizzeria and say hello to my father. He's watching the store for me," Dan said.
Sue laughed remembering when Pat had offered to be the third in his threesome fantasy. The looked on his face deserved to be immortalized in a painting. She said, "I'm sure that he would enjoy a visit from her."
Dan's mother came over and said, "Hello, Sally and Ann. How are you doing?"
"We're doing fine, Mrs. Parker," Ann said slipping an arm around Sally.
"I hope Dan is behaving himself," she said.
"He's such a pain to live with. At least he's paper trained. Now if we can get him to stop chewing on the furniture," Sally said with a grin.
Diana said, "You just have to hit him on the nose with a rolled-up newspaper."
Dan rolled his eyes as the women in his life laughed. He looked around for a moment and then said, "If you'll excuse me for a minute."
"Sure," his mother said. She turned to Sue and said, "I love all of the paintings that you are showing here."
Donald stepped into the pizzeria and looked around. The first thing that he noticed was that a couple of kids were sitting on the picnic table. He smiled thinking about the number of times he had done that. Another couple of kids were over at the air hockey table playing a game. They looked like they were having fun.
The guy who had invited him to visit the pizzeria was standing over at the counter making a pizza. The invitation for a free lunch was a little out of place at the opening, but the young man's assurance that he wouldn't get a better pizza anywhere else in the world had won him over. Being from New York, he felt that it was a boast that deserved challenge.
Rather than go talk to him, he went over to the wall and looked at the mural. He laughed at the picture of the old woman in a bathrobe chasing the young man out of the dark bedroom. His laughter only continued as he made his way along the wall. For the moment he forgot about technique and enjoyed the story telling that was captured on the wall.
Walking over to the art critic, Dan said, "Here's a mug of root beer."
Accepting the mug, Donald looked at it in surprise. It had been years since he had a frosty mug of root beer. After taking a sip of it, he said, "Thank you."
"You're welcome," Dan said. He returned to the counter to let the man make his way around the room. He said, "When you're done looking at the wall come and order your pizza."
"Thanks," Donald said. He turned his attention back to the mural. This was the kind of art that had been lost in modern times. He remembered the bank where his mother used to keep her accounts. The walls had been covered with Depression Era murals painted by artists getting by under federal funding. While his mother would stand in line to take care of her banking, he would stand in front of those walls and stare at the paintings. Those faded paintings had sparked his early interest in art.
Dan watched Donald study the paintings for a few seconds and then returned to the business of producing pizzas. He was pretty sure that the man would appreciate the effort that had gone into the mural and recognize Ann's talent.
Noticing that Dan had served the guy a drink without being asked, Sandra asked, "Who is that?"
"He's an art critic from New York," Dan answered.
"Oh," Sandra said wondering where Dan had met an art critic from New York.
An hour later, Dan and Donald were seated at one of the patio tables. Donald said, "I won't say that it is the best pizza in the world, but it would definitely give any New York pizza a run for its money."
"I'll just have to respectfully disagree with that assessment," Dan said with a smile. He didn't really care if Donald liked his pizza or not. That had just been an excuse to get him over to see the mural.
"I will say that this mural is one of the best I've seen in years," Donald said looking over at the walls. He said, "I'd like to see something of a more contemporary topic, but this one was definitely lighthearted and entertaining. I forgot about skill and technique while I was examining it. I just got caught up in the story."
"I'm glad you liked it," Dan said.
It dawned on Donald why he had been invited over to the pizzeria. He said, "You didn't invite me over for pizza. You wanted me to see this."
"Guilty as charged," Dan said with a smile.
Shaking his head, Donald asked, "Who is the artist?"
Dan answered, "Ann Boudreaux."
"Where is she?" Don asked looking around. He hoped that it wasn't the girl behind the counter.
"She's at home," Dan said. She was working on the layout for an advertising brochure. She didn't really like the work, but it paid well.
"She didn't know that you invited me here, did she?"
"Nope," Dan answered. He handed Donald one of her cards and said, "Here's her contact information."
Donald studied Dan for a moment. He was pretty sure that he understood the relationship between Dan and the artist. She was his girlfriend and he was trying to help her launch her career. It wasn't the first time he had been approached by a supportive boyfriend or girlfriend. He was amazed at how subtle Dan had been in his approach. He looked over at the mural and said, "I've always like murals."
"To tell the truth, I've never really thought about them until Ann did the one in our bedroom," Dan said.
"Ah."
Dan looked over at Donald and shrugged his shoulder. He said, "It just seems to me that every place you go have monotone walls. There's no soul to our surroundings. I look at this mural and I think to myself that it would be so easy to add a little something extra to our world."
"I know what you mean. I've always wanted to write about book about public art like this. It is disappearing from the American landscape," Donald said.
"Why don't you?" Dan asked.
"I don't have the time," Donald answered waving a hand dismissively.
"Sure you do. An afternoon here, an afternoon there, and before you know it you'll have a book," Dan said.
"That's true," Donald said. He was pretty sure that with his reputation in the art world that finding a publisher for his book wouldn't be too difficult. He took a sip from the frosty mug of root beer as he thought about it.
It was during the quiet time of the day and Dan started up his laptop to enter the sales numbers for the previous day. Taking his time, he entered his data into the bookkeeping program. It was approaching the end of his first month in business. He watched the totals as he entered the numbers. When he finished, he sat back and stared at the results. Slowly a smile formed on his face. Relieved by what he saw, he said, "I've only got a few days left and it looks like I'll actually be able to pay myself."
When the bell over the front door jingled, Dan looked up and saw Kevin limp into the pizzeria. It looked like he was having a bad day. Kevin walked over to the table and sat down with a groan. He said, "It is going to rain tonight."
"Leg bothering you?" Dan asked.
Kevin nodded his head and said, "It is real weird. I don't even have the leg and it feels the change in weather."
"That is strange," Dan said.
"I really appreciate you letting me be a little flexible with my hours when I have to visit the VA Hospital," Kevin said. This had been a pretty good day. He had gotten there a little early and had gotten out a lot earlier than he had expected.
"No problem. So how did the visit go?" Dan asked.
Kevin appreciated what Dan did to accommodate his leg. There weren't too many bosses that would accept that he didn't know when he'd make it into work. He tapped his leg and answered, "They want to try a different prosthetic. They said that the new one will give me a more natural walk and let me stand without so much pain."
"Is it hard cooking all night?" Dan asked.
"No, it is not too bad," Kevin said. Some nights were worse than others, but Dan was good about letting him sit down when it hurt too much. Usually, he wouldn't even ask until the pain was too much to ignore.
"Well, let me know when you need to rest your leg. I'd hate to aggravate your medical condition. Nothing is more important than your health," Dan said.
"You won't get any argument out of me on that one," Kevin said. There had been a time when he was playing high school football that he had thought he was invincible. A little bump in the road had taught him otherwise.
Nodding his head, Dan said, "I'm serious. Let me know if you're pushing it too hard."
"The only reason it hurts today is that it is going to rain tonight," Kevin said.
"Okay," Dan said looking at Kevin with concern.
"A rainy Wednesday night will be good for business. Pizza and a movie night," Kevin said wanting to change the subject. Business would pick up early as people stopped by the video store on their way home from work. They would get some spill over as they bought pizzas to eat while watching the films.
"I'm afraid that I won't be here to help you for much of it," Dan said.
"You've got that CERT thing tonight," Kevin said. He thought that when he had learned to accommodate his absent leg a little better that he would join CERT. He might not be able to defend his country any more, but he could help out a neighbor in need.
"This is graduation night. We're meeting at the police station to get our ID and equipment bag," Dan said. He was looking forward to the graduation ceremony. He had learned a lot over the past three months. It had left him wanting to learn more.
Eric was pacing around the parking lot waiting for Dan to arrive for the graduation ceremony. He was so excited about having completed the training program that he couldn't stand still. He hoped that Dan would arrive before it started raining. Captain Dawson approached and said, "Tonight's the big night. You're graduating."
"That's right. I'm so excited," Eric said.
Captain Dawson shook his head amused by the young man. This was the third group of CERT volunteers that he had trained and no one had ever approached it with the enthusiasm demonstrated by Eric. He said, "It is obvious to me that you're a leader. I'd like to announce that you're the team captain."
"Really?" Eric asked looking at Captain Dawson with an expression of amazement.
"Really," Captain Dawson said. He was pretty sure that Eric would have to be dead before he failed to show up when called. He could imagine the young man climbing out of a hospital bed in order to help out.
Eric asked, "Will I require more training?"
"No. I've got an extra bag with medical supplies and some radios," Captain Dawson said.
Eric said, "I won't let you down, sir."
Captain Dawson said, "I know. Who would you like to be your back up?"
"Dan Parker," Eric said.
Captain Dawson wasn't surprised by that. He would have chosen Dan to be the team captain except for the fact that Dan was pretty busy. Nodding his head, he said, "Good choice."
Eric looked around and leaned over to the policeman. He said, "You know... Dan is pretty special. He changed my life. If you have any bad kids that want to get their life together, you might send them over to Dan. He'd help them."
"You don't say," Captain Dawson said. There were a few kids that he felt could use a little special guidance.
"There's Dan now," Eric said spotting the station wagon pulling into the parking lot.
"Let's tell him our decision," Captain Dawson said. He was a little late since Eric was already halfway across the parking lot. Chuckling, he said, "That boy needs a prescription for tranquilizers."
Dan parked the station wagon and got out. Eric was immediately there shaking his hand and saying, "I'm the team captain and you're second in command."
"Calm down and tell me again," Dan said.
"Captain Dawson appointed me team captain. He asked who I wanted to be second in command and I suggested you. He said that was okay," Eric said.
A big rain drop fell on Dan's forehead. Looking up at the sky, he said, "It is starting to rain."
"Let's get inside," Eric said. He paced his stride to match Dan's more sedate walk.
As Dan walked along, he said, "The training we received was kind of interesting. It wasn't even all that difficult. You'd think that they would have shown us this stuff in school."
"I know," Eric said thinking about what Dan said. It seemed to him that everywhere he went there were fire extinguishers hanging on the walls. It had never dawned on him that he didn't really know how to use them.
"Well, that's another little education problem I'll try to solve one day," Dan said with a shake of his head.
Captain Dawson met up with the two young men and said, "I guess Eric told you the news about you being his second, Dan."
"Yes, sir," Dan answered.
Captain Dawson asked, "What will you do with the pizzeria if there's a big emergency?"
"I'll let my other cook take over. If he's not available, I guess I'll hang a sign on the door," Dan answered. He still remembered that feeling of helplessness on the day of the tornado. Now that he knew what to do, he'd be there to help out people.
Smiling, Captain Dawson said, "Well, make sure you bring along a couple of pizzas when you show up."
Inside, Eric and Dan joined the line of people waiting to have their pictures taken and IDs made. They were given two IDs. One that they were to wear on a lanyard around their neck during an emergency and one they were to give to the person in charge. The second ID served two purposes. It allowed the person in charge to identify the people working in the area and it allowed them to track who showed up to the emergency.
After everyone had gotten their IDs they went over to a meeting room. The Chief of Police, the Mayor, and the press were there. Dan looked over at Eric and said, "Wow, they are making a big deal out of this."
"Why shouldn't they?" Eric asked. It wasn't everyday that members of the community stepped up to serve the community.
"I just didn't think it was that big of a deal," Dan said.
Captain Dawson cleared his throat and said, "Let's take some seats folks and get this show on the road. I'd like the CERT members to take seats along the first two rows of chairs."
Dan and Eric sat down with the rest of the team. The Chief of Police went over to a podium and shuffled some papers with his notes on it. He gave a short speech about how the members of the team had worked hard to make it this far and that their efforts were appreciated. Dan was surprised when the man was able to relay little events that had happened to all of the team members during training.
Mayor Doorman gave a short speech filled with flowery language about people making a difference to the community. Dan remembered the last time he had heard Mayor Doorman give a speech and how little his words had meant to him at the time. This time was a little different and he wondered what his impression of the graduation speech would be if he heard it today.
After the speeches, Captain Dawson handed out diplomas. They were already in a simple frame. Upon receiving his, Dan looked down at it. In the corner was the seal of the Department of Homeland Security. Feeling a little pride about his accomplishment, he wondered where he could hang it. He realized that he hadn't hung his high school diploma.
Eric asked, "What are you thinking?"
"I just realized that I never even looked at my high school diploma despite the fact that it took me twelve years to get. I worked three months to get this one and I feel more pride in this accomplishment than in graduating high school," Dan said.
"I know," Eric said looking down at his. He smiled and said, "I'm going to hang this in my den."
"You've only got two rooms," Dan said. It was so hard to believe that Eric was a millionaire.
"I know. Half of my main room is my living room and the other half is my den," Eric said with a grin. He had his chair and television on one side of the room. He had a desk on the other side.
"You could move into a two bedroom apartment," Dan said.
Eric grimaced at the thought of moving and replied, "Why would I want to do that? I'm happy where I am."
"You're right," Dan said.
Lazlo Zalezac