Nightlight (26 page)
Authors: Michael Cadnum
Mark looked around at the parking lot, and Mary had to look with him. A eucalyptus trembled in the sunlight. If her son never recovered, all this would be lost to him.
Mark put his arm around her. “Just,” he said, “a little faith.”
A jay landed on the rail of the back porch. Paul had been feeding him every morning, ever since they had moved into the new apartment. The jay had a cultivated taste for puff pastry over saltines, but generally he got pieces of whole wheat toast and seemed satisfied.
Paul put down the chapter on soufflés. “All right,” he said through the open back door. “I'll get you some toast.”
The cookbook was nearly finished, and Paul had just given Ham the last review he was going to do. Ham had said they would miss him, and that he was irreplaceable, but Paul was glad to be finished with the column. Three magazines were offering to run recipes from his cookbook, and Paul's only problem would be deciding which one to sign with.
Paul broke a piece of toast into fragments. “You'll hide most of this, just like you hid all the others.” The bird watched, bright-eyed, and when Paul tossed a crust, soared through the air and caught it.
Paul offered Lise the rest of the toast. “See if my bird will catch it for you.”
“Your bird?”
“Well, I trained it.”
“It trained you.”
“Perhaps.”
“He won't catch it for me.” The jay flapped to the porch rail and eyed her. It called, a metallic bray. “He doesn't like me.”
“Of course he likes you.”
“No. Lookâhe's looking at you.”
“Throw the toast.”
“I'll feel awful if he drops it.”
Lise did this oftenârefused to do something she thought might be a bad omen, as though this rational woman believed in good luck, or bad.
Paul folded his arms.
She snapped off a piece of toast. “He won't catch it.”
“Go ahead.”
“I've never had any luck with animals.”
“Try.”
She tossed the fragment of whole wheat toast into the sunlight.
The slowly turning triangle grazed the branch of the ginkgo tree, and spun upward.
It was snatched by the dark beak of the jay, who disappeared into the tree and called, high above them, in the universal language of triumph.
All rights reserved, including without limitation the right to reproduce this ebook or any portion thereof in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of the publisher.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, events, and incidents either are the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 1989 by Michael Cadnum
Cover design by Kat JK Lee; photograph courtesy of the author
ISBN: 978-1-5040-2361-0
Distributed in 2015 by Open Road Distribution
345 Hudson Street
New York, NY 10014
