Charlie, watching for his luggage on the baggage carousel, didn't pay any attention to what Larry said. It was only when Larry started to walk away that Charlie looked over at him.
"Don's gonna be here shortly, he'll give both of us a ride." he said.
Larry
smiled a very small smile and said "I have no desire to watch
any more fireworks. I saw plenty in Boston."
Charlie frowned
and said "It's not my fault that Don's mad, didn't I tell you
not to call?"
"Charles, there are multiple occasions in which I would have followed your directive. Being arrested is not one of them. I'll see you tomorrow." Larry replied. He hitched his carry-on over his shoulder, grabbed the handle of his rolling suitcase and walked away. He was soon swallowed up by the throngs of people inside LAX.
Charlie scowled, grabbed his bags off the carousel and went outside.
"It's not my fault." He muttered, slumping down onto a bench bolted to the wall. As each car passed, he repeated himself. When his brother finally did appear, nosing the Suburban through the hordes of traffic around the passenger pick-up area, Charlie did not meet his brother's eyes, he simply put his luggage into the back seat, climbed into the front seat and shut the door.
"Seatbelt." Don said, in way of greeting.
Charlie put his seatbelt on.
Don pulled out into the traffic and said not a word. He would keep a grip on his temper while he was driving. He would. It would do him no good to get into a wreck while driving.
"I specifically told Larry not to call you." Charlie said, breaking the silence but he still avoided looking at Don. "I specifically told him not to call anyone because I knew everything would be sorted out by the time he found someone."
Don swung the Suburban out the airport's exit before shooting Charlie an ugly look. Keep your eyes on the damn road. he told himself
"I'm so glad you knew that 'cause no one else did. Do you have any idea how hard it is to get information from Larry, late at night?" he said. He brought the Suburban to a stop at a stoplight.
"Yeah, I've done it before, it's kinda hard." Charlie replied.
"Try impossible. Fortunately, your tour guide was there to translate." Don said.
The light turned green and Don moved the Suburban over to the on-ramp for the 405 North.
"This is exactly why I didn't want you to be called. I knew you'd get upset." Charlie replied. He crossed his arms and stared out the window.
There was a backup to the on-ramp, forcing Don to stop. He sat there, staring out the windshield before looking over at his brother.
He sighed and said "Look, I know you're an adult and you've got your own life, even if I do horn in on it. You've got your life and I've got mine. But getting a phone call at 10 o'clock at night saying you've been arrested is not something I needed at the end of the day."
The traffic inched forward.
"It wasn't exactly a good time for me either. And for the record, I was NOT arrested. I was merely held until I could prove I was who I said I was."
Those words sent a chill through Don but he didn't let it show. He focused on moving the Suburban up the on-ramp. He did not speak again until they were on the Interstate, heading toward Pasadena.
"And what, may I ask, were you doing in a bar at one o'clock in the morning? Maybe if you hadn't been, you wouldn't have gotten mixed up in whatever the hell happened."
Charlie looked out the window again. The San Fernando Valley spread before them with the San Gabriel Mountains looming in the distance.
"The Rose and Crown is more than a bar. It's a restaurant and we went there for dinner. My problem was twofold. My timing sucked and I happen to be in the same age range as the others who were picked up."
The traffic slowed just before the road began to wind its way through the mountains surrounding L.A. (U.S. 135 East and 205) Don focused his attention again on getting past the slow spots. It was several minutes before he spoke again.
"Okay but one a.m.?"
"This
may come as a shock to you Don, but occasionally I stay out later
than I should and, on those occasions, I do drink too. Anything else
you want to ask?"
"No." Don bit the word off.
"Just be happy that Dad was out of town and Larry had to call
me. You'd never hear the end of it otherwise."
The
exit sign for Pasadena appeared. Charlie waited until they were off
the freeway before asking "Does that mean that I'll hear the end
of it from you?"
"No." Don stopped the Suburban at
a stoplight and glanced at his brother. "This is too good to let
go." He grinned and Charlie knew that the storm had passed and
that Don wasn't going to kill him after all.
A comfortable silence fell for most of the rest of the way home. They were just a couple of blocks from the house when Don asked "Am I the reason Larry didn't catch a ride with you?"
Charlie nodded. "Yep. He gets me in trouble then disappears. Wuss."
Don chuckled.
"I'm so glad you find this funny." Charlie said.
"Considering the stress you two have put me through for the last couple of days, I deserve it." He pulled the Suburban into the house's driveway. He cut the engine and shot another glance at his baby brother. He opened his mouth to say something but Alan, their father, appeared on the front porch, looking like a thundercloud.
Charlie's eyes popped open. He looked at Don and said "Did you have to tell Dad?"
Don swallowed his smile. He spread his hands wide and said "I didn't say a word. I haven't had a chance."
Charlie swallowed. "I'm going to kill Larry." he said, very quietly.
"Not to leave you to Dad's tender mercies but I do have to get back to the office." Don said.
"Take me with you." Charlie replied.
"You've got to face him sooner or later. You both live here." Don said.
Charlie sighed, squared his shoulders and opened the door. He looked so miserable that Don had to swallow a laugh and a smile.
"Hi, Dad. How's the trip?" Charlie said, getting out of the Suburban.
"Charles Edward Eppes! You get up here and explain yourself! I come back and I get a message like that on the answering machine!" Alan said.
"Charlie's in trouble, Charlie's in trouble, Charlie's trouble." Don sang under his breath.
"Oh, stop." Charlie said, shooting his brother an ugly look. He looked back at their father. "I'll explain everything, Dad. It's not as bad as it sounded." He opened the back passenger door and took out his luggage.
"Shall I come by later on this evening? I can bring the team." Don asked.
Charlie shut the back door, then shut the front door but not before leaning in and saying "That might be a good idea, there might be a crime scene to process." He shouldered his carry-on bag, pulling his larger suitcase behind him, walked around the Suburban, heading for the front steps.
Don cracked the window just enough to hear Charlie say "Dad, it's not as bad as it sounded."
"What do you mean it's not that bad! You were arrested!" Alan said.
"So where you." Charlie shot back.
"That was different."
"So was this!"
Don rolled up the window so neither would hear his laughter. He started the SUV and drove away. He would definitely be making a stop at the house later on. If for no other reason, than to see where Charlie would be sleeping that night.
