Nightrise

even his name.
    "There's a place called Paso Tiempo," Jamie said. "It's near the airport."
    Paso Tiempo was a mobile home park just around the corner from the motel where Alicia had stayed the last time she was in Reno. It was a long strip of road with houses that were little more than boxes on wheels parked alongside each other in a neat row. They slowed down and stopped outside one of the homes: number 23. It was the prettiest one in the park, surrounded by flowers. Alicia had rented it for a month.
    The minibus stopped. Jamie nudged Daniel. "Wake up," he muttered. And at that moment the door of the trailer opened and there was Alicia, standing on the top step. She must have heard them arrive.
    Perhaps she opened the door whenever any car pulled up. Daniel saw her and was wide awake instantly, his entire face filled with an expression of joy. He scrambled past Jamie, almost falling out of the minibus, then ran to her. And then the two of them were in each other's arms, lost in each other, not wanting to separate ever again.
    Jamie got out more slowly. He was in a lot of pain. He could barely move his neck or his right arm and he was limping. At that moment he felt many things. He was glad he had brought Daniel back. Of course he was happy for the two of them. But, looking at them, he was also aware of something else: a deep sadness that cut into him even more than the wound in his back. He had no mother. Nobody had ever held him like that and nobody ever would. He was ashamed of himself. It was wrong of him. But he knew that he had come to the end of a road. Alicia and Daniel had each other. There was nothing more they could do for him.
    Alicia looked up and saw him.
    "Jamie," she said. 'You brought him back."
    Jamie nodded.
    "How can I thank you? How can I ever thank you enough?" Then she realized. "What about Scott?"

    "Scott wasn't there."
    She heard the heavy words and went over to him, taking Daniel with her. For a moment the two of them faced each other and she reached out, wanting to draw him into her embrace. But he stepped back.
    'You're hurt," she said.
    "I'll be all right," Jamie looked past her. "Do you mind if I go in? I need to lie down."
    "Of course. You must tell me —" She stopped herself. "I'm so sorry…about Scott."
    But Jamie had already walked past her. Somehow he dragged himself up the steps and went into the trailer. It was cool and clean with a little kitchen and a sofa and a table. He sat down. The mother and her son remained on their own, outside.
    TWENTY-ONE
    Native Son
    They did nothing at all the next day. Jamie needed to rest, and Alicia and Daniel were glad to have time alone with each other. They felt safe in the trailer park. People came and went and nobody asked too many questions. Jamie hadn't been seen. They could have been a family trying to sort themselves out or they could have been on the run from the law…to the other inhabitants, it made no difference.
    Alicia was worried about Jamie. She had brought him lunch and changed the dressing on his wound.
    They had spoken a little, but most of the time he wanted to be by himself. He had been gone only a week, but now that he had come back he was completely changed. Of course, he had been shot. He had nearly died. And she could sense his disappointment at not finding Scott. But it was something more —
    even than all that. He had aged. He was looking at the world with different eyes.
    The next day was a Saturday and Jamie woke early. The trailer had only one bedroom, which Alicia was sharing with Daniel, and Jamie had a sofa bed in the main room. They all knew that they couldn't stay here much longer. They were wasting their time in Reno. There were still things they had to do.
    When Alicia came through, Jamie was sitting up. She was glad to see that a lot of his color had returned and he seemed to be moving more easily.
    "Coffee?" she asked.
    "Thanks." He looked around him. "Where's Danny?"

    "Still asleep."
    Alicia went into the kitchen area and boiled the kettle. "How are you feeling?" she asked.
    "I'm tired, Alicia. But I'm going to be all right. I just need to start looking for Scott." Jamie hesitated, but there was something he had to know. "When are you and Danny going back to Washington?" he asked.
    'You've got your work to go back to. There must be a lot of stuff you have to do."
    Alicia brought the coffee over to the bed. 'You can get one thing out of your head," she said. "I'm not going to leave until we've found