Page 161 - Where the Dream Ends ebook

His Brother’s Keeper

“What are you doing here?” Ed inquired. No hello, no sur-
prise, just a flat “What are you doing here?” More like resig-
nation.

Ed turned and walked away from the door without even in-
viting Harry in. Harry followed, closing the door behind him.
Ed plopped himself onto the couch. Harry went to the refrig-
erator for a beer. The fridge was empty except for a six pack.

“Want something?” Harry asked, with a touch of humor.
“Not for me, thanks,” Ed replied. His speech was formal,
stiff. Harry sat down on a chair across from Ed, and downed
half a beer.

“Long ride,” he said, not sure where the conversation
would go.

“I might as well tell you, I’m thinking of killing myself,”
Ed said.
“Just yourself, or you and me together?” Harry asked glibly,
trying to feel the pain, but coming up empty. He wanted to say
“Get a life. You have a brother who loves you and wants to be
your friend. This is not a big deal. You’re fifty years old, you
can handle it.” He knew he wasn’t being completely fair. There
could be a lot he didn’t know. He didn’t grow up with Ed and
his family. On the occasions when Harry saw Ed with his fa-
ther, he knew Ed was terrified of him. For all Harry knew, this
might be less about Ed accepting his brother than loosening
himself from his father’s grip. But it was too late to deal with
that. His father was dead. Ed needed counseling.

Harry knew that Stu was an embarrassment to his parents.
In the 1940s and ‘50s, when Stu was growing up just after

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