Monday

They had no afternoon session so they got ready to leave but stayed in the campground to rest. At about nine AM a car pulled in and two men got out. One was Fritz. They came into the RV. Fritz said something to Carol, she motioned to the others and they went out. Fritz handed Denise the contract. “This is still open and will be for about 80 more days. I wanted to talk to you personally today. If you have decided to turn this down I and take you back to California with me. Someone else will finish the tour. She has already agreed to the contract. I will have the girls and the RV stay here, she will fly in and they will pick her up at the airport this evening. I have to cover the possibility that you will not sign. She isn’t as good a fit but I’ll take the chance on her. I really feel you are the best I can get. If you say no, I will sell your house, I will take what I have spent on you and give you the rest and a bus ticket home. You may have at most $100,000 left when it is all done. But if you sign you must give up drinking and agree to the surgery before the end of this tour.”

“I don’t know if I can live that way, I mean with one leg.”

“Can you live as an alcoholic waitress at Bob Evans in Minnesota?”

She faced him with a blank stare for nearly two minutes without saying anything then her face changed to a look of resignation, she sighed and there were tears. After nearly another minute she wiped them and her face changed to one of resolve.

“I’ve screwed around too long. Waiting isn’t going to make this any better. Give me a pen. You know Carol, Susan and Debbie told me they see the drunk who caused them to loose their leg in the mirror every morning. I think that helps keep them sober. Maybe it will help me. I know how hard it is to not drink and I need help. For the record, I had the bottle out last night, I looked at it and realized I can’t take one drink. I am an alcoholic, a stinking drunk. I needed to admit that to me. I guess I will be that way too, seeing the drunk who took my leg in the mirror every morning. It isn’t your fault, actually you may be saving me from something worse. If I hadn’t took to the bottle you wouldn’t have had a chance to make this offer.”