The Deadly River by Jeff Noonan Page A

the St. Dubois High School last year. Both of them worked at the local sawmill as laborers. Mike’s job was ‘pulling boards off the green chain’ and Tony was driving a forklift, moving piles of lumber from place to place. The two lived together in a small house that they rented from the mill owner.
    When Lee asked about their families, the conversation slowed. Tony was vague, just saying that his parents still lived over in Big River. Mike was more open. “My old man died a while back and Mom still lives here, but she’s got other kids and she don’t need my mouth to feed, so I got my own place when I got a job.” Lee knew that he’d stepped into a tender subject, so he dropped it immediately. Soon, the two friends left for home and Lee ordered his dinner.
    Promptly at six, Mike and Tony arrived at Lee’s cabin and the three left for the ball field. Lee wasn’t too sure what he was getting into, but it was certainly better than sitting in the cabin for another lonely evening.

    The field and bleachers were alive with the town’s young people when the trio arrived. Apparently this was a popular hangout for the town’s bored teenagers and young adults. Lee spotted some of the people who had been in the crowd outside the truck stop, and, judging by the “Hey Dude” greetings, they knew him also.
    Suddenly bashful, Lee picked up a baseball and asked his friends to throw a few with him. This set up a rumbling among the crowd that made him even more self-conscious. Judging by the comments he overheard, the crowd was obviously excited that ‘The Dude’ was going to play tonight. Lee stifled a smile and continued tossing the ball to his new friends.
    He knew that he wasn’t going to disappoint them. Not at baseball.
    Lee, looking around, realized why Mike had been so pessimistic about their chances of winning. The town team was functioning like a well-oiled machine, with a coach barking orders at the individual players and the batting lineup already swinging their bats at imaginary balls. Every player wore cleats and older, well-worn, uniforms. Compared to this group, his pick-up team looked like the rank amateurs that they were.
    The game got underway with a surprising three up, three down half-inning. Lee, playing second base, got the team going by single-handedly making a double play on a line drive that he grabbed. But then his side went down as fast, putting them back in the field. The Town Team got a run the next time at bat and went down after a struggle. In the bottom of the second inning, Lee hit a long home run, bringing in himself and a runner that had been on first base. But after that, the Town Team came together and shut out the fledgling pick-up team.
    But, for just a short time, the score had been two to one and, for the first time in their history, the pick-up team had been ahead of the invincible Town Team! From that moment on, the little crowd had been going absolutely wild.
    During the bottom half of the sixth inning, Lee took a seat on the bench to watch while waiting his turn at bat. When he was seated,an older man left the crowd on the bleachers and, limping slightly, approached Lee, held out his hand and introduced himself. “Hello. I’m Charlie Benton. I own the sawmill here in town. I haven’t seen you around here before, but I’m told that you’re the young man who caught the robber last night. Thank you for that.”
    Lee took the proffered hand and replied. “Yeah. I’m Lee Raines. I got lucky with that guy. But thank you anyway.” He turned back to watch the game.
    But the man wasn’t done yet. “You play a good game of ball. Would you be interested in joining our Town Team?”
    Surprised, Lee turned back to face the man. “I’m sorry, Mr. Benton. I’m just waiting for parts for my car, then I plan to get back on the road. But I do appreciate the offer.”
    Charlie Benton wasn’t one to take “No” for an answer. “I’m sorry to hear that, son. But, if you’re looking