Sudden Death (3 page)

When she finished her dance, the girl leaned over and gave Reid a big wet kiss and said, “Congratulations from Carl and the entire Eagle team.”

Reid laughed, gave her a pat on her ass and said, “Thank you.” Once again Reid stood up and said, “Thank you all. I can tell we are going to have a lot of fun together. I just hope the fun doesn’t get any more embarrassing.”

The luncheon came to an end, and as Buck, Reid and Carl left the room, Carl told the others, “Enjoy your afternoon; let’s meet back in the bar at 7:30 for drinks before we leave for dinner.”

The message light on the phone was blinking as Reid and Buck entered the suite. Reid said, “You can check the messages; they’re probably all for you anyway. Oh, by the way, here.” He handed Buck the thank-you card, then went into his room and closed the door.

He sat at the desk and pulled out the card he bought for his mother. Leaning back, he contemplated what to write. A convoluted mixture of guilt and fear crept into his mind. He knew he needed to apologize for avoiding his mother, but at the same time, his recurring thoughts of doom left him with an empty feeling; what if this apology was too late? What if something happened to him before he had a chance to see her again? Overcome with worry, he reached up, put his hands over his face and rubbed aggressively, trying to erase the torment from his mind. That’s it, he thought, I have to change, I’m going to start being nice to people; Mom, my sisters, my fans, hell, even the press. It would definitely be better to have the press as friends rather than enemies. After a deep sigh, his mind shifted gears and he quietly chuckled. He thought how ludicrous his situation was. Here he sat, having negotiated an unbelievably huge endorsement contract and expecting to fulfill his lifelong dream of winning the coveted Green Jacket, and instead of elation, his brain was overwrought with dreadful thoughts. He groaned out loud and shook his head. I need to write this card, then go swim some laps, he thought. The cold water will shock this nonsense from my head. He was glad at least that he had invited his sisters to fly down and watch him play in the tournament. He leaned forward and began writing:

Dear Mom,

I just wanted to say thank you for everything. I know how difficult I was when I was young, but you were always there for me. I know lately I have been out of touch. I’m sorry. I am going to change that starting now. I love you! Reid He stuffed the card in the envelope and addressed it. He then quickly threw on a bathing suit and T-shirt, grabbed the card and walked out to the living room.

Buck was sitting on the couch with the phone at his ear and a scowl on his face. He looked at Reid and held up a finger, signaling that he would be off in a minute. Reid sat down and turned on the TV quietly as Buck yelled at Alvin Carey.

When Buck finally hung up, he turned to Reid and said, “Sorry, he just pisses me off. He is so damn talented but he just can’t keep it zipped up, his mouth or his fly.” Then he started to laugh. “Kind of sounds familiar, huh? By the way, one of the messages was from Jennifer. She asked if she could have another credit card with a higher limit, ‘cause the first one is tapped out.”

“What?” Reid yelled. “That card has a $15,000 limit. I’m gonna kill her.” Buck laughed. “I’m only kidding. She just asked you to call her.” “Very funny! I never know with her. I’ll call her later. Let’s go to the pool.” “You go; I need to make a few more calls. I’ll be down soon.” Reid went to the lobby and asked the concierge to mail his mother’s card. He turned and walked out to the pool. The chairs on the sunny side of the pool were packed. Reid, not in a sociable mood, went to the shady side, removed his shirt and threw it on a lounge chair. He walked to the deep end and evaluated if he had enough room to do laps without swimming into the group of kids horsing around in the shallow end. If he stayed close to the edge, he could avoid them.

He tested the water with his toe, then dove in. He swam the length of the pool underwater, then surfaced and swam a few laps. On his third lap, he swam into one of the kids, who had carelessly jumped into Reid’s lane. Infuriated, he stood up to yell. When he noticed the whole group watching him, he quickly put his anger in check. Forcing a smile, he said, “Hey kids, what’s up?” He asked them all their names and said, “I’m Reid Clark.” “Duh,” goofed one of them, sending the others into hysterics. “Okay, wise guys. Who wants to race me across the pool?” A girl and the boy who had made the wisecrack came forward together and said in unison, “We do.” She was Samantha and he was Alex. They were cute kids with bright eyes and big smiles.

“Okay, everyone, if Sam or Alex beat me, you all get ice cream sundaes. If
I
win, you all get ice cream sundaes.”

“Cool, we win no matter what! Can we get autographs too?” another boy asked. “Sure, why not?” Reid said, thinking,
Did I really just agree to that?
By this time, the kid’s parents had gathered around. Reid whispered to one of the fathers, “Can you go to the front desk and ask them to bring a cart out with all the makings for ice cream sundaes? Enough for 30.” The father said, “Sure, Mr. Clark, but there are only 10 kids.” “Yeah, and each has two parents,” Reid said. The father said with a grin, “Wow, are you the same Reid Clark I’ve been reading about?” He quickly added, “Sorry, only fooling.” “No problem, I’m pretty sure I deserved that. Hey, can I add one more favor?” “Name it.” “Would you go to the gift shop and get a dozen golf balls, preferably Eagle, a dozen Masters or Augusta golf caps and a permanent marker? Charge it all to my room, suite 527. Okay?” “Of course, Mr. Clark, I’ll be right back.” “Thanks. Hey, get yourself a cigar too, that is, if you smoke ‘em.” “Wow, excellent! Thanks, Mr. Clark.” “Call me Reid.” Sam and Alex were ready to race. Reid joined them in the water, at the edge of the pool. He asked the other kids to count down from five to start the race. Reid planned to let one of the kids win. “Are you guys ready?” “Yes,” Sam and Alex said in unison. “Okay kids,” he said to the others, “let it rip.” “Five-four-three-two-one go,” they shouted. Reid pushed off nice and easy and started to swim. He immediately realized that he didn’t have to let Sam win. The girl was a fish. She was beating him easily. Trying hard to catch up, Reid finished about two strokes behind her with Alex right behind. He didn’t realize until he lifted his head out of the water that the race had drawn a large audience both at the pool and on the balconies. Everyone was cheering for Sam.

She was beaming from ear to ear. The other kids surrounded her and as she climbed out of the pool, they chanted, “Sammy, Sammy.”

Reid humbly walked over to her, shook her hand and said, “Congratulations, you didn’t tell me you were a mermaid.” Samantha giggled and said, “Thanks.” The ice cream cart arrived and the kids and parents had a great time making sundaes. Reid signed the balls and hats and handed them out. He asked Sam and Alex to join him privately for a moment. “How would you two like to come watch the Masters Tournament as my guests,
with
your parents and families of course?”

They shrieked with joy. Samantha said, “Yes, Mr. Clark, we’d love to, thank you, thank you! Oh, by the way, we only have one family. He’s my brother,” she added pointing at Alex. “I should have known, the way you two say everything in unison.” Sam and Alex ran to tell their parents. Reid watched and heard their father exclaim, “Wow, really?” And with a quick arm pump he added, “
Yes
.” The father looked at Reid and mouthed thank you.

When Reid went back to his chaise lounge, Buck was almost asleep in the next chair. As Reid sat down, Buck mumbled, “Wasn’t that cute? I’m not sure what has come over you, but I think I like it. Just don’t get carried away; you still need an edge sometimes. The press and Eagle expect it. The ‘Bad Boy of Golf’ needs to be bad.”

“Don’t worry, I promise I haven’t become a saint in a day. You know what I get like during a tournament.” “Yeah, you’re right. I should know better, shouldn’t I? Hey, by the way, thanks for the card.” “Sure,” Reid said nonchalantly. “I really mean it. I don’t think I’ve ever received a thank-you card from a client.” “Well, it’s no wonder, with your sleazy clientele.” “Ha, are you including yourself in that statement?” Buck retorted with sarcasm. “Hey, I may be an arrogant pain in the ass, but I’m not sleazy.” “Whatever… Do me a favor, wake me in an hour. I didn’t sleep much last night, and I can’t keep my eyes open.” “Don’t count on me, I’m exhausted. You better request a wake up splash or something,” Reid said with a yawn. He closed his eyes and quickly drifted off to sleep.

Buck walked to the lifeguard and asked if someone could wake them at 6:30. He went back to his chair and fell asleep almost as fast as Reid.

Later, they were awakened by the lifeguard, who walked away laugh ing hysterically. A very groggy Reid looked over to ask what the lifeguard was laughing at. He didn’t have to ask; Buck had a clown face drawn on him in bright red lipstick. Reid cracked up. Buck then turned to ask what was so funny. His guffaw was so loud people on the adjacent patio turned to look. Reid commented, “Oh no, not me too?” Buck was laughing so hard he could only nod.

Laughing hysterically, Reid put his hand up to cover his mouth. Watching him, Buck’s expression turned to one of horror. Buck then held up his own hand for inspection; sure enough, his nails were painted red too. Reid quickly looked at his own red nails. He didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. They both simultaneously looked down at their toenails. Yup, bright crimson. They both kept laughing. They couldn’t get mad; it was a good joke. They made a pact to find the culprit and get even.

In an attempt to wipe the lipstick off with towels, they smeared it all over their faces. They finally gave up and nonchalantly walked to the gift shop to buy nail polish remover. Everyone they passed stared and grinned. No one had the nerve to say anything, but the growing trail of laughter behind them drew even more attention. They finally got on the elevator and as the doors were closing, applause broke out from the crowd that had formed behind them. “I can’t wait to find out who did this,” Reid said. “We have to think of something really good to get even,” Buck said as they entered their suite. They had to work fast to clean everything off and still get to the bar by seven thirty.

At one point Buck yelled, “Shit, this stuff is impossible to get off. How do women put up with it?”

After finally getting it all off, they went to their respective rooms, shaved, showered and dressed in record time. They met back in the living room at 7:30.

Reid looked at the clock and said, “Damn, I wanted to call Jennifer. Oh well, I’ll do it later. Let’s go.”

The sensuous sound of salsa music filled the background as Reid and Buck entered the bar. Mojitos were the drink of the moment. Buck ordered two and handed one to Reid.

Taking a sip, Reid said with emphasis, “Wow, this is good. Don’t let me get drunk. You know I don’t usually drink the week of a tournament.”

“What? Now I’m your guardian? Like you ever listen to me?” Buck replied.

Just then, Carl walked up. “Guys, I hope you don’t mind, I called a quick press conference.” “No problem. When is it?” Reid asked. Carl looked at his watch. “In about two minutes. C’mon, follow me.” Reid rolled his eyes. “Oh well, so much for my Mojo.” He and Buck put their Mojitos down and followed Carl. As they walked into the room, cameras flashed everywhere. Carl tapped the podium microphone. “Folks, we have 10 minutes, so please keep the questions short and sweet. We want to officially announce a new member of the Eagle team. As of this afternoon, Reid Clark has agreed to endorse our new line of golf balls, called Freeze.” “How much was the contract, Carl?” asked a TV reporter. “100 million.” There were a few whistles and wows. A journalist asked, “What will be the theme of the ad campaign?” “We’re still working on it.” “That’s a hefty contract, Carl; I guess you expect a lot from Reid. Reid, are you ready to fulfill this obligation? You’ll probably have to stay out of trouble and maybe even let some of our photographers take your picture. I know how difficult that is for you.”

Reid recognized the reporter. He recently had a run-in with him. Doing his best to keep his cool, he answered, “I’ll be happy to let any of you take my picture as long as I know you’re doing it and you’re not being rude and obnoxious.”

“Look who’s talking about being obnoxious,” said a reporter from
Sports Illustrated.

Buck decided it was time for damage control. He grabbed the micro phone and said, “Okay, kids, this is a press conference, not a Reid Clark bashing session. We all know you have had your issues with each other, but let’s move on. If any of you want the details of the endorsement, I will be available for questions later. Thank you all for coming. Have a good evening.”

Reid jumped to the microphone in spite of Buck’s attempt to push him away. Reid said, “Hey folks, one more second. To make up for some of my questionable behavior in the past, I want to invite you all to the bar for hors d’oeuvres and cocktails. Please accept this as, well, sort of a truce.”

After a brief disbelieving silence, a reporter in the back of the room began to clap slowly one clap at a time. Gradually others joined in and the applause quickened and spread throughout the room. Someone yelled, “Alright! Maybe there’s hope for him after all.” Another reporter shouted, “He can buy my forgiveness anytime.” They all headed for the bar. Reid called the maitre d’. “Hi, it’s Reid Clark. Can you bring hors d’oeuvres for 50 to the bar as quickly as possible? High end stuff, the best you’ve got. Please hurry, and put the charge through to my room.”

At the bar, Reid told the bartender that all orders from the press were to be billed to his room. The bartender said, “I’ll send a waiter to take orders, Mr. Clark. Also, Joseph, the maitre d’, called. He said the hors d’oeuvres would be here in 15 minutes. We’ll set everything up in the back of the room.” He pointed. “Over there, overlooking the pool.”

The other side of the bar was packed with the Eagle party, which had grown significantly during the press conference. With fresh drinks in hand, Buck and Reid tried to meet as many Eagle employees as possible. Before they knew it, it was time to head to the restaurant. A line of stretch Hummers was waiting out front.

“Where are we going to dinner? The Sahara or the Baja?” Reid joked as they piled into the vehicles. Dom Perignon, iced vodka and huge bowls of Beluga caviar awaited them inside.

Reid whispered to Buck, “You think these people always party like this? It must be costing Eagle a fortune.”

“It’s not costing Eagle a penny, my friend. This evening is on you,” Buck said quietly. Reid gagged, then whispered tensely, “Are you crazy?” “Calm down and enjoy the party,” said Buck. “You can afford it.” “Fine, just don’t make a habit of this, at least without informing me first.” “Look, you play golf and stay out of trouble. Let me handle the business. If I say we need to spend some money, I don’t want an argument, okay?” Reid stayed silent. “I said, okay?” Buck repeated. “Alright! Alright! Just make sure you let me know how much and when. I won’t question it, just let me know.” Buck stared at him for a second, then snapped, “Fine!”

Upon arrival at the steakhouse, the party was shown to a private dining room. Reid, Buck and Carl were the last to enter. Everyone at the table began laughing as they looked past the three men. Buck, Reid and Carl all turned to see a huge poster of Reid and Buck sleeping at the pool with clown faces. A large banner under it read: ‘Even Kings can be Jokers sometimes. Congratulations Reid & Buck. We love you guys, TEAM EAGLE.’ Shaking with laughter, they turned back toward the others. “Looks like you got us again!” Reid said. The waiters took dinner orders and the salad was served. Wine and champagne flowed all evening. Reid tried to keep a tally of the bottles being consumed. Finally giving up, he thought, Guess you’ve gotta spend it to make it.

Around 10:30, Reid announced that he needed to retire for the evening. “I’m sure you don’t want the papers to read that your new endorser slept through tomorrow’s Pro-Am. I hope to see you all there.” Reid shook Carl’s hand saying, “Thanks again.” “No, it’s me who should be thanking
you
.” “Okay gentlemen,” Buck said. “Enough of the thank-yous. Reid, have one of the drivers take you back to the hotel and then return for us. I’ll see you in the morning. Hey, I’m proud of you. Usually I have to send my clients home after fighting with them all night to stop drinking.”

“Guess I’m just different. Who knows…? I’ll see you at the club. I’ll probably be long gone by the time you wake up.”