making a fortune on Wall Street trading derivatives.”
“And he’s the guest of honor.”
“Good man, Hayden. You figured it out.”
“Not really. He told me.”
“I’ll have to reprimand him.”
“Aaron, can I ask you something?”
“Of course.”
“What was that over there a moment ago with Feegan?”
“What do you mean?”
“Was that some sort of test?”
“Test?”
“Feegan grilled me. What did you expect him to do? If you doubt my loyalty for some reason, Aaron, then we’ve got a problem, and this isn’t the place to talk about it. I’ve told you before that ‘kiss and tell’ isn’t my game.”
Aaron let Hayden vent.
“Two things, Aaron. If it was a test, I don’t appreciate it. If it wasn’t, you still shouldn’t have done it.”
“Point taken, my friend. Won’t happen again.”
Somehow Hayden doubted Aaron’s sincerity. Aaron took Hayden by the arm to introduce him to others.
“One more thing, Aaron.”
“Jeez, I said I was sorry, Hayden.”
“No, not that. Do you ever get tired of all this?”
“Tired of what?”
“The show. I mean you always seem to make a point of being ‘on.’”
“I guess it depends on the light in which you view it. When you’re not on, you’re off, know what I mean? I can’t imagine it any other way. Some guys watch baseball. Some guys drink. Some guys chase women. My father did all three. The man wasted his life, Hayden.”
“What did he do?”
“He was an inventor. He built things. When he came over from Tbilisi he was fired up. Changed our family name to Cannondale to sound more ‘anglo’. He was going to make a whole new life for himself. Was going to stop at nothing. Wasn’t going to let anyone get in his way. Then he met my mother. She was from the coast of North Carolina. Pretty thing. I’ve seen pictures of the two of them together when they were young. He made her laugh, she let him touch her. You know how it goes. They got married, had me, worked hard. But that wasn’t enough for my father. It’s not enough for any thinking man, which he was. When he wasn’t building, he was reading stuff, all kinds of stuff. She began to stifle him. She nagged and wore him down. She sucked the youth and the fire right out of him, or at least that’s his story. And you know once you lose that fire it’s virtually impossible to retrieve it.”
“He never blamed himself?”
“Sure, but it’s always easier to blame it on a woman, isn’t it? Truth is, it was a combination of his giving up and her crushing him. I swore to myself that I’d never lose that fire, no matter who or what was sacrificed. Life is too short, Hayden.”
“Too short for what?”
“Too short for regrets, or brooding, or nostalgia, or all the other ingredients that kill men. Too short for errors. I don’t like errors, Hayden. That’s why it pays to do your homework – as he does,” Aaron said, pointing over to Braun.
“Braun, the analyst?”
“The guy is ice, Hayden. Nothing flusters him. That’s because he doesn’t leave himself open. No errors with that guy, just straight ahead, no-nonsense money making. And Vaughn there. He’s the same. The guys from Teestone are solid. It pays to work with folks who look out for you, my friend – folks who have your best interest in mind, who will take care of you before they take care of others. Do you understand what I mean?”
“I do, Aaron.”
“It’s all about having your boys in place, Hayden. You know, there are a thousand things out there that can kill you — pancreatic cancer, heart attack, a bullet, a guy behind the wheel with a blood alcohol level that would have felled Fatty Arbuckle. And then there are errors. Errors kill, Hayden, remember that. But you know what worries me the most?”
“No, what?”
“What worries me most is that you can do your best to avoid the external things, but there’s something sinister about your own mind turning on you, about giving up. That’s what
“And he’s the guest of honor.”
“Good man, Hayden. You figured it out.”
“Not really. He told me.”
“I’ll have to reprimand him.”
“Aaron, can I ask you something?”
“Of course.”
“What was that over there a moment ago with Feegan?”
“What do you mean?”
“Was that some sort of test?”
“Test?”
“Feegan grilled me. What did you expect him to do? If you doubt my loyalty for some reason, Aaron, then we’ve got a problem, and this isn’t the place to talk about it. I’ve told you before that ‘kiss and tell’ isn’t my game.”
Aaron let Hayden vent.
“Two things, Aaron. If it was a test, I don’t appreciate it. If it wasn’t, you still shouldn’t have done it.”
“Point taken, my friend. Won’t happen again.”
Somehow Hayden doubted Aaron’s sincerity. Aaron took Hayden by the arm to introduce him to others.
“One more thing, Aaron.”
“Jeez, I said I was sorry, Hayden.”
“No, not that. Do you ever get tired of all this?”
“Tired of what?”
“The show. I mean you always seem to make a point of being ‘on.’”
“I guess it depends on the light in which you view it. When you’re not on, you’re off, know what I mean? I can’t imagine it any other way. Some guys watch baseball. Some guys drink. Some guys chase women. My father did all three. The man wasted his life, Hayden.”
“What did he do?”
“He was an inventor. He built things. When he came over from Tbilisi he was fired up. Changed our family name to Cannondale to sound more ‘anglo’. He was going to make a whole new life for himself. Was going to stop at nothing. Wasn’t going to let anyone get in his way. Then he met my mother. She was from the coast of North Carolina. Pretty thing. I’ve seen pictures of the two of them together when they were young. He made her laugh, she let him touch her. You know how it goes. They got married, had me, worked hard. But that wasn’t enough for my father. It’s not enough for any thinking man, which he was. When he wasn’t building, he was reading stuff, all kinds of stuff. She began to stifle him. She nagged and wore him down. She sucked the youth and the fire right out of him, or at least that’s his story. And you know once you lose that fire it’s virtually impossible to retrieve it.”
“He never blamed himself?”
“Sure, but it’s always easier to blame it on a woman, isn’t it? Truth is, it was a combination of his giving up and her crushing him. I swore to myself that I’d never lose that fire, no matter who or what was sacrificed. Life is too short, Hayden.”
“Too short for what?”
“Too short for regrets, or brooding, or nostalgia, or all the other ingredients that kill men. Too short for errors. I don’t like errors, Hayden. That’s why it pays to do your homework – as he does,” Aaron said, pointing over to Braun.
“Braun, the analyst?”
“The guy is ice, Hayden. Nothing flusters him. That’s because he doesn’t leave himself open. No errors with that guy, just straight ahead, no-nonsense money making. And Vaughn there. He’s the same. The guys from Teestone are solid. It pays to work with folks who look out for you, my friend – folks who have your best interest in mind, who will take care of you before they take care of others. Do you understand what I mean?”
“I do, Aaron.”
“It’s all about having your boys in place, Hayden. You know, there are a thousand things out there that can kill you — pancreatic cancer, heart attack, a bullet, a guy behind the wheel with a blood alcohol level that would have felled Fatty Arbuckle. And then there are errors. Errors kill, Hayden, remember that. But you know what worries me the most?”
“No, what?”
“What worries me most is that you can do your best to avoid the external things, but there’s something sinister about your own mind turning on you, about giving up. That’s what
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