Dani had never seen Vic's face that shade. She set her guitar next to Bobby's LA Kings jersey and blue jeans, folded neatly on the back seat.
Let him have the first word.
Vic stared straight ahead, jaw clenched, knuckles white on the steering wheel. He drove deliberately, shifts smooth, eyes on road, needle kissing fifty-five.
He never did know how to drive a muscle car.
"Say something." Dani tried not to fidget. So much for letting him have the first word. Great move, Dani.
Fifteen minutes passed, the throaty growl of her GTO's 389 the only sound.
"Wasn't my idea," Dani said.
She thought she detected an eyebrow flicker, the jaw slacken.
"Won't do it again."
Vic exhaled sharply, finally speaking as he turned into the driveway. "Those guys are bad news."
"We were just playing music."
"What kind?"
Dani knew better than to answer.
Vic clenched his teeth. "No more hanging out with Shelly."
"She's my only friend." Dani could feel her hands clenching into fists. "You can't tell me who to be friends with."
"Out of my hands." Vic sighed. "Her mom says you're a bad influence."
Dani followed him into the house. "I gotta straighten this out. Give me my keys."
Vic flashed his are-you-kidding-me stare.
"You can't take my car."
"You're grounded."
"Quit playing Dad." Dani slumped her shoulders. "How am I supposed to get to school?"
Vic shoved the keys in his pocket. "That big yellow thing that drives by every morning…"
Dani stifled a groan.
"You can have them back when Dad says you can. Not one second before."
"You're not really going to tell him?"
"No." Vic cocked his head, locking eyes as they walked into the house. "You are."
The telephone rang.
"Perfect timing." But Vic's face fell when he answered. Dani could make out Kari's muffled voice.
"I already know." Vic rolled his eyes. "I'll handle…"
A flurry of jabbering interrupted him.
"What station?"
Dani heard the reply clearly: "Any!"
***
President Bush seemed to look straight at Dani as Vic backed away from the TV.
"Tonight, the battle has been joined," the president intoned.
"What's happening?" Dani said.
Vic turned the volume up.
"This military action, taken in accord with United Nations resolutions and with the consent of the United States Congress, follows months of constant and virtually endless diplomatic activity on the part of the United Nations, the United States, and many, many other countries."
"Did they start fighting? Is Dad near…"
"Be quiet, or neither of us will know."
"…this past weekend, in a last-ditch effort, the Secretary-General of the United Nations went to the Middle East with peace in his heart—his second such mission. And he came back from Baghdad with no progress at all in getting Saddam Hussein to withdraw from Kuwait. Now, the twenty-eight countries with forces in the Gulf area have exhausted all reasonable efforts to reach a peaceful solution and have no choice but to drive Saddam from Kuwait by force."
Dani shut her eyes, emitting a slight whimper as she prayed, "Please bring Daddy home."
"Arab leaders sought what became known as an Arab solution," the president continued, "only to conclude that Saddam Hussein was unwilling to leave Kuwait."
When she opened her eyes, Vic sat cross-legged in front of the screen.
"I didn't think they'd have to fight," he said. "Dad could be gone a long time. Maybe years."
Dani stifled a sob.
"As I report to you, air attacks are underway against military targets in Iraq."
The president seemed so nonchalant. Deadpan.
He doesn't know our dad's there.
"We are determined to knock out Saddam Hussein's nuclear bomb potential. We will also destroy his chemical weapons facilities. Much of Saddam's artillery and tanks will be destroyed."
Dani took little comfort in the president's promise that all possible steps were being taken to ensure the safety of Americans and their allies. The president made it clear he had no intention to remove American troops until Iraqi forces were out of Kuwait.
"Why now?" Dani said. Vic didn't seem to hear the question.
"Some may ask: Why act now?" President Bush said. "Why not wait? The answer is clear: The world could wait no longer. Sanctions, though having some effect, showed no signs of accomplishing their objective…"
The rest of the president's speech droned on, and Dani zoned out until he circled back to talk of possible chemical and nuclear weapons in the enemy's arsenal.
"You don't think they'd use…"
"No." Vic's voice was firm, but his face told a different story.
"While the world waited, Saddam Hussein met every overture of peace with open contempt. While the world prayed for peace, Saddam prepared for war…"
"Do you think Daddy's going to be gone for my graduation?"
"I've told the American people before that this will not be another Vietnam," the president said. "And I repeat that here tonight. Our troops will have the best possible support in the entire world, and they will not be asked to fight with one hand tied behind their back. I'm hopeful that this fighting will not go on for long and that the casualties will be held to an absolute minimum. No president can easily commit our sons and daughters to war…"
What about our daddies?
"They are our nation's finest. Ours is an all-volunteer force, magnificently trained, highly motivated. The troops know why they're there. Tonight, America and the world are deeply grateful to them and to their families. And let me say to everyone listening or watching tonight: When the troops we've sent in finish their work, I am determined to bring them home as soon as possible. Tonight, as our forces fight, they and their families are in our prayers…"
Vic and Dani sat in silence as the president asked God to bless America, and the station switched to an endless stream of pundits discussing what they'd just heard.