Hail Mary Read Online Free

out where they want to go and what they want to do so that when they apply to schools as seniors, there aren’t any surprises. We try and maximize their ability to be admitted into the schools of their choice and communicate the importance of graduating with a college degree. I normally wouldn’t have called you about it, but when I ran into you the other night, it dawned on me that maybe you’d be open to doing something like this. I don’t mean to intrude on your time, but it’s an important event for our school.” She paused to take a breath after her rushed speech.
    “What would I have to do?”
    “Show up next Tuesday and deliver a speech to the student body. Ideally, you’d focus on the importance of studying hard now, so that the kids can get into college, and once getting there, staying focused on graduating with a marketable degree.” Mary waited while Michael digested her words as she pulled on to I-5.
    “Why me? I’m not exactly a poster-boy for higher education.”
    “Nice try, but you and I both know you actually have your B.S. in Electrical Engineering and unlike some other professional athletes, you earned your degree.”
    “But I don’t use it now.”
    Mary tried to squelch the inner sigh dying to make its way out. “Even if you don’t currently use it, we think you’re one of the few men who our students, particularly our male students, would listen to and identify with. All I need is for you to be sincere in your belief that a college education is important.”
    The pregnant silence made Mary want to say something to fill the void. The quiet made her twitchy. Uncomfortable. After what seemed like several minutes, an exhaled breath whispered through the line and Michael spoke up.
    “Ok. I can do that. When do I need to be there?”
    Mary released the breath she hadn’t realized she was holding and gave him the details.
    ~ * ~ * ~
    As Michael jogged up the steps leading into Mary’s school, memories of his Larson High School days, home of the Pirates, floated through his mind. He’d only been there for a couple of years before Catholic Central High School saved him, but a decade later, images of his former classmates crystallized in his mind as though it was yesterday.
    Don and Sue Ellen had been heavy smokers and the Santiago household was ripe with cigarette smoke, fried onions, grease, dirt, and basic human filth. It wasn’t until he left that he understood why his classmates made fun of the way he smelled.
    Whenever he entered Larson High School or simply roamed the halls, clusters of kids pointed at him and refused to meet his eyes. Michael always wore long-sleeved shirts and jeans at all times. He had to cover up Don’s work. Even if a single day passed without a collision between Michael’s body and Don’s fists, bruises dotted his arms and legs. When he wasn’t playing football in the off-season, he knew enough to prevent any teachers, coaches, counselors, or staff members from seeing his body. During season, he shrugged off the multiple contusions all over his arms and legs as part of the game.
    And ensured his teammates never saw his back. No rational explanations could explain that. Not ever.
    Like his son, Don had been a high school football star in Texas until he knocked up Sue Ellen during his senior and her sophomore year. His first familial memory was watching his father back-hand his mother in the kitchen with such force it not only knocked her head full to the side, but it sent an entire pan of scrambled eggs flying through the air until they landed like a Picasso print on the wall.
    He’d been four years old.
    Michael wound through Walker’s halls, pulling his collar to the side a couple of times, yanking his tie twice, and felt fresh sweat break out on his brow. Was his deodorant still working? He rubbed his hands over the short, precise trim he took care of himself every other day and hoped he could make it through the day’s event. To do that, he’d do what