Helping Cory - Part I
A Vision Quest episode
Welcome to Helping Cory, the first episode of Vision Quest. In this episode, we learn a little about the devastating crash that took the lives of Bradford and Trevor’s families that started it all and we meet a young boy with cancer that the brothers decide to help.
“Well, here’s to us and Pizza Land,” Bradford declared, raising his glass of sparkling champagne.
Everyone was crammed into a black limo. Bradford’s son, Timmy, was sandwiched between him and his wife, Jill. Opposite them were Trevor, his wife, Laura, and two-year-old Faye.
It was January of 1982. Brad and Laura had just sold their twenty pizza restaurants to a large conglomerate for over two million dollars. The new organization planned to franchise the restaurants across the country. Everyone was on their way to sign the final papers. Brad had ordered the limo as part of the celebration.
Laura smiled, her blue eyes sparkling. “We did it! I can’t believe the sale went through. It hasn’t sunk in yet.”
Trevor’s deep voice responded as he gazed at his wife. He never seemed to tire of her beauty. “You had those restaurants for over a decade. I’m not surprised at all this sale went through.”
Timmy, eleven, piped up in his high-pitched voice. “Mom, can we still get free pizza?”
“I don’t think so, honey, we’ll have to pay just like everyone else.”
Timmy frowned as Bradford interjected, “Well, everything will be signed, sealed, and delivered when we meet with Roosevelt at the law office. Then we can —”
The sound of the impact was deafening as the semi-truck smashed into the limo.
Bradford’s eyes opened wide as he yelled, “NO!”
They were camping at the foot of Seneca Lake in the Finger Lakes of New York. He was drenched in sweat as he unzipped his sleeping bag. Looking over at Trevor, fast asleep, Brad was surprised his scream didn’t wake him. But then, Trevor always did sleep like a log.
Bradford quietly got dressed and climbed out of the tent. His brown Harley was parked next to Trevor’s. Standing back, he admired his new motorcycle, wet with dew. He wiped off the speedometer to reveal 400 miles on the odometer. As the year progressed, there would be many more miles added.
Trevor emerged from the tent wearing a solemn look. “Another nightmare?”
“I didn’t think you heard me.”
He touched his older brother’s shoulder. “Yeah, well, I’ve had my share too.”
Trevor stretched and gazed across the lake. “How about we go into town for some breakfast? I could use a cup of coffee and a good meal.”
It was late June, six months after the crash. The brothers exited the campsite at the tip of Seneca Lake and rode toward town. They had visited the Finger Lakes of New York on past motorcycle trips and it was nice to be back. Their past trips had always been on cheap, low-powered bikes. Now, they could afford the best and were definitely enjoying the ride. The brand, new Harleys had a low rumble to them. They pulled into the Watkins Glen Diner, stopped their bikes, and dismounted.
Shaking his head, Bradford watched his brother walk toward the diner, bowlegged because of his chaps.
“You know, you don’t need those things. We’re not cowboys.”
“Yeah, but I look cool.”
Brad smiled. Trevor did look cool, but he didn’t need chaps for that. His jet, black hair and dark brown eyes were enough to catch the attention of most women. If that didn’t do it, his muscular arms would.
It was one of those diners modeled after a train car with walls of shiny chrome. There were tightly arranged booths against the window which gave it that locomotive car feel. A counter with seven red swiveling stools were next to the cash register.
They walked in and were met by a slim blond woman who gave them a questioning look. They were a bit imposing, dressed in black leather jackets. Bradford smiled to show her he meant no harm. “We’re not as dangerous as we look, we’re on a cross-country motorcycle trip.”
“We’re not part of the Hells Angels or anything like that,” Trevor added.
She gave them a relaxed smile. “Okay, you can sit anywhere you want.”
The brothers removed their jackets and helmets and placed them in a booth. “Maybe we should be more careful with these,” Bradford said.
They sat down facing each other. “We’ll be fine,” Trevor said. “We need to have them.”
The same woman who greeted them earlier walked up. “Hello, my name is Hazel and I’ll be serving you today.”
“Good to meet you. I’m Brad Strand and this is my brother Trevor.”
The brothers listened to Hazel describe the specials even though they knew exactly what they wanted, but since she was pretty, they let her finish.
Bradford smiled and said, “I’ll have a ham and cheese omelet with home fries and rye toast. My brother will have a short stack. Oh, and coffee for both of us, please.
“Got it. You guys are easy.” She walked away without writing down the order.
“So, what do you think of our first day?” Trevor asked.
“It’s a lot better than trips we took before, that’s for sure. The Harleys are great. But an entire year. I don’t know.”
“Well, Roosevelt thinks this will be good for us. We’ve known him our whole life. Dad trusted him. I think we should, too.”
In a few minutes, Hazel returned with their breakfasts. “Here you go, ham and cheese omelet and a short stack.” She set the steaming food on the table.
“That was fast,” Brad said.
“We aim to please. Do you boys want me to warm up those coffees?”
Trevor looked into Hazel’s eyes and smiled, “Yes, Ma’am.”
She refilled the coffee and walked away. Brad wrapped both hands around the white mug. Steam rose from it as it warmed his hands. “Do you think they’d approve of this?” he asked.
With no hesitation, Trevor said, “Yes… there’s no doubt about it. Jill and Laura both knew we loved motorcycles and took trips like this in the past—”
Trevor took a sip of his coffee and said, “They’d know we need time to sort things out. What better way than to tour the country on motorcycles?”
Twisting his wedding ring and with a half smile Bradford said, “Yeah Trev, you’re right.” He looked off into the distance and sighed, “I miss them so much.”
“Well, we have the money in the Trust to go whereever we want. Roosevelt assured us of that.” He got out a map and spread it out on the table. “Where to next?”
They moved the dirty dishes to the side and looked at the map. A boy with sandy brown hair appeared. Looking at Bradford, he said, “Excuse me sir, can I take your dishes?”
Brad flashed his famous smile. “You sure may, young man. Thank you.”
As he was clearing the dishes, the boy asked, “Are those bikes yours?”
“Yes, they are,” Trevor said.
Grinning, “Wow, they’re soooo cool. They’re Harleys… the brown one is a Tour Glide and the black one is a Sturgis… right?”
The brothers looked at each other and smiled.
“Well, young man, you sure know your Harleys. Are you going to get one when you turn sixteen?” Bradford asked.
His grin vanished in an instant. “Well… uhh… maybe. But I… I don’t know.”
Hazel appeared. “Cory! Are you bothering Mr. Strand?”
“No Mom! I’m just clearing their dishes, like I’m sposed to.”
Cory quickly finished his job and rushed away. He looked over his shoulder, smiled, and said, “I love your bikes.”
Bradford looked at Hazel. “It was us… we said something wrong, I’m afraid.”
“Yeah.” Trevor said, “He knew the models of our Harleys cold. We asked if he will get one when he turns sixteen.”
Hazel sighed and knelt down. She looked back and forth at the brothers as she spoke in a hushed voice.
“It’s nothing either of you said… you see… he has—”
She cried softly, caught her breath and said, “He has cancer, leukemia, actually. The doctors say he may not make it to his sixteenth birthday.”
“My god,” Trevor said, “I’m so sorry.”
She stood and wiped the tears away. “Well, there was no way either of you could have known… you were right, he does love Harleys, talks about them all the time. He has posters hanging up all over his room.”
After she left, Bradford said, “Well, I guess we aren’t the only people with a tough life.”
They paid the bill at the cash register. “Thanks so much for talking to Cory. I haven’t seen him so happy in a long time.”
They could see Cory cleaning dishes from the counter. Trevor looked at Bradford, then back to Hazel.
“I hope this doesn’t sound too forward… Brad and I would like to treat you and Cory to dinner. We could pick you up and go on our bikes.”
Cory was over in an instant. “Yeah! Mom, come on, can we?”
She looked skeptical. “I don’t know—”
“Mom, Pleeeease.”
She sighed, “Well, if you’re sure it’s okay, that would be fun.”
She wrote her address on a sheet of paper. “We live just around the corner.”
Cory pumped the air with his arm. “Yessss!”
Trevor smiled. “Great, we’ll pick you up at six.”
They pulled up to the house and turned off their bikes. As they walked to the front door Trevor said, “He looks a lot like Timmy… Doesn’t he?”
Bradford felt a chill as he thought about his son. “Yeah, he sure does… I miss him so much… I think we should try to help this kid.”
“Because he looks like Timmy?”
“Kinda, but that’s not the only reason. He looks like a good kid.”
Trevor smiled. “I agree, and he loves Harleys.”
“If we’re going to do this type of thing, there’s no better place to start than here with these people.”
Bradford knocked on the door. Cory answered with a wide smile. “Hi Mr. Strand.” He peered around them at the bikes in the driveway. “I can’t wait, let’s go.”
“Well, first of all, I’m Brad, no need for the mister stuff. And this is Trevor… before we go, we need to talk.”
Hazel appeared and said, “Cory, slow down and let the gentlemen in.”
Everyone made themselves comfortable in the living room and Trevor took the lead in what would become the brother’s typical novice safety lecture.
“Have either of you ever rode on a motorcycle before?”
Hazel said, “Nope, this will be our first time.”
Trevor figured that was the case. Both of them were wearing t-shirts and shorts.
“Well, you need to change into long pants and a jacket with sleeves.”
“Why?” Cory asked. “It’s summer.”
Trevor paused. “Well, not to scare you, but in the unlikely event that we have an accident, long pants and a jacket saves lots of skin.”
“Look how we’re dressed,” Brad said. “I know our jackets scared you when we walked into the diner, but we always wear them, long pants too, no matter how hot it gets.”
Trevor noticed Hazel’s furrowed brow. “There’s no doubt motorcycles can be dangerous, but it’s not likely anything will happen. It’s just a precaution… but if you would rather not.”
“Mom! Come on, it’ll be fine.”
She smiled. “Okay, let’s go upstairs and change.”
When they returned, dressed properly, Hazel said, “Ya know, a new Pizza Land just opened. I hear it’s great.”
Bradford looked at Trevor and smiled. “Pizza Land… I did hear it’s a good place.”
Cory rode with Trevor and Hazel rode with Brad. The motorcycles rumbled into the Pizza Land parking lot, where they parked next to the front door.
Cory practically leaped off the bike. “That was sooo cool.”
Hazel smiled. “It was really something. Thanks so much.”
The Pizza Land looked very familiar to Brad. He and Laura designed the restaurants to cater to a broad audience. A large arcade with all the most up-to-date games was a big draw for customers, and it was a major reason the company bought Pizza Land.
There was a large bar area that attracted the after work crowd. It was common to see a packed bar with standing room only as stressed out workers blew off steam after a hard day at the office.
The restaurant was also designed to attract families. Brad and Laura developed the menu offering food prepared only with high quality ingredients and with larger portions than their competitors. Taking a look at what he and Laura had achieved, Brad felt a swell of pride.
The place was packed, so they left their names with the hostess and headed over to the bar to grab a drink while they waited for their table.
A bartender walked over and placed coasters on the bar. The background noise caused him to raise his voice. “What’ll be folks?”
Brad said, “I see you have Miller Lite. I’ll have that, please.”
“Me too,” said Trevor.
“Make that three.” Added Hazel.
“And you, young man, what about you?”
“Coke please,” said Cory.
“I told you this place was popular. It’s only been here a few weeks. The parking lot is always full,” said Hazel.
The brothers looked at each other and smiled. “Well, we both love pizza,” Trevor said.
The bartender returned with the drinks and Hazel took a sip. “So, where are you guys from? Are you staying long?”
“No, not long. We’re camping just outside of town,” said Bradford.
Cory’s eyes glowed. “Camping? That’s soooo cool.”
The brothers enjoyed the company of Hazel and Cory. It allowed them to take their minds off of recent events and spend some time with nice people.
Hazel reached for her purse. “I need to visit the little girl’s room.”
As she walked away, Bradford said, “So you like Harley Davidson Motorcycles.”
“Yeah, they’re great. I know every model.” Looking at Trevor, Cory said, “The Sturgis is my favorite.”
Trevor smiled, then his expression changed. There was a commotion at the other end of the room that involved Hazel. He stood. “Stay here!” He rushed across the room.
“Mom!” Cory exclaimed.
Trevor quietly approached the man from behind. He was tall and husky, but nothing Trevor couldn’t handle.
“Come on, pretty lady,” Mr. Husky said as he grabbed Hazel’s arm. “Let me buy you a drink.”
“No,” Hazel protested. “I said no! You’re hurting me. Please leave me alone.”
She saw Trevor approaching. He put his finger to his lips as if to say shush.
He tapped the man’s shoulder. “I don’t think she’s interested.”
Mr. Husky turned and looked at Trevor, set his drink on the bar, and said, ”I wasn’t talking to you.”
Trevor asked Hazel, “Are you interested in talking to this… gentleman?”
“No! Of course not,” she replied firmly.
Mr. Husky sneered, “Look buddy, this is between me and the pretty lady.”
“Sir... You’ve had too much to drink. I think you should call it a night. Let me settle up your bill and call you a cab.”
Mr. Husky lunged toward Trevor… in one fluid motion, Trevor grabbed his arms and held them behind his back. “Look, it’s time for you to call it a night.”
Just then, a man in a white shirt and tie appeared. "Is there a problem here... I'm the manager.”
Trevor explained what happened and let go of Mr. Husky, who stiffened as Trevor spoke, but did not make another move to attack.
The manager turned to Mr. Husky and said, “Sir, I think it is time for you to go.”
He quietly walked away.
The manager apologized and then seemed to recognize Trevor. The news of the sale was widespread and all of the Pizza Land franchise owners and management knew the story of the Strand brothers. As Hazel looked on, the manager asked. “Mr. Strand? Is that you, sir?”
Trevor smiled in recognition and said, “Yes, yes it is,” gesturing towards the bar where Brad was waiting. “Bradford is right over there.”
Thanks for reading the first part of Helping Cory. You can read the conclusion of this episode here.
For more information about Vision Quest click here.
Let me know what you think of the story so far.
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Well done. Easy to read. I liked it and look forward to reading more.
I’m enjoying the story so far, Scott. The brothers seem like stand-up guys. I think what they did for Cory speaks volumes. Looking forward to the next installment!