CHAPTER 80

I went back down to the lobby of the hospital and called Coach Reed, it went through to voice mail. I left him a message, telling him what had happened. I hung up, just as Mr. and Mrs. Timmons were getting out of the elevator. They asked if I wanted to go back to the hotel with them, but I knew they needed to be alone. I thanked them, telling them I had to fly back to San Diego for practice tomorrow. I asked them to please call me and let me know when the funeral services would be, I wanted to be there. They agreed, they would do that, as soon as they could.

I arrived back on the west coast late that night, went straight home and fell asleep. When the alarm went off, it seemed as if I had only been asleep a few hours. I looked over at the clock, it was a little after eight in the morning. I got dressed and left for the practice facility, arriving a few minutes before nine. As soon as I opened the doors to the locker, a hush fell over the room. I walked in, past everyone to my locker, beginning to change for practice. Slowly everyone in the room began talking again, but at a much lower tone. No one said a word to me as we made our way out to practice. As soon as Coach Reed saw me, he pulled me to the side.

"Brian, I am so sorry for your loss. If there is anything we can do, please just ask.", he offered.

"Thanks Coach.", I answered.

I just went through the motions in practice for the next three days, my heart wasn't in it. We were three weeks away from our first preseason game and I had taken a huge step backwards. As the days passed, my heartache turned to anger. Why had this happened, what was the purpose of following by all of the rules, only to have everyone you care about ripped from you. I was back at my hotel on Wednesday night when Alexis Clark called telling me she had my contracts in her possession, I needed to sign them as soon as possible. We set up an appointment for the following day at the practice facility.

I met her following practice on Thursday, signing all the documentation she had with her. She told me I needed to meet with both Cindy Taylor and herself later today after practice, concerning immediate investment and tax problems. I agreed to be at her office for four that afternoon. I went back into the locker room and got undressed, most of the team had already left the facility. As I came out of the shower, I noticed Josh sitting on the bench in front of my locker. As I walked over to him, he stood up, his arms folded in front of him.

"Hey Josh, what's up ?", I asked.

"Brian, I think we need to talk. Do you have a few minutes for me ?", he asked.

"Sure.", I replied.

"Look, I can't begin to understand what you're going through right now. I was thinking of you last night, about what you went through in high school losing your Dad. Now this with your girlfriend, I can't even imagine how I could handle it.", he started.

"What I do know is, you have spent your entire life to get to this moment in time. You are living a dream that every little boy in America thinks of in his lifetime. I know right now, you think it's a nightmare, I would probably feel the same way.", he continued.

"It seems that way.", I answered.

"Brian, I watched you practice today, in fact a lot of people were watching you. Honestly, after what I saw today, if I had to make a snap judgement, I would cut you without hesitation.", he said.

The last statement jolted me to reality, I had never been cut from a team, not once in my life.

"I can't tell you how to handle what has happened. Honestly, I have no clue how I would react. I have been with my girlfriend Angie for close to eight years. I can't imagine life without her.", he added.

"Brian, you mentioned to me that your Dad and Courtney at different times in your life, were both your best friends. The only question I have to ask you is, if they were truly your best friends, would they want you to throw away everything you have worked for, to simply mourn them ?", he asked.

"I don't know Josh.", I replied softly.

"Again, I don't mean to come across as an asshole Brian, I really don't. No one can tell you they understand what you're going through, because they can't. What I am asking you, is to turn it all to something else. Take the heartache, the sorrow, the tears, the lonliness and turn it into anger and passion.", he asked.

"I just feel so empty Josh, almost as if I have nothing or no one to play for.", I choked back.

"Play for your Father, because he would want you to. Play for Courtney because she would want you to. Play for yourself, because it's what you have to do.", he urged.

"I'll try Josh.", I answered.

He looked me square in the eyes, extended his hand and took mine, his grip firm and tight.

"That's all anyone can ask of us Brian. That we try. Anything I can do for you, anytime, day or night, you call me.", he offered.

"Thanks Josh, I appreciate it.", I answered.

I left the facility a few minutes later and drove over to the agency's main office where I had a meeting schedule with Alexis. I arrived thirty minutes early and was shown to the waiting room, where I sat down and tried to relax. I kept going over what Josh had told me, about what Courtney and my Dad would want me to do. I knew he was right, but it didn't help. I just had this hole inside of me, one that I thought could never be filled. Finally after what seemed like an eternity, Alexis came into the small lobby and asked me to her office. She was once gain, very professionally dressed in a beige dress with a matching high heels. She didn't have a hair out of place. She asked me to sit down and she walked around her desk to her seat. She rearranged some papers on her desk, moving them aside, grabbing a folder with my name on the face. She reached over, pressed the intercom button on her phone, talking to her secretary.

"Would you please tell Ms. Taylor we are ready for her now ?", she asked.

She sat down, opened my file and sorted out the documentation in front of her. Less than five minutes later, Cindy Taylor, who I had met during my first meeting with the agency came into the office. I stood up to greet her as she walked over.

"Hi Brian, it's so nice to see you again. Congratulations on your new contract.", she said, shaking my hand.

"Thank you Ms. Taylor, Alexis did a good job.", I replied.

We sat down and Alexis began to give me my copies of my contract, a detailed description of my contractual obligations to the team, and finally the fee's that the agency would receive for their management services. That was the most eye opening document of the group. If I played out my entire contract, the agency itself would take almost eight hundred fifty thousand dollars out in service fees. In addition, Alexis would be paid a one time, ninety four thousand dollar fee, immediately from my signing bonus.

What was intriguing though was the breakdown page of my contract. Their were numerous incentives built in to my contract, any of which, if I achieved could significantly raise my salary. I would receive a bonus if I started in over seventy five percent of games played in my first two years. If I was selected to the Pro Bowl, another bonus was achieved. If I ended the season leading the league in any category, another bonus would be paid. Although any of these goals were highly unlikely, they were there.

Lastly, but most importantly, was the financial breakdown on how the monies would be paid to me during the next few years. This is where Ms. Taylor came in, she was the expert on financial planning. She began to ask me a few questions, in order to see what needed to be done.

"Have you opened any bank accounts so far Brian ?", she asked.

"No mam, nothing.", I replied.

"Ok, we will get that done today, I will go with you.", she started.

"In addition Brian, for now, I suggest we open an annuity, that way be can take a huge chunk of your signing bonus, invest it without paying the taxes now. You will be responsible for those taxes later, but after you retire and you're in a much lower tax bracket.", she continued.

"The annuity I have been using has out performed most stock portfolio's over the last decade. For now it's basic but it will work. As time passes, I will help you diversify your assets so your future is well planned. Too many players today, spend a decade in the business, they retire and they're broke.", she cautioned, "You have to watch your spending Brian."

"I understand, I'm not one who spends much money anyway Ms. Cindy.", I answered.

Alexis then handed me a check for two million dollars, it was staggering to look at a check with that many zero's on it. Alexis then suggested I go with Cindy and begin the necessary arrangements I had to make. We stopped briefly at Cindy's office, she grabbed her brief case and a few other items, we left the building and headed straight to the main branch of the largest bank in San Diego. Cindy was close friends with the bank president, who immediately welcomed us into his office. Cindy explained what she had recommended for me, he then began to prepare the right accounts. We opened a checking account depositing four hundred fifty thousand dollars as the initial deposit. The bank then wrote me thirty bank drafts in the amount of fifty thousand dollars each, which would be used to open the annuity later in the day. He also immediately issued me a credit card with a fifty thousand dollar limit. In addition, he gave me fifty thousand dollars worth of traveler's checks to help me get settled with living expenses. I then endorsed the signing bonus over to him, business was concluded. We then drove over to the investment house Cindy had used for the past few years. They opened a one million dollar annuity immediately, making those funds non-taxable. We then placed the other five hundred thousand in a money market type account which could be moved around as needed, if and when the need came. Which that done Cindy drove me back to PSA and back to Alexis' office.

"You guys are all done already ?", she asked.

"Yep Alex, he's squared away for now. Next is getting him into permanent housing, a vehicle and the basic necessities.", she replied.

I thanked Cindy for all of her efforts, she gave me her card, telling me she would be in touch as soon as all of the paperwork became formal, giving me notarized copies. I sat back down with Alexis to go over a few more details. She informed me that my base salary would be roughly a little over three million dollars a year. I would get paid every two weeks during the season, my last check would come two weeks after the season was over. My two week paycheck would be roughly four hundred ten thousand dollars, I would receive eight of those per year. Any bonus money would be due after the end of the season or playoff's, if we went that far. By this time of the day, my head was swimming in numbers, it was far too much for this small town boy to comprehend.