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on track. Morris had his college degree, and he was teaching at last. She couldn't envision bringing Gabby into their home without incurring problems. She didn't have time to cook and clean up after another man, to do his laundry, and she didn't feel like giving up her privacy. Morris argued that it wouldn't be for very long.
    Gabby was probably going to be getting back with Gay, if he didn't, he would soon be looking for his own place. Morris said he just couldn't turn the guy away in good conscience.
    And that was typical of Morris. He had a conscience, and he cared a lot about Gabby. A future prosecuting attorney named Jeff Sullivan was Gay Moore's divorce attorney. Much later, Sullivan would scarcely recall the divorce proceedings, which led him to believe that the dissolution of the Moore marriage was uncomplicated. "No-fault" divorces had just come into effect in Washington State at that time and Sullivan cannot remember if Gabby was any more reluctant than the average man to get a divorce. In fact, it was Sullivan s impression that Gabby wanted the divorce. In any case, the proceedings were calm enough that they did not stand out in his mind. That was not the way Gabby described it to Morris, however.
    Bereft, Gabby confided in his athletes and in his friends. He seemed lost, frightened of the future, and angry at the same time. Of all of Gabby's friends, Morris Blankenbaker was the one who worried the most about what would happen to Gabby when he didn't have Gay any longer. At first, it didn't occur to Morris that he was hearing only one side of the story: a side that showed Gabby in the best light. Morris had saved Gabby's life once, and he was ready to do it again. It was almost as if he were living out the Chinese proverb that says that once you save someone's life, it belongs to you forever after and you remain responsible for that person. Gabby was in bad shape and Morris was not a man to ever walk away from any of his friends when they were as down as Gabby seemed. Gabby had other friends, and his about-to-be ex-father in-law was still close to him, but that didn't make the long nights alone any easier. He needed to be around people. Morris saw Gabby as a victim, and Gabby did nothing to dissuade him. There were many things that Gabby did not confide in Morris. Certainly, Morris had no idea how much Gabby was drinking or how insanely jealous he was of Gay. Had Morris known, he might have rethought his offer to Gabby to move in. But he didn't know, and he worked hard to convince Jerilee that Gabby needed a place to stay where people cared about him. Finally, she gave in, and Gabby Moore moved in with the family in January of 1974. Whatever Gabby was doing to effect a reconciliation, it wasn't working. Gay Moore went ahead with her divorce action. She wasn't divorcing Gabby because there was another man, she just wanted a different kind of life. Gabby's moods were too unpredictable and he was almost paranoid, believing that she was interested in someone else. With a teaching job and three teenagers to raise, Gay had no time to think about a new relationship. Although Jerilee Blankenbaker had been against Gabby Moore's moving into her home, she soon changed her mind. She could see why Morris and he were such good friends. He was a nice guy, and he was fun to have around.
    More than that, though, Gabby's old charisma that had always drawn people to him was still working. When he wanted to be, he was the most charming man in the room, full of anecdotes and jokes, confident and bristling with goodwill. He was compelling, a man who seemed taller, handsomer and more successful than he really was. He brought that force of energy to the Blankenbaker house, and when his eyes met Jerilee's, she found it almost impossible to look away. No one could ever say when Jerilee began to view Gabby in a new light. Sharing a house with someone is an intimate experience sometimes pleasant, sometimes uncomfortable.
    Gabby was there in