Callahan's Crosstime Saloon (Callahan's Place Trilogy, #1)

by Spider Robinson

"... and it's all thanks to you, Mr. Callahan," Tony finished. "Shucks, Tony," Callahan rumbled, "we didn't do anything for you that you couldn't have done yourself." "You accepted me," Telasco said simply. "You made me understand that I was just a normal human being who'd been caught up in a nightmare, a nightmare that made him realize he had the makings of a killer ape in him. One night I told you and your customers this whole story and you didn't stare at me like a mad dog. You told me that I needed a bigger audience. "You showed me that it wasn't my killer nature that was shameful, but the refusal to think things out that landed me in 'Nam in the first place. You showed me that just because it took me a while to make the sort of decision Steve made didn't mean that I didn't have Steve's kind of guts in me somewhere. I was sure I didn't have that kind of guts, and so I never looked for them. When I did... I found them. Because you had faith in me. "Jail is no picnic," he told the rest of us, "but I want to do what I can to see that no one else gets caught in the meat grinder like I did. But I don't do it from guilt. I do it for its own sake." He looked at Callahan. "I already got my absolution here."

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