Will sighed.
“Hey, I have a good feeling about this.” She flashed him a smile that was supposed to look hopeful. Will smiled back. It didn’t look sincere but that was fair enough considering hers wasn’t genuine either.
“Mom?”
“Yes, dear.”
“Can I ask you a question?”
“Of course,” she said. “You can always come to me … always.”
“It’s about Dad.” He fought the urge to look away from his mother.
She stared back at him while taking cursory glances at the road. Will thought for a moment that another fight was brewing. “I’m sorry about last night … what I said about your father.”
“Forget it, Mom. It’s okay.”
She reached over and patted the back of Will’s hand. “Thank you, hon.”
Will nodded.
“Well, what is it?”
He took a deep breath and contemplated how best to start the conversation. “Did you know Dad’s family well?”
She seemed somewhat relieved at the innocuous question. Will noticed she tapped her finger on the steering wheel as if she was keeping time to a song that only she could hear.
“Well, his dad passed away before I met him but his mother, Betty, was a sweet old lady. His brother, your uncle Johnny is, uh, quite a character.”
“What do you mean?” Will asked, obviously intrigued.
“You remember Uncle Johnny don’t you? He was the one who used to come over on weekends when you were little. We still lived in California then. He was crazy.” She chuckled at the memory. “Do you remember when he would wear that stupid Halloween mask and scare the living daylights out of you and your friends?” She laughed and shook her head.
“Sort of, I guess. What happened to him?”
“He and your father had a bit of a falling out. It was complicated.”
“His mom is still alive, right?”
“Yes, I believe so. Why?”
“Dad told me he was going to see her … you know, before he disappeared.”
“Yes, I remember,” she said. “We went over all of this with the police. She talked to him, they had dinner or whatever, and then he left. He didn’t tell her where he was going … or if he did then Grandma Grant doesn’t remember. She’s very old and has severe dementia her doctor said.”
“I know,” Will said. “Does he have any family in his hometown? That town in—”
“Nebraska?” his mother offered. “Chaplin Hills, Nebraska? I don’t know. I don’t think so. What brings this up?”
Will shifted in his seat and checked his phone. Via text, Aaron asked if he was coming to school today. He texted back a ‘yes’ along with a pile of poop emoji. He turned back to his mother but ignored her question. “Did Dad ever tell you about that kid he hung around with back in the day? That kid from his hometown?”
“Yeah, he mentioned him all of the time. Every childhood story he had was with that kid.” She smiled and Will knew she was enjoying a happy memory, which in turn made him smile. “What was his name?” she said to herself. “Damn. It’s on the tip of my tongue.”
They arrived at the school and Will let himself out.
“Thanks for the ride, Mom.”
“Of course, dear. Have a good day at school and keep your chin up. Don’t forget we have that meeting with your teacher tonight. I’ll do my best to straighten this out, okay?”
“I know, Mom. Thanks.”
She smiled and began to pull away. Suddenly, she slammed on the brakes and rolled down her window.
“Peter!” she bellowed, a look of relief on her face. “Your dad’s friend! His name was Peter!”
Will glanced around to see if any of his friends were lurking around, hoping that they didn’t see his mother acting weird. The coast was clear. “Okay, Mom. Thanks.” He walked off in his direction and his mother drove away in hers.
The secretary, Miss Holstein, told Will to head to the media room where he would spend the rest of the day studying. He entered the media room with his head down, hoping to avoid Marsha Tate’s wraith, but he was pleasantly surprised to find the room empty. In fact, he spent the first two hours alone, and he was beginning to think they had forgotten all about him. But as period three rolled around, the Spanish teacher, Mrs. Miller, came in and had him help grade papers.
“I don’t speak Spanish, Mrs. Miller,” Will said.
She waved a hand. “Neither do any of my students.”
Will discovered quickly that she was only there to keep him company. He decided he liked Mrs. Miller and would take her Spanish class when it became available.
The bell rang after period three and Mrs. Miller gathered up her things. “Thanks for the help, Will.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Keep your head up, okay?”
Will forced a smile. “That’s what everybody keeps telling me.”
Mrs. Miller returned the smile. “The student aid should be here in a few minutes.”
“Oh, great.” Will said, not bothering to disguise his sarcasm.
The Spanish teacher frowned and then brightened. “Marsha has been … reassigned. There is a new aide for the next couple of weeks. She’s new so don’t give her any trouble.”
“Thank God. Marsha was a—”
“Marsha is a handful,”
“She’s a couple of handfuls.
“William,” Mrs. Miller warned.
“A couple too many, in fact.
“Be good, Will. And be nice to Jennifer. It’s her first semester here.”
“I will do my best, Mrs. Miller.”
“You do that.” Mrs. Miller winked and disappeared out of the door.
A few seconds after the bell rang, the door to the media room swung open, and the new student aid walked in. She smiled and made eye contact with Will.
“Hi,” she said.
Will didn’t trust his voice so he offered a meek nod and waved instead.
She shut the door behind her and headed for the teacher’s desk at the front of the room. She didn’t bother with the chair and instead chose to sit on top of the desk, facing Will. She crossed her legs and tucked a loose strand of red hair behind her ear.
Will stared at her, fascinated by the sparkling blue eyes that stared back at him, and her hair, the color of a new penny. He wanted to speak but couldn’t find the words.
“My name is Jennifer. What’s your name?”
William swallowed hard and found his mouth had gone dry. “William,” he croaked.
“So, Will, this is the home for misfit kids, huh? Can I call you Will?”
He nodded his head vigorously and cleared his throat. “Sure.”
“Great,” she said, smiling. “Today is my first day, Will.”
“So I’ve been told,” he said, grateful he was finally able to form a sentence in front of her.
“Well, it’s not my first day at school, just my first day as a student aid. I’ve been going here since the end of last semester. How about you, William, how long have you been here?”
“How long have I been in this school or how long have I been serving time in here?”
“Both.”
“Me and my folks moved out here from California a little over three years ago and …” He closed one eye as he recounted the last few days in his head, “it’s my second day in here.”
“Well, I’m glad you’re here. I mean, I’m sorry you are in trouble but I’m glad I’ve got some company. I’m sorry.” She blushed and her cheeks almost went the same color as her hair. “Marsha told me it’s usually empty. I got the feeling she preferred it that way.”
“Marsha’s a bitch.”
Jennifer laughed innocently and looked momentarily to her feet. She recovered quickly. “She’s a bit too much, isn’t she?”
“Yeah, like I said …”
A few minutes later, Jenn said, “I hope it’s not too serious.”
“You hope what isn’t too serious?”
�
��Whatever you did to land yourself in here. Cause if it was, then you’ll probably be seeing a lot of me.” She smiled crookedly.
Will—not knowing what to say—just opened his mouth. “I punched my teacher in the face.”
Jennifer let out a burst of laughter and then, as if she just remembered whose side she was supposed to be on, slapped a hand over her mouth. “Oh,” she said. “Yeah, you’ll probably be in here a lot, then.”
Will smiled. “You think so?”
Jennifer continued laughing and eventually Will did the same.
The bell rang.
“Time for lunch,” Jennifer said.
“Finally.”
“You bring a lunch or do you go to the cafeteria?” she asked.
“I usually just go to the cafeteria. You?”
“I packed something cause I’ve got a meeting with my physics teacher and he wanted to do it over lunch. He’s got some … never mind, it’s boring.”
“Okay,” Will said.
“I’ll be back for one more period after lunch, though, so don’t be late.” She winked at him. “Or I’ll have to tell on you.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Will said. He watched her leave and then sprinted towards the cafeteria. After grabbing his food, William sat in his customary spot with his friends, most notably, his best friend Aaron and the clingy Joseph Heller, who has been—if nothing else—barely tolerated since grade school.
“Hey look, it’s public enemy number one. How are you holding up, bro?” Aaron asked. He stole a French fry from Joey’s plate and popped it in his mouth.
“Hey, dick head!” Joey cried.
Aaron did his best cry-baby face in Joey’s direction before turning back to Will.
“Tell us, bud, how’s life on the inside.”
“Suck it, asshat, it’s better than class.”
Aaron laughed. “Shit, you’re probably right.”
“I know I am.”
Aaron opened his mouth to respond and stopped as he watched the beautiful upperclassmen approach their table.
“Hi, Will.”
Will looked up at Jennifer, his eyes wide. “Uh, hi.”
“So, are you enjoying these few privileged moments in general population?”
Aaron laughed. “Yeah, welcome to gen-pop, killer. Try not to shiv any of us.”
“You’d be first,” Will said, holding up his spoon.
From the end of the table, Joey took in the conversation with a confused look on his face. “What are you guys talking about?”
“Jesus, Joey, you dip shit,” Aaron said. “Can’t you see we have company? At least pretend you’re not retarded.”
Will sighed and looked at Jennifer, “Sorry,” he said.
She waved him off with a chuckle.
He continued, “Uh, this is my friend, Aaron. And the dumb ass down there is Joey.”
“Screw you all,” Joey said. Aaron punched him in the shoulder and Joey dropped the sandwich he had been eating. “Goddamn it, you guys,” he said, reaching for his PB&J from the floor. He inspected it briefly and blew on both sides before popping it back in his mouth. They all watched him do it before turning away, shaking their heads and frowning with disgust.
“Hi guys, I’m Jenn. I’m the student warden in cellblock D for the rest of the week. William here is my only prisoner.”
“Nice,” Aaron said, raising an eyebrow. “So, you a junior this year?”
“Nope. Just a sophomore.”
“Got a boyfriend?”
“Jesus, Aaron,” Will said, glaring at his friend. He turned back to Jenn. “Sorry. He’s a degenerate.”
“What? It was just a simple question,” Aaron protested.
Her cheeks flushed but she pretended he never asked the question. “Well, I just wanted to let you know that my meeting got cancelled so I’ll be heading back to the media room to eat lunch.”
Aaron jumped to his feet. “Nonsense!” He pulled out a chair. “You shall eat with us.”
“Oh, thanks, but no. I left my lunch back in the room.”
Aaron sighed. “That’s too bad.”
“Yeah, sorry.” She turned to Will. “Well, I suppose I’ll see you there?”
“Yes, I’m coming … I mean, yeah, I’ll be there.”
She smiled at Will and glanced briefly at the other two boys who sat watching the exchange like fans at a tennis match.
“Great. I’ll see ya there.”
Will swallowed hard. “And I’ll see you there.” The words tumbled clumsily out of his mouth as though English wasn’t his native language. Jennifer smiled awkwardly and waved as she headed off to the media room.
“And I’ll see you there,” Aaron said in his best mocking voice. “What was that, lady killer? Never mind, I already know what that was. That was you blowing any chance you ever had of hooking up with that girl.”
Will hung his head in his hands. “Just shut up for once, will ya?”
“Just saying.”
Will cursed under his breath and stood up. “Well, I might as well get going and get this over with.”
“Hey, bud,” Aaron called. “Do me a favor and tell Red that it was lovely meeting her and that I can bench press twice my body weight.”
Will smiled despite himself. “Piss off, dumb ass.”
When he arrived at the media room, Jennifer was already there, reading her Kindle.
“What’cha reading? Billionaire Mommy porn?”
She turned off the Kindle and smiled. “Naw. The Old Man and the Sea by Hemingway. Your favorite teacher assigned it.”
“Aw, my good buddy, Mr. Woodley?”
“Yup.”
“How’s he doing?” Will asked. “Does he miss me yet?”
“How could he not?”
“Right?”
Jennifer got out of her chair and sat on the edge of the desk. Will sat in the front row this time instead of usual spot at the back room. There were only a few feet between them.
“I have a meeting with him tonight. My Mom is gonna be there. She’s gonna try and keep my ass outta jail.”
“You’re too young for jail, aren’t you?”
“Yeah. We’re probably just talking about fines and probation. Maybe Juvy, but probably not.”
“You don’t seem like the kind of kid that gets into a lot of trouble, Will.”
Will shrugged. “I’m not really, I guess. I just wish he would have left my dad out of it.”
“What’s the deal with your dad? If you don’t mind me asking.”
“It’s kind of a long story.”
She looked at her watch and raised an eyebrow. “You got somewhere to be?”
“Well, when you put it like that.” He offered her a smile but she could see the pain hiding behind it, and a small part of her was sorry she had asked.
Will sat back in his chair and shrugged, unsure of where to start. Finally, he asked, “Your folks still together?”
Jennifer shook her head. “Mom took me and my little brother out here last year. Dad’s still back in Phoenix … and probably still running around with that girl from his office. I don’t know the whole story, but I get the idea that Dad was—or is—a serial cheater. Eventually, Mom got tired of it and we came out here. My aunt lives here … so, you know, we’ve got a little familiarity.”
“Sure,” Will said. “What about your little brother? What’s his name? He go to school here too?”
“No,” she said, smiling, “he’s only three. His name is Harold.”
“Harold? Really?”
“Yeah, why?”
“I’m just struggling to picture a baby named Harold? I figured all Harold’s came out of the womb like, already forty, or something.”
“Nope, they start out as pooping, snot factories just like William’s do.”
Will nodded his head. “That makes sense. You gotta babysit him a lot?”
“Yeah, but he’s a good kid so it’s not so bad. He misses his daddy though.”
“What about you
? You miss him … your dad, I mean?”
“Sure. Sometimes. But you know what’s weird?”
William shook his head.
“I think I miss how my mom used to be before all this went down even more. She’s miserable right now and it’s hard to … to see her like this. I feel like a real jerk for saying this, but it sucks being around her.”
“What do you mean, like how?”
Jennifer sighed. “It’s hard … she’s a great mom, but right now, she’s … cold.”
“I see.”
“If it wasn’t for Harold …”
Will waited for her to continue. When she didn’t, he asked, “If it wasn’t for Harold, what?”
“Nothing,” Jenn said, shaking her head. “She’s just got a broken heart, she’ll snap out of it.”
Will nodded, cleared his throat, and then the two new friends sat quiet for several minutes. Finally, Will said, “What else you got?”
“That’s it. That’s all I got,” she said. “That’s actually more than I’ve told anybody about this. Like, ever.”
“Really?” he asked.
Jennifer nodded her head.
“Well, I’m really glad you told me.”
She dropped her eyes and laughed self-consciously. “Me too, I guess. Isn’t that weird?”
“No. Well, maybe a little.”
Jenn giggled. “I’m an open book, I guess.”
“Well, do you like it here?”
“Not at first. But it’s growing on me.”
“Good,” Will said. “You gonna stay in ABQ?”
“I think so but I’m not sure. I guess that depends on how mom and dad end up. Enough about that … about me, it’s your turn.”
“Already?”
She nodded.
“Okay … Dad’s been gone for,” he paused to do the math in his head, “a little over two years. No, wait, almost three.”
“Gone? Where did he go?”
“That’s the thing. Nobody knows.”
Jennifer nodded, and the look in her eyes suggested she knew where this was going, “Some guys can be dicks,” she said.
“That’s true. I’m not sure he just ran off, though.”
“Oh, yeah? What do you mean?”
“Well, he told me it was going to be a short trip … just a getaway. Him and Mom weren’t getting along but he swore to me that he was coming back. He loved Mom and he wanted to work it out.” Will broke eye contact with Jennifer and looked down at nothing. He desperately wanted to rub his eyes but he resisted. “Something happened to him. He didn’t just leave us …”
The Complete Bleaker Trilogy Box-set Page 12
