In a moment Ed was back, without the baby and with a Coke for Lee and four more beers, two in one hand and two others tucked under his arm. He stopped just outside the kitchen, his attention arrested by the reunion picture hanging on the wall. “Look at that. The whole Bonham clan and no one's killin’ no one."
He put the drinks down on the tray and went back, touching the glass with his finger. “Will you look at that? There's Darva Ann, she must have been only five or six. And look at Maggie, sitting on the old man's knee."
Ted looked around squinting across the room at the picture. “Yeah, that's about the only family picture Maggie left up."
"I've got a picture of my mom!” Lee offered enthusiastically. “It was in the hall. Maggie took it down, but she said I could have it. Y'all want to see?"
Ted reflexively looked over to the kitchen.
"Sure,” Ed fired back. “It's been so long, I don't think I can remember what she looked like."
Lee got up and raced back to his room. The pictures he'd manage to save from Maggie's purge were in a pile on the floor next to his desk. Running back, he handed Uncle Ed the photograph of his mom in her cheerleader's outfit.
Ed winked at Lee. “You know your mama was a real looker."
Lee looked back at the reunion picture, at the little girl standing just about waist high to the adults, then back to the picture of the beautiful, young teen. Years had passed between the two photographs, but in both the one feature which stood out, was his mom had the brightest and happiest eyes.
He touched the glass of the picture on the wall thinking, “Hard to believe that Mom and Maggie lived with all these sour looking people. Everyone looks so dour and unhappy."
Ed had moved over behind the chair, and both he and Ted were looking at the picture of the pretty, young cheerleader frozen in mid air. Without looking up Uncle Ed said to Lee, who was still staring up at the reunion picture, “You're lucky you never knew any of your ancestors. The Bonhams had a corner on the market for being stick-in-the-muds. But your mom, Darva Anne, she was like ... what did that one poet Laura's always quoting say?” He thought for a moment then said, “A flower in the twilight. That's what she was. Everybody else around her was just a bunch of thistles in the garden of life, while your mom had all of the color in the family."
"Remember the old man?” Ted asked.
"Oh, man, do I?” Ed came back. “The king of the-stick-in-the muds. I used to hate it when my dad would send me to his hardware store. That man hated kids. No let me correct that. I think he hated everybody. I don't see how you ever got through him to get him to let you date Darva Anne.” A big grin bloomed on Uncle Ed's face and he added, “You being a Yankee and all."
Ted ignored the jibe. “I didn't have too much trouble with him at all. He died just a few weeks after our first date. It seemed like one Saturday we went to the movies, and the next date we went out after her dad's funeral."
"What happened to him again? What'd he die of?"
Ted grinned. “I think it was an over dose of aftershave."
This set both men laughing.
"He bought it by the gallon didn't he?” Ed added when both men had settled back down.
"At least,” Ted replied. “Must have put it on with a garden hose. He's been dead and gone about fifteen years, and I'd swear I can still smell Aqua Velva in that back bedroom."
Lee was instantly even more attentive to the conversation going on between Uncle Ed and his dad. He hadn't a clue that his grandfather had been mean and crotchety. Maggie never said a thing about her side of the family, ever. And the whole thing about Aqua Velva was an enormous revelation.
"No really,” Ed pressed on. “What did he die of? He slipped or something, didn't he?"
Ted didn't look up. “Heart attack. In the shower. Maggie'd come home alone from church. Darva Anne and Kathleen had stayed over for some Lady's Bible School study or something. Sundays were the only day the old man ever closed that store. Of course, he never went to church. He always got too drunk on Saturday nights. Anyway, Maggie came in, and the way she tells it, right off she knew something was wrong. She told me she heard water running and saw the hallway was flooded. She ran down to the bathroom and saw the light was on under the door. It was then that she knew something really bad had happened; her dad was an absolute nut about turning off lights. He might have been so hung over he forgot to shut off the water, but he'd have never left a light on.” Ted looked up to Ed. “You know he had this crazy idea, that for some reason, if you left a light on unattended, the bulb could heat up and burst, all on its own and could maybe cause a fire."
Uncle Ed squinted questioningly. “You're kidding?"
Ted shook his head. “He was nuts about light bulbs. Maggie told me he'd even kept a chart of how long each brand lasted in each of the lamps in the house."
Ed was shaking his head. “Well, what happened with Maggie?"
"She's standing in this water and the light's on,” Ted continued, “So she starts hollering and pounding on the door."
Lee was riveted. He'd never heard any of this.
"Of course, the door was locked, so she ran to the kitchen and got something, a spatula I think she said, and slipped the lock."
Now Lee knew how Maggie'd gotten in the bathroom the other day. Another revelation!
"That's where she found him,” Ted continued dryly. “She said he must have grabbed a hold of the shower curtain when the heart attack hit him, and he pulled it down with him. He'd been in there a while, at least an hour or so. He was already all blue."
"Sounds pretty grim,” Ed said.
"You know?” Ted hadn't taken his eyes off of the picture. “In spite of everything, her family and such, I think deep down Darva Anne was one of those rare people: a truly happy soul."
He looked at Lee and then back at the photograph. “Some people just are and some people just aren't. Did you know that, son? Reality is that anyone can be happy, despite whatever terrible things happen to them, if they only want to be happy. For some though, that takes a strength of will to overcome adversity, but to people like your mom it just comes natural. I know she wasn't perfect. And I know she was kind of spoiled; her dad had always treated her like a queen. Ask Maggie.” He paused. “Better yet, don't ask Maggie."
Ted was still staring deeply at the photograph and was running his thumbs around the edges of the frame. “And, yeah,” he continued, “right after we were married, we had some rocky times. I know she wasn't all that happy with how we started out. And my getting angry and joining the Army didn't help. But, hey, I was going to be drafted anyway. You know, though, the one thing,” he looked over at Lee and then quickly back down again. “The one thing was she loved you, Lee. You were her everything."
Lee was standing by the wall looking over at his dad and Uncle Ed. Again there was that silence in the room, the only thing to be heard above the whirr of the fan was a giggle and then a squeal from Patty's room.
Without any warning, the reunion photograph came free. Lee reacted quickly, just barely catching it before it crashed on the floor.
Ted jumped. “Whoa! What was that?"
Lee gulped at the near miss. “I don't know, dad. It just came loose. I swear. I wasn't touching it.” He held it up. “But at least I caught it."
"Why don't you put that back up on its hook,” Ted advised. He reached out to Ed and touched him for a moment on the shoulder. “You remember Darva Anne. Tell Lee. Wasn't she something special?"
Ed reached down and touched the picture frame cocking it slightly to offset the glare from the lamp, but remained just where he was looking over Ted's shoulder. “Your dad's right, Lee. I knew your mother since the sixth grade. She was one of a kind."
Bracing his knee against the wall, Lee balanced the picture frame on his leg and reached in back readjusting the wire so that it would catch on the hook. He stood squarely facing the wall and raised the picture up gauging where the middle of the wire would fall.
The illus
ion in the wood grain Maggie had called “The Wolf Man” stared back at him from the wall, seemingly drawing itself out from the lighter background of the paneling.
It had a face, not exactly human, not exactly animal, but the worst of both. Lee found his heart had picked up in looking at it. The image formed into the lines of the wood grain seemed so real, perhaps even more so than the Indian on the other wall. The dark holes inside the pupils, which were really just knots in the wood, almost looked alive. In the shine of the varnish Lee could see himself reflected back, dully, as though he was captured in those eyes and seeing what they were seeing. The effect was almost hypnotic. Lee had learned in science class that some snakes mesmerize their prey. This must be what that was like. Feeling it, feeling something, he had to force himself back to reality.
He realized now, the thing was grinning at him. So many emotions were caught in that grin, all of them ugly and mean. It was evil; he could see that. Everything captured in that smile was the grind of meat being torn from bone and the perverse joy a bully feels when relishing his victim's pain and degradation. The detail was amazing, yet reality was it was just subtle markings formed by the happenstance of nature into an illusion molded into the grain of the wood. But it was there. He could even see the fine lines of the edges of the scales covering the goatish horns that curved away from either side of the bony and hairless skull.
"Lee!” Ted broke into the reverie. “What's wrong with you, son?” Both Ed and his dad were staring at him. “Get over here and take the picture of your mother back to your room, quick now, before Maggie comes back."
Lee let the reunion photograph down catching the wire on the hook, covering the demon creature's face, then quickly balanced it back and forth until it was level.
"Come on,” his dad called impatiently.
Lee stepped over quickly and took the picture.
"Go on,” he ordered. “Do what I told you, and put it back in your room."
When Lee came back, Uncle Ed and his dad were sitting up close to the bowl of chips, taking turns at the dip.
His dad looked up. “You don't really remember much about your mom, do you son?"
"Just bits and pieces.” Lee sat down and picked up his drink. “I remember when she was sick. I remember going to the hospital.” Lee felt a little anxious. It wasn't very often that anyone talked to him about his real mom, much less asked him what he remembered about her.
"She was special,” his dad said wistfully.
"One of a kind,” added Ed.
Before anyone could say anything else, the three girls came flying out of the kitchen followed by Maggie and Miss Laura.
"We're going to get these wild Indians settled down,” Miss Laura said. “We'll be back in a minute.
Maggie followed along, surprisingly carrying Charlene.
Ed lit a smoke, then got up and grabbed his beer. “Hey, why don't you show me that bike?"
He didn't have to ask twice.
Outside, it was beautifully dark. The dew had fallen early like it often did this time of year, and everything had a slight glisten to it. The cars in the driveway looked even shinier with the light from the porch reflecting off the chrome. With Uncle Ed following right behind, Lee led the way to the garage. Once there, he unlatched the side door and reached in turning on the light. The garage was full of junk piled up. There wasn't room to park the car, but Lee had found a nice spot by the workbench to stand his bike.
"Whoa,” Uncle Ed whistled, “now that's what I'd call a bike."
Lee tried not to beam like a little kid, but he couldn't help it. Under the dingy yellow light of the garage's single bulb that bike was just about the most beautiful sight he'd ever seen and it was all his.
Uncle Ed stepped up and grabbed a handle bar. “Been riding it much?"
"Yeah, it's great."
"What about this?” Uncle Ed fingered the switch above the light. “It's got a light and everything, huh?"
Lee switched it on and wiggled the handlebars causing the beam of light to shift around on the garage door.
Ed finished his cigarette, just grinding it out on the floor, and took a gulp of his beer, then stretched out, raising the bottle up almost to the lowest rafters. “Man you got some junk in here. Who's going to get to clean all this out mess out?” Dropping his arms he took another drink. “You I bet."
Lee stepped over to the bench and picked up his polishing rag. Stepping back he buffed at a smudge on the top of the back mudguard. “I guess so,” he came back.
"You're dad tells me you busted your butt over there, working at the Ballard's. He says you've been showing some real grown up responsibility.” He winked at Lee. “Not just getting into trouble."
Lee couldn't help but smile, then with a devilish look of his own he grinned back at Uncle Ed. “What my dad doesn't know won't hurt him."
Uncle Ed held his beer out and pointed at Lee stretching out a finger. “Words of wisdom, my boy, words of wisdom. Man, if my dad had found out about half the stuff I'd pulled when I was your age,” he whistled again, “I wouldn't be standing here today. He'd have strung me up for sure.” He pointed again with the same finger. “You missed a spot there."
Lee rubbed the fresh fingerprint Uncle Ed had left on the handlebar only moments before.
"You're really taking damn good care of that bike. Don't blame you, it's a beauty.” He took the last swig draining the sudsy dregs.
Lee threw the cloth on the workbench and stood back admiringly. “I bet I like my new bike about as much as you like your new T-Bird, huh, Uncle Ed?"
"I'd imagine maybe even more, Lee."
"Wanna trade?"
Ed broke out laughing, gathering Lee around the shoulder he began ushering him toward the door. “If I keep drinking your father's beer like this I may need to take you up on that. I'll probably be too shit-faced to drive home."
Lee switched off the light; it was one of those old ones, with a switch that twisted instead of moving up and down. Taking a last look into the darkness, for just a moment, he thought he saw something move.
Uncle Ed was lighting another cigarette. “What you doing?” he called back.
Lee blinked, staring into the gloom. It's like at the moment the garage went dark someone had moved. He switched back on the light, nothing, just junk.
Quickly, he again switched off the light and closed the door. But the fine hairs on the back of his neck were standing on end. He had a brief flash in his mind, a remembrance of the dust devil he and Phoebe had seen. He had to run to catch up with Uncle Ed, who was by now almost to the porch stairs.
"Think about that trade, huh, Uncle Ed?” he said when they both got to the stairs.
"You can count on it Lee. Give yourself a couple of years, least ‘til you get your driver's license, and we'll work something out.” Uncle Ed grabbed the handle to the screen door. “Of course now, you've got to keep that bike in that same brand new A-one condition."
"No problem, Uncle Ed.” Lee stepped ahead and grabbed the screen door's handle. “The same goes for the T-Bird, right?"
The June bugs, gnats, and moths were going crazy, orbiting in random formation around the porch light. To them, their whole universe revolved around that one bulb.
Ed waved at the bugs. “Come on, go on in, before we let all the bugs in Parson's county in the house. Maggie'll kill you and me both, and then you won't have to be worrying about any T-Bird."
When they came back in Maggie was snuggled in against Ted on the end of the sofa where Lee had been sitting. His dad was rubbing her right shoulder using the hand he had around her, and Maggie's second glass was almost empty. Miss Laura was at the other end giving Charlene a bottle, holding her gently, and rocking the baby to and fro in her lap. When Lee and Ed entered, she looked up and put a finger to her lips.
"The girls?” Ed whispered as he sat down in the overstuffed chair.
"They're quieting down,” Miss Laura hushed, though she didn't really need to speak so softly. “Should
be asleep in a few minutes."
Lee decided not to sit in the chair Maggie had earlier brought in from the dining room table, so he set up camp at the foot of the chair Ed now occupied, leaning back and spreading his legs out wide.
The night had started to cool down. The constant provided by the whirling ceiling fan added just the right touch to a spent summer's day. The cicadas outside had found their rhythm, the insistent buzzing rising and falling like slow ground swells far out at sea. It was one of those rich natural backgrounds like the aroma of the giant Magnolia out in the front yard. If you made the effort to notice the thick, sharp smell of the huge, white flowers or listened for the undulating hum of the millions of insects, it would stay with you for a while, settling you down, until something less important could steal your thoughts away.
Miss Laura put the bottle down and held Charlene up, patting her softly on the back. Startling the peaceful atmosphere that had slowly settled in, the baby suddenly let out with a tremendous burp.
Ed held up his new beer and put up his thumb. “A chip off the old block.” To illustrate his point he let one loose of his own.
Not ever to be outdone, Ted worked up one that didn't have Ed's duration, but had a good resonance, especially considering it was done on the spur of the moment.
"Disgusting. Absolutely disgusting,” Miss Laura shook her head and then put the baby down on the patchwork quilt she'd lain out on the floor. She looked to Maggie, who hadn't seemed to have noticed. “Men,” she said. “I can't for the life of figure out why I love’ em so.” Miss Laura sat back and lightly crossed her legs, affecting an air of total ease.
Unlike Maggie, who was wearing new Capri pants with a nice, sleeveless print blouse Lee had never seen before, Miss Laura was wearing a flowing white, gauzy cotton skirt and a loosely fitting, lace-trimmed blouse with puffed out sleeves. This ensemble, along with her long, dark curls, thick, false eyelashes and creamy white complexion helped her carry on in the tradition of taste and style demanded by the generations of southern belles from whom she touted her lineage. He'd heard his dad say she came from an old, landed family from somewhere down near the coast. And Miss Laura, of course, had been president of her sorority, the youngest ever, and voted homecoming queen in her sophomore year. Ed, a senior, had been her real date to the homecoming festivities, but hadn't been elected the homecoming king. He'd torn a knee ligament two weeks earlier, ending his college football career, and had gone to the dance on crutches.
Evil Heights, Book II: Monster in the House Page 21
