by JJ Liniger
“Will your mom care if I get something to eat?”
“You ask a lot of questions. We can get fruits and vegetables anytime. You probably can, too.”
“Thanks.”
I returned to the kitchen and rummaged through the refrigerator. I found a bag of carrots and several apples. The house was silent except for Hannah’s bedroom. Quietly, I opened the first door along the hallway. Stepping into the boys’ room, I didn’t expect to find the backpack but still searched the open space and the closet.
Moving to the next door, I paused. The only unexplored area was Alex and Tiffany’s bedroom. I should respect their privacy. But, I couldn’t let this opportunity for answers pass me by.
In contrast to the tidiness of the rest of the house, their bedroom had an explosion of stuff in every corner. Laundry baskets, spilling with clothes stacked high on dressers and tables. The desk had books and mail scattered in random piles.
Good luck finding anything of importance in this mess.
A quick inspection showed the closet in equal disarray. I left the bedroom and leaned against the doorframe of Hannah’s room, carrots and apple in hand.
“Come on, Barbie, let’s party!” she said and stretched, turning the music louder. She made the various dolls dance to the music. I watched her voice the characters as the dolls talked to each other.
“Here, have a drink,” Barbie told the male doll who I assumed to be Ken.
“Thank you, Monica.” Ken took an imaginary sip.
The two dolls swayed and stumbled into each other with Hannah’s innocent voice giggling for them. The music, dancing, and drinking reminded me of the party at Alex’s house celebrating our high school graduation. I drank to the point that I had no idea what I was doing and remembered nothing the next morning.
Hannah never said what the dolls were drinking, but their movements appeared drunk. Bumping into each other could’ve been an accident. Hannah wasn’t the most coordinated kid, stumbling often. Maybe her characters did as well.
“Let’s go upstairs,” Ken whispered to Barbie.
The girl walked the dolls up the stairs of the plastic house. She had two dolls sitting on the couch. I imagined in her mind they were talking to each other and enjoying the same party as Barbie and Ken.
I hadn’t ever watched a kid play before and wasn’t sure what to expect. It was more entertaining than I would’ve thought. Quietly, I ate the carrots.
On the top floor of the house rested a bright pink canopy bed and a balcony with a hot tub jutted out further. A sticker against the wall displayed a window. The two dolls walked to the top and Hannah moved their arms around each other and pushing their faces together in a kiss.
I almost laughed, but didn’t want to interrupt her. I finished the carrots and crunched the apple. It didn’t take me long to choke as provocative moans came out of her little mouth. Alex and Tiffany’s walls must've been thinner than they realized. Barbie and Ken’s clothes dropped to the floor and they made it to the bed, humping each other.
What on earth?
The innocent giggles combined with the graphic representation of her dolls made for a troubling combination. Had something inappropriate happened to Hannah? I hoped not. Would she play like this if her mother was home?
Should I make her stop? It wasn’t my business, and I had no authority to tell her what to do. But I'd mention it to Alex and Tiffany. Obviously, their daughter had been exposed to something to which she shouldn’t have been exposed.
After what felt like an eternity, Barbie and Ken lay quietly with only the sound of snores. Hannah took Ken, dressed him, and marched him out the door.
Dang.
“Next day,” Hannah said.
Barbie awakened and looked around. “Trevor? Trevor, where are you?”
What? Why did she do that? Did she say my name because I’m here? Even if that was the case, I didn’t like being included in her play, especially as the jerk.
Hannah put Barbie’s clothes on her and had her run down the stairs. She met Ken outside the house. “Last night was—”
“Awful,” Ken said. “Gee, Monica. I can’t remember a thing.”
That seemed like an odd detail to include in her play. After her saying my name, I thought about the scene I had watched. The characters dancing at a party, drinking, having sex, and then not remembering it the next day. It wasn’t exactly the same, but seemed too familiar.
“What? You can’t remember? No...” Barbie said and Hannah pretended to cry. “Then leave! I don’t want to ever see you again.” Barbie slapped Ken and ran behind the house.
I would’ve cheered for Barbie had I not been Ken. The same words echoed in my mind from long ago. It wasn’t from an innocent little girl, but from my high school girlfriend, Monica Ortiz.
Did we sleep together, and I didn’t remember?
We had known each other all our lives and been friends for years before we started dating the summer before our senior year in high school. Her unruly black hair drove her crazy and thin glasses framed her almond eyes. With a bubbly personality and a familiar warmth, Monica became friends with the whole school.
It took someone special to bridge the gaps naturally created with high school cliques, but she did so with ease. We made it through prom, knowing many of our friends would find secluded places to go. Monica wanted to wait until we married. I wasn’t a fan, but respected her decision.
I loved her and never understood why she broke up with me after the party. I called her home so many times her parents changed their number and threatened to call the police if I came to the door. Six months after I arrived at Columbia, I heard she left Becton, erasing any chance of seeing her again. I was sad and disappointed.
“I’m having a baby,” said a voice too young to be pregnant.
My head snapped to Hannah. Barbie’s hands clutched over her stomach. She remained behind the house. Blocks were set up on either side of her, creating a pit-like look. Various pieces of blue bunched together beneath the doll.
“The ravine water is so cold,” Barbie said. Hannah shook her hand to make it appear like the doll was shivering and then she gave a soft scream. I jumped, but couldn’t take my eyes away from the scene. Hannah dug into a plastic box with various other doll furniture and accessories. She found a tiny baby doll and cradled it onto the pieces of blue inside the pretend pit.
My skin prickled, and I felt the contents in my stomach threaten to return.
Please tell me I didn’t have a child out there somewhere that I know nothing about!
My pulse quickened. My dad’s written words danced across my mind. ‘The Boy’s black hair and crooked smile reminds me of Trevor at that age. Carole thought the same thing.’ Dad had gone to church and seen a boy raised by Reverend Brown, but no one knew where he came from.
Oh, God! What should I do?
“I hate you!” Hannah said as Barbie held the baby by its head, shaking him violently. “From the place HE was born, poison came. It filtered into the water and throughout—”
The front door slammed, and Hannah jumped and quickly knocked over the blocks, destroying the evidence of her play. That answered my question on whether she would’ve played like this if her mother were home. Unfortunately, her performance left me with more questions than answers. No, that wasn’t true. I had more answers than I knew what to do with. I needed logic and reason to come along with them.
“From the place HE was born, poison came.” The phrase echoed in my mind. It made me think of the binder discussing historical plagues. Some mysterious poison causing Becton’s fall.
The blood drained from my face and my breathing felt shallow. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t get enough air. The things Hannah said were impossible, but for some reason, I believed them.
“Hannah! Trevor?” Tiffany yelled, looking down the hall. “Hey Trev… What’s wrong?”
CHAPTER 14
CATCHING UP
“Mom!” Hannah squealed. She abandoned her dolls on the flo
or, skipped to her mother, and bumped into me to hug Tiffany.
She held her daughter, but her eyes didn’t leave mine.
I needed to answer what was wrong, but I couldn’t. My brain felt bombarded with information. I didn’t know where to start.
“I’m having hot tea. Want some?” Tiffany asked. Her eyes narrowed, lips clamped tightly. Clearly, I wasn’t her favorite person, but concern seemed to trump her annoyance. She cared, even if she’d never admit to it.
“Yes, thanks. Did you see Mom?” I asked.
Tiffany nodded. “She made it through surgery fine. They wanted her to rest today. Without visitors, if possible.”
“I’m sure the doc didn’t mean me.” I took a deep breath and released it slowly, running a nervous hand through my messy black hair.
“It would be better if you don’t.” She glanced at her daughter, taking her hand. They walked to the kitchen. “You didn’t wake him up, did you?”
“Nope! I didn’t even leave my room.” Hannah giggled, looking proud of herself for following directions.
I kept in step with them. “That’s true.”
Tiffany filled a kettle with water and placed it on the stove, turning the burner to high.
“Go join your brothers in the backyard.”
“Do I have to?” Hannah asked. “I could go to my room and read.”
“No, go keep an eye on your brothers for me. They need to burn off energy before nap time. You can come back inside and finish your book then.”
“But—”
“Now!” Tiffany narrowed her eyes at her daughter.
“Okay.” The young girl waved to me and then ran at full speed to the back door, bumping into the frame along the way.
I took a seat at the table and released a big sigh. “Thanks for bringing me here. What happened, exactly?” I asked.
“It’s simple. You aren’t sick, so you couldn’t go down there.”
I shook my head. “If that’s true, then why knock me out?”
“All right, fine!” She glared. “We dragged your rear down under and locked you in one of the black out rooms. They cheered.”
“What room?”
“It’s closet size areas we place those with extreme migraines. It’s a transitional stage of those infected. The darkness helps calm them.”
“The crowd must’ve loved that.”
“They were excited,” Tiffany replied. “The only thing that would’ve made them more delighted is if we had thrown you in with HIM. But we didn’t—”
“Who’s that?”
Tiffany paused for a moment and seemed pleased when the kettle whistled. She placed tea bags in each mug. “After the people left, we broke you out the back door and brought you here.”
“Stop avoiding my question!” I glared, frustrated she refused to answer. We were back to secrets again. I’d hoped we had moved past that.
She rolled her eyes. “Stop asking the same question with different words. You’re smarter than that.”
“I will when I start getting answers.”
As she filled the cups with water, the liquid slowly turned golden brown. I stared at the tea and wondered if that was the same way the poison filtered throughout Becton.
Why did I treat a crazy story from a nine-year-old like it actually happened? Granted, people here hated me because of something I did or they thought I did. There’s also HIM, The Boy, IT, HE, that they talked about.
Was HE the baby Hannah said started the poison?
“What’s wrong with you?” Tiffany stirred sugar into her tea.
I told her what Hannah played out with her dolls. Tiffany’s face went red in embarrassment and then paled.
“No way! Oh my gosh!” Tiffany shook her head, eyes wide.
“Yeah. I was surprised by her attention to detail. It seems she’s seen a movie she shouldn’t have. Or, uhm, I think your bedroom walls are a little thin…” I couldn’t help the smirk coming over my lips.
Her cheeks flushed crimson and one hand fell over her face. The other hand shook, and she set the mug on the table with a thud. Liquid spilled over the side. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
It was comical and I could let her simmer in the awkwardness, but that wouldn’t be helpful.
“How did my past become part of your kid’s play? And, why does she know this story?”
“Everyone knows it,” Tiffany answered.
“Why?”
“You saw the people Down Under. Each time family members visit, if their child asks why they’re down there, that’s the answer.” She shrugged. “It’s common.”
I sighed. “According to Hannah, I got my girlfriend pregnant, and she gave birth in the ravine which somehow poisoned the people. Seriously? What the heck?”
“I don’t know that I’ve told Hannah all the story from start to finish, but over the years she’s received bits and pieces, apparently enough to put the details together. I honestly didn’t think about it as something private, but I also never considered that she’d play it out with her dolls.” Tiffany blushed again.
“It’s made up, right?”
Tiffany released her breath and shook her head.
“How’s that possible?” I asked.
“I don’t understand it. But, I know it’s true,” Tiffany answered.
“It’s impossible.”
“The poisoning has happened before in other places.” Tiffany lifted her drink and paused before taking a sip. It made me think of the other binder describing other historical tragedies and wondered if she’d explain it.
“Monica changed.” Tiffany frowned.
“Wait, she left right after I started school. She wouldn’t have been here to give birth.”
“She did leave, sort of.”
I rubbed my head as the ache spread. “This doesn’t make sense.”
“Wait here.”
She stood and walked past the kitchen to the back of the house. I wasn’t sure what she was doing, but believed it would be helpful. After finishing the rest of my tea, my fingers strummed against the table top. It felt like forever since she disappeared.
“Tiffany?” I shouted.
“Keep your pants on. I’m coming.”
I remained as patient as I could. Finally, she lugged back a camouflaged rolling backpack and stopped it close to me. It was the same one I couldn’t find earlier. Where had she stored it?
Unzipping it, she plucked out a thick three-ring binder and set it on the table. Then she sat down next to me, brushing her blonde hair from her shoulder.
“After that party, you weren’t the only person confused by Monica. We all were,” Tiffany said. “You have this odd gift of not seeing yourself the way the rest of us do.”
“That’s good, ‘cause you’re all insane!”
“You’re being extreme.” Tiffany rolled her eyes. “Back in high school you thought you were a loser.”
“It’s true, if it weren’t for Alex and Monica, I wouldn’t have had anyone.”
She shook her head with a frown. “That isn’t true. You could’ve had anyone you wanted.”
“What about you?” I chuckled.
“Did you want me?” she asked, revealing her curiosity.
“No. You were out of my league.”
“Then why ask? Jerk.” She shoved my shoulder. “Never mind. When she broke up with you it surprised us all. We knew you wanted her back, but she didn’t believe it.”
“Good grief. All because I was too drunk to remember? I still cared.”
“Apparently she didn’t see it that way. I visited her once. Her hair looked like it had been in the same braid for days and she had dark circles around her eyes. She rocked back and forth and mumbled to herself.”
“That’s terrible.” My gut twisted. “Couldn’t anyone help her?” I frowned and Tiffany nodded placing her hand over mine. The gesture surprised me, but it had a calming effect which I appreciated.
“Not that I know of. Her family packed up quickly and
moved to Houston. We thought we wouldn’t see her again. We were wrong.”
She opened the binder to clippings from The Chronicle inside a plastic page protector.
So this is the other binder. I peered in closer.
The headline read: “Baby Boy found at First Christian Church.”
It showed a blanket wrapped around an infant exposing his face. I stared at the picture seeing a general resemblance to me, but felt no emotional connection to the image.
Was that normal? Should I feel something?
“No one could figure out where the child came from, but Dr. Worrell guessed he had been born that day,” Tiffany said. “Pastor Brown and his wife agreed to raise him until parents were found. Within the next month, a stomach bug affected almost everyone.”
She flipped the page of the binder to show the next article.
The title read: “New Bacteria Found in Water.”
“Friends of my dad studied the soil, including the ravine. There they found a black crater along the water’s edge. It wasn’t anything they’d seen before and sent samples to the state. The scientists found weird chemicals consistent with a meteorite and told us not to be concerned.” She turned the binder to face me. “Your father didn’t like that answer and looked into damming up the ravine, but was told he couldn’t because it would disrupt the natural habitat of the animals. He ignored them and continued in secret. From that point on, we didn’t report anything to anyone and I guess they assumed we were fine.”
I listened to Tiffany and flipped through the pages, reading as she explained. It sounded simple, but looking at the dates, it took years to figure out.
“Mom!” Hannah yelled from the back door. “Can we come inside now?”
Tiffany looked at the clock on the wall and nodded. “Yes. Help your brothers wash up and I’ll get ya’ll a snack before naps.” She stood from the table and walked to the pantry. “Are you hungry, Trevor?”
“If it isn’t too much trouble.”
“What? You don’t want to cause more?” She smirked. It told me she tried to tease.
“Yeah. Need help?”
“There’s a block of cheddar. If you’ll slice it thinly, I’ll get the crackers and ham.”
