The Poe Consequence

by Keith Steinbaum

  Kevin followed reluctantly, a bad feeling in his gut. Veronica wasted no time when Seth opened his door. “Alex told us you found something that your Uncle Kevin was hiding. Do you have any idea what he means?”

  Seth looked at them both, not saying a word. A slow nod of his head followed. He looked at Kevin again and said, “You promised.”

  “Promised what?” Veronica asked.

  “Whatever it is, just out with it, okay?” Kevin said angrily.

  Seth’s eyes narrowed. “Remember when Grandma was here on Labor Day and how mad she got when she found your bottle of scotch?”

  “Yes,” he answered, his throat drying.

  “You promised you were gonna stop drinking, but you didn’t!”

  Seth hurried to his bed, reached underneath, and revealed the proof. Kevin heard Veronica’s gasp. “You made me the same promise,” she said, continuing to eye the bottle. “I suspected something but I didn’t want to believe it.” She stared down at her feet. “I feel so stupid.”

  “C’mon, you two,” he said. “You’re both seeing something that isn’t there. I found that bottle in the driveway when I came home from work. I put it in the recycle container, okay?” Kevin chuckled. “I can’t believe you really thought it was mine.”

  “I found it inside the kitchen trash bag, Uncle Kevin.”

  She wheeled around to face him. “I’d leave right now if it wasn’t for Alex,” she said, her voice cracking. “We’ll both be gone in the morning.”

  “Veronica, wait! Let me explain.”

  “Explain what, Kevin?” she asked. “Why you lied to my face?”

  “Please forgive me, Veronica. I love you.”

  “You love me?” she said, her tone filled with bitterness. “Well, I see something you obviously love more, Kevin. It’s that empty bottle that Seth found. I can’t be around a man who drinks like you do, don’t you understand? I’ve experienced enough pain in my life because of alcohol. I refuse to go through it again!”

  Kevin watched in silence as Veronica broke into tears and ran from the room. He turned to look at Seth. “Are you happy now?”

  “No,” he replied. “Why should I be happy?”

  Kevin wondered if his nephew’s answer was a comment about his own relationship with him. “Call me if you need me,” he said. “I’m going out.”

  * * *

  He tried to get drunk, “to forget about life for a while,” as that old Billy Joel song said, but the scotch couldn’t anesthetize his pain and provide a retreat from the reality of his latest failures. He had come full circle from those alcoholic days of his twenties, back to finding easy reasons to drink, working through his alcoholism at work, and losing the love of a wonderful woman. The continual replay in his mind of Veronica running from the room and out of his life destroyed something inside of him. Two scotches later, nothing had changed.

  When he first entered the bar, he saw his drinking buddy, Don, sitting at his usual place. They had gotten to know each other well enough through the last couple of months to share personal information, and tonight Kevin needed someone to talk to.

  “…and that’s when she ran out of the room,” he said. “I’m telling you, Don, if looks could kill, Veronica would be held on murder charges tonight.”

  “Maybe you’re overreacting,” Don said. “You know the way women are. They’re so moody, you don’t know which way the wind blows with them half the time. Maybe she’ll feel differently tomorrow.”

  Kevin shook his head. “I blew it,” he replied. “She’s as solid as they come. I love that woman. I even pictured us getting married one day. Now she doesn’t give a damn about me.”

  Don guzzled some more of his drink and started nodding emphatically. “I can relate to that, Kevin,” he said. “Three marriages and three divorces later, I’m on several women’s shit list, believe me. And I swear, it all started from my first mother-in-law’s promise to haunt me for eternity when she found out I was cheating on her daughter. If there’s such a thing as cursing someone from the grave, she sure is keeping her word. I can’t keep a wife, can’t hold a job, can’t get along with my kids…” Don downed his second drink and called for another. “Ready for a trifecta, my friend?”

  Kevin looked at his watch. “I better leave,” he said. “I’ve got a kid at home and a job I’m trying to keep.”

  On the way to his car, Kevin reminded himself that he had a long drive into Orange County’s Little Saigon district the next morning. He closed his door and rubbed his face with his hands, trying to clear his mind. The thought of putting on an act for his Vietnamese hosts as if nothing was wrong depressed him even more. I’m not ready to go home yet.

  Kevin drove his car up Coldwater Canyon Drive toward Mulholland Drive, intent on finding a good lookout spot where he could park and gaze down at the Valley. Staring out at the expanse of glimmering lights from high above had always been a source of tranquility for him, and he believed that’s what he needed now. His impatience to get there increased his need for speed, and as he accelerated up the winding hill, he raced past several cars along the way. Jumbled thoughts flashed in and out of his mind like a kaleidoscope. I’m such an asshole…How could I have blown it like that with Veronica?...It’s always one step forward, two steps back with Seth…He resents me more than ever now…How much longer until I’m fired?...My life is nothing without Veronica.

  Kevin made a sharp right turn on Mulholland, working his way back toward the speed he had reached heading up Coldwater Canyon. His windows were down and he reveled in the sensation of the wind blowing against his face. He started driving faster along the winding curves. Forty-five miles an hour. Fifty miles an hour. I lied to Veronica. I lied to Seth. I lied to Mom. Hell, I even lied to myself. What a fucking loser. An overwhelming depression seemed to overtake him as he glanced at the lights of the city far below. Maybe I should just fly off the goddamn cliff and be with Warren again. “CAN YOU HEAR ME, WARREN?” he cried out. “ARE YOU READY TO SEE YOUR BRO AGAIN?” Kevin laughed a dark laugh. “WE CAN BE LIKE DON’S MOTHER-IN-LAW AND CURSE THE FUCKING GANGBANGERS FROM THE GRAVE TOGETHER. JUST LIKE YOU TALKED TO ME ABOUT!”

  Suddenly an oncoming driver appeared from out of a blind turn, honking furiously. Kevin had veered into the other lane, approaching within a few seconds from slamming into the car. He jerked his steering wheel to the right to avoid a collision, then back to the left in order to stay on the road, but his high speed and sudden movements caused his car to fishtail and lose control. The screeching tires echoed in his ears as he closed his eyes and screamed, believing that he was doomed to slide over the edge of the cliff.

  The next sound he heard pierced his consciousness as distinctively as a sonic boom. Silence. Kevin’s eyes fluttered open as his senses concluded that he was, indeed, still here. He looked through the windshield and saw a crystal clear view of the Valley, yet he remained unsure what had happened and where he’d stopped. He got out and stared in disbelief at the front of his car, resting no more than a couple of feet from the long drop into the canyon below. He gazed out at the Valley again. The view had never looked so beautiful. “I’m alive,” he whispered in a trembling voice. Through the peaceful stillness of the surrounding darkness, he threw his hands over his face and wept.

  * * *

  Kevin drove back down Coldwater Canyon in a daze, shaken by how close he had come to dying, and sickened by the thought that he had momentarily considered suicide. “Seth’s already lost his mom and dad,” he told himself. “He doesn’t need to lose me, too.” The night had been a long one and he felt exhausted. He thought back to earlier that evening, before all the shit came down, when Seth innocently asked about the meaning of the “four a.m.” notation inside the outline of the heart. Something he had said struck Kevin as thought provoking, although not to be taken seriously, of course. Seth had quoted that line from “The Tell-Tale Heart,” about the murderer hiding the victim’s heart at four a.m. That’s the kind of silly daydream Warren talked abo
ut the morning of his murder. Whoever caused the heart attacks of the gangbangers seemed to have a certain Poe signature to his work, just like Warren fantasized about.

  Kevin dissected whatever details he could remember of that conversation. He was talking about that psychic in New Orleans. She told him he’d be killed, and that he’d get revenge for his death. He talked about gangbangers and what he’d do to them if that psychic turned out to be right. Then he recited Poe lines about ‘icy hearts’ and ‘sick hearts’. “I should read through that Poe book,” he whispered. “Maybe I’ll find some clues in there about the murderer.” Kevin gazed up through his windshield at the starless sky. “What do you think of that, Warren?” he said. “Looks like you’ve got someone doing your dirty work for you.”

  CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE

  The sealant for Alex’s newly replaced window needed a little more time to dry, so Veronica opted to sit and wait at the auto shop with Alex. She preferred spending the extra moments with her brother before saying goodbye. He’d be going back home now, and she couldn’t be sure if, or when, she’d see him again. She hoped it would be as soon as a few more weeks.

  “Will you stick around for Thanksgiving this year?” she asked.

  “Yeah,” he answered. “The old man’s not around to fuck things up anymore.”

  “Good,” she remarked, “I’ll see you there.”

  Veronica’s cell phone rang. Grasping it from inside her purse, she read Kevin’s name on the caller screen. She hesitated, unsure whether to answer or not. “Hello, Kevin,” she said.

  “I’ve got some bad news, Veronica,” he said, his voice sounding tense. “I just got off the phone with the principal from Clearpoint School. Some boys attacked Seth a while ago.”

  “Oh, no,” she whispered. “Is he hurt?”

  “What happened?” Alex asked, leaning closer.

  “He was held by some boys as another one grabbed his neck and kneed him in the stomach,” Kevin explained. “Then they hit him in the face.” Kevin’s voice faltered as he continued. “The nurse says they bloodied his lip and his stomach is sore but she doesn’t think there’s any internal injury.” She heard him choke back a quick sob before he continued. “Four boys, Veronica. Four! He’s lucky a teacher spotted what was going on or else he could’ve been hurt a lot worse.”

  “I feel so bad for him, Kevin,” she said. “I wonder if he was still upset about last night.”

  “That had nothing to do with it,” Kevin grumbled. “The Principal told me Seth was by himself when he was assaulted. He was threatened earlier but didn’t strike back. The boys who did it were older friends of some kids who were found smoking in the bathroom. They thought Seth told on them because he was the last one in there before they got caught. But he had nothing to do with it. The teacher who busted those kids told the principal he smelled the cigarettes from the hallway. No one had to tell him anything.”

  “He can’t catch a break,” Veronica muttered with disgust.

  “Seems that way,” he replied. “Seth would have been in his P.E. class but we washed his gym clothes yesterday and he forgot to bring them back. He was sent inside to help a teacher. That’s when he went to the bathroom.”

  “Were the boys Latino?” she asked.

  “Yes. One of them was the older brother of a kid that Seth got in a fight with a long time ago. Maybe he used the cigarette thing as an excuse, I don’t know.”

  “Veronica, what the hell happened to Seth?” Alex asked again.

  “Wait,” she whispered.

  “Those boys found him sitting by himself during a recess period. He told the principal he went there ‘to think’, whatever that means.”

  “He had a lot on his mind, Kevin.”

  “I know he did, Veronica, but you’re the only one I can turn to right now. Is there any chance you can have your assistant run things at the Day Care Center for a few hours so you could bring him home? I’ll leave here now if I have to, but I’m in Orange County on an assignment and it’ll take me at least an hour and a half to get back.”

  “I’ll call over there,” she said. “But please hurry back.”

  “Thank you,” he said. “I’d give anything to be at that school right now, looking each of those little punks in the eyes. Principal Lee told me she was going to make them apologize in front of me, but now you’ll have the honor, I guess.”

  “I’m more concerned about Seth than hearing what they have to say.”

  “Four older boys attacking one younger one,” he groused. “That’s the kind of bullshit that goes on with gangs, where groups of them attack one person. I’ve never understood how ‘bangers can act so tough when they always have others there to help them. If you can’t walk it on your own don’t talk like you’re the man.” Veronica heard Kevin respond to someone in the background. “I’ve got to go,” he said. “I’ll call the school to let them know you’re coming. Tell Seth I’ll be home this afternoon.”

  “I’ll be there as soon as I can,” she said.

  “Veronica?”

  “Yes?”

  “I really hope we can talk soon. I have something I need to tell you.”

  Alex, who insisted on knowing everything Kevin had told her, questioned Veronica. When she described the part about Seth sitting off by himself to ‘think,’ Alex responded by saying something unusual.

  “He did what I told him to do.”

  “What do you mean?” she asked.

  “That when the heat’s on, it’s best to get away sometimes. To think about shit, you know? That’s what he done.” Alex shook his head. “Those little assholes crashed his time alone. That ain’t right.”

  Veronica rose from her chair. “I have to go get Seth,” she said.

  “Wait,” he told her. “I’ll follow you.”

  Veronica shook her head. “Forget it, Alex. Seth’s been through enough already.”

  Alex bolted out of his chair, glaring at Veronica. “And he’ll go through a lot more shit if we let it happen,” he growled. “He’s a young kid gonna get fucked up in the head without some help from me. What happened today ain’t gonna do him no good. I’m the one can make him right, you understand?” He placed his hand on her shoulder. “I know what I’m doin’.”

  “I don’t think it’s the right time for him to see you again.”

  Alex stepped back, his eyes narrowing. “You said everyone’s gonna be in that principal’s office, right?”

  “Right.”

  “Then trust me,” he told her. “It’s the perfect time to see me again.”

  * * *

  Sitting with his shoulders hunched in Principal Lee’s office, Seth cradled and massaged his tender stomach with one hand as he held an ice pack to his swollen lip with the other. He thought about the last time he’d been here. They sent him home after attacking Esteban Medina for throwing an avocado at him. Principal Lee was mad at him that day, but she seemed angrier this time, scolding the four Mexican eighth graders who sat facing her in a row of chairs on the other side of her desk.

  They had threatened him earlier; calling him a snitch for telling on their friends who got caught smoking in the bathroom. Even though he hadn’t said anything, they didn’t believe him, and they came after him later. He would have defended himself, especially against Lorenzo Gonzalez’s older brother, Ramiro, who used to warn him about ‘kicking his white ass’ for fighting with his brother on the playground, but they outnumbered him four to one. Instead, he decided to follow Alex’s advice and find a spot to sit alone and figure out how to deal with the situation.

  He saw things in a different way from before. He liked to talk with Veronica after she finished her tutoring, and she told him stories about her old neighborhood and some of her old friends. She got him to realize that there were good Mexican people, too, and that they cared about their families like anyone else. But a lot of them lived in poor neighborhoods, like where his dad was killed, and the parents lived in fear for themselves and their children. That idea m
ade a lot of sense to him. He had experienced the fear that they felt, but he didn’t have to live there all the time. He felt bad for the people who couldn’t escape from those places that had gangs. He thought about Alex. Alex was in a gang—one of the ones responsible for killing his dad. How could that be possible? He didn’t seemed like a gang member, but so what? He could never be friends with him again.

  Everyone looked toward the door as the Assistant Principal entered the room.

  “Yes, Mrs. Petrovich?” Principal Lee said.

  “The woman that Mr. Palmer called us about is here.”

  “Ask her to sit down, please. I’ll be right out.”

  Principal Lee directed her attention back to the four boys. “We need to go speak with the woman who came for Seth. All of us. I want her to meet the four eighth grade boys who must be so proud of themselves for ganging up on a sixth grader. Each one of you will apologize to Seth in front of her. And I better be convinced that your apologies are sincere, or your punishment will be worse than it is already.”

  The boys rose and followed her to the door. Ramiro Gonzalez remained in his chair until the other three walked ahead. As he got up, he glanced at Seth and mouthed the words, “Fuck you.” As Seth trailed behind, Ramiro held one hand in back of his head, as if he was scratching it. What he really did, however, was give him the finger. Seth’s eyes focused on Ramiro’s hand, so he didn’t understand why the four boys stopped so suddenly, almost colliding into one another, as they entered the waiting room. Ramiro’s hand flew off his head and back down to his side, as if he had burned his fingers on his hair. Seth just wanted to see Veronica and go home, so he walked around the four boys toward the center of the room. As he looked up, he, too, came to an immediate halt. Glaring at the eighth graders with a look that gave him the shivers, was Alex.

  “Hi, Seth,” Veronica said, rising from her chair. “Your friend here insisted on coming.”

  “Are you hurt, Seth?” Alex asked, his eyes remaining fixed on the four boys.