by Chris Keane
Finally, Dante abruptly declared story time over and dragged Angie by the hand to the backyard. As the screen door slammed behind them, Gram hollered, “Hope you saved room for dessert!”
“Sorry about that. I’m sure this is the last place you want to be right now.”
“Are you crazy? I’m having a blast!” Angie replied, giggling.
“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” Dante grumbled. “She’s a real hoot.”
Dante checked his watch, wondering how much longer he would have to endure this humiliation before he could steal away with Angie into the woods for some spicy action. Angie looked so hot in her sundress; he was dying to be with her right now. But he would have to keep his libido in check, at least for the next hour.
During dessert, Gram’s eyes widened, and she stared silently at Angie while she devoured a piece of apple pie.
“Gram. Stop staring at Angie, that’s my job,” Dante said.
Gram didn’t immediately respond. She just kept staring straight ahead as if she hadn’t heard Dante.
“Gram!” Dante said, banging the table with his fist.
Gram looked up, confused. “So, Angie,” Gram asked, “What’s your story?”
“My story?”
“Why aren’t you married yet? You’re pretty enough.”
Angie stiffened in her chair and snapped, “I don’t really think that’s anyone’s business.”
“I just think it’s peculiar is all,” Gram replied, with a snide tone.
“Gram! Stop! Change the subject…right now,” Dante pleaded.
“The whole notion of marriage is antiquated. I mean, half of the people end up divorced anyways,” Angie stated bluntly.
“Well, I don’t believe in divorce. And I don’t think your parents would be too pleased about you fooling around with a boy five years younger!”
“My father treats me like an adult, and my mother is dead!”
“Well, I think she would be very sad to see how you ended up. Alone and uneducated.”
“That’s very hurtful.” Angie wiped tears from her eyes. “Dante, I’m leaving. I’m suddenly feeling sick to my stomach.”
“Good! Don’t want you corrupting my grandson any further!”
For a moment, Dante sat glued to his seat as Angie bolted for the door. “Gram, why did you say those awful things?”
“Trust me! You’re better off without her!”
Dante felt anger begin to boil in his veins, snapping him out of his trance. “Fuck!” he screamed.
“Dante! You know I don’t tolerate that kind of language.”
Dante sprang from his chair and slammed the screen door on his way out. In the distance, he saw Angie running. Before he could catch up with her, she disappeared into the woods.
***
Angie stood in the bathroom staring at herself in the mirror. For the first time, she could spot wrinkles at her laugh lines and the first hint of crows’ feet. As exciting as it was to see yourself grow, it was equally eerie seeing yourself age. She had officially bloomed and was now experiencing the negative aspect of aging. She had aged at least a couple years in the past week, since missing her period.
For the longest time, she had been like clockwork. But one day had turned into two, two into three. Now it had been over a week and she was starting to panic. She had scoured her father’s office for pregnancy tests but came up empty. Most of her father’s female patients were old and well past their child-bearing years.
Buying a test in town would set off a firestorm of gossip she wasn’t ready to deal with at the moment. The only other option was driving out of town, to somewhere in Albany where people had better things to do than judge other peoples’ sex lives. But her father had taken off with the car last night and had yet to return. Angie was pretty sure he was sleeping at Crystal’s place somewhere; however, she wasn’t quite ready to deal with the fact that her dad was dating a stripper.
Since last night’s debacle at dinner Angie was in no mood to speak with Dante, but she really had no choice. Angie trudged through the woods towards Dante’s, feeling every step of the journey. She dreaded telling him the news; it was a lot to process, even for herself.
When Angie crossed the tree line bordering Gram’s property, she found Dante tossing rocks at a stack of soda cans in the back yard. The second he spotted Angie, he jumped up, startled.
“I need to tell you something,” Angie said, solemnly.
“What’s the matter? Are you dumping me?” Dante asked, trying to keep it together.
“No, I’m not dumping you, but it’s really important.”
“Just tell me!” Dante whined, jumping around like a gorilla.
“Ok. Well, you know, I didn’t want to bother you about this. But it’s come to a point, where I think you deserve to know…”
“Know what?”
“I’m late.”
“You’re late?”
“About a week.”
“That’s impossible!”
“Not really. We did have a bunch of sex…”
“But…I used a condom!”
“Not every single time.”
“Holy shit!”
“Listen. Dante. I’m telling you because I’m worried about this, but it’s not for sure though.”
“Have you been late before?”
“No,” she replied, softly.
“Holy shit! Holy shit!”
“Calm down, Dante! You’re freaking me out!”
“I can’t be a dad!” Dante took off like a bat out of hell. Angie watched as he circled the house and ran down the road.
“Oh for fuck’s sake!” Angie screamed after him, tossing her backpack onto the ground. “Your parents are right! You’re a big BABY!”
Angie was fuming. Guys were always there for you, ready to lay down their lives until you let them in your pants. Then suddenly, things got too complicated, too close, and they couldn’t deal with it anymore. There was no doubt about it. Whenever the fun was done, guys took off at ninety miles per hour toward the nearest exit sign. She had thought Dante was somehow different because he was sweet and romantic. But now she realized, he was just a kid, living with his grandmother. She had robbed the cradle and now was suffering the consequences. Angie picked up her backpack and headed toward the town graveyard.
In the five years since her death, Angie had only visited her mom’s grave on a handful of occasions. On that dark March day, her brain couldn’t fully process the vacuum her mother had left behind. For weeks after losing her, Angie would bust into her mom’s room with a question or some good news, only to find the room empty. In the middle of the night, when her problems felt heaviest she would immediately think of her mom, and then once again come to the unreal realization that she was no longer with her.
Angie weaved through groups of mourners with bouquets of flowers to lay at the other graves. Whatever criticisms Angie had about the town residents, they were extremely devoted to their departed. Except of course, she and her father. Somehow, they were always the outliers.
Seeing the unadorned gray stone was a real kick in the gut. She fell to the ground, holding back tears. The last promise she had made to her mother had hung over her like a cloud every day since. She would go to college. She would get a degree. She would get a little something for herself before settling down with a man. Men were entertaining but, aside from the odd exceptions like her father, highly unreliable. Even if she were married with kids, the guy could still take off with his secretary. At the time, her advice seemed cynical and borderline paranoid, but lately she was thinking her mom had been exactly correct.
***
Doctor Sewall peeled out of the driveway. Crystal had text him she was feeling really dizzy and then had sent nothing since. Her condo was all the way on the other side of town, and took a least twenty minutes at the legal speed. He thought of calling an ambulance but their response time was abysmal, and then she would end up at the local hospital; the place was a germ-filled mess, run by an i
ncompetent staff with no budget and ancient equipment.
Ten minutes later, Dr. Sewall busted through Crystal’s door. She had collapsed right in the middle of the living room. The TV was on full blast and something in the kitchen smelled like it was burning.
When Dr. Sewall rushed to her side, Crystal was still breathing and otherwise looked okay. But after several attempts wake her up, he gave her a shot of adrenaline from his emergency bag. Almost instantly, she popped up, gasping for air as he secured her in his arms.
Crystal stared lovingly into Doctor Sewall’s eyes. “You came.”
“How long?” He asked, sternly.
“I started getting dizzy spells a couple months ago. Then I passed out a few times, but I always woke up on my own,” she said, staring at the large hypodermic needle on the hardwood floor.
“You should have told me!”
“I was going to…but I didn’t want you to think I was using you.”
“That’s ridiculous.”
Doctor Sewall pressed his hands firmly to Crystal’s stomach and then slowly worked them up her chest until she screamed in agony.
“Same spot,” he reported.
“My liver?”
Doctor Sewall nodded solemnly.
“Well, can you fix me up again?”
“It’s not that simple.”
“You did it last time.”
“I doubt a Band-Aid will work this time. We’ll do another scan. But if things are more advanced will need to use some outside the box thinking…if you’re even comfortable with that.”
“Listen, Doc. I don’t care how you do it. I just need it done.”
18
Tipping point
Dante couldn’t sleep. He had been walking the walls all night, trying to escape the cell he had created for himself. Without a complete lobotomy, there was no way to erase the image of himself working at McDonald’s for seven bucks an hour, living in his parents’ basement, with a disgruntled Angie coddling a screaming baby.
Under the bed, he found the discarded Maxim magazine his brother had given him when he arrived. It seemed like a million years ago. It seemed nearly as long since he had last had a sexy thought. The fear of fatherhood had frozen him from the waist down; he felt asexual.
Dante tossed the magazine into the tiny garbage pail and stared out the window at the stream rushing behind the house, until, out of nowhere Angie appeared.
Dante bolted to the front door to head her off at the pass. He definitely didn’t want another debacle with Gram. He stepped out onto the porch, where Angie was standing.
Her eyes were red and puffy. Her thick crown of red hair was pulled up into a tight bun, and he could smell her body odor from a few feet away. Despite her ragged state, seeing her made him realize how much he had missed her.
He could barely contain his excitement and yelled, “Hey!”
“Hello Dante,” Angie said flatly.
“How are you?”
“How do you think?”
“Um, yeah. I’m sorry I haven’t been by. The whole thing kind of freaked me out a bit.”
“Yeah, I kind of noticed. But you don’t have to sweat it anymore. I got it. I finally had my period.”
“Oh my God! That’s SO great!”
Dante lunged at Angie to embrace her, but she crossed her arms and took a step back. He took a look into her eyes, and could tell she had been crying.
“I don’t want to go out with you anymore.”
“What? That’s crazy! We are perfect for each other.”
“Yeah right! Last week, I was so scared, and I needed you and where the hell were you? If you had hung around for five seconds I was going to tell you that sometimes sex can throw off a girl’s cycle, and that could have been the case. I also wanted to you pick up a pregnancy test for me.”
“Oh. Well, I’m sorry. That won’t happen again.”
“You’re goddamn right, because you won’t be getting any sex from me!”
“Angie…”
“I don’t think you’re mature enough to handle an adult relationship.”
“I totally am!”
“Really? What about at dinner with Gram?”
“Yeah, sorry about that, Gram doesn’t know what she’s saying anymore.”
“I think she knew EXACTLY what she was saying. And you just sat there.”
Dante struggled to reply, panicking. “I was…caught off guard, I didn’t get a chance to say anything before you left.”
“Okay. Answer me this: has she asked you if we’re sleeping together?”
“Yes.”
“And what did you say?
“I don’t remember.”
“Sure you do. And don’t you lie to me! You denied it, right? You told her we’re ‘just friends’.”
“Yeah.”
“That’s what I thought. See you around, Dante.”
“Wait. Wait. Wait! I can explain!”
Angie hopped off of the porch, ran around back, and then disappeared into the woods.
Dante could barely breathe. He stood stunned on the porch for a moment until the urge to vomit overcame him. He leaned over the bannister and started dry-heaving, when Gram appeared at the door.
“Hey Sweetie, come inside for some sugar cereal and cartoons.”
But Dante didn’t have anything more to say to Gram at the moment. He swallowed hard. And then took off towards Angie’s, hoping she had just gone home.
Dante scrambled up the porch. The office was closed for the day, but the door was opened so Dante just walked right in. There was no one in the office, so he started searching the rest of the house. He checked her bedroom, kitchen, and pretty much the entire bottom floor but there was no sign of her anywhere. He needed to square things away with Angie. But in the meantime, he couldn’t pass up the opportunity to do some digging on Dr. Sewall.
His office was plain and oaky, with a large desk sitting in the middle. There were some gray file cabinets in the corner of the room which seemed like a good place to start, anyway.
Since the encounter in the basement Dante had read up a bunch more about witches and Salem. The more he read, the more he was convinced that what he encountered in the basement had been real. First of all, what he had experienced meshed with other accounts he had read about written by experts in the paranormal. He figured maybe, just maybe, he had stirred up some dark shit when he was investigating Dr. Sewall. Of course, at this point it wasn’t totally clear if Dr. Sewall was simply a Salem witch sympathizer or dabbled in witchcraft himself.
The doctor’s old patient records were pretty standard stuff really. It seemed as if the entire town was populated with the most boring and predictable people on the planet. Dante wondered how Angie’s dad had kept from going mad with boredom after all these years. He gave up on the file cabinet to search the desk.
Buried under a newspaper, Dante found a thick manila folder. The file from one Carol Brett seemed out of place. First of all, the age of the patient was unusual. She was in her thirties. Most of Dr. Sewall’s patients were much older. The other red flag was her illness: cancer. Dante was pretty sure you had to see a specialist for that kind of disease. There were some recent notes that stated her symptoms were back. Was Dr. Sewall planning some more witchcraft?
The front door slammed shut and Dante could hear footsteps. He hid underneath the desk praying someone wouldn’t find him while the footsteps got closer and closer. When Dr. Sewall said, “I’ll check my files and call your right back,”, Dante escaped from behind the desk and then tried to pry open the window. He tried with all his mite to open it up, but it looked to be painted shut.
Pretty quickly, he managed to find a letter opener. He chiseling away at the dried white pain on the window box as the footsteps grew closer. Success! Somehow he had managed to pry the window open wide enough to squeeze through.
“Fuck!” Dante screamed as he landed in a thorn-filled rose bush underneath the window.
After he extricated himsel
f from its branches, he spotted Angie scowling at him from the edge of the grass.
“Oh shit! You scared me!” Dante yelled, jumping several feet off the ground.
“Are you serious? What are doing here?”
“I need to talk to you. I know I fucked up a bunch of things.”
“You broke into my house to apologize?”
“The door was open.”
“What were you doing in my father’s office?”
“Nothing. But like I told you, he’s up to something.”
“Wow. Even after what happened today, you still have the nerve to slander my father.”
“I’ve learned a lot about him the past several weeks. Your last name is Sewall. You know who Abigail Sewall was? She was one of those witches from the Salem Witch Trials. Well, it’s entirely possible that some of that passed down to your Dad. Look around! The entire town is hanging on by a thread. Yet your dad sits at the top of the hill, in his huge Victorian with satellite service, pretending to be a doctor, using his dark powers to trick a bunch of hicks.”
“You’re unbelievable. You know I felt really bad about dumping you. But not anymore. Not at all”
At that moment Dante realized that there was no talking his way of out of trouble; just like with his parents, he had pushed things past their breaking point. Maybe his dad had been right all along? He should be shot.
19
FAVOR
Documents were missing. The other day, Dr. Sewall had seen the rear end of Dante as he leaped from his office window holding some papers. Now a good a good portion of Crystal’s patient history was missing. Whatever happened between Angie and the kid romantically was their business, but Dante was getting way too interested in Dr. Sewall’s affairs. And this presented a problem.
For twenty-four years, Dr. Sewall had managed to shield Angie from the necessary evils in his world. She was way too idealistic to understand. By keeping her in the dark, he had fostered a beautiful father-daughter relationship, and no wet-behind-the-ears kid was going to screw it up.
He grabbed his cell phone and slid into his oak desk chair, where he had solved too many problems to count. “Hey Bud, it’s Gary. I know we haven’t spoken in some years. But I’m in trouble. I need to you to come up with a black OR site for me as soon as possible. Call me back.”