"Looks like you need a haircut," she said. "I'll give it to you right after we have breakfast. Then I have to go to see Mr. Lyman, our attorney. We have some business matters to discuss. He called the other day and pointed out I needed to make some changes in my will, with Celeste gone and all. He's called me many times about it. and I've finally decided to do it," she added.
"Can I go, too?" I asked quickly. My talking with Elliot, spying on his family, hearing the music and the chatter, filled me with more of a longing to be in public, to see things, especially more people my age.
"It will be quite boring for you. All you'll do is sit in a lobby and wait for me. I really have no intention on doing anything else. Just enjoy the day. Noble. Go fishing again. Maybe you'll have better luck. You used to bring home dinner for us. remember? I can still hear you yelling for me to come out to see the fish you were bringing home so proudly," she said, smiling at the recollection. "Celeste usually trailed behind with her head down. She was never very good at catching fish."
I was disappointed at her refusing to take me along, but her relaxed confidence did make me feel better. All of her preparations must be working. I thought. Whatever threatened us was driven back. We were safe again, but when she gave me my haircut, she warned me once more about staying away from the new neighbors.
"My mother always told me that evil was like an infectious disease. If you get too close to someone who is infected, he or she can infect you. No matter how well you're protected," she added. "But you already know all this, my precious one. You know it because you have my heart," she said and kissed me on the forehead.
Afterward. Cleo and I stood on the porch and watched her drive off to our lawyer's office. I really wasn't in the mood to go fishing, but the warm, partly cloudy day was too inviting to ignore by shutting myself up inside and reading. Cleo looked anxious to get some exercise, too, so finally. I fetched my fishing pole and the tackle., found my can of worms, and walked across the meadow toward the woods.
Sparrows and robins flitted from branch to branch excitedly, greeting me like an old friend returning. The scent of pine and fresh earth filled my nostrils, and I was invigorated. I should get out more. I thought, Our home, as comfortable as it was, was too dark and closed these days, too stifling. I felt like a newly born bird eager to test its wings in flight. Everything beyond our farm can't be evil and everything on it can't be good. I thought, and wondered if that was a blasphemous thought.
When I reached my spot on the stream. I fixed my pole and cast my line. Cleo wandered about as usual, exploring on his own. I sat staring at the water, at the way it foamed around rocks and carried branches and leaves downstream. The creek was busy today. I thought. I remembered how Noble used to think it sounded like someone gurgling. That constant sound, the buzz of some bees nearby, birds gossiping around me, and the warm afternoon put me into a daze. I guess. I snapped out of it when I heard a splash.
At first I wondered if it was a fish. I sat up quickly and studied the water, and then I saw another splash to the right of my line. That was followed by a third to the left. and I realized quickly that someone was throwing rocks. I stood up and spun around.
Elliot came walking out of the woods to my right, a wide, impish smile on his lips. He wore a short-sleeved blue shirt and a pair of faded jeans. My first thought was to follow Mommy's orders and pick up my things and run. but I stood my around. Cleo was wagging his tail, too, and hurried to approach him.
"Don't start talking about No Trespassing' signs," he warned as he drew closer. "I saw you spying on us. You were the one trespassing."
"I was not spying on you," I said. He smirked.
"I guess you're not too good of a liar. Can't you even think of some excuse?"
"I don't have to think of anything. Just leave me alone," I said.
"How can you like being alone so much?" he asked with real curiosity. He looked around at the woods and the stream and smirked with disgust. "I hated the idea of moving out here because I knew how isolated we were going to be. Back home I used to just catch a bus or a ride and go to the mall when I was bored. It was easy. Until I get my license and my car. I've either got to walk or ride a bike or something, and what's there to go see and do anyway?
"I know. I know, You can't tell me," he said before I could respond. "Nature boy," he tacked on disdainfully and threw another rock into the water,
"You're scaring off the fish," I said.
"Like you really care," he countered. Then he gave me that impish smile of his again, "What's this, the big excitement of the day?"
"I like it." I said firmly.
"You like it? This is what you do with your free time? Jeez. Don't you even think about girls, or do you have something better?"
"What I do is none of your business." I said. He laughed.
"I bet. I bet you don't want it to be anyone else's business but yours."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Hey," he said holding up his hands. "I don't really care if you found something else to take the place of girls. Maybe a big, pretty fish. huh?"
"You're disgusting.," I said.
"I'm disgusting? That's disgusting? What did I do, offend your tender soul? That are you, a mama's boy or something? Is that the story? Mommy doesn't want Junior to get himself dirty by hanging around with dirty teenagers or something? Is that why she keeps you chained to this place?"
"I'm not chained to anything."
"You're not?"
"Think what you like," I said.
He smiled and reached into his top pocket to get a pack of cigarettes. He pounded one out and put it in his mouth. I watched him, unable to not be intrigued with his every move. He smiled.
"Want one?"
"No." I said quickly.
"So you don't smoke either. huh?"
"No. I don't," I said.
"Pure in mind and body. Nature boy." He laughed and puffed on his cigarette, blowing the smoke directly at me.
"Stop calling me that. Look, just leave me alone," I said. "This is our side of the creek, and you don't belong here."
"Not so fast with all the orders, nature boy. I was going to ignore you until I caught you peeping into our window. What were you hoping to do, catch my sister undressed or something."
I felt the heat rise up my neck and into my face.
"No!" I practically screamed. He laughed and flicked the ashes off his cigarette, again in my direction.
"It's all right if that's what you were hoping to see. She's sexy. That's one of the real reasons my father wanted us to move out here. She was getting into all sorts of trouble with boys, actually college men, know what I mean?"
He puffed his cigarette and studied me, which made me very uncomfortable. I turned away.
"Maybe you don't have any idea what I mean. You've never been with a girl or been on a date or anything, have you, home-school boy?"
"I can see you're not going to leave me be," I said and started to reel in my line.
"Man, what a pussy," he said.
I tried to ignore him and continue to gather my things, but he stepped up behind me and pushed me so that I had to step forward, my right foot going into the water. He laughed when I spun around.
"Got to be more careful." he said. "Here, let me try that fishing pole." he added and stepped forward to take it from me, the cigarette burning away in his mouth.
"Get your hands off it," I said, pulling back.
He gabbed hold anyway, and we struggled for a moment. Then I let go and pushed him at the center of his chest as hard as I could. He was holding on to the rod, but he fell backward and sat right in the stream. He jumped up as if the water burned him. He was red with rage.
"Bastard," he said, charting at me. He wrapped his arm around my head and tried to turn me and throw me down. but I pushed up on his arm and slipped out easily. Then I gabbed his left arm and pulled him as hard as I could. It threw him off balance, and he tripped over some rocks and went down again, this time
his arm completely submerging in the water nearly up to his shoulder.
Cleo was barking now, but not angrily. He was excited and circled and yapped as if he was finally part of something that was fun. Elliot crawled to his feet, the cigarette soaked and dangling from his lips. He thought a moment, and then he smiled, scooped up some water, and heaved it in my direction. I backed away to avoid it.
"You're not getting away with this," he said, laughing, and he started for me again. One thing I didn't want was for him to throw me into the water.
I turned and ran into the woods. Cleo charging behind and barking and Elliot following and yelling, "C'mon, nature boy. Its your turn to have a bath."
I ran as fast as I could. and I should have been able to pull away from him easily because these were my woods and I knew every path and clearing, but my panic made me sloppy and careless. I was charging through brush that slowed me down. By the time I reached the next clearing. Elliot was right behind me. He leaped at me, tackling me around my knees, and we both slammed into the weeds and wild grass. We rolled about for a moment, he trying to get my arms pinned. I squirmed and pushed at him, but he was over me and was able to hold me down. We were both breathing so hard, we couldn't talk for a moment.
He moved his legs so that he could put his knees on my upper arms and hold me firmly to the ground, while he sat back on my stomach.
"Okay now, you going to stop this crap or what?"
"Let me up," I cried.
"Not yet. I want to know some stuff first."
"Let me up," I said, straggling. He weighed too much for me to move him.
Cleo sat by, panting and watching with excitement. Why wasn't he angry? I wondered. Where was my spiritual protection?
"What do you really do for fun? You don't just fish and study and work a garden, do you?"
"Yes,'" I said.
"Bull. You have to have some other kind of excitement. Is your mother really a witch?"
"If she is, you better worry, becauseIll have her put a spell on you," I said as threateningly as I could. He started to laugh and then stopped. I could feel him relaxing his grip
"I don't believe in that stuff." he said, and he moved his legs off my arms. He looked a bit concerned. "Come on, tell the truth."
"My mother isn't a witch," I said, rubbing my arms and turning away from him. He sat back. Cleo, the traitor, snuggled up next to him.
"So why do people make up all those stories about her casting spells and having secret
ceremonies?"
"They're just jealous and mean because were independent people." I said.
"What's that weird thing on your front door?" he asked, wiping his sleeve over his muddied face.
"It's nothing. My mother believes in some things, but she's not a witch. Anyway, if you saw that, you must be the one peeping, not me."
"I just happened to see it this morning. I was looking for you. Did you get an earful last night spying on us? And don't deny it again. I saw you at the window. You heard what we were saying. Well?"
"No. I didn't get any earful of anything. I just went there to see if you were telling the truth, that you really did buy the property and move in."
He sat back. petted Cleo, and looked at his pack of soaked cigarettes.
"Thanks a lot," he said. "It's not easy sneaking cigarettes into my house."
"You shouldn't be smoking anyway," I told him. He shook his head at me.
"I suppose you don't do anything that's supposedly bad for you."
"No. I don't."
"No drinking, no smoking, no pot or anything?"
"I care about myself," I said and stood up and brushed myself off. He sat there watching me.
"Yeah, well, nobody worries about that stuff, at least nobody our age where I come from. You think it's going to be different for me here?" he asked. Then he shook his head. "I forgot. You wouldn't know. Does anyone else about our age live nearby, any normal person I could become friends with?"
"I don't know... I said. "The next house is about a half mile down toward Sandburg, but I think the children living there are all about four or five. And I'm more normal than you are."
"Yeah. right, Home school, weird things on your front door, fish and garden all day. Very normal."
"You don't know anything," I said.
"You're really not bored? You're happy just hanging out with a dog?" he asked, still amazed.
"I'm very busy. There's a lot to do on our farm. I don't have time to be bored," I told him.
"Man, you are weird."
"So stay away from me," I snapped at him and started back to the stream. He got up and followed alongside.
"I'm sure my father wishes I was bored like you," he said in a more casual tone. I didn't walk as fast because he was talking about himself now. "My sister wasn't the only one getting into hot water. I cheated on a final exam and failed social studies last year. Had to go to summer school to make it up, which meant I couldn't get a summer job. Dad wasn't going to let me get my license this year. so I had to be sure I at least passed everything. Actually. I'm glad he wanted to move, because he had to offer something to get me to go along. That's how I got him to agree to the car. Betsy was giving him a really hard time about it. I knew I had him over a barrel after a while."
I stopped and looked at him. "What?" he asked.
"You don't sound like a family. You sound like combatants." I said.
"Combatants?" He crrimaced.
"It means adversaries. Belligerents? Enemies? You know what that means, at least?"
"Oh. You are smart," he said.
We walked back toward the stream. Cleo following right behind us now and not rushing off to investigate some hole in the ground as usual.
"Maybe your mother did some magic thing to make you that way," he added with a wry smile. "Maybe she could do it for me, too. huh?"
"There's only one magic thing to do to get smarter. Elliot, study, read, pay attention to
instructions, and work."
"Right," he said smugly. "You know, my last girlfriend was pretty smart: always on the honor roll. And she was a junior varsity cheerleader, too, for the basketball team."
I saw him smile. but I said nothing. I didn't want him to stop talking. What was it like to be a cheerleader and to go to school games?
"She was very competitive. The only thing I could beat her at easily was ring toss. Of course," he added. we played strip ring toss. I invented it," he added with a twist in his lips.
"What's that?" I asked unable to stop myself.
"Simple. Whoever lost a round had to take off some-thing. I usually got her naked in less than ten rounds."
I felt my breathing quicken.
"She was nicely built. too. She wasn't the first girl I did it with. though. I did it when I was only twelve." he boasted. "We had these neighbors. the Brakfists, who had a daughter named Sandra. Everyone teased her and called her Sandra Breakfast. She was a brain, too," he added glancing at me. "The truth" he said in a whisper. "was she knew more about the old birds and the bees than I did. Once in a while. I did homework with her because I was such a lousy student."
We broke out of the forest and approached the stream again. My pole was lying over some rocks, the line carried out by the rushing water. During our rough-housing, the can of worms had been la-locked over, and most of it had spilled. I knelt down, scooping as much as I could back.
"Don't you want to hear what happened-- or are you gay or something?" he asked. annoyed I could get distracted. I wasn't. I just didn't want to show how interested I really was.
"Well?"
"Okay, what happened?"
"You think I'm making it up?" I shrugged.
"How would I know if you were or you weren't?" I asked, and he folded his brow.
"Because I'm telling you," he said gruffly.
"So tell me." I countered.
"Ahh--" He waved at me and looked away.
"I'm sorry. Tell me," I asked with more enthusiasm. It wa
s easy to see he wanted to tell me.
He sat on a big boulder.
"It was funny, actually," he said. "We were studying science and something called conju... conje
"Conjugation?"
"Yeah, that's it, but it was about worms," he said nodding at my can.
"So?"
"So, she started to expand the discussion. How's that for vocabulary, smart boy? She began to talk about how important it was to know about human reproduction, and we got into it that way. She was, what's that word that my dad uses about my sister? Pro... something."
"Promiscuous?"
"Yeah, that's it." he said. excited. "She was promiscuous. I was certainly not the first boy she fooled around with. To tell you the truth, she scared me. but I went along so as not to be pussy, and one thing led to another."
"What do you mean, led to another?"
"You know, another. Touchy -feely first and then undressing and then conjugating. With her it was like following directions to put something together. First you do this and then you do that. I was excited. but I felt like I was back in school. I didn't do it with her again. She tried to get me to come over to supposedly study, and when I didn't want to, she found someone else. The joke around school became, who had Sarah for breakfast lately? Get it?"
He waited for my response. but I said nothing. I completed reeling in the line instead.
"You don't believe me, huh?"
"It's not important whether I do or not," I said. "You are weird."
You want to stop saying that," I said, spinning around on him.
He shrugged.
"I guess you have reason to be weird."
"And what exactly is that supposed to mean?"
"With what happened to your sister and all. They never found her body. huh?"
I stared at him. "I'm just asking."
"I don't like talking about it." I said.
"Did your mother think it was that old guy who owned our house?"
"I said--"
"All right." He was silent.
"It's painful." I told him.
"Yeah. Well, sometimes missing kids show up. I read about that girl who turned up ten years or so later. It was in one of those newspapers you get at the supermarket. She had a flashback or something and knew how to get home like a dog or something. Maybe that will happen to your sister.
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