“We’ll have to get you cleaned up before your father gets home,” Roberta said, as they left the hospital. Yes, his mother knew better. She looked at Tony. “Thank you young man for bringing my boy here.”
“Tony,” he said. “You’re welcome ma’am.”
Jeremy fell asleep around four PM. His mother woke him at
six to bring him his supper: a bowl of chicken soup, a plate of mashed potatoes, peas, and an orange juice. Did she think he had a cold? His father didn’t get home until 6:22. Roberta told him the story, at least the one she’d heard, and it seemed that Martin Daniels believed her. Jeremy saw that wasn’t the case when his father came upstairs later, unaccompanied.
“Son?”
“Yeah Dad?”
“Your mother tells me you got hurt real bad playing football at school.” He probably knew they didn’t play football during gym, not unless you were on the football team, and out on the football field, and certainly not on the first day of school. “Broke a few ribs, is that right?”
It’s a trick question, don’t answer him.
“Um, well, you see…”
That’s it, you blew it!
“I don’t like you lying to your mother that way. Much less to me. You been fightin’ boy, and that’s all there is to it.”
“They star…”
“Don’t interrupt me boy! Seeing how delicate your mother is, I understand your position. I’m sure you wouldn’t start a fight and all. And if you did you deserve what you got. But since I know you didn’t I’m gonna give you a piece of advice son.”
“Yeah Dad.”
Agree with everything he says.
He started to leave as if he’d forgotten he was about to say something, but he stopped at the doorway and turned around slowly.
He tapped his finger against the side of his skull. “Use your head.”
Jeremy nodded, unsure. That’s it? That’s his nugget of wisdom? What the fuck’s that supposed to mean?
Martin left the room.
The doorbell rang. Mrs. Daniels answered it.
“Hi ma’am. I came to see Jeremy.”
“Tony. What a pleasant surprise. I’m sure he’ll be happy to see you, being stuck in bed all day the way he has. Come on in.”
She led him to the couch. “Sit, make yourself comfortable. I’ll call him.”
“Thank you.”
He could hear her voice echoing from the kitchen. “Jeremy, that boy Tony is here to see you. Should I send him up or will you be coming down?” The gnawing ache in his ribs was still there and his head was throbbing. He didn’t want to attempt the trip down the stairs. “Send him up please.”
“Okay honey.”
She stepped back into the living room where Tony waited. “Go right up sweetheart. First door on your left.”
“Thank you ma’am.”
She liked the boy. He was so polite. Didn’t seem too bright though but Jeremy could fix that. Tony reached the top of the stairs and knocked.
“Come on in Tony.”
When he saw Jeremy he felt like crying and laughing at the same time. He was glad to see him, but Jesus Christ he looked terrible. His right eye had swelled up badly, nearly shutting his eyelids but for a tiny slit. His neck, which Farris had used as a squeeze toy, formed a ring of blue-black that nearly connected on the other side. Tony couldn’t see his ribs, but by the way Jeremy held them it looked as if he’d just been punched there. His black hair was scattered about his head in a way that completely contradicted its angelic neatness yesterday.
“You look like shit,” Tony commented.
“Fuck you,” he said, trying to laugh, but the pain wouldn’t let him.
“Touchy, aren’t we? How do you feel?”
“Like shit.”
“That’s what I thought.”
“Thanks for stopping by. I didn’t really expect you to.”
“Eh,” He waved it away.
“Just please try not to make me laugh,” Jeremy said.
“Kay.”
He came to visit Jeremy the next few days after school, and soon it was time for Jeremy to go back to school.
2
Homeroom:
He sat at his desk, looking back. Waiting for them to show up.
They did come, five minutes late. Snuck in while the teacher’s back was turned. Not that there was anything to teach.
Max tapped Jeremy on the shoulder. He looked.
“Finally back, eh punk? Maybe now we can finish what we started.”
He turned away, eyes wide open with fear. God, he wished Tony were here. Although Tony’s homeroom was right next door and he’d agreed to meet him outside.
The teacher heard the whispering and turned around. “So, I see you’re all late again. Did you think you could get away with it? I’ve already taken attendance. That’s two more detentions for each of you. If you’re late again, to any of your classes you will be suspended.”
Jeremy snickered. That would be nice. Probably wouldn’t have to worry about them for a week or two.
“So,” Carl said, as the three cornered him outside homeroom, “You like getting people’s hands cut? Let’s see how you like yours broken.” He swung.
Jeremy ducked easily enough, although it caused a bright flare of pain to his side. He could tell that Carl was definitely the lousiest swinger of the bunch.
“Leave ‘em alone! Now!” someone shouted.
It was Tony.
“So,” Max said. “I guess you got yourself an official bodyguard. Hey, wait a minute. Don’t I know you?”
Yeah,” Farris said. “That’s the guy who got lucky shots at us back in ninth grade.”
Tony grinned. “Wasn’t luck. Was skill my boy.”
“Let’s test that theory out right now,” Max said.
“You’ll do no such thing,” another voice interrupted. It was Mr. Douglas, one of the English teachers. “You boys have caused enough trouble already. If any one of you boys lay a hand on these gentlemen I will make sure that you’re expelled.”
The boys looked at Jeremy and Tony with contempt. The message in their eyes was clear. This ain’t over yet.
“Now get to your classes. And take opposite ends of the hall.”
“What’s your first class?” Tony said, as if nothing happened.
“Economics.”
Tony made a face of disgust. “Now why the hell would you wanna take that?”
Jeremy shrugged. “Just a sucker for punishment I guess. What’s yours?”
“Gym, can you believe that? So I can stink the rest of the day. Isn’t that great?”
They examined each other’s schedules as they walked.
Tony and Jeremy met period four when they had the same art class. Farris had been in Tony’s second period class, Basic Math III. Apparently, they weren’t any smarter than he was. They didn’t see the others that morning. But they expected to see them at lunch. Everyone had lunch at the same time in Liberty High. But they weren’t in the lunch room. They must have gone out to eat, Tony thought, even though they weren’t allowed to. But who said they followed rules?
“Whatya got in the afternoon?” he asked Jeremy through a mouthful of mashed potatoes. He was talking about classes again.
Jeremy handed Tony his schedule.
“Whoa, cool. We both got History the same period.”
English II was Jeremy’s best class. They’d started reading Lord of the Flies while he was out. It was his favorite book. He’d already read it three times before he even got to high school.
Woodshop IV was Tony’s. It was the only thing he was really good at. He’d had straight A’s in it all three semesters. He barely passed his other classes with C’s and D’s, with the exception of gym, but he was a genius when it came to building things.
Max was in Jeremy’s gym class, which most definitely meant trouble. There was no Tony here to save him. Max made sure he got a spot right next to Jeremy as they were doing warm up exercises.
“So, brat. Ready for some punishment after school?”
“No, actually. I think I’m more ready to kick you in the balls again, maybe hard enough for you to stop talking bullshit.”
Max’s jaw dropped open. But it only took a second for him to get over the shock, and react the way Jeremy totally expected.
The fist slammed into his chest as he started jumping jacks. He fell back onto the waxed floor. Please let them get him before he kills me!
Mr. Kowslowski had not heard the discussion over the heavy breathing, but he certainly saw Max hit Jeremy. He ran over and grabbed Max by the back of his shirt. Jeremy was grateful. In his weakened condition he wouldn’t have withstood any further blows. He couldn’t even do ten push-ups without the pain in his ribs returning.
“Break it up Max!” Kowslowski yelled as he struggled against Max’s efforts to break free. “Break it up!”
Max realized the teacher was considerably stronger than him and relaxed, but rather than let go the gym teacher took him by the arm as he led him out of the gymnasium. To the principal’s office. Jeremy smiled triumphant. If anyone knew that the Dragons were the ones that broke my ribs they’d really be in trouble. But he had to stick to his story. He’d told his mom it had happened in gym, and the school it had happened at home.
“Are you all right?”
Jeremy looked up. Of course he had to. He was still on the floor, although he’d sat up by now. It was a girl. A really pretty girl, in white shorts and T-shirt. Her hair was pulled back in a long blonde ponytail, although she still brushed her bangs aside.
“As all right as a guy who got his ribs broken less than a week ago and just got hit in the chest is supposed to be I guess,” he laughed.
“I’m sorry.” She smiled. “Let me help you up.” She gave him her hand.
“Thanks.” He pulled himself up.
“I’m Staci.”
“Jeremy.”
“I saw you.”
“What?” Jeremy said, confused.
“The first day of school. I saw you fight them. Guess that’s how you got your ribs broke.”
“Yeah. Wasn’t much of a fight though.”
“It was three on one. You held your own.”
Is she actually impressed by me?
He noticed everyone moving in an orderly fashion. The gym teacher had returned.
“Well,” she said. “I’ll see you later. Have to get back to my spot.”
“Right,” he nodded. “See you later.” He was still stunned.
Max was suspended for a week. Not the expulsion Jeremy was hoping for. Carl and Farris weren’t present, so nothing could be done about them unless they did something they weren’t supposed to. But it quickly became clear they needed Max around to pull the strings. Neither of them bothered Jeremy or Tony the whole week.
3
The same day Max got suspended Tony and Jeremy decided to help Mr. Rory, their History teacher after school. The class had made a mess, themselves included, although Mr. Rory didn’t know that. There was a tremendous litter of books, spitballs, paper airplanes, and balled up sheets of paper all over the floor and the teacher’s desk. It happened in the space of a few minutes when the teacher stepped outside the room to speak to a colleague.
They really didn’t want to help, though they participated in the mayhem. But it was either fight back or get hit in the head by one of those thick hard covers. And the History books were particularly notorious for causing damage. Since they didn’t want to kill anybody either they threw no books themselves. Just paper. And a little chalk.
One of the main reasons Jeremy and Tony decided to help was to avoid the Dragons on the way out. The other was they felt guilty, and a little sorry for the teacher.
Mr. Rory was a pitiful looking man. He was extremely thin. His whole frame, including his face, seemed to droop. He walked hunched over. The brown slacks he always wore were regularly accompanied by a plaid shirt of some sort, and some horrid necktie he could never seem to tie just right.
Watching Mr. Rory bend over with his bad back to pick up papers evoked a lot of sympathy with the two boys.
“Don’t strain yourself Mr. Rory,” Jeremy said. “We’ve got it covered.”
“Yeah,” Tony agreed. “Relax Mr. Rory.”
“Thank you,” he replied, with his smoke-filled voice. “You’re good kids. Don’t ever change. Don’t be like… them.”
He sat down at his desk, which they had just cleared, and watched them. At that moment he looked very old. Not his fifty three years, but more like eighty five.
When they were done cleaning up for Mr. Rory, Jeremy went over to Tony’s house. It was filled with his masterpieces, displayed proudly by his parents. The wooden frame on the kitchen clock; the breakfast table; the carved figurines in the china cabinet. Jeremy was impressed. Then he went out back.
There was the rocking chair on the porch where his mother sat; the bench on which they sat; and a tool shed he’d made for his father.
“Can I look inside?” Jeremy asked.
“Sure.” Tony brought him over to the shed, and opened the door which contained the only thing in its construction not made of wood: two rectangular windows at the top.
Jeremy beheld a vast array of tools Tony’s father used. From the simple things like nails and staple guns to chainsaws and lawnmowers. There were at least ten different handsaws lining the walls alone.
“Be careful you don’t step on any nails,” Tony said. The floor was littered with them, and sawdust.
“So who uses this more, you or your Dad?”
“I guess I do, but I use the stuff at school most of the time, except for summer.”
“Oh,” Jeremy said.
“What’s wrong?”
“I forgot, I’ve got to call my mom. I’m usually home right after school.”
“All right. Well, let’s go get that out of the way.” He led Jeremy back into the house. Tony’s mother smiled and nodded as they went in.
4
The kid’s locker was right next to his own, except this was the first time Jeremy had actually seen him go to his locker. The same day Max was back from his suspension. Jeremy eyed him warily. He had the look of a Dragon, although quite a bit better looking than the ones he’d met previously. The kind of face girls went gaga over, his blonde hair run through with streaks of black- but the style was similar. Leather jacket with the collar up, and a pair of dark sunglasses, as if the sun would somehow reach him through the walls.
Mr. Brice, the Woodshop teacher was passing by. “Lose the glasses Johnny,” he tells him. The kid removes them, obviously annoyed. He flashes the teacher a fake grin. The minute Brice leaves
he throws the glasses back on. “I’m outta here,” he says. He takes his wallet from the top shelf of his locker, which happens to be the only thing in there, and shoves it into the back pocket of his jeans.
“Wait!” Jeremy calls out, not exactly sure why.
What are you doing? What if he’s one of them? He ignored that.
“Yeah?” the kid says, mildly bothered.
“You’re leaving, just like that?” School wasn’t over for another three hours.
“Yeah, so what?”
“Nothing.” The boy turns and goes.
Wow, Jeremy thinks.
“Hi punk.”
Oh great. He knew that voice. Yep. Max.
“Don’t think your bodyguard’s gonna save you this time. We’ve got an old debt to pay with him. So don’t count on it.”
“Whatya mean?” Jeremy said, frightened at the prospect.
“You’ll see,” Max said with a devilish grin. “Oh,” he repeated softly, “You’ll see.”
It started after school. They were walking down the school steps to Tony’s car, oblivious that they were being watched. Max was behind a bush at the bottom of the steps, the tip of the blade between his fingers. No one would ever know for sure what he was aiming for, but the knife soared and lodged in Tony’s tricep. The
scream ripped through the air and jolted Jeremy at his side. Before anyone knew what was going on, Max was gone.
“What the hell?” Jeremy said, and then he saw the blood. Tony was holding his arm, with the knife still inside. Tears were streaming down his face, blood coursing through his fingers.
“I’ve been stabbed!” he screamed. “Oh God, I’ve been stabbed!”
Just then Jeremy saw someone rush toward them out of the crowd. It was the kid he’d seen earlier, next to his locker. The one with the sunglasses. He didn’t understand. It was all happening too fast.
“I’m going to pull it out,” Johnny said. Tony closed his eyes, bit down on his lower lip. He saw quickly it felt much the same when it came out as when it went in, and screamed again. Johnny flung off his jacket, looking as if he were getting ready to rumble. He tore off his
shirt.
“Move your hand,” he told Tony. Tony did, looking at him perplexed. He wrapped the shirt around Tony’s arm, making a knot. Tony cringed.
“You’ve got to apply pressure, to stop the bleeding.”
Tony nodded, obviously still in shock, but he somehow managed to follow this instruction. The bleeding did eventually stop. The blood began to dry and stick to the wound.
The principal marched up behind Johnny. “Thank you John. I’ll take over from here.”
“But Mr. Bradley, he needs…”
…medical attention, Jeremy heard him say, although he didn’t actually say it. Mr. Bradley cut him off.
“Don’t you think I know what he needs Winter?!”
The principal led Tony to the nurse’s office, where he called an ambulance as the nurse bandaged him up. Jeremy followed as did Johnny, much to the principal’s discontent. But he chose not to stop them. The paramedics and police would probably have questions for them. Mr. Bradley made sure to lock the school doors behind him so that others wouldn’t follow.
He heard Tony thank him as he went into the ambulance, but there was something guarded about the way he did. Like he was unsure. When Jeremy asked him about it later he explained that Johnny was pretty much hated by everyone. He used to run with the Dragons about a year ago, but he left them. Rumor had it he killed someone. Maybe it got to him. Who knew? But that was why Tony felt odd around him.
The Pit in the Woods: A Mercy Falls Mythos Page 2