Kahana-The Untold Stories

by Ann Kennedy

  Miles surprises Kim and Dora when he tells them that Kim will have his meals in the house with them. He also tells Dora that there will be no sneaking out at night to see Alfie. Her and Kim smile at each other.

  Kim then rushes to the barn. He cannot wait to tell Patches the good news. Once he does, she starts nickering. It is like she is saying, “That is so good. Please tell me more.” He knows she understands what he told her. He feeds Patches an apple and then pets her until it is time to go in the house for dinner.

  Kim and Dora no longer must hide their love for each other, but something is different between them. They decide to go on a picnic and talk about their future. Hand in hand, they walk to a wooded area.

  Dora tries to hold back her tears, as she says, “Kim, I love you with all my heart. I never want us to break-up. I also know, it might not work out between us.” Kim tells her that he feels the same way. He also says, “Dora, you will be going to college in a couple of years. I do not know where I will be. I want to be with you forever, but it wouldn’t be fair to you, if I ask you to wait.” They both agree even though they are both heartbroken.

  The next day a social worker arrives at the Minrow’s house. Kim and Dora say their good-byes to each other. Then Kim gets in the social worker’s car to be driven to a foster home. The car drives off and Dora runs into her house to talk to her father.

  She’s angry as she shouts out her feelings. “Daddy, it’s not fair. It is just not fair! I have so much because I am your daughter. You have always been there for me. No one has ever been there for Kim. He never had a chance.” Her father replies, “Sweetheart, he does now. I believe he will do extraordinary things.” Dora looks at him and says, “Me too.”

  Chapter 7

  Home Sweet Home

  Joan Cutter, a social worker from the Children’s Bureau, is driving through the city of Boston with Kim to take him to his new home. She stops her car in front of a three story Victorian house. It has five bedrooms and two bathrooms.

  Joan tells Kim that he is being placed in the home of Betty and Clyde Monroe. Once they go inside the house, Betty greets them and escorts them to her living room to sit down. She is wearing a blue silk dress. Kim is surprised how young she looks. She could not be more than 30 years old.

  Joan introduces them to each other and then asks Mrs. Monroe to sign some papers. When Mrs. Monroe signs the papers, Joan Cutter says, “Kim is officially yours now. So, I’ll be on my way.”

  Once Miss Cutter leaves, Mrs. Monroe tells Kim that nine other foster children live in her house. She says, “I only take kids into my home that are between eleven and seventeen years old. Six of them are at work right now. Sophia, Dillion and Billy work full time in my husband’s delicatessen. Jenny works part-time as a seamstress. She also goes to night school to finish her high-school education. She is doing very well and in six months she should have her high-school diploma. Jimmy works in a grocery store, and Alex works for a construction company.”

  “The other three kids work in my home. They are in the kitchen now. I’ll call for them.” She then rings a small bell. Sylvia, Jarod, and Molly hear the bell and march into the living room. Molly asks, “Do you need something, Ms. Monroe?” She tells her, “No dear, I called for all of you to come meet the newest member of our family.”

  “Kim, these three kids go to school every day. My rule is that any child who wants to go to school should have the opportunity as long as they keep a C average. If they do not, then they must get a job. When Sylvia, Jarod and Molly come home from school they work for me. The girls do the cooking, cleaning, washing, and sewing. Jarod helps in the kitchen when he’s not shopping or doing my yard work.”

  She continues, “Sundays are free days for them. I always cook a big Sunday dinner for everyone. All the children love me, and I love them too. They understand that for me to put a roof over their heads that they need to work. Gosh, if my husband and I had to pay for their help, we would go broke. We couldn’t run our delicatessen or keep our house.”

  She takes a sip of her tea and then she tells Kim. “The kids that work outside my house help me in another way. Bless their hearts, they give me 70% of their wages. I let them keep 30% for themselves. I also let them keep all their wages for six months before they turn 18 years of age. I want to make sure that when they leave here, they have enough money to rent a place for themselves. I believe that it will help insure that they will have a good start in life.”

  Kim is not saying a word. He knows where this is going. She says, “Kim, what do you want to do?” He responds that he has a lot of restaurant experience. She’s delighted to hear this and says, “Good! you can start looking for a job tomorrow.” Kim mocks her as he says, “Goody! I can’t wait to get started.” She ignores his cocky tone and smiles at him. Then she says, Good! I’m glad we understand each other. I know you’ll be happy here. Go with Jarod now, and he will show you to your room.”

  Jarod and Kim walk upstairs. As they pass each bedroom, Jarod tells Kim who sleeps in it. He says, “Jenny and Sophia sleep in the same bedroom because they both work outside the home. Molly and Sylvia go to school and work together in the house and share another bedroom. Billy, Dillon and I work in Mr. Monroe’s delicatessen and we share this room together.”

  Then Kim and Jarod stand by the last bedroom. Jarod opens the door and says, “This is where you’ll sleep. You will be sharing the room with Alex and Jimmy. Go ahead and get settled. We will see you downstairs for dinner at seven o’clock.”

  “Kim, we always have great meals. We eat better than all the other kids in foster homes. Most of the other foster home parents don’t give the kids three meals a day. Their food is cheap, spoiled, and gross. They also make their kids work long hours. Then they take all their money and spend it on themselves. I know this for a fact because I have been in seven other foster homes, and this is the best one. We’re lucky to be here!”

  Kim concludes that Mrs. Monroe is a decent woman who runs a tight and fair ship. He figures that working as a bus boy or waiter will be the best for him. Besides she will not know how much tip money he will get. He figures he will be able to keep most of his tip money for himself.

  The next day, Kim finds a job as a bus boy in an Italian restaurant. The restaurant owner, Antonio Bandito, tells him that his job duties are prep-work in the kitchen, washing dishes and waiting on customers. He also lets Kim know that all the tips are split between the waiters and bus boys.

  Kim now knows he will not make a lot of money in tips. That is alright with him because he figures that something is better than nothing.

  Antonio also tells him that he will work late when they have a banquet. He lets Kim know that when he does have to work a late night, that he can sleep in the back rooms, along with the other waiters and bus boys.

  Kim has been working for three months. He does not encounter any problems at his foster home or at work. Then one-night, Kim is at work and there are only two customers left in the restaurant.

  Antonio is tired of waiting for them to leave. He takes the money from the register and tells Kim to close the restaurant when the customers leave. He also pays Kim for the last two weeks that he worked. Kim receives twenty-five dollars in cash.

  Kim begins cleaning the tables and filling the salt and pepper shakers. He overhears the two, young customers, Johnny, and Jackie, talking about their military experience. They are twin brothers in their early twenties, with curly, chestnut brown hair and hazel eyes. Kim learns, as he overhears their conversation, that they are World War II. veterans.

  They each order another beer and begin talking about Newfoundland. Their conversation intrigues Kim. He wants to know what Newfoundland is like.

  Johnny tells him to come over and sit down with them. Johnny introduces himself and his brother Jackie. Kim knows he is not supposed to sit with the customers. But there is no one else in the restaurant, so he joins them.

  Johnny, who likes geography, tells Kim, “Newfoundland is 43,000 squ
are miles and sits at the edge of the Arctic Circle. There’s wild beauty everywhere you look. There are also huge sheets of ice that cover the earth.”

  Then Jackie adds, “It has one of the most haunting landscapes in the world. The natives believe that tears from a Viking goddess produced its crystal, clear waters.

  Johnny interrupts, “Jackie knows all the superstitions and legends about the place. I do not take much stock in that kind of stuff. I think it’s nonsense.”

  Jackie ignores Johnny and says, “Kim there’s a legend about a dream-like warrior princess. She scorned her lover and cast a dangerous, cold beauty on the land. It is said that when the princess is angry, she causes the explosion of lava and black ash to fill the sky.”

  Kim responds that the legend is probably true. Johnny starts laughing, as he says, “You’re like my brother. You are gullible! You believe in that superstitious, bologna too.” Kim responds, “Yes, I do.”

  The legend that Jackie told Kim triggers memories in him. He reminisces about his home land. He thinks about Hawaii’s beauty and the ghostly legends that he learned when he was a kid. He is beginning to get home-sick.

  They say good-bye to Kim and walk towards the door, and Kim trails behind them to lock up the restaurant. Jackie stops, turns around, and tells Kim that they will be sight-seeing tomorrow morning.

  Then he asks Kim if he’d like to come with them and be their tour guide. Kim does not hesitate to respond, “Yes, I’m free. I don’t have to work tomorrow.” Jackie says, “Good, we’ll meet you here at 9:00 o’clock sharp.”

  The next morning, Kim meets them in front of the restaurant. He is astonished to see Johnny sitting behind the wheel of a shiny, blue Chevrolet. Kim is staring at the automobile and says, “Wow! I did not know you had a car. It’s a beauty!”

  Johnny says, “I figured, I needed it because everyone travels by car now. No one goes across the country by trains anymore.” Jackie then tells Kim. “Don’t let him fool you. He bought it to impress the girls.” Then Johnny reeves up his engine and off the three of them go to explore Boston.

  While Johnny is driving Kim back, he says, “We’ll be leaving Friday morning to go back home.” Kim asks, “Where’s home?” “Jackie replies, “We are from Nebraska. It’s the cornhusker’s state.”

  Then Johnny proudly tells Kim, “Our family owns a corn farm. We have 100 acres and we get about 147 bushels per acre. That is about 14,000 stalks. If, you haven’t seen or been to a corn farm then you haven’t lived.” Then he cannot stop himself from laughing at his own joke. Kim says, “I’d like to see one.”

  Jackie then makes Kim an offer. “We are driving back on Friday. Why don’t you drive out there with us?”

  Kim quickly responds, “Yes! I want to go. I can give you gas money too.” Johnny replies, “Great, we’ll see you in front of this restaurant, Friday morning at 7:00 o’clock.”

  Kim made a spontaneous decision when he decided to leave the city of Boston. He does not want to live the life that he has been living anymore. He does not want it to be his future. He also knows the Hawaiian tourist industry has been booming since the war ended. He figures he can go back home and make some good money.

  He also likes these two farm boys from Nebraska. He realizes that this is the first time in quite a while, that he is not around teenagers that are not in bad trouble. He is looking forward to riding across the country with them in their snazzy, new car. He can’t wait to roll down his window, feel the fresh air on his face and see the wide-open spaces. It will be the first time that he will be able to see the country without hitch-hiking or hiding in a freight car. Little does he know, that his decision to take this trip will change his life forever.

  His head is spinning as he figures out a new kind of escape plan. He does not want anyone to know for 48 hours that he is gone. When Mrs. Monroe finds out, she must report it. Then Kim will be in big trouble with the juvenile justice system. After 48 hours, Kim knows that he will be out of Massachusetts and well on his way to Nebraska.

  He also knows that he is not scheduled to work Friday or Saturday. He does not have to worry about Antonio finding out until Sunday, and by that time, he will be long gone.

  It is about nine o’clock when he gets back to his foster home. He sees Mrs. Monroe sleeping on the couch. He does not want to wake her or talk to her, so he tip-toes up the stairs and heads to Jarod’s room.

  He finds Jarod sitting on his bed reading a lawn and garden magazine. He tells Kim, “One day, I’d like to have a landscaping business.” Kim tells him that he would be good at it.

  Then he tells Jarod that he will be busy this weekend. He must be at work at 6:00 o’clock tomorrow morning and will be working a double shift and spending the night at the restaurant.

  Jarod asks, “Do you want me to tell Mrs. Monroe not to expect you until Saturday?”

  Kim answers him. “No, I won’t be home until Sunday. I must work a banquet during a wedding reception Saturday night.”

  Jarod assures Kim that he will tell Mrs. Monroe. He does not think twice about what Kim has told him. He knows that Kim has spent a lot of weekends working and sleeping at the restaurant.

  Kim then goes to his bedroom and packs a few clothes in his duffle bag and counts his money. He has the ten-dollar bill that Miles had given him. He also has twenty-five dollars from his pay and ten dollars of his tip money that he saved over the past few months. All his money totals a whopping forty-five dollars. He feels rich!

  He believes that he has more than enough to pay for his food on the trip and his share for a motel room and give Johnny and Jackie money for gas. He figures he will also have a lot of money left over when he gets to Nebraska.

  Then he thinks that he should leave some money for Mrs. Monroe to cover his share of expenses. He knows these kids have been jilted all their lives because they have been victims of their circumstances. He does not want to burn them again.

  He goes back to Jarod’s bedroom and says, “Hey Jarod, I got paid twenty dollars tonight, which includes my tips.” He gives Jarod fourteen dollars. “Give this money to Mrs. Monroe. It’s my seventy per cent.

  Jarod says, “Thanks, I’ll give it to her tomorrow.”

  Kim now has thirty-one dollars left, which is still a lot of money!

  The next morning, Kim stands outside the restaurant waiting for Johnny and Jackie, who are about forty-five minutes late. He starts to think that they forgot him.

  Then he sees Jimmy running down the street towards him.

  He’s shouting to Kim, “My genius of a brother forgot to put gas in the car. We had to push it into a gas station. He’ll be here in a few minutes.” Then Johnny pulls up, and Jimmy gets in the front seat and Kim hops in the back seat.

  Six days later, they arrive at Jackie and Jimmy’s home in Nebraska. The two brothers get out of the car as fast as they can and run up to the porch and knock on their front door.

  Kim slowly trails behind them. Then he stops for a few minutes to watch their family’s reunion. Their parents, June and James, are filled with joy and excitement when they see their sons. They are overjoyed to have their boys’ home with them again.

  Kim walks up to the porch to meet them . Then June tells everyone to come inside to eat, drink and be merry.

  Two nights later, Jimmy and Johnny’s parents give their sons a home coming party. All their friends from miles around show up. Everyone at the party is nice to Kim, but he knows he does not fit in.

  Two days later, Jimmy finds Kim in the corn fields. He tells Kim that his father said that he can stay on their farm and he will give him a job. Kim tells him, “Thank-you, but I’ll be leaving tomorrow. I need to get back home.

  Jimmy tells him that he will drive him to the bus station.

  Then he says, “I bet you’ll be having a great homecoming party too.”

  Kim does not say a word. He only wishes what Jimmy said was true.

  Chapter 8

  The Chopper

  The next day, Ki
m is standing outside a bus station, but he does not go in yet. Instead, he walks across the street to a Coca-Cola machine. He buys a coke and sits on a bench that is nearby. He takes his money from his pocket and begins to count it. He has twenty dollars left. He is debating whether to take a bus or hitch-hike the rest of the way to California.

  Then he begins to feel that someone is watching him. He slowly turns around and sees a young, man standing in front of a motorcycle. He looks like he has not shaved in a couple of weeks. He has a ruddy complexion and hazel eyes. He’s wearing a dirty pair of jeans and a sleeveless, blue denim vest. He is not wearing a shirt under his vest, and his big, muscular arms are in full view. On his left arm is a large tattoo that runs from his shoulder to his elbow that reads U.S. Army-W.W.2.

  The man grins at Kim, and then he says, “You got money troubles, Sonny?”

  Kim responds, “No, I’ll get by. I have almost enough money to get to San Francisco, but I might have to hitch-hike some of the way.”

  The stranger laughs at him, as he says, “You’ll be hitching about 1,500 miles. That is not some of the way. It’s a lot of the way.”

  He then introduces himself. “My name is Biker Mike. I am from Pittsburg, Pennsylvania. I worked at Bethlehem Steel until the War broke out. Then I enlisted in the United States Army. When the war ended, I went back home. I’m now headed to Sacramento, California. That’s my story. What about you? What’s your story?”

  Kim knows he must avoid giving any incriminating evidence about himself. So, he lies. He says, “My name is Kim. I was staying with my step-father and my mother in Rhode Island, but things didn’t work out. Now I’m going back to live with my auntie in San Francisco.” Kim hopes he bought his story.

  Biker Mike tells him that he could use a little cash to help pay for gas. Kim slowly backs away from him because he thinks this guy is going rob him. Biker Mike sees that Kim is leery of him. So, he says, “I’d like some company on the road.”