time because he didnât actually touch Mark and because he was only fifteen when it happened, although he had been the one to lure Mark into theparking lot and he had known that Tony wanted to get even with Mark.
Then the judge dropped a real bombshell. He said that because Kyle had spent time in custody before the trial, and since he had shown progress in counseling, had cooperated and had shown remorse, he was going to release Kyle into the community, where he would be on probation.
My parents couldnât believe it when they heard that. My mother cried. Kyleâs mother hugged Kyle before they took him away to arrange his release. As he left the courtroom, Kyle looked at me and smiled.
It was late at night a couple of weeks after the end of the trial. I was on my way home from work. I got off the bus and was walking toward my street when someone came out of the shadows toward me. It was Kyle.
âYouâre not supposed to come near me,â I said.
It was true. One of the conditions of Kyleâs supervision in the community was thathe wasnât supposed to have any contact with me or my parents. But here he was.
Kyle looked hurt.
âIâm not going to hurt you,â he said. âI just wanted to tell you Iâm sorry about what happened. I didnât know Tony was going to do what he did.â
âYou knew he wanted to get back at Mark for going with Shannon,â I said.
Kyle looked at me. âSo did you,â he said.
I felt my stomach twist.
âI could have said that in the court,â Kyle said. âBut I didnât. I could have told them how I knew where Mark was that night. But I didnât, because I felt bad about what happened, and I knew you did too. I just wanted to tell you that. I just wanted to say Iâm sorry.â
He turned and walked away from my street. I watched him go. I wondered who else he had toldâor who he might tell sometime in the future.
That night I had a dream. In my dream, I was sitting behind the wheel of my fatherâscar. It was late at night, when everyone was asleep. I was waiting. I waited until I saw Kyle come out of his house. Then I gunned the engine and steered the car straight for Kyle.
I had that dream a lot.
When I heard that Kyle and his parents had moved out west, clear on the other side of the country, I was glad.
But it didnât change anything. It didnât change what I had done. It didnât change that I couldnât tell anyone. And it didnât change that I was afraid that one day Kyle would say something.
I didnât read out a victim impact statement like my mother and father did. But Markâs death affected me. It affected me more than almost anyone will ever know.
Impact
is James C. Dekkerâs second novel in the Orca Soundings series, following
Scum
. James lives in Toronto, Ontario, and has little impact on those around him.
Orca Soundings
Back
Norah McClintock
Bang
Norah McClintock
Battle of the Bands
K.L. Denman
Big Guy
Robin Stevenson
Blue Moon
Marilyn Halvorson
Breathless
Pam Withers
Bull Rider
Marilyn Halvorson
Bullâs Eye
Sarah N. Harvey
Charmed
Carrie Mac
Chill
Colin Frizzell
Crush
Carrie Mac
The Darwin Expedition
Diane Tullson
Dead-End Job
Vicki Grant
Death Wind
William Bell
Down
Norah McClintock
Exit Point
Laura Langston
Exposure
Patricia Murdoch
Fastback Beach
Shirlee Smith Matheson
First Time
Meg Tilly
Grind
Eric Walters
The Hemingway Tradition
Kristin Butcher
Hit Squad
James Heneghan
Home Invasion
Monique Polak
House Party
Eric Walters
I.D.
Vicki Grant
Impact
James C. Dekker
Juice
Eric Walters
Kicked Out
Beth Goobie
Learning to Fly
Paul Yee
Lockdown
Diane Tullson
Middle Row
Sylvia Olsen
My Time as Caz Hazard
Tanya Lloyd Kyi
No More Pranks
Monique Polak
No Problem
Dayle Campbell Gaetz
One More Step
Sheree Fitch
Overdrive
Eric Walters
Pain & Wastings
Carrie Mac
Refuge Cove
Lesley
Then the judge dropped a real bombshell. He said that because Kyle had spent time in custody before the trial, and since he had shown progress in counseling, had cooperated and had shown remorse, he was going to release Kyle into the community, where he would be on probation.
My parents couldnât believe it when they heard that. My mother cried. Kyleâs mother hugged Kyle before they took him away to arrange his release. As he left the courtroom, Kyle looked at me and smiled.
It was late at night a couple of weeks after the end of the trial. I was on my way home from work. I got off the bus and was walking toward my street when someone came out of the shadows toward me. It was Kyle.
âYouâre not supposed to come near me,â I said.
It was true. One of the conditions of Kyleâs supervision in the community was thathe wasnât supposed to have any contact with me or my parents. But here he was.
Kyle looked hurt.
âIâm not going to hurt you,â he said. âI just wanted to tell you Iâm sorry about what happened. I didnât know Tony was going to do what he did.â
âYou knew he wanted to get back at Mark for going with Shannon,â I said.
Kyle looked at me. âSo did you,â he said.
I felt my stomach twist.
âI could have said that in the court,â Kyle said. âBut I didnât. I could have told them how I knew where Mark was that night. But I didnât, because I felt bad about what happened, and I knew you did too. I just wanted to tell you that. I just wanted to say Iâm sorry.â
He turned and walked away from my street. I watched him go. I wondered who else he had toldâor who he might tell sometime in the future.
That night I had a dream. In my dream, I was sitting behind the wheel of my fatherâscar. It was late at night, when everyone was asleep. I was waiting. I waited until I saw Kyle come out of his house. Then I gunned the engine and steered the car straight for Kyle.
I had that dream a lot.
When I heard that Kyle and his parents had moved out west, clear on the other side of the country, I was glad.
But it didnât change anything. It didnât change what I had done. It didnât change that I couldnât tell anyone. And it didnât change that I was afraid that one day Kyle would say something.
I didnât read out a victim impact statement like my mother and father did. But Markâs death affected me. It affected me more than almost anyone will ever know.
Impact
is James C. Dekkerâs second novel in the Orca Soundings series, following
Scum
. James lives in Toronto, Ontario, and has little impact on those around him.
Orca Soundings
Back
Norah McClintock
Bang
Norah McClintock
Battle of the Bands
K.L. Denman
Big Guy
Robin Stevenson
Blue Moon
Marilyn Halvorson
Breathless
Pam Withers
Bull Rider
Marilyn Halvorson
Bullâs Eye
Sarah N. Harvey
Charmed
Carrie Mac
Chill
Colin Frizzell
Crush
Carrie Mac
The Darwin Expedition
Diane Tullson
Dead-End Job
Vicki Grant
Death Wind
William Bell
Down
Norah McClintock
Exit Point
Laura Langston
Exposure
Patricia Murdoch
Fastback Beach
Shirlee Smith Matheson
First Time
Meg Tilly
Grind
Eric Walters
The Hemingway Tradition
Kristin Butcher
Hit Squad
James Heneghan
Home Invasion
Monique Polak
House Party
Eric Walters
I.D.
Vicki Grant
Impact
James C. Dekker
Juice
Eric Walters
Kicked Out
Beth Goobie
Learning to Fly
Paul Yee
Lockdown
Diane Tullson
Middle Row
Sylvia Olsen
My Time as Caz Hazard
Tanya Lloyd Kyi
No More Pranks
Monique Polak
No Problem
Dayle Campbell Gaetz
One More Step
Sheree Fitch
Overdrive
Eric Walters
Pain & Wastings
Carrie Mac
Refuge Cove
Lesley
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