was no way Merly was going to let her get away with calling her that. She had worked out the plan, she’d gotten the payoff. “It’s all —”
But there was no stopping Lady. “She’s like, ‘We’ll get five hundred!’ Five hundred, Mom! The lying cunt-face!”
Five hundred is actually what Merlina asked for. She was sitting on the steps going over the details when a man walked by and said, “If you go for drive with me, I’ll give you something nice.” Men did this now and then. Merly and Lady called them “kidnappers” and warned each other to be careful of them. But even though one coming by was essential this time, it was unbelievable. It had hardly been a minute since she’d discussed the plan with Lady, and here it was happening. “Hold on,” she told him, nodding as hard as she could. “Don’t go away.” She ran into the house.
And when the time came to talk money, five hundred is what she told him. Cash in advance.
“Except this is all … it’s all he had.” She said this to Lady very carefully, because it was important that she understand, having been in on the idea from the beginning.
“ Why didn’t you just tell him no? ” Now, though, Lady was screaming. Bits of spit were coming out of her mouth.
“All he had for what?” Nina said. She let the four five dollar bills fall on the floor. Her face had gone white. She held Lady by the shoulder, but she looked right at Merly.
“Tell him no? ” Merly said. “Mom needs money, and this is at least something .”
“Fabreece?” Nina said. Instinct told her it had to do with Fabreece.
“It was all he had! ” Merlina screamed. “I’m telling you!”
“ Where is Fabreece? ” Nina screamed.
“ Up the street! ” Lady screamed, giving her sister a look that made Merlina feel like she was some kind of a shit. “ Getting put in a man’s car! ”
When everything cooled down and she got a chance to go over it all, Merlina had to agree that twenty dollars wasn’t very much help when it came to fixing the pool. She’d only accepted it because she was a person who just naturally got enthusiastic about things. For a minute there, she was so excited about making a deal that she kind of lost sight of the actual amount the man was offering.
Later on she did ask Lady if she personally would pay twenty dollars if, for example, Fabreece got kidnapped on her own, without any of her sisters’ assistance, and that was how much the kidnappers wanted for ransom. Lady said she’d never had twenty dollars, so she wouldn’t be in a position to do it. If the kidnappers knew anything about their family and all they asked for was five dollars, they’d be lucky to get that.
Merly told her she’d be happy to pay them five dollars if she could come up with it, but that was the limit.
She never could get over how the stupidest people in the world happened to be the oldest and the youngest children in her family, and later on wondered if there was a scientific reason for it that had to do with statistics, or was it always like this? If it was, she told Lady, it really didn’t seem worth making all that big a fuss if either of them disappeared.
Before Nina came screaming out the door, Ed Oataway had already seen the man putting Fabreece into a car and yelled at him. As the man got in the car and started it up, Ed jumped in whatever family car it was that he happened to have on hand that day and rammed into the front of the other one, and that was the end of that.
“It’s getting so hardly a day goes by that I don’t sacrifice one of my vehicles for somebody or other in that fuckin’ idiot family,” he said when JannaRose ran up to ask what the hell he was doing this time.
Seven
What came out of all the visionary stuff whirling around in Nina’s head was her theory that if they collected a huge enough amount of money and donated it to rebuilding the school pool, other people might feel the urge to donate some of their own. There is an
But there was no stopping Lady. “She’s like, ‘We’ll get five hundred!’ Five hundred, Mom! The lying cunt-face!”
Five hundred is actually what Merlina asked for. She was sitting on the steps going over the details when a man walked by and said, “If you go for drive with me, I’ll give you something nice.” Men did this now and then. Merly and Lady called them “kidnappers” and warned each other to be careful of them. But even though one coming by was essential this time, it was unbelievable. It had hardly been a minute since she’d discussed the plan with Lady, and here it was happening. “Hold on,” she told him, nodding as hard as she could. “Don’t go away.” She ran into the house.
And when the time came to talk money, five hundred is what she told him. Cash in advance.
“Except this is all … it’s all he had.” She said this to Lady very carefully, because it was important that she understand, having been in on the idea from the beginning.
“ Why didn’t you just tell him no? ” Now, though, Lady was screaming. Bits of spit were coming out of her mouth.
“All he had for what?” Nina said. She let the four five dollar bills fall on the floor. Her face had gone white. She held Lady by the shoulder, but she looked right at Merly.
“Tell him no? ” Merly said. “Mom needs money, and this is at least something .”
“Fabreece?” Nina said. Instinct told her it had to do with Fabreece.
“It was all he had! ” Merlina screamed. “I’m telling you!”
“ Where is Fabreece? ” Nina screamed.
“ Up the street! ” Lady screamed, giving her sister a look that made Merlina feel like she was some kind of a shit. “ Getting put in a man’s car! ”
When everything cooled down and she got a chance to go over it all, Merlina had to agree that twenty dollars wasn’t very much help when it came to fixing the pool. She’d only accepted it because she was a person who just naturally got enthusiastic about things. For a minute there, she was so excited about making a deal that she kind of lost sight of the actual amount the man was offering.
Later on she did ask Lady if she personally would pay twenty dollars if, for example, Fabreece got kidnapped on her own, without any of her sisters’ assistance, and that was how much the kidnappers wanted for ransom. Lady said she’d never had twenty dollars, so she wouldn’t be in a position to do it. If the kidnappers knew anything about their family and all they asked for was five dollars, they’d be lucky to get that.
Merly told her she’d be happy to pay them five dollars if she could come up with it, but that was the limit.
She never could get over how the stupidest people in the world happened to be the oldest and the youngest children in her family, and later on wondered if there was a scientific reason for it that had to do with statistics, or was it always like this? If it was, she told Lady, it really didn’t seem worth making all that big a fuss if either of them disappeared.
Before Nina came screaming out the door, Ed Oataway had already seen the man putting Fabreece into a car and yelled at him. As the man got in the car and started it up, Ed jumped in whatever family car it was that he happened to have on hand that day and rammed into the front of the other one, and that was the end of that.
“It’s getting so hardly a day goes by that I don’t sacrifice one of my vehicles for somebody or other in that fuckin’ idiot family,” he said when JannaRose ran up to ask what the hell he was doing this time.
Seven
What came out of all the visionary stuff whirling around in Nina’s head was her theory that if they collected a huge enough amount of money and donated it to rebuilding the school pool, other people might feel the urge to donate some of their own. There is an
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