from a peg beside the back door. ‘With a bag of goodies and a bottle of wine,’ she sang, then turned back to her parents. ‘Know what that song’s about?’
Neither replied.
With a smile and a wave Jennifer left the house. As she walked across the yard Sten’s dogs barked at her. She ignored them.
Halfway up the block Jennifer met Sandy and Barb, who had been coming down to call on her. As always, it was important to meet them away from the house. ‘Hi,’ she said. ‘You ready?’
Barb grinned behind her hand.
‘Ready for what?’ Sandy asked.
‘Didn’t Barb tell you? We’re going into town.’
Barb giggled and said, ‘Jenny knows some Grade Nine guys. We’re meeting them at the McDonald’s.’
‘Come on,’ Jennifer said, draping her arms around her friends and pulling them forward. ‘We’re going to hitch in.’
‘Hitch-hike?’ Sandy asked.
‘Yep.’
Sandy pulled back.
Jennifer reached out and took Sandy by an arm. ‘Don’t worry. If some perve tries anything I’ll rip his nuts off.’
Barb screamed her laughter. Halfway back down the block, the shriek set off Sten’s dogs again.
The three girls walked towards the highway.
VI
We arrived at the traffic lights. Across the highway stood the school. Along the playing field rose a high chain-link fence that stretched around to include the now empty parking lot.
‘We’re Patrols,’ Lynk said. ‘We get keys to work the lights, and we take all the little kids across. You got Patrols in your school?’
‘Sure.’
‘You a Patrol?’
I shook my head. ‘I take the bus home, right?’
‘But when you lived close,’ Lynk persisted.
Again I shook my head.
Lynk swaggered as he walked up to the highway’s gravel shoulder. The traffic lights blinked green for the cars, blinked red at us. Cars and trucks rolled past us at high speeds. We waited for a lull.
Lynk said, ‘The Boorman kid got killed here last year. That’s why they put up the lights, and put us in charge. He was six. Had big ears and a runny nose.’
Roland, hands in pockets, said, ‘He was the third kid killed around here in the last ten years.’
‘Happens all the time,’ Lynk said.
‘A girl in an apartment block we lived in fell from the third floor, right over the balcony rail on to the grass.’
Lynk looked at me. ‘You lived in an apartment?’
‘For a little while,’ I said, turning to watch the traffic. ‘She broke both her legs.’
Roland put a booted foot in a puddle and swirled it until the water turned grey. ‘That’s a long drop. Good thing she didn’t die.’
I nodded. ‘We lived on the fifth floor. I went out on our balcony when I heard this screaming. The mother was on her balcony, screaming and screaming. Everybody came out to look, all of us leaning over the rails – the whole side of the apartment, twelve storeys, all these people leaning over and watching her scream. We couldn’t see the girl, but we watched her mother scream.’ I glanced to see that they were all watching me. ‘They took the mother away. The police did. There was talk that she pushed her daughter over.’
Lynk’s eyes went wide. Roland scowled. Carl licked his lips.
I shrugged and kicked at some gravel. ‘In the city you get accidents, sure,’ I said, scanning the blacktop. ‘But lots of times they aren’t accidents. They just look like accidents.’
The lull came, not a long one, but long enough. My three friends ran hard across the highway; I followed at a slower, slightly daring pace. The last bit of my story, about the mother, had been a lie of sorts. That mother did live in the apartment, and had been taken away because she beat her kids, but it was a different mother from the one whose daughter fell from the balcony. And it had happened years earlier.
I didn’t think there was anything wrong in putting two truths together to make a lie, especially since it was a good story. No, not just a good story. It had been ugly enough to take the swagger
Neither replied.
With a smile and a wave Jennifer left the house. As she walked across the yard Sten’s dogs barked at her. She ignored them.
Halfway up the block Jennifer met Sandy and Barb, who had been coming down to call on her. As always, it was important to meet them away from the house. ‘Hi,’ she said. ‘You ready?’
Barb grinned behind her hand.
‘Ready for what?’ Sandy asked.
‘Didn’t Barb tell you? We’re going into town.’
Barb giggled and said, ‘Jenny knows some Grade Nine guys. We’re meeting them at the McDonald’s.’
‘Come on,’ Jennifer said, draping her arms around her friends and pulling them forward. ‘We’re going to hitch in.’
‘Hitch-hike?’ Sandy asked.
‘Yep.’
Sandy pulled back.
Jennifer reached out and took Sandy by an arm. ‘Don’t worry. If some perve tries anything I’ll rip his nuts off.’
Barb screamed her laughter. Halfway back down the block, the shriek set off Sten’s dogs again.
The three girls walked towards the highway.
VI
We arrived at the traffic lights. Across the highway stood the school. Along the playing field rose a high chain-link fence that stretched around to include the now empty parking lot.
‘We’re Patrols,’ Lynk said. ‘We get keys to work the lights, and we take all the little kids across. You got Patrols in your school?’
‘Sure.’
‘You a Patrol?’
I shook my head. ‘I take the bus home, right?’
‘But when you lived close,’ Lynk persisted.
Again I shook my head.
Lynk swaggered as he walked up to the highway’s gravel shoulder. The traffic lights blinked green for the cars, blinked red at us. Cars and trucks rolled past us at high speeds. We waited for a lull.
Lynk said, ‘The Boorman kid got killed here last year. That’s why they put up the lights, and put us in charge. He was six. Had big ears and a runny nose.’
Roland, hands in pockets, said, ‘He was the third kid killed around here in the last ten years.’
‘Happens all the time,’ Lynk said.
‘A girl in an apartment block we lived in fell from the third floor, right over the balcony rail on to the grass.’
Lynk looked at me. ‘You lived in an apartment?’
‘For a little while,’ I said, turning to watch the traffic. ‘She broke both her legs.’
Roland put a booted foot in a puddle and swirled it until the water turned grey. ‘That’s a long drop. Good thing she didn’t die.’
I nodded. ‘We lived on the fifth floor. I went out on our balcony when I heard this screaming. The mother was on her balcony, screaming and screaming. Everybody came out to look, all of us leaning over the rails – the whole side of the apartment, twelve storeys, all these people leaning over and watching her scream. We couldn’t see the girl, but we watched her mother scream.’ I glanced to see that they were all watching me. ‘They took the mother away. The police did. There was talk that she pushed her daughter over.’
Lynk’s eyes went wide. Roland scowled. Carl licked his lips.
I shrugged and kicked at some gravel. ‘In the city you get accidents, sure,’ I said, scanning the blacktop. ‘But lots of times they aren’t accidents. They just look like accidents.’
The lull came, not a long one, but long enough. My three friends ran hard across the highway; I followed at a slower, slightly daring pace. The last bit of my story, about the mother, had been a lie of sorts. That mother did live in the apartment, and had been taken away because she beat her kids, but it was a different mother from the one whose daughter fell from the balcony. And it had happened years earlier.
I didn’t think there was anything wrong in putting two truths together to make a lie, especially since it was a good story. No, not just a good story. It had been ugly enough to take the swagger
Similar Books
