In the House On Lakeside Drive Read online

  “I didn’t mean it. Sam was makin’ cookies, and I said how about oatmeal raisin ones, and Remy said no, make chocolate chip ones, and then I said nuts, and…”

  “Josh, shouldn’t Sam have decided what kind of cookies to make?”

  Josh thought about that a minute. “I guess.”

  “You guess? Wasn’t he the one making them?”

  “Yeah, but…”

  Rachel shook her head a little. “Josh. No ‘buts’.” If you wanted cookies, couldn’t you have made some?”

  “Yeah. I guess.” His round face looked crestfallen. Bits of dusty blond hair swirled in the breeze as the minivan swept around the south end of the lake. A deep sigh came out of his wide chest. “I mean, I didn’t mean to piss him off…”

  Now it was Rachel’s turn to sigh. “Josh, what exactly did you say? I’m getting the feeling you’re leaving something out here.”

  Bright brown eyes danced nervously inside an oval shaped head. “I said my mom makes the best cookies in the world. Even better than Remy’s mom.” As the words spilled out, a look of realization crossed the young man’s face. “Oh, crap.”

  “Now you see why he got pissed?”

  “Man, I didn’t mean it like that! I mean, maybe they are…how do I know?”

  A ghost of an understanding smile flashed underneath Rachel’s bright green eyes, and a long hand flicked though a mass of flaming red curls. “Remember, Remy takes that hard. It’s not easy to lose your family suddenly, especially like his.”

  “I…I wasn’t thinkin’. I forgot.”

  “Happens a lot, Josh. For starters, you forgot to put the dishes away last night.”

  Josh grimaced. “I know. I was gonna put them away this morning, and then my alarm didn’t work, and then I was late in the shower…”

  “…and you complained that Sam and Remy used up all the hot water. I know. We’re lucky we made it to school on time.” The minivan circled the south end of the lake, heading for its original destination.

  “Well, they did! I mean, Remy spends like, half an hour in the shower.”

  “And Sam? He takes the other half hour?”

  A sheepish look crossed the young man’s face. “Well, no. He’s pretty quick, really.”

  “And Evan and I take showers at night. Think about it, Josh. Who’s using all the water?”

  Silence reigned inside the gray-blue interior of the vehicle. “Me. And Remy.”

  “Right. I’m beginning to think you two get on each other’s nerves because you’re so much alike.” The well-used conveyance turned down an eight-hundred-foot driveway, leading to the old Colonial-style house that had been passed down three generations. “Now, do you think you can go in there and bury the hatchet—and not in each other, for heaven’s sake?”

  Josh slid out of the passenger seat, opened the sliding door, and reached for the groceries lining the back seats. “I guess.” He glanced over toward the side of the house, seeing a familiar white work truck parked next to the well-worn wooden garage. “Evan’s home.”

  “Great. Hopefully he’s kicking Remy out of his likely foul mood and starting him on dinner.” Rachel grabbed the rest of the plastic-covered parcels and headed up the rickety stairs, the third step before the wraparound porch squeaking like an unwanted herald. The front door stood open, and before the young woman could get inside three bodies spilled out of it.

  “Hey, let me get those,” her boyfriend said, giving her a quick kiss as he took the burden from her hands. “I’ll take the keys too.”

  “What’s all this? There a fire sale I didn’t know about?”

  “We’re going to dinner,” Sam said.

  “We are?”

  “Let’s say someone had a good day at work,” Remy supplied. The skinny young man looked like a cattail swaying in the breeze, kept balanced only by a swaying dirty-blond ponytail set near the base of his skull and the fuzzy black fleece jacket that was a staple of his wardrobe. Patched jeans and one of his many printed t-shirts peeked out of the jacket, today’s reading “Speak up—I’m blind.”

  “Raiding Sam’s closet again?” Rachel asked with a grin, her eyes flicking through her charge’s attire. Next to him, Sam wore a plain gray long-sleeved shirt and blue jeans, both looking well-kept.

  “Nah. I bought one when he got his. It’s funny.”

  “Should have gotten one that says, “I’m with him” and an arrow pointing in a direction. I never seem to find the two of you apart except for class, said Rachel.”

  “Well, except for yours,” Sam pointed out.

  “True.” All three of the boys were in her Problem Solving class, and Josh was currently going with her to a jobsite at a local deli, Olive’s, where he and two other students cleaned tables and floors and washed down counters before opening. “So, where are we going?”

  “I wanted pizza,” Sam said.

  “I want chicken,” Remy said.

  “I want a sandwich,” Josh chimed in. He looked at Remy. “I’m sorry, man. I wasn’t thinking.”

  Remy’s eyes closed briefly, then he gave a small smile. “It’s okay. I know. Just try to think next time, all right?”

  Josh nodded. Rachel inwardly heaved a sigh of relief. Crisis averted. For now.

  “All set,” Evan said, locking the door behind him. “Who wants what?”

  “Pizza, chicken, sandwich, and a steak,” Rachel rattled off, pulling her opened white parka around her, the blue trim of the collar looking like a necklace around her throat. “What?” she said, responding to the stunned faces of the men in her life. “Dead cow sounds tasty. Medium rare, please.”

  “Okay then. We’ll go to Gio’s. Besides, I’m in the mood for ice cream.”

  “Ice cream? On a day like this?” Josh challenged.

  “Why not?”

  The youngest of the three tenants thought about that a moment. “I guess.”

  “That’s one of the great things about being an adult—you can eat ice cream for dinner if you want. Luckily, I also plan on having some of the house salad—with chicken and French dressing.” He pointed to the minivan. “Last one in has to get the table.”

  The couple stared as three newly minted adults—all old enough to buy lotto tickets but just shy of drinking age—raced for the van, jockeying for seating position. “Sam’s getting really good with that stick of his,” Evan commented drily, watching Sam wield his mobility device like a weapon. “Those lessons of yours are helping.”

  “Eh,” Rachel said. “The fencing lessons in college are coming in handy. Wish my English degree could do the same.”

  “Hey, speak for yourself. I didn’t finish college,” the thirty-year-old man shouted. “Sam, don’t leave marks!”

  “Sorry!” Sam’s even voice called back as he collapsed his cane and tossed it under his seat.

  “Poor kid. He tries, but still he’s the last one in the van,” Rachel said.

  “It’s good practice for him. He needs to learn to speak up for himself, rather than playing peacemaker all the time. Remy and Josh can be overpowering personalities, and I’m just afraid the kid’ll get lost in the shuffle.”

  As the pair got in and started the van, the sounds of voices clamored behind them. “I want oldies!” “No, new stuff!” “No, how ’bout some jazz?”

  Chapter 3

  The plates were cleared, the spoons handed out, and a giant hot fudge brownie sundae sat in-between the five occupants of the table. “Wow,” Josh breathed, staring at the frozen concoction that stood before him. “That’s the biggest sundae I’ve ever seen!”

  “They didn’t have anything like this where you come from?” Remy asked between bites of chocolate brownie.

  “Not like this!”

  “Mmm,” Evan said, helping himself to the cherry. “This was a good idea.

  “Mm-hmm,” Sam agreed, his mouth too full of chocolate sauce and vanilla ice cream to elaborate further.

  “My god,” Rachel said, watching the guys eat. She contented h
erself with a small cannoli. “And they say women and chocolate are a dangerous combination.”

  Just then the restaurant started to fill up. Shouts of “Hello” and “Hi there!” filled the room as friends waited to be seated. The town of Otter Lake was about midsize—about ten thousand residents in all—but being that it was so close to the much larger town of North Kingston, the location of Gio’s Ristorante allowed patrons from both communities to stop in for heaping plates of Italian and local favorites. Already several of Remy and Sam’s friends had stopped by to say hello, and Josh was busy trading good-natured insults with his best friend Walter Longoria. The pair was so loud several patrons had to cut their conversations short. “Guys,” Rachel said, giving her patented stop-now-this instant stare. Within seconds both young men lowered their voices by several octaves. “Sorry,” Walter said, his high voice racing the word out as he followed his family to their table.

  “Place got busy fast for a Thursday night,” Evan said.

  “I’ll say. It’s a wonder there’s a table left.” Rachel scanned the large room from her vantage point of the corner farthest from the door. It gave her a good view of everyone in the dining area. There were several families having a late dinner, some of the younger crowd picking up food to take home, and even a few older couples enjoying some coffee and dessert. A trio of men sat in the corner farthest from the little group, and Rachel felt as though one of the men was staring right at her, his pale blue eyes boring into her very being. She shivered slightly at the thought.

  “Cold?” Remy asked between bites of ice cream.

  “No,” the young woman said, shaking it off. She glanced over again, and the men had set into their plates of food. “Just a little chill. You know Gio keeps the cannolis near-freezing to save the custard.”

  “That’s what makes them good,” Sam said. He let his spoon clatter into his bowl, his stomach now stuffed with thick pizza and a sizable share of ice cream.

  “The sundaes are better,” Remy disagreed. “Especially ones like this.”

  Just then, a thin, ragged-looking man came in, his long brown hair looking like it hadn’t seen soap in several days. Hard brown eyes flashed through a pair of small round spectacles, and the man’s goatee looked as though it couldn’t decide whether to curl or tangle into a matted mess. “Oh, shit,” Remy muttered, sinking into his chair. He turned his head toward the table, hoping that his face had gone unseen.

  “You know him?” Josh asked, thankfully keeping his voice to a quiet tone.

  “Yeah. Wish I didn’t.”

  The raggedy man came near, almost falling over his own feet as he walked. The smell of liquor and days-old dirt assaulted Sam’s nose, and he worked hard to keep his face blank. “Well, well,” the man said, a little too loudly. “I guess they do let you out, huh? At least, enough to be seen in public.”

  Evan stood up, his slight frame a match for the drunken man. “Hey, leave him alone.”

  “Who the hell asked you?” the man spat. “If I want a word with my nephew, I’ll have it.”

  “There’s nothing to say,” Remy spat back. “You’re drunk.”

  “Should take you home, where you belong, boy.” Small hands tried in vain to shove Evan to one side, and the unkempt face leered at Remy. “Teach you your place, which is not in public for everyone to see.”

  “No. What’s going to happen is you’re leaving,” Evan said, taking the man’s collar and shoving him away from Remy, who was dangerously close to his breaking point. “Come near him again, I’ll see to it Remy presses charges.”

  “Boy belongs with me. Not fit to see to his own affairs.”

  “Not the way the law sees it,” Evan countered.

  “Fuckin’ law don’t know shit,” Remy’s uncle yelled, drawing the attention of more than a few people in the room. “Kid’s not right in the head—doctors say so and everything, and what does he do? Runs from the one person he’s got left to go live with some uppity gopher and his whore.”

  Suddenly a thick hand clapped on the drunkard’s shoulder. “Out. Now.”

  “Got a right to express myself.”

  “Well, you can express yourself to the cops when they come to pick you up,” the restaurant’s owner said, his black eyes glinting like pieces of polished coal. Gio Betti didn’t approve of drunks in his establishment, and especially not entitled bastards like Cooper Lavelle. Soon a couple of uniformed officers took the raving man off his hands, and the small group in the far corner heaved a collective sigh of relief. “Sorry about that. It shouldn’t have happened.”

  “Not your fault, Gio,” Remy said, his gratitude evident on his face. “He’s an asshole.”

  The burly Italian smiled. “You got yourself a good place now. Remember that.”

  “I will.”

  “Well, that was exciting,” Sam commented drily as the sound of heavy footsteps plodded toward the kitchen.

  “That guy’s mean,” Josh said, too struck to say anything else. “You’re not stupid, Remy.”

  “Of course not,” Sam affirmed. “If anyone, your uncle’s the idiot.”

  “Okay, guys,” Rachel said, a warning note to her voice. “Let’s drop it.” To Remy, she said, “You okay?”

  “Yeah,” the twenty-year-old said, not looking the least bit okay. “I’ll be fine.”

  “What say we head home?” Evan said, locking eyes with his best girl. “Tomorrow’s Friday, after all.”

  As the party of five gathered their things, the men at the table on the far side of the room stared at their quarry. “I think we found him,” the man with blue eyes said, a thick Southern drawl tinging the hushed whisper. “’Bout damn time, too.”

  Chapter 4

  The next few weeks were uneventful. The fall weather meant more work for Evan, seeing as people wanted windows taped over and houses winterized for the season. The list of folks looking to have their yards cleaned meant that the town’s most dependable independent project man had to take on help to fill his quota. Many a weekend saw him acting as supervisor to students from OLBC looking to make a few dollars to go toward Christmas, and it meant that he was putting in more hours than normal.

  “Is this where to put the dead stuff?” one student asked, his hands filled with rake tines and molding twigs. He stood near a giant pile of yard detritus that threatened to take over a city lot.

  “Yep.” Nearby, a couple of girls were focusing on their conversation and less on the leaf bag that threatened to tip over onto the ground. “Hey, Analisa,” Evan called out, catching one’s attention. “I don’t pay you double to do the same job twice!”

  “Sorry, Mr. Evan,” she said sheepishly gathering the bag opening tightly. She loped off to collect the next pile, her right foot dragging a little in her gait.

  All in all, each of the kids made about ten bucks a day, and he took another five percent and divided it among the number of workers. On this particular day, he had about twelve students busy in four yards within a block radius. Across the street, Remy stood with his rake, busily trying to help Sam find the opening to the paper leaf bag they had to fill.

  “It’s right there,” Remy guided, carefully running Sam’s fingers across the top of the bag. The pads caught the serrated edge meant to make opening easier. “Feel it?”

  “I got it,” Sam said, slipping his digits between the paper sides. Soon he could feel the wet papery leaves sliding into the receptacle, and it didn’t take long to fill up. “Wish they made these things bigger, though.”

  “You’re not kidding,” Remy agreed, pulling his thin coat tighter around his shoulders. He blew on his hands, wishing he had thought to bring a pair of gloves from the garage.

  “Forgot your gloves again?”

  “Yeah. Not like they’d have done much good, thin as they are.”

  “So go get some new ones.”

  Remy scowled, though the gesture was lost on his friend. “If only it was that easy. My damn uncle is tying up my money again.”

  �
�Your government check?”

  “Yeah. The idiot thinks that if he freezes my bank account, he can ‘convince’ me to move back in with him,” Remy explained. “I called my lawyer. He’s working to straighten it out.”

  “You’re keeping tabs on it?”

  “Uh-huh.” Another fistful of leaves hit the bag. “What’s worse is that I’m late with the rent for Miss Rachel. I don’t wanna get bounced because of that asshole.”

  “Remy, you know she wouldn’t do that. Does she know?”

  “I said something to her.”

  “Then it should be okay. Don’t worry. I don’t think she’s gonna evict you because your uncle’s being a jerk.” Sam sat the filled bag down, reaching over to where he knew the pile of empty ones lay.

  “I know. I just wish there was some way of keeping the asshole out of my stuff, is all. I don’t like waiting.”

  “Patience is a virtue,” Sam said, half singing.

  “But not one of mine,” Remy sang back, laughing. He looked at his best friend, standing like a toy soldier holding a gunny sack in front of him. “Why are you out here?” he said. “I mean, you’ve never got money problems…”

  “True. Dad sends the check like clockwork. Wish he’d come to see me, though.”

  Remy stopped in mid-rake. “He hasn’t seen you?”

  “Nope. Not in over a year. It’s okay.” The look on Sam’s face said otherwise.

  “No, it’s not. Why hasn’t he come to see you?”

  Sam shrugged. “Dad’s been focused on getting me more mobile, better equipped to take care of myself. I can’t complain—I want that too—but sometimes I think he wishes he had a son that wasn’t, y’know, broken.

  “You’re not broken,” Remy said sharply. The idea of someone not liking Sam just because of his blindness bothered Remy. “Wired different, parts slightly settled in shipping, but not broken.”

  “True. But I have an older brother who’s planning on going to med school, and an older sister who’s graduating summa cum laude from U of M law school next month. Which kid sounds like the best choice to talk about during Thanksgiving dinner with the other relatives?”