Page 49 of Turn

While Brecken and Saylor were commiserating over their struggles with dreaded mathematics, Cord asked, “What about the new apartment you were planning to move to?”

I finished chewing and swallowed. “Still happening. But the lease doesn’t start for almost three weeks.”

“And you were staying at a motel?”

“Yeah. The Empire.”

I saw Cord’s eyebrows shoot up so he must have heard of the place, or at least drove by and wondered who the hell would spend even one hour in such a dive.

“I know that place,” he said. “Damn, it’s been around forever. My brothers and I stayed there for a while after coming up from Emblem but it’s gone downhill since then.”

“Downhill is right,” I grumbled, thinking of drugs, dealers and guns.

Saylor rapped on the table to get our attention. “Since you guys need to go to work soon,” she said, “how about I take Brecken back to the house? I’ll just conduct my tattoo parlor research another time. I’ll even ask Chase if he can bring his boys over. It’s summer break and they’re math whizzes. Maybe they can help Brecken make sense out of that damn algebra. Cord, you can get a ride home with either Cassie or Curtis and well, Cadence’s room is empty for the summer...”

Saylor’s brief speech had jumped around so much that I was still trying to make sense of it. But Cord understood. His wife was watching him with a hopeful expression and finally he nodded.

“Yeah,” he said. “I think that sounds like a good plan.”

Saylor was thrilled. She urged Brecken to drink his orange juice and then we all went our separate ways when we returned to Scratch. It was still early so no other employees had arrived yet. Before Saylor shepherded my kid brother into a minivan and drove away I heard her ask him if he liked to read and if he wanted to go to the bookstore later to pick out some books.

“My wife loves taking care of people,” Cord said fondly. “Especially kids, now that ours are grown and don’t let her fuss over them the way she used to.”

I coughed. “She’s amazing. You’re lucky.”

“Don’t I know it.” Cord leaned against the wall beside the Scratch front doors and studied me. “Do you want to talk about what happened with your other brother? Tristan?”

I sat down on the curb. Cord walked over and sat beside me. I told him all about the sad history of my family. Some things he already knew thanks to Deck. Some things he didn’t. I told him I’d never forgive my mother for leaving instead of facing the consequences of her actions. Worse, she’d left the boys with nothing. I told him about how the three of us had finally left Emblem when the house was taken away and there was no way for me to support them down there. Meanwhile, Tristan had become angrier and more unruly as the time passed. At the end I told Cord that nothing in my life had ever hurt as much as allowing Tristan to walk out the door.

“He’s almost eighteen?” Cord asked.

I nodded. “Less than two months.”

“In that case even if you report him as a runaway they won’t really bother to look for him.”

“I know.” I paused and looked up at the sky. It was a dazzling storybook blue. “He’s not a bad kid. I think he’s just mixed up right now.”

“Then there’s a good chance he won’t stay mixed up forever,” Cord said. “Take you, for example. Only a good man would give up his own plans and start over in order to look after his brothers.”

Suddenly I had the same feeling again, like I was internally sinking. I didn’t want to burst into idiot tears while sitting there on the curb with my boss watching me. I lowered my head and tried to think of something good. The only thing that came to mind was Cassie’s smile.

Cord cleared his throat. “Curtis, I know what it’s like to go through tough times. I want you to know there’s no shame in asking for help. But since I don’t believe you’d ever ask, I’m going to offer. You and your little brother don’t need to live on the street or in shitty motels for the next few weeks. We have a home with an empty room. Saylor and I would really like you and Brecken to stay with us until you can move to your own place.” He patted my shoulder. “It’ll give you a break, a chance to breathe.”

The offer was extremely generous.

I almost turned it down anyway.

Then I thought about Brecken and how happy he’d been this morning in the company of the Gentrys. I had to push aside my feelings of pride for his sake. There was nothing more important than keeping that kid safe and protected.

“Thank you,” I told Cord. “I can’t even tell you what that means to me and to Brecken. I promise we won’t be any trouble while we’re staying with your family.”

“I know you won’t, Curtis.”

Cord stood up and went to unlock the front door of Scratch. A crunch of gravel nearby signaled the approach of a car. Not surprising since it was almost time for some of the staff to show up for their regular working hours. While I waited for Cord to unlock the door I tried to look like I hadn’t slept in my car last night. I didn’t want to start the day like this. I told Cord I’d be right in and ran over to my car to get a change of clothes from the trunk. I’d feel more normal after getting cleaned up in the restroom.

My trunk was still open when a compact Toyota pulled in beside me. I recognized that car. Had it really only been a few short weeks ago that I first saw the girl it belonged to?

Cassie Gentry stepped out of the driver’s side looking as wholesome and beautiful as a field of daisies. She even looked like a daisy herself, all yellow and white in a sundress that reached just above her knees. In spite of all the horror and fatigue of the last twelve hours my brain veered instantly to sex, the dirtiest kind, a hardcore fucking desecration of this pristine duchess of sunshine and flowers.

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