Page 66 of A Better World

Josie looked at her with exasperation. “I don’twantit! I have to. There’s nothing outside. No place to go except a company.”

Linda spoke softly. “You’re a competent person. You could find places that are still healthy, where the air’s still clean. They do exist. Out of anyone, you could make that work.”

“You couldn’t,” Josie said.

Heat rose along Linda’s neck. “True.”

“You dipped out like Kings was on fire.”

“We did, didn’t we?” she answered. “I thought this was the best option.”

They were facing one another. Linda on the bed, Josie in her chair. She was taller than Linda, and more robust. The fact of your child’s ascendance is surprising, long after it’s begun.

“Is that why you’re so angry?” she asked.

Josie grimaced in obvious anger. “I’m not angry.”

“Okay. Do you ever talk to Angela?” Angela was Josie’s best friend from home.

“The signal’s crap. You know that.”

“I’ll bet you miss her.”

“No,” Josie answered. “She’s not going anywhere. I’ll probably never see her again.”

“What about these new friends?”

“They’re not friends. We share air.”

Out of ways to lead into this delicately, Linda took Josie’s chin in her hand. Josie tugged back and out of her grasp. “A police officer came to the house today.”

Josie crossed her arms.

“He showed me a video of you tearing up a street sign. You weren’t yourself, Josie.”

Josie stayed looking down.

“Officer Galani wants you to go to the department on Thanksgiving and set up chairs as community service.”

“Oh,” Josie said. “Maybe that’s why no one’s talking to me lately.”

“I don’t follow. Your friends aren’t talking to you?”

She was locked tight, arms crossed and looking away. Linda was reminded of the monkeys that speak, hear, and see no evil. Linda’d always thought the monkeys meant that if you didn’t engage the evil, it didn’t exist. It occurred to her for the first time that the opposite was true. It meant evil was everywhere. Inescapable.

“Did they put you up to it? They’re afraid you’ll tell on them?”

“No. They were fine with what I did. But they probably don’t like that I got caught. People around here don’t like trouble. They don’t like being friends with anyone in trouble.”

Linda felt sad to hear that. She’d wanted to believe it had been someone else’s idea. “How can they not be talking to you? You’ve been going out, haven’t you? I know you got a ride home today.”

“It doesn’t mean they talk to me.”

“Why else would they give you a ride or hang out with you if you weren’t getting along?”

“They’re polite, Mom. It’s their thing.”

“That sounds more complicated than it ought to be.”

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