Page 16 of Locke

“You’re saying that you’ve matured.” Locke said that was right. “I don’t know if you realize this or not, but she’s made all of us feel a bit less foolish since she’s been around. Alex makes us all want to be someone that she can and will be proud of. That sounds sappy but that’s just it. When I was telling Alex about Amanda, she told me several times that I was a good person. Martha told me that all the time, but for some reason, it just feels better coming from Alex.”

He laughed as they pulled into the driveway of the Landry home. Neither of them got out of the car just then but watched the fight that was going on in the yard. Dusty got out first and made his way to the two women who looked mightily close to coming to blows. Locke took his time, waiting to see if his brother needed his help before jumping in. It looked as if he had everything under control when he finally got to the three of them.

“What are you doing airing your trouble in the yard?” It was Amanda who looked around first. Locke looked as well when she frowned. All the neighbors were standing in their yards with their cell phones out recording them. “Why don’t we take this elsewhere and talk this over like adults?”

“I would love that, but she has refused me access to this home that I bought and paid for with my own money.” Locke asked whose name was on the deed. “Well, her name is there now. She took my son’s name off and put hers there. Like I wanted her to have it after he passes. If he passes. For which she seems to be in a big hurry for anyway. She just can’t wait to get her hands on my son’s money that she’s going to have him killed off the first moment that—”

“That’s enough.” They both turned to Dusty when he spoke so harshly to the two women. “I don’t know a great deal about Mrs. Landry here, but I don’t believe for a moment that she’s trying to kill off her husband. And what a cruel way to have your husband or son passing if he were to hear the two of you out here bickering like a couple of children. Either take this someplace else before the police are called or go your separate ways.”

“What makes you so much in charge, young man?” It was Amanda who answered her mother-in-law about why Dusty was taking charge. “Your friend? When did you make this so-called friend? While my son was on his deathbed?”

“I’m going into the house to finish feeding my children. If you so much as step a foot into this house or his hospital room, I’ll have you arrested. I have warned you several times, Margaret, that I have this under control.” When the younger woman turned and went into the house, Margaret turned to look at Dusty. Locke decided that he, too, had things under control and left him to it.

“She won’t allow me to see my dying son. She’s killing me by not letting me see him. Does she know this?” Dusty asked the elder Landry if she knew why. “She just wants to pull the plug on him so that he’ll die quicker. I should sue her for trying to kill off my son. That’s what I’m going to—”

“And what do you think that will accomplish for you? Not seeing your grandchildren? Do you think that when this is all over—your son is going to die soon, and you’re just making it harder on her than it is on you? Do you not realize what this is costing her to go at this alone? To grant her husband his dying wish? What will you do then, Margaret? How will you soothe your grief without the last family that you have?” She just stared at him. “There is no court in the land that will allow you to make decisions on your married son’s behalf at this stage in his life. His children have more control than you do at this moment, and you are, all on your own, going to cut yourself out of their lives as if you were never there. Is that what you want?”

“I want my son to live.” As she sobbed, Dusty held onto the elderly woman, talking to her, whispering in her ear things that Locke couldn’t hear. Moving around, the two of them, after giving his brother a pat on the shoulder, he went into the house where Amanda went. The kids were still sitting at the table, and their mother was nowhere to be found. He asked the oldest child, who seemed to be about seven or eight, where they were going today.

“Nursery school so momma can take a nap. She’s very tired. Can you help me with my homework? Momma was, but then that woman came here and started yelling at her. Grandma has been yelling at my momma since Daddy got sick. I don’t want her to come here no more.” Helping the little girl with her math homework, he finished up the pancakes that had been burning on the stove. Starting over, he was glad that the batter was all mixed up, and all he had to do was fry them up.

While he was in the middle of cleaning up the kitchen, the neighbor came to pick up the kids and take them to nursery school. He asked her if she could tell him where they were going. It bothered him that the woman taking the children couldn’t remember the name of the school. So, being somewhat overly protective of the children that he’d gotten to know over funny-shaped pancakes, Locke told the woman that there was a change in plans and that he’d been asked to watch them. If he’d not been looking right at her, he would have missed the flash of anger on her face. That took his fear of what was going on up a few notches.

“Oh. Well, I was going to take them for the day to the school. I wish I could remember the name of the place. Anyway, I can just take them. There isn’t any point in you having to change your plans. I’ll take them.” She seemed overly insistent that they were going with her. Instead of allowing a stranger to take them, as she was physically pulling them out the door when he stopped her, he let her know that he and his wife were going to take care of them and help around the house for Amanda. “You don’t understand how we do things around here. I’m going to take them for the day and watch over them for Marg—for Amanda. Now, just get out of the way, sir, or I’m calling the police.”

“Call them. I think that’s an excellent idea for us all to be on the right page. Then, that way, if you’re lying, I can have you arrested for trying to take these little ones from their mom. She doesn’t need that on top of all the other things that she’s dealing with. Don’t you think?” She looked at him so pissed, not even bothering to hide her anger this time, that he could feel the heat of her rage. “Call the police, and in the meantime, I’m going to go into the back yard with them and have some fun. You can show yourself out if you think that you’re going to get even a foot near these kids. And if you believe that I’m kidding you, you just go ahead and try to take any of them. I will protect them with your life if I have to. Get out of here while you still can.”

Mandy, the little girl with the math issues, stood behind him. He so wanted to ask her if she knew this supposed neighbor, but he was afraid he’d made a fool of himself by refusing to let them go with the woman. But Mandy, seemingly a great deal like her mother, stepped around him, holding still on his pant leg, and spoke to the woman. While she was brave, he thought, she wasn’t stupid enough to think that she’d win out over an adult. Smart girl, this one. He held onto the infant while things were starting to take a bad turn that he knew he could easily end up in prison over. He only hoped that Amanda and especially his own wife would visit him in prison, where he was terrified that he was going to end up before the end of the day. Christ, sometimes he hated being able to think like a criminal all the time.

“My momma didn’t say that to you, you big wiener head. I heard her telling you to back off this morning when you were here taking us out of our beds. How did you get into our house anyway?” Locke put his hand on the little girl’s head while she continued to tell on her. “You just want to take us on account of my grandma paying you off to take us. I saw her in your yard last night, so I listened to what she was telling you.” Mandy looked up at him. “Grandma Landry gave her a lot of money to take us so that grandma could have a—I don’t remember. But it sounded like she was just going to take us right out of our beds.”

Locke blindly reached for the phone and dialed 911 to call the police without taking his eyes off the neighbor. When the woman started to leave, Alex came in the door behind her, and Locke asked her to keep the woman there. Thankfully, Dusty entered from the door, too, and held her to the wall while he and Mandy told them what was going on.

The police cruiser must have been on the street because before he was able to hang up, they were coming in the back door with their guns out. He was slightly freaked out by how quickly they came to the rescue. Even more freaked out that the woman wasn’t a neighbor to Amanda at all but to Margaret, the grandma.

“She’s keeping the children from their grandmother. Can you believe that? Do you have any idea what is going to happen? She’s killing off her husband so that she can leave the country and take these babies away.” Mandy told the police that it was a lie. They were only going to nursery school. “Not now, you dummy, but after your father is gone. Did your mom tell you that she’s killing off—”

Thankfully, the police knew Dusty, or he might well have been arrested too. As it was, he only slapped the woman across the face and told her that the children didn’t need to hear their lies. Amanda had to be taken to the hospital as soon as Margaret came into the house with a ball bat. Christ, this family was more screwed up than any he’d been around in a while.

Chapter 8

Alex was having fun, but she was tired too. Watching the little kids while their mother slept today was exhausting, but she was learning a great deal about kids at the same time. Especially the outspoken Mandy. Her mother should maybe stop talking around the little girl, but she thought it was too late now. The kid seemed to know everything there was to know about her mother and father. And the old lady that was her grandma. When she asked her again if she knew if her mom was all right, Alex told her that she was asleep. But then added what had really happened.

“You did see your grandmother try to hurt her, didn’t you? She did manage to get one blow into her shoulder before the police were able to stop her.” She said that she’d not seen her mommy hurt. “Yes, well, you were doing a great job of keeping that other woman from taking you and your brother and sister, which was really smart of you. She wasn’t able to take you because you were there to protect them all.”

“Mr. Locke did too. He cussed.” Alex thought that was an understatement as to what Locke had done. Screaming at the woman to stop trying to take the children made her think that when they had children that they’d be safe with their daddy. “Did you know that my mommy is going to sell our house?”

“I know that now. But I can understand her wanting to move to a smaller house with you three. It must be hard for her to take care of this place. Six bedrooms are a lot, even in places with a staff.” After explaining what staff meant, she played around in the water with Fred, the little pudgy little guy who seemed to think that everything was funny and that he needed to show his two new front teeth.

While Mandy was careful splashing water on her little brother, she wasn’t so much around her. Begging not to be soaked, Alex was soaking wet from the top of her head to her feet before she’d ever gotten in the pool. She kept an eye on Parker, the other child in the Landry family, who seemed to be too quiet. Or maybe it was because her sister seemed to be talking all the time. She didn’t know but did keep a closer eye on her.

By the time Locke returned with them both more clothing, dinner for them had shown up as well. Not only did they have pizza for everyone, but he’d picked up a few kids’ meals for the smaller ones who wouldn’t eat pizza. Alex thought that she’d been raised on pizza alone but could see how Fred would have a hard time eating it.

After giving the kids a bath, the most difficult thing she’d ever done, Alex wanted to crawl into the baby bed with Fred and catch a few zzz of her own. But duty called, and they were helping out a woman who needed more than just a little help from them. Dusty was in the kitchen with Locke when she’d finished up with the children.

“They must have been as tired as I am. Mandy was asleep before I finished the book I was reading. And Parker doesn’t look as pale as I thought she was earlier. I guess you were right to say that she’s just too tired to play a lot. I know that I am.” She sat down next to Locke and finished her glass of water. Before she could get up and make her way to the now spotless kitchen, Dusty went to get it for her so that she could put her feet up. Alex could get used to this kind of service. Locke said that Mrs. Landry had been arrested along with her neighbor Mrs. Hawthorne.

“I hope they both get the book thrown at them. To think that they were planning on taking the children right out of the house in the morning while Amanda still slept. What kind of monsters—I would have freaked out completely had it been me when I got up and found my kids were gone. And she thought herself justified in taking them because Amanda wouldn’t allow her to keep her son on life support. When he gets to that stage, I hope she keeps her from her only child just for payback.” She then thought of what she’d said. “I don’t think that I’d be able to do that. But then, I have nothing to go on without having children.”

---