Page 118 of August Lane
She knew what he’d done. Silas must have told her or maybe it was on the news, some all-points bulletin labeling him a fugitive. “She’d find me,” he said, which is what he wanted. He wanted August to run away with him, share whatever terrible life was at the end of this bus route so he wouldn’t be alone.
“I can’t let her do that. Do you understand?”
“Yes.” He blinked, blinded by tears. “Yes, ma’am, but could you… could you tell her I lo—”
The phone clicked and he heard a dial tone.
Mavis and August sat across from each other with barely touched dinner plates as Birdie wiped down the counter, pretending she wasn’t eavesdropping. August wasn’t eager to talk, but Mavis kept tossing her anxious looks while picking at her spaghetti.
“Are y’all hungry? I can fix you something,” Birdie said.
Mavis’s eyes darted to her plate and then to Birdie’s back. “No, ma’am?” It was a confused question, and August waved her hand, signaling that she should ignore it.
“Not good for young girls to skip…” Birdie’s voice trailed off whenshe spotted their full plates. She rubbed her face and walked past them, out of the kitchen. “Let me know if you need anything.”
They were silent until she was gone. Mavis stared after her. “Did she forget making us dinner?”
August didn’t want to talk about Birdie’s memory issues. Not until they had a diagnosis. “She’s distracted.”
“Does that happen a lot? She’s only fifty-seven.”
“Things have been stressful lately.”
They fell silent again. Mavis cleared her throat and said, “We should talk about it.”
August picked up her fork and stabbed a green bean. “Why?”
“Because that’s what normal people do.”
“I shouldn’t have told Luke anything. I’m sorry I did that.”
Mavis’s face crumpled. Tears started flowing. “Jessica threw it in my face. She sounded so happy when she said it, like she’d caught me being evil. I would have said anything to make her stop.”
“It’s okay.”
“You’ve always been tougher than me, so I thought—”
“It’s okay.” August raised her voice to stop her. “I forgive you.”
Mavis’s mouth fell open. “What? Why?”
“Because it feels worse not to. You’re the only person in this family that gets me.”
“I don’t understand you at all.”
“I don’t understand you, either. But see how we both get that? That’s more precious than a grudge.”
Mavis burst out laughing. “You’re so weird. But you’re also amazing.” She sighed. “I don’t get what you see in Luke.”
August ran her hands over the table. “It’s a long story.”
“Have you spoken to him since it happened?”
“Since what happened?”
Mavis looked surprised. “He got arrested.”
August stilled. “What?”
