Page 49 of The Vanishing Place
“I don’t think—”
Tia frowned. “Do they just float around in there forever?”
Lewis laughed—a half laugh that made him grimace. “They just sort of fix themselves, I guess.”
“Do all bones fix themselves?”
“I—”
“My arm has bones,” said Aiden. “Look. They’re hard.”
“Yes, they are,” Lewis said. “You’ve got very strong bones.”
“That’s cos I eat spinach.”
“No.” Tia rolled her eyes. “Spinach is for muscles.”
“Okay, okay.” June walked in carrying towels. “I think that’s enough questions for one day. Bath time.”
“Can I go after?” asked Effie.
“Yes.” June looked at her. “But it’s still an early bed for you.”
Effie sat on the sofa next to Lewis as the young ones were herded out. Tia was still asking questions when June closed the door.
“How’s your head?” Lewis asked once it was just them.
She touched a hand to her forehead. The muddiness was still there. Mud in her thoughts and mud behind her eyes.
“Not bad,” she said.
But every time she closed her eyes, the image was there, like a cold itch beneath her skin.
When they got to the park, her dad had wrenched the man off Lewis like he weighed nothing, then tossed him to the ground. But he didn’t stop there. Dad had grabbed the man and draggedhim back to his feet. Then Dad punched him, the blow so violent that the man fell to the grass, crumpling like a rag doll. Effie had squealed, shaking, and crawled toward Lewis. But Dad didn’t stop. He hit the man again and again till there was blood on his knuckles.
Sobbing, Effie had crouched on the grass in front of Lewis, blocking his view, not wanting him to see the man in her dad’s clothes. Eventually, a howl burst out of the crumpled man, a gurgle of pain and laughter, and Effie had turned to see him looking up at her dad, smiling without enough teeth. Then he spat blood at Dad’s feet.
“God will punish you.” He laughed.
Then Dad punched him a final time and Effie closed her eyes, too scared to move, too scared to check if the rag-doll man was still alive.
Lewis shuffled an inch closer on the sofa bed and held out a bag of chocolate Pineapple Lumps, offering one to Effie.
“Where’d you get those?” she asked.
He smiled. “Your dad gave them to me when June wasn’t looking.”
Effie took one. “Thanks,” she said. “For jumping on that guy.”
“Any time.” Lewis gave a ridiculous salute. “Always happy to help a friend in distress.”
She raised an eyebrow. “I wasn’t indistress.”
“Well, you sure fooled me.”
“Well, you…” She put her hands on her hips. “You’re the one with broken bones.”
“All part of the job.”
