The Silent Strength of Stones by Nina Kiriki Hoffman

Author:Nina Kiriki Hoffman
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Published: 2012-01-14T00:11:08+00:00

* * *

“Can Evan spend the night?” I asked Pop as I cleared the table. Granddad had turned on the TV in the living room half of the kitchen and retreated to his wicker rocking chair, and Evan and Mom were sitting on the sofa, watching a rerun of “Roseanne” with him. Mom had slipped into her old place near the lamp, where she used to do cross-stitch while she watched. Evan sat where I usually sat. He was staring so hard I wondered if he had ever seen a TV before. After all, he came from a home with no telephones and not much mail.

Pop was still sitting at the table, nearer to me than the others. He sipped from his coffee mug. “Where would he sleep? The motel’s full.”

“He can sleep on the floor in my room. He’s used to roughing it.” I loaded dishes into the dishwasher.

“Tell me true, Nick. Is he really staying over at Lacey’s? If he is, why doesn’t he go back there?”

“He’s feuding with his family. He can’t go back, Pop.”

“And he doesn’t have any clothes.”

I got a mug of milky coffee and sat down across from Pop.

“But he has darned nice manners,” Pop said. “All right, he can stay. You can even give him some more of my old clothes, if you want.”

“Thanks, Pop,” I said, surprised.

“No matter how I feel about my backhoe days, chances are I’m not going back,” he said. He watched the back of Evan’s head. “Somebody might as well get some use out of my old rags. Guess I was saving them to paint the house in, but there’s more. Not sure they’d fit me anymore anyway. And we got fifteen-year paint on the house right now. Might last us eight or nine years,” He smiled. There was that surprising charm again. “What do you think about that Susan, eh?”

“She seems nice,” I said.

“Nice? With cannons like that?” He wagged his eyebrows at me.

I stared at my mother again. She looked way too skinny to me, and almost flat in front. I needed to ask Evan some more questions about warding.

“Nice,” I said.

He parted my head. “You’re so young.” He got up, carrying his coffee mug, and wandered over to sit in his easy chair, where he could watch Mom and the TV at the same time.

I sipped coffee and watched my family from behind as they were transfixed by images on a small screen. This was like old times, with Evan standing in for me. Could we actually return to the way life used to be? Everything was so calm. Where was the fear and panic I had felt?

Mom turned to look at me. Her eyes were shadowed and looked like tunnels. I had stared into her eyes more than once until I got lost in them, not because they were silver and animated like Uncle Bennet’s, but because I knew all she saw was me and all I saw was her. I had never needed friends while she was still living with us.

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