Dead Politician Society by Robin Spano

Author:Robin Spano [Spano, Robin]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Suspense
ISBN: 9781459651562
Publisher: ReadHowYouWant
Published: 2010-09-01T04:00:00+00:00

THIRTY~NINE

JONATHAN

Why don’t you want a game?” He was bugging her, he knew, but Jonathan was restless. They were doing homework in the kitchen of his mom’s café. Technically Jonathan was the on-duty cook, but this time of the afternoon, most people ordered from the prepared snacks and sandwiches out front.

Jessica barely glanced up from her chemistry text. “To be honest, I’m freaked out by all these murders.”

“To be honest.”

“Right.”

“Trust me.”

“Okay.”

“You know that I’m a religious man.”

“No, you’re not. What are you talking about?”

“Things people say when they’re lying.”

Jessica closed her text. “So what am I lying about?”

“You’re not distracted by these murders. Why would you care?”

Jessica was quiet. “Of course I care.”

“You really want a game. But you’re petrified that you can’t win. Against me — some slacker who doesn’t understand organic chemistry.”

“Jonathan, what are you talking about?” Jessica stuck her book in her bag and sat facing him. “Did you smoke one of your funny cigarettes?”

“No!” Jonathan wasn’t sure why he bothered with indignation; her question wasn’t unreasonable. “Hey, why don’t we get away this weekend? Skip out on work and go to Niagara Falls.”

“What’s in Niagara Falls?” She was still assessing him like he had two heads, but at least she was smiling now.

He wanted to get her drunk and marry her, but of course he couldn’t tell her that. “Some grubby bars, some tacky wax museums, those scary haunted houses . . .”

“It sounds like fun, in a creepy kind of way. But how about next weekend? I don’t want to miss work tomorrow night.”

Missing work was exactly what Jonathan wanted to do. “Next weekend’s cool.” He put on an oversized smile. “So come on. How about a game?”

“Oh, fine. I’m obviously not destined to get any studying done.”

Jonathan ran upstairs to get his laptop, and Jessica pulled her netbook from her shoulder bag.

“Elly’s going to kill me,” Jessica said when he returned. “I just remembered I have that dinner with my family tomorrow, and I’m pretty sure everyone I could call as a replacement waiter is already working.”

“Call in sick.”

“It’s the same dinner I was supposed to be working. I’d like to keep my job if at all possible.”

“Why? You don’t need the money.”

“What makes you say that?”

“You’re, like, loaded.”

Jessica frowned. “My grandparents are loaded. I’m not.”

“Same thing.”

“No, it isn’t. They’d give me anything I asked for — my brother feels no qualms about sponging off them indefinitely. But I’d way rather make my own money.”

“What about Brian, for your shift tomorrow?” Jon pulled out a stool and set up his computer on a giant wooden baking table.

“Does it matter that he’s not a society member?” Jessica was leaning lazily into a large bag of flour.

“Not to Elly.” Jonathan opened the software for Who’s Got the Power?

“I think your mom’s cool,” Jessica said. “Running this café, working hard and loving it. What does your dad do?”

Jonathan shrugged. “You want the real story, or one of the ones I made up for myself when I was a kid?” He made his opening move as Israel, which was to set up an army training camp in the Sudan.

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