House Rules by Jodi Picoult

Author:Jodi Picoult
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub, pdf
Tags: Literary, Mothers and sons, Murder, Psychological fiction, Forensic sciences, Autistic boys, Murder - Investigation, Autistic youth, General, Fiction - General, Mental Illness, Asperger's syndrome, Psychological, Fiction, Psychological suspense fiction
ISBN: 9780743296434
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Published: 2010-07-15T18:06:38.696000+00:00

House Rules

Emma

As if I need any further reminder after Oliver Bond’s visit that my life is not and never will be what it was, my editor calls. “I was hoping you could come in this afternoon,” Tanya says. “There’s something we need to discuss.”

“I can’t.”

“Tomorrow morning?”

“Tanya,” I say, “Jacob’s under house arrest. I’m not allowed to leave.”

“Well, that’s sort of why I wanted to meet … We think that it might be best for everyone right now if you took a leave of absence from your column.”

“Best for everyone?” I repeat. “How is losing my job best for me?”

“It’s temporary, Emma. Just until this … blows over. Surely you understand,” Tanya explains. “We can’t really endorse advice from—”

“From a writer whose son was accused of murder?” I finish for her. “I write anonymously. No one knows about me, much less Jacob.”

“For how long? We’re in the news business. Someone’s going to dig this up, and then we’ll be the ones who look like idiots.”

“By all means,” I say hotly. “We wouldn’t want you to look like idiots.”

“We’re not cutting you off. Bob’s agreed to keep you at half salary plus benefits if you do freelance editing of the Sunday section for us in return.”

“Is this the part where I’m supposed to fall to my knees in gratitude?” I ask.

She is quiet for a moment. “For what it’s worth, Emma,” Tanya says, “you’re the last person in the world who deserves this. You’ve already got your cross to bear.”

“Jacob,” I say, “is not a cross to bear. He’s my son.” My hand is shaking where it holds the phone. “Go edit your own fucking Sunday section,” I tell her, and I hang up.

A tiny cry escapes as I realize the magnitude of what I’ve just done. I’m a single parent; I hardly make any money as is; I can’t work outside the home right now—how am I going to afford to live without a job? I could call my old boss from the textbook company and beg for freelance assignments, but it’s been twenty years since I worked there. I could scrape by on whatever savings we’ve got, until this is over.

And when will that be?

I admit that I’ve taken our legal system for granted. I assumed that the innocent prevail, that the guilty get their due. But as it turns out, it isn’t as simple as saying you’re not guilty if you’re not guilty. As Oliver Bond has pointed out, the jury has to be convinced. And connecting with strangers is Jacob’s weakest link.

I keep waiting to wake up. To have someone surprise me with the hidden camera and tell me this is all a big joke: that of course Jacob is free to go, that of course there has been some mistake. But no one surprises me, and I wake up every morning and nothing has changed.

The worst thing that could happen would be if Jacob goes to prison again, because they don’t understand him there. On the other hand, if he’s hospitalized, he’ll be with doctors.

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