I'm Fine, but You Appear to Be Sinking by Leyna Krow

Author:Leyna Krow [Krow, Leyna]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Literary Fiction
ISBN: 9781943888085
Publisher: Featherproof Books
Published: 2017-05-15T04:00:00+00:00

July 15, 2090, Bainbridge Island, Washington

Parker Timothy Olstead II

The dog follows them up the beach and down the trail to the cluster of low houses with sloped, mossy roofs. They stop at the second house from the street, Camden and Twila’s, and Spud tells the dog to wait, even though he knows it will anyway. His aunt says he’s “got a way with animals.” He spends hours observing the creatures that live along the beach and in the woods. He tries to read them like he would a book. He knows their habits, and usually he can get them to do what he wants. Frogs will rest on his knees if he puts them there. Once, a heron ate breadcrumbs from his hand, its long neck stretched out to reach him. The dog is loyal and shows no interest in anyone else.

Inside, Camden leads him to the basement—ostensibly toward paper-work she’s found relating in some way to his father. He only half way trusts such a thing really exists. Camden has always been a liar. Though it’s only the last year her lies have turned mean. Or, if not mean, manipulative. Lies to control, lies to confuse.

There’s part of him that wants this to be just another one of those lies. That way he won’t really be breaking the promise he made to himself on the beach just an hour ago—no more pathetic pining for his dead and absent parents.

He’s been in this basement before, but not for a long time. Not since he and Camden were small, back when they were real friends and used to play hide-and-seek while his aunt and Camden’s mom clipped coupons in the kitchen and did whatever else. In the basement, there’s a couch, a desk, three mismatched chairs and a file cabinet. Camden opens the bottom drawer of the cabinet and makes a big show of sifting through it. He wonders if she actually found the file somewhere else in the house and re-hid it here as a means to get him down to the basement, where, even if Twila does come home suddenly, they won’t be interrupted. That would be just like Camden—always thinking one step ahead of him, getting him to do exactly what she wants, when she wants, where she wants.

After what seems like too long a time, Camden pulls a worn-looking manila envelope from the drawer and holds it up. The envelope is, as Camden promised, fat with papers. The edges are creased and torn in some places, exposing white pages within.

“See?” she says. “I told you.”

“Lieutenant Colonel Olstead” is printed neatly across the top and a return address for the University of Michigan in the right corner. He grabs for the envelope and is surprised when Camden drops it into his hands without a struggle. Inside are pages with numbers: cholesterol, white blood cell count, height, weight, pulse. Spud feels his phone vibrate in his pocket. He ignores it. He knows it’s his aunt because she’s the only person who ever calls, and she only calls when she has some chore she wants him to do.

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