Sophomore Year by Douglas Rees

Author:Douglas Rees [Rees, Douglas]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
ISBN: 978-0-375-89665-1
Publisher: Random House Children's Books
Published: 2010-07-12T16:00:00+00:00

16

One thing I did when we got home. I showed my dad the notice.

“Hm,” he said when he’d read it. “Looks like you’re being set up, all right. You might want to get a lawyer.”

“Dad, get a grip,” I said. “You’re a lawyer, remember?”

“Somebody important really wants you out of there,” Dad said like he hadn’t heard me. “Funny how everything in life eventually comes down to real estate. It’s the damnedest thing.”

He gave me back the notice.

“So?” I said.

“So, Leach, Swindol and Twist do a lot of business with the town government,” he said. “We’re not in a good position to take this case.”

“Then how about loaning us ten thousand dollars for some Dumpsters?” I said.

“I’ll be in my den,” Dad said, and turned away from me.

“Thanks a lot, Uncle Jack,” Turk said to Dad’s back.

If Dad noticed the dirty looks he was getting from me, Turk, and Mom at dinner, he didn’t show it. And he disappeared back into his den as soon as we were done.

Turk went up to her attic and paced back and forth. We could hear her feet stamping up and down the length of the house.

I looked up the numbers of all the Dumpster places in New Sodom and left messages for them to call me the next day. When I was done, I had a message.

Justin had called.

“Need to talk to you,” he said when I called back.

“Talk,” I said.

“Been thinking about that thing you’re doing out in Crossfield,” he said. “How’s that going?”

“Getting done,” I said. “But we’ve run into trouble.”

And I told him about the Dumpsters.

“But we’ve still got a shot,” I said. “Turk’s selling her car to Gregor, and with that money we should be able to afford enough of them to get the job done on time.”

I made it sound as good as I could. Who knew? Maybe he was calling because he’d decided to help.

That was not the reason.

“Mm-hm,” he said when I was done. “Listen, Cody. I’ve got something to tell you. If you go ahead with this thing, if you turn that old mill into your arts center or anything else, I just don’t see how I can go on being friends with you.”

“What?” I said. I was sure we had a bad connection.

“I mean it, Cody,” Justin said. “You know what that place was.”

I didn’t say anything for a long time. Then I said, “Yeah. But I also know what it could be.”

“No good,” Justin said. “It needs to be let alone.”

Again, I waited before I spoke.

“How’s that going to help?” I finally said.

“Nothing’s going to help,” Justin said. “That’s just the way it is.”

“Justin, this isn’t about forgetting what happened out there,” I said. “It’s about going forward. Together.”

I was dizzy. The idea of losing Justin was so far out there it didn’t seem real. But I knew I hadn’t convinced him.

“Cody. One last time. Please quit,” Justin said.

“I can’t,” I blurted out. “Mercy Warrener wouldn’t like it.”

“Huh?” Justin said. “Mercy Warrener, my ancestor?”

“Yeah, I think so,” I said.

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