Under the Water by Paul Pen
Author:Paul Pen [Pen, Paul]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-09-30T16:00:00+00:00
23.
Frank walked away from Grace. He had no desire to continue arguing, much less due to Mara—that was what she wanted. He wandered around the RV, taking deep breaths. Passing the tent, he saw Mara’s purse inside. He stopped. Inside that purse would be the knife, and he didn’t want it near his children. And the car key, if she hadn’t swallowed it as he suspected she had. But her cell phone would also be in there, and he could use it to call 911 right now. She had used it as a flashlight the night before—it was the only one she didn’t end up throwing into the forest. Frank swept his gaze around him, locating his family: Audrey was still looking for the phones in the undergrowth, Simon was failing in his attempt to fold the map and restore it to its original form, and Grace was out of sight behind the vehicle, where the bathroom window he’d just banged on was. None of them were paying any attention to him. Frank walked around the tent as if checking its structure. He stretched the fabric out, pushed the pegs in. He knelt at the door, pretending to examine the zipper mechanism. He stretched out his arm, the only part of his body that penetrated the tent. With two fingers, he reached the purse strap and pulled on it, dragging it out. It was heavy. With sweaty hands, as if he were a pickpocket, he lifted one corner of the flap. Then the other.
“Frank!”
His wife’s whispered cry sounded like the cry of a police officer arresting that pickpocket he felt like. Grace knelt and snatched the purse from him.
“I wanted . . . I wanted to make sure we’re not in danger, check she’s not hiding anything in there.”
“This is unbelievable.”
“Come on, open it, let’s see.”
“No, Frank, this isn’t how we do things.” She closed the fasteners on the flap. “Do you know how private the contents of a woman’s purse are?”
“Mom, please, stop saying those things.” Audrey had moved her search to this side of the road. “Stop promoting stereotypes about women, their femininity, and their purses.”
“And you stop listening in on your parents’ conversations. Get back to where you were, go on,” Grace said. “And stop pulling weeds up, look at the state you’re in.”
Audrey crossed the road, ruffling Simon’s map as she passed him. Grace put the purse back inside the tent, rearranging the strap into a casual shape on the ground. She instructed Frank to get up and return with her to the other side of the RV. They could hear the shower through the bathroom window. It was still running with the same intensity.
“She’s going to use up all the hot water,” said Audrey.
“Our boiler’s tankless,” Frank clarified.
“But what can be used up is the water,” noted Grace. “And if we’re going to end up spending a few days here, we should ration it.”
“Shut up, Mom, we’re not going to spend a few days here.”
“Doesn’t bother me!” said Simon.
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