“You know, Dad,” Paul said. “There’s something I’ve been wanting to talk to you about.”

I eyed him warily. “What?”

“The way I see it, if it hadn’t been for me, you and Mom, like, you probably wouldn’t be here now. So I was thinking some kind of reward was in order.”

I ran my tongue around inside my cheek. “Like what?”

“I think you should let me get a tattoo.”

“No way.”

“Come on! Look, if that guy had—” and he paused here “—killed you and Mom, I’d have been able to go ahead and do it anyway.”

“Too bad things worked out the way they did.”

Now he was frustrated. He hadn’t meant anything like that, and I was instantly sorry that I’d made the crack. But Earl seemed to find the exchange amusing.

Paul said, “You’re screwing up my words. I guess I’m saying, I mean, couldn’t I just get one? Remember I told you how people you know have them, and they’re not bad people? Like my math teacher, Mr. Drennan?”

“I don’t know.”

“And what about Earl here? He’s got one. Do you think he’s a bad person?”

Earl’s smile vanished. “Hey, Paul, don’t go dragging me into this. This is strictly between you and your parents, okay?”

“But the thing is, you’ve got one, and here you are, talking to my dad and all, and I don’t think he thinks any less of you because you’ve got one.”

“Of course I don’t,” I said to Paul. “But Earl’s an adult, and you’re not.”

“Just show it to him,” Paul coaxed Earl.

“I don’t think so, really.”

To me, Paul said, “It’s so cool, although I’ve only seen it once. Remember, Earl, we were putting in those shrubs, and you took off your shirt that one day, it was so friggin’ hot?”

Now I was curious. “What is it, Earl? A naked lady, I’m guessing.”

“No,” said Paul. “It’s way more cool than that. It’s a watch.”

Earl took a very long drag on his cigarette.

I said, “You might as well show me, Earl. Paul’s going to hound you until you do.”

Earl put his plate of lasagna down on the counter and slowly rolled up the right sleeve of his black T-shirt. He got it up above his shoulder and took his hand away.

It was a watch. But not a normal watch. It looked like a pocket watch, no strap, and it was melting, just like in that Salvador Dali painting.

He gave us a second to look at it, then rolled the sleeve back down.

“That’s quite something,” I said, and Earl’s eyes caught mine.

Chapter 29

29