Chapters (38)
- one
- two
- three
- four
- five
- six
- seven
- eight
- nine
- ten
- eleven
- twelve
- thirteen
- fourteen
- fifteen
- sixteen
- seventeen
- eighteen
- nineteen
- twenty
- twenty-one
- twenty-two
- twenty-three
- twenty-four
- twenty-five
- twenty-six
- twenty-seven
- twenty-eight
- twenty-nine
- thirty
- thirty-one
- thirty-two
- thirty-three
- thirty-four
- thirty-five
- thirty-six
- thirty-seven
- epilogue
One Friday after school I walked the half mile to Uncle Chunk’s garage.
“Hey, kiddo,” he said. “You wanna Coke?”
“Sure,” I told him. I sat down on a stack of tires. “I was wonderin’ if you could teach me about cars.”
“What is it you want to know, boy?” Uncle Chunk let loose a river of tobacco juice onto the cement floor, smacking his wrench against his greasy hand. “You gonna grow up like your favorite uncle and fix cars? There’s good money in it. You could do worse.”
I nodded at the Pontiac hovering on a hydraulic lift. “Could I get under there, and you maybe show me what’s what?”
Uncle Chunk grinned with teeth the color of my baseball mitt. I think he was pleased to see his nephew admiring his career instead of my dad’s at the train station window, apologizing for a living. “You got it. Man’s gotta know about engines and what makes ‘em work.” He waved, inviting me into the cool cave under the car.
For the next thirty minutes I asked questions about the snake’s nest of hoses and belts. My uncle answered patiently, and even drew a diagram for me to take home and study. He handed it to me with an extra Coke to take home for later. “Don’t tell your mama or CeeCee. That’s just for you, now.”
I smiled and thanked Uncle Chunk.
Late that night, I pulled the warm bottle from my bottom dresser drawer and crept into the kitchen to open it and grab a stale sausage biscuit from the counter. My parents and sister were sound asleep. I could hear Dad’s snoring all through the house. I went back to my room and eased the window open, sliding my legs out and falling to the soft red clay with a thud. I threw the empty Coke bottle into the woods and set out for the Perkins’ house. I tossed little bits of sausage at the dogs along the way to keep them quiet.
I stared at my target shining in the driveway for a long time. Then, I slid under Johnny’s DeSoto and pulled a flashlight and pocketknife from my jacket. The brake line was easy to locate, and I made a tiny puncture in it.
Violet, I never meant for Johnny to get hurt. I somehow thought if I took away his flashy car you might not want to be with him. Maybe he’d get in trouble with his dad if he tore up the fender. Maybe he’d have to stay away from you.
When our neighbor lady came to tell Mama about the wreck, and about Kimmie, I ran to my room in tears. I remember Mama telling her, “Oh, Chet has a big crush on his babysitter, Johnny’s girlfriend. I’d better see about him.”