It’s tall and made of wood and metal and has big windows. Out back there were cool winding stone pathways we used to use to do sword fights. They have a kidney-shaped pool with a fountain. You can’t do laps or play water polo in Larry’s pool, but it’s still fun to cool off in there when it’s hot. Larry usually came to our house, because my mom was home more than his and our pool was huge. Plus, we had a games room and his mom had to work a lot. Just like my dad. Thinking about his mom and my dad turned my stomach.

“I’ll come with you,” said my mom.

“Isbell’s car’s not here,” I said.

Isbell doesn’t park in the garage because she has a pottery studio that she never uses in there.

“Maybe Larry’s not here either,” said Kate. She sounded like she hoped he wasn’t.

I got out of the car. When I was halfway to the door, I looked back to see my sister and mom watching me through the windshield, like they were afraid I was going to fall into a sinkhole.

I pushed the bell. My chest felt a little tight.

Footsteps inside.

“Yes?” said a voice through the security intercom. Isbell. Her voice is deep and kind of raspy. It’s the kind of voice that is used to giving orders.

“Is Larry home?”

“Rodney?” she said. “What are you doing here?” She never asked me that before. She always seemed happy to see me.

“I would like to talk to Larry.”

She sighed into the intercom system. It sounded like the wind at the beach. Then she unlocked and opened the door and we stared at each other.

Isbell looked the same as always in her T-shirt and jeans and feet in sandals, her hair in a wild Afro. My sister always said Isbell had the best style in Vegas. Then she would say that Larry had the worst style in Vegas because she gets uncomfortable being too nice about people.

“Rodney, I don’t know if this is a good idea,” said Isbell. Then she looked past me at the Range Rover.

“Is your mom here?”

I nodded. “And my sister.”

“You’re all here?”

“Not my dad,” I said, and she made this face. It gave me a sharp pain in my side or my head or maybe all over.

“Can I talk to Larry?”

Isbell bit her lip. I wondered why she wasn’t at work, but then I remembered that she worked on my dad’s show and there was no show anymore. And it was Sunday night and nothing made sense anymore.

“Mom?” Larry appeared behind his mother. He looked at me like he was happy to see me, but then his face changed, and he looked like a totally different person.