Chapter 4 #3
At first, Shane thought Kevin might be stalling for time, that maybe the reality of an angry mom waiting for him was sinking in. But the eagerness in the boy's face told him a different story. Kid was absolutely crazy about dogs, Peetie especially.
We’ve got that in common. His heart constricted even as he smiled at Kevin. "Sure, yeah."
He should have been mine.
Those selfish, forbidden words slipped past his defenses for the thousandth time since he first laid eyes on April's son.
Followed immediately by the same old shame and regrets.
If he hadn't been such a pussy and stood up to his father.
If he hadn't been so selfish and gone off to college like the old tyrant wanted.
If he'd tried harder to find her after he rebelled, dropped out, and flew to California to enlist in the Navy with the hopes of becoming a SEAL.
Selfish.
With Shane’s help, Kevin lifted his bike into the back of the SUV and secured it. Then, Pete jumped up, and into his cage he went. Kevin made sure Peetie was comfy, had enough toys, and wasn’t going to get car sick.
Shane started to open the passenger-side door again and stopped. Oh, shit, I didn’t think. I don’t have a kid’s car seat. And kids can’t ride up front anyway, can they?
“Sorry, Kev. You’ve gotta sit in the back.”
“Can I… I need to sit in front to talk to you. Man to man.”
Oh my God, this kid is killing me.
“Alright, alright, but better not let your mom know.”
Kevin beamed at Shane and scrambled into the passenger seat. He pulled the seatbelt over his shoulder and Shane helped him adjust it down.
“And don’t make me regret this. if I get pulled over, you better scramble back there as fast as you can.” He pointed to the back seat.
“Oh, it’s okay, George won’t arrest you. We’re all friends.”
Shit, the kid’s smarter than I am.
Shane closed the door, went around to the other side, got in and started the engine. “Alright, I’m driving slow and careful, but it’s not a long drive, so talk fast. Why did you run away?”
“I didn’t run away. I came to you to talk,” Kevin replied in a perfectly reasonable tone.
And he’s on his way to becoming a lawyer.
“Man to man. Right. So, you got me. What do you want to talk about?”
Kevin hesitated. “Well, today I got into a fight with Regis Sumner.”
“Regis Sumner, huh? Between you and me, I’d fight him, too,” Shane joked. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched Kevin’s body relax into the seat.
“Regis is always a jerk. The teacher doesn’t do anything about it, and I hate being a tattletale anyway.” He looked at Shane. “Snitches get stitches.”
Shane tried not to snort. “Go on.”
“I try to ignore him, but it just makes him madder. Today, I couldn’t anymore.”
“Why not today?”
“Because Regis was saying bad things about my mom, so I defended her.”
Why the fuck am I not surprised?
“Okay, well, that’s… noble.”
Kevin smiled. “See? I knew you’d understand me, Shane.”
God, that gutted him in a way that also made his heart swell with a fierce love for this kid.
“It’s Shane, now, huh?”
“Well, we are talking man to man right now.”
“Yeah, good point.”
“When we’re done, I’ll go back to calling you Mr. Foti around the grownups.”
Jesus.
“So, what was His Royal Highness Regis Sumner saying about your mom?”
“That’s funny. Mom calls him that, too, only she abbreviates it to HRH Regis Sumner.”
Just like she did to Leslie in school.
“But not when she thinks I’m listening,” Kevin continued. “Just when she’s talking to Gramma or Grandpapa. She’s trying to teach me to be respectful.”
I’m. Dying. Right now. “You think it’s respectful to eavesdrop?”
“No, but everybody my age does it. It’s how we learn stuff. That’s how Regis heard what his mom said about mine.”
“Well, man to man, I’m not surprised to hear that. Les… Ms. Trent Sumner and your mom didn’t get along in school. And that’s putting it lightly. “So, you gotta understand that whatever she says about your mom comes from a place of deep jealousy and doesn’t mean shi…squat.”
“It’s okay, you can say shit, Shane. I can handle it.”
Shane’s abs were getting a workout just from fighting his laughter. He bit down hard on his lower lip to keep it from coming out. He really was trying to match Kevin’s seriousness.
“Regis said he heard her talking to her friends at their book club—”
You mean wino club.
“—and she was talking pretty loud—”
Called it.
“—and she was saying my mom was always trash, as long as she’s known her. My whole family is trash.”
Shane practically growled, “Don’t you dare believe that bull…shit. Because that’s all it is. A big, stinking pile of bullshit pouring out of Leslie Trent’s mouth.”
Kevin snickered. “Gross.”
“And I can tell you, it’s been coming out of her mouth as long as I’ve known her, so how about that?”
“Yuck!” Kevin laughed.
“So don’t let Regis get to you. He’s not worth it.”
Kevin’s laughter dried up. “I don’t. I’m used to him saying bullshit like that. It’s what he said after that made me punch him. Because it scared me.”
Suddenly, Shane didn’t feel like laughing, either. “I’m listening.” He turned off the main highway into Lyons onto a dirt road that snaked up and around and would give Kevin more time to talk.
“Regis’ mom said that after high school, my mom disappeared for years and nobody knew what she was doing, so she was probably a criminal who went to jail.
All they know is that she came back pregnant.
With me. And that my dad is probably in jail or dead, if she even knows who he is. ” Kevin’s voice wobbled.
Shane’s heart broke for the little boy spilling his story. At least he could clear some of that up. The rest… he had no idea. And apparently, Kevin didn’t, either.
“Oh, man. Kevin, your mom never went to jail, okay? She’s not, nor has she ever been, a criminal. So, don’t let that scare you.”
But Kevin was already waving Shane off. “I know that. Mom would never break the law. She’s different from my great aunt and uncle. But they don’t break the law anymore, either. They went legit. But that’s not what scared me.”
“So, what scared you?”
“Regis said, ‘Your mom’s so bad, somebody tried to kill her at Riversong. They tried to shoot her to death.”
Shane relaxed. He could handle this part. But he wondered why Kevin’s family hadn’t talked to him about it. It seemed out of character.
“Buddy, what happened was awful, and it put your mom in danger, but it could have been a lot worse. No one was killed. And I know for a fact that no one was trying to kill your mom. Unfortunately, they were after Rochelle. But, we caught the bad guys. Your mom is safe. Everyone’s safe.
” He hesitated, then asked, “Didn’t they talk to you about it? ”
“Yeah, they did. I know they weren’t after Mom now.”
“So why are you scared, buddy? The bad guys aren’t coming back.”
“Regis said she got lucky that time. But the next time, someone would kill her, and he and his mom would laugh and the whole town would be happy that my mom was dead because we’re all trash, and that’s when I punched him.”
That evil little shit.
“I shouldn’t say this, but if some guy had said that about my mom, I’d have punched him, too.”
Kevin studied him for a moment. “Would you punch Regis for saying it about my mom?”
Shane chuckled. “Naw, I’d never hit a kid no matter what he said. Now, if a grownup said anything about your mom, it might be a different story.”
Shit. That probably went too far. I’m outta my league, I don’t know what I’m doing here. I’m screwing this up.
“Look, what I’m trying to say is, ignore His Royal Highness Regis. Who cares what he or his mom think? They’re both wrong about your whole family. And I promise, no one’s after your mom.”
“But that’s just it, Shane. That’s why I’m scared. Someone is after my mom.”
“No—”
“Yes!” Kevin yelled. “She said so herself!”