Stolen Lives Page #2

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John.

Boys.

I hope I didn't cause any harm.

No, it's just that we

got far to go, and l...

I won't have you boys

blowing these in the Rambler.

I'll give them to 'em tomorrow.

Thanks.

Boys.

You take care of yourself.

You boys know how to be

polite and respectful, so...

don't show me wrong.

- Yes, Papa.

- Yes, Papa.

They're here! They're here!

I can't believe she's gone.

I miss her so much.

I want to introduce you to my boys.

This is Mark.

Mark, he's real good

with woodwork these days.

Got a real talent for that.

- Hello, Mark.

- Ma'am.

And this, this is Luke.

Luke, real book smart.

Good with animals.

Hello, Luke.

Ma'am.

And this is John, my youngest.

I got to pee!

I suppose it was a long trip.

You must be tired after your journey.

Come on, now.

- Jonas.

- Matt.

Been a real long while.

Yeah, it has.

Hi.

This is Edvena.

Hi, Edvena.

You're even prettier than your ma.

You all gonna stand there forever,

or you gonna come in and eat something?

I guess I can eat.

And before you could blink,

this whole table was cleared.

Your aunt Coral

kicked all us men out.

I was mid-bite into an ear of corn.

You have... you have

never seen such a flurry.

And then your ma and I counted

all your fingers and toes.

Turns out you were perfect.

And then we brought

your pa in to see you.

I'd never seen anything

more beautiful in all my life

than you and your ma lying

on this very table, Mark.

Pa.

And I helped your

ma with you too, Luke.

You boys brought your ma such

happiness when you arrived.

What about me, Aunt Coral?

Did I make Ma happy?

Especially you, John.

Especially you.

Now, why don't you boys

show your appreciation

and go ahead and clear this table?

Oh, no, no, leave it.

Edvena and I'll get it.

Matthew...

let's me and you go talk.

I admit, I was kind of

expecting a pack of wild Indians.

They're good, Jonas; they're good.

They're not gonna give

you a lick of trouble,

I can promise you that.

I believe you, Matt.

So it's okay?

You can keep 'em?

That's just it.

It ain't easy to say, so...

I'll just speak it plain.

We can take two of the boys.

We can't keep all three.

You and Coral are

the only family we got.

I can't break up the boys,

Jonas, give me a chance.

I'm asking for six months, Jonas,

six months, maybe a year.

Just, just give me time

to get something going,

maybe even meet a woman who

can help take care of them.

Kind of like you shouldn't

have married in the first place.

What Pearl did had

nothing to do with me.

She was never right after

John was born, you know that.

Don't blame that backwards

boy of yours, neither.

Told Pearl she should

never have married you.

You watch your filthy mouth.

You count your blessings.

At least two of them boys,

they got Pearl's blood

in 'em and not yours.

I've said what I had to say.

It's Mark and Luke or none.

You're the co-pilot now.

Pa, don't go!

You boys be good.

Get in the car, John.

Good-bye!

Pa! Pa!

Here's your whistle.

Did you see this?

"Boy in the box"?

What is that?

Pete's just doing his job.

That boy had a name.

Well, I'm sure if he

knew it, he'd print it.

Nothing we need to get

worked up about, right?

That's my job.

Look, your job doesn't include

you getting upset about a headline.

I'm not getting upset about it.

I'm just taking care of it, as usual.

When do you ever bring work home?

Barb, goddamn it.

- I've got it.

- It's fine, just leave it.

- It's my fault.

- I'll take care of it.

It's fine.

There are copies.

They're just fine, don't worry about it.

God forbid anything should

get out of place in this house.

Just leave it!

Thomas Adkins!

Tommy!

Tommy!

What the hell were you thinking?

What's wrong?

"Boy in the box"?

What is that?

It's a news story

like any other, Tom.

No, Pete, it isn't.

This is different.

This is a 10-year-old

boy who was found dead,

and he damn sure didn't die to

make sure your rag of a paper

doesn't go out of business.

Look, if I can create a little buzz

for the few days this story is fresh,

so much the better.

And if calling him the boy in

the box helps spread the word,

it's going to help you as well.

Let's try to show some respect, huh?

Hey.

Your mother called.

Did she tell you that she was coming?

She must have seen Pete's article.

Anytime she sees

anything with the slightest

connection to Tommy, Jr.,

she has to make her way over here.

I'll call her and

tell her we're okay.

No, you can't.

She's on her way, and she

said she'd be here in an hour.

When are you gonna come home?

I don't know.

I'll try to make it early.

Okay.

Look at this.

According to this inspection,

the building was started

in the spring of 1958.

Who was the contractor?

Guy named Bill Byrnes.

Where are you going?

I think I know his son.

Jesus, you're talking about '58.

I was a kid.

How the hell am I supposed

to remember sh*t like that?

Can you give us any names?

Well, Swede was around back then.

He was a foreman.

Other than that, you're on your own.

They're probably all

dead by now, anyway.

No real names?

I told you, they were all drifters,

only nicknames.

You ever see any kids around?

It was a construction site.

I wasn't even allowed to hang out.

Look, guys, it's been real,

but I got to get to work.

You need some gas?

Yeah, go ahead and

fill 'er all the way up.

Papa!

My boy needs a restroom.

Oh, we got an outhouse

in the back there.

How far to the nearest town?

That'd be Barnstable, 15 miles or so,

just a straight shot down 32 here.

Thanks, much obliged.

Come on, John.

Come on.

Hey, you remember the Munsel

bathroom outside their house?

Uh-huh.

It's different from ours, right?

There's no flusher.

No flusher, okay, I won't flush.

It's not that you

don't... don't flush,

it's that there is no flusher.

Okay, so I won't flush.

Whoops!

You don't have to do that.

Oh, thank you.

That's sweet.

It's not a problem.

I suppose I'm gonna

have to start over again.

Guess so, huh?

You passing through?

Yeah, yeah, looking for work.

That's got to be

tough with a kid in tow.

You have no idea.

I'm sure you'll be all right.

Let me know if you need anything.

Thank you. Thank you kindly.

Hey, I don't know where you're from,

but I don't like strangers

talking to my wife.

Papa!

We don't want any trouble here.

You and that queer boy

of yours found trouble,

so you best be paying me and moving on.

How much do I owe you?

- $9.57.

- Here's $10.

I don't expect I'll be

seeing you this way again.

I sure hope not.

I didn't know where you were.

I know, John.

Good-bye!

John.

Hey, John.

John, I'm gonna go in here

and find us a place to

sleep tonight, all right?

You'll be able to see me

right through that

barbershop window there, okay?

Oh, uh, howdy, boss.

Uh, you want a cut?

Uh, no, not today, thanks.

I was wondering if any

of you knew a cheap place

to stay in town?

# Pretty red plane in the sky #

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