let a man use me like a slave. I’ll make lots of money so I can take care of myself, and I’m gonna do it like a man would .
“It was then I devised a plan for my future. First, a degree in criminal justice; second, a job as an FBI agent; third, promotion to team leader; and fourth, Bureau Chief! I’ll show them, especially my father who was a beat cop all his working life, he who doesn’t think women are as smart as men. I’ll make more money than him and my stupido brothers put together!”
“Wow,” Mariah said. “So bitter at such a tender age.” Both women grinned, and Frannie said, “It’s your turn.”
“I took dance lessons when I was a kid,” Mariah said, “And put on shows in the neighborhood, but I let my friends go door to door to sell tickets. I didn’t think anyone would buy anything from me. As long as it was just normal stuff, dancing and singing, my mother didn’t protest. But she made it clear that if I did any ‘tricks’, she’d never let me do a show again.”
Mariah saw the confused scowl on Frannie’s face, and said, “Oh, I forgot to tell you about my, uh, telekinetic abilities as a child.” Frannie’s eyes widened, and Mariah grinned. She then told Frannie about the expulsion from the Providence Street Synagogue, leaving nothing out. Frannie took a deep breath and shook her head without thinking, her subconscious trying to deny something so implausible.
“And finding Amanda Forrester wasn’t the first time I did a Finding . I remembered it after finding Kevin O’Reilly. It was the night I found my friend, Marty Zablonski.
“I was at the kitchen table doing homework while mom darned Stephen’s socks. The phone rang. It was Marty’s mother in a panic because he hadn’t come home after his paper route. Mom tried to console Irene, and I wasn’t much help either. Marty hadn’t mentioned any after-school activity to me.
“Then my heart started to thump, and I felt like I couldn’t take in a deep breath. And then I broke out in a cold sweat. I must’ve made a noise ‘cuz mom hung up on Irene and dropped to her knees in front of me. She started screaming for my dad while her hands fluttered in my face.”
Frannie looked stunned, but Mariah just plowed on. “My mother’s voice became muffled and distant. And then I no longer saw her face. I couldn’t hear or see anything in the kitchen because, for some reason, I was no longer there.
“I was standing behind a workbench. Marty was across from me holding a test tube in front of a bare 150-watt light bulb screwed into a desk lamp. His eyes were gleaming, watching a mass of slimy green goop bubble in the bottom of the tube. A really bad smell came from the top in a swirl of green mist, but he ignored it. Also observing the sludge with the same dimwitted rapture was Ambrose “Brainiac” Mulroney, a ten-year-old creep who had skipped a couple of grades and wound up in our seventh grade class.
“We were in Brainiac’s basement, but they couldn’t see me. I recognized the rickety wooden staircase because a week before, the little twerp stood in front of them when he tried to stop me from leaving. He lured me into the cellar by bragging about his latest experiment, and then he tried to kiss me on the mouth , for crying out loud. So I shoved him out of the away and headed for those stairs, but he beat me to them. I could not believe it when he folded his scrawny arms across his sunken chest and demanded I kiss him or he wouldn’t let me leave!”
Frannie’s face lost the bewildered expression and she chortled. Encouraged, Mariah continued.
“I hauled off and cracked the pathetic weenie across his pimply face, and shoved him out of my way. He staggered sideways and howled in pain, but it was his own fault. I was three inches taller and outweighed the horny toad by fifteen pounds: No Contest.
“When I came out of this trance, my mother’s face swam into focus, and she looked panicky. I had no memory of those
“It was then I devised a plan for my future. First, a degree in criminal justice; second, a job as an FBI agent; third, promotion to team leader; and fourth, Bureau Chief! I’ll show them, especially my father who was a beat cop all his working life, he who doesn’t think women are as smart as men. I’ll make more money than him and my stupido brothers put together!”
“Wow,” Mariah said. “So bitter at such a tender age.” Both women grinned, and Frannie said, “It’s your turn.”
“I took dance lessons when I was a kid,” Mariah said, “And put on shows in the neighborhood, but I let my friends go door to door to sell tickets. I didn’t think anyone would buy anything from me. As long as it was just normal stuff, dancing and singing, my mother didn’t protest. But she made it clear that if I did any ‘tricks’, she’d never let me do a show again.”
Mariah saw the confused scowl on Frannie’s face, and said, “Oh, I forgot to tell you about my, uh, telekinetic abilities as a child.” Frannie’s eyes widened, and Mariah grinned. She then told Frannie about the expulsion from the Providence Street Synagogue, leaving nothing out. Frannie took a deep breath and shook her head without thinking, her subconscious trying to deny something so implausible.
“And finding Amanda Forrester wasn’t the first time I did a Finding . I remembered it after finding Kevin O’Reilly. It was the night I found my friend, Marty Zablonski.
“I was at the kitchen table doing homework while mom darned Stephen’s socks. The phone rang. It was Marty’s mother in a panic because he hadn’t come home after his paper route. Mom tried to console Irene, and I wasn’t much help either. Marty hadn’t mentioned any after-school activity to me.
“Then my heart started to thump, and I felt like I couldn’t take in a deep breath. And then I broke out in a cold sweat. I must’ve made a noise ‘cuz mom hung up on Irene and dropped to her knees in front of me. She started screaming for my dad while her hands fluttered in my face.”
Frannie looked stunned, but Mariah just plowed on. “My mother’s voice became muffled and distant. And then I no longer saw her face. I couldn’t hear or see anything in the kitchen because, for some reason, I was no longer there.
“I was standing behind a workbench. Marty was across from me holding a test tube in front of a bare 150-watt light bulb screwed into a desk lamp. His eyes were gleaming, watching a mass of slimy green goop bubble in the bottom of the tube. A really bad smell came from the top in a swirl of green mist, but he ignored it. Also observing the sludge with the same dimwitted rapture was Ambrose “Brainiac” Mulroney, a ten-year-old creep who had skipped a couple of grades and wound up in our seventh grade class.
“We were in Brainiac’s basement, but they couldn’t see me. I recognized the rickety wooden staircase because a week before, the little twerp stood in front of them when he tried to stop me from leaving. He lured me into the cellar by bragging about his latest experiment, and then he tried to kiss me on the mouth , for crying out loud. So I shoved him out of the away and headed for those stairs, but he beat me to them. I could not believe it when he folded his scrawny arms across his sunken chest and demanded I kiss him or he wouldn’t let me leave!”
Frannie’s face lost the bewildered expression and she chortled. Encouraged, Mariah continued.
“I hauled off and cracked the pathetic weenie across his pimply face, and shoved him out of my way. He staggered sideways and howled in pain, but it was his own fault. I was three inches taller and outweighed the horny toad by fifteen pounds: No Contest.
“When I came out of this trance, my mother’s face swam into focus, and she looked panicky. I had no memory of those
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