talking about when Carl Bain showed up. “I needed a big strong man beside me, if you know what I mean.”
“I don’t think I do.”
“The two parts of my day I hate the most are when Carl drops off his kid and when he picks him up at the end of the day. He creeps me out, that guy. I get this bad vibe off him, you know? Like he’s just waiting to blow up?”
“Has he said something to you? Threatened you?”
She slipped her hands out of her pockets and waved them about as she answered. “Okay, the thing is, I think he’s worried about what his kid might be saying when he comes over. Carlson, he’s just a little guy, and they say whatever comes into their head, you know?”
“Sure.”
“And the odd time, he’ll say something about his mother. Alicia? That’s the mother’s name. Although he calls her his mommy, he doesn’t call her Alicia.” She rolled her eyes. “Of course . Like I need to tell you that. Anyway, sometimes, you know, you ask a kid, Hey, what’s your mother doing today? And this one time, he says his mother had to go to the hospital because she broke her arm. And I’m like, Oh no, how did she do that, and Carlson says because his dad pushed her down the stairs.”
“Jeez.”
“Yeah, no shit? But the next day, he says to me, he was wrong. Shedidn’t get pushed down the stairs. His dad told him that his mommy tripped. So I figure, he must have gone home, right? And said to his dad, Oh, I was telling the babysitter about Mommy going to the hospital after she got shoved down the stairs, and he must have freaked, tells his kid that he’s got it all wrong, she tripped.” She stuck out her lower lip and blew out hard enough that a few strands of hair momentarily floated.
“So every day he comes by, you think he’s wondering what you’re thinking,” I said.
“Kinda, yeah.”
“When did the boy say this?”
“First time he mentioned it was around three, four weeks ago. He—the dad, Carl, I mean—seemed okay, but lately, he’s been kind of on edge, asking me, did I make any phone calls or anything?”
“Phone calls about what?”
“He didn’t say. But I wonder if someone might have called the police about him or something.”
“Did you?”
She shook her head very slowly. “No way. I mean, I thought about it, Glen. But the thing is, I can’t afford to lose a customer, you know what I’m saying? I need every one of those kids, at least till the money from the oil company comes through. I just don’t want Carl taking it out on me, if someone did put in a call to the police. And I thought, if he knew I had a strong man living next door to me, maybe he’d think twice before he did anything like that.”
I thought she put a little emphasis on “strong man.”
“Well, I’m glad I could help,” I said.
She tilted her head to one side and looked me in the eye. “It’s going to come in, you know. I mean, eventually. And it’s going to be a good settlement. I’ll be pretty well fixed.”
“That’s good,” I said. “It’s about time.”
She let that hang out there a moment. “Anyway, what I wondered was, you don’t think Sheila might have reported him, do you?”
“Sheila?”
“I was talking to her, I guess a few days before the accident and all, wondering what I should do about what Carlson said had happened to his mother, thinking it was kind of a bad thing, knowing some woman got her arm broke and not doing anything about it. I was saying, you think Ishould make an anonymous call kind of thing, and if they arrested him, did she think I’d still get to babysit Carlson?”
“You talked about this with Sheila?”
Joan nodded. “Just the once. Did she mention anything to you about this? That she was thinking of calling the police or anything?”
“No,” I said. “She never did.”
Joan nodded again. “She mentioned you were under a lot of stress, with that house you were building that burned down. Maybe she didn’t want to burden you with
“I don’t think I do.”
“The two parts of my day I hate the most are when Carl drops off his kid and when he picks him up at the end of the day. He creeps me out, that guy. I get this bad vibe off him, you know? Like he’s just waiting to blow up?”
“Has he said something to you? Threatened you?”
She slipped her hands out of her pockets and waved them about as she answered. “Okay, the thing is, I think he’s worried about what his kid might be saying when he comes over. Carlson, he’s just a little guy, and they say whatever comes into their head, you know?”
“Sure.”
“And the odd time, he’ll say something about his mother. Alicia? That’s the mother’s name. Although he calls her his mommy, he doesn’t call her Alicia.” She rolled her eyes. “Of course . Like I need to tell you that. Anyway, sometimes, you know, you ask a kid, Hey, what’s your mother doing today? And this one time, he says his mother had to go to the hospital because she broke her arm. And I’m like, Oh no, how did she do that, and Carlson says because his dad pushed her down the stairs.”
“Jeez.”
“Yeah, no shit? But the next day, he says to me, he was wrong. Shedidn’t get pushed down the stairs. His dad told him that his mommy tripped. So I figure, he must have gone home, right? And said to his dad, Oh, I was telling the babysitter about Mommy going to the hospital after she got shoved down the stairs, and he must have freaked, tells his kid that he’s got it all wrong, she tripped.” She stuck out her lower lip and blew out hard enough that a few strands of hair momentarily floated.
“So every day he comes by, you think he’s wondering what you’re thinking,” I said.
“Kinda, yeah.”
“When did the boy say this?”
“First time he mentioned it was around three, four weeks ago. He—the dad, Carl, I mean—seemed okay, but lately, he’s been kind of on edge, asking me, did I make any phone calls or anything?”
“Phone calls about what?”
“He didn’t say. But I wonder if someone might have called the police about him or something.”
“Did you?”
She shook her head very slowly. “No way. I mean, I thought about it, Glen. But the thing is, I can’t afford to lose a customer, you know what I’m saying? I need every one of those kids, at least till the money from the oil company comes through. I just don’t want Carl taking it out on me, if someone did put in a call to the police. And I thought, if he knew I had a strong man living next door to me, maybe he’d think twice before he did anything like that.”
I thought she put a little emphasis on “strong man.”
“Well, I’m glad I could help,” I said.
She tilted her head to one side and looked me in the eye. “It’s going to come in, you know. I mean, eventually. And it’s going to be a good settlement. I’ll be pretty well fixed.”
“That’s good,” I said. “It’s about time.”
She let that hang out there a moment. “Anyway, what I wondered was, you don’t think Sheila might have reported him, do you?”
“Sheila?”
“I was talking to her, I guess a few days before the accident and all, wondering what I should do about what Carlson said had happened to his mother, thinking it was kind of a bad thing, knowing some woman got her arm broke and not doing anything about it. I was saying, you think Ishould make an anonymous call kind of thing, and if they arrested him, did she think I’d still get to babysit Carlson?”
“You talked about this with Sheila?”
Joan nodded. “Just the once. Did she mention anything to you about this? That she was thinking of calling the police or anything?”
“No,” I said. “She never did.”
Joan nodded again. “She mentioned you were under a lot of stress, with that house you were building that burned down. Maybe she didn’t want to burden you with
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