Bone Dance (12 page)

It rained solidly the first three days of our holiday at the cottage on the Rideau Lakes. After doing all the chores to get the place shipshape, we had to try to entertain ourselves. We never had a
TV
at the cottage. Mom figured it did us all good to live without it for the summer. So she worked on her quilting, Dad and Donny played chess, and I built a model generator. Donny was always real smart at theory and brain games. I was better at practical hands-on stuff. Mom says even at the age of four, I had figured out I had to look after my brother, although he was three years older. I was the one who knew where the cereal was kept. Donny was the one who could figure out the guidelines for assembling the prizes that came in the cereal boxes. Now, at thirteen, I was okay at following written instructions, but Donny was going to be one of the people who write the instructions in the first place.

Being holed up in a cottage in the rain is not great for family togetherness, but before we got real snarky with each other, the weather cleared. On the fourth day we woke up to sunshine, and we all went for a swim. Afterwards, Donny and I took the canoe out to see what was new on the lake since last year. As we tied up the canoe at the dock and climbed the slope to the cottage, we could hear them arguing. Mom, her
hair covered with that dye stuff you could smell a mile off, was leaning over the porch, holding a cocoa tin. She was shouting at Dad, who was hunkered down on an old plastic sheet with bits of machinery scattered all around him.

“It's only down to the village and back, for Christ's sake,” he said. “He'll be back in five minutes.”

“But you know he's not supposed to drive without a licensed driver with him. What if he's stopped for some reason? We'll all be in trouble.”

“Well, I can't go. I've just got the lawnmower apart, and if I leave it, I'll never remember where anything went. Besides, I'm up to my elbows in grease. You'll have to go.”

“How can I go with all this black goop on my hair? I don't imagine you want it all over the car.”

“Then it'll just have to wait until the goop's finished, won't it?”

“I can't wait that long. I've already started the recipe. I have to have the cocoa now. I've got all the other ingredients mixed and ready. I promised Grampa I'd make him his favourite cake for his party.”

Dad just shrugged. “There's always ice cream.”

“I am not going to celebrate my father's birthday with a dish of ice cream.” A little pulse throbbed in Mom's neck, and her face was beginning to go pink.

“Well, then, you'll have to let Donny go. Just give him the money and tell him what you want. Tim can go with him to keep an eye on things. Right, sport?” He winked at me. “Whistle for the dog and take him, too. He always likes a car ride.” He tossed the car keys to Donny. “Drive carefully, now. No racing up and down, revving the engine.”

Mom fussed a bit more before she finally caved in. “You will be careful, won't you? The roads may still be slippery after all that rain.”

“Sure, Mom.” Donny turned away, giving me a high five. “Let's go. Get Alfalfa.”

I didn't have to “get” Alfalfa. As soon as that old dog heard the clink of car keys, he was in the back seat before anyone else had a chance.

“You'd better sit in the back with him,” Donny said. “I don't want him poking his head over my shoulder and distracting me while I'm driving.”

He made it sound very important.

I sat in the back with my hand through Alfalfa's collar. He wanted to put his head out of the window behind the driver's seat, but I wouldn't let him. I pushed him over so he'd stick his head out the other side.

The lane from the cottage to the highway was all blotchy with sunlight coming through the leaves.

“Gee, it must be harder to drive when you can't see the bumps and things,” I said.

“Naw,” said Donny. “You get a feel for these things.”

Yeah, right. Ten driving lessons and a few hours behind the wheel, and you get a feel for these things. Mom had let him drive part of the way to the cottage and he'd done okay, even with Mom sitting stiff as a board beside him. She'd done okay, too, only told him to be careful once because the old gateposts at the end of our road made the turn very sharp.

It was only five kilometres to the village. We went to Murphy's General Store, and while Donny bought Mom's stuff, I got three ice cream cones, chocolate with chocolate chips. The third one was for Alfalfa. Otherwise I'd never be able to eat mine in peace. Even at that I had to be fast.

Donny still had most of his ice cream when we'd finished ours. He was driving home along the main street, taking a lick at his cone now and again, driving with one hand. We were
almost out of the village when two ladies with three little girls stepped onto the road ahead, and he slowed right down to let them cross over. Suddenly, Alfalfa lunged for Donny's ice cream, knocking the cone into his lap. I made a grab for Alfalfa's collar. The car leaped forward, and there was a thump. A Raggedy Ann doll hit the window on the passenger side, the red hair all spread out like a halo.

Donny's foot must have jammed on the gas pedal, because suddenly we were racing through town. I looked out the rear window and saw people bending over something in the road.

“Donny,” I said.

“Shut up.” The cords on the back of his neck were rigid.

“But . . .”

“Just shut up.”

We drove back to the cottage in silence. Even Alfalfa knew better than to move. But my mind wouldn't stop. I kept seeing the people bending over something in the road. Surely it was just the doll. It must have got broken. Yeah, that was probably it. I should never have let go of Alfalfa's collar.

Donny parked beside Mom's car. As soon as I opened the door, Alfalfa took off as if he knew he was guilty, too. But we couldn't both crawl under the porch and hide.

“Take the bag for Mom,” Donny said.

I took a look at the front of the car as I went by. The right headlight was broken, and there were a few scratches. There was no blood. So maybe it was okay.

“Everything all right?” Dad asked me as I went by.

“Sure,” I said. “Except Donny spilt his ice cream down the front of his pants.”

Dad grinned. “That'd be a bit of a shocker.” He called over to Donny. “If I'd known driving solo was going to make you dirty your pants, I'd have gone myself.” He laughed. “Tim, do
you want to give me a hand afterwards? This lawn mower is turning out to be more complicated than I thought.”

“Do you have the book? Donny could work it out from that.”

Dad didn't have the lawn mower book. I don't know whether Donny could have concentrated on it, anyway. I helped Dad with the machine, and I had a hard time keeping my mind on the job. Donny took Alfalfa and went out in the canoe.

By lunch time, we had the mower fixed, Mom's hair was its usual brown, and Grampa's favourite chocolate cake was cooling on the counter.

Mom frowned at Donny pushing his sandwich around on the plate. “Are you feeling okay?” she asked. “You look a bit pale.”

I jumped in. “Too much sun,” I said. “Swimming this morning and the canoe ride after. It was hot out there. And we did have the ice cream.”

“Well, ice cream doesn't seem to have spoilt your appetite, young man,” Mom said as I finished my sandwich.

“Oh, damn,” Dad said. “I wanted to check if it had marked the upholstery. I'd better take a look. It's easier to get out before it sets.”

Donny got up and went into the bathroom.

I kept my head down, but I heard the screen door bang behind Dad. When he came back in, his tread was heavy.

“How did the headlight get broken, Tim?”

I swallowed. “We . . . we hit the gatepost as we came in.” I said it fast, as if that would make it more true.

“I knew something was upsetting him,” Mom said. “He was so quiet, even for Donny.” She looked at my father. “He was probably afraid to tell you he'd damaged the car. Poor kid must have been going through agonies.” She got up and went
to the bathroom door. “Donny,” she called. “It's okay. Tim told us how you broke the light. It could happen to anyone. Come out, and I'll give you something to settle your stomach.”

His voice was muffled. “I'll be out in a minute.” We heard the water running in the basin.

“Why didn't you tell us you'd hit the gatepost?” Mom said as soon as he opened the door.

Donny looked at me.

“Dad asked me how the headlight got broken,” I said quickly, before he could say anything. “So I told him how we took the turn a bit too wide.”

“We really should take down those posts, Jack. I've always found the turn difficult myself.” Mom put her arm round Donny's shoulder. “You should have told us. It's not the end of the world, you know.” She looked at my father. He didn't say anything. “Will the insurance cover it?” she asked.

Dad shook his head. “We can't use the insurance. We could lose all our coverage if they find out we let him drive on his own.”

“Well, we don't have to tell them that. I could say I was with him when it happened.”

“It would still send the rate for him sky high, and it's costing enough already.” Dad frowned. “It will be better if I say I did it. I guess it's really my fault, anyway. I should have just left the damned lawnmower.” His chair scraped on the floor as he pushed it back. “I'll go and have a look at the post so I can get my story straight.” Donny and I looked at one another. He was as pale as his white
T
-shirt.

“Come on, Donny,” Mom said. “I want you to go lie down for a while. You look dreadful. Clear the table, Tim, will you.”

As I stacked the dishes, I could hear Mom making him take a couple of aspirins. Dad seemed to be gone a long time.

When he came back in, he walked slowly over to the table and sat down. “Where's Donny?” he said.

“Mom made him go to bed. She's giving him some aspirins. She thinks maybe he caught cold swimming.”

“I checked both posts.” His voice was flat. “There are no . . .” He stopped talking abruptly when my mother came back into the room.

“He looks really ill,” she said, frowning. “I hope he hasn't caught something.” She turned to me and put her hand on my forehead. “You seem okay. Do you think you could sweep the porch and straighten things up before Grampa arrives?”

“Sure,” I said. I was glad to go.

When I was finished, Mom told me to change my
T
-shirt, and in the bedroom I told Donny about Dad going down to look at the gatepost. “He started to tell me there were no marks, but then Mom came in and he clammed up. Do you think I should sneak down when it's dark and hack at it a bit with the axe?”

“Naw, it wouldn't be any good. He'd be able to tell. It wouldn't be the same kind of marks.”

I was glad Grampa was coming that afternoon. I thought it might help lighten things up a bit. He was always so cheerful. “What's the use of complaining?” he would say. “If you can fix a problem, fix it. If you can't, get over it and get on with other things.” Could we fix this problem?

He arrived about four o'clock, carrying a bunch of pink flowers for Mom and a bottle of wine for Dad. He was all excited.

“I could hardly get through the village for cops,” he said. “They were all over the place, and stopping every car. Apparently there was a hit-and-run accident this morning, a little girl. They've taken her to the Children's Hospital. Sounded
serious. I stopped to get you guys some ice cream. Chocolate with chocolate chip, right?”

I saw Donny tense. “Great, Grampa,” I said. “I'll put it in the freezer for later.”

“Yes, fellow in the store told me about the accident. The worst kind, hit-and-run. I hope they get the bastard. But it seems the police have found something that will help.”

“What kind of something?” Dad asked in a tight kind of voice.

Grampa shrugged. “He wasn't sure. Glass, maybe, tiny piece of the car, perhaps. They could probably get paint chips from the little girl's clothes, too. They can tell a lot from those, you know.”

“Do you want to go for a canoe ride, Grampa?” I said. “There's a new cottage down at the end of the lake. They have a sailboat. Real nice. We saw it yesterday.”

Grampa smiled at me. “Maybe later, Tim. What else have you boys done since you got here? C'mon, tell me what you've been up to, Donny.”

“Donny's not feeling too well, Poppa,” Mom said quickly. “In fact, I'm going to take him in and give him another aspirin. I think he should lie down before dinner.”

In the end, Dad and I took Grampa for the canoe ride.

Altogether, I guess it wasn't the best party Grampa ever had. Mom and I tried to keep things going, but Dad seemed to have trouble concentrating and would have to jerk himself back into the conversation. Donny stayed in bed and just came out to say goodbye.

The next morning, we both stayed in bed until Mom banged on the door. We didn't feel like an early morning swim that day.

As we sat down at the breakfast table, Dad looked at
Donny. “How are you feeling this morning?”

“Fine. I'm fine.”

“Fine enough for pancakes and bacon?” Mom asked.

“Oh, boy,” I said. “Sounds good. Is that what you're making, Mom?”

“Coming right up.” She smiled at me.

While she was serving breakfast, Mom suggested we might all go to the July First celebrations in the village later. They always had a little fair and fireworks at night.

We were finishing our milk when Dad switched on the radio for the local news. There was something about a strike, then the July First celebrations, then:
Four-year-old Tammy O'Neill, who was involved in a hit-and-run accident yesterday, is still in a coma at the Children's Hospital. Police are looking for a light-coloured sedan which was travelling west along the main street of Ostanga, a village north of Kingston, yesterday morning. If you have any information, please contact the Ontario Provincial Police
.