“We can pay—”
“The money isn’t really the thing, Theo. You’re missing the point. The point is paperwork. The point is that certain things need to be communicated. Now, I happen to know the little devils who caused all this mischief. When my partners called and told me that these rascals were asking questions, told me about two young men causing a world of trouble, I knew immediately who they were. And I offered to take care of things. Because, you know, I’ve got a bit of affection for these young men. Not paternal. What’s the word? More like an uncle.”
“Avuncular,” Auggie said. He cleared his throat. “You mean avuncular.”
“That’s right, August. Very good.” Lender fished a pair of handcuffs from his belt and tossed them to Theo. Theo caught them by reflex. “Put those on, Theo.”
“No,” Auggie said.
“August, be quiet. Today, you’re going to sit and watch while Theo and I fill out some paperwork. Next time—if there is a next time—Theo will sit and watch, and you and I will work on the forms together. Theo, the handcuffs, please.”
“No,” Auggie said. “No, Theo, don’t. Mr. Lender, we didn’t know you were involved in this. We wouldn’t have messed up your business if we’d known. It’s a big misunderstanding. Please, we’ll—”
“August, August, goodness. Calm down, please. There’s nothing personal here; this is business. And the sooner done, the better.”
The first cuff snicked shut around Theo’s wrist.
“Behind your back, Theo.”
He clicked the second cuff shut, his arms now pinioned. “Auggie, go sit on the couch. He’s going to sit down; you said this is just about you and me.”
But Auggie didn’t budge.
“Very well, August,” Lender said. “You can stay there if you like. But if you interfere, well—” Lender tapped the holster. Without any apparent concern, he turned his back on Theo and Auggie and walked to the coat rack near the door. He seemed to consider something for a moment. Then he snagged the cane Theo had used after the accident. It was solid hickory, and it could do a lot of damage. Theo knew because he’d been beaten with it before.
“Please don’t hurt him,” Auggie was saying, his voice choked with tears. Theo couldn’t bring himself to look at Auggie’s face; whatever was there would undo him. “Please. Please don’t do this.”
“Now, Theo,” Lender said, swishing the cane through the air. It whistled. The sound raised the hair on the back of Theo’s neck. “Remind me: which knee did you injure in your accident?”
Theo’s throat locked up. He thought of the surgeries. The weeks and months of PT. The agony in simple things like hobbling to the fridge, struggling to keep his balance while he took a leak.
“This one,” Lender pointed with the cane. “Correct?”
“No,” Auggie said.
“I have to admit it’s been a long time since I took an English class, but using your cane to cripple you—that’s a kind of irony, right?”
“No,” Auggie said, louder.
Theo managed to say, “Situational irony.”
“Ah, that’s it. You’re so clever. And I am very sorry about this. I’ll make it as fast as I can.”
Lender brought the cane up and to the side.
Auggie jumped in front of Theo.
For the first time, annoyance flashed on Lender’s face. “August, get out of the way.”
“Move,” Theo said. “Auggie, for the love of Christ, move.”
“Not his knee,” Auggie said. “Please. You don’t know how hard that was for him.”
“I’m losing patience, August.”
“You can break my knee instead.”
“No,” Theo shouted. With his hands cuffed behind his back, he couldn’t do what he needed to do: grab Auggie, shield him, get him away from all of this. All he could do was try to force his way forward. Auggie didn’t even let him do that; with one hand, Auggie reached back and shoved Theo onto his ass, and Theo sat there, stunned, staring up at him.
“It doesn’t matter which one,” Auggie said. Theo was sitting slightly to the side, and he could see the weak smile that came onto Auggie’s face. “Dealer’s choice.”
“Well, August, this is really very touching. I hope Theo realizes how lucky he is to have a friend like you.”
“No,” Theo screamed, his heels scraping across the floor as he tried to get up. “Lender, you motherfucker, don’t you dare do this.”
“And,” Lender added with a wink, “I hope Officer Cartwright knows he has some stiff competition.”
“Let me just—” Auggie said.
The first blow came so quickly and suddenly that Theo’s warning scream cut off. The cane caught Auggie just below the shoulder, and Auggie shouted, the sound a mixture of pain and surprise. The next blow was almost as fast, landing just a few inches lower. Then another. The flurry of blows created a kind of humming noise, the pitch rising and falling, punctuated only by Auggie’s shouts, then his screams. Somewhere between the fourth and fifth blow, Auggie fell. He tried to crawl, and Lender came after him, whipping him with the cane.
That was when Theo charged. He’d gotten to his feet; he wasn’t sure how. He only knew he was going to kill Albert Lender, even if it meant tearing out his throat with his teeth. Lender heard him coming, straightened, turned, wiped sweat from his forehead. He jabbed Theo in the throat with the cane, and Theo went down, puking and gagging, almost aspirating some of the vomit and coughing even harder. For a while, that was all Theo could focus on: trying to clear his lungs and get air. His face was hot and wet, the taste of bile in his mouth, when he realized the sounds had stopped. Almost. Lender’s labored breathing seemed to fill the room.
Then the cane fell, clattering against the floorboards. Lender’s steps moved toward Theo.
“I’m going to kill you,” Theo said, trying to rise from the puddle of his own sick.
“Just so we’re clear, my partners and I had nothing to do with Calvin Reese’s death. My suggestion is that this should be a natural endpoint to your investigation.”
Theo tried to rise, but Lender kicked him once in the side of the head, and the world scrambled. When Theo came back, his wrists were free, and Lender was speaking.
“—boys have a wonderful Christmas. I know we’re supposed to say holidays, but I’m old fashioned that way. And August, make sure you study. I expect you to get those straight A’s again.”
Then the door clicked shut, and Theo slid through his own vomit toward Auggie.
SPRING SEMESTER
JANUARY 2015
1
Auggie got back to Wahredua at almost midnight on the last Sunday in January, having put off his return as long as he could. The cold was eye stinging and started a minor headache. Under the crescent moon, the slush glowed so whitely that it verged on purple. With a pop of brakes, the shuttle pulled away from the curb behind him.