The Traveling Vampire Show (17 page)

“I ran off and hid in the woods,” Slim said. “I guess that’s how I missed you.”

“That was a long time ago.”

Slim shrugged. “I just stayed hidden. I didn’t want to walk all the way home because I’d lost my shirt and shoes. Besides, Dwight was supposed to show up.” She smiled at me. “And he did.”

“We both did,” Rusty pointed out.

To Lee, I said, “We figured maybe we could borrow some bandages from you.”

She turned to Slim. “All right if I take a look?”

“Sure.” Slim unbuttoned her shirt, took it off, then turned around.

At the sight of her back, Lee pursed her lips.

“Most of that’s from broken glass,” I explained.

“You’d better come with me, Slim. We’ll get you cleaned up and bandaged.”

Looking a little embarrassed, Slim nodded.

“You guys wait here,” Lee told us. “We won’t be long.”

We watched Slim and Lee leave the room. A couple of minutes later, water came on and rushed through the pipes.

Rusty met my eyes. “Sounds like somebody’s taking a bath,” he whispered.

“Or a shower.”

“Who do you think it is?”

“Who do you think?”

A smile spreading across his cherubic face, Rusty said, “Wanta find out?” He started to rise from the sofa.

“Stay put,” I said.

He stood up. “I know we can’t look. As if they’d leave the door open. But maybe we can hear something.”

“Forget it.”

“Come on, man.”

“Don’t you think we’ve screwed up enough for one day?”

Looking disappointed in me, he said, “You’re such a chicken.”

“If you say so.”

“Come on. It’ll be cool.”

“No. ”

“I tell you what. You wait here where it’s nice and safe and I’ll go listen.”

“No you won’t.”

He lifted his eyebrows. In a quiet, taunting voice, he said, “Slim’s probably nude in there, you know.”

“Knock it off.”

“Maybe Lee, too. Maybe she got in the shower with Slim to help wash her back.”

I saw it in my mind. Rusty was obviously seeing it in his mind, too, and I didn’t like that. I stepped up close to him—so close that our stomach’s touched—and looked him in the eyes.

“Okay, okay,” he muttered. “Forget it. Never mind.” He backed away and sank onto the sofa.

After a while, I calmed down. I walked to the other side of the room and sat in an armchair.

We both sat in silence.

Rusty was careful not to look at me.

The water kept rushing through the pipes.

When the water shut off, Rusty lifted his head and looked at me.

“What?” I asked.

“Nothing.”

“What?”

“Nothing. You’re not so pure, that’s all. You’re no purer than me, you’re just scared of getting caught.”

“Up yours.”

“It’s the truth.”

“Shut up, okay? They might be able to hear us.”

He closed his mouth and gave me a smug, knowing smile. He knew he was right, and I knew he wasn’t far from wrong.

We didn’t say anything else. After a while, we heard a door unlatch. Then came quiet footsteps and voices.

Lee saying, “I’ll have to give him a try.”

Slim saying, “I’ve got an extra copy of The Temple of Gold I can let you read.”

“Great.”

“I’ll bring it over sometime.”

Then they walked into the living room. Lee, dressed the same as before, was carrying my sneakers, Rusty’s shirt, and a brown paper grocery bag with its top crumpled shut.

Slim, with nothing in her hands, had the clean, fresh look of someone who’d just taken a bath or shower. She wore clothes that must’ve belonged to Lee: a loose white T-shirt, red shorts, white crew socks and white sneakers. The T-shirt completely covered her shorts, but I could see through it enough to tell their color. I could also tell where bandages had been applied, and that she no longer wore her bikini top.

Her bikini and cut-off jeans were probably in the grocery bag Lee was carrying.

Evidently, Lee didn’t own a bra in Slim’s size.

When I realized I was staring at Slim’s chest, I quickly turned my eyes to Lee. “How’d it go?” I asked.

“I think she’ll live. But since she refuses to see a doctor, I guess she’ll have to go stitchless.”

“My cuts aren’t that bad,” Slim said.

“They aren’t that good, either.” Lee dropped the sneakers in front of my feet, stepped toward the sofa and tossed the shirt to Rusty.

While I put on my shoes and Rusty put on his shirt, Lee set the grocery sack on the coffee table. Then she sank onto the sofa beside Rusty, settled back against the cushion, swung her legs onto the coffee table and crossed her ankles. She sighed as if relieved to be off her feet.

Still fastening his buttons, Rusty turned his head and stared down at her.

Life was suddenly good again for him.

Lee glanced at him, smiled, then said to all of us, “The kitchen floor’s gotta be dry by now. If anyone wants a Coke or something, feel free. I’m not moving, though. You’ll have to help yourselves.”

None of us spoke up.

Slim walked past me. She smelled like a strange, wonderful combination of lemons and marshmallows. Through the back of her T-shirt, I saw eight or ten bandages. She went to a wicker chair near the lamp table and sat down. Perched near the front of the seat, she folded her hands on her lap and kept her back straight.

Glancing from Slim to me, Lee asked, “So, all set for tonight?”

Slim hadn’t told her about the dog?

“Not sure yet,” I said.

“We’re still working on it,” said Rusty. He gave Slim a perplexed look.

Slim’s shoulders moved slightly.

Rusty returned his gaze to Lee’s slumped, lounging body. “Any ideas?” he asked her.

“Nothing spectacular. Anyway, I think you should work it out for yourselves.”

Looking at me, Rusty said, “I can get permission to sleep over at your house. Your mom and dad still go to bed at ten?”

“Around then.”

“So we wait till they hit the sack, then we sneak out.”

“I don’t know about sneaking out,” I said.

“It’ll work. It’s always worked before.”

I could’ve killed him for saying that in front of Lee.

She looked at me and lifted her eyebrows. She seemed amused and curious.

“We didn’t do anything much,” I told her.

“Hey, don’t worry about it. I won’t tell.”

“I know.”

“But I’d like to hear about it sometime.”

“Sure.”

“And I’ll tell you about the times I used to sneak out at night.”

“I’d like to hear that,” Rusty said.

She lifted a hand off her belly, reached over and patted him on the leg.

His face went crimson.

Mine probably did, too.

“We’ll see,” she told him.

“If we have to sneak out of someone’s house,” I said to Rusty, “why not yours? Why does it always have to be my house?”

“I’m already invited for supper,” he pointed out.

“What’s that got to do with it?”

“I’ll already be there.”

“Right. So then I explain how you’ve asked me to spend the night at your place. And then we go over there after ...”

“Just can’t wait to see Bitsy again, huh?”

I grunted as if I’d been slugged in the stomach. “Oh yeah,” I muttered.

“I’m sure she’d love to see you....”

“Never mind.”

“Here’s how to work it,” Slim suddenly said.

I gaped at her.

Rusty actually went, “Huh?”

“Dwight, you tell your parents you’ve been asked to spend the night at Rusty’s house. Rusty, you tell yours that you’re invited to stay at Dwight’s. Then you both come over to my house.”

Stunned again, I mumbled, “Your house?”

“It’ll be perfect,” she said.

I pictured the mess in her mother’s bedroom.

“I don’t get it,” Rusty asked. “Why do we wanta go to your house?”

“We won’t have to worry about sneaking out when it’s time to leave.”

“We won’t?” I asked.

“We’ll have the whole house to ourselves.”

“Really?”

Smiling and nodding as if very pleased with herself, she said, “That’s right.”

“What about your mom?” I asked.

“She’ll be gone. She’s got a date tonight.”

“What do you mean?” Rusty asked. He had a dumbfounded look on his face as if he’d just woken up from a nap and couldn’t figure out what was going on.

“A date, you know? With a guy.”

“Tonight?” I asked. I was feeling slightly dumbfounded myself.

“Who’s the lucky guy?” Lee asked.

Slim shrugged, this time using only one shoulder. “I don’t know. She met him at Steerman’s last night.”

“You don’t know his name?”

“Charlie something. From across the river. He lives over in Falcon Bay. Anyway, he’s taking Mom out tonight in his cabin cruiser.”

“He’s got a cabin cruiser?” I asked.

“A thirty-foot Chris-craft.”

“Holy shit!” Rusty blurted. Then he said, “Sorry, Mrs. Thompson.”

Lee reached over and patted his thigh again. I wished she would stop doing that.

“Mom won’t even be coming home at the end of her shift,” Slim explained. “Charlie’s meeting her at the restaurant. Then he’s taking her out for a night on the river.”

“How do I meet this guy?” Lee asked.

“Hey,” I said.

She laughed.

Eyes on Slim, Rusty asked, “So when’s your mom getting home?”

“I’m supposed to expect her when I see her.” Slim tried to smile, but it didn’t come off very well. “When she says that, I usually don’t see her till the next day.”

I tried not to look upset. “She leaves you alone all night?”

“Sometimes.”

Why was this the first I’d heard about it?

“It’s no big deal,” she said. “I am sixteen.”

“So am I, but ... I wouldn’t like it.”

Slim met my eyes. “It’s okay. Really.”

“It’s not that okay,” Lee said. “If you ever feel like coming over here ...”

“Thanks.”

“Let me know the next time your mom’s planning to pull an all-nighter, okay? You shouldn’t have to stay alone like that.”

“Anyway,” Slim said, “it’ll work out great for tonight. After supper, we can all hang out at my house till it’s time to go. There won’t be anyone around to stop us.”

“Sounds great,” Rusty said.

“Yeah,” I said.

“Why don’t you come over, too?” she asked Lee.

“Thanks, but I’ll pass. I’ll probably take a nice long nap after supper. Wouldn’t want to fall asleep in the middle of the vampire show.”

“If you change your mind ...”

She shook her head. “Not me. But let’s not have any hanky-panky over there. You really shouldn’t be having boys in the house when your mom’s not home.”

“Yeah, but we won’t do anything.”

Looking at each of us, Lee said, “I want everyone to be on their best behavior, okay?”

“We will be,” Slim said. She glanced from Rusty to me. “Won’t we, guys?”

“Sure thing,” said Rusty.

I nodded in agreement.

“Okay,” Lee said. “So then just come on over here around ten, ten-thirty.”

“We’ll be here,” Slim said.

When we left Lee’s house a couple of minutes later, Slim led the way. We hurried after her, but she managed to keep ahead of us until we reached the corner.

There, she turned around, faced us, and set her grocery bag down on the sidewalk. “Can one of you give me a shirt?”

We must’ve looked perplexed.

“Come on, come on.” She snapped her fingers. “Dwight, let me have yours.”

“It’s actually Rusty’s.”

“She can have it,” Rusty said.

I took it off and handed it to her.

“Thanks.”

“You’re welcome,” Rusty said.

As she slipped into the shirt, she said, “I don’t mind much if you guys see me like that, but ...” She shook her head. “Not everyone else in town.” She started fastening the buttons. “Lee wouldn’t let me put my own stuff back on after I showered. I wanted to at least put my swimsuit back on, but she said it’s too dirty. Which it is. I’m probably better off not wearing it.” Slim finished with the buttons. “All set.”

“Almost,” I said. “What happened to telling Lee about the dog?”

“Oh, that.”

“Yeah.”

She shrugged. “I don’t know. I just didn’t want to screw things up for you guys.”

“All right!” Rusty blurted.

“I mean, it’s pretty clear you’ve both got the hots to see Valeria in action.”

“You betcha.”

“I’m not so sure I do,” I told her.

“Well, it’s up to you. I just didn’t want to be the one to ruin it. I’m still not going. But let’s hang out at my place anyway, okay? Then when it’s time to go you can just head over to Lee’s without me. If you feel like it.”

“She’ll wonder why you didn’t come,” I said.

“Tell her I got a headache or something.”

“The trots,” Rusty suggested.

She scowled at him. “Not the trots, a headache.”

“You got your period!”

Slim and I both blushed furiously.

“No,” she said.

“Why not say it’s your period?”

“Forget it.”

“Can’t go to vampire shows when you’ve got your period, you know. All that blood? Drive’s ’em crazy and they come after you.”

“Jeez. ” I muttered.

“It’s the truth, man. It’d be like going into bear country or swimming in shark-infested waters.”

Glaring at him, Slim said, “Get bent.”

Rusty started to laugh.

Slim reached toward his face. Very quickly, she tucked down her middle finger, hooked it in place with the pad of her thumb, built up some force in her finger and let it go. It flicked upward, nail thumping Rusty’s nose.

His eyes bulged. His face went red. His laughter stopped. Staggering backward, he cupped a hand over his nose.

“No more talk like that,” she told him.

“Shit,” he gasped.

“You never know when to quit,” she said.

He blinked at her, his eyes red and watery.

I didn’t feel sorry for him. And I was glad Slim had hurt him. Now, both of us had brought tears to Rusty’s eyes.

He sniffled a few times. Then he muttered, “Now you’ve done it,” and lowered his hand.

Bright red blood was running out of his nostrils and spilling over his upper lip.