Chapter 3

3

When my dad died, I was away at boarding school. By the time I got the news and rushed home, he was already buried. My mother told me it was a sudden illness. Now, it sounded like a lie.

Mrs. Gable looked startled. she waved her hands frantically. "Oh, I was just talking nonsense! How would I know? Right, everyone?"

The others nodded quickly, but their eyes were shifty. They knew something. They were just too scared of trouble to speak up.

I knew I wouldn't get more out of them. I turned and continued up the hill.

My grip on the sickle tightened until my knuckles were white.

Bleeding from the nose and mouth? My mother never mentioned that.

And she brought Arthur home to marry her only a month after the funeral. I always thought it was too fast. If they had murdered him, it all made sense.

I couldn't just leave with the documents. I had to find out the truth about my father.

By the time I got home, it was after eight. I put the feed away and saw that Sierra was gone. My mother was slumped on the couch watching TV.

She glanced at me. "Took you long enough. There's some tea in the kitchen. Go drink it. Don't say I never give you anything!"

I didn't go to the kitchen. I sat down next to her. "Mom, what kind of sickness did Dad actually die from?"

She stiffened as if she'd been stung. She turned to me with a dark expression. "Who's been talking to you? Don't listen to those gossiping hens. I'm your mother. I would never lie to you."

I blinked innocently and smiled. "No one. I just saw Dad's grave while I was out. I missed him."

Her tension visibly drained. She snorted. "That loser has been gone for four years. He was useless when he was alive. There's nothing to miss."

"If you have time to miss him, you have time to figure out how to make money. Sierra's tuition isn't going to pay itself."

My heart skipped a beat. "Is she still going to the community college? I heard the tuition there is cheap."

"Community college? No. Sierra is going to the Ivy League school. Why would we settle for crumbs when we can have the whole cake? Only a fool would do that."

Oh, so you know it's foolish. Yet here you are, being the fool.

She caught me staring. "Why are you looking at me like that? I'm doing this for your own good. I'm your mother."

I thought to myself, I'd be better off with no mother at all.

Just then, Sierra walked in, rubbing her eyes. She spoke to my mother in a sugary-sweet voice. "Auntie Bea, my friends said the mall in the city got a bunch of new clothes. Can you take me tomorrow?"

She glanced at me and smirked. "Bring my sister along too."

My mother quickly replied, "We'll go first thing in the morning. You'll get whatever you want. Your sister doesn't need to go. There's too much work to do here. Once you buy your new things, you can pick a few old rags to give to her."

"Fine by me." Sierra winked at me, acting cute. "Sorry you have to work, Sis. When I get back, you can pick something from my closet. You really need to change out of that. That pink shirt is so faded it looks white."

"Sure. Thanks, Sierra," I said, keeping my voice flat.

The next morning, my mother and Sierra caught a cab to the city. Arthur rode his bike to the school. I was finally alone.

I tore the house apart looking for that envelope. It was nowhere to be found.

Where could it be?

I was feeding the hogs and thinking when I heard a scratching sound above my head.

The rats in this old house were the worst. They ran around at night, and even during the day when it was quiet, they would squeak and drive me crazy.

I grabbed a broom to hit the ceiling, but then I stopped.

The ceiling. It was the perfect place to hide things.

I suddenly felt a surge of hope. Maybe the rats were good for something after all.

I ran into my mother and Arthur's bedroom. I used the broom handle to poke at the ceiling panels near the outer wall. One of them moved.

I reached inside and felt a plastic bag. Inside was the envelope.