Red Rain

Pavano tapped notes into his phone. Pinto studied their faces.

“You didn’t get angry when Derek spit water on you?”

“Just a joke,” Daniel muttered. “The boyo was joking us.”

“Mark? Can you come here a minute? I need some help.” Mark heard Roz call from the kitchen.

He jumped to his feet and motioned to the two cops. “Be right back.” He hurried from the room.

Pinto scratched the side of his face. “Just one more thing. I need to ask you twins one more question.”

They raised their eyes to him.

“You see, we talked to the school bus driver. He told us you two weren’t on his bus Wednesday afternoon. Is that true?”

Daniel and Samuel exchanged glances. “Yes,” Daniel answered. “We missed the bus, don’t you see.”

Pinto: “Where did you go?”

“To Derek’s house.”

Both officers leaned forward. Pinto studied the twins’ faces. “You went to Derek’s house after school? Why?”

“To tell him no hard feelings,” Daniel said in a tiny voice. “We told him we weren’t mad at him. You know. About the water spitting.”

Pavano typed furiously on his phone. Then he stopped. “Does your father know you were at Derek’s house?”

They both nodded. “He came to pick us up,” Daniel said. His shoulders started to tremble again. His twin wiped tears from his eyes.

Pavano and Pinto exchanged glances again. “Funny. He didn’t tell us about that.”

“It was so scary,” Daniel uttered. “Samuel and I-we were scared.” Both twins looked to the doorway, checking to see if Mark was there.

“Why were you scared?”

“Pa yelled at Derek,” Daniel replied, voice trembling. “Pa yelled at him. He was real mad. For spitting on us, I think. And Pa slapped Derek. He slapped Derek twice.”

Both boys were sobbing now. “We were so scared,” Samuel said.

“Pa made us promise not to tell,” Daniel added, glancing to the door. “But it wasn’t right. Pa shouldn’t have done that. It made us scared.”

52

“I need to talk to you boys.” Mark burst into the guesthouse. “This is serious.” His head was spinning. His muscles felt tight from. . anger.

He wasn’t expecting the scene confronting him. Ira and Ethan on the floor, backs against the wall of the small bedroom, books in their laps. Two lanky, dark-haired boys Mark didn’t recognize, hunched on the twin’s beds with video games in their hands. A boy and two blond girls in front of the TV on the dresser.

“Hey, what’s going on?”

The twins appeared from the closet in back. They carried bedsheets and pillows in their arms. Their eyes went wide when they saw Mark.

“Put those down,” Mark snapped. “We need to talk.” He gestured around the room. “If you two want to invite friends over, you have to tell us.” He knew he should get his anger under control before he talked to them-but how could he?

“Sorry, Pa,” Samuel said softly.

“Some friends from school, don’t you know,” his twin added. “It’s Friday night, so-”

“I don’t care what night it is. Come over here. I’ve been questioned by those two policemen for the past hour. Did you tell them that I was at Derek Saltzman’s house?”

Mark felt himself lose it. He grabbed them both by the shoulders. Hard. “Did you? Don’t lie to me. Tell the truth.”

“Ouch.” Daniel squirmed under his grip. The cry made Mark realize what he was doing. He let go and took a step back. The other kids were all watching him.

“Sorry. Tell me what you told the police. Did you lie about me to the police?”

“No,” Daniel said. “Sammy and I wouldn’t lie, Pa.”

Mark stared at them both. He was breathing hard. His head throbbed. Daniel was lying to him. His face was as innocent as ever, but he was lying.

“Samuel, did you tell the police I was at Derek’s house?”

“No, Pa. I didn’t tell them anything. Why are you mad at us?”

“You’re lying. You’re both lying, aren’t you?”

He saw the frightened faces on the other kids. Ira was watching him warily, chin trembling.

And then Mark saw something else.

Something sparkly in the open drawer of the bed table. He strode across the room, in front of the two boys he didn’t know, reached into the drawer and pulled it out.

Holding it by its silver chain, he raised it to his face. Then he turned to the twins. “Isn’t this Elena’s necklace? The amethyst necklace? The one she is missing?”

The twins gazed at it as if they’d never seen it. They didn’t speak.

“This is ridiculous,” Mark said. “Are you two thieves as well as liars?”

For some reason, that made them giggle.

“It’s not funny!” he exploded. “You all have to go home! Go on. Get out of here. All of you! I have to talk to these two.”

“But we are home,” one of the blond girls said. When she turned, he saw the fat blue arrow on her cheek. They all had the arrow, he realized.

Mark motioned to the twins. “Come with me. Now. We’re going to get to the bottom-”

“Mark!” Through the open window, he heard Lea’s shout from the house. “Mark? Are you out there? We’re going to be late.”

I should cancel tonight. I’ve got a serious problem with these boys.

I won’t be good company, that’s for sure.

But it’s the first night I’ve been able to persuade Lea to go out-

“Mark? Where are you? We have to go.”

He waved a finger at the twins. “Later. We’re going to have a long talk later. When I get home. We have to get at the truth here, do you understand?”

They both nodded. Mark turned to Ira, on the floor against the wall, but Ira avoided his eyes. Mark spun away, clenched his fist over the amethyst necklace, and stomped to the door.

“Bye, Pa,” Samuel called.

“Yes. Bye, Pa,” Daniel echoed.

“Bye, Pa,” they called in unison.

– -

“Look. Look at this.” Mark ran into the kitchen, waving the amethyst necklace in front of him. “Lea-”

Her head was tilted to one side as she adjusted a dangling red earring. “What’s that?”

“It. . It’s Elena’s necklace. The one that’s missing. The twins had it. They stole it. They stole it, Lea.”

She straightened up. Brushed back her hair with both hands. “Calm down, sweetheart. You sound like a crazy person.”

He let out a long breath. “Are you listening to me? The twins stole this from Elena’s room. They are thieves, Lea, and-”

She took the necklace from him and smoothed the chain through her fingers. “I’m sure there’s a good explanation, Mark.”

“No. No, there isn’t.” He didn’t intend to sound so frantic, but he felt he might explode with anger. “And-and