People would stand on the sidewalk and stare at the garage, theyâd drive past slowly, observing the house the way other people might study a natural disaster, a hurricane. perhaps, or a flash flood. Late at night, there were some who threw stones and shouted threats, and then, like the cowards they were, ran away to hide in the bushes as soon as the porch light was switched on. Itâs no wonder Katya waves her hands at Barney as though shooing away flies, without so much as a hello.
âGo home,â she tells him. âLearn to leave good people alone.â
Kat Williams grins at the lawyer before she goes inside, and Barney knows exactly what sheâs thinking.
What did I tell you? None of us want you around.
After the Williamsesâ door slams shut. Barney feels he should go after them and explain that heâs only come to help. Heâs a good-hearted man who hates his actions to be misunderstood. too frequently the case when heâs at home with his wife, Dana. What he wouldnât give for someone to talk to, to have someone who would really listen to the way he feels, deep inside. He lives in a house of chattering girls where there is never a moment of quiet until everyone is asleep. Itâs only at those moments, while his daughters and his wife are dreaming, that he often realizes he hasnât said a word all day.
Looking down Maple Street from his post outside the Fordsâ house, Barney spies two cats in the road, lolling in the moonlight, as though they own the night world, two feline kings yowling at each other as they vie over the nesting birds in Mrs Gageâs cherry tree. There is no traffic, but an empty street can be deceiving. The reporters arenât here yet, but they will be soon. A figure walks through the dark, and Barney realizes itâs Charlotte Kite whoâs approaching. You can spot Charlotte anywhere because of that red hair of hers. and now she lights up the dark with both purpose and distress. Sheâs smoking a cigarette, although Barney cannot recall having seen her smoking before. He often sees her at the bakery when he stops there on his way to his office: heâs all but addicted to the cinnamon Danishes, even though he knows he could stand to lose a good fifty pounds.
Although heâs several years older than Charlotte and Jorie, he remembers them well from high school. Pretty girls he never would have stood a chance with, not even if they could have gazed into the future to predict heâd attend Harvard Law School and go on to live in one of those big houses in Charlotte Kiteâs neighborhood out beyond Horsetail Hill. They wouldnât have looked at him twice, not if heâd had a million dollars in his pockets and had gotten down on bended knee, begging for their attention. Heâd had an especially big crush on Charlotte, an embarrassing fact heâs never mentioned to anyone. Certainly, heâd never dared to act on his pathetic desire, or ever imagined she might one day respond. He may have been a loser back in school, but nobody could call him stupid, not then and not now.
âHey, there,â he says to Charlotte as she approaches. Charlotteâs expression is cloudy when she sees him; whether this is caused by the smoke from her cigarette or a haze of suspicion isnât clear. âBarney Stark.â he reminds her.
âRight,â Charlotte says, looking at him for further explanation.
âIâm here in a professional capacity. Just checking in.â
âAre you saying theyâre going to need a lawyer?â Charlotte moves a little closer, even though thereâs no one nearby who might overhear.
âInnocent people need lawyers, too.â Barney reassures her.
Charlotte is relieved. She herself has recently spent a small fortune on legal fees, and her only crime was marrying Jay. Of course theyâll need a lawyer. Charlotte has never paid Barney Stark any mind, but at this moment,
âGo home,â she tells him. âLearn to leave good people alone.â
Kat Williams grins at the lawyer before she goes inside, and Barney knows exactly what sheâs thinking.
What did I tell you? None of us want you around.
After the Williamsesâ door slams shut. Barney feels he should go after them and explain that heâs only come to help. Heâs a good-hearted man who hates his actions to be misunderstood. too frequently the case when heâs at home with his wife, Dana. What he wouldnât give for someone to talk to, to have someone who would really listen to the way he feels, deep inside. He lives in a house of chattering girls where there is never a moment of quiet until everyone is asleep. Itâs only at those moments, while his daughters and his wife are dreaming, that he often realizes he hasnât said a word all day.
Looking down Maple Street from his post outside the Fordsâ house, Barney spies two cats in the road, lolling in the moonlight, as though they own the night world, two feline kings yowling at each other as they vie over the nesting birds in Mrs Gageâs cherry tree. There is no traffic, but an empty street can be deceiving. The reporters arenât here yet, but they will be soon. A figure walks through the dark, and Barney realizes itâs Charlotte Kite whoâs approaching. You can spot Charlotte anywhere because of that red hair of hers. and now she lights up the dark with both purpose and distress. Sheâs smoking a cigarette, although Barney cannot recall having seen her smoking before. He often sees her at the bakery when he stops there on his way to his office: heâs all but addicted to the cinnamon Danishes, even though he knows he could stand to lose a good fifty pounds.
Although heâs several years older than Charlotte and Jorie, he remembers them well from high school. Pretty girls he never would have stood a chance with, not even if they could have gazed into the future to predict heâd attend Harvard Law School and go on to live in one of those big houses in Charlotte Kiteâs neighborhood out beyond Horsetail Hill. They wouldnât have looked at him twice, not if heâd had a million dollars in his pockets and had gotten down on bended knee, begging for their attention. Heâd had an especially big crush on Charlotte, an embarrassing fact heâs never mentioned to anyone. Certainly, heâd never dared to act on his pathetic desire, or ever imagined she might one day respond. He may have been a loser back in school, but nobody could call him stupid, not then and not now.
âHey, there,â he says to Charlotte as she approaches. Charlotteâs expression is cloudy when she sees him; whether this is caused by the smoke from her cigarette or a haze of suspicion isnât clear. âBarney Stark.â he reminds her.
âRight,â Charlotte says, looking at him for further explanation.
âIâm here in a professional capacity. Just checking in.â
âAre you saying theyâre going to need a lawyer?â Charlotte moves a little closer, even though thereâs no one nearby who might overhear.
âInnocent people need lawyers, too.â Barney reassures her.
Charlotte is relieved. She herself has recently spent a small fortune on legal fees, and her only crime was marrying Jay. Of course theyâll need a lawyer. Charlotte has never paid Barney Stark any mind, but at this moment,
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