Hester
Podegill. That’s the only one that sounded dumb enough to be
real. She lied all the time about who her family was and the famous
people she knew and all the stuff she’d done. She mostly hung
out with the younger girls because everybody else had her figured
out and wouldn’t listen to her shit.”
“Hold on. Hester Podegill?”
“Yeah. One of her thousand and one names.” She
looked at me odd.
There were Podegills off in a back room of my mind. Neighbors in
the old days. Bunch of daughters. A couple of them turned up
pregnant at thirteen. I began to recall the talk and the way people
had shunned the parents . . . Third floor,
that’s where they’d lived. And the little one, a blonde
named Hester, would have been about ten when I left for the
Marines.
But the Podegills were dead.
The only letter my brother wrote in his life he wrote to tell me
how the Podegills died in a fire. The tragedy really broke him up.
He’d had it bad for one of the girls.
That letter had taken two years to catch up to me. By the time
it did my brother had been in the Cantard a year himself.
He’s still down there. Like a lot of others, he won’t
be coming home.
Maya asked, “That name mean something to you,
Garrett?”
“It reminded me of my brother. I haven’t thought
about him for a long time.”
“I didn’t know you had one.”
“I don’t now. He was killed at Flat Hat Mesa. Ask me
sometime and I’ll show you the medal they gave my mother. She
put it in a box with the ones for her father, her two brothers, and
my father. My father got it when I was four and Mikey was two. I
used to be able to remember Dad’s face if I tried hard. I
can’t anymore.”
She was quiet for a few seconds. “I never thought about
you having a family. Where’s your mom now?”
“Gone. After they gave her Mikey’s medal she just
gave up. Nothing to live for anymore.”
“But you—”
“There’s another medal in that box. It has my name
on it. The Marines delivered it four days before the Army delivered
Mikey’s.”
“Why? You weren’t dead.”
“They thought I was. My outfit was on an island the
Venageti invaded. They claimed they killed us all. Actually, we
were out in a swamp, living on cattails and bugs and crocodile eggs
while we picked them off. Mom was gone before the news got back
after Karenta recaptured the island.”
“That’s sad. I’m sorry. It isn’t
fair.”
“Life isn’t fair, Maya. I’ve learned to live
with it. Mostly, I don’t think about it. I don’t let it
shape me or drive me.”
She grunted. I was getting preachy and she was getting ready to
respond the way kids always do. We’d been sitting there no
more than ten minutes but it seemed a lot longer.
“Somebody’s coming,” she said coldly.
----
----
15
Somebody was Jill Craight looking like she’d seen a zombie
and his seven brothers. She would have run past us if I
hadn’t said, “Jill?”
She squeaked and jumped. Then she recognized me. “Garrett.
I was coming to see you. I didn’t know where else to
turn.” Her voice squeaked. She looked at Maya but
didn’t recognize her.
“What’s the trouble?”
Jill gulped air.
“There’s . . . There are dead men
in my apartment. Three of them. What should I do?”
I got up. “Let’s go look.”
Maya bounced up and invited herself along. Jill was too rattled
to care. I figured she’d be safer tagging along than
wandering around alone.
Near the door to Jill’s building I spied something
I’d missed when the light was poorer—blood. The women
didn’t notice.
I found more spots inside, small, nothing to grab the attention
if you weren’t looking. I noted that the building was in
better shape than its contemporaries.
Lamps on the landings lighted the stairs. I caught sounds of
life as we stole to the second-floor landing, first a woman’s
laughter sudden as the shattering of a glass, then sounds of a
woman either having one heck of a good time or
Podegill. That’s the only one that sounded dumb enough to be
real. She lied all the time about who her family was and the famous
people she knew and all the stuff she’d done. She mostly hung
out with the younger girls because everybody else had her figured
out and wouldn’t listen to her shit.”
“Hold on. Hester Podegill?”
“Yeah. One of her thousand and one names.” She
looked at me odd.
There were Podegills off in a back room of my mind. Neighbors in
the old days. Bunch of daughters. A couple of them turned up
pregnant at thirteen. I began to recall the talk and the way people
had shunned the parents . . . Third floor,
that’s where they’d lived. And the little one, a blonde
named Hester, would have been about ten when I left for the
Marines.
But the Podegills were dead.
The only letter my brother wrote in his life he wrote to tell me
how the Podegills died in a fire. The tragedy really broke him up.
He’d had it bad for one of the girls.
That letter had taken two years to catch up to me. By the time
it did my brother had been in the Cantard a year himself.
He’s still down there. Like a lot of others, he won’t
be coming home.
Maya asked, “That name mean something to you,
Garrett?”
“It reminded me of my brother. I haven’t thought
about him for a long time.”
“I didn’t know you had one.”
“I don’t now. He was killed at Flat Hat Mesa. Ask me
sometime and I’ll show you the medal they gave my mother. She
put it in a box with the ones for her father, her two brothers, and
my father. My father got it when I was four and Mikey was two. I
used to be able to remember Dad’s face if I tried hard. I
can’t anymore.”
She was quiet for a few seconds. “I never thought about
you having a family. Where’s your mom now?”
“Gone. After they gave her Mikey’s medal she just
gave up. Nothing to live for anymore.”
“But you—”
“There’s another medal in that box. It has my name
on it. The Marines delivered it four days before the Army delivered
Mikey’s.”
“Why? You weren’t dead.”
“They thought I was. My outfit was on an island the
Venageti invaded. They claimed they killed us all. Actually, we
were out in a swamp, living on cattails and bugs and crocodile eggs
while we picked them off. Mom was gone before the news got back
after Karenta recaptured the island.”
“That’s sad. I’m sorry. It isn’t
fair.”
“Life isn’t fair, Maya. I’ve learned to live
with it. Mostly, I don’t think about it. I don’t let it
shape me or drive me.”
She grunted. I was getting preachy and she was getting ready to
respond the way kids always do. We’d been sitting there no
more than ten minutes but it seemed a lot longer.
“Somebody’s coming,” she said coldly.
----
----
15
Somebody was Jill Craight looking like she’d seen a zombie
and his seven brothers. She would have run past us if I
hadn’t said, “Jill?”
She squeaked and jumped. Then she recognized me. “Garrett.
I was coming to see you. I didn’t know where else to
turn.” Her voice squeaked. She looked at Maya but
didn’t recognize her.
“What’s the trouble?”
Jill gulped air.
“There’s . . . There are dead men
in my apartment. Three of them. What should I do?”
I got up. “Let’s go look.”
Maya bounced up and invited herself along. Jill was too rattled
to care. I figured she’d be safer tagging along than
wandering around alone.
Near the door to Jill’s building I spied something
I’d missed when the light was poorer—blood. The women
didn’t notice.
I found more spots inside, small, nothing to grab the attention
if you weren’t looking. I noted that the building was in
better shape than its contemporaries.
Lamps on the landings lighted the stairs. I caught sounds of
life as we stole to the second-floor landing, first a woman’s
laughter sudden as the shattering of a glass, then sounds of a
woman either having one heck of a good time or
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