Night Road

“Kevin’s aunt is there, though,” Zach said. “It’s not like no adult is around. ”

“Totally,” Mia added, nodding.

Jude sat back. She’d known this moment was coming, of course. She’d been a teenager herself, and senior year was the Holy Grail of teenhood. So, she knew what it meant when seniors wanted to “party. ”

She’d had endless conversations with the kids about alcohol, told them repeatedly how dangerous it could be, and they swore not to be interested in drinking, but she wasn’t a fool. Neither was she the kind of woman who pretended her children were perfect. What mattered to her was protecting them from the risks associated with adolescence, even those of their own making.

She could say no. But they might defy her, and wouldn’t they be more in danger then? “I’ll call Kevin’s aunt,” she said slowly. “Make sure an adult is supervising the party. ”

“Oh my God,” Mia whined, “way to totally humiliate us. We’re not children. ”

“Really, Mom,” Zach said. “You know you can trust us. I’d never drink and drive. ”

“I’d prefer it if you’d promise never to drink,” she said.

He looked at her. “I might drink one beer. It won’t kill me. You want me to lie to you? I thought that wasn’t how we rolled in this family. ”

Her own words thrown back at her, and with deadly accuracy. The price for honesty with your kids was that often you learned what you’d rather not. The way Jude saw it, there were two parenting choices: ask for honesty and try to roll with unwanted truths or stick your head in the sand and be lied to. Zach’s honesty was a reason to trust him. “I’ll think about it,” she said in a forceful enough voice to end the conversation.

The rest of the meal passed quickly. As soon as they cleared the table, the kids put the dishes in the dishwasher and then ran upstairs.

Jude knew they were getting ready for the party. They assumed victory—she’d seen it in their eyes.

“I don’t know,” she said to Miles. They stood side by side at the picture window, staring out at the darkening night. The Sound had turned graphite and the sky was a deep bronze color. “How do we stop them from drinking and keep them safe?”

“Chaining them to a wall would work. Too bad the state frowns on that. ”

“Very funny. ” She looked up at him. “We can’t stop them from drinking—you know that. If not tonight, then some night they’ll get drunk. That’s just the way it is. So, what do we do to protect them? Maybe we should have a party here. We could take the kids’ keys and make sure everyone stayed safe. We could make sure they don’t drink too much. ”

“Uh. No. We’d be risking everything we own. Not to mention, if someone got hurt, we’d be responsible. And you know teenagers, they’re like bacteria. They multiply too fast to see and you can’t keep them in your sights. I can’t believe you’d even suggest it. ”

Jude knew he was right, but it didn’t help. “Do you remember high school? Because I sure do. Keggers at Morrow Farm were a weekly occurrence. And we drove home. ”

“You have to trust them, Jude. Let them start making some decisions. Mia’s smart, and she sure as hell isn’t a party girl. And Zach would never let anything bad happen to her. You know that. ”

“I guess. ” Jude nodded, thinking it all through for the thousandth time. There seemed to her to be no good answer. No indisputably right way to go.

For the rest of the evening, Jude wrestled with the question of how to be the best parent in this situation. She was still trying to figure it out at nine o’clock when the kids came running down the stairs.

“Well?” Zach said.

She looked at her kids. Zach, so tall and handsome and steady in his low-rise jeans and striped American Eagle sweatshirt, and Mia, in tattered blue jean capris, white T-shirt, and blue silk men’s tie, knotted off to the side. She had her hair drawn back in a ponytail that geysered at the top of her head. She’d come out of her shell since meeting Lexi, but she was still fragile, a little needy. She could get her heart broken so easily, could make the wrong decision because she was afraid of being laughed at.

They were good kids. Honest kids who cared about their futures. They’d never given Jude any reason to mistrust them.

“Madre?” Zach said, smiling, reaching for her hand. “Come on. You know you can trust us. ”

Jude knew he was manipulating her, using her love to his advantage, but she was helpless to resist. She loved them both so much and she wanted them to be happy. “I don’t know…”

Mia rolled her eyes. “This is like the witch trials. Can we go or not?”

“We said we won’t drink,” Zach said.

Miles came up beside Jude, slipped an arm around her waist. “We can count on your word, then?”

Zach’s face split into a huge smile. “Absolutely. ”

“Your curfew is midnight,” Jude said.