Raven (Orphans 4)

"Is this what I think it is?" she asked.

"Yes," I said. "I'm afraid so, Aunt Clara."

"Oh, dear. Oh, dear me. Oh, no. I'll have to tell Reuben." She hurried out of the room and down the stairs. Moments later, I heard Uncle Reuben come charging up, his footsteps so hard on the steps the whole house shook.

"What's going on here?" he demanded.

I stepped out of the bathroom, my arms full of wet towels for the laundry.

"I don't know," I said.

"Who put this there?" he demanded. Aunt Clara came up behind him. I stared at him.

"I really don't know, Uncle Reuben," I said. "You didn't do it?"

"She was working on picking things up when I found it, Reuben. She didn't put it there," Aunt Clara said, and started to cry.

"And I suppose you don't know nothing about it?" Uncle Reuben followed.

I shook my head.

Uncle Reuben's eyes grew small and then widened. He gazed at Aunt Clara and then at me.

"We'll see about this when she gets home," he fired. He shot another angry look in my direction and then left the room.

"Oh, dear," Aunt Clara said. "Oh, dear, dear." She followed after him.

I set down the towels, looked at Jennifer's picture on her dresser, the one in which she had the most conceited grin on her face, and smiled myself.

Jennifer's reaction was predictable. As soon as she was confronted with the evidence, she burst into tears and pointed her right forefinger at me like a pistol.

"She did it. She did it to get me into trouble," she accused.

Uncle Reuben nodded. "I've been thinking so," he said.

"How could I do it? I wasn't in your room until I went upstairs with Aunt Clara to clean the mess," I said quietly.

"You must have done it before."

"Why?"

"To get me in trouble," she whined.

"Why would I do that?" I asked. "Why would I stoop so low as to put something like that under your pillow?"

She stared at me hatefully. Then she turned to Uncle Reuben. "Daddy!" she moaned.

"Jennifer's never done anything like this before," he said. "I'd bet you have."

"You'd lose," I said.

"Daddy, I didn't do it," Jennifer cried, stamping her foot.

"All right. All right. I believe you." He thought a moment. I could see there was an inkling of doubt in his mind. "We'll let it go for now, but be on the lookout for any more trouble, even the slightest. If I find drugs in this house again, I'll bring the owner to the police. That's a promise," he said, directing his words mostly at me.

Jennifer looked satisfied and glanced at me with an expression of contentment. "I'm tired," she said. "I have to rest before I go to the movies."

She hurried away. Nothing more was said about it, but when we left for school the next day, she hurried up to me before mounting the steps to the bus.