“Of course not. Don’t be silly.”
“Then I don’t want to live here.”
“I don’t think we get to choose, Bernie. I think it’s all decided.”
Before long, Verna appeared at the door with sheets in her arms. “Angel, help Bernie get on his PJs. The bathroom is off the kitchen, so you better go now and get it over with for the night.” Bernie was sitting on the side of his bed with his back to her. “What’s the matter, Bernie?”
He didn’t answer. She walked around and sat down beside him. “I said...” Her voice was suddenly gentle. “I said, What’s the matter?” She brushed the hair out of his face.
“I don’t like it here,” he said. “There ain’t no Santa Claus and I hate beans. I want to go home.”
“You’re just going to have to be brave, okay? You’ll get used to it. You’ll like the country. There’s lots to do in the country.”
“What?”
“Well...” she paused as though trying hard to think of something. “Well, you can play outside all you want. There’s no traffic or strangers or—”
“There is, too, strangers. We saw him out the window.”
She made a high-pitched sound like a TV laugh track. “You got the best imagination. I swear.”
“That Grandma woman lied. She said it was Santa Claus.”
“Well, maybe it was Santa Claus. I been wrong before, God knows.” She leaned over and kissed him on the forehead. “You be a big brave man for Mama, hear? And stay out of trouble, okay?” She stood up abruptly, her I-mean-business self again. “All right now, Bernie, hop off the bed. Here, Angel, give me a hand with these sheets.”
Bernie dragged Grizzle off the bed by one ear and stood against the wall, sucking his thumb and fingering the bear’s ear while Angel and Mama made both beds.
“Okay,” Verna said, straightening up. “Pajamas, bathroom, bed. And make it quick!” By the time she finished the order they could hear her heels clicking on the stairs.
Angel’s clothes were folded neatly in her suitcase, so she found her pajamas at once. She was ready to go down while Bernie was still churning stuff around in the big brown case. “Stop that, Bernie! You’ll mess everything up.”
“No, I won’t,” Bernie said. “It’s my stuff and I can mess it up all I want to. Here they are. See? You didn’t think I could find them and I did. So there.”
They crept down the stairs.
Verna was sitting in a kitchen chair, smoking a cigarette. Grandma was still rocking. Didn’t she ever do anything else? “We got to go to the bathroom,” Angel said.
“Well, hurry,” Verna said.
“Mama, I forgot me and Bernie’s toothbrushes.”
“Didn’t I tell you to check the bathroom? Sheesh. Can’t you remember nothing? You’re eleven years old, Angel. You got to be responsible.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Well, go on. Get through in the bathroom. We’ll worry about toothbrushes later.”
***
Something woke her up. It was pitch dark with no streetlight to shine through the window. There was the sound of a car. No—the sound of a balky pickup engine starting. Angel sat up in bed. Suddenly, she realized that the clothes in the big suitcase were all Bernie’s. Verna hadn’t brought any of her own clothes. She listened until the noise of the motor died away in the distance.
SEVEN
Star Man
Angel tried to tell herself that Verna had just gone to run an errand. That was it. She’d gone to get some Sugar Pops. Bernie loved Sugar Pops. Wouldn’t Verna want him to have something special, since he never got his milk shake and supper was only canned peaches and beans, which he hated? It would take her a long time to find a store that was still open. She might have to go all the way to a big town like the one where they had all the fast-food places. Little towns wouldn’t have supermarkets that stayed open all night. Angel ought to get some sleep. It would be an hour or so before Verna could get back. No reason to just lie here and worry.
She didn’t bring any clothes. Of course Verna had brought clothes. They were just in another suitcase, not mixed up with Bernie’s. Why would she pack her things with Bernie’s? She’d want to keep them neat and—Well, Angel hadn’t actually seen another suitcase, but that didn’t mean there wasn’t one. There’d been plenty of time for Verna to pack one and put it in the back of the pickup when Angel was busy packing or seeing to Bernie. How come she left the pots and pans behind? How come she didn’t bring the almost-new TV?