CHAPTER THIRTY
“He did WHAT?” Ryan was screaming into the phone. “Lucky, you need to tell someone. Call that woman from Children’s Aid. There is no way you can just let that go. He could have raped you!”
“I know, Ryan. I’m just going to avoid him. I won’t be here forever.”
“You don’t know how long you’ll be there. Your grandmother might not get better, Lucky. What if you’re stuck with that guy and you don’t tell anyone what he did? What if he tries it again?”
“Then he’ll be sorry,” I blustered, sounding more confident than I felt.
“What do you mean?”
“I took a knife from the kitchen. If he tries it again, I’ll use it.”
“Oh, come on, Lucky. You’re not going to attack him, are you?”
“Not if I don’t have to,” I said.
“Just be careful, okay? We won’t get to have that comic book date if you get sent to juvie.”
“I’ll be careful. Promise.”
“Call me later.”
“I will.”
It made me feel a million times better to hear Ryan’s voice. Somewhere out there beyond the walls of The Wilsons’ House of Insanity, my old life still existed.
I ran my hands over my head. I had borrowed an electric razor from Bobby and now had a pretty awesome haircut. Bobby had watched from the doorway until he couldn’t stand it any longer and grabbed the shaver from me.
“Why are you shaving your head?” he had asked curiously, shaving down one side and leaving the other so that it rested at chin-length.
“I just want a change,” I told him. I had no idea how he’d respond if I told him it was because I couldn’t stand the memory of his father’s hands in my hair. It was an exorcism. I felt reborn when we were done.
I walked down the stairs toward the kitchen with trepidation. I had no idea if I was going to see Robert lording over everyone at the breakfast table, and I had no idea how I was going to react if I did. But he wasn’t there. I breathed a sigh of relief as I sat down to a plate of waffles and a bowl of fruit salad.
“So is your friend still coming?” Bobby asked.
“What’s this?” Mary set a glass of orange juice in front of each of us, then jumped back. “What on earth did you do to your hair?”
“I cut it. My friend Ryan is coming. Remember, I asked if he could visit?” I reminded her.
“Right.” She nodded. “Ryan. I forgot.” She puttered off toward the sink, still tutting about girls looking like boys or something.
“So when is he coming?” Bobby asked. I got the impression he didn’t get many visitors. Or have many friends. Which was too bad because he was actually pretty cool.
“Tomorrow. He’s bringing a bunch of comics and a DVD for us to watch,” I told him.
“A DVD?” Bobby glanced toward his mother’s back.
“Don’t worry. I told him it had to be Wilson-friendly,” I grinned. He smiled gratefully. He may like Deadpool, but he certainly wasn’t going to watch it in the comfort of his own home.
“All right, you two. Finish up so we can get started on our science work.” Mary put a pile of books down on the table as we shoveled the last bites into our mouths.