After some major begging by Mattie, Cooper’s parents left early for the circus so they could watch the elephants being fed. Personally, Cooper thought the workers running cleanup behind the elephants would be the real show. Swinging the big coal shovels around to keep from being knee-deep in a real mess. Like he was now. More like neck deep.
Now that his dad was gone, all Cooper wanted to do was talk to him. Spill it all. He’d missed the perfect opportunity to do it at Frank ‘n Stein’s. Now it would have to wait, and the guilt he felt seemed heavier than ever.
They left Cooper with a giant bowl of bite-size Snicker bars to hand out to trick-or-treaters. Like he was really going to open the door for strangers wearing latex masks.
For a moment he pictured himself opening the front door and Detective Hammer standing there wearing an Elvis mask with some other cop in a clown mask behind him. Lunk’s dad, Mr. Lucky himself, would be there too—and maybe “Guido” and “Lonnie” or some of the other boys from the underworld.
“Trick-or-Treat,” they’d shout. “Thanks for opening the door, but you didn’t need to bother. We have a key.”
Would the robbers treat him to a trip to the hospital … or the county morgue?
Cooper wasn’t about to take a chance. Lunk had already connected enough dots to know Cooper was the witness his dad was looking for. Halloween night would be a perfect time to lead the robbers to his door.
He grabbed a piece of paper and a marker from his backpack. He wrote Happy Halloween—take a piece of candy in big letters and taped the paper to the edge of the bowl. Opening the front door a crack, he looked both ways and set the candy bowl on the porch deck. Fudge lunged at it, but Cooper grabbed her collar and pulled her back inside.
“Not for you, girl.”
Cooper threaded his way through the house turning off lights, locking doors, and checking windows. If anybody stopped by for a visit, he wanted it to look like nobody was home. Fudge kept right on his heels with her tail wagging like this was some new kind of game.
By 6:30 he pulled on a black hooded sweatshirt and slipped out the kitchen door into the backyard. He wanted to get out of the house, and he needed some time to think. He hustled straight to The Getaway with Fudge trotting alongside. Climbing the ladder he swung a leg over the rail and crouched on the deck.
“You stay down there, Fudge. You’re on guard duty tonight, okay?”
She didn’t seem to like it any better than he did. She let out a single yip in protest.
“Quiet, girl. I don’t want everybody to know I’m in here.”
He opened the cabin, slipped inside and closed it up again. He needed some light, but wasn’t about to power up the lantern. The cabin windows would glow and tip off somebody he was inside.
He lifted up the bench and pulled his dad’s old duffle bag out from the storage compartment underneath. Rummaging through it quickly, he found the flashlight, pointed it at the floor, and clicked it on. A bright circle illuminated the decking under his feet. Dad did get it fixed. He tucked the duffle away, but left the flashlight on the table. He wondered if even the flashlight might be seen too easily from outside. He eyed a book of matches and a stubby candle on a brass stand.
Sitting on one bench, he struck a match and lit the candle. It wouldn’t create enough light to be noticed outside, but it helped to chase out the shadows inside. He turned off the flashlight and waited.
Looking out the window, he checked to make sure the gate to the front yard was closed. If it wasn’t, Fudge would be in that candy bowl in seconds.
He cupped his hands around the candle to take the chill out and peeked out the window every couple minutes. The Getaway made a perfect hideout, and with Fudge prowling around in the backyard, he felt safer here than in the house. But was anyplace really safe?
Not anymore. Not since he’d seen the robbery. Cooper turned that thought around in his mind. No, that wasn’t really true. Was it just the robbery that had him hiding out in the boat on Halloween? Was it the robbery that had him looking over his shoulder at school?
No. It was the lies. The Code of Silence. The thing that was supposed to keep him safe worked like poison on him. Eating away at him. Destroying his friendship with Hiro. The robbery didn’t do all that. It was the decision he made after the robbery. The decision to hide the truth in order to live. And every time he lied, he’d been dying a little bit more.
A thump along the side of the boat startled him. He puffed out the candle and stayed perfectly still. Holding his breath, he listened. Why hadn’t Fudge barked?
“Coop,” Gordy hissed from outside the cabin door. “You in there? It’s me.”
Gordy; that’s why Fudge didn’t bark. Cooper let out a shaky breath. He unlocked the hatch and stepped back. Gordy swung open the door. And he wasn’t alone.
“Trick or treat,” Gordy said. He gave a little wave and a goofy grin spread across his face.
Cooper looked past Gordy to the girl half hidden behind him.
“Hiro?” Cooper practically whispered her name.
He backed up and sat down on the bench while the two shuffled inside. Cooper relit the candle and searched Hiro’s face to try to read what state of mind she was in. Maybe she’d thought about things and wanted to set things right too. Whatever was on her mind, she didn’t let it show on her face.
Gordy sat on the bench opposite him. Hiro stood.
“I filled her in on the stuff with Lunk.” Gordy shrugged. “She wanted to come.”
Cooper attempted a smile. He hoped it didn’t look as stiff and awkward as it felt. “Glad you’re here.”
“I won’t be staying,” she said. “I just have something to say, and then I’ll leave the two of you to do whatever it is you plan to do.”
“Okay,” Cooper said, uneasiness growing. “Sure you don’t want to sit?” He motioned toward the bench next to Gordy.
“Positive.” She looked at Gordy, then back at Cooper. “I went to see Frank again today. My mom took me after school.”
Cooper nodded. For a moment he wished he could have gone with her. Talked to Frank—even though he couldn’t answer back.
“And Frank is coming out of it—the coma.”
“What?” Cooper stood. Finally, a little light at the end of the tunnel. “That’s great!” He looked at Gordy, but his cousin didn’t look one bit excited.
“Yeah, I’m really relieved about that,” Hiro said. She didn’t look very relieved though.
“So he’s going to be alright—I mean he’ll make a full recovery. Right?” Cooper looked at Gordy and back to her again. Both of them looked glum.
“What am I missing here? You both act like he’s going to die or something.”
“Coop,” Hiro’s voice dropped to a whisper, “he is going to die.”