Page 33 of The Same Flesh
At the same time, Jem said, “That’s one possibility.”
The music of the harp spilled into the silence.
Ms.Winfield didn’t look shocked.She didn’t cry out that this was impossible.Her fingers tightened around the tissue, and she said, “Why would he do that?”
“We’re not sure,” Jem said.“That’s what we’re trying to figure out.I was hoping you could tell us about your conversation with Ms.Jordan.Do you remember anything?”
“I remember she wanted to talk about Kai.I was going to tell her no—I don’t talk about my students—but she explained that the police believed he’d been involved in a murder, and they were still trying to find him, and he might be dangerous, and any information that might help them track him down could save more lives.”She paused.“People talk.I saw that story on the news about that man, the one who got killed.I knew Kai had disappeared.”
Tean nodded.
“It’s tragic,” she said.“All of it.”
“Did you teach Zeb Welker and Rydel Owens too?”Jem asked.
“No.I think they went to school in Roosevelt,” she said.“I only know those names because of what happened.But like I said, people talk.I guess everybody knew there was something that wasn’t right with that family.”
Jem said, “When River came to see you—Ms.Jordan, I mean—what did you talk about?”
“Kai, like I told you.She wanted to know what he’d been like when I’d known him.Anything I remembered about him.She asked a lot of questions.Good questions.Helping me remember things, or asking me what I meant.She made it easy.”
“Do you remember what you told her?”
“Well.”A beat passed, and then she said, “I knew Kai from his first year here.He was in my class, and I always encourage the freshmen to get involved with the fall play—we were doingThe Importance of Being Earnest.So we ran auditions, and I couldn’t believe it, but he tried out.He was so nervous he could barely say the lines.I cut him, but I told him I’d love for him to take an acting class and try again in the spring for the musical and in the meantime, he could help with tech.We always need people to do tech.”
“How’d he take it?”
“He got mad.”She laughed.“I’m not laughingathim, you understand.Just laughing because I remember he stomped his foot when I told him.”
“Like a child,” Tean said.
“Yeah, exactly, like a little kid.And I tried telling him not to give up, and keep trying, and he’d have another shot in a few months—but I think he was so embarrassed that I was only making it worse.”
“Embarrassed?”Jem asked.“Because he didn’t get the part?”
Ms.Winfield shook her head.“He had an awful lisp.”
Jem frowned and looked at Tean.
“Did you talk to him?”Ms.Winfield asked.“You did.And you didn’t notice a lisp, did you?”
“I don’t remember,” Tean said.
But Jem shook his head.
“He was already doing it freshman year, but he only got better at it as he got older.He was so careful about what he said.If he was supposed to say, ‘I’m sorry,’ he’d say, ‘My bad,’ or if he needed to ask for the salsa, he’d say, ‘Give me that,’ and point.”
“That’s why you were surprised he tried out,” Tean said.
Ms.Winfield nodded.“Of course, after I met his parents, I was even more surprised.”
“Why’s that?”
“Because the dad wanted him in sports: football in the fall, wrestling in the winter, baseball in the spring.Kai didn’t make it onto a single team, but as far as the dad was concerned, that meant Kai needed to be practicing, trying to get ready for next season, not wasting his time doing the school play.”
“Did Kai tell you that?”
“The dad did,” she said with a dry smile.“The stepdad, I should say.At parent-teacher conferences.”
