Seeds of Anger Sample 9-21-10

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SEEDS OF ANGER Robert H. Cherny

Front Cover

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Seeds of Anger – A short novel

A Club Lghthouse !ublshng E"#oo$

%S#N A&&ed for '(1(

All rghts reserved

Co&yrght A&&led for © '(1( Robert Cherny

Cover Art) *.L. D+vson

*hs boo$ ,+y not be re&rodu-ed n hole or n &+rt thout rtten &er,sson.

*hs boo$ s + or$ of f-ton. Any rese,bl+n-e to +-tu+l &ersons lvng or de+d s &urely -o"n-dent+l.

For nfor,+ton -ont+-t)

-o,,ents/-lublghthouse&ublshng.-o,

A Club Lighthouse Mystery Edition

To Be Published in Canada

'

mailto:[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]




Author0s For+rd)

*hs novel h+s been &re&+red n three for,+ts. *he !DF s the r-hest th full -olour

&hotogr+&hs +nd font effe-ts. *he se-ond for,+t s ,ono-hro,e +nd -ont+ns the fonts +nd the

&hotogr+&hs but not the -olours. *he thrd for,+t s str+ght tet only h-h -ont+ns nether the &hotogr+&hs nor the fonts.

Even the !DF for,+t le+ves so,ethng to be desred n ter,s of the 2u+lty of the &hotogr+&hs.

*he orgn+l un"-ro&&ed hgh resoluton 3!G ,+ges +re +v+l+ble ether &rnted or on + -o,&+-t ds-

fro, bb&hotoor$s.etsy.-o,.

% ho&e th+t n h-hever for,+t you -hoose to re+d ths boo$ th+t you en4oy t.

!hoto Credts)

*he &hoto of the O"' +t the begnnng of Ch+&ter Nne +s &rovded -ourtesy of the Cessn+Ar-r+ft Co,&+ny. %t s used th &er,sson.

All other &hotos ere ether t+$en by the +uthor or hs fe #etsy. *he ,+4orty of these ere

t+$en n Centr+l +nd South Flord+.

#ob Cherny

5ss,,ee6 Flord+6 Su,,er '(1(

7




CHA!*ER ONE

S%LEN* *EARS *RA%LED DO8N SONN90S FACE +s he +t-hed the ,overs or$ on the

house +-ross the drt ro+d fro, here he s+t on the front &or-h of the old :Flord+ Cr+-$er; style househe h+d gron u& n. So,eone +s ,ovng n over there. He $ne he +s too old to be -ryng l$e +

b+by. Hs frends6 h+t fe he h+d6 ere -h+sng grls +nd gettng re+dy for -ollege6 but h+t +s left

of hs lfe +s f+llng +&+rt n front of h,. Hs orst fe+rs ere -o,ng true. 8hen Sonny +nd hs,other h+d bro$en u& the tenty +-res hs gr+ndf+ther h+d bought for hs ne brde h+lf + -entury +go

nto fve +-re lots6 Sonny h+d $non n hs he+rt th+t so,e d+y they ould get the l+nd b+-$. *he

se&+r+ton +s te,&or+ry +nd he -ould lve th t. Or so he thought. *hey needed the ,oney. Hs d+d+s gone +nd hs ,o, +s s-$ +nd he +s too young to or$. All they h+d +s the l+nd +nd sn-ethey -ould not f+r, t6 they h+d to le+se t out

8hen the develo&er h+d le+sed the three lots other th+n the one Sonny0s house stood on so he

-ould buld houses6 Sonny beleved t +s te,&or+ry +nd he -ould lve th t. *hey needed the ,oney.

8hen the develo&er h+d st+rted to buld the frst house6 Sonny beleved t +s te,&or+ry +nd he

-ould lve th t6 +lthough he dd se-retly sh th+t t ould burn don +nd the develo&er ould gveu&. #ut he $ne they needed the ,oney +nd +s long +s the develo&er +s develo&ng6 they ould h+ve

n-o,e.

*he develo&er +b+ndoned the &+rt+lly bult house hen the botto, fell out of the housng,+r$et +nd the &ro&erty reverted b+-$ to the,. Sonny +s thrlled. *hey h+d ther l+nd b+-$6 but theystll needed the ,oney.

*hen + re+l est+te +gent h+d sto&&ed by +s$ng +bout the e,&ty &+rt+lly bult house. He s+d he

h+d + -lent llng to le+se the house even unfnshed +s t +s. Not only th+t6 but he +nted the other

to v+-+nt lots +s ell. Sonny dd not $no h+t to thn$6 but they needed the ,oney +nd hgh dryl+$efront &ro&erty even ths f+r ++y fro, ton +s h+rd to -o,e by.

<




Sonny0s ,other h+d sgned the le+se. *he ne ten+nt h+d &+d the frst ye+r0s le+se n -+sh +nd

h+d set u& +n es-ro +--ount th + lo-+l +ttorney for the se-ond ye+r. Sonny +s sur&rsed by th+t6 but

the +gent h+d s+d t &roved he +s honest. *o Sonny0s +y of thn$ng6 t &roved the o&&oste. Onlyso,eone u& to no good ould &+y n -+sh. 8hy ould so,eone &+y n -+sh for th+t ,u-h l+nd= Stll6

the ,oney +s + good thng. *hey ere gu+r+nteed th+t they ould h+ve enough ,oney to lve on forto ye+rs. >+ybe +fter th+t they ould get the l+nd b+-$. He -ould ho&e.

Sonny he+rd the s-reen door o&en +nd -lose. Hs ,other s+t besde h, on the &or-h sng. Heloo$ed +t her. She +s &+le. Her h+nds tre,bled +s she settled on the sng. %t +s not + good d+y.

“How are you feeling, Mom?” Sonny loo$ed +t the folds n her gon here her bre+sts h+d been +nd

sghed.

“Not one of my better days,” hs ,other s+d softly. She st+red +t the ,overs +-ross the ro+d for+ ,o,ent. She loo$ed +t Sonny +nd sghed. She h+ted gvng u& the l+nd +s ,u-h +s he dd. “At leastthe rent will cover our bills for a while. Without my insurance from work and your Dad's pension, wewould have run out of money lon ao.”

Sonny tred to be br+ve +nd s+d6 “Tomorrow will be a better day.”

“We can hope, !onny. We can hope.”

*h+t h+d been one hs f+ther0s f+vourte e&ressons. 8h+tever resoluteness Sonny ,ght h+ve

h+d n the f+-e of hs ,other?s llness dssolved. 8henever hs ,other re&e+ted the s+yng th+t Sonny0sf+ther used so often6 Sonny thought +bout hs f+ther gunned don n + ,+d,+n0s sho&&ng ,+ll

shootng s&ree. “Do you miss him? Do you miss Dad?”

Sonny0s ,other stfled + sob. “"very day. # miss him when # wake up in the mornin and he$s notthere. # miss him when we sit to dinner and his chair is empty. # miss him when # o to bed at niht and #

know he won$t slide between the sheets tryin not to wake me, but knowin he does every time. %ost ofall # miss him after my treatments. When # was prenant with you and sick so much he would hold me andcomfort me and remind me how much he loved me.”

“Why did he have to die?” Sonny h,&ered +s +ny se,bl+n-e of strength he ,ght h+ve h+d floed

++y.

“#f he had not stood up that day, how many other people would have died& e did what he had todo. (ou know that.”

“I now, it!s "art of being a "oli#eman, but why him?”

“)here's no answer. We$ve been over this aain and aain. !onny, you have to move on. (ouneed to stand on your own.”

“$nd why did you get si#? Is %od mad at us? Did we do something wrong? $re we being "unished for some sin?”

“!onny, don$t do this to me. # need you to be stron like your father.” She -ho$ed on the ords.“(our father would want you to be stron.”

“&ut I!m not strong. 'oo at me. I loo lie a seleton. My (oints sti# out lie I have no mus#les at all. I #an!t "lay

@




s"orts. I!m too #lumsy and I #an!t lift anything be#ause I!m too wea. I!m not lie Dad, I #an!t be Dad. I!m sorry.” Sonny &ut

hs f+-e n hs h+nds +nd -red.

“!onny, what did your Dad always tell you& !trenth is not in your body. #t$s in your mind.”

“I now, but I #an!t be lie that. I!m not strong.”

She loo$ed +t h, for + se-ond +nd then s+d6 “)he characters in those books you read all thetime, are they stron&”

“)ome are.”

“Are they stron physically or mentally&”

“)ome of both.”

“!onny, you$re smart. (ou$re one of the smartest kids in school. *an$t you see how importantthat is&”

“Mom, s#hool!s easy. This is hard.”

“# know, but you have to use that stron brain of yours to et you throuh it.”

“I!ll do my best.”

*he ,overs -losed the doors on the sh&&ng -ont+ner th+t do,n+ted the y+rd +-ross the ro+d.

On-e he h+d verfed hs lo+d6 the drver +tte,&ted to &ull out thout httng the bg old o+$ tree th+t

loo,ed over the -orner of the drve+y. *he turn +s tght +nd the drver h+d to ,+$e sever+l

,+noeuvres before he -ould get the -ont+ner on ts tr+ler out to the gr+ded ro+d. For ffteen ,nutesSonny +nd hs ,other s+t slently +t-hng the drver +nd the to ,overs ho hel&ed h, etr-+te the

-ont+ner fro, the drve+y. 8hen they he+rd the tru-$ +--eler+te on the h+rd &+-$ed6 un&+vedro+d+y beyond the end of ther &ro&erty Sonny turned to hs ,other +nd s+d6 “Did the real estate agent tell

you where this guy was from?”

“No.”

“Must have #ome from overseas some"la#e.”

“Why do you say that&”

“His stuff #ame in a sea #ontainer and not in a moving van. If he #ame from the *), +anada or Mei#o he would

have tru#ed his stuff here. That #ontainer was on a shi".”

“# see those containers on trains and trucks all the time.”

“I now, but that!s be#ause they #ame off a shi".”

“#f you say so.”

“Why would someone bring their stuff from overseas to live here? There is nothing here than anyone who has been




anywhere would want to live here for.”

“(es, there is and someday you will see that.”

Sonny loo$ed +t hs ,other for + ,o,ent. *he l+te +fternoon lght ,+de her loo$ even &+ler

th+n hen she h+d frst s+t don. “Mom, would you lie me to mae dinner?”

“#f you think you can do it.”

“Mom, I #an handle ma# and #heese.”

“(es, please, # would love for you to make dinner.”

B




CHA!*ER *8O

OER *HE CORSE OF *HE NE* 8EE56 delvery tru-$s -+,e +nd ent fro, the house

+-ross the ro+d. *he -+r&enters +nd &+nters ere frst6 folloed by the -+r&et &eo&le. Sonny +t-hed

the $t-hen +nd b+th -+bnets beng delvered one d+y +s he returned fro, s-hool. He -ould sense theurgen-y th h-h the house?s ne o--u&+nt +s ,+$ng t h+bt+ble. Sonny -ould see lghts on l+te

nto the evenng +nd he+r the sounds of -onstru-ton +l,ost untl the t,e he ent to bed.

Furnture beg+n to +rrve the se-ond ee$ +nd by the end of th+t ee$6 Sonny thought the house

+s done6 e-e&t th+t +t the begnnng of the thrd ee$6 + tru-$ &ulled nto the drve+y tong +

,+ssve gener+tor. *he drver +nd hs hel&er ,ounted the gener+tor on -on-rete blo-$s +nd re,ovedthe heels. 8hle t +s true th+t n thunderstor, se+son +nd hen there ere hurr-+nes6 ths &+rt of

the -ounty so f+r ++y fro, the &o&ul+ton -entres6 +s usu+lly the frst to lose &oer +nd the l+st to

get t b+-$6 +nd so,e of the other &eo&le +round h+d gener+tors6 but th+t gener+tor +s huge.

*he ,onstrous gener+tor ,+de sense to Sonny n +n :over"$ll; sort of +y6 but hen the

ele-tr-+l -ontr+-tor shoed u& +nd st+yed for sever+l d+ys6 Sonny?s -urosty +l,ost overhel,ed

h,. %n s&te of hs burnng desre to nvestg+te ths ,,ense ele-tr-+l nst+ll+ton6 he ,+nt+ned hsdst+n-e. Sonny +s not sure f he +nted to $no h+t +s gong on over there6 but hs -urosty

burned. He dd +ssu+ge hs drve to le+rn +bout ths +no,+ly +-ross the street by brngng + t+ble to the

front &or-h so he -ould do hs s-hool ho,eor$ out there. Sonny &rded h,self on beng + good

student. He +sn0t the s-hool?s best student6 but he +s n the to& ten6 +nd th+t ould be good enoughto get h, nto the Flord+ st+te -ollege of hs -ho-e6 f he ,+de u& hs ,nd to go +t +ll.

*he ele-tr-+l -ontr+-tor fnshed +nd left. A s+tellte televson +nd nternet &rovder0s nst+ller

s&ent + d+y &uttng dshes on the roof. >ost &eo&le only &ut u& one dsh. *hs guy &ut u& to. Sonny

+ssu,ed one +s for the televson +nd one +s for the nternet sn-e they only h+d d+l u& +--ess thsf+r out n the -ounty.




A l+rge tru-$ +rrved on-e the ele-tr-+l -ontr+-tor +s done +nd delvered h+t Sonny

re-ogned +s so&hst-+ted +nd e&ensve ele-tron- s-en-e l+bor+tory e2u&,ent. So,e of the n+,es

on the boes he re-ogned fro, the l+bs +t the unversty here he h+d gone to su,,er s-hool. Hs,other h+d sent h, ++y to + s&e-+l su,,er &rogr+, for hgh s-hool students +t the unversty

,ed-+l -entre to hel& h, get over hs f+ther0s de+th. %t h+d hel&ed6 but t +s not enough.*hree d+ys l+ter + -re +rrved to dg out +nd l+y + huge -on-rete &+d n +n o&en s&ot ++y

fro, the trees. *he follong d+y the ele-tr-+n returned +nd r+n &oer fro, the gener+tor to + &ostnet to the sl+b.

A ,onth &+ssed +s Sonny s+t every +fternoon dong hs ho,eor$ on the front &or-h +t-hng

hs ne neghbour ndustrously ,+$e hs ne house re+dy. Sonny0s -urosty +nd sus&-ons gre th

e+-h &+ssng d+y. Sonny restled th h,self over hs sus&-ons +bout hs ne neghbour !erh+&s heh+d re+d too ,+ny thrllers here the vll+n +s so,eone tot+lly une&e-ted. *hen there ere the

stores here the &rot+gonst h+d gone nto hdng for hs on s+fety. *here +s s,&ly too ,u-h gong

on +-ross the street for Sonny to let t be.

On the l+st S+turd+y before Sonny0s 4unor ye+r fn+l e+,s6 he +s e+tng bre+$f+st th + boo$ o&en on the t+ble hen he he+rd + $no-$ on the door. Hs ,other0s -ondton h+d ,&roved

-onsder+bly n the l+st sever+l ee$s no th+t ths run of tre+t,ents +s over. She +nsered the door.

“%r. Doni+etti, please come in.”

“Mrs. Taylor, how are you feeling this morning? You look ever so much better than when we first met.Have your treatments finished?”

“(es, they have, for now.”

“ell then, we shall !ray for your com!lete recovery.”

“)hank you.”

“"s your son here? " wish to s!eak to both of you.”

“e is in the kitchen.”

Sonny stood +s he he+rd the foot ste&s +&&ro+-h. He turned to f+-e the door. A ,+n Sonny

4udged to be n hs fftes th thnnng grey h+r entered the $t-hen. Sonny re-ogned h,. He +s

the ,+n fro, +-ross the street ho h+d nfl+,ed hs -urosty. He loo$ed even l+rger u& -lose th+n he

dd fro, +-ross the ro+d. He +s + bg ,+n. *he ,+n h+d +n +thlet- loo$ to h, th bro+d shoulders+nd ,us-les vsble through hs tee shrt. *hs dd not loo$ l$e the sort of ,+n th+t ould h+ve +n

ele-tron ,-ros-o&e delvered to hs house. He loo$ed l$e + ,ount+n -l,ber or + s+f+r gude.

*he ,+n held out hs h+nd +nd s+d6 “" am Thomas #arlos $oni%etti. " have moved in across the road,but you know that. " have seen you watch me from the !orch while you did your homework.”

“-es, sir, Mr. Donietti. I am $ndrew /a#son Taylor the third, but everyone #alls me 0)onny!.”

“Then you should call me &Thomas' if we are to be friends.” He &ronoun-ed t +s “T'mas” th the




+--ent on the end. *ho,+s gr+-ously too$ Sonny0s ,other0s h+nd +nd tou-hed t to hs l&s. “Howshould " address you?”

Sonny0s ,other blushed. “renda,” she re&led shyly.

*ho,+s gl+n-ed +t the boo$ on the t+ble +nd gr,+-ed. He &-$ed t u& +nd studed the -overfor + se-ond. “(h, dear, " am sorry. &"ntroduction to #alculus' is what you read at breakfast?”

“-es, sir,” Sonny re&led th + 2u-$ gl+n-e +t hs ,other.

“Hideous stuff,” *ho,+s -ontnued th + shudder. “) necessary evil, but that makes it no less!ainful. " hated calculus in college and " still hate it. How are you doing with it?”

“It1s oay. I don1t hate it, but I don1t lie it mu#h either,” Sonny s+d th + shrug.

“$o you understand it?” *ho,+s +s$ed.

“Mostly,” Sonny re&led.

“You must have a good teacher. This is difficult material for one your age. &Mostly', as you say, is goodenough for most !eo!le. *lease, may we sit, " have a business !ro!osal to discuss with you.”

Sonny6 *ho,+s +nd #rend+ s+t +t the t+ble.

*ho,+s &ut both hs h+nds fl+t on the t+ble. “" would like to use the boat dock that is on your !art ofthe !ro!erty.”

“# would let you willinly,” #rend+ re&led6 “but it is not safe.”

“hich is why " bring you this !ro!osal. (ne of my dearest friends and business associates has a float!lane and we need a boat dock for him to land safely. "f +onny does not have other !lans for the summer, " wouldlike to enlist his assistance in re!airing the dock. " will !rovide the materials and !ay +onny for his time at thesame rate as " would !ay someone from the local labour !ool.”

Sonny thought for + se-ond +nd then s+d6 “There are gators in that lae. How #an we wor on the do# and

not get eaten?”

*ho,+s s,led. “e work from boats. irst we sink a line of !osts and then we stretch a metal fencebetween them strong enough to kee! the alligators out. "t won't kee! the littlest alligators out, but it will kee! thebig ones out and they're the ones we need to be concerned with. -ven with the fence, we'll work from the boatsbecause large re!tiles aren't the only things in that water that bite.”

“I!m not very strong,” Sonny s+d ,ee$ly. “Don!t you want someone stronger than me to hel" you?”

“o,” *ho,+s shoo$ hs he+d. “" want someone smart. +trong is easy. +mart is tough. /ook, if you canhandle this calculus, you can do what " need.”

“-iin the dock isn$t oin to take more than a week or two,” #rend+ s+d. “(ou mentioned the

1(




whole summer.”

“That's why smart is better than strong,” *ho,+s s+d. “" have enough !ro0ects to last into the fall and!erha!s longer. +ome of this " could do by myself, but these kinds of 0obs always go better with two !eo!le.”

“What inds of (obs?” Sonny +s$ed.

“" ordered a greenhouse kit to go on the slab. "t comes in a big crate and it needs to be assembled. "'ve doneit before, but it takes two !eo!le,” *ho,+s re&led.

“What do you row in this reenhouse&” Sonny0s ,other +s$ed.

“(rchids, they're a hobby of mine.”

Sonny h+d not told hs ,other +bout the ele-tron ,-ros-o&e or +ny of the other l+b e2u&,enthe h+d seen -+rred nto the house. He dd not thn$ ths +s the t,e to brng t u&6 but so,eho

or-hds +s + hobby +nd +n ele-tron ,-ros-o&e dd not +dd u&. *he flo+t &l+ne bothered Sonny6 too.

Drug runners used flo+t &l+nes. *he long str+ght ro+ds through the ne+rby s+,&s h+d been run+ysfor drug runners for de-+des. Ru,our h+d t th+t so,e stll ere. Stll6 ths guy dd not loo$ or t+l$ l$e

+ drug runner. *o Sonny0s +y of thn$ng ths h+d :,+d s-entst; rtten +ll over t. “2r#hids are "retty,”

Sonny s+d -+l,ly6 tryng to be +s non-h+l+nt +s &ossble. “I have a friend at s#hool that lies to tae "i#tures of

flowers. Do you thin we #ould bring him some sam"les?”

*ho,+s s,led. “e might even !ay him to come and take !ictures to document my collection.”

Sonny s,led +nd loo$ed to hs ,other for +&&rov+l. “I thin it!s a good idea. When #an I start?”

“After eams,” #rend+ s+d sh+r&ly.

“hen are e1ams over?” *ho,+s +s$ed.

“My last eam is 3riday wee,” Sonny s+d.

“Then we start bright and early +aturday morning two weeks from today.”

11




CHA!*ER *HREE

SONN9 ARR%ED HO>E AF*ER H%S LAS* EA> +nd -+refully &ut hs boo$s on the

shelf. Even hen hs f+ther +s +lve they dd not h+ve ,u-h ,oney6 but hs f+ther h+d nssted th+t

Sonny buy those boo$s th+t ,+de sense to buy nste+d of h+vng to turn the, n +t the end of the ye+r.Sonny h+d + -olle-ton of tetboo$s +nd lter+ture th+t flled + s,+ll boo$-+se. Sonny0s f+ther h+d been

very &roud of hs son0s +-+de,-s +nd dd everythng he -ould to en-our+ge Sonny to be +bsolutely the

best he -ould be. He stressed th+t Sonny not 4udge h,self by hs -l+ss,+tes6 but r+ther by the st+nd+rdof hs on or$ +nd ,ert.

Sonny &ut on + &+r of shorts +nd he+ded out to the do-$. He h+d hel&ed hs f+ther re&l+-e so,eof the &l+n$ng + fe ye+rs +go +nd understood the do-$0s -onstru-ton. He $ne th+t te+rng off the

old &l+n$s ould be h+rd or$6 but re&l+-ng the rotted be+,s underne+th ould be ,u-h ,ore

dff-ult. Sonny +s not +fr+d of the or$6 but he +s -on-erned th+t he ould not be +ble to ,e+sureu& to *ho,+s0 e&e-t+tons of h,.

8hen Sonny +rrved +t the do-$6 he observed the uglest be+t u& old flo+t bo+t he h+d ever seen

+nd to b+rges ,+de fro, even ugler flo+t bo+ts ted u& to the do-$. A br+nd ne fl+t botto,ed :3on; bo+t l+y &ulled u& on the shore lne. *he b+rges ere &led hgh th +lu,nu, de-$ &l+te +nd

+lu,nu, be+,s. *he flo+t bo+t h+d +n +r -o,&ressor +nd so,e tools Sonny dd not re-ogne. At

frst he +s + lttle -onfused +s to ho the -h+n s+ ft nto +ll ths6 but +s he thought +bout the

,+ter+ls he s+ n front of h,6 he fgured out ho t +ll ent together.

“igure it out yet?” *ho,+s +s$ed +s he +l$ed u& behnd Sonny.

Sonny h+d he+rd the footste&s +nd +s not sur&rsed by *ho,+s0 2ueston. “I thin so.”

*ho,+s &ut hs h+nd on Sonny0s shoulder. “2ood. Tomorrow we will find out if you are as smart as "think you are. 3ut tonight, " have dinner for you and your mother. *lease come over about seven.”

1'




“I need to as my mother.”

“+he already agreed.”

“)even then.”

*ho,+s turned +nd +l$ed ++y.

*ho,+s greeted Sonny +nd hs ,other +t the front door. Sonny -ould see th+t the ,+n floor of

the house h+d been dvded nto three l+rge or$ +re+s +nd + s,+ll vestbule le+dng to the st+rs.

*ho,+s too$ Sonny0s ,other0s h+nd +nd s+d6 “3renda, allow me to assist you u! the stairs. Theliving areas are all on the second floor.”

Sonny0s ,other s,led +nd s+d6 “)hank you, )homas, you are a entleman.”

Sonny tr+led behnd -r+nng hs ne-$ for + better loo$ +t the boes &led n the -orners of the

or$ roo,s. He re-ogned the l+bels +s beng n+,es of ,+ny of the -o,&+nes th+t h+d &rovded l+b

e2u&,ent for hs hgh s-hool +nd for the su,,er s-hool he h+d +ttended the ye+r hs f+ther h+d ded.

*he u&st+rs +s dvded nto + ,+ster bedroo,6 guest bedroo,6 ,+ster b+th +nd e+t"n $t-hen.

A b+l-ony h+d been +dded off the dnng +re+ so th+t n good e+ther ,e+ls -ould -onvenently bee+ten outsde. Sn-e the e+ther +s e-ellent6 they +te out on the b+l-ony.

*ho,+s h+d ,+de + s,&le dnner of feld greens6 ro+st -h-$en6 +u"gr+tn &ot+toes +nd ,edveget+bles. *hey h+d -e -re+, th hot fudge for dessert. *ho,+s +s very nterested n the &rogress

of Sonny0s ,other0s tre+t,ents +nd ho they ,+de her feel. He h+d +l,ost + do-tor0s f+,l+rty th

the dyn+,-s of the -+n-er tre+t,ents +nd the ,&l-+tons of ther use. 8thn ,o,ents of sttng todnner6 *ho,+s +nd #rend+ entered nto the ds-usson th+t ould do,n+te the evenng. Sonny

be-+,e ,erely + s&e-t+tor +s he +t-hed hs ,other o&en u& to ths vrtu+l str+nger ho see,ed to

underst+nd her -ondton even better th+n the do-tors ho +ttended to her.

On one h+nd6 Sonny +s thrlled th+t hs ,other -ould t+l$ to so,eone ho +s -+l, +nd

r+ton+l. On the other h+nd6 he +s -on-erned +bout ho 2u-$ly ths s,ooth t+l$ng str+nger th the

str+nge +--ent h+d on over hs nor,+lly reserved +nd se-retve ,other. *ho,+s +s s,&ly too n-e.

As he loo$ed +t *ho,+s he thought th+t hen so,ethng see,s too good to be true6 t usu+lly s.

As Sonny +nd hs ,other left for ho,e6 *ho,+s s+d6 “+onny, " know you felt left out tonight, but

17




we have all day tomorrow to talk.”

Sonny s,led +nd s+d6 “Than you.”

*ho,+s returned the s,le +nd s+d6 “+ee you at seven in the morning?”

“)even it is.”

At &re-sely seven the follong ,ornng Sonny ste&&ed u& to the do-$. *ho,+s +s there th

+ l+rge -u& of -onvenen-e store -offee n hs h+nd.

“+onny, you ready?”

“-es, sir, I am.”

“+o, what's the !lan?”

“I thought you had the "lan,” Sonny s+d.

“" do,” *ho,+s re&led th + s,r$6 “but " wanted to see if you figured it out.”

Sonny s,led. *od+y +s gong to be full of ,nd g+,es6 +nd he l$ed th+t. : We!re going to set a

semi #ir#le of "osts around the do# and stret#h the mesh between them.”

“2ood. Then what?”

“We!re going to #lear all the vegetation from around the do# so we #an wor.”

“2ood. Then what?”

”We!re going to tae that #hain saw and #ut off the railings. 4o sense in saving the wood. Most of it is rotted and we

#an!t use it again.”

“)nd what are we doing with what we remove?” *ho,+s -o+-hed.

“5utting it in a "ile net to the #hi""er,” Sonny re&led 2u-$ly.

“Then what are we doing ne1t?”

1<




“We #ut the de# "lans out from between the beams and #ut the #ross beams as we go.”

“)nd what do we do with the !ieces?”

“In the "ile.”

“e1t?” *ho,+s +s$ed.

“I!m not sure whether we #ut the long beams and then unbolt them from the "ilings or we unbolt them and then #ut

them.”

*ho,+s nodded. “hat are the advantages and disadvantages of each method?”

“If we #ut the beams first, they dro" easily out of the way. %ravity is our friend. &ut then we are stu# with the tas of

unbolting smaller remaining "ie#es that might s"in and not hold still while we fight with the rusted bolts.”

“"f we unbolt them first?”

“We are fighting gravity all the way. The weight of the beam is resting on the bolt as we try to turn it in#reasing the

fri#tion and the beam is trying rotate away from the "iling maing it diffi#ult to hold, but the whole "ie#e won!t s"in on us while

we try to remove the last bolts and we don!t have to deal with the la" (oints.”

“hat do you recommend?”

“We #ut them loose first.”

“)re you ready for the 2reat 4enansville #hain +aw Massacre?”

Sonny l+ughed. He &-$ed u& + set of &rote-tve eye e+r he h+d &ur-h+sed for use hs s-hool

l+bs +nd h+nded + set to *ho,+s. “Dad said I was always to wear these when I was doing #onstru#tion or woring with

#hemi#als.”

“o wonder you're so smart5 You take after your father.”

Sonny st+red +t *ho,+s for + very long se-ond. He too$ + dee& bre+th6 but even +s he tred to

restr+n h,self he f+led. &eing smart didn!t ee" him from getting illed. I!m alive. He!s dead.

Do 42T #om"are me to him ever again. I loved my father, but he got himself illed.”

*ho,+s o&ened hs ,outh +s f to s+y so,ethng +nd thought the better of t. He &ut on the eye

sheld +nd s+d6 “6ight. /et's set some !osts.”

Sonny -len-hed hs fsts +nd tghtened hs 4+ +s he +ted for the +nger to +sh over h,.

8hen he +s r+ton+l +g+n6 he +s$ed6 “How big a #ir#le do you want to mae?” *hey ere here to buld +do-$ +nd not to fght +bout &+st events.

“)bout forty feet radius. e'll leave most of the !osts in !lace after we're done and only o!en enough forthe channel to the dock and the large radius !rovides needed manoeuvring room.”

1@




“Maes sense. Do we measure with that white #lothesline?”

“Yes.”

Sonny +nd *ho,+s ,e+sured to forty foot lengths of ro&e. sng the flo+t bo+t0s tenty"four

foot length for + ,oble ,e+surng dev-e6 they &l+-ed the frst to &osts forty feet off the end of thedo-$ +nd tenty"four feet +&+rt. Le+vng the flo+t bo+t n &l+-e6 they tr+nsferred to the fourteen footfl+t botto,ed +lu,nu, 3on bo+t +nd used ts se+t +s + ,e+sure to gve the, ten feet beteen &osts for

the -urves +round ether sde of the do-$0s end. On-e they -+,e even th the end of the do-$6 they

ent str+ght b+-$ untl the +ter +s too sh+llo for the 3on bo+t.

*hey bro$e for lun-h +nd &-$ed u& +g+n +fter+rds. 8e+rng hgh rubber boots6 they drovethe re,+nder of the &osts u& to ten feet beyond the +ter lne. *hey set + te,&or+ry &ost beteen the

to orgn+l &osts they h+d s&+nned th the flo+t bo+t +nd r+n the ,esh beteen the to orgn+l &osts

so th+t t +nd the -entre &ost -ould e+sly be re,oved hen they ere done. On-e the ,esh h+d been

se-ured on +ll the &osts6 they bro$e for the d+y.

Sonny +s so tred th+t nght th+t he -oll+&sed on hs bed +nd ,,ed+tely ent to slee&. AfterSonny0s e&losve re+-ton to the -o,&+rson th hs f+ther6 he +nd *ho,+s h+d not t+l$ed hle they

or$ed beyond the -o,,un-+tons ne-ess+ry to -o,&lete the t+s$s +t h+nd.

On the se-ond d+y6 *ho,+s ,ounted &l+st- &&es on the to orgn+l &osts +nd on to& of the &&es he &l+-ed sol+r &oered de-or+tve g+rden lghts. He r+&&ed red -oloured &l+st- +round one

lght +nd green +round the other.

“+hannel marers?” Sonny h+d +s$ed.

“-1actly.”

On-e the -h+nnel ,+r$ers ere n &l+-e6 they set to the t+s$ of -le+rng the veget+ton th+t h+d

gron u& +round the do-$s. *ho,+s ns&e-ted every &l+nt th+t -+,e u& out of the +ter. So,e hetossed n + &le +nd so,e he &l+-ed n + horse trough he h+d flled th +ter for the &ur&ose.

*hey &ostoned the bo+ts +round the do-$ so they -ould or$ s+fely. Sonny fr,ly gr&&ed +

l+rge bo end ren-h h-h they &l+-ed on the he+d of e+-h bolt holdng the be+,s to the &lngs.

*ho,+s used the +r ren-h to bre+$ the l+yer of rust th+t held the nuts to the +tt+-h,ent bolts. On-e+ll the nuts h+d been loosened6 they ended for the d+y.

1




On the thrd d+y they st+rted the de,olton. *ho,+s -ut the old ood free +nd Sonny h+uled t

++y. R+ther th+n &eel b+-$ the de-$ng frst +s Sonny h+d suggested6 they -o,&letely re,oved +ll the

ood beteen the furthest sets of &lngs before ,ovng to the net set -loser to shore. #y the end ofthe d+y Frd+y they h+d re,oved +ll the ood fro, the -on-rete &lngs +nd h+d run t through the

-h&&er so th+t +ll th+t re,+ned of the old do-$0s ood +s + &le of ,ul-h.*ho,+s +nd Sonny s+t on the b+n$ +d,rng ther &rogress. Ho&ng he h+d found + less

nfl+,,+tory brdge to Sonny6 *ho,+s s+d6 “Your grandfather must have given this dock a lot of thought.Those concrete !ilings weren't driven into the lake bed. They were !oured with footers. The !ilings were !ouredwith !lastic sleeves so the bolts could be !assed through to hold the wood without damaging the concrete. This wasa carefully !lanned !ro0ect.”

:%t was #om"leted before I was born. My grandfather, my father and my un#les built it during a lae draw6down.

When the water management "eo"le drained the lae to harden the bed and remove the invasive "lants, a lot of the land

owners around here too advantage and "oured do# "ilings before the water #ame ba# u" again. There!s a doen around

here built lie this.”

“Must have been 7uite an undertaking. "'ll bet it took a lot of teamwork. +ounds like it could have been ane1citing !ro0ect for them to work on together.”

“It was,” Sonny re&led thoughtfully. “My dad told me about it when we had to fi it. It was the last "ro(e#t they

all wored on together. It was the last time he saw one of his brothers. The do# held s"e#ial meaning for him. I guess that

was why it was so hard for him to tear u" the wood damaged in the hurri#ane a #ou"le of years ba#. It was lie he was

doing a disservi#e to his brothers! memories.”

“How many brothers did your father have?”

“Two.”

“$id you know them?”

“2ne died before I got to now him, the other we don!t tal about mu#h.”

“hat ha!!ened to them?”

“His oldest brother went into the 4avy and was illed in a training a##ident at sea.”

“" am sorry to hear that. hat about the other?”

“He got drun one night and wra""ed his #ar around a tree. I found what was left of his body in the morning. He had

#rawled out of the wre#. He was still alive when I found him, but he died before the ambulan#e #ould get there.”

*ho,+s shuddered +t the -oldness th h-h Sonny h+d blon off both hs un-les0 de+ths.

“as either of them married?”

“4o"e.”

1B




“o kids?”

“4o"e.”

“$o you have family on your mother's side?”

“)he was an only #hild.”

“hat about her !arents?”

“They were a #ou"le of druns,” Sonny s+d th dsgust. “Died when the trailer they rented burnt to the

ground.”

“hat ha!!ened?”

“3ire marshal said they were smoing in bed. +oroner said they had enough al#ohol in their system that you #ould

have lit a bomb under the bed and they wouldn!t hear it.”

“)ny other relatives?”

“If I have relatives on my mother!s side, I don!t now who they are.”

*ho,+s fell slent for + ,o,ent. “ith your mother sick, and you the only heir to this nice chunk ofreal estate, doesn't that make you kind of vulnerable?”

“-eah,” Sonny +nsered th obvous sus&-on.

“/ook, "'ve got my own issues so "'m not going to get too involved, but if you need someone to talk to, "'llbe ha!!y to listen. " can't say how good my advice will be, but "'ll try.”

Sonny s,led. “I a""re#iate the thought. When my mom first got si#, her "arents tried to get her de#lared

in#om"etent so they #ould #olle#t my father!s insuran#e settlement. I now ea#tly where I stand. 4ot everyone who #laims to

be your friend really is. -ou #an #ount on your enemies to always be your enemy, but you #an!t always #ount on your friends

to be your friends.”

*ho,+s &+used +s he thought +bout ths boy se beyond hs ye+rs. “$id you go to court to fightyour grand!arents?”

“Didn!t have to. The trailer #oin#identally burnt down a #ou"la days after they started the "ro#eedings.” Sonny

loo$ed ++y +nd dd not return *ho,+s0 g+e.

“$o you think someone set the fire and made it look like an accident?” No t +s *ho,+s0 turn to besus&-ous of hs re-ent +-2u+nt+n-e.

“If someone did, it wasn!t me, but I inda wish it was.” Sonny loo$ed +t *ho,+s sde+ys.

*ho,+s bln$ed +t the de&th +nd &oer of Sonny0s gl+n-e. *he &+n +nd +nger ere -losely

held n -he-$6 but lngered so very -lose to the surf+-e. “/ook, +onny, life has dealt you a bum hand. " get it,

1




but being angry doesn't hel! anything.”

Sonny shoo$ hs he+d. “4o"e, don!t. Don!t even mae you feel better. Maes you feel worse and maes you do

stuff you regret later. &est to ee" on going and do the best you #an with what you got.”

*ho,+s tred to ,eet Sonny0s eye6 but Sonny turned ++y. “+onny, when " hired you to hel! did youthink that " did it out of sym!athy for you?”

“4o"e, you obviously needed the hel".” Sonny shrugged. “I was #lose and I thin you did it out of sym"athy for

my mother.”

“You win,” *ho,+s s+d s+dly.

“$in!t no winning to it. Truth is truth.” Sonny turned to -onfront *ho,+s. :The whole wee we!ve taled about

me. 4ow let!s tal about you. $ny family?”

*ho,+s bln$ed. He &+used before +nserng. “o, all gone,” *ho,+s s+d th + sgh. “" had abig family once, but most of them died and " lost touch with the rest. " don't even know where to look for them.”

“What do you do for a living?” Sonny de,+nded.

“"'m retired.”

“What did you do before you retired?” Sonny &ressed.

*ho,+s too$ + dee& bre+th. “You want the truth?”

“-es,” Sonny s+d fr,ly.

“"f you tell anyone, it could get both of us killed.”“Tell me the truth.”

”" was a hit man for a drug cartel. "'m out on !arole,” *ho,+s s+d softly.

“7i6ight.” Sonny0s vo-e +s r-h th hs dsbelef.

“hether you believe me or not, there are dangerous !eo!le who would like very much to know where "am,” *ho,+s s+d softly.

“Would they ill you?” Sonny +s not buyng ths.

“Yes, but they would not harm you or your mother. They only want me,” *ho,+s tred to -o,b+t

Sonny0s s-e&t-s, After + &+use6 *ho,+s s+d6 “Your mother has invited me over for dinner tonight. *leasedo not breathe a word of what " told you.”

“What does my mother thin you do?”

“+he thinks " was a travelling salesman for a !harmaceutical com!any.”

1




“Were you?”

“o, but wouldn't you rather her think that or what " 0ust told you?”

“I su""ose.”

“Thank you.”

Dnner th+t nght +s &le+s+nt6 +lthough6 +s th the dnner on *ho,+s0 b+l-ony6 Sonny +s

vrtu+lly left out of the -onvers+ton.

'(

Documents

Seeds of Anger Sample 9-21-10