Full Tilt (Rock Star Chronicles) Read online

“Now you’re gonna hang a left up here, into New York U.”

  “You parked at the college?”

  “I can usually get away with it during the day. We’ll see. Campus police may have gotten me after all this time.”

  Everett backed the Honda into a spot near the Amanti, which was covered in salt with chunks of snow clinging to its rear fenders and fresh snow beginning to blanket the windows.

  “I gotta get that thing washed.” Eddie reached for the door handle. “Listen, I can’t thank you enough, bro—”

  “Hold on, Eddie.” Everett put the Honda in park, turned the heat down, and faced his brother apprehensively. “Tell me what’s going on, financially.”

  “Whaddya mean?”

  “I don’t mind loaning you money. But it’s not like you’ve ever needed to borrow before. Are things that tight?”

  Eddie sighed, closed his eyes, and dropped his hand onto the dashboard. “We’ve got a lot of debt right now. Let’s just put it that way.”

  “How’s the job?”

  “Job’s fine. I’m just not makin’ enough to support our lifestyle. Mortgage company’s all over me. I got late car payments. And Sheila spends like there’s no tomorrow. Clothes. Things for the house. Stuff for the kids.”

  “But she’s working.”

  “At the Fashion Mart, but all that money goes right into her pocket. That’s her funny money, ya know.”

  “Does she know how tight things are?”

  Eddie groaned and turned toward the stately buildings on the snowy campus. “She says we wouldn’t have these problems if it weren’t for my gambling.”

  “Is that true?”

  “It’s been out of hand. I’ve been using a lot of my paycheck to pay debts.”

  “Gambling debts?”

  “Yeah.” Eddie faced his brother with a troubled look. “And I’ve borrowed against the house to pay credit cards and car payments. That’s why I had to call you.”

  “I’m glad you did.” Everett paused to gather his thoughts and sighed. “I’m gonna be honest with you. The gambling thing is first on the list. You’ve got to get free from that. If I find out more about it, will you check yourself in somewhere so you can kick it?”

  Pulling a bulky load of keys from his winter coat, Eddie lifted up the small black remote and held down a red button. “Check that out.” Steam churned from the Amanti’s exhaust system as the car rumbled to life. “It starts from here. I think I left the heat on, so she’ll be warm when I get in.”

  “Will you do it?” Everett persisted, as if he was dealing with a stubborn child.

  “I told you, I’ve been to Gambler’s Anonymous—”

  “I’m talking about a residential program. Somewhere you stay until you’re better.”

  Eddie dropped his head into his hand.

  “I’ll pay for everything,” Everett said, “and I’ll pay your salary and normal commission for the time you miss off work. Please, bro. You’ve got to do this.”

  “I’ll lose my job if I do that.”

  “Tough! You’ll get another one. Would you rather lose your life?”

  Eddie shook his head. “My life’s already ruined.”

  “Dude, besides God, this is the next best thing I can offer. Will you do it?”

  “Look. I got a clean slate now, thanks to you. Let me just see how it goes.”

  “But—”

  “I’ll think about the treatment, Ev. Go ahead and do the research, get the details. I’ll consider it.”

  “Until then, no more betting.”

  Eddie nodded. “No more.”

  “I’m gonna be praying for you.”

  “Have at it.” Eddie chuckled and hoisted his hand toward his brother.

  Everett clasped the hand with both of his. He wanted to pray with Eddie, but his brother was ready to go. “You take care.”

  “You, too.” Eddie opened his door, got out, and looked back in at him. “Brrrr. I gotta make a couple stops on the way home. Who knows, maybe I’ll see you back at my house.”

  “We’ll see.”

  Eddie slammed the door and sauntered through the snow to the Amanti. Lifting the driver’s side windshield wiper, he held up a bright pink ticket in two fingers. With a grimace, he jerked out a curse, sending hot venom into the darkening afternoon. He ripped the ticket in half, tore it several more times, and tossed the remnants into the snow. Not looking back, he rounded the door, slumped into the Amanti, gunned it backward, and roared away.

  Seated in the warm Honda, Everett looked at the scraps lying in the snow. He had been the same way, not long ago. Stubborn. Rebellious. On his own.

  Lord, have mercy.

  14

  “YOU BETTER COME OUT of there, Aunt Karen.” Wesley stepped back from the doorway of the reeking lab into the fluorescent light, revealing his deathly white face.

  “Wesley!” Karen tried to speak, but a whisper barely eked out, her hand glued to her chest. “You frightened me.”

  Between the putrid odor from the small room and Wesley’s surprise arrival, a wave of nausea almost overcame her. She stepped into the light, furiously trying to come up with an excuse about why she was there. “Your mom just gave me a tour of the house.”

  “Where is my mother?” he sneered.

  Karen didn’t want him to notice her rapid breathing. “She had to take a call upstairs. I’m sorry.”

  Her mind blanked. Keep talking. Say anything! Lie if you must. But just win him over. The words were suddenly in her mouth. “I got carried away down here. Everett and I are rearranging our basement and…I just wanted to see what yours was like.”

  Forgive me, Lord.

  She feigned a smile and waited, breathless.

  Zombielike, Wesley stepped over to the dark room, banged the door closed, locked it, and put his hand in his big front pocket along with the key. Like a prisoner in a concentration camp, his face was pasty and emaciated, and there was a raw red patch beneath his left eye. He picked up the duffel bag and walked slowly back toward his apartment.

  “You seen enough?” He didn’t look back.

  “Oh, yeah, I just loved the rec room.” Karen didn’t know what to do with her hands. All she could think about was changing the subject, getting back upstairs. “And your apartment is great. How have you been, anyway?”

  “What?”

  “How’ve you been?”

  He stopped at the door of his apartment and waited for her to go in. “I got a splitting headache.” A trace of blood glistened at the corner of his bottom lip.

  “Your mom tells me you took a Web-design course.” Karen couldn’t help but notice that his body smelled unclean as she walked past. She meandered uncomfortably near the coffee table, hoping he wouldn’t notice that she had looked at the journal.

  “Yeah.” He closed the door to the unfinished basement, came into the apartment, set the cumbersome bag down and approached her. “That was the extent of my college career.”

  The hair stood up on the back of Karen’s neck. She crossed her arms and walked to the window overlooking the deck. “What types of things are you interested in these days, for work?”

  He walked to the couch and plopped down, still wearing his wet, dark green army jacket, which seemed two sizes too big. “I ain’t workin’ now. I’d like to fly someday.” He slouched low and, with an index finger, stroked hard at the raw stretch of skin that ran from the top of his nose to his hollow eye socket. “Maybe work with computers. I’m good with computers.”

  Her mind blanked out again as she struggled to think of something to say. “This is a nice view back here.” She coughed hard, but it didn’t relieve the congestion that caught in her throat.

  He slouched even further on the couch and continued to rub at his chafed face.

  “Well,” Karen shivered, “I should probably be getting back upstairs.”

  He pressed his palms to his temples, closed his eyes, and shook his head.

  “Your mom’s going to be looking for m
e.” She was two seconds away from dashing for the steps without another word, but he looked as if he was in pain. “Are you okay, Wesley?”

  He squinted at her. “Need sleep.”

  “Well, don’t let me keep you.” Her heart surged with anticipation as she inched toward the steps. “I’m gonna talk to Madison some more.”

  All in one motion, he stood abruptly and glided toward her, cutting her off in the middle of the room. “What are you doin’ here?” His hands were opened fully, up by her face. “Huh?”

  She thought fast. “Your dad—he needed some help. Everett and Eddie are out running an errand.” She nodded repeatedly in a subtle attempt to calm him and pacify herself. “I stayed to chat.”

  He leered at her, one eyebrow suspiciously high. “Who’re you with, huh? What’s goin’ on?”

  She put a fist to her mouth and coughed, shaking her head and concentrating hard on looking completely innocent. “I came with Everett. Just here visiting. Really.”

  Her gaze was met by racing eyes and almost frantic fidgeting.

  “Who sent you? You wearin’ a wire?” His eyes darted up and down her. “Cops put you up to this? Huh?”

  “Wesley.” She stiffened to stop from shaking. “This is a social visit. Okay? That’s all.”

  With his head down, he paced fast between Karen and the stairs.

  “When did we?” He spoke to himself. “That was…”

  Karen just wanted out.

  Wesley crossed his arms and massaged his biceps as he marched back and forth. Then he scratched hard at his scalp with fisted hands and groaned. “What the heck day is it?” He stroked the eye again and itched his stomach.

  Karen wasn’t sure if he was even talking to her. “It’s Saturday…afternoon. Almost evening.”

  He slammed to a stop. “What were you doin’ in there?” His small blue eyes pulsated as he pointed to the unfinished basement.

  “I just ducked in. It was unlocked.”

  God, please, get me out of here!

  He shot a confused look in the direction of the lab. “Whaddya mean, unlocked?”

  “The key was in the padlock.” Karen tried to remain calm. She should have known better than to lie.

  “What’d you see?”

  “Wesley, nothing. It looked like a junk room to me. I couldn’t find the light. Why are we talking about this?”

  The bewilderment on his face lit a spark of hope in her. Perhaps she could talk her way out. He was confused and paranoid, his memory jumbled.

  She perked up. “Come on, let’s go upstairs and see what your mom and sister are doing.”

  His shaved head pivoted back at her. “No! You wait.” He marched toward her. “How long have you been here? What else have you seen? I wanna know! Have you heard the voices?”

  Clasping her hands tightly, Karen backed away. Where are you, Everett?

  “Wesley, I’ve only been here a few minutes, with your mom. She’s probably looking for me. You have a great place here. It…it was nice seeing you.”

  With all the mettle she could muster, Karen raised her head and walked toward the steps. She heard sudden movement from Wesley’s direction but did not look back.

  Cl…clink.

  Although she’d never heard the chambering of a round in a handgun, Karen was quite certain that’s what she’d just heard.

  She froze three feet from the stairs. “Wesley,” she said without turning around, “I’m going upstairs now.” The fear made it difficult to speak. “And my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, is going to protect me every step of the way.”

  Before she moved another muscle, a voice rang out from above. “Karen?”

  “Sheila! I’m down here.”

  Sheila bounded down the steps. “I’m so sorry.”

  “I was just talking with Wesley.” Karen practically hugged her drunk sister-in-law at the bottom of the steps.

  “Wesley?” Sheila bounded into the apartment. “I didn’t know you were home.”

  Karen finally turned back around to face Wesley again.

  He was on his knees, glaring clench-jawed at her as he zipped closed the gray duffel bag on the floor in front of him.

  Sheila stayed to speak with Wesley while Karen made her way upstairs. Squeezing her hands together to stop them from shaking, she found her cell phone, took a tentative seat on the couch in the family room, and pushed the memory call button for Everett. It rang twice.

  “Hello?”

  “Ev, it’s me.” She practically crawled into the phone. “Where are you?”

  “I’m on 87 headed back toward you. What’s wrong?”

  “You need to hurry!” she whispered. “I can only talk for a sec—”

  “What is it? Talk to me.”

  “There’s some kind of lab in the basement. Wesley found me looking at it.”

  “What?”

  “He’s wasted. He has a gun. I think he pointed it at me.”

  “Where is he right now?”

  “Downstairs. I’m up.”

  “Karen, get out of the house!”

  “I think I’m okay—”

  “Get out now! I’ll be there soon.”

  “Ev, listen,” she whispered, eying the basement door. “Just listen. I don’t want to freak him out. Sheila’s downstairs with him. I think it’s gonna be okay. If I leave without saying anything and he finds out, he’ll lose his marbles.”

  “Where’s Madison?”

  “Upstairs. She’s seen cars in and out, and guns. Says Wesley’s dealing meth; he’s out of his mind on it.”

  “I’m almost to 287. Be there in ten minutes.”

  “I’ll be okay. I may get out. Not sure. Watch for me along the way, just in case.”

  “Dear Jesus,” Everett broke in, “show Karen what to do. Protect her. Get me there fast… I’m coming, honey.”

  “Ev, one more thing.” She stood and cupped a hand over her mouth and the receiver. “Guess what kind of car Wesley’s driving?”

  “Don’t tell me it’s a white Yukon.”

  “Try a muddy white Yukon.”

  Silence.

  “I’m afraid of what I’m gonna do to him,” Everett said.

  Karen heard footsteps coming from the stairway. “Gotta go,” she whispered.

  Sheila made a stop in the kitchen and flowed into the family room, holding a long smoking cigarette at the end of two fingers.

  “That Wesley.” She shook her head while arranging the gladiolus on the coffee table. “He needs to get more sleep. He goes, goes, goes—up late at night. Then he crashes for a whole day. I mean, an entire day or more.”

  Karen looked around for Wesley or Madison but saw neither. “Sheila, what Madison said about how Wesley hangs out with a bad crowd, is it true?”

  “Oh.” She took a drag from her cigarette and exhaled while she spoke. “That’s nonsense. What does Madison know about Wesley’s world? They’re complete opposites; they live totally separate lives.”

  “Madison’s read David’s journal. She says—”

  Sheila swung around, the ashes from her cigarette floating to the floor. “That journal is none of your business. And neither is Wesley’s personal life. Can’t we just be friends, Karen? Why do you have to dig into our affairs?”

  “Friends help each other.” Karen stepped toward her. “Friends tell the truth.”

  “Tell the truth about what?” Wesley’s voice echoed across the open room. Karen was certain her knees wobbled momentarily when she saw him standing barefoot in the doorway wearing a baggy fleece pullover and the same ratty pants—one arm behind his back. “What are you trying to say, Aunt Karen?”

  “I was just saying…” The floor spun for a second. “After all our families have been through, we need to stick together. Help each other.”

  “Oh? What’s your family been through?” He stepped closer.

  “Everett’s trial. My kidnapping.” Millie’s death and her infertility came to mind as well, but she was certainly not going
to mention them.

  “And those things are supposed to compare with our loss? With David?”

  “I’m just saying, we’ve all been through a lot. Very emotional things. Families need each other at times like this.”

  “We needed Uncle Everett when David was still here, idolizing him. Instead, all we got were regrets. Of course, you’ve probably read all that in David’s journal.” He produced the black digest from behind his back.

  Karen focused on keeping her composure. “Sheila, I haven’t seen the outside yet. Would you show me around?”

  Sheila was still staring confusedly at the journal in Wesley’s bony hand.

  “I’ll take you, Aunt Karen.” Madison’s voice came from the banister above.

  “Oh, great,” Wesley huffed, as his sister made her way down the steps. “Now you two are buddyin’ up. Hasn’t Uncle Everett done enough damage to this family?”

  “Why don’t you go back to your cave.” Madison headed toward the closet.

  “You better shut your mouth, you little—”

  “Can we not do this!” Karen tried to hold back the floodgate of emotions. “Everett and I came here today because we love you. Each of you. And we only want to help.”

  The tears spilled over, so Karen hightailed it for the living room, found her coat, and started to put it on.

  Madison joined her in the living room. “A little fresh air will do you good. Lemme grab my coat.”

  Karen wiped her face with the backs of her hands, sniffed, tried to smile, and stepped just inside the family room. “Everett will be here soon. I’m glad we got to see each other. Please let me know if there’s anything we can do for you.”

  Sheila was on the couch in tears, wiping beneath her eyes with a wadded tissue. “G’bye, Karen,” she moaned. “I am glad you came, really…”

  Wesley stood in a daze near the doorway to the basement.

  Karen said good-bye to him and turned to leave.

  “Good-bye, Aunt Karen.” His voice was monotone, and when she glanced back at him, his eyes were blank. “We’ll see each other again soon, I’m sure.”

  Madison and Karen wound around back of the house, making fresh tracks through the new snow and admiring the view of Westchester Hills and the valley below.