Three Little Words (21 page)

Wain nods and then realizes she can't see him.

“It's so cool, Mom. There's this tiny island, and Sid took me to this amazing lake. And his dad says he'll teach me how to fish. I'd come home whenever you want. Whenever you're feeling better. For school for sure. I could bring you a salmon. And Irena—that's Chloe's grandmother—makes awesome jam from her own raspberries. I could bring you a jar—”

Devi opens her eyes and holds up her hand. “Stop, stop. I was there too, a long time ago. When Sid was little. I'm sure he doesn't remember.”

Sid stays silent. There's no point in telling her she is right. She gazes at Sid, her eyes damp. “You've had a good life,” she says. It's not a question.

“The best,” Sid says.

“All right then.” She pulls herself up in the bed. “Wain, if Sid's okay with it, you can go. Sid? What do you think?”

Sid glances up at the little slit of a window. He can see a scrap of blue sky through the bars. A bird—not a crow, a starling maybe—zips by, intent on…what? Finding food for his family, catching an updraft, romancing a hot starling chick? What
does
he think about Wain coming back with him? He wishes Megan was here to tell him what to do. A few days ago, he was sure it was the worst idea ever. He still thinks his brother is a pain. He realizes the rest of his summer will be crowded and noisy if Wain comes home with him. But the fact remains: Wain's life sucks and his doesn't. There's no way around that.

“Two conditions,” he says. “No fighting. No swearing. And oh, yeah, no stealing.”

Wain laughs. “See what I mean, Mom? Stupid. That's three conditions, dummy.”

“Let's make it four then,” Sid says. “No name-calling.”

Devi laughs. “Sucks to be you.” Sid isn't sure which one of them she is talking to, but for a moment she sounds just like Wain. “Thank you, Sid.” She reaches out to take his hand. He hopes his palms aren't sweaty again. “Thank your mother for me,” she says. “For everything.”

“I will.”

“I need to sleep now,” Devi says. “Be good, Wain. I mean it.”

Her eyes close, and Wain leans over to kiss her cheek. “Get better, Mommy,” he whispers. “See you soon.”

He turns and walks out the door. Sid stays in the room a moment, watching Devi's face as she surrenders to sleep.

I can walk away, he thinks. I can go home now. I don't have to come back unless I want to. He reaches over and strokes Devi's sunken cheek.

“Be well, Devi,” he says.

He straightens up and walks out the door. Wain is waiting in the corridor, wiping his nose on his sleeve.

“Ready to go, asshole?” Wain says.

“Ready as I'll ever be,” Sid says.

Acknowledgments

Many thanks to Monique Polak, cheerleader extraordinaire, who read the book in its early stages and provided valuable feedback and much-needed support. Thanks also to the usual suspects for their friendship, laughter, insight and patience: Jennifer Cameron, Lynne Van Luven, Brian and Hatsumi Harvey, Margaux Finlayson, Robin Stevenson, Maggie de Vries, Bruce Collins, Christine Toller, Fiona Harvey, Christian Down, Joan Backus and Yvonne Haist. And of course, endless gratitude to the Orca team for putting heart and soul into every book Orca publishes. Special thanks to Mike Deas for the amazing cover and for sharing his thoughts about the art of comics. I am also grateful for the grant I received from the British Columbia Arts Council to write this book.

Sarah N. Harvey
is the author of nine books for children and young adults. Some of her books have been translated into Korean, German and Slovenian, none of which she speaks or reads (although she is trying to learn Italian). Her novel
The Lit Report
has been optioned for a feature film. She will not be in it. Sarah lives and writes in Victoria, British Columbia. Visit
www.sarahnharvey.com
for more information.