Chapter 6.1

“Does anybody live here with you?” Ben wondered.

“No. Just me.” He went directly to the dresser in his bedroom and scooped out shorts and socks, then, from the closet, jeans and a shirt and a dry pair of shoes. In the bathroom he grabbed a towel.

“Cool, man, you’ve got your own TV.” Tate grabbed the remote and started pushing buttons.

The television came on at a blare.

“No time,” Wade turned the set off. “We have to go.”

He wouldn’t have been surprised if they had dragged their feet, or darted off to the kitchen or bedroom or bathroom, anything to explore and delay. They were, after all, boys.

But they followed him out and climbed up into the SUV with no argument, squishing in their wet sneakers.

The rain had stopped. The sun streaked golden and rose from the western horizon. It looked odd, with the sky overhead still dark and gray.

The next stop was the McCormick residence, maybe four minutes away by car. He would have used one of the keys Dixie had given him, but the boys bolted ahe