Chapter 71

The door opened and Mom came into my room looking better and more rested than she had in a long time. She had a raised eyebrow and she said, “I hear that you had quite a weekend,” as she sat at my little table.

I didn’t know if she was talking about Desi or Marla, so I said, “Yes, it was pretty eventful. What did you hear?”

“I got a call from Clara Torres. She told me about what you did for Desi. It sounds like you and Marla handled things pretty well

“Well, it was mostly Marla, but I guess that it all came out right.”

She grinned, “Oh? It was Marla who threw that boy into the trashcan?

I squirmed and answered, No, I guess not.”

“Well, word gets around. I hope that Joe Torres doesn’t find out about it and start asking questions for Desi’s sake. I also know that Desi and Bob are coming here after school tomorrow. I asked them to have dinner with us after they finish with the doctor.”

“You talked to them?”

“I talked with Desi. She seemed changed. I think she learned a lesson.”

“That’s great. Does Erin know that they’re coming?”

“Yes, but she doesn’t know why. She thinks that they’re picking up some things for school, so does Joe, but that’s not the reason I’m here. I need to talk with you about some things. We got a call from Agent Delano last Friday. He said that the trial was going to start pretty soon and that our lawyer would be contacting us.”

“Our lawyer? Since when do we have a lawyer?”

“That’s what I wondered, and he seemed surprised when I asked him about it. He said that we were apparently represented by ‘Martin, Balzer and Cohen’, one of the most prestigious law firms in Los Angeles. Your dad thought that it was some kind of scam, so he called their office. It turns out that the senior partner of the firm is Howard Martin. He’s the guy you kids pulled out of that burning car. He apologized when dad finally got hold of him, and said that he was going to call us to talk about it next week. He said that he’s been watching the case for quite a while, and he’s going to have someone from his firm represent you.”

“Do I need really need somebody to represent me?”

“He said that you definitely do. They may try to turn things around and blame you for the gun incident in the car.”

“Wow! Did he say when the case would come up?”

“He said that we would be contacted by Simms’s attorney in a week or so about a deposition, but he wants to talk to you before then.”

“I was wondering when something about the case would happen.”

“Okay, now to the next thing. How is your schoolwork coming?”

“Not bad. I’ve been hitting the books lately, and my grades have improved a lot. I talked with the school counselor, and she said that I could apply for the computer series next year if I kept it up. They only let so many kids in, and she said that she would recommend me.”

“Is that what you want to do?”

“Yes, I think so.”

“Good. Now, what about a job? Have you been looking?”

“Yeah, there’s not much out there right now, but I want to start giving you and Dad some money, so I’ll get serious about looking this coming week.”

We’re not worried; we’re more interested that you do well in school. You loaned us that three thousand dollars when we really needed it, by the way, and we want to return it now.”

“That’s okay, keep it and apply it to room and board. How are, things with the family financially?”

“They’re fine. Your dad just got a raise, and the pressure is off now that the insurance thing is out of the way.”

I wanted to ask her about that. I know that it’s none of my business, but I was still curious about the role Mariani had played. I know that he’s rich, but a hundred thousand dollars is a lot of money even if it was a loan, and I continued to wonder if something had gone on between them. The thought was disturbing, so I tried to put it out of my mind by asking, “Are you going to go back to teaching dance?”

She stood up and said, “No, something else has come up. Come with me.”

I followed her into the house and found Dad and Erin sitting at the kitchen table. They seemed to be waiting for me, and Mom started off with, “I’ve been with you nearly every day of your life since you were born, Kids,” when I sat with them, “But you’re getting older, and you’re beginning to have lives of your own. I don’t see you much any more; dad is gone a lot, and I’m getting kind of bored, so I thought that I’d talk to you about something. I’ve been offered a job. Amy has been doing all the booking and planning for Kristen, Tomaso, and Breane for a while as you know, and it’s stretching her very thin even though she has an assistant, so I’m going to start working in her office.”

Erin and I looked at each other, then I asked, “What will you be doing?”

“Quite a bit from what she tells me. Amy has been getting requests from people wanting her to represent them for some time now. Tomaso has discouraged it, and so have we, but Tomaso called Friday, and said that something unusual had come up. He said that Kristen told him about a girl she knew who was working in television, so he taped the show, and he watched it when he had some time. He was having lunch at his hotel with a producer friend of his Friday noon. The friend told him that he was trying to find a girl with a particular look to star in an upcoming major movie. The way he described the girl made Tomaso think about the girl on the tape, so he and his friend watched it after lunch. The producer said that she looked perfect for the part, and he wanted to know who represented her. Tomaso told the guy that he thought she was with the Stone agency, and Tomaso called me after his friend left. We talked about the fact that I’m feeling better, and he asked me if I wanted to help Amy. We called him when Amy got home, and we all talked. He thinks that Amy can handle some new clients with my help. People might hesitate signing with the agency if they knew how young she is, so she’s been pretending to be the assistant to “A. Stone, the ‘real’ owner, as you know.” Well, I’ll be working there starting tomorrow morning. I’ll be Beth Baker, assistant to Ms. Stone, most of the time but I’ll be ‘A. Stone, the owner’ once in a while.”

“Gee, Mom, that sounds great, but how will you pull it off?”

She grinned, “The office will say that Ms. Stone is on the road a lot, so it’ll be on the phone when she absolutely has to talk to someone. We’ll play it by ear if I have to meet them in person for some reason.”

“So, who is the actress you want to sign?”

“Kristen says that it’s someone you know. Her name is Alice Stanfield.”

It was a shock, but a happy one. I thought about Alice and how smart she was. I remembered the slightly heavy girl who I had made love to that day in the hotel, then I remembered how she looked and how much she had changed the time I saw her on TV. I was glad that she was becoming so successful, but I remembered how dedicated she was to her sister’s career, and I wondered how Molly was doing.

Mom went on, “She’s coming into town tomorrow, and she’s bringing her sister along. You dated a girl named Alice last year. Was it her?”

“Uhh, yeah, we went out a couple of times. Does her sister want to sign up too?”

“Apparently so. I understand that she’s a model. I asked Amy about it, and she said she could handle a model, as well. It all falls under marketing, and I guess that’s what I’m going to be doing. Amy has been teaching me what I need to know.”

“I hear Amy is pretty good at what she does.”

“She’s amazing according to what Tomaso tells us.”

Mom sat back and looked at Erin and me, then said, “I’m really excited about this. I talked this over with Dad, and he thinks that it’s great. Do either of you kids have a problem with it?”

Erin and I looked at each other, and when we both shook our heads, she said, “Good,” and hugged us both.

I went back to my room, and the answering machine light was blinking. It was a call from Bill, and he sounded nervous.

He said, “Uhh, hi, Pete. Something happened today that I may need your help with. Check with Amy, she’ll tell you what is was. You know the guy. Could you please talk to him and tell him that it was an accident? I don’t mind apologizing to him in person, but I’m afraid the big fucker might kill me before I have a chance. I have to go out with my folks tonight, so please talk to me at school tomorrow.”

I got on the exercise machine, and I had a pretty good sweat going when the phone rang. It was good to hear Alice’s voice, especially when she started off the conversation with, “Hey, Lover, how are you?”

“I’m good, I thought that you were coming in earlier this week.”

“We were, but we have an interview scheduled for tomorrow, so we held off a few days. We’ll be there tomorrow.”

“So, when do I get to see you guys?”

“Here’s my cell phone number. Call us when you get out of school.”

“I will, but some friends are coming into town tomorrow. It’s just for one night, but I have to spend time with them.”

“No problem, we’ll be there for a few days.”

We talked a little longer, and I noticed something about her. It had only been around six months since I talked with her, but her voice sounded more mature. I wondered if it was because she was taking voice lessons, or just because she was older. I was reminded that the people around me were growing up again.

I thought about the two phone calls from Kelly after I hung up. I wondered if it was about the other night, and what I would say to her. Was she going to be a problem? I decided that I better call her and find out. It took her a while to answer her phone, and she asked me to wait a minute and put me on hold when she did. She said, “Sorry, it was call-waiting. Umm, can I ask you a question, Pete?” when she came back.

Dreading what the question was, I answered, “Of course. You can, uhh, ask me anything.”

“Did I do okay the other night, Pete?”

“What do you mean by ‘okay’?”

“You know, the, uhh, sex thing.”

I didn’t know where she was going with this, but she sounded like a little girl when she asked it, so I said, “Yes, Kelly, you were wonderful. What are you asking me?”

“Well, there’s umm, this guy at school and he’s been asking me out. That was him on the other line.”

“So what? Are you planning on having sex with him?”

“Well, I don’t know, but if it happens, I want to make sure that I...”

I interrupted her, “Stop, Kelly! Don’t even think about it!”

“Why not? You said that I was wonderful!”

“You were, but you’re too young to be having sex! Did you talk with your sister about this?”

“Yes, but all she talks to me about are the bad things that can happen if you’re not careful.”

“And you’re going to be careful, right?”

“Sure I am. I know exactly what to do.”

“Like you did when we were together?”

“Yes, we used a condom, remember?”

“Yes, I do remember. I remember being deep inside you when I realized that I wasn’t wearing one, and I remember pulling out of you and putting one on. You put us at risk that night. You know that I’ve been sexually active, yet you allowed me to be inside you without protection. I could have given you a disease, got you pregnant, or maybe both.”

“But you wouldn’t do that to me, Petey!”

It was obvious that I wasn’t getting through to her, so I asked, “Is Marla home?”

“No, she and mom went out earlier. Why? Don’t you want to talk to me?”

“That’s not it, Kelly. I just think that your sister would be better suited to talk to you about this.”

“I don’t want to talk to her, I want to talk to you. I already know what she’s going to say. I want to know what you think. I trust you.”

Trying to buy some time, I answered, “I appreciate that. How about we get together in the next day or so and talk about things?”

It took her a few seconds to answer, then she said, “You mean, we can talk like umm, grownups?”

“That’s exactly what I mean. This is grownup stuff, and not something that we should be talking about on the phone.”

She seemed pleased when she said, “Okay, we’ll, uhh, do it over coffee.”

I guess that it was her attempt at sounding grownup, so I agreed, but I was concerned about her. I asked, “Who is the guy, Kelly?”

She immediately came back with, “You’re not going to say something to him, are you?”

“No, of course not. I’m just curious.”

She was excited when she answered, “It’s Elliot Feldman. I think that he’s in one of your classes.”

He IS in one of my classes. He’s of the brightest kids in the class, but to describe him as a nerd is being generous. The kids call him ‘Stick’ because he’s about six feet tall, and I doubt if he weighs one-twenty-five. He wears black-rimmed glasses that look a quarter-inch thick, I’ve never seen his hair combed, and he stuttered the few times that I’ve heard him talk in class. I suspect that any conversation about sex between him and Kelly would probably start with her, but I decided to have a word with him anyway.

She and I talked a few more minutes, and I sat there thinking for a while after she hung up. I’m only two years older than Kelly, but I felt a whole lot older and more mature. Tammy and Marla were both that much older than I am. Was the difference between us that great as well? Those thoughts and some others were going through my head when Amy’s voice came over the intercom from the front house asking if she could come out and talk with me.

She came in wearing a turtleneck sweater and tight jeans. Her hair was in a ponytail, and her cheeks were flushed as though she had been in the sun all day. She looked so cute that I stepped back and said, “Wow, you look great! Where ya been?”

She smiled, said, “Thanks,” and sat at my little table. She said, “There was a concert in the park today. Tess and I went there with some people from school.”

“Sounds like fun. Was Bill there?”

“Yes, that’s what I want to talk to you about. Do you know a girl from school named Lori Johns?”

“I never met her, but I heard about her. Isn’t she that wild looking redhead who just transferred here?”

“Yes, she’s the one.”

“Rumor has it that she had an affair with one of the teachers at her last school.”

“Well, nothing about her would surprise me after the way she acted today. We were sitting on the grass watching the concert, and she and some guys were sitting next to us. A screaming match suddenly broke out between her and some guy, and she stood up and took a swing at him. The guy ducked, and she began kicking at him and calling him names. He finally got fed up, stood up, and slapped her so hard that she fell backwards and landed on top of Bill. She was wearing a tube top, and Bill’s wristwatch caught on it and tore it completely off as they were scrambling around trying to get up. She must have thought that it was deliberate, because she started screaming at Bill and beating him with her fists. The guy she had been arguing with, leaned over to grab her, just as Bill swung his arm back to ward her off, and his elbow caught the guy right on the nose. I think that he broke it, because blood flew everywhere. Lori saw what happened and yelled at the guy, “It serves you right, get out of here before he REALLY kicks your ass”. Well, it really pissed the guy off. The guy is twice Bill’s size and he made a grab for poor Bill just as security got there. They tried to reason with him, but the guy was so angry that he took a swing at one of them. So they grabbed him and handcuffed him, but he told Bill that as soon as he got released he was going to come looking for him as they took him away.”

The thought of Bill trying to untangle himself, and end up pulling the girl’s top off struck me as funny and I started to laugh until Amy glared at me and said, “The guy looked serious, Pete.”

“Okay, what do you want me to do?”

“Lori left before I could ask her who the guy was, but I think that he’s on the football team.”

“What did he look like?”

She grinned slightly, then she answered, “He’s actually kind of cute. He has dark, curly hair, and he’s about your size. Tess is concerned for Bill. Could you ask Lori who he is at school tomorrow and talk to him?”

“Sure, I’ll take care of it.”

“Good. Now, as you’ve heard, Alice and Molly are coming into town tomorrow. I know that you hung with them for a while, and they’ll probably talk to you, but you mustn’t tell them who I am, okay?”

“No problem, Mom told me what’s going on. What made you decide to take the girls on?”

“I’ve been getting a lot of mail from people asking me to represent them, but I’ve turned them down because I don’t have time. I should be able to expand things with Mom coming on board, and Tomaso thinks that Alice has a big future if she gets the part in that movie. It could lead the company to some really big things if we get her now, and she’s successful.”

“Was Molly coming with her part of the reason that you want to sign them?”

“No, it was all Alice. Molly is beautiful, but there are lots of beautiful models. I think that I can help her career, but Alice is the one who may really go places.”

“Wow! That’s amazing. Have you ever talked with her?”

“Yes, several times when she was at school. She’s very smart and very driven. I didn’t tell her who I was when I talked to her yesterday. So this is going to be the first thing that Mom is going to work on. Mom said that she doesn’t remember meeting her. She didn’t, did she?”

“No.”

“Good, she’ll meet her tomorrow.”

“Will Mom know what to do?”

“Yes, we’ve gone over it a lot. She knows exactly what to do.”

I was thinking about how different things had turned out, when Amy asked, “So, how did your weekend with Marla go?”

“It was great. Marla is really nice, but the weekend was kind of strange.”

Amy leaned back and said, “Well, tell me about it. I need to know at least someone is having a good time.”