He shoots her a look that makes me move around in my seat. He doesn’t look like my dad. He’s a mess and his shirt is untucked.
“I’ll eat later, Claire,” he responds and walks past us through the kitchen and into the den. He smells like smoke.
My mother moves his food back to the top of the stove so it can stay warm. Her lips are tight and her eyes look sad.
I finish everything on my plate, hoping to bring a smile to my mother’s face. She doesn’t notice and takes my empty plate, putting it directly into the dishwasher.
Behind us, in the den, drawers are opening and closing loudly. I hear my father saying bad words beneath his breath.
“Claire, where’s the box I had under the entertainment center?” he calls out angrily.
“I—I don’t know what you’re talking about,” my mother responds. She looks worried.
“Goddammit, Claire!” he screams and tears through magazines and books, throwing everything to the floor. “Where are my things?” He’s making a giant mess.
“John, I don’t know!” my mother yells back.
She reaches for my hand and leads me to the stairs. “Garrett, go to your room. Close your door and watch some television.” She kisses my cheek and turns toward the den.
Worried, I walk up the stairs. Loud banging comes from downstairs and my father sounds really angry. I close my door like my mom told me.
I suddenly hear loud noises coming from outside my door. It sounds like my father is running up the stairs. “John, where are you going?” My mother’s voice trails behind him and now they’re in the hallway.
His voice becomes calmer and almost sweeter. “Where’s my money? Please tell me you have that box.”
“How much do you owe this time?” she asks nervously.
“It doesn’t matter,” he says, and I wonder what they’re talking about.
“John, we can’t keep living like this. The last time you owed them money, they took our car.” Who took our car? I don’t remember that.
“I owe them thirty-five thousand,” he says, and my mother lets out a loud gasp.
“How?” she asks.
“The Rutgers game. I thought they would cover the spread. I had so much riding on that game. It would have paid off our debts. We would have had money in the bank for the first time in years.” He sounds upset and my mother starts to cry.
“Thirty-five thousand dollars. John, what the hell were you thinking? We could get help. My parents can help us out. Why are you throwing away our future?”
“If I don’t find that box, we may not have a future, Claire. They threatened to do some major damage this time if I can’t come up with the money.”
“What do you mean?” she asks, and she sounds really upset. I think she’s scared. My heart jumps into my throat and is beating wildly.
“They said that you and Garrett would pay if I couldn’t.”
“Oh my God.” I hear her rush down the hall, into their bedroom, and my father follows. What could happen to us? What would we pay with?
“Daddy? It’s Claire.” She must be on the phone. What’s going on?
I can barely hear her voice now, like she’s far away. About ten minutes later, the door flies open and my father’s voice is strained. “Don’t do this, Claire. Please. It’s all getting taken care of. Your parents are helping. Our lives can go back to normal now.” He’s pleading with her.
“My father will meet you at the diner in thirty minutes with a check to pay off these thugs. After that, I never want to see you in our home again. You will not put our lives in danger, and I refuse to allow our son to be used as a pawn. It’s over, John. Get out of my house.”
“Claire.” His voice begins to shake. “I’m sorry,” he says, and I hear my mom start to cry.
“No you’re not. This is the third time we’ve been in this same situation except now you’ve brought our family into it. Never again. Leave now. Daddy’s expecting you soon. Take what you want because the rest of your things will be in the trash tomorrow.”