Finding Faith

  Is Shawn dead? Am I next?

  Andrew did not hear any movement in the dark bedroom before him. He feared that Billy was lurking in there, waiting for him to step inside and meet the same fate as Shawn. Andrew was not going to enter the darkness; however, he would not leave until he could check and see if Shawn was still breathing.

  He took a step towards the body and carefully placed his foot down quietly. As Andrew leaned down over the teenager, he could barely identify the face. The features were dim, the eyes were shut, the mouth was cracked open, and everything was completely silent.

  “Shawn,” Andrew whispered as quietly as possible.

  When his friend did not respond, Andrew leaned down even further. But as he extended his hand towards the body, Shawn’s hand shot forth and grabbed his wrist.

  Andrew screamed as the hand held him in place. As he stared at his friend’s face, it suddenly distorted into an evil grin.

  “Gotcha,” Shawn shouted as he released Andrew’s wrist.

  “What?” Andrew replied, half hysterical.

  Shawn rolled on the ground and laughed as hard as he could. “You should have seen your face,” he said between heavy chuckles.

  “You mean you faked this?” Andrew asked fuming.

  He reached inside the bedroom, flipped on the light and peeked around the door to search for Uncle Billy. The room was tan colored and was furnished with only a queen-size bed, a desk, and a cracked dresser. Posters of swimsuit models cluttered the walls.

  When he was sure that they were alone, Andrew stared down harshly at his friend.

  “It’s just a joke,” Shawn said defensively as he caught his breath.

  “I don’t have time for jokes,” Andrew began, “Especially about death. I trusted you to help me. Darren sounded like he believed me. ”

  Shawn stood up and put a hand in his left pocket. A moment later, he pulled out two receipts. “You underestimate me.”

  Andrew took the receipts warily and looked them over closely.

  “You see,” Shawn said, “I found those the minute I walked in here. They were just on the desk over there.”

  “I don’t understand,” Andrew replied, confusion clouding his voice. “These receipts are from the two stores down the street. So, my uncle actually bought the sofa from the furniture store, then got the sound bar and television from the electronics store. It even shows a same-day delivery fee.”

  “Mystery solved,” Shawn said with a shrug. “Your uncle isn’t a thief, or at least he didn’t steal from the stores. He’s probably keeping the receipts for the product warranties. He wasn’t hiding them, just hanging onto them.”

  Andrew dejectedly handed the receipts back to Shawn, who then returned them on the top of the desk. Shawn said, “I’m sorry if that’s not the answer you expected.”

  “I just really thought the whole thing was strange,” Andrew answered honestly. “Uncle Billy looked like he was hiding something. When I told him that my friends would be jealous of his new things, he seemed really eager to buy my silence with a new television for my room.”

  “As your friend,” Shawn said, “this is my advice to you. Accept the television.”

  Andrew stared at him confused.

  Shawn waved his hand in the air. “Maybe your uncle really is hiding something. Maybe he is trying to buy your silence. You can’t prove anything, but he doesn’t know that. Tell him that you’ll take the television, and ask for more things too. Ask for movies, CDs, and how about some for the boys too? I’m sure you’d get props for hooking us all up.”

  “Why would my uncle go along with that?” Andrew asked uneasily.

  “Because you can tell him that you know the truth,” Shawn began. “Tell him that you know everything, and all you are asking for is some new stuff.”

  “You want me to blackmail my uncle?” Andrew caught his breath in surprise.

  Shawn raised his hands up. “Look, I’m just trying to help you out. Why don’t you think about it? But, don’t wait too long, ‘cause your uncle’s offer won’t last forever. Take it while you still can.”

  “I don’t know if I should,” Andrew replied, dismayed.

  “Your uncle obviously has the money to buy expensive stuff. Sounds to me like he is just a cheapskate when it comes to sharing his wealth. Now you’ve found a weak point in him. You need to capitalize on it. This is the time to get what you deserve and show how good a friend you are to us.” Shawn gave Andrew’s shoulder a light hearted punch. “I’ll leave it up to you to tell Darren and the guys about whatever you decide to do. I know you will make the right decision.”

  The sound of a car door shutting alerted Andrew.

  “Oh, man,” Andrew said fearfully, “my uncle is home. If he sees you, he’ll flip out.”

  Shawn quickly looked around and asked, “Is there a back door?”

  “Yeah,” Andrew said pointing. “In the kitchen.”

  “Okay,” Shawn began as he started taking off, “head to the living room and keep Billy distracted while I slip out the back.”

  Andrew rushed into the living room right as Uncle Billy walked in the house.

  “Hello uncle,” Andrew said, trying to hide the fear in his voice.

  Uncle Billy stared at him and replied, “Hey.” He then glanced around the room and said, “Well?”

  “Huh?” Andrew asked uncertainly.

  “You’re home sooner than expected,” Billy said as he eyed him. “What are you up to?”

  Andrew looked away, and then said, “My friends were busy today, so I just came right home after school.”

  “Is that right?” Uncle Billy narrowed his eyes as he walked past him and glanced down the hallway. Andrew followed his stare and saw that they forgot to close his bedroom door. As his Uncle neared the hall, he cut into the kitchen. Andrew saw something out of the front window. When he walked closer and peeked outside, he noticed Shawn dashing down the street and disappearing past a set of bushes.

  Uncle Billy came back out of the kitchen and went down the hall to his bedroom. Andrew was about to head upstairs when Billy said, “Hey, come here for a minute!”

  Oh, great, what did Shawn mess up in there? Andrew pondered.

  He walked towards his uncle’s room and saw that he was seated at the desk. As Andrew stopped in the doorway, Uncle Billy turned to face him.

  “You know, when I came home,” Billy said with a hint of accusation in his voice, “the front door was unlocked.”

  “Well, yeah,” Andrew replied while shrugging, “that’s because I got home first. I left it unlocked so that you or Angela didn’t have to use your key to get inside.”

  Uncle Billy furrowed his eyebrows and growled, “I need you to keep the doors locked at all times. I don’t want someone coming in and taking my new TV or something.”

  Andrew was relieved that his uncle showed no sign of suspecting Shawn’s visit, or their investigation. “Okay, I’ll be sure to keep the front door locked.”

  “The kitchen door too,” Billy added as an afterthought. “Why was that unlocked?”

  Because Shawn escaped that way, Andrew thought. Somehow outwitting his uncle made Andrew feel empowered.

  He then replied with a slight smile, “I was just checking to see if you were home.”

  “Why?” his uncle asked clearly annoyed. “What does that have to do with you? It’s really none of your business where I am or what I’m doing.”

  I can’t stand how rude you are sometimes, Andrew thought. I wish I didn’t have to be under your roof one more second and I can’t wait until I am out of here. I was trying to be nice, but maybe I shouldn’t be. Would it really be wrong to blackmail a creep like you?

  “I just wanted you to know,” Andrew said as he made his mind up, “I accept your offer.”

  “Oh yeah?” Billy asked only half paying attention. “What offer was that?”

  “The TV for my room,” Andrew said slowly. “It wou
ld be nice to have one up there.”

  “Is that so?” Uncle Billy replied his voice dripping with sarcasm. “You want me to buy you a TV?”

  Andrew narrowed his eyes and insisted, “You said that you would.”

  His uncle grinned. “Maybe I changed my mind.”

  The smug look on his Uncle’s face made Andrew realize that Uncle Billy was toying with him. “I don’t think so,” Andrew muttered angrily.

  “What did you say?” his uncle asked firmly as he began to get up from his chair.

  Andrew was shocked that he said that out loud, but he did not want to back down now. He hoped that his fear would not come across as he said, “I know what you are up to, Billy.”

  “Listen, kid,” his uncle said while pointing at him, “you don’t know what you’re talking about. And, I’m Uncle Billy to you.”

  “I do know,” Andrew bluffed trying to keep his voice cool as ice, “and I want a new TV-DVD Combo, or—”

  “Or what?” Uncle Billy asked as he wiped a beat of sweat from his brow.

  Andrew stared hard at Billy and replied, “Or else your secret won’t be a secret anymore.”

  Uncle Billy stood completely out of the office chair and took a few paces around the room, trying to contain his frustration. Andrew tried to look for a hint of guilt or worry, but his uncle’s reddening face just appeared full of anger.

  As Uncle Billy crossed the room towards him, Andrew tried to stand his ground and look confident. His uncle stared him in the eyes and said, “Alright, kid, you’ll get the new TV. But, don’t go blabbing things that you shouldn’t be talking about. Deal?”

  “Deal,” Andrew agreed. For now.

  13