Page 18 of The Beast's Heart

After exchanging a few more niceties, he ends the call and gives me a Hollywood grin that’s all teeth. “Hey, Teach. What can I do you for?”

I manage to suppress a cringe. “Um, hi. Ray said you might have a ball?”

“A…ball?”

“I’m taking the children outside for the day.”

“You’re brave.” He laughs as he walks over to a big plastic container that’s pushed up against the back wall and starts digging in it.

“The weather’s cleared up. I think it will be fine.”

“Oh, it’s not the weather you have to worry about.” He tosses me a basketball and I, thankfully, catch it.

9

JONATHAN

The air is heady with petrichor and the weather is crisp but not unpleasant. We settle at the edge of the lawn and I help Ray lay out our lunch. It far exceeds my expectations: fresh white rolls with cheese and jam, sliced fruit, potato crisps, chocolate chip biscuits and a big flask of hot cocoa.

We all tuck in—even Mal. At first in awkward silence. Then Enrique does something silly that makes Alisha laugh, and Ben snorts his cocoa and Mal teases him. Before long, they’re all chattering together as if I don’t exist and I feel like I can finally breathe again.

“I’m going to head back in, make sure the staff have lunch ready,” Ray says. “You want me to help pack this up first?”

“No, I think we’ll stay a while.”

Ray seems about to argue. But whatever it is they have on their mind, they don’t say it.

I watch them retreat across the lawn and then produce the ball. “Who wants to play a game?”

The children seem hesitant as I lead them onto the grass and have them stand in a circle. “The rules are simple. When you throw the ball to someone, you get to ask them a question.”

“Like a quiz?” Ben asks.

“No,notlike a quiz,” I quickly clarify. “A question about themselves. Anything you want to know. The object of the game is that we all get to know each other a little better.”

“What if I don’t want to answer?” Mal asks, still defiant.

“That’s fine. You can pass the question to someone else.”

Ben asks, “What if I miss the ball?”

“Then you’ve got to fetch it.”

The first few rounds are a little slow. Alisha’s distracted by Enrique and Mal is hesitant to reveal anything about himself. But soon we fall into a rhythm.

I learn that Ben’s favorite color is pink and he goes bright pink himself when he admits it. The best food Mal’s ever eaten was a double decker cheeseburger with ketchup. Alisha’s favorite animal is a cow. Ben’s best memory is getting a chocolate sundae in bed on his sixth birthday. Alisha wants to live in a big house with a garden. She’s terrified of public speaking and has nightmares about fire. Ben loves old movies. His favorite is Titanic. Mal has never been to the cinema.

Enrique decides he wants to play too, but when Mal throws him the ball he runs off with it. Mal chases after him and the two of them tumble into the grass, giggling.

The afternoon passes without further incident. As we pack up to return so the children can get ready for dinner, I broach the subject of school again. “You know not all of our lessons can be like this, don’t you? I’m going to have to teach you, in the classroom sometimes. There may even be quizzes.”

Ben becomes very focused on his feet, but he nods. I dare not look at Mal, but I can feel the mood change in our little group, his very presence like a black cloud.

“Don’t worry,” Alisha says quietly as she folds up one of the blankets. “The Beast made it very clear to us.”

“What did he say?”

She shrugs. “He wants to be able to show us off. You know? How he took four fosters no one wanted and turned their lives around.”

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