Page 36 of My Return to the Walter Boys
Lee agreed with his brother and mentioned something about a rule violation, but I was distracted once again by Cole. He was yelling out a play, his hands waving up and down as he tried to get the girls’ attention. On the opposite side of the field, the ball went out of bounds. Cole turned around and caught my gaze yet again.
“Twenty bucks Cole gets himself kicked out for undressing Jackie with his eyes from across the field,” Isaac joked. “It’s a little inappropriate for a kids’ game, don’t you think?”
I ground my teeth together in frustration and shoved to my feet. Isaac and Lee cackled to each other as I stalked off in the otherdirection, more than willing to deal with the younger Walters if it meant I didn’t have to listen to their unrelenting teasing.
***
Sunday morning came with two chore options: help George muck out the horse stalls or clean up fallen fruit from the cluster of crab apple trees that lined the side yard. Since moving to Colorado, I had learned that lots of hard work went in to running a ranch, which included tasks that were anything but pleasant. The worst, in my opinion, was stall cleanup duty, so the choice was an easy one to make.
Between me, Alex, and Nathan, we had everything picked up within an hour. Katherine was in cleaning mode, so instead of heading inside and risking being given more work, the three of us decided to hang out in the shade beneath the tree house.
“I’ll be right back,” Alex said when Nathan flopped onto the grass and opened his sudoku app. He jogged off in the direction of the shed.
While he was gone, I ventured up the ladder in search of reading material—Alex left his books everywhere—and found a beat-up copy ofThe Count of Monte Cristo. By the time I climbed back down, Alex had returned with a plastic T-ball bat and was trying to convince Nathan to pitch for him.
“Come on, Nate. Don’t you want to spend some quality time with your favorite brother?”
Nathan snorted. “What makes you think you’re even in my top three?”
“How about this?” Alex replied, ignoring the insult. “Play with me for fifteen minutes, and in return, I’ll pick up my laundry and clear the dirty dishes off my desk?”
“Okay, fine,” Nathan agreed, “but if this turns into a mess like last time, then I’m out.”
I didn’t understand what he meant until Nathan selected the least rotten apple from the wheelbarrow and pitched it to Alex. The bat connected, and I watched in amusement as the apple soared over the fence and into the field where it wouldn’t ruin the lawn mower. The second hit, however, exploded on impact and showered the lawn in mushy chucks of fruit.
A screen door slammed. “What do you think you’redoing?”
My heart stopped at the sound of Katherine’s enraged voice. For a split second, I thought she was yelling at us, but then I spotted Isaac storming down the porch steps, fists clenched and eyes blazing. An old Camaro was rumbling up the driveway with Jet behind the wheel.
“Getting the hell outta here and away from you,” Isaac shouted over his shoulder.
“Isaac, if you don’t come back here right this second—”
“Then what?” he roared, swinging back around to glare at his aunt. “What are you going to do,Katherine?”
I’d never heard any of the Walter kids refer to Katherine by her first name, especially with such venom, and I sucked in a sharp breath. Genuine hurt flickered across her face before she managed to master her expression.
“Maybe I should call your father.”
A single, humorless bark of laughter escaped his throat. “Go ahead. It’s not like he can do anything all the way from Germany.”
Without waiting for a response, he yanked open the car door, flung himself into the passenger seat, and immediately cranked up the radio. Heavy metal music blared out from the speakers, effectively cutting off the conversation. Jet threw the Camaro in reverse, and the air freshener dangling from the rearview mirror swung wildly. As they pulled out of the driveway, Isaac stuck his arm out the window and gave his aunt the finger.
Despite the huge sign of disrespect, she stayed rooted on the porch until they disappeared from view.
Once she returned to the house, Alex, Nathan, and I stared at one another in shock. None of us knew what to say.
“Maybe it’s just a phase?” Alex said, breaking the silence. We all laughed at the bad joke but quickly grew quiet again.
“Do either of you know what’s been up with him?” I finally asked.
Alex sighed, dropped the bat, and flopped down next to me. “I’m not positive, but I think it has something to do with his dad.”
“Uncle Pete came for a visit at the start of summer,” Nathan added as he took a seat on my other side. “Isaac has been likethatever since he left.”
I frowned. “Isaac wasn’t happy to see him?” I didn’t know much about Isaac and Lee’s parents, only that their mother was out of the picture and Peter Walter, George’s younger brother, was a lieutenant colonel in the military who was stationed overseas. They rarely gotto see their father, so I’d have assumed him visiting would be the highlight of their summer.
“That’s the strange part,” Alex answered. “He’ll never admit it, but I know Isaac kept a calendar counting down the days until his dad’s leave. Something must have gone down, but I didn’t ask what. He and Lee get cagey about personal stuff.”
