anybody about The Griffin and probably more than I should have told her, because I didn’t know if I could trust her yet. People will always take what you tell them and use it against you when you least expect it. “I don’t mean it like that,” I said. “I mean because he wears a costume and everything.”
“That’s okay,” Captain Kirby said.
“I think you should go home and change into something cool,” I told her.
“Isn’t this cool?” She stood up and vogued her baggy black chinos and tee. “How about you?”
I was dressed basically the same, although I had definite plans to debut my Michael Jackson military look that night. If Tim and Captain Kirby didn’t want to go along with me, I would go without them.
Captain Kirby did a pirouette and we laughed. We were startled by a guy laughing louder, walking up the driveway, which I thought was kind of weird, because who did he think he was.
“You waiting for The Griffin?” he asked.
I didn’t answer which should have told him go away.
“Me too,” he said and plopped down on the lawn and lay back with his hands over his head. “This is like the biggest thing to happen to Milltown.”
“It’s happened before,” I told him. “He has a wife and daughter who just happen to live where you’re sitting.”
“I just moved here,” he said. He sat up and looked at me closely. “So I didn’t know that.”
He typed something into his phone.
“What are you doing?” Captain Kirby asked.
“Tweeting that I’m waitin’ for The Griffin.”
“Do you go to school around here?” Captain Kirby asked.
“No,” he said, and by the way he said it I figured he was lying. People who are lying always look you in the eye to see if you’re buying. And boy was he making big eye contact. “I graduated two years ago from St. Albans,” which was the private boarding school in the next township that lawyers and doctors sent their kids to. I didn’t know anybody who went there. “I’m a musician. Lead guitar.”
“No kidding,” Captain Kirby said. “St. Albans? They have a great field hockey team. We beat them in overtime in the finals. ”
“Yeah. They’re awesome.” He stood up and walked over to us. “I’m Rob.” He extended his hand and we shook and had a chance to see how good looking he was, which was VERY. “I guess I shouldn’t impose, though, on who lives here until The Griffin actually shows up.”
“That would be a good idea,” Captain Kirby said. “You should at least ask permission.”
“Are you,” Rob said, pointing at Captain Kirby and looking a little astonished, “The Griffin’s daughter?”
“I am,” I said.
“What’s your name?”
“Mercy.”
“No kidding. What a great name.” He started typing on his phone again.
There were kids who Tweeted their every bite of a sandwich and there were those who didn’t. I was about to ask him to move when Jane drove up in her Kia apologizing like mad as she ran across the lawn for being late and making me do all the work to get ready.
She walked into the Trap which was lousy with crepe. “That eagle is magnificent! Who did that?” Her gaze swept past me and Captain Kirby and landed on Rob. “You?”
He