Mason by Thomas Pendleton Read Free Book Online Page A

smoke. He chuckled and put the cigarette between his lips before grabbing Lara around the waist and pulling her close.
    Disgusting , Rene thought.
    â€œCharming,” Cassie said, grasping Rene’s arm. “Come on. Let’s go see what the civilized people are doing. We’ll leave these lovely folks to their monster truck pulls and some romantic inbreeding.”
    Rene took Cassie’s hand off of her arm gently and pulled away. “I’ll catch up in a minute.”
    â€œDo not go over there,” Cassie warned.
    â€œI’m just going to make sure Lara’s okay.”
    â€œRene, honey. You cannot fix this. Not tonight.”
    Rene smiled to put Cassie at ease and stepped onto the grass. “I wouldn’t even try. I’m just going to talk to her for a second. You go ahead. I’ll meet you at the bridge.”
    Despite the happy face she gave Cassie, Rene was terrified of walking up to Hunter’s gang. The grass squashed under her feet, but instead of feeling soft and comforting, it felt as if it might give way any second and suck her deep into the ground. The noise at her back no longer filled her with excitement, but rather seemed like the perfect cover for her screams. Hunter saw her coming first, and he slapped Lump Hawthorne’s shoulder. Lump looked up, seeming a bit dazed, but once he saw Rene coming, his eyescleared and grew soft.
    Lump had had a crush on Rene in the eighth grade. At the time, she had thought the thick-necked boy was sweet, if a little rough around the edges. He’d tried so hard to impress her back then, she’d almost felt bad for him. He’d even asked her to a movie once but was so nervous, he mumbled, “Never mind,” and ran away before Rene could answer.
    As for Lara, she swung on the pole again and whipped herself back into Hunter’s grasp. She saw Rene on the grass and her eyes grew wide.
    â€œGirrrrrl…FRIEND!” she shouted.
    Rene’s cheeks burned red with embarrassment for Lara. Hunter just laughed and Lump scratched his head with one hand while drawing Tara Mae to his chest with the other. Tara Mae eyed Rene suspiciously, perhaps knowing about Lump’s long-ago crush, perhaps just jealous of a girl who wasn’t going to spend the next two decades raising a child.
    Lara let go of the lamp and raced forward in a stumbling, lopsided run, reminding Rene of the Scarecrow from The Wizard of Oz . She had to admit, Lara could use a brain about now.
    â€œRene,” Lara said too loudly. “Oh God. Oh God. I’m, like, so glad you’re here.”
    Rene held Lara by the shoulders to keep her from collapsing on the grass. She tried to keep the smilepasted on her face so Lara wouldn’t freak.
    â€œHow’s it going?” Rene asked.
    â€œOh God. So much fun. So fun.” Lara cackled crazily and swung out her arms. “Isn’t the carnival great?”
    â€œYeah,” Rene lied. “Let’s take a walk. We’ll find Cassie and get some drinks.”
    She had to get Lara away from Hunter.
    â€œTotally!” Lara shouted. “Totally. Let’s get Cassie.” She stumbled forward, pulling Rene off balance. When she righted herself, she gripped Rene’s shoulder with both hands and spluttered laughter in her ear. “Oh. Oh wait. We have to wait for Hunter and the guys.”
    â€œWe’ll be back,” Rene said, urging Lara forward. “We’ll just get Cassie.”
    â€œNo,” her friend said, stopping dead in her tracks. “We have to get Hunter.” Lara started laughing again. “He’s my man.” Then, thinking she was whispering but still talking way too loud, she said, “He’s huge. My God. So huge. Come on. I’ll show you.”
    That was all Rene could take. Her cool snapped and she spun on Lara, grabbing her shoulders and shaking her. “Stop it,” she said. “Just stop! Do you have any idea how much