Suspicions by Christine Kersey Read Free Book Online Page B

put them to bed, a knock sounded at
the front door.
    “I'll get it,” Jason said. “Go ahead and put
the kids to bed. I'll take care of this.”
    After Nikki was tucked in bed Stacey headed
to Robby's room. She could still hear voices coming from the living
room and wondered who it was at this time of night.
    Robby was just getting under his covers as
Stacey entered his room.
    “Who's at the door?” he asked.
    “I don't know, honey. Daddy's taking care of
it.” She was distracted by what was happening in their living room.
“Now go to sleep. You went to sleep too late last night.” She bent
down and gave him a kiss.
    “But Mom . . .”
    “No 'buts', Robby. I mean it. You need to get
to sleep.”
    His shoulders sagged. “Goodnight, Mom.”
    Stacey turned off the light as she left. When
she went into the living room, Jason was alone. His jaw was
clenched and his eyes were narrowed, but his face relaxed when he
saw her.
    “Who was that?” she asked.
    He laughed in contempt. “The friendly police
officers that have been at the Stone's house all day. They wanted
to talk to Robby about Kyle.”
    Stacey wasn't surprised. “They mentioned
they'd want to talk to him.”
    “Well, I told them no. As soon as he finds
out what's happened to Kyle he's not going to want to go to
school.”
    “What would it really hurt to let them speak
to him?” Stacey asked, surprised Jason had told them no.
    “Look, Stacey, you know as well as I do that
Robby came straight home from school yesterday and couldn't know
anything. Why make him scared?”
    “I suppose,” she said, then added, “You
realize they'll probably come back when you're not home.”
    He lifted his eyebrows. “Just don't answer
the door.”
    She remembered she had wanted to discuss with
him whether to tell Robby what had happened, but it was obvious he
didn't want to tell Robby anything. She decided to broach the
subject the next day, when he wasn't so upset about the police.
    Stacey had completely forgotten to talk to
Robby about Mr. Gowen.
* * *
    Robby tiptoed over to his dresser and slid
open his top drawer, pushing aside his underwear and socks, then
lifting the object tucked into the corner. It glinted in the shaft
of moonlight that trickled in through his partially closed blinds.
He examined it closely and thought about Kyle.
    Mr. Gowen had slipped it through the fence
earlier that day telling Robby it belonged to Kyle. Robby had
recognized it as soon as he had seen it. It was Kyle's lucky stone.
Kyle insisted the clear, smooth rock held magical powers. Robby had
been surprised Mr. Gowen had it. Gowen had said he’d found it in
their treehouse and had asked Robby to keep it for Kyle for
safekeeping. Robby had taken it without question and hidden it deep
within his underwear drawer.
    Hearing sounds from the living room, he
quickly dropped the stone back into his dresser, slid the drawer
back into place, and crawled under the covers.
     
     
     

Chapter Eight
     
     
     
    Day 3 – Wednesday
     
    As Stacey and her children left for school
she noticed there were more news people in front of the Stone's
house.
    “Mom? Why are all those people at Kyle's
house?” Robby asked.
    Running late, she tried to hurry them along.
“I don't know.”
    When they reached some bushes near the
school, Robby stopped. “This is where I was when it happened.”
    Stacey looked at him, puzzled. “When what
happened, sweetheart?”
    He turned and looked at her with wide brown
eyes. “When Kyle was tying his shoes.”
    She laughed and ruffled his hair. “Oh Robby,
you're so silly.”
    “But Mom, I saw him.”
    “Saw who? Kyle?” She was more confused than
ever.
    He started crying. “No! I mean, yes. He was
tying his shoes and then he wasn't there anymore.”
    A sickening feeling swelled in the pit of her
stomach. “When was this, Robby?”
    “The day the police were at Kyle's house. You
know, when they were asking his mom and dad questions.”
    “Come on, Mom,” Nikki