Unknown by Jane Read Free Book Online Page A

cabinet. We could all get wasted at my house. Sex at thirteen is pretty awkward, but much like riding a bike, it’s pretty easy to pick it up. Lots of skinned knees and swollen lips.
    When it was my turn for the Parent’s Day speech I actually thought about lying. Why not, most of the other kids were too. Sure, daddy wasn’t a drunk, and that bruise on you shoulder didn’t come from the beer bottle he hurled at you when you didn’t get his slippers fast enough. He was a CPA. I knew that. No, your mommy wasn’t screwing your math teacher, that’s not why you got a passing grade after nothing but bright red Fs for flunk, Fs for fail, Fs for fuck me over your desk you scrawny, number-cruncher you. She’s a homemaker, not a homewrecker. I can tell by the lunches you bring, the ham and cheese sandwiches, with a little dish of that secret family potato salad, and a slice of that special chocolate cake you like. More like a cold uncooked hot dog, three slices of processed cheese, some stale Funyuns, and a Twinkie. Here’s a dollar for milk.
    Standing in front of the class I decide to let it all out. Sixth grade, really, who gives a shit. The cute girls won’t kiss you, and the ones that did, well you don’t brag about those fatties.
    “My mother, by Roland Descartes. You’ve all seen my mother here at school, at the bake sales and Holiday Festivals. I’ve seen the girls scanning the outfits, with envy, wondering how she got those stylish clothes in a town like this. I’ve seen the boys staring at her chest...”
    “Roland?” my teacher said.
    “...not really sure why their eyes are drawn there, but curious as to what exactly that cleavage led to. What exactly was hidden under that short skirt...”
    “Mr. Descartes...I don’t like the direction...” Mr. Steele says, face flush with the beginning of a panicked rage.
    “...let me finish. She doesn’t work at a real estate office, or make me dinner. She doesn’t commute to an office downtown or work at the mall. My mother is a whore. Which is better than a slut, cause at least she doesn’t just give it away...”
    “Roland, that’s quite enough...” Mr. Steele says, standing up.
    “She strips for dollar bills, here look,” I say, pulling out a handful of crumpled bills, dropping them on the floor in front of me, as my teacher comes around the desk. “She takes off her clothes, she sells vibrators and butt plugs to her girlfriends, as if you even know what those are, and she fucks for money...”
    “That’s IT Roland. Get out of here. Down to the main office, you know the way.”
    Tears squirt out of the corners of my eyes, even though I’d tried to focus my anger. I flung the battered notebook to the ground. Doodles of Nirvana and Batman, Metallica and Spawn, Korn and The Toxic Avenger all spun to the ground.
    “And I’ll be calling your mother, you’re done for the day.”
    “I bet you will Mr. Steele. You have her cell. Let me know when you find her.”
    CHAPTER FOUR
    May 12, 2024
    1. JACOB
    Turning off the computer, my entry done for the day, I swivel in the chair and glance around my office. Out the window, clouds drift in the soft sky and a gleam in my eye says I need to get out of here. Put a sign on the front door and get some fresh air. Most everyone will be in the fields working on the harvest. Nobody will wander in looking for an epic tale today. Filling my skull are the pulsing lapis waves, the crashing of the ocean against the rock strewn beaches. I can hear her calling to me and the pull is overwhelming.
    The bell rings downstairs and I hear the front door fly open, a violent push and clatter, not the easy entrance of a housewife seeking romance. Boot steps clomp across the hardwood floor as the rustle and slap of books falling drifts to my ears. There is a pounding up the stairs, picture frames falling, the crack and shatter of glass. They’re here.
    Jumping out of my chair I don’t even make it to the door. The room fills with the