"Walls Come Tumbling Down"

Monday August 12, 2002

4247 Maplewood Drive

1:30 AM

"Can't sleep?" Amanda asked as she came downstairs into the family
room. Lee was sitting on the couch, going through a photo album.

"No, I guess not," Lee said with a sigh. Amanda curled beside him on
the couch.

"Me either," she said. Lee put one arm around her, pulling her close.

"I was just looking at these baby pictures of Jenna," he said. "I
swear the first week that we brought her home from the hospital we
must've gone through about three rolls of film. We have pictures of
her sleeping, having a bath, pictures of everyone holding her-look
even Beaman's in a photo." The expression on Lee's face was wistful.
"Things were so simple back then."

"I know," Amanda said. "The older they get the more complicated it is."

"Speaking of complicated, how is Jenna?"

"Sleeping last time I checked," Amanda said. "Before that I don't
know-she wasn't exactly talkative."

"That's an understatement," Lee said. "I think she's said maybe two
words to us since Saturday night. And she still hasn't told us where
she went when she snuck out."

"Well why should she when we haven't exactly been forthcoming with her?"

"That's different and you know it," Lee said. "Amanda the sneaking
out-this could involve her safety. I still want to know where she went
and who she saw."

"But why haven't we told her about us?" Amanda said. "It's not like
we haven't had opportunities."

"I know," Lee said.

"We started to tell her that one time after she was shot."

"Yeah but then there was the bone infection-all those tests-" Lee
rubbed his hand over his face. "And then after all that Dr. Pfaff
thought we should just wait awhile-and I guess we just kept on waiting."

"-and putting it off." Amanda said. "Afraid of the risk, her
reaction- Let's face it, we're chicken."

"All right then, let's do this," Lee said. "Tomorrow evening after
dinner we'll sit Jenna down and tell her the whole truth."

"Right," Amanda said.

"This time nothing is going to stop us," Lee said. "No
interruptions-nothing."

They looked at each other for a moment.

"We'll pencil it in," they said in unison.

9:30 AM

Of all the mornings for this to happen, she thought. Amanda held the
basket brimming with dirty clothes and stared in dismay at the
semi-flooded utility room. Just then the phone rang. Amanda put the
basket on the countertop and went to answer it.

"Hello Lee," she said.

"Amanda can you get down to the office right away?" Lee said. "We
might have a lead on the location of those stolen chemicals."

"It might take a while," Amanda said. "The washing machine's backed up
and the utility room is flooded."

"Flooded?" Lee said. "How flooded are we talking about here?"

"Oh it's not bad, just a thin layer of water," Amanda said. "The thing
is that I'm going to have to take the rest of the clothes to a
Laundromat."

"Is it vital?"

"Well if you want to have towels to shower with tonight I think so.
It'll only take me an hour."

"Okay," Lee said. "Well meet me here when you get through with that.
What are you going to do about Jenna?"

"Not sure," Amanda said. "Mother called me earlier-she has a salon
appointment and then she's meeting a friend for lunch. Don't worry,
I'll think of something."

"See you in an hour," Lee said. "I love you."
"Love you too," Amanda said.

SMK SMK SMK SMK

"Jenna?" Amanda knocked on her daughter's closed door. "Sweetheart?"

"Come in," Jenna called out. Amanda opened the door. Jenna was curled
up on her bed, clutching a pillow to her chest. Her eyes were
red-rimmed and slightly puffy-a sign that she'd been crying recently.
Amanda sat down on the bed.

"That was your father on the phone," she said. "There's a little
emergency at work so I need to go into the office-"

"Mom it's okay," Jenna said. "Really. I'm not going to run off or
anything-it's not like I have anywhere to run to."

"Oh sweetheart," Amanda said, giving Jenna a hug. .

"So what's the emergency at work?" Jenna asked.

"Well it's kind of complicated."

Jenna sighed. "I guess I didn't really expect an answer- just thought
I'd ask."

"Is there anything you'd like to tell me?"

"It's not about not liking too," Jenna said, looking at Amanda and
then looking away again. "I just-I don't think that I can."

Amanda kissed the top of Jenna's head. "Jenna there isn't anything you
can't tell me-whatever it is I can handle it."

"Not this," Jenna said. She looked on the verge of tears again. Amanda
decided to let the matter drop for now.

"Jenna we'll talk about this later." she said. "I'm going to the
Laundromat before work-the washing machine's backed up again." Amanda
eyed the pile on the floor. "Are these your clothes? You know you do
have a hamper."

"I know I do," Jenna said. "I just keep forgetting about it. Is the
utility room under water again?"

"Sort of," Amanda said, picking up Jenna's clothes. "It's not too
bad-just stay out of there and I'll call the plumber later on. Take
care, sweetheart-I love you."

"Love you too," Jenna said.

SMK SMK SMK SMK

"It's just strange, Mother." Amanda used her shoulder to hold the
cell phone to her ear as she sorted through the clothes in the basket,
laying them out on the table. "I think she wants to tell us, but she's
afraid."

"I bet she'll tell you when she's ready," Dotty said. "She's like you,
Amanda-and you could never keep a secret very long."

"I don't know about that," Amanda said. "I think she's more like Lee
in that respect-I just wish I knew how to break through to her."

"Something's definitely bothering her," Dotty said. "She was over here
Saturday asking me about gangsters and the mafia-she even asked me how
I would know if someone was a gangster."

"Gangsters?" Amanda repeated the word. As she picked up a pair of
Jenna's jeans a notebook fell out. Must be one of her school
notebooks, she thought, idly leafing through it-must have picked it up
by accident. Most of it was empty except for the first few pages,
which were covered in Jenna's distinctive purple-pen script.

"Well we were watching some ridiculous TV movie," Dotty said. "That's
probably where Jenna got the idea-the thing was she seemed to be so
serious about it. Then when I asked her what was wrong she told me
some story about a friend of hers whose parents were doing some
strange things."

"Hmmm?" Amanda said as she started to read the notebook. Her mother
continued to talk but she tuned her out. As Amanda turned past the
first page and looked at the second, it suddenly felt as though it was
very hard to breathe. The world seemed to spin for a moment and she
clutched the notebook so hard her fingers grew numb.

"Oh my gosh," she whispered.

"Amanda are you listening to me?" Dotty said.

"Mother I've got to let you go," Amanda said, hurriedly stuffing the
clothes back into the basket. "Something just came up- I have to call
Lee right way. Talk to you later."

SMK SMK SMK SMK

"She did what?"

"She followed you, Lee." Amanda sped down Glebe Road towards
Maplewood. She never usually used her cell phone when driving, but
this was an exception. Her heart was pounding loudly in her ears and
the hand that gripped the steering wheel was trembling.

Please let me get there in time, she prayed silently.

"And she saw Augie give me the plans," Lee said. "No wonder she's been
so-poor kid, what she must have thought-"

"Believe me, she thought the worst," Amanda said.

"I can imagine. Amanda, if she was watching me and Franco Necci was
watching Augie, then he might have seen her too. That means she might
be a target."

"I know," Amanda said. "That's why I'm going back there right now. We
have to bring her inside-it's not safe."

"I'm right behind you."

SMK SMK SMK SMK

Lee hung up the phone as he got into the Corvette and gunned the
engine, tires screeching as he drove out of the parking lot. He was
praying the same silent prayer that Amanda was-that he wouldn't be too
late.

If anything happens to Jenna, he thought, it will be all my fault.

SMK SMK SMK SMK

Jenna was lying on the couch downstairs, trying to focus on some old
game show about newlyweds. One of the wives seemed to hate her
husbands' answers-it seemed like he couldn't do anything right.

"Next time we do it my way," the woman told her husband after they
lost the third round. Her husband's face was red as a cherry and Jenna
felt sorry for him.

Suddenly she heard a thumping noise, coming from upstairs. That thump
was followed by a slightly louder thump-it sounded like something was
being knocked over-the house almost seemed to shake. .

"Oscar is that you?" Jenna called out to her cat as she went up the
stairway. She thought that he'd been sleeping, but maybe he'd woken up
and decided to play. Last time his play had broken a vase that had
belonged to Grandma –Mom hadn't been at all happy about that.

"Did you break something else, little kitty?" She said. The thump
came again-it was her bedroom –Jenna got a sinking feeling, wondering
if Oscar had broken the unicorn statue. She'd made it for summer camp
three years ago-the only time that her artwork had ever turned out right.

"Oscar just please calm-" Suddenly a thick hand wrapped around her
shoulders and grabbed her from behind. Jenna screamed, struggling
violently but it did no good. She was pulled backwards and lifted off
the ground like a rag doll.

"Ready to play, little girl?" a voice murmured into her ear.