Knowledge of Good and Evil
A Bo Fexler Story
by Clair Dickson
“Mom said I was going to be something one day.” She smiled as she said it, a big toothy grin that revealed a missing front tooth. She twirled the end of her blond pig tail around her finger.
"And what would you like to be?” I asked. If anyone had bothered to tell me just how much small talk I would do as a private eye before I got licensed, I probably would be in a whole different vocation-- for better or for worse.
She shrugged.
“Is Carrie home?” I asked.
“Nope. Not until 4. She's my sister, you know.”
“I do know,” I answered. I had also been reasonably sure she wasn't home. “Can I come in and talk with you for a little while?”
Jaimie hesitated, chewing on her lower lip. “I dunno.”
“I brought some ice cream that I was hoping you would help me eat.”
She grinned “I love ice cream. Chocolate chip cookie is my favorite.” But she still blocked the doorway.
“Can I come in?”
She nodded, hesitated once more, then finally opened the door to let me in. She led me to the kitchen and got two bowls and two spoons from the dishwasher.
“How long have you been living with Carrie?” I asked scooping a large bowl of ice cream for Jaimie and a more reasonable sized bowl for myself.
“Hmmm... Since March. Sisters are like friends but better, right?”
It was either the statement or the way she said it, but something about that bothered me. “You like living with Carrie?”
She looked around and made thoughtful faces before answering, “Yeah.”
“It's better than living with Aunt Tara?”
More thoughtful faces. “Sometimes.”
“When is it better?”
“When she takes me places or buys me a new movie. I have a TV in my room so I can watch my movies. Aunt Tara never let me have a TV in my room.”
“When do you like not like being at Carrie's?”
“When Jeff comes over.” She frowned.
“What don't you like about Jeff coming over?” I didn't really want to hear the answer. I never do, but my job requires that I ask the questions anyway. Some days, I would gladly trade that for the stupid paperwork or clueless bosses that other people complain about.
“When Jeff comes over to spend the night, I'm supposed to stay in my room. I don't like always being in my room. Carrie said if I lived with her, then we'd do fun things. But we don't do fun things when Jeff comes over. And he comes over a lot.”
“Do you ever get to play with Jeff?”
She shook her head. “No. Carrie says that he’s her friend so they play together.” She shrugged. “I just wish he didn’t come over so much.”
“Does Jeff ever come over when Carrie isn’t here?”
“No. He’s Carrie’s friend, so he wouldn’t come to play with me. He never plays with me.” She finished the last of her ice cream and licked the spoon clean.
“Did Carrie say anything about what the court thought about you living with her?” The main reason I was there. I wasn’t particularly threatening, nor was I part of the justice system. My client and I had both figured that might make it easier to get information out of Carrie.
Jaimie licked her spoon. “Well, she said that since she wasn't married, that the court wouldn't send me checks any more. She helped me get a job so I can still buy things that I want. I'm saving up for a Wii. I got almost a hundred dollars.”
I smiled. We talked—or rather, I let Carrie tell me about herself and her life with Carrie for several minute more. Then I stood up and told her, “You can have the rest of the ice cream.”
“But you're going to miss Carrie.” Her brow furrowed.
“You know what, you did such a good job answering my questions, that I don't need to talk to Carrie.”
Jaimie beamed with pride.
I stopped by my client's house on the way home to give her an update before I finished my report. “So Jaimie thinks she's not getting the checks any more, but she is,” my client said. She was Jaimie's aunt and, until the previous year when Jaimie has turned eighteen, her guardian.
I nodded once in confirmation of the facts.
“I fought the courts. Fought them hard, particularly because I don't trust anyone in that family. She may be nineteen years old, but she has the mind of a child.”
“Seems all Carrie had to offer was that they would do fun things together. Jaimie adores her sister.”
My client shook her head. “How do you stand learning these things about people-- or stand meeting people like Carrie who would con her own developmentally disabled sister? It makes me sick...”
I gazed out the window while I figured out the best response. “Because of people like you that are just the opposite,” I said, even sounding sincere.
Truth was, I also had learned to detach myself, distance myself from a young age. Jaimie, with her simple mind, couldn't imagine anyone deliberately doing harm-- but me, I could hardly bring myself to see anyone doing good.
END
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5 comments:
Great to have Bo back.
Really enjoyed this story. Lots of background, but not too much. Just enough to really get to know the major players and appreciate the presence of evil in that household. Would really love to see more of your PI character. Well done.
For some reason I found this just a really sad story -- the situation and the characters and the way he explains how he had to be "detached". Nice job with the story, because we aren't and it makes an impression.
Loved the characters in the story, Claire. The title is a reference to Jaimie's innocence?
The way I read the story, Carrie could have been taking the checks to pay for the expenses of caring for her developmentally disabled sister. Or she could have been blowing through Jaimie's money for her own purposes. The Aunt could have had genuine concern for Jaimie, but judging from Bo's reaction to her I doubt it.
I really enjoyed reading Knowledge of Good and Evil. You've given readers a glimpse of the lives of the characters but the story seems to imply that there is much more to it. Leaves me with a lot of questions... and I love stories like that. :) Thanks for the read!
Glad to hear you enjoyed reading the story.
@Amber: The title does refer to Jaimie's innocence, as well as to Bo's knowledge (or lack of innocence) in these matters.
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