her apron, folded it, and placed it in a kitchen drawer. “Your dinner is in the oven,” she said. “Cody hasn’t eaten. He said he wasn’t hungry.” Her face creased with concern.
“Thank you,” Anna said again. “I’m sure he was just waiting until I got home.” She wondered if Marie saw through the lie.
After Marie left, Anna made her way up the stairs. She didn’t bother knocking on Cody’s door. As usual, he was lying on his bed, tennis shoes and all, a sketch book in his hands and a bad attitude in his expression.
She came directly to the point. “I received a call from your principal today.”
“Prickner.”
“What did you say?”
“Mr. Strickner.”
“This isn’t a joking matter, Cody. You are on the verge of failing several of your classes.” Anna didn’t sugarcoat the seriousness of the situation, but Cody continued to look unconcerned. “Get me the list of missing assignments. I know you were sent home with it.” When he didn’t move, the irritation she’d felt since receiving the call boiled over.
“Now. And consider yourself on restriction until this is resolved. No iPod. No TV. And no baseball.”
That got his attention. “You are so unfair.”
“I heard everything I needed to.” She held out her hand for his iPod. She waited until he finally withdrew it from his pocket and tossed it on the end of the bed.
“You don’t even want to hear my side of the story.”
“Believe me, I heard your side. Actions speak louder than words.” She picked up the iPod. “Also, you’ll be staying home this weekend. While I was supposed to be doing my job, I was on the phone hiring you a tutor. Ms. Thorton will be here each afternoon after school and on the weekends until all of your assignments are in.”
She opened the door and stood with her hand on the knob. “Also, I know about the phone messages you erased and the notes from your teachers you never gave me.”
“Yeah? So what? You’re not home long enough to call anyone. Not even Dad.”
“Cody.”
“Forget it.”
“Come downstairs and let’s have dinner. We can talk—”
“I’m not hungry.”
Anna stared at her son, at a loss as to what to do. “Fine,” she said quietly. “Suit yourself.” She shut the door and went downstairs to eat another meal alone. As she picked at the shrimp pasta Marie had made, she once more felt a stab of resentment toward her husband. How could Phillip have left her to deal with all of this?
Cody waited until his mom went downstairs, then he sneaked into her room. Carefully picking up the phone, he made sure she wasn’t on the downstairs line. As quietly as he could, he dialed his aunt’s number. Jared answered on the third ring.
“Hi, Cody. I’ll get your aunt.”
“N-no. I called to talk to you.”
“Me?”
“Yeah.” Cody sat down on the edge of his mom’s bed. He could hear the TV in the background. “Don’t bother coming to my game tomorrow.”
“Canceled?”
Cody kicked at the leg of his mom’s nightstand. “No. I can’t play ’cuz Mom is a hard-ass, and school sucks.”
“That bad?”
Cody squeezed his eyes shut and tried not to cry like a big baby. At least Jared didn’t tell him not to say ass. “Yeah. Just because of some stupid assignments.”
“Sorry, kid.”
“Hey, Jared?”
“Yeah?”
“Have you ever screwed up so badly everyone was mad at you?”
“Too many times to count.”
Cody stared at the silver-framed picture of his mom and dad on their wedding day. “I wish my dad was here.”
“I wish he was there, too.”
“If my dad was here,” Cody started, feeling a lump form in his throat, “I wonder what he’d say . . .”
Jared didn’t say anything for a moment. “I wish I knew.”
“Did your dad ever leave you?”
“Your dad hasn’t left you, Cody.”
A tear ran down Cody’s cheek. “That’s what my mom says, but he’s been gone a long time. Maybe he’s not coming back.” Cody wiped his face. “Tell Aunt Jenny for me, okay?” The tears were coming harder, and he had to get off the phone. “And tell her I won’t be there this weekend either. I’m stuck here with a tutor.”
“Hang in there, slugger.”
Cody could only nod.
Jared hung up the phone. He flexed his hand, not realizing how hard he’d been gripping the receiver.
If he’d known the reason for Cody’s call, he would have ignored Jenny’s call from upstairs for him to pick up and let the answering machine get it.