Counting by 7s(39)

Dell found himself mumbling out loud as he opened the car door.

“Who died and put her in charge?!”

Then he remembered that two people actually had passed away. And maybe he was the one who had inadvertently put Pattie Nguyen in charge by getting her pushy daughter involved.

All Dell really knew with certainty was that now someone was steaming mounds of spinach in a kitchen that had never under his watch seen a vegetable in its raw form.

At least his underwear wall was being washed.

Once inside the dimly lit bar, Dell found a seat. As he leaned forward onto the sticky countertop he took a pen from his pocket and slid the thin cocktail napkin closer.

He was looking to regain control, and so he returned to the Dell Duke System of the Strange.

He wrote:

1 = MISFIT

2 = ODDBALL

3 = LONE WOLF

4 = WEIRDO

5 = GENIUS

And then he added his newest category:

6 = DICTATOR



Mai had to take a second city bus across town to the Gardens of Glenwood.

And she was not happy about it.

She called her mother from the salon and that was when she found out about the visit from child services.

Shouldn’t someone have told her what was going on?

Now, an hour later, Mai’s arms ached from carrying her heavy backpack.

But inside she felt a different pain.

She had to question the logic of pretending to live in Dell Duke’s apartment.

Maybe Willow should have gone right after the accident into foster care.

Her mother had made it clear. They weren’t in any position to take on another kid.

She had tried to help, but what if what she had done ended up hurting Willow even more?

Mai aimed her right shoe, which wasn’t more than a satin slipper, and stepped down hard on an acorn.

But the nut lying in the middle of the cracked sidewalk didn’t squish under her foot.

Instead it was solid and tough and it hurt. It was like stepping on a pointy rock.

Mai felt her whole body stiffen.

So many things caused unexpected pain.

Mai kicked the acorn and it flew across the sidewalk out onto the street. She watched as a passing car ran right over the still-green nut.

Mai moved to the curb to get a better look.

The acorn hadn’t flattened. It rested on its side in the middle of the road, unharmed.

Mai dropped her backpack and went to retrieve it.

The acorn was a survivor.

Mai stuffed it into her pocket.

Lucky. That’s what the nut was.

When Willow wasn’t paying attention, Mai would slip it someplace she would find it.





Chapter 36





I’m exhausted.

I’ve helped transform the apartment of a single, lazy, hoarding hermit into a family’s living space.

And this has been done insanely fast.

Now as the bamboo steamer gets going, and Pattie has me chopping up green onions, the buzzer rings.

Lenore Cole is downstairs.

Once a week, since the accident, I’ve gone out to Jamison.

I’ve had a complete physical exam. I’ve had three sit-downs with a psychiatrist (Dr. Ron McDevitt) and I’ve seen Lenore Cole twice.

There’s been talk of permanent placement in foster care, but it’s not easy finding spots for older kids.

I met a girl in the bathroom during my visit last Thursday who said that once your baby teeth fall out, no one wants you.

She also told me that prospective parents always pick the blond kids first.

I don’t think that she was trying to be a bully or anything.

We both had hair the color of ink.



The social worker isn’t with us long.

Which is a good thing.

I guess we passed the test.

Pattie’s not trying to be a foster parent, but still, they have requirements, even for the temporary custody people.

In the hallway, Lenore Cole says:

“We will find the right place for you. That’s our mission.”

I don’t answer.

I want to see this lady out the front gate and into her car and off the street and out of town and then removed from the county and then the whole state and finally relocated to the place they call Tornado Alley in Kansas.

But it’s not her fault.

I’m the Problem.

Maybe there are all kinds of available foster homes in Kansas.



I’m in the shadows of the entryway watching as the social worker gets in her car and pulls away from the curb.

She drives right by Mai.

Just seeing the graceful teenager changes everything for me.

When I tell her that we have a pretend room complete with Semper Fi bunk beds, she rotates in her shell.

She doesn’t have an actual shell, of course, but whatever hard casing that protects her from life literally shifts before my eyes.

Apparently, she’s long wanted to climb a metal ladder before she goes to sleep.

Maybe it’s from years of sleeping on a floor.

I don’t want to disappoint her by saying that all of this was just for show so they wouldn’t haul me away.



Once in the apartment, I thank Pattie for everything she did today.

To my great relief, she is finally sitting down.

The world’s ultimate pragmatist just shrugs and says: