Page 22 of Baiting Kong
Was probably the reason he stuck around too.
Hadn’t Dalton said the kid’s father used to spend a lot of time throwing the football around with him and his friends?
“He was a good man, once,” Dalton said. “Had some beers together from time to time, watched a few football games and some NASCAR races back when his wife was still alive. He kept that trailer in tip-top shape too. Hung flower boxes under the windowsills and birdfeeders all around the trailer because his wife loved butterflies and listening to the birds sing.”
“So what happened?”
“She died, and he turned to alcohol to handle it, like a lot of guys do; only he never could pull himself up outta the bottle. Left Axel to finish raising himself. He’s a good kid, just lost and in need of some attention, maybe a few friends so he doesn’t feel like he’s got to keep everything inside.”
“Yeah, I know what that feels like.”
“I know you do, which is why I’m glad you’ve taken an interest and plan to look in on him,” Dalton said. “You make sure you do that tonight. After the day he’s had, I’m sure he could use a kind word instead of more yelling.”
“Yeah, I’m heading over there right now.”
“Then why the hell are you still talking to me?”
Creature chuckled at the memory and the crotchety old man who could never resist giving him shit even when he was being helpful. He heard the shower come on and headed down the hall to his bedroom to see what he could find for Scout to wear. It took some digging, but he found a pair of basketball shorts he’d been meaning to donate to the thrift store since he couldn’t even get them over his thighs. Any t-shirt would be big regardless of which he chose, so he grabbed one off the top of a stack in a drawer and left them on the bathroom shelf like he told Axel he would.
It dawned on him that Axel probably hadn’t had anything for supper, so he rummaged around in the fridge and came up with half a pack of hot dogs and dropped them in a pot to boil while he hunted up something to go with them.
He spotted a can of peaches in the cupboard beside half a loaf of bread; that would do in place of buns, since he kept forgetting to pick up a pack. By the time he remembered, he’d be out of hot dogs, and by the time he thought about buying hot dogs again, the buns would be dotted with mold. It was a vicious cycle that never seemed to happen when he was making burgers.
He had plates on the table and a couple cold sodas beside them when Axel emerged, shuffling forward with his shoulders slumped and his damp hair lying lank against his shoulders.
“Come on, you need to eat something before you pass out,” Creature declared as Axel’s eyes widened when he caught sight of the table.
“You didn’t have to…” Axel began, only to have Creature cut him off.
“Yeah, I did. Now eat up before the dogs get cold.”
“Thank you.”
Despite the questions he had about the robbery that morning and what had happened when Axel had gotten home, Creature refrained from saying anything until Axel had cleaned most of his plate, yawned, and propped his head on his hand while he pushed the last three remaining peaches around on his plate.
“This was the most fucked-up day ever,” Axel said, creating the opening Creature had hoped for.
“Yeah, I heard about the robbery,” Creature said. “Kinda stupid, if you ask me. Who puts together a crew that can’t even get along for long enough to knock over a gas station?”
“Don’t ask me,” Axel said. “I spent most of the time up-close and personal with the floor.”
“That’s the safest place to be in a situation like that,” Creature said. “So, what the hell did they start arguing over anyway?”
“Chips.”
“Dumbasses.”
“Yeah, the whole thing was fuckin’ stupid. I was already filling the damn bag with cash; all they had to do was shut up, take it, and leave.”
“Sometimes people are too stupid to get out of their own way,” Creature said with a shrug. “I’m glad you and Scout got out okay.”
“You know Scout?”
“He works at the Joker’s clubhouse,” Creature said. “So, I’ve seen him around. Haven’t really gotten the chance to talk to him too much.”
“We just met this morning.”
“Hell of a way to meet.”
