Things Not Seen Read online

  Mom isn’t even trying to smile now. “The terms of your search warrant are quite clear. You have permission to make a superficial survey of the premises in order to see if my son is here, which, as I had already told you, he is not. It is you, in collusion with some other misguided souls, who have chosen to make this a formal matter, and create this legal situation. As far as I am concerned, however, this is still a family matter over which you and the state of Illinois have no jurisdiction whatsoever. I am not under any obligation to tell you one thing more. I already told you that he has gone to Florida to stay with a relative while he recovers from a recent illness. We are withdrawing him from school, which we have every right to do. And I have nothing more to say.”

  “Maybe you can comment on this. Your neighbor, Mrs. Trent, tells us that while you and your husband were in the hospital, a person referred to as Aunt Ethel was here taking care of Bobby. Is this true?”

  Mom’s annoyed about Mrs. Trent getting involved, but she says, “Yes. That is correct.”

  “And is this the same aunt Ethel whose telephone number is on the list on the wall by your kitchen telephone?”

  After a pause Mom says, “Yes.” She’s mad at herself for not taking that list off the wall.

  I can see where Ms. Pagett is going, and so can Mom.

  “Since I notice that this aunt Ethel is the only person on your list with a south Florida area code, I know you won’t mind if we give her a call, just to see if Bobby is there. And if he does happen to be there, then my agency will exercise our reciprocal child protection agreements with the state of Florida. All that means is that an officer will stop by your relative’s home to confirm that Bobby is indeed there, and that he is all right. Remember, that is our only aim here, Mrs. Phillips. We are only interested in answering one basic question: Is Bobby getting proper care, and is he well.”

  Mom is done talking. She stands up and looks out the tall window. Then she picks up the remote control for the shelf radio, punches it, and the room fills up with graceful music, Mozart or something. Ms. Pagett starts to say something else, but Mom is pushing the volume button. The small radio has a big voice.

  The woman police officer comes to the door of the den and talks into Ms. Pagett’s ear. Ms. Pagett turns to Mom. She has to shout above the sound of a dozen violins and a harpsichord. “We’ve concluded our search. Just for the record, Mrs. Phillips, if Bobby is not located and talked to by someone associated with my department within the next five days, then this becomes a police matter. Bobby will be classified as a missing juvenile under suspicious circumstances. You and your husband may be held liable, and in that case you will both face criminal charges. Thank you.” Then she turns and leaves.

  I know my mom swears once in a while. Like if she burns her hand on a pan, or if her computer freezes when she’s trying to print something. But when that social worker and the cops leave the house, Mom cuts loose. The A word? She shouts it. The B word? Mom shakes her fist and hisses that one. She stomps around the first floor of the house, legs stiff, face red, and she works her way through the entire alphabet of swear words, including some stuff I’ve never heard anyone say before.

  Deep down, I guess I always suspected Mom was a real human being. But I didn’t know she was this real. And I didn’t know anyone could get this angry. And I’m glad she’s on my side.

  When she quiets down, she slumps onto the couch in the TV room and puts her face in her hands, breathing hard. I sit down too, and she feels the couch move. She drops her hands and looks in my direction. She smiles weakly and says, “Sorry I lost my temper. Not very ladylike.”

  I don’t know what to say. I wish she could see me, because then all I’d need to do is nod and smile a little. But I have to say something, so I say, “They deserve it.”

  Mom shakes her head, “No, they don’t, not really, and that’s what’s so frustrating. These aren’t bad people. They’re just doing their job, and they sincerely believe that a boy is missing, that something is wrong.”

  “Well, something is wrong—it’s just not what they think.”

  Mom nods. “Right.”

  “So, what happens now?”

  Mom shrugs. “You heard the lady. She said we have five days to show them that our son is alive and well.”

  “But what if I stay this way and we can’t figure it out—I mean, we’ve already had three weeks! What if five more days isn’t enough?”

  “Then your dad and I will have to deal with the law.”

  “Can they arrest you?”

  “If they can stomp in here with three police officers and paw through our house, what do you think?”

  Before I can answer, Dad comes in the side door and calls, “Em? Bobby?”

  “In here, Dad.”

  First thing, Dad gives Mom a hug, and then takes a long look into her face. “So it was that bad, eh?”

  Mom nods. “Yes, it’s not good. The case officer’s building up evidence that Bobby is missing, and she plans to send someone to Florida to bang on Aunt Ethel’s door, and they’ll no doubt have a search warrant.”

  I cut in, “Guys, you know, it might be time to just tell them what’s really going on. You haven’t done anything wrong. This is my problem, and they’re trying to stick the blame on you.”

  Dad turns his head toward my voice and says, “I know what you’re saying, Bobby, and your mom and I appreciate it, but I don’t think that’s a good idea. If we invite the state to step in, they’ll jump in with both feet. The health authorities would have a field day with this. They’d get hold of you, and they’d never let go. They’d categorize your condition, and then just take over—probably treat it as a contagious disease…or maybe a disability.”

  That stops me cold. I have a disability. The way I am, it’s like being paralyzed or—or blind.

  Dad continues. “They’d take you to a hospital or a research facility, and God knows how we’d ever get you back. And I’m not going to let them break up our family.”

  “But if they arrest my mom and dad, that’s breaking up the family too. And I bet I’d like a research facility a lot more than you’d like the Cook County Jail.”

  And right away I see I shouldn’t have said that, about the Cook County Jail. Because this jolt of fear shoots across their faces, both of them. And it’s not like when I was at home alone, feeling afraid of the dark. This is a real threat. The Cook County Jail is a bad place, and I see the fear settle into Dad’s eyes, watch it pull at the corners of Mom’s mouth.

  Looking at their faces, I know I’m not going to let them get arrested and dragged off to jail. That’s not going to happen, no matter what. Not to my mom and dad.

  The lady said we have five whole days. A lot can happen in five days.

  It’ll have to.

  chapter 17

  CONNECTIONS

  An hour or so after the cops leave, Dad’s on his way back to work, and I’m in the kitchen after lunch with Mom, and the phone rings. I pick it up, but before I say a word, Mom grabs the floating receiver out of the air.

  “Hello?…No, I’m sorry, Bobby isn’t here. He’s visiting some relatives in Florida, and I’m not sure when he’ll be back. I’ll tell him to give you a call the next time I talk to him. Good-bye.”

  She hangs up and turns to me, cold and serious. “Don’t answer the phone, Bobby. If Dad isn’t around or if I’m not home, just let it ring. Do you understand?”

  “Oh. Right, like in case it’s that lady calling.”

  Mom nods. “Or Mrs. Trent, or the school, or just about anybody. You can’t use the phone at all, and if you send any e-mails, erase your tracks.”

  I tilt my head and stare at her in disbelief—which has no effect, because she can’t tell I’m doing it. I have no body language. “What…like, you think they’re going to tap our phones? That’s pretty paranoid, Mom.”

  “Maybe, but maybe not. If I was running this investigation, and I thought a child might be in danger, I’d sure ask a judge for a wire
tap, wouldn’t you? All I know is, it makes sense to assume the worst.”

  Which is pretty paranoid, like I said. But I put a shrug in my voice and say, “Fine. I won’t use the phone. Who called?”

  “Alicia.”

  “So, I can’t talk to her?” Because I don’t think I could stand that.

  Mom reaches into her purse and hands me her cell phone. “Use this, and you can give Alicia that number, okay?”

  I go up to my room and call Alicia. I’m glad she called, because I’ve got this idea I want to bounce off her. Except it’s a pretty wild idea, and I don’t want her to think I’m nuts.

  After she answers, she says, “So, how’s everything in Florida?” And for a few minutes I forget about my crazy idea because there’s plenty of other stuff to talk about.

  I say, “Very funny,” and I then tell her about the search party. When I’m done, she’s not laughing anymore.

  “The lady really said your mom and dad could go to jail?”

  “No…not exactly. But she said there could be criminal prosecution, and that means you get arrested, and when you get arrested, they take you to jail. So it’s the same thing.”

  She’s quiet for a few seconds. Then she says, “Guess what book I just finished listening to.”

  “I don’t know…something a little lighter than The Scarlet Letter, like maybe Winnie-the-Pooh? I have no idea.”

  “The Invisible Man, by H. G. Wells.”

  “Oh. And you’re reading this because of me, right?”

  “Of course.”

  “I’m deeply honored. So, how is it?”

  “Creepy. I think H. G. Wells has some serious issues. All his books are about wackos who try to take over the world. This character he made up is a real nutcase. But the part about how the man made himself disappear is pretty interesting. You should read it.”

  “I’d rather have you give me a summary.”

  “Because you’re lazy?”

  “Right, and because it’s hard for me to check books out of the library right now.”

  “Okay. Fine. So this half-crazy albino guy feels like a freak, but he’s also kind of a genius, and he starts studying light, the way light works. And he gets this idea that if he could make every part of his body reflect light the same way that air does—which is not at all—then his whole body would be as invisible as air, and he could be completely transparent and have all this power. For him, it’s all about the power. And he mixes up all these chemicals that can change the way his body reflects light, and he drinks this humongous drug cocktail, and he feels like he’s going to die, and he passes out, and when he wakes up, his body has disappeared. At first he’s happy, but what he finds out is that being invisible is terrible and that all these ignorant people are scared to death of him, and that makes him even crazier, and he turns into this schizoid homicidal maniac, and at the end it takes about six men to finally kill him.”

  She pauses, and I don’t say anything.

  “Bobby?”

  “So, that’s the story?”

  “You said you wanted a summary.”

  “This sounds like a book I really need right now. Discouraging and disturbing, yet also deeply depressing. Thanks so much for sharing. Maybe you should start Alicia’s Book Club. Here’s your slogan: ‘Books to Push You Over the Edge.’”

  She doesn’t say anything. So I say, “Sorry. Still, you have to admit, that’s a pretty depressing story.”

  “But it’s not, it’s not depressing!” I can picture her face, and her intensity surprises me. “Because when I was listening to this book, all I could think of was that you are nothing like this guy. You aren’t some crazy person trying to prove some big point, or become a famous scientist or something. You were nice before this happened, and you’re still a good person. It’s not like you wanted any of this. It’s just an accident. You’re innocent, and this other guy’s guilty. Plus, he doesn’t trust anybody. And that’s not like you. This guy is all on his own because he’s so selfish. You’re not alone like he was. Like, your mom and dad? They would go to jail just to keep you safe. You have people who care about you and want to protect you.”

  “People like you?” That stops her.

  “…Well…yeah.”

  Now she’s blushing, I’m sure of it. I say, “You’ve really thought about all this, haven’t you?”

  “In case you haven’t noticed, Bobby, I really think about everything. Just because I’m blind doesn’t mean I’m stupid.”

  Her sarcasm doesn’t bother me anymore. Besides, it’s my fault for getting personal. So I say, “I think you’re right about this being an accident. But my dad says there’s no such thing as an accident. He says there’s only cause and effect. So anyway, I got this strange idea this morning, and I want to know if you think it’s stupid, okay?”

  “Sure.”

  “You know how when something bad happens, everybody says, ‘Of all the people in the world, how come this had to happen to me?’ Well, I’m lying on my bed early this morning reading an article in Time magazine about people who have had UFO abduction experiences. And I read that until the media got going on this, all these people—hundreds of them—they all kept quiet about it because they thought it only happened to them. And I look at myself, at all this, and I think, What makes you so sure this is only happening to you? Maybe going invisible has happened to other people too. Maybe lots of people! And everybody is keeping it a secret and thinks he’s the only one in the world with this problem.”

  Alicia says, “So you’re saying…maybe there’s this whole squad of other invisible people out there somewhere?…That’s pretty hard to believe.”

  “Is five invisible people harder to believe than just one? Is five or ten or a hundred any weirder than one? Okay, think about this: Do you and your dad ever talk about life in outer space?”

  Alicia snorts. “Are you kidding? My dad’s a nut about that. He says because there’s life here on Earth, there must be life other places in the universe too. The universe is so huge, he says it’s stupid to think that Earth is the only place with intelligent life.”

  “Exactly. Because the same things that caused life here probably caused it to happen somewhere else, right? So here I am, and I’ve gone invisible without trying to, and something had to cause it, and maybe the same causes did it to someone else as well. Like life on some other planet. It’s not so crazy.” I’m trying not to sound too excited about this, but I am.

  Alicia’s not going to just go along with it, though. She says, “Well, maybe it’s not crazy, but so what? Let’s say you could actually find someone else who’s invisible, then what? What good does that do?”

  “It’s good because then we could compare notes, that’s why. That’s why when scientists do experiments, they do them lots of times—to compare the results.” I stop and think a second because I want her to see why this could be important. Then I say, “Okay, when you lost your sight, did the doctors ever talk about other cases—cases like yours?”

  Now she’s thinking. “Yeah—actually, that was the first thing they did! They looked through this huge database of other patients, scanning for people with the same kind of problems and conditions as mine. They wanted to see what the best treatment would be.”

  “Exactly. And did they find any cases like yours?”

  “About fifty, and that was just in North America.”

  “Did it help?”

  “…Kind of. It confirmed what they already thought. People with my kind of problem can’t be helped.”

  “Oh.” And I remember that information can cut both ways.

  “But that doesn’t mean it would be the same for you, Bobby. If we found just one other person, then we compare both cases, and if details start matching up, then you’ve got some real clues, right?”

  “Right,” I say, “but that’s where I hit a brick wall. Because if there are others like me, how do we find them? Like, run an ad in the newspaper? ‘Having Problems With Invisibility? Call B
obby, and say so long to your troubles.’”

  Alicia giggles. “You’d probably get some very strange replies.”

  “Right. That’s the brick wall. Because even if there was some other person like me, and even if we could find him, what good would it do? Because the cops are still gonna crash in here five days from now and try to arrest my parents.”

  “But it’s something to work on, Bobby, and it’s not like you’ve got some other big plan, right? And you can’t just sit around and feel sorry for yourself, do nothing for five days—right?”

  It’s her tone that gets to me. “Who said anything about doing nothing? That’s what drives me nuts about talking to you sometimes. You twist everything around and run it through a grinder, and then shoot it back at me.”

  “Sorry you’re so sensitive. You brought it up, as I recall—all these invisible people running around the world, right? You asked me, I said it sounded like something worth looking into, and then you turn around and say it’s all just pointless.”

  “I didn’t say it’s all pointless. I just have trouble seeing how it makes sense to start hunting around for other invisible people, that’s all.”

  “So what does make sense to you, Bobby?”

  “Right now? Nothing makes any sense at all.”

  Now she’s pushing. “Oh, come on. Don’t do the ‘poor little Bobby’ routine. Let’s get this thing figured out. What are some other ideas? There must be some other ideas, right?”

  “No. I really don’t have any other ideas. Believe it or not, I just wanted to talk things out a little, you know, talk to a friend. Remember friends, Alicia? Friends are people who—”

  “Yeah,” she snaps, “yeah, I remember. Don’t you start lecturing me. Don’t even think about it, Bobby. I’ve got to go now, and you? You’ve got to find someone else who wants to sit around and listen to you snivel about everything. Let me know how it all works out, Bobby.”

  “Sure. You bet. Go ahead and hang up. Good-bye.”

  I hold the phone on my ear, waiting for her to hang up. She doesn’t. I can hear her breathing.