Free Full Circle by Susan Rogers Cooper Page A

long time ago, Tommy, or whoever you are. Don’t call me, don’t email me, don’t IM me. If I hear from you again, I’m calling the po—’
    ‘Bessie, whatever you do, don’t call the police! They’re in on it. At least that friend of E.J.’s is – that Elena Luna. She and E.J. were both in on this from the beginning—’
    ‘In on what?’ Elizabeth said, stopping traffic around her. She’d spoken louder than she intended. Seeing kids staring at her, she moved closer to the lockers that lined the hallways and spoke more softly into the phone. ‘What are you talking about?’
    ‘You didn’t buy all that bullshit they told you, did you? This goes high, Bessie. Way high. You know Dad worked for the utility commission, right? At the beginning, when they were setting it up. Who do you think was the utility commissioner back then? J. Patrick Reynolds, that’s who. You know who he is now? Railroad commissioner, Bessie! Do you know what that means? That makes this guy the most powerful man in Texas, next to the governor. Do you know what the railroad commissioner does, Bessie? He’s in charge of transportation, sure, but he’s also in charge of oil and gas. What’s the biggest cash crop in Texas, Bessie? Oil and gas. And where do you think he’d be right now if Dad had been able to get the information he had to the right people? In prison, that’s where. No railroad commission, no millions of dollars to control – and take. Like he took from the utility commission. And none of this came out back then, did it? No, it was all swept under the rug. By who? By your precious E.J., that’s who. Along with her pal the police detective. I’ve been in hiding for nine years, but it’s time I came out. I want to see you! I want what’s left of my family back, Bessie! You’re all I have! But once E.J. and Willis and that Luna woman find out I’m back, we’re both in danger. Do you think they’d let you live now that you know what’s really going on?’
    ‘Go away!’ Elizabeth hissed into the phone. ‘You’re insane!’
    ‘No, Bessie, I’ve finally come to my senses. I’ve been hiding too long—’
    ‘OK, if you’re Aldon, then who did we bury ten years ago?’ Elizabeth demanded.
    ‘I hate to think who it might have been,’ Aldon said in a hushed voice. ‘Some poor kid, a runaway maybe. They killed him and put him in my place.’
    ‘My God, you sound like a bad made-for-TV movie!’ Elizabeth tried, attempting a laugh. It came out sounding slightly deranged even to her own ears.
    ‘I need you to meet me, Bessie—’
    ‘Stop calling me that! I haven’t been “Bessie” in years! My name is Elizabeth!’ she said.
    ‘You’ll always be Bessie to me,’ the voice said. ‘My baby sister.’
    Elizabeth hung up, turning the phone off.
    BLACK CAT RIDGE, TEXAS, 1999
    I had to go to the funeral home and pick out caskets. This was all new to me. No one in my family had died as of yet, except for one grandfather, who died when I was twelve, and I had nothing to do with that funeral. Willis had taken care of the arrangements for both his father and his brother, but I hadn’t been involved in anything other than fixing food and trying to be supportive. This time, it was all on my shoulders. I figured, hey, I’m five foot eleven, weigh 170 pounds, my shoulders should be big enough.
    I selected the caskets: three adult-sized oak cases with tufted sateen lining, and a fifty-year guarantee. One child-size casket, painted white, with a pale blue sateen lining. We arrived at a figure that took my breath away, but I signed on the dotted line. I figured I was in this for the long haul.
    I spent that evening with my family, not telling anyone about the cost of the day. The hospital bill of over $1,000, the bill that would be coming from the funeral home for more money than I made on three books. I don’t know why I was shielding Willis from this. I guess, in some deep recess of my soul, I was afraid he’d leave