Free What No One Else Can Hear by Brynn Stein Page A

let alone make any connection. I had now been in Lynneville for almost six months, but I hadn’t really followed local politics or kept tabs on important people in the area. It wasn’t until I heard Dottie mutter, “Well, shit,” that I started paying attention. Dottie never cursed—not even at Chuck, who in my opinion certainly earned it most of the time.
    “What, Dottie?” I tore my attention away from Stevie’s drawing and focused more attention on the TV when I saw that was what Dottie had responded to.
    “Stevie’s so-called father,” she answered.
    “Huh?” Okay, not the best comeback, but I was utterly confused. Stevie hadn’t seen his father in six years, and no one had mentioned him before except to criticize his small checks and utter lack of involvement with his son.
    “William Liston, Stevie’s father, just decided to run for governor.”
    Drew explained further. “William Liston is arguably the richest man in Lynneville. He’s very influential in local politics, though he’s never run for office before. Everyone seems very interested in having him do so, and recently, there’ve been rumors he might actually vie for governor this year. I guess it’s official now.”
    “Stevie’s father, who in six years has not sent one cent towards his son’s upkeep beyond the absolute minimum required amount, is the area’s richest man?” I couldn’t believe it. “A man that rich puts his son in a state-run institution and just abandons him, but everyone wants this guy as governor?”
    “As far as we know, no one knows about Stevie.” Drew seemed as disgusted as I felt.
    “He’s Daddy’s dirty little secret.”
    Leave it to Chuck to pipe in with a comment like that. We fell back on our usual reply to Chuck and simply ignored him. He continued leaning against a nearby wall, watching the TV intently.
    “Well, heaven help the state of Washington if William Liston can’t take any more interest in its welfare than he has his son’s.” Dottie’s statement seemed to signify the end of the conversation, so everyone went back to doing what they had been before.
    I finally noticed Stevie had stopped drawing and was watching his father’s face on TV as intently as Chuck was.

CHAPTER 7
     
     
    F OR WEEKS Ryan had given Stevie a wide berth. He did not understand why his friend had suddenly started screaming and scratching himself while they were playing with the blocks, and I thought he was afraid of Stevie for a while—afraid that it would happen again, or possibly that Stevie would hurt him next time.
    I had to hand it to Stevie. He refused to lose Ryan as a friend. He was arguably Stevie’s first friend ever, and Stevie was fighting hard to keep him. Stevie tried to approach Ryan every time the younger boy played with the blocks. Stevie seemed to know the teasing would not be welcomed immediately, so he started over—just playing beside Ryan and gradually starting to interact.
    Over time Ryan became used to Stevie again and seemed to lose his fear. They were finally back to their old comedy act when something remarkable happened.
    Ryan took the next step. They had each been building towers of various designs when Stevie asked for a blue block for his tower. Ryan not only got the right color but actually put the block on Stevie’s tower where Stevie indicated he wanted it to go. Ryan watched Stevie closely for any sign of upset, but Stevie just asked for another color and showed Ryan where he wanted to put it.
    Both boys were beaming as they completed first Stevie’s tower and then Ryan’s, with Ryan telling Stevie what block went where and Stevie placing them. Dottie felt she had to capture that event on tape too. Ryan got a little freaked out when she first brought out the camera—I guessed because he associated it with Stevie’s meltdown the last time it had appeared. But he soon got over it, and by the end of the play session, Dottie, Drew, and Stacey were beaming as brightly as the