Free Bone Dance by Martha Brooks Page A

later?” Robert asked Tammy.
    â€œLike what?” she said flatly, shifting so that her arm almost touched Lonny’s shoulder.
    â€œWe’ll go to the drive-in. Okay?”
    â€œYeah, sure. Shane, we have to go. Are you finished torturing that thing?”
    Shane looked up, grinned, swiped the dead beetle on his jacket.
    â€œBye,” Tammy said softly to Lonny, and then she disappeared from the window.
    Robert called after her, “I’ll pick you up around seven!” And he watched, hopefully, for several seconds before he finally turned his head back to Lonny. “Did you see the way she looked at me? Did you? This is amazing. This is my lucky day, man.”
    â€œYeah,” Lonny said wearily.
    After that, they went home, where Lonny tried to get used to the idea of the LaFrenière land now belonging to some spoiled-rotten city girl who didn’t deserve it. And not to Pop, who did.
    A month later he was still not used to the idea.
    â€œMaybe she’ll just not bother to show up,” he said, taking his morning coffee out in the June sunlight to join Pop on the front steps.
    Pop slowly sipped his coffee and looked up at the drifting clouds. “She’ll be here,” he said. “It’s just a matter of time.”

11
    Mid-June and the morning of their graduation dance. She and Serena were going as each other’s date. Sprawled on top of Alex’s bed, they were doing their goddess thing. Alex painted Serena’s toenails. Gypsy Gold.
    Out of the blue, Serena opened her mouth and said, “If it were me, I’d sell the land, take part of the money, and spend it on a modest vacation to, say, oh—Brazil! Then I’d invest the rest in Serena’s Catering Service. It’s the
best
gift. No strings attached. Alex, why haven’t you at least gone out there? You’ve had it for five months already. Don’t you even want to see it? We could go together. Let’s do that!”
    Outside, the noisy traffic whined by. Serena dropped an orange section into her mouth and said, “Come on, it’d be fun.”
    Alex flicked bloodred, gold-flecked polish on Serena’s toes. Flick. Flick. Flick. Skip a beat. Skip a breath. And a sudden image spun wildly in, crashing powerfully against her heart. A bone-shaped lake with thehill of her dreams rising above. Grandpa and Old Raven Man fishing at the rocky shoreline. Grandpa’s fish breaks the surface. Beads of water, flung from its massive tail, arc far across the dark green skin of the lake. It flips and dances and fills the sky. It’s the mother of all fishes, full of God and terrifying magic. Old Raven Man suddenly sits down, laughing, his long birdlike hands slapping his knees. Grandpa turns his head. His lips form these unmistakable words: “Alexandra! It’s time!”
    She smeared the polish. This is not normal, she thought. Normal people do not go around having visions.
    Serena rescued the pot of Gypsy Gold. “What?” she said with a strange smile. “You look like you’ve just seen a ghost.”

12
    She and Serena sat at their table at midnight. Purple and white balloons drifted across the floor. A few couples still danced under the dim lights. A scattering of people in the bathrooms were throwing up. Jason Lavoie swayed over to their table with Melissa Singar-ajah on his arm. He was very drunk, and she more or less held him up.
    â€œAlex,” he said, falling into a chair beside her. “Alex,” he breathed again.
    Melissa folded her arms and pretended to look at everybody dancing.
    He sighed. “Alex, you’re beautiful. Look at her, Melissa. Don’t you think she’s beautiful?”
    â€œAre you trying to say something meaningful, Jason?” asked Serena with a huge smile.
    â€œGawdamn, yes,” he whispered, pawing at Alex’s hand. “Right, Melissa?”
    He lolled his head back at Melissa, who then decided to go