to visit Left Hand Tunnel. I’ll go check with the ranger.”
Should Jack explain to Sam that the tunnel wasn’t named for left-handed people? Or just let him go on thinking that it had been? Sometimes Sam seemed a whole lot younger than his eight years. Like now, when once more he kept clinging to Jack’s arm.
“Hey, what’s with you?” Jack asked him. “Why are you hanging on me like a leech? Are you afraid of this place because it’s dark?”
Sam shook his head, and motioned for Jack to lean down so he could whisper. When Jack did, Sam muttered, “She’s on d-d-drugs.”
“Your mother?” Jack answered. “Yes, I know that, and I’m sorry.”
But Sammy shook his head. “No. C-C-C—” Unable to finish the word, he just pointed to Consuela’s retreating figure.
“Consuela?” Jack exclaimed. “Don’t be crazy.”
“I saw!” Sam insisted. Finding it easier to pantomime than speak, he went through the motions of injecting his arm with a needle, then pointed again to Consuela.
“What’s he saying?” Ashley asked.
“He’s trying to tell us he saw Consuela shooting up with heroin or something.”
“Oh, Sammy, that’s insane,” Ashley declared, also bending down to his eye level. “Consuela’s a nice lady with a grandson about your age. She’s no druggie. I’m sure it must be hard on you to know that your mother takes drugs, but you can’t go around thinking that every other woman you meet does the same thing. Consuela’s really sweet. Didn’t you notice how nice she was to those Hispanic people who wouldn’t even let her eat her lunch?”
“She did it b-b-before that. When you were getting the s-s-stuff. I saw!”
“Well, I didn’t see anything.” Jack said.
“Neither did I. You’re just plain wrong, Sammy,” Ashley insisted, and to Jack, “Don’t say anything about this to Consuela. Can you imagine how she’d feel? That would be so insulting.”
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