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His father came.Billy knew he was going to get a beating. But his father didn’t give any indication of that. He asked to see the gun. He asked Billy where the bullets were. Billy said he was shooting at a vicious kid who was attacking him.

Billy’s father just nodded, his face bland. But he said he would follow the cops down to the station, when they took Billy there to book him.

Henry said,"I think we have to admit, it just isn’t working."

"What do you mean?" Lynn said, running her fingers through Dave’s hair. "This isn’t Dave’s fault, you said so yourself."

"I know. But there seems to be trouble all the time. Biting, fighting…Now gunshots, for God’s sake. He’s endangering all of us."

"But it’s not his fault, Henry."

"I’m worried about what will happen next."

"You could have thought of that earlier," she said, in a sudden burst of anger. "Like four years ago, when you decided to do your experiment. Because now it’s a little too late to be having regrets, don’t you think? He’s our responsibility, and he’s staying with us."

"But – "

"We’re his family."

"They were shooting at Jamie."

"Jamie’s all right."

"Butshooting …"

"It was some crazy kid. Sixth-grader. The police have him."

"Lynn, you’re not listening."

She glared at him. "What do you think, that you can quietly get rid of him, like a Petri dish that didn’t turn out right? You can’t just dump Dave in the biotrash. You’re the one who’s not listening. Dave is a living, thinking sentient being, and you made him. You are the reason why he exists on this earth. You don’t have the right to abandon him just because he’s inconvenient or has trouble at school." She paused to catch her breath. She was very angry. "Anyway, I’m not giving him up," she said. "And I don’t want to talk about it anymore."

"But – "

"Not now, Henry."

Henry knew that tone. He shrugged and left.

"Thank you," Dave said, bending his head so she could run her fingers through the fur on his neck. "Thank you, Mom."

CHapter 070

Alex tookher son to an In-N-Out drive-in, and they had burgers and fries and strawberry shakes. It was now dark outside. She thought of calling Lynn again, but Lynn had sounded harried. She decided not to.

She paid for the burgers in cash. Then they drove to a Walston’s drugstore, one of those block-long places that had everything. She bought Jamie some underwear and a change of clothes; she did the same for herself. She bought a couple of toothbrushes and toothpaste.

She was heading toward the checkout when she saw the guns for sale, over by the cameras and watches. She went to look. Over the years, she had gone to shooting ranges with her father. She could handle a gun. She told Jamie to go look at the toy aisle, and she went to the gun rack.

"Help you?" It was a wimpy guy with a mustache.

"I’d like to see that Mossberg double-action." She nodded to the wall.

"That’s our model 590, twelve-gauge, perfect for home defense. Got a special price this week only."

She hefted it. "Okay, I’ll take it."

"I’ll need an ID, and a deposit to hold it."

"No," she said, "I mean, I’ll buy it now."

"Sorry, ma’am, ten-day waiting period in California."

She handed the gun back. "I’ll think it over," she said.

She returned to Jamie, bought the Spider-Man toy he was playing with, and walked out to the parking lot.

A man was standing at the back of her car, bending over the license plate. Writing the number down. He was an older guy, in some kind of uniform. He looked like a security guard from the store.

She thought:Run. Leave now.

But that didn’t make sense; she needed a car. It was time to think fast. She told Jamie to get in the car, and she walked to the back. "You know he’s a damn liar," she said.

"Who’s that?" the guard said.

"My ex-husband. He pretends like this car is his, but it isn’t. He’s just harassing me. I got a court order to stop him, and I got a big judgment against the security guard at Wal-Mart."

"How’s that?" he said.

"Don’t act dumb," she said. "I know you got a call from him. He pretends to be an attorney, he pretends to be a bail bondsman, or a court agent, and he wants you to check if my car is in the lot. He says it’s some pending legal matter."

"Well, yes – "

"He’s lying, and you’re now liable. Did he tell you I was an attorney?"

"No, he just – "

"Well, I am. And you’re an accessory to his breaking the court order. That makes you liable to damages. Invasion of privacy and harassment." She took a pad from her purse. "Now your name is…" She squinted at the name tag, began to write.

"I don’t want any trouble, ma’am – "

"Then give me that sheet of paper you wrote my license on, and back off," she said. "And when my husband calls again, you damn well tell him you never set eyes on me, or I’ll see you in court, and I promise you, you’ll be lucky if all you lose is your job."

He nodded, gave her the paper. His hands were shaking. She got in the car and drove off.

As she pulled out of the parking lot, she thought,Maybe it will work. Then again, maybe not. Mostly she was stunned by how fast this bounty hunter had located her.

He no doubt had followed her own car north for a couple of hours, and then realized that she had switched cars with her assistant. He and his cohorts knew her assistant’s name, and they got her car registration. So now they knew the car Alex was driving.