Chapter 3

Tracy wasn't tired. Maybe because she'd slept on and off throughout the day, but she had no problem staying up to watch what Laurie would do. So far, she'd just sat at the window and sniffed occasionally as her tears seemed to have dried up. She'd watched her tense when there had been footsteps down the hallway, but they'd gone past.

Laurie had looked like she might be planning to finally go to bed when Tracy had seen her pause and then joyfully push the window open.

"Keith? Is that you?" Laurie whispered to the shadow below.

"Yeah, I'll be right up." Came a disembodied voice and then Tracy heard a light thump on the side of the house.

Laurie stayed watching out the window until she finally backed up once Keith's face appeared in the opening.

"Am I glad to see you." Laurie said as she grabbed his arm to pull him in the room.

"Why? He didn't hit you did he?" Keith asked surprised. He'd been so sure Laurie was safe.

Laurie thought about lying, but only for a second. She'd have been only too happy if Keith had agreed to take her with him when he left again. And, she knew he wasn't staying for long. It was written in every line of his body.

"Why are you back so soon?" Laurie whispered.

"I need my stash." Keith told her and then added at her look of confusion. "My weed."

"Oh. I should have known." Laurie knew her brother smoked pot and where he hid it. She'd actually moved it once for him so that he wouldn't get caught. She'd never told him about it, but she'd been tempted several times to try some herself. Up until today she'd always talked herself out of it.

"Yeah, you should have. Are HE and Mom in bed?" Keith said snidely.

"Yeah, I heard them walk by about ten minutes ago. I doubt they're asleep yet though." Laurie told him.

"Well, do you mind sneaking to my room and getting it for me?" Keith asked.

"Only if you leave me one." Laurie negotiated.

"No way." Keith answered quickly.

"Then get it yourself." Laurie turned her back on him.

"Fine. I'll leave you one joint." Keith grudgingly agreed. He'd been running low and didn't like the idea of giving any up. It just meant he needed to get some cash to replenish and soon. The money he had hidden in the bag wouldn't last him long.

"Groovy. I'll be right back." Laurie peeked out the door and then quietly slipped out.

While she was gone, Keith sat down on the end of her bed and leaned forward dejectedly. He tensed when the door reopened but relaxed as soon as he recognized Laurie's shadow.

"Here you go." Laurie put a small paper bag in his hand.

"Thanks. Hey wait a minute. I never told you where to find it." Keith finally realized she'd left the room without his telling her where to look.

"I've known for months where you hide all your most personal stuff." Laurie told him.

"All?" Keith asked in surprise.

"Yep, even the poetry you've started writing." Laurie smirked.

"It's not poetry. It's song lyrics." Keith told her in self defense. Tracy's ears perked up. This was the first sign that Keith was the brother she remembered.

"You? Writing song lyrics?" Laurie scoffed.

"Yeah, what's so weird about that?" Keith stood up.

"Well, as far as I know, you have no musical talent whatsoever. You can't even read music." Laurie laughed softly.

"You don't need to read music to pound out a beat on the drums or to write lyrics." Keith reminded her.

"I suppose not, but can you even carry a tune?" Laurie asked. She couldn't remember hearing him sing since he was a little kid.

"None of your business." Keith said defensively and reached into the bag. "Here's your joint. See you later."

"Keith, wait!" Laurie said and grabbed his arm to stop him. "Where are you going to sleep?"

"Don't worry about me. I'll find someplace." Keith assured her and tried to break away.

"No, really, where are you going to crash?" Laurie tried again.

Keith finally sighed and admitted. "I have no idea. My girlfriend's parents would never let me stay there. I don't think any of the guys would put me up either."

"Why don't you crash on the floor?" Laurie suggested.

"And risk Reuben or Mom finding me here? No way!" Keith said passionately.

"Keith, please, just stay." Laurie begged him to stay. She knew that if he left she wouldn't be able to sleep for worrying about him.

"I will not spend another night under the same roof with that...man." Keith brought his hand up to his swollen lip in memory.

"How is it? Does it hurt much?" Laurie asked as she gently touched his swollen lip once Keith's hand had dropped.

"It's fine. He's just lucky I didn't swing back." Keith threatened.

"Yeah, he is. I've seen you in a couple of fights. You're downright nasty." Laurie said with pride.

"You know it." Keith agreed and then headed again toward the window.

"Keith, seriously. Stay here tonight. I'll wake you up before they get up." Laurie tried one more time.

"No way." Keith answered.

"But, Keith it's not safe out there by yourself. Let me come with you." Laurie tried cutting him off at the window.

"Laurie, I'm a lot safer without you to worry about. Besides, I've got my knife. I'll be fine. Really." Keith assured her once again before grabbing her by the shoulders and moving her away from the window.

"When will I see you again?" Laurie sadly watched him swing his leg over the window sill.

"I'm not sure. I'll try to get word to you on where I'm staying. Alright?" Keith tried to reassure her.

Laurie could only nod. She was once again close to tears.

Tracy watched Laurie close the window behind their departed brother, get ready for bed and then lie down to try to get some sleep. Once there was no more activity in the room, Tracy soon lost her fight to remain awake.

xoxo

Tracy's dream to have things return to normal once she woke up in her bed were quickly ruined when she was woken by a shouting match in the hallway.

"He's not here because of you!" Laurie shouted.

"I will not tolerate the way he treats your mother." Reuben yelled back.

"He didn't treat her bad until you came along. In fact, he only treats her bad when she takes your side in every single argument. It's you he can't stand." Laurie pointed out.

"That's enough young lady. Apparently he's been rubbing off on you. You've become way too outspoken for your own good." Reuben said in a softer voice but still loud enough for Tracy to hear through the partially opened door.

"I'll take that as a compliment." And on those words, Laurie stormed past him and came back into her bedroom.

"Oh, hey, Peanut. How're you feeling?" Laurie asked as soon as she noticed Tracy's wide-eyed stare.

"Ok." Tracy said meekly.

Laurie smiled at her and turned away to finish getting ready for the new day. She put on her funky clothes and ran a comb haphazardly through her hair. While it was still wet, she tied a headband around the strands and sat down to put on her shoes.

"You gonna lay in bed all day?" Laurie tossed over her shoulder.

"No, I'm getting up." Tracy said to her sister's quickly retreating back.

xoxo

Tracy came down the stairs just as the front doorbell rang. Shirley walked by to open it to Natalie and her mother.

"Natalie!" Tracy practically screamed. Finally, someone normal.

"Tracy!" Natalie screeched and ran to hug her friend.

"Hello, Mrs. Kincaid. I hope you don't mind my dropping her off like this. I'm desperate." Mrs. Foster said quickly.

"No, it's fine. You go and take care of your sick mother. Natalie can stay as long as you need." Shirley smiled at her.

"Oh, I'll be by to pick her up before it gets dark." Mrs. Foster assured her.

"No problem. If things don't work out and you get held up, just give me a call." Shirley mentioned again.

"Oh, I couldn't let Natalie be around when…..well, is Keith home now?" Mrs. Foster asked a little uncomfortably.

"No, actually, he isn't." Shirley said stiffly.

Tracy watched this conversation with interest. Why didn't Mrs. Foster want Keith around? Natalie had a crush on him just like her sisters did.

"Well, I'm sure you understand about my concern for his 'type' being around any of my daughters." Mrs. Foster said in a stage whisper.

"What type is that?" Tracy asked curiously.

Mrs. Foster just blushed and took her leave quickly. "Mommy, what did she mean?"

"Nothing, honey." Shirley tried to gloss it over.

"Mommy, what did she mean?" Tracy said again.

"Well, she thinks that Keith is a bad influence." Shirley hoped she would let it go at that.

No such luck. "Why?"

"Because she's worried that Keith will corrupt her older daughters." Shirley said vaguely.

"Why?" Tracy asked. She could have asked what corrupt meant too. She had no idea what her mother had just said.

"Because all mother's worry about their daughters. Why don't you and Natalie go outside and play?" Shirley tried to end the conversation one more time.

"Because I'm hungry. Can't I have some breakfast?" Tracy asked surprised at her Mom's suggestion.

"Oh, I'm sorry honey. I'm a little distracted." Shirley said as she herded the two small girls to the kitchen table. "Natalie would you like something to eat too?"

"Sure, Mrs. Kincaid. What're you having?" Natalie happily sat next to her friend and Tracy let the subject drop for now.

xoxo

Tracy and Natalie played outside for most of the morning. They came in just before lunch to wash up. As they walked down the upstairs hallway, they heard Laurie talking on the phone that she'd pulled into their bedroom.

Tracy motioned for Natalie to be quiet and they crept to the door and listened in.

"Emily, have you seen Keith?" Laurie said to the person on the other end. There was silence from Laurie and then, "No, he left home last night."

"He and Reuben got into it pretty bad."

"Reuben backhanded him."

"Yeah, I thought Reuben was pretty lucky too. Keith has that switchblade that he's pretty good with. Reuben better watch it or he'll end up dead." Laurie said with some glee.

"No, I realize that your parents would never let him sleep by you. I was just hoping maybe he'd contacted you. I need to talk to him."

"No, I'd rather not approach the other guys in the gang. Keith's warned me off of them."

"Call me if you hear from him, ok?"

"Remember, you'll have to make something up if Reuben answers." With that, Laurie hung up the phone.

Tracy and Natalie quickly snuck to the bathroom and closed the door.

"That was my sister on the other end." Natalie said.

"How do you know that?" Tracy asked.

"Because, I saw her outside our house the other night kissing with Keith. I think they're dating." Natalie told her.

"But they hardly know each other." Tracy reminded her.

"Doesn't matter. I heard Terry telling Emily that she was going to tell Mom and Dad that she was dating someone that Mom and Dad wouldn't approve of. I thought Emily was going to blow up. She was threatening Terry to make sure she stayed quiet. Terry is such a blabber mouth. Then, like I told you, I saw her kissing someone in a leather jacket. When they finally stopped kissing long enough, I saw that it was Keith. Do you think we'll ever like boys enough to do what they were doing?" Natalie asked in her little girl curiosity.

"My sister tells me that someday it'll happen. I'm not so sure though." Tracy agreed.

"Well, I'm not sure I ever will. The kind of kissing Keith and Emily were doing looked pretty gross." Natalie giggled and Tracy quickly joined her.

xoxo

Tracy and Natalie had snuck into the garage after lunch. Tracy had paused upon entering. Where were all their instruments? The only thing sitting in a corner was a drum set. It didn't have the Partridge Family skin on the bass drum, so she knew it wasn't Chris's set. Other than that, the garage was void of anything musical. The only thing of note where the instruments should have been, were some grease spots on the floor. There was a large tool box and other cardboard boxes strewn around the room in a haphazard manner. Were their instruments on the bus? Maybe they had a show coming up soon and they'd already packed the bus. Tracy silently hoped that was the case. But wait, she hadn't seen the bus in the driveway either. Was it at the garage for repairs? Thinking about it gave her a headache, so she let Natalie talk her into playing instead.

Currently, she and Natalie were hiding behind a bunch of boxes. They didn't want Danny and Chris to find them. They'd been mean earlier in the day, well at least Chris had been. Danny had been oddly silent and let Chris push him around. Tracy and Natalie had decided to avoid the boys at all costs.

They were quietly playing with Tracy's dolls when they heard the side garage door open. They thought it might be Danny or Chris, so they peeked from behind the boxes. They saw Keith snake his way through the door and then watch through a small crack before closing the door silently behind him. He finally turned from the door and started looking around for something. Tracy put her finger to her lips to make sure Natalie didn't say anything. Tracy wanted to know what Keith was looking for and she knew that if they made their presence known, he'd leave.

Keith finally found what he was looking for. He pulled an old sleeping bag from behind a couple of boxes and pounded it, releasing a cloud of dust. Keith coughed lightly and waved his hand in front of his face. His face had a look of disgust, but he set the sleeping bag by the door and went back to look for something else.

He had compiled a small stack of camping equipment when he froze. The side door had opened again, and he tensed until he realized it was just Laurie.

"I thought I saw you come in here. I had to wait until Mom went to the store before I could come out here. What are you doing?" Laurie asked.

"I'm taking the camping equipment." Keith told her and continued his search.

"Oh, man, I forgot about all this stuff." Laurie said as she peeked through his pile. "This stuff hasn't been used since you and dad used to go camping when you were little."

"Yeah, I know. That's why no one will miss it." Keith said and came out of the box he'd almost disappeared into holding an old lantern.

"I suppose not. So, I guess, that means you're sleeping outside." Laurie watched Keith walk toward her with his latest find.

"Yep." Keith agreed and turned away to keep looking for more stuff.

"Keith, take me with you." Laurie tried again. "I don't want to be here. Not without you here too."

"No way." Keith said again.

"Reuben and I had a fight this morning." Laurie hoped that would grab his attention.

"What about?" Keith barely looked up from his search.

"You. What'd you think?" Laurie admitted.

Keith just grunted a laugh in her direction.

"I want to go with you." Laurie repeated.

"Enough!" Keith finally looked directly at her. "There is no way you're coming with me."

"Why not?" Laurie needed an explanation.

"Because of the gang I ride with." Keith explained.

"What about them?" Laurie asked. "If they're good enough for you, they're good enough for me, right?"

"Laurie, you don't understand." Keith sighed.

"Then make me understand." Laurie walked over to him. "If you don't, I'll run away from home myself."

"Dammit Laurie! Just stay here. You're much better off here." Keith turned away from her in frustration.

"No." Laurie put her hand on his arm. "I'm not better off here."

"Yes, you are." Keith turned suddenly to her and grabbed her shoulders. "You don't understand what they'd do to you."

"Do to me?" Laurie said in confusion.

"Laurie, remember a few months ago when I came home all beat up. You helped me doctor all my cuts and bruises and helped me hide them with make-up so Mom wouldn't find out." Keith waited for Laurie to nod. "Well, those injuries were caused by my initiation into the gang. They took turns beating me up. I was allowed to fight back, but they started with the biggest, toughest guy and went down from there. By the end, I was so tired I couldn't put up much of a fight. That's why I was so bad."

"I remember." Laurie said quietly.

"The only reason we were successful in hiding it is that they tried staying away from the face. They do this all the time and know that if they beat up a new member to not make it obvious or the cops will come sniffing around." Keith told her.

"But, they don't beat up girls, do they?" Laurie knew Keith would never have anything to do with people who mistreated women.

"No they don't. What they do to the girls is even worse." Keith told her sadly.

"Keith, why did you get involved with a group that mistreats women?" Laurie was shocked by his admission.

"I didn't know what they did before I got in. Now I can't get out." Keith admitted.

"What do they do?" Laurie couldn't stop herself from asking.

"They make 'em sleep with all the members." Keith spoke barely above a whisper; ashamed at his part in the whole thing.

"You've been a part of that?" Laurie's shock was complete when he just barely nodded without looking at her. "How could you?"

"It's not like I wanted to. I just couldn't not do it. They'd kill me." Keith could not bring himself to look at his sister.

"Why do you stay?" Laurie needed to know.

"Because I have no choice. I either disappear or I stay in. The only other option is death and I've decided I'm too young for that." Keith tried joking.

"Oh, Keith what're you gonna do?" Laurie wanted to cry but refused to let the tears fall.

"I'm gonna get enough money together and I'm gonna go away. Far away. Maybe Europe or Australia. Out of the reach of Goose and his buddies." Keith told her his deepest secret.

"Will you take me with you then?" Laurie's tears were shining in her eyes.

"Sure. It'll be a while though. It takes a lot of money to disappear." Keith reminded her.

"I'll wait. Where's your bike?" Laurie bent over to pick up some of Keith's camping equipment.

"Around the corner, why?" Keith asked.

"I'll help you carry some of this." Laurie walked out of the garage beside her brother.

Tracy watched them go and looked at Natalie who was sitting there with her mouth hanging open. Tracy too was shocked. What she'd learned about this person who was masquerading as her brother was a whole lot different than the Keith she remembered.

Tracy was starting to question whether the here and now was reality and her memories were flawed or if she was still dreaming. She prayed fervently that this was all a dream. She wanted her old family back.