Stars Over Terabithia
Chapter Thirteen - The Cerone Revelation
(Please read and review, it makes us better writers)
Disclaimer: I do not own Bridge to Terabithia and no profit was gained
from the writing of this story. Terabithia was created by Katherine Paterson.
The critical condition of Julia Edmunds caused quite bit more than a fuss in Lark Creek. Given the small town's approximate size, just about everyone knew her and liked her very, very much. Since moving to the quaint settlement with her grandparents ten years earlier – only a couple of days after her seventeenth birthday – she had befriended practically every parent and child within the public school system, had become the coach of the high school's girl's basketball program, and had received the however-meaningless teacher-of-the-year award during three of her five years as an employee of the elementary school.
The devastation at her grevious injuries ushered in a an extended Christmas break, pulling students out of school after having only been in class for three of the six hours of their first day back. This was highly unusual for even a disorganized school system, but it was ultimately a welcome surprise. A lot of people, faculty and students alike, had a lot on their minds and needed the extra time to visit Miss Edmunds, as the tragic event had happened only a day before school was to be back in session.
For Jess Aarons and Leslie Burke, the week extension would have normally meant very little. Both of them were good students, and neither of them had as much of a problem with going to school every day as the rest of the student body seemed to.
On this occasion however, the extra free time was very welcome, as their second trimester of the year allotted them very little time together during the week. The only times they had seen each other at school were in front of the building before they were allowed in, in a brief pass in the hallways between third and fifth period, and at lunch. Given the events of the last week and more, time together had suddenly become even more important for the two of them than it already had been.
Brenda didn't tease the two of them at all regarding the incident in the car. While she still took some pride in tormenting her younger brother, she was a bit taken back. When Jess and Leslie had been quite a bit younger, she teased Jess daily about his "girlfriend." Back then, the idea had seemed ridiculous, even to her. Now, four and a half years later, she had to admit that they made a great pair.
May Belle seemed more excited about the two of them "hooking up" (two words that had become frightfully overused in the sixth grade) than either one of the fifteen year olds did. She did however, swear not to tell a soul with the exception of Joyce Ann. Joyce, on the other hand, made sure that Gabe, Ellie, and eventually their parents know that Leslie was going to be her "new big sister."
Mr. Aarons' old truck pulled up in the driveway just after six in the evening, and everyone in the house rushed quickly to the door to greet them. However, only Mrs. Aarons came inside, quickly explaining that her husband had gone to run some errands.
Brenda and Gabe left about a half hour later, both of them having promised to stop by Gabe's mother's house that night since they had been unable to visit her on New Year's Day. Ellie slept over, but mostly kept to herself.
Jess and May Belle sat quietly at the kitchen table, listening to Mrs. Aarons give a pre-teen friendly version of the antics a the annual party. Joyce continually interjected at certain points that she should tell her mother something, to which Jess would simply reply that she shouldn't speak while others were talking. Joyce responded with the best comeback an almost-five-year-old could think of; eyes closed, face screwed up, tongue rolled and stuck out.
When Joyce finally was able to share her news, Jesse's mom didn't seem to quite understand. As the young one's understanding was far less about Jesse and Leslie's relationship developments and more about a simplified exaggeration planted in her mind by May Belle for Jess's embarrassment ("Leslie's gonna be our new sister!"), she could not elaborate much on her own claims.
May Belle and Joyce left to do something or other, and Jess decided to discuss Miss Edmunds with his mother, who had already heard the news on the radio earlier that day. She seemed very happy to learn from her son that Brenda had taken them up to see her, but insisted that Jess not go into any visual details about her condition.
Jess's dad came home during the discussion, and Jess was quick to find out that he had been visiting Bob Edmunds, who was apparently Miss Edmunds' grandfather and only living relative. He only found out what he overheard, and didn't ask any of the number of questions for the sake of trying to keep Miss Edmunds off his mind.
A knock at the door heralded Leslie's arrival, and she took the seat across from Jess and immediately began some good-natured complaining about her mother's insistence that she spend the time that she would normally use to do her homework vacuuming the house, tidying up the kitchen, and then washing the dishes after dinner had ended.
Jess's mother started in on Leslie with questions about the burglary that had taken place a day earlier, which she had learned of during a phone conversation with Brenda. After Leslie assured her that everything was fine and that nothing had been taken from her home, Mrs. Aarons moved on to lighter topics, mostly concerning Leslie's trip from Christmas Day through New Years, with Jess's father popping in and out of the kitchen and offering the occasional comment regarding whatever small portion of the conversation that he happened to overhear during his short presence.
After almost forty-five minutes of conversation, Leslie gave Jess a sort of longing glance, one that practically pleaded – however unintentionally – for him to find a way to end the small talk.
"Hey mom," Jess said, throwing a look of exaggerated anxiousness and concern on his face. "Me and Leslie were going to go into the woods tonight, so we need to hurry up before it gets too late."
"All right," Mrs. Aarons said. "Stay out of the mud, and make sure you're back in before your dad and I go to bed or you might be sleeping in that tree house tonight. Nice talking to you dear."
Already at the back door, Leslie turned and acknowledged the latter part of Mrs. Aarons' semi-lecture with a smile and a small wave, and then went out the back door, where Jess was already hurriedly distancing himself from the house.
"Terabithia?" Leslie question as she lightly jogged to catch up to her friend. "It's been a while since we've been there in the dark. Just after I got back from..."
Jess gave Leslie a sympathetic look as she trailed off, knowing full well what she had just prevented herself from saying. He stretched an arm across her shoulders and pulled her in next to him, her immediate reaction being to rest her head lightly against his shoulder as they walked. At first, she felt a bit silly for the reaction, but as quickly as that notion arrived, it was replaced by a firm sense of belong; that it just felt right.
"You miss him, huh?" Jess asked. Had this been a different topic, Leslie probably would have given him that sarcastic, raised-eyebrow and notified him how dumb the question was, but in this case, he felt her nod as much as she could with her head resting against his shoulder.
"It still doesn't seem real," she said. It felt weird for her to talk about it. She had been avoiding the subject of her father outside of necessary conversation with members of her family, and the occasional 'how are you holding up' from Jess's parents and her teachers. "I look at his usual seat at the dinner table and realize that he'll never use it again. Whenever mom makes his favorite food, he won't be able to enjoy it. When I learn to drive, dad won't be able to teach me. I'll have to learn from mom."
"God help us," Jess interjected. Leslie managed a genuine, albeit stuffy-nosed giggle at that.
"Don't take your parents for granted, Jess," Leslie said, serious once more. "No matter how much they get on your nerves, you love them, and when they're gone, you'll want to feel like everything was fine, and that nothing was left unsaid. Your sisters, too."
It was hard for Jess's mind to even wrap around the concept of anyone in his immediate family no longer being with him. Even Brenda, who had admittedly become infinitely more tolerable in the last two years or so, was someone that he felt would be difficult to live without.
They ended the death talk as they crossed the bridge into Terabithia, Leslie commenting on how "spooky" the current sounded beneath them, as it was too dark to make out the muddy water that ran rapidly down the creek.
"Leslie, listen," Jess said as soon as they were seated somewhat uncomfortably in the tree house. The moonlight seemed to be pointedly directed at them, illuminating the space about them in something of a surreal fashion. "I think we should talk. About us."
Leslie kind of tilted her head to one side, the way Prince Terrien always seemed to do whenever multiple people were excitedly barking different commands at him.
"We can't brush it off as a simple change," Jess continued, squirming slightly where he sat.
Leslie dropped her gaze to her cross-legged lap, her eyes full of thought. A small gust of wind overtook them, blowing her hair back, and then she looked back up at him, her eyebrows scrunched together.
"You know, I think I was still ten years old when I told my dad that I loved you," she smiled in recollection. "He got a kick out of it, and teased me a lot about it afterwards. It wasn't until you were the one that pulled me out of the creek that he took me a bit more seriously."
"Were you serious?" Jess asked the question as he thought it, and before he knew what he was saying. Bill had of course shared this bit of information with Jess at the hospital those years ago, but aside from it making him feel a bit better about his standing with Leslie, he hadn't given it a lot of consideration. He had, in fact forgotten about it until now.
Leslie considered him for a moment. "I was a lot less sure of my feelings back then, but I think I knew that this would happen some day; that our relationship would take a turn like this. There was a point when I was completely sure. You know how to win a girl's heart."
"Huh?"
"Well, saving my life didn't exactly do much to lower you from the pedestal I've had you standing on since you went out of your way to pull me out of Janice Avery's warpath. Actually, come to think of it, you may have saved my life more than once."
They both shared a laugh at that.
"So, what's the deal?" Jess asked, wanting to hear it rather than having to assume Leslie's feelings were mutual to his own. "How are we going to handle this?"
Leslie responded by catching his mouth with hers in a very quick kiss that Jess didn't have time to return.
"I love you," she said once they separated. Jess was rather wide-eyed, and hadn't been expected such a quick and forward verbal response. "But if you ever called me 'sweetheart' or 'babe,' I reserve the right to take back my earlier statement!"
- - - - - - - - - -
MOB INDICTMENTS SWEEP
THE STATE
Organized crime in Northern Virginia suffered its most crippling
blow in over seventy years yesterday morning, when dozens of
federal vehicles were dispatched to the homes of forty-seven
convicted and reputed mobsters as a federal indictment swept
the state. Sources from within the FBI have shared their enthusiasm
in a round-up that has been over ten years in the making.
"It's about damn time," one agent told the press. "Hundreds of
thousands of man hours have been put into getting these men
out of their cheap 'business' suits and jogging outfits, and into
the orange jump suits that they belong in."
The indictment names many high profile mobsters belonging to
the DeCelino crime family, including reputed family boss Frank
Cerone. Cerone faces three murder charges in addition to the
standard racketeering, extortion, bribery and loansharking
charges contained in the indictment, including the suspected
slaying of his own daughter, who went missing in 2002.
Also named in the indictment are Dominic DeCelino,
underboss and last remaining piece of the DeCelino
blood line. With him are four family captains (or
"capos") and several dozen soldiers and associates. Those
indicted face anywhere from five years to life imprisonment
if convicted
- - - - - - - - - -
"The best news?" Jack Aarons asked his family at the breakfast table, having just finished reading to them what he felt to be the greatest news story of the decade. "Lark Creek's in the running to hold the trial. They want to do it some place low key, where no one will show up. Shame that every soul in a piss-ant down like this will flock to that thing. These people need some excitement in their lives."
"Sounds like you need a little more in yours," Jess said. May Belle snorted in laughter, coughing and letting the contents of her mouth spill back into her cereal bowl. "Can you read that part about the boss again? The Cerone guy."
"Bastard killed his daughter," Jack said with mild frustration in his voice. "They should just toss out the trial and hang him out to dry. Instead, they're going to give him a trial and give him the chance to try and get away with it. Ain't this country grand?"
His father's rant lasted most of breakfast that morning, and as soon as Jess had finished his chores, he found himself seated on Leslie's living room couch as her mother obsessed over making sure that he was comfortable. He couldn't help but wonder if Leslie had told her about the developments in their relationship, or if Mrs. Burke had always been this nice.
As soon as he got the chance to break the two of them away from Leslie's mom's prying ears, he suggested that the two of them go up to her bedroom for a bit of privacy. Leslie gave him a somewhat awkward stare, but he promised to explain.
"The diary," Jess said as the bedroom door closed shut behind him.
Leslie sat down on her bed, ran her hand through a resting PT's fur, shook her blonde hair out of her eyes and put her attention squarely on her best friend. At first, it seemed as if she had no idea what he was even speaking of, but realization seemed to dawn on her as the seconds lapsed.
"Oh," she said, somewhat enthusiastically, and then went back to a dull, uninspired tone when she continued with, "what about it?"
"What was the name of the girl that kept it?"
"Valarie Juliette Cerone," Leslie said without missing a beat. "She started the diary when she was thirteen years old and wrote rather irregularly until she was about sixteen. Then the diary just sort of stopped..."
"What do you mean, stopped?"
"I mean she stopped writing it," Leslie said, shrugging. "Not surprising. She met a nice boy, and the two went steady for a while, and she was really nervous about her ACTs and driver's test. I'm guessing she just got too caught up in her own life to keep writing in it."
"Did she ever mention her dad's name?"
Leslie struck a very pensive pose, and then stood and grabbed the diary from the top drawer of her dresser. She opened the cover and flipped through the pages frantically, finally coming to a stop a minute or two later after several unsuccessful attempts at locating a specific entry.
Dear Diary,
It's probably the strangest thing I've ever written in this book, but I think Tony is actually afraid that my dad is going to hurt me or something. Honestly, he should be more afraid for himself, seeing as dad caught us making out on the couch the other night. He seriously shouldn't have been home, but whatever. He's always been a bit overprotective, even though mom seems perfectly fine with the pace at which my relationship with Tony is progressing.
I think the big problem he has with us is that Tony isn't Italian. His dad married Italian, and his dad before him, and I think he expects me to carry on the legacy. But what am I supposed to do, get married to the son of one of my dad's poker buddies? Half of them are addicted to some kind of drug, and the other half are freakin' psychopaths. The only decent friend my dad even has is the book guy, but he doesn't come around much anymore.
Seeing the way that mom acts around dad makes me want to keep my intimate relationships as far away from that world as possible. I'm not idiot; I know what the man does for a living, and there's nothing I can do to change it. I guess the best thing for me is to marry out of our culture, and get as far away from Frank Cerone as I possibly can.
"That's the last entry," she told him after she finished reading. "I think there was another, but the page is torn out."
Jess took a large gulp and sighed heavily.
"Leslie, Valarie Cerone didn't stop writing because she got caught up in her life," said Jess. "Valarie Cerone stopped writing because she was murdered."