Timeline:
1. 'In the beginning' Parts 1 and 2 (Chapters 13 and 14) Rusty is seven, Danny is nine.
2. 'Neverending Conversation' Parts 1 and 2 (Chapters 15 and 16) Rusty is seven, Danny is nine.
3. 'Growing Together' (Chapter 44) Rusty is seven, Danny is nine
4. 'Trick and Treat' (Chapter 34) Rusty is eight, Danny is ten.
5. 'Matilda and the Werewolf' (Chapter 23) Rusty is nine, Danny is eleven.
6. 'Fishing Trip' (Chapter 47) Rusty is nine, Danny is eleven
7. 'Something more than it should be' (Chapter 10) Rusty is ten, Danny is twelve
8. 'The humiliation of Norris Carrol' (Chapter 20) Rusty is ten, Danny is thirteen
9. 'Four Day Interlude' (Chapter 5) Rusty is ten, Danny is thirteen
10. 'Remember the first time' (Chapter 4) Rusty is ten, Danny is thirteen
11. 'Sunshine, smiles and sweet, sweet words' (Chapter 17) Rusty is ten, Danny is thirteen.
12. 'Lie, Cheat, Steal, Play' (Chapter 24) Rusty is ten, Danny is thirteen
13. 'View from the outside' (Chapter 12) Rusty is eleven, Danny is fourteen
14. 'When we were young' Part 1, 2, 3 and 4 (Chapter 25-28) Rusty is eleven, Danny is fourteen
15 'Gnome and Garden' (Chapter 49) Rusty is twelve, Danny is fourteen
16. 'And we won't get it back when we die' (Chapter 29) Rusty is twelve, Danny is fourteen
17. 'Walk before you can crawl' (Chapter 2) Rusty is twelve, Danny is fifteen
18. 'Other Nightmares Parts 1 and 2 (Chapters 8 and 9) Rusty is twelve, Danny is fifteen
19. 'Unseasonal' (Chapter 36 37, 38, 39 40, 41, 42 & 43) Rusty is twelve, Danny is fifteen
20. 'The more things change' (Chapter 1) Rusty is thirteen, Danny is fifteen
21. 'Different Roads' Part 1-3 (Chapter 31-33) Rusty is thirteen, Danny is fifteen
22. 'Words and Silence' (Chapter 22) Rusty is thirteen, Danny is sixteen
23. 'Stocking, Glitter, Snow' (Chapter 46) Rusty is thirteen, Danny is sixteen
24. 'Six months of roses' (Chapter 18) Rusty is thirteen/fourteen, Danny is sixteen
25. 'Two stories with some understanding' (Chapter 21) Rusty is thirteen, Danny is sixteen. Falls within time of'Six months of roses'
26. 'Life Lessons' (Chapter 7) Rusty is fourteen, Danny is sixteen - falls within time of 'Six months of roses'
27. 'The lies we live' (Chapter 3) Rusty is fourteen, Danny is sixteen
28. 'All Fun and Games' (Chapter 45) Rusty is fourteen, Danny is sixteen
29. 'If the fates allow' (Chapter 19) Rusty is fourteen, Danny is seventeen
30. 'This is our decision (to live fast and die young)' (Chapter 6) Rusty is fourteen, Danny is seventeen
31. 'Crooked Game' (Chapter 48) Rusty is fourteen, Danny is seventeen
32. 'Such a perfect day' (Chapter 11) Rusty is fourteen, Danny is seventeen
And sequels after they move away!
'Adjusting' - two months after they leave town, Rusty is 15, Danny is 17
'Date Night' - just over a year after they leave town, Rusty is 16, Danny is 18
'Time to regret' - shortly before 'Learning Curve'
'Learning Curve' - eighteen months after they leave town, Rusty is 16, Danny is 19
'All in the family' - shortly after 'Learning Curve'
'Stockings, Glitter, Snow' - shortly after 'Learning Curve'
'Outward Ripples' - Rusty is 18, Danny is 20
'Eye for an Eye' - Rusty is 18, Danny is 20
'Chasing Echoes' - set after O11.
'Reconstruction' - set after movies.
The fourth of July garden party had always been a tradition for Danny's parents. It was a chance to show off for the neighbours, be the talk of the town in all the right ways for once. And now Dad had left, seemed liked Mom was desperate to prove to the neighbours that nothing had changed, that she had nothing to be ashamed of and she could still hold her head up high.
And of course, that meant that she wanted Danny there, dressed up smart and on his very best behaviour. Fortunately, as a very special bribe, she'd let him invite Rusty. Which was a colossal relief; he knew that everyone at the party was going to want to talk about Dad, and he really didn't think he could bear that without Rusty there. Who knew, maybe Mom had finally realised what a calming influence Rusty could be on him.
That didn't make it any easier when, an hour before the party was due to start, Mom had them lined up in the hallway, looking them over with a critical eye, her attention lingering unhappily on the two yellowing black eyes Rusty was sporting.
"Don't you own a tie, Robert?" she demanded irritably.
Rusty shook his head. "No, ma'am," he said softly.
She sniffed unhappily. "Well, I suppose it's too late now," she said darkly. "Daniel, did you remember to polish your shoes?"
"Yes, Mom," he said quietly.
"Clean your teeth?" she pressed.
"Yes, Mom," he said again.
"Scrub behind your ears?" she went on, towering over him.
"Yes, Mom," he said through gritted teeth. Honestly, he knew how to keep himself clean.
Thankfully, she seemed satisfied for the moment. "Alright then," she said, grimly. "I expect you to be on your best behaviour today, and I promise if you put one foot out of line there will be unpleasant consequences." Her gaze drifted to Rusty. "Just so we're clear that means being polite and attentive at all times, not drawing attention to yourselves and speaking only when spoken to. Is that clear?"
"Yes, ma'am," Rusty said immediately.
"Yes, Mom," Danny echoed, and he wished he didn't have to be here. Wished he'd never invited Rusty. Because suddenly the comfort and support Rusty offered didn't seem worth putting him through the snide and the condescending.
"Now," Mom went on. "I don't expect you to spend all your time stuffing your faces at the buffet. I can assure you, the caterers are expensive and exclusive, and the food is intended for guests."
"I won't eat anything," Rusty promised steadily.
Mom sighed loudly. "Well of course you can eat, Robert. I just don't want to see you shovelling food into your mouth like you haven't been fed in a week."
Danny's fingernails were digging into his palm, and even though Rusty wasn't looking at him, he could still feel the warning. He bit his tongue furiously.
"While we're on the subject," Mom added stiffly. "I expect to see you using your cutlery properly, and a napkin. And don't talk with your mouth full, and take small bites, and do not put your elbows on the table, for pity's sake."
"Yes, ma'am," Rusty said, and only Danny would be able to hear the humiliation in his voice. He bit his tongue a little harder. There was no need for this lecture. And the worst thing was, he honestly didn't know if Mom knew that or not. Fuck, he didn't even know which would be worse. For Mom to think so little of them, or for her to be doing this out of cruelty and spite.
"Most importantly," she finished awfully, eyes fixed on the bruises again, "I do not want to hear that you've been telling any of your wild stories. Charlene's husband is going to be here, and he's a police lieutenant. I promise you, the police will not see the funny side. I'm sure you'd rather they thought you were clumsy and stupid than that you're a hoodlum, so if someone is so crass as to ask what happened to your face, you will tell them it was an accident."
"Of course, ma'am," Rusty said obediently – woodenly – and as the rage howled through Danny's head, he opened his mouth, ready to say something and Rusty kicked him sharply in the ankle. "There's no point," he told Danny softly, after Mom had stalked off to yell at the caterers. "You know it's not gonna change anything. It'll just put her in a bad mood."
"She's always in a bad mood," Danny pointed out sharply, and maybe it didn't matter whether or not anything would change, maybe sometimes it was just important to say something.
Rusty sighed. "I think maybe she misses your Dad."
Danny stared. "They were always fighting," he reminded Rusty.
"Maybe that's what she misses," Rusty said with a shrug.
He swallowed hard. That was true, it would explain a lot. "Hell of a thing, staying together for hate's sake," he said, staring out the door towards Mom. He didn't like feeling sorry for her. It made everything more complicated.
The party was about as much fun as Danny had been expecting it to be. There were people all over the garden, standing in little knots, drinking champagne and eating little canapés, and the conversation was flowing easily. He heard Dad's name mentioned far too often and every time he looked round, just in case Dad was here. Just in case Dad had come home.
They wandered, so that Mom had a chance to see Danny being seen, smiling politely and speaking only when spoken to. He sighed to himself as he noticed how careful Rusty was not to even glance at the canapés. Time and again they were stopped by various adults and went through the same catechism. Yes, he was enjoying the summer vacation, yes, his mother was pleased with his grades, no, he hadn't heard from Dad for a while but he was sure he would be calling soon, yes, the roses were really beautiful and it was a shame Mom wasn't interested in entering the garden competition on Thursday.
The worst of them was Miss Gormley, who kept them trapped for what felt like hours and made an unpleasant sort of creaking noise at the back of her throat at every answer he gave. "You have a very glib tongue, boy," she said at last disapprovingly. "It's going to get you in trouble one day. Pretty words can't make up for a black heart, I'm afraid."
This time it was his turn to kick Rusty to prevent the outburst, but fortunately they managed to escape immediately afterwards by pretending to spot Uncle Harold waving to them from across the lawn. By silent mutual agreement, they decided they'd done enough polite mingling for the moment, and they ducked past a waiter and round beneath the cherry trees where Mike, John and David were standing around with sparklers and glasses of iced lemonade.
"Having a good time?" Danny asked ironically.
They looked round. "Yeah, thanks," Mike grinned. "Want a sparkler?"
"Sure," he said, taking it gingerly, and watching with amusement as Rusty seized another one with enthusiasm. "Try not to set fire to anything, will you?"
"No promises," Rusty said cheerfully, waving the sparkler round in a circle.
"What happened to your face, Rusty?" Mike asked casually.
"Huh? Oh." Rusty grinned. "Fell off a train."
"What?" the three boys all stared. Danny shook his head imperceptibly. So much for no wild stories.
"Yeah," Rusty nodded. "I was going after this murderous art forger. We got into a fight on the top of the train, and I forgot to duck to avoid a signal overhanging the track."
John blinked. "That's the plot of Silver Streak."
"Yep," Rusty agreed. "Makes you wonder how he didn't wind up with two black eyes, doesn't it?"
"Actually, yes," Mike said with a frown. "Maybe - " He stopped talking abruptly, staring over Danny's shoulder, and he turned in time to see Juliet Darcey picking her way towards them. Damn. No way to run without it being really obvious.
"Good afternoon, Mrs Darcey," he said instead, smiling politely. "I hope you're enjoying the party?"
"Oh, yes, Daniel," she said, looking each of them over in turn, as if she was searching for anything they might be doing wrong. "Your mother's parties are always so...predictably quaint" She laughed lightly at nothing in particular.
Danny smiled back, trying desperately to think of anything he could say. He was aware of Rusty standing beside him, carefully keeping his mouth shut. They both knew that she was looking for any sign of rudeness, anything that she could take back to his mother. And, from past experience, absolutely anything that Rusty said qualified. The others shifted uncomfortably behind them.
"Have you heard from your father at all?" she went on, watching him carefully through narrowed eyes.
"Not recently," he said carefully, once more hardening his heart against the truth.
"Dear me." She shook her head sadly. "Still, I'm sure he's busy, getting settled in with that new girlfriend of his...oops!" She covered her mouth in mock dismay.
Danny inclined his head and carefully didn't look at anyone. "Probably," he agreed. Wasn't like that was anything new or surprising.
She narrowed her eyes, obviously unhappy at the lack of reaction. "And your little friend is here as well," she added, turning to look at Rusty as though he was some sort of particularly unpleasant insect. "That's...nice. Not been locked up yet, then?" She smiled like it was a joke. They all knew it wasn't.
Damn. She was obviously expecting an answer from Rusty. And there wouldn't be a right answer. Nothing that Rus' could say that she wouldn't declare rude.
"No, ma'am," Rusty said softly. "Danny was nice enough to invite me to the party. The garden is very pretty, don't you think?"
It was all he could do not to kiss Rusty then and there for the opening. "Talking of gardens," he said quickly, as Juliet narrowed her eyes at Rusty, like she was gearing up to make his faults known. "Are you entering the garden competition this year, Mrs Darcey?" He already knew the answer, but that wasn't the point. There was nothing Juliet Darcey liked talking about more than her own successes.
"Of course," she said, with a little sniff. "In fact, my garden is going to be the first the judges see. I shouldn't be surprised if they decide not to bother visiting any others. My hard work has really paid off this year. It's hard work that's the key, Daniel. Hard work, perseverance, and a dozen other qualities that I'm afraid you really know nothing about."
He smiled carelessly. "Well, good luck," he said brightly, and somehow she was moving away and she hadn't got the entertainment she'd been looking for.
He breathed a sigh of relief and exchanged a quick glance with Rusty. Yeah. This party was officially awful.
It didn't exactly get any better. By dusk, hunger had finally won out and Rusty had agreed to get something from the buffet. It was on a table in a little half tent thing, and by this time was pretty damned empty of both people and food.
"What do you think this is?" he wondered, pointing at a plate full of little circles of batter and pink and green.
"Shrimp," Rusty said confidently. "Probably."
"Huh." Shrimp that had been sitting out in the open all day. He wrinkled his nose, looking around for something else. Chicken sounded a little safer. As did the little vegetable tartlets and the olive bread. He grinned and loaded his plate. Apparently he was hungry.
"Oh! Profiteroles!" Rusty exclaimed, happily, grabbing three at once.
Danny looked at him, amused. "You maybe want to just take the plate?"
A flash of guilt crossed Rusty's face.
Damn. "It's - " he began, by way of apology.
" - yeah," Rusty said quietly, still gazing down at his plate.
There was a sudden noise behind them. Voices, as someone else came towards the buffet tent. In an instant, Rusty had grabbed his plate and dived under the table. Automatically, Danny followed, pulling the cloth across the bottom of the table so they were completely concealed.
He glanced across at Rusty, raising an eyebrow and silently asking if it was really better to be caught hiding under the table than to be caught with the food.
Rusty grinned awkwardly, suggesting that it was probably better not to be caught at all.
And that was true. He held his breath as the voices came closer.
"There's bound to be another bottle around here somewhere."
"Look. There's one on the table there."
He recognised the female voice immediately. Juliet Darcey. Two pairs of feet came into view and stopped, right in front of them. He gritted his teeth. Oh, that was just perfect. Suddenly, he was very glad they'd chosen to hide.
" - well, of course I was expecting Annette to get the solo, but she's only the understudy. And honestly, I had to kick up a fuss to even get her that." There was the sound of a cork popping and then liquid pouring. "I really don't believe it. I've been paying over a hundred dollars a month for eight years. And then some talentless little tramp walks in and gets the best part."
"Mmm," the man said, sounding bored, and there was a pause and he could hear them drinking. Didn't seem like they were planning on leaving anytime soon. He glanced towards the back of the tent, wondering if there was any chance to sneak out without being seen. But Rusty shook his head quickly. Right. They'd wait it out.
"And you know it's just because she's coloured," Juliet went on, her voice rising.
What? Danny turned round so fast he almost smacked his head on the top of the table. Oh, she couldn't have just said that, surely.
"It's all this affirmative action, it's getting in the way of what really matters," Juliet said. "These people are taking advantage. It's creating a culture of entitlement among them. There's one little coloured girl in the class and she gets the solo, do you honestly think that's a coincidence? She shouldn't be in there at all – I mean, her father is an electrician. What can she possibly know about ballet?" She made an angry little tutting noise. "Civil rights are all very well, but that doesn't mean I want them living on my doorstep. And really, I think we're all more comfortable amongst out own kind. I'm not a racist, but all that sort of person knows how to do is take, take, take."
He thought of Mabel and her boundless, unending kindness, her generosity. Everything that Juliet said went against that. He could hardly breathe through the anger. It wasn't just the words, or the attitude – it was the ugly sincerity in her voice. Not only did she believe everything she was saying, she honestly thought that everyone else agreed with her. He wanted to stand up, to tell her how very, very wrong she was, and it was only Rusty's hand clamped around his wrist that kept him in place.
"I think the fireworks are starting," the man said distantly. "Let's get going."
They waited until the foosteps had died away before silently scrambling out from the table. Danny took a deep breath. "She's - "
" - yes," Rusty agreed, and the anger in Danny was echoed in his eyes.
Damn. He scrubbed the back of his hand over his eyes. They'd just sat there and said nothing while she'd said all that. The fury whispered through him and, restless and indignant, he strode out of the tent, Rusty a half-step behind him.
The fireworks were just starting up. Above them, the sky was full of lights and explosions, and all the guests were staring and distracted.
Danny turned back to look at Rusty. "You know what? I'm tired of letting things go."
Rusty smiled at him, his eyes bright. "When have you ever let anything go?"
In response, Danny looked at the bruising around his eyes. When had he ever let something go? He let it go every damned day.
Rusty sighed. "Apart from that," he muttered. He rubbed his fingers across his mouth. "We don't let it go, Danny. We'll do something, I swear."
Only not today. Not now, when there would be consequences and complications. He sighed and leaned back, staring up at the fireworks over head. They'd planned on heading up to his room as soon as possible, making sure that Mom didn't realise that Rusty was staying. But now, thinking about what Rusty had said earlier... "I was thinking," he said casually. "I might hang around and help Mom clear up."
"Mmm." Rusty tilted his head and looked at him and he could see in Rusty's eyes the doubt. Would Mom even appreciate it?
He shrugged. "Maybe that doesn't matter," he said.
Mom wasn't exactly grateful for the help. She sent Rusty home immediately, and put Danny to work, and somehow walking round the garden, picking up discarded plates, empty glasses and burnt-out sparklers merited a list of everything he'd done wrong. All the gossip that had got back to Mom at the party. Miss Gormley had said he was glib and arrogant. Uncle Harold had said he was rude and inattentive. Mrs Arthur and Mrs Ferrell had both agreed it was a pity he spent all his time hanging around with That Boy instead of studying, and wasn't it a shame how he was throwing his life away?
She didn't mention Dad. And Danny knew that far more people had been talking about Dad than had been talking about him. Still hurt though. He bit his lip. "Maybe if you didn't encourage them – maybe if you didn't agree with them, they wouldn't keep saying that stuff," he suggested. Unwisely.
She shot him a sharp look. "Maybe if you didn't keep doing everything wrong, they wouldn't have anything to gossip about."
He flushed, his shoulders hunched, and he wanted to answer back, wanted to make her take it back, admit that he didn't do everything wrong, it was just that nothing he ever did was good enough, not for her, not for her friends.
But he thought of what Rusty had said, and maybe she was trying to pick a fight with him, because maybe that's what she was used to. And just because something was what someone was used to, didn't mean it was right. Didn't mean it was what they deserved.
"I'm sorry, Mom," he said instead, softly and sincerely, and she looked at him with surprise and confusion.
"Yes. Well." She struggled for a second. "Don't do it again."
"I won't," he promised, and she snorted dismissively. He quickly tried to change the subject. "I thought the party was a success, didn't you? Everyone seemed impressed at the fireworks, and I heard Mrs Katzen saying how nice the buffet was. She said it must have cost a fortune, but it was worth every cent."
"Really." A small smile graced her face. "Good. It's the attention to detail that really matters in things like this, Daniel."
He nodded, trying his best to look impressed. "I'll remember that," he said, stacking paper plates up ready to put them in the trash. "Everyone says you throw the best parties. I had fun today, Mom. Thank you."
She smiled again, and he felt his heart soar. She hardly ever smiled with her eyes like that. Certainly not since Dad had left. He had made her happy, even if it was just for a moment. Did it really matter that he'd had to lie to do it?
"I tell you what, Daniel," she said. "Why don't we take these things inside and leave the rest till tomorrow. We can catch more fireworks on TV, and finish up the rest of the lemonade. Sound good?"
"Sounds good," he agreed, smiling.
The next day was bright, hot and sunny. Rusty met him in the park, wearing long sleeves.
With a sigh, he stepped forwards and carefully rolled up Rusty's sleeve. Rusty didn't resist. The skin underneath was mottled with dark bruises.
He swallowed hard. He always let this go.
"That's it," Rusty said quickly. "He just grabbed me, and shoved me aside and that was only cos I was in his way. 's nothing, Danny, really."
He nodded. "We should've - "
" - she was never gonna let me stay," Rusty argued with a shrug. "She knew I was there, remember?"
He remembered. "That doesn't make it okay."
Rusty shrugged again, and he understood the way Rusty saw it. It had happened, and that was an end to it. "So how did it go?" Rusty asked carefully.
It was his turn to shrug. "Okay," he said. "I think. We didn't really talk about anything – didn't talk about Dad – but she didn't yell. Not too much, anyway. And she suggested we watch TV together. That's something, right?" Better than it had been the past three months, anyway.
"That's something," Rusty agreed. He glanced over towards the ice cream stand, and with a smile, Danny nodded and they strolled their way over. "What you going to do next?" he asked a moment later, between mouthfuls of chocolate ice cream.
"Not sure," he admitted. "I keep thinking if I could just show her..." He trailed off. But he knew that Rusty knew what he meant. If he could just show Mom that he cared, that things could be different, that they didn't need to argue, that he would be there for her, if she'd only let him. He sighed. "Gonna tell me I can't change the world?"
Rusty smiled at him, his eyes bright with fond affection. "Never."
He smiled back, dismissing Mom for the moment. "Alright, then. Juliet Darcey."
"Juliet Darcey," Rusty echoed.
He'd been thinking about this last night before he fell asleep. "I know it can't be anything that can be traced back to us. And it can't be anything too direct. But it needs to be something - "
" - a short, sharp shock," Rusty cut in. "Something that targets - "
" - something that gets her," Danny nodded. He paused. "What's most important to her?"
Rusty pulled a face. "Annette."
True. And that wasn't even worth discussing. "What's second most important to her," he conceded.
"Her reputation," Rusty nodded, and Danny smiled. He had no doubt that Juliet Darcey would hate the neighbours talking every bit as much as Mom always did. "Garden competition?"
"Garden competition," he agreed. "I think she should lose. I think she should lose so bad that people are gonna be talking about it for years to come."
"So what you thinking?" Rusty asked. "Weedkiller?"
Danny pictured a garden full of dead and withered plants. It would certainly achieve the effect they were looking for, but...
"Yeah," Rusty nodded, grimacing in response to his look. "'s crude."
He grinned. "So we're looking for something more refined?" He didn't wait for an answer. "Something we can do that'll change her garden without killing it. Something that she'll hate but that..." He broke off abruptly.
Rusty was watching him keenly. "What?" he asked.
"Something," Danny said with a shrug. Something you said, I think." He closed his eyes, trying to close in on the memory. Something Rusty had said. He concentrated on the memory of Rusty's voice, trying to pinpoint the details. The smell of heat and damp. The rustle of paper. Mild, amused annoyance. "Okay," he said, opening his eyes. "We were in the school basement. You were reading those Reader's Digests, and you were talking about things that lower house prices and - "
" - Gnomes," Rusty said at once. "Garden gnomes."
Garden gnomes. He pictured it. He pictured the look on Juliet Darcey's face. Oh, this would work.
Rusty frowned. "You want to put a gnome in her garden?"
"No." He shook his head, and took a deep, joyous breath. "I want to put a hundred gnomes in her garden."
There was a long pause. Rusty grinned slowly. "You think I can source a hundred garden gnomes for tomorrow?"
"Yeah," Danny said, in a voice that meant of course.
They stood on the kerb, staring across the street at the entrance way and the bright painted sign announcing the Crabapple Fields Garden Centre and Plant Nursery.
"You think they sell things other than crabapples?" he wondered.
Rusty shrugged. "I didn't even know crabs could climb trees," he said.
Danny looked at him. "See, I'm trying to figure out if you think the apples are laid by crabs, or if the crabs grow on trees."
"Maybe they're special sea apples," Rusty mused.
Right. "Okay," he said briskly. "So, what do we need to know?"
Rubbing his fingers round the edge of his mouth, Rusty took a moment before answering. "Best way in and out, second way to get out preferably, where the gnomes are kept, what any locks are like..." He shrugged. "The usual."
"Sounds about right," Danny nodded. He paused. "How noticeable do you think we're gonna be in there?"
Rusty pulled a face. "Think we can be sure they'll assume we don't have a garden."
Meaning they'd stand out. Meaning they'd be remembered. "Alright," he decided, glancing up at the sign over the low building pointing to the florist. "I'll buy something. You look round."
"Sure," Rusty nodded.
The garden centre was surrounded by a six-foot wall and even as they were walking in they could see a gate that could be drawn across at night, equally high and impossible. That was okay, though. Because as he caught Rusty's eye, they'd both already noticed a couple of places where there was something alongside it to climb up. They should be able to get in no problem. Now they just needed to figure exactly where they were going.
They took a circuitous route to the building, wandering through the trestle tables stacked with plants and shrubs, on the look out for any garden gnomes that might be lurking among the greenery. Danny doubted it, but you really never knew. All they time they were careful to keep up an animated conversation, careful to appear to be paying more attention to each other than their surroundings. Reconnaissance had to be subtle.
Once they reached the building, Danny walked straight up to the corner with the florists counter, while Rusty ambled off, apparently at random. Danny caught sight of a large display of lawn ornaments though, just past the pet supplies. He grinned. Looked like they were in business.
Barely a quarter of an hour later, they were outside. Rusty eyed the large bunch of cheerful flowers thoughtfully. "They for me?"
He grinned. "Figured I'd give them to Mom," he said easily.
Rusty's eyes flashed understanding. But all he said was "Pity. No one's ever given me flowers before. Who knows – I might like it."
"I'll bear that in mind," Danny assured him gravely. "Now. What do we know?"
"There's a few different gnomes on display, and I saw a couple of trays of them stacked up below the display area. I guess that's for when they have to restock," Rusty told him, rolling his shoulders.
"How many?" Danny asked practically.
"Has to be at least a hundred and fifty," Rusty said.
And that would be more than enough. He frowned. "How are we going to - "
" - take the trays," Rusty cut in immediately. "Have a shopping cart waiting outside. We can make more than one trip, if necessary."
"Oh, you just have all the answers, don't you?" he said with a smile.
Rusty grinned at him. "Why else do you keep me around? Windows are all easy, and I didn't see any alarms. Did see some wire cutters in the DIY section. Should be enough to cut through the gate if we decide to leave that way."
"Door's simple too," Danny added. He'd checked on the way in. "I don't see a problem going in either way, but it's gonna be easier to carry the gnomes out the door and gate."
"Right," Rusty agreed, lighting a cigarette. "So we're set?"
"We're set," Danny confirmed.
Mom was home when he got in, which was surprising. Since Dad had left she'd been working a lot of late nights and going out whenever she could. Danny figured there was one less reason for her to want to come home. That or she simply figured that at fourteen he was old enough to be left alone more. Not like he would disagree with that.
Still, it was nice to see her home for once, and she was in the kitchen, cooking dinner, and he could see through the doorway that she'd even set the table for two. He couldn't help the smile. But when she turned round and saw him, she was surprised.
"Oh. Daniel. I didn't hear you come in."
His smile didn't falter. "Hi, Mom. I got you these." He held out the flowers in front of him, like an offering, and his mind supplied the ridiculous mental image – Mom an angry volcano who had to be appeased, him the hopeful worshipper.
"Oh!" She stared at the flowers blankly for a moment before taking them. "Why?"
He made an effort not to shrug. "Just thought you'd like them," he said.
"Well, yes, they're very pretty she said, adding "Thank you," like an afterthought.
This time he did shrug. "No problem."
The doorbell rang suddenly. "That'll be Samuel," Mom said distractedly, dropping the flowers on the counter and patting down her hair quickly, before hurrying off.
Samuel? Danny had no idea who that was. But he glanced through at the two place settings in the dining room with new understanding.
Moments later, Mom reappeared, followed by a man in a smart suit. He was older than Dad. Taller too. And he had a watery, insincere smile that made Danny hate him on sight.
Mom was carrying a small bunch of red roses. "Aren't these beautiful?" she exclaimed, quickly grabbing a vase from the cupboard and taking time to arrange them. "Oh, Samuel, this is my son, Daniel. Daniel, this is Mr Barnes, my lawyer."
"Good to meet you, sir," he said politely, shaking the man's hand like he'd always been told to.
"Likewise," Samuel murmured. "I'm handling the divorce on your mother's behalf, so I'm sure we'll be seeing a lot of each other. I will need to interview you at some point, no doubt."
Divorce? Danny felt his stomach lurch unpleasantly. "You're divorcing Dad?" he asked, not able to stop himself.
There was a long moment of uncomfortable silence, before Mom made a kind of angry huffing noise. "Honestly, Daniel, it's not exactly unexpected, is it?"
No. No, of course it wasn't, but no one had actually said the word before, and he'd thought...he'd expected that maybe they'd talk about it first. At the very least, he'd thought they'd tell him themselves, before they got the lawyers involved.
"You needn't look like that, Daniel," Mom went on angrily, scowling at him. "This is all your fault, you know."
He couldn't help the flinch. She'd said that the night Dad had left. He'd kind of hoped she hadn't really meant it.
"Now then, Barbara," Samuel said reprovingly. "Playing the blame game isn't going to help matters at this stage."
Briefly, Mom turned on him, and Danny was sure she was gearing up to start shouting, but then she took a couple of deep breaths. "Yes, of course," she said, and she looked back at Danny and stared at him for a second, like she desperately wanted to say something but couldn't figure out how.
"Will he be joining us for dinner?" Samuel asked, glancing sideways at Danny, his brow creased.
"No," Mom said, without hesitating. "Daniel, Mr Barnes and I have a lot to discuss, and we can't have you underfoot. I'll make you a sandwich and you can eat it in your room, unless you'd rather go out?"
"I'll go out," he said, his voice subdued. Rusty had been going to Mabel's. Danny had been going to meet him there after dinner, so they could wait for nightfall together.
"Very well," Mom nodded, and she rummaged in her purse and came up with a twenty dollar bill. "Here. Take this and get something to eat, and maybe you could go to the movies afterwards?"
"Sure," he agreed. He hesitated. "May I use the phone before I go?"
"Of course," Mom said, with a complete lack of interest. Already she was focused on Samuel, and Danny was pretty certain they weren't just going to be talking business.
Silently, he left the room. His flowers lay abandoned on the kitchen counter.
At the phone, he pulled the piece of paper out of his pocket. Six months back, Dad had scrawled his new number across it. Danny hadn't tried it since then. Dad liked things to be on his own terms, and if Danny pestered him too much, Dad would draw away. But now...he wanted to talk. He wanted someone to tell him that this mattered.
The phone rang for ages, and for a while, Danny began to wonder if maybe Dad was out, or he'd even moved and not let him know. But then the phone was picked up, and he heard Dad's familiar voice. "Hello?"
"It's Danny," he said softly, not wanting to risk Mom overhearing.
"Danny...? Oh! Danny, hi. Sorry, I wasn't expecting you to call." He sounded warm enough. Pleased enough to hear from him.
"Dad, I really need to talk to you," he began.
In the background, he heard a woman's voice calling Dad's name.
He closed his eyes, and he already knew what was going to happen before Dad began talking. "Listen, Danny, this really isn't a good time. Thanks for calling – it's been great catching up with you – but I'm afraid we're going to have to do this later. I'll call you at the weekend, okay? I promise."
"Sure, Dad," he made himself say. "Bye."
"Goodbye now, Danny." The phone was hung up, practically before he'd finished talking.
He sighed and stared down at the receiver in his hand for a long moment. There was a cloud of anger bubbling away at the back of his mind. Dangerous anger. Anger he couldn't do anything about. He couldn't do anything about his parents. He couldn't do anything about Rusty's Dad. He couldn't do anything about the lies and the hurt and the fear and the injustice. But right now, in some small, ridiculous way, he could make Juliet Darcey pay just for being herself, and that was going to have to do.
By moonlight, Danny was prepared to swear that the wall around the garden centre had grown at least another two foot. Now it looked foreboding. Ominous, even.
"I feel like we're breaking into Alcatraz," he murmured to Rusty as he clambered up onto the dumpster lid.
"Who breaks into Alcatraz?" Rusty asked, scrambling up beside him.
"Someone looking for a great view of San Francisco," Danny suggested.
Rusty grinned and gestured up towards the wall. "After you," he invited, stooping and making a step with his hand.
With a grimace and a certain amount of swearing, Danny managed to hop up and pull himself awkwardly up onto the top of the wall. Oh, this was high, narrow, and just a little bit dizzying.
"You're fine," Rusty's soft voice encouraged him from below. "Now, just lie flat and reach down to me."
He did, and he was just able to reach rusty and pull him up.
"Should've brought a ladder," Rusty suggested with a grin once they were both safely up. "Huh. Speaking of good views..."
"You wanna move on or you want to take a picture?" Danny asked dryly.
"You think I've got a camera on me?" Rusty asked. "Okay, let's make this quick." He put his hands on the wall and twisted around, ready to lower himself down.
There was a sudden low growling from beneath them.
Before he'd even fully registered it, Danny was grabbing Rusty by the wrists and hauling him all the way back up.
The growling grew louder as an enormous brown dog walked slowly towards the wall, staring up at them and making the sort of noise that had all the hairs on the back of Danny's neck standing on end.
"Well, fuck," Rusty said calmly, rubbing his wrists where Danny had grabbed him.
"A dog?" Danny demanded in a whisper, peering down over the edge of the wall. "Why do they have a dog? Who do they think is going to want to break into a garden centre?"
Rusty just looked at him.
He rolled his eyes. "Apart from us, I mean," he added. "I don't exactly think it's an everyday occurrence. Gnomes aren't exactly a hot commodity."
"There's one from the nineteenth century that's valued at one and a half million dollars," Rusty told him, staring down at the dog. "It's one of the original batch that was designed to attract real gnomes to people's gardens."
Danny blinked and turned to look at him. "Real gnomes?"
"I don't think it worked," Rusty said with a shrug.
Not exactly relevant right at the moment. He looked back down at the dog. "You're the one who likes animals," he commented.
"Not when they have teeth like that," Rusty told him.
Danny sighed. "We make our way along the wall, we could jump onto the roof of the building," he said slowly. "Then we'd be able to climb through the window."
Rusty pursed his lips. "We should be able to get out the same way," he conceded. "Problem is, if something goes wrong, we wind up getting mauled."
"I admit that's a downside," he conceded. "But lets at least try."
Their gaze met for a long second. He could see in Rusty's eyes that he wanted to walk away right now. And really, he knew that was the smart thing to do. This was about revenge, they had nothing actually riding on it.
"Mom and Dad are getting a divorce," he blurted out. "She had her lawyer over for dinner tonight, and he let it slip. He brought her roses."
For a long time Rusty just looked at him. Then he reached out and grasped Danny's hand briefly, the touch warm and comforting. "Okay," he said. "Okay. Let's go."
Danny grinned with relief. One victory. That was all he asked.
Making their way along the top of the wall was easy enough, but the dog followed them every step of the way, staring up at them like they were two juicy steaks. Once they reached the top of the building though, he gazed at it unhappily. Jumping down should be easy enough. Jumping back up on the other hand...
"There's some planks there, see?" Rusty pointed. "On the other side of the roof. We should be able to make ourselves a bridge."
Ah. He nodded, and looked down over the edge. The dog was still there, staring up at him, growling and snarling, and he swore its eyes were fixed on his throat.
Rusty caught his arm. "Danny. You sure about this?"
"No," he said, with perfect truth, and he jumped. It took less than a second before his feet landed solidly on the roof, but somehow it felt a lot longer. He stumbled forwards and whirled round immediately, but Rusty landed gracefully beside him.
"We good?" he asked, and Rusty grinned.
Below them, the growling grew louder, breaking off into the occasional angry bark.
"Fuck!" he said with feeling. Someone was going to hear that. To have come this far and lose at the last moment...Wait. He grinned. "Hold on a second," he told Rusty, who blinked at him curiously, and he quickly ran to the window at the far side, leaning over the edge of the roof and working it open, before swinging his legs inside and jumping in. He could hear the dog throwing itself against the wall a second later and he shivered. Not good. Quickly he drew out his flashlight and flicked it on, searching through the shelves. Now. If he was remembering correctly...bingo! Pet supplies. He grabbed a large bag of dog food and a couple of rawhide bones and ran back to the window quickly, tearing the bag open and dumping the food out in a large pile.
"Here you go, boy," he said, hoping his voice sounded at least a little enticing.
The barking stopped. The dog threw itself at the food, wolfing it down like it was prime steak.
"Huh." Rusty's voice came from above him, and he tilted his head up to see Rusty lying flat on the roof, looking down at him. "That's one lousy guard dog."
"Let's not complain about that," he said dryly.
He carefully dropped one of the rawhide bones down next to the dog, hoping it would keep it occupied for a while. The other one he'd keep for emergencies.
"Other side," Rusty suggested.
"Other side," he agreed. Best not to tempt fate or dogs.
It didn't take much effort to find the trays of gnomes. It took a hell of a lot of effort to get the trays out through the narrow window and passed up to Rusty. From the outside he had a feeling this probably looked something like a Laurel and Hardy routine.
"There," he panted at last, when the third tray was safely out of his hands.
"Go pick up some liquid cement too," Rusty instructed.
Startled, he looked up into Rusty's grinning face.
"We don't want her to be able to remove them that easily, now do we?" Rusty explained.
Oh! "Anyone ever tell you, you're just a little bit evil?"
"Only in a good way," Rusty said cheerfully.
He ran through the shelves, flashlight trained on all the bottles and tubes he could find. Liquid cememt. There. He grabbed the wire cutters as well. Might not be necessary now, but he was willing to bet they would come in handy in the future. And on the way back, he spotted something else. 'Super Plant Food. Guaranteed greener grass overnight'? Now that they could work with.
Clutching them in his arms, he sprinted back towards the window and let Rusty help him clamber back onto the roof. Rusty had already got the bridge in place, but the dog was right below, jumping up and whining unhappily.
"Got another - " Rusty began, and in response, Danny threw the rawhide bone as far as he could. Instinctively, the dog went tearing after it, but he figured that wouldn't last long.
"Alright," he said grimly, picking up two of the trays while Rusty grabbed the third. "Let's do this quickly."
"Let's just not fall," Rusty advised.
They didn't. And by the time their feet were back on solid ground again, Danny was laughing. "Oh, we have to do this more often."
Rusty grinned. "How many gnomes could you possibly need?"
By the time they'd got back, and arranged Juliet Darcey's garden the way they wanted, it was after five and the sun was just beginning to creep up.
They looked round at their handiwork in silence.
"Happy?" Rusty asked softly.
He smiled. "Contented. Come on. We can catch a few hours sleep at last.
They headed towards his house, and he turned to catch one last look of the rosy dawn light shining down on the silent gnome army.
Tomorrow was going to be great.
They were woken less than three hours later by the shouting coming from downstairs. Sitting up blearily in bed, for a moment Danny thought that maybe Dad had come back. But then he recognised the sound of Samuel's voice.
"That - " Rusty started to ask.
" - yep," Danny said with a terse nod.
They could only make out snatches of the argument here and there.
"Selfish?! I'm not - "
" - maybe if you weren't so focused on - "
" - you disgust me - "
" - you're a self serving bitch, you know that?"
All stuff he'd heard before, and it ended in the front door slamming, and a moment later the sound of something smashing in the kitchen. He winced; this was all so familiar. For a moment he wondered if he should go down, try and talk to her, try and help...but then the front door slammed again.
"Guess she's gone to work," he said quietly.
Silently, Rusty reached out and took his hand.
Danny sighed. "Guess you were right." Truth was, Mom would rather spend her time arguing than spend time with him.
"Still doesn't mean she doesn't care about you," Rusty said softly.
"I know." He did. He just wasn't always sure how much it mattered.
From somewhere down the street there was the sound of music playing. Voices. Laughter. He grinned. "That'll be the garden competition," he said cheerfully. "Wanna go check it out?"
"Sounds like the perfect start to the day," Rusty told him with a smile.
On the way out they passed through the kitchen and saw the vase lying smashed on the floor with Samuel's flowers scattered through the broken glass. Danny's flowers were still lying on the counter, slowly wilting and dying.
Outside, the sun was shining, the birds were singing, and there was a large crowd gathered outside Juliet Darcey's house. There was even an ice cream truck. Either the mob had finally caught up with the monster, or their plan was a success.
They strolled over, grabbed a couple of popsicles, and easily made their way to near the front of the crowd.
It was magnificent.
There were gnomes peeking out of flower beds, gnomes nestled in the shrubbery, a couple with bright red hats carefully placed in a handy tree, a group of them standing together, gazing into the ornamental fountain, some spread over the stepping stones leading off from the drive, a whole squad poised to march towards the front door, and right in the centre of the lawn, letters in darker green loudly proclaimed "I am a racist."
And in the middle of it all Juliet Darcey, her face red, was standing with an armful of gnomes, desperately trying to persuade the onlookers – and the judges – to go away and come back in, say, an hour.
Danny reckoned that was probably optimistic. A couple of the gnomes on the stepping stones had been decapitated, suggesting she'd already found their work with the liquid cement.
"You know, I think it looks better this way," Rusty murmured in his ear. "'s more cheerful."
Danny grinned. "I agree. I think every garden needs a gnome army."
They continued to watch serenely as Juliet kicked desperately at the grass, trying to obscure the writing.
"Take it you had something to do with this?" Mike asked softly, coming up behind them.
They turned. "Of course not," Danny said innocently.
"We're just here for the ice cream," Rusty added, holding up his popsicle as evidence.
"Why would you even think that?" Danny wondered, the grin nowhere in sight.
Mike rolled his eyes. "Something bizarre, inexplicable and funny as hell happens to someone who's mean to you? Yeah, that's not your style at all."
Bizarre, inexplicable and funny as hell? He could live with that.
"Contented?" Rusty asked him in a low voice.
"Happy," he corrected with a smile.
They turned back to watch the show.
A/N: Thanks for reading, please review