Page 182 - What They Did to the Kid

170 Jack Fritscher

extraordinary seemed to be happening. Tick. Tick. Classes dragged
on toward final exams in Greek, physics, and the philosophy of
German Idealism. I wanted to go home to Charley-Pop and Annie
Laurie and Thom and my four-year-old sister, Margaret Mary.
In the halls at Misery, I posted flyers announcing “The Theol-
ogy Students’ Year-End Musical Concert” for the next Sunday night
in May. Whatever performer had been scheduled was not canceled.
“Appearances are everything,” Lock said.
In the auditorium, I pushed Mike and Lock into theater seats
directly in front of Hank the Tank and Ski Kowalski, so we could sit
real tall, rock back and forth, hold up our programs, and generally
obscure their view of the stage, because Tank’s brother PeterPeter-
Peter was singing. The last of the student audience was filing in.
We heard Ski ask Hank, “Where’s Dryden? He’s late.”
“He’s either feeling better or he’s dead,” Hank said deliberately.
“Chris never misses any student function.”
“Ain’t that the truth!” Mike whispered. “Function! Function!
Who’s got my function?”
“Shut up,” Lock said.
I turned around in my seat and waved my program in Hank’s
face. “Your favorite priest is scheduled right here to play piano in the
second act.” I pointed to Christopher Dryden’s name on the program
I had mimeo graphed only the day before. No priests had dared break
their secrecy by telling me to remove his name. I had received the
typed original before the unspoken scandal broke. No priest said not
to print the bill, and I couldn’t very well suggest editing out Dryden’s
appear ance without indicating I knew he was being ostracized. Or
disciplined. Or worse.
“Chris will play as promised,” Hank said. “Plague wouldn’t stop
him. Peter said Chris knows the show must go on.”
I looked at him: “Why must the show go on?” I repeated the
sentence five times with five different inflections.
“Shut up,” Hank said.
“Hank’s suspicions are dangerous,” Lock whispered to me. “He
knows we know some thing.”
“If Chris doesn’t show,” Hank said, “I’ll bet ten to one he’s finally
in Dutch with the powers that be.”

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