The Convenience of Lies (13 page)

“You are a traitor Mackenzie!” Kira starts screaming. I feel my ears go red and my heart start to pump. Am I really getting angry? I think so.

“You're an awful friend! You know what, you can walk yourself home!” I start screaming back, Ramon disappears behind the corner. I get up and head for my car, following him. I want Ramon to stay, and I want to tell him the truth, so as I pass him I say, “I hate Kira; she is always causing problems. It's her fault that you got hurt so badly, and she doesn't even regret it or believe it.”

Ramon stops in his tracks, but I am already completely past him. “What?” he asks weakly.

“Kira was the one who was texting you! She's the one who is causing all of this fucking drama!” I am in the parking lot now, and the other two are there soon after, as I climb in my car.

“I HATE you, Mackenzie!” she screams at me, and it sounds like she has true anger also.

“All you care about is creating drama!” I yell back at her. “Go to hell!” I climb in my car and drive away, making my tires screech as I turn out of the parking lot. I am surprisingly very jittery. This pretend fight feels like it's echoing against my skull as I drive away. Are those the things Kira would really say if she knew what has been on my mind? I don't think I want to find out.

I drive a couple blocks and pull into a small side street that I know Ramon won't travel on his way back to his place. I take a deep breath and close my eyes, trying to calm myself.
It was all pretend,
I think, like I'm trying to convince myself. What if Kira is actually angry at me? What if she doesn't call me to come pick her up because she doesn't want to see me? It turns out this worry is unnecessary as Kira calls me a couple minutes later. “Mackenzie, that was so great! We should win an academy award for that!” She clearly found this to be a riot; she sounds completely energized on the phone. It's jarring to juxtapose her energy with mine. But, at the same time, I can feed off of her excitement to bring up my own spirits.

“Yeah, we did do a good job,” I agree.

“He has left, so you can come pick me up,” Kira tells me, still with that rush in her voice.

“Sure I'll be over there really soon,” I reply, starting my engine. I can hear that my voice is starting to reflect her enthusiasm. We giggle, excited, proud of a job well done, on our way back to Kira's house.

Once I drop her off, Ramon calls me up, like clockwork. “Mackenzie, what was that all about?” I know I have to put my “angry hat” back on.

“I am just sick of Kira always questioning everything that you say. I am so mad at her right now, I don't think that we are going to be friends ever again.”

“Could I talk to you?” Ramon asks.

“Sure, where?” I say, knowing that this is what Kira and I have been hoping for.

“How about that school by your house,” he says. He is referring to the elementary school where I had cried my eyes out while missing Kira, which feels like an eternity ago.

“Okay, I will be there soon,” I say, turning off of Kira's street.

Ramon is waiting for me under a tree on a dark, wooden bench. He almost blends into the wood. The tree is providing so much shade, it's almost dark even in the light and the heat of the summer. Ramon fits into the scenery perfectly, mood and all. I feel my heart crying for him as I see him sitting there so pathetically so obviously in pain.

“Ramon, I'm so sorry that this happened. What's going to happen to your tournament now?” I say, feeling a flame of fury with Kira burning inside myself. While she won't say anything, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to know she had something to do with Ramon getting beat up. She obviously shows no remorse though.

“I can't compete. They're going to split the first and second place money in half, so I am going to get $17,500. They're going to give the first place trophy to the other guy, and the second place trophy to me.”

“Well, at least you still get a lot of money,” I say, knowing that won't help him a bit. It's the lost experience that he is mourning.

“Yeah, the guy I was going to compete against was a three year champion. It would have been an honor to box against him,” Ramon says, completely deflated.

“Oh, I'm so sorry Ramon. That would've been so cool. I would've been so excited for you,” I say, wishing I could do something to help him and feeling completely helpless.

“I was going to ask you to walk in with me at the final championship.”

Now I am just speechless.

Knowing a person and where they live gives King inside information that can aid his Misconducts. For example, he never would have known where Newbie lived nor about his Alpine Stereo had King not recruited him for his last Misconduct. Not only has King gained this vital information, but since Newbie joined King on one of his Misconducts, King is certain Newbie won't accuse him. King chuckles to himself, thinking about how he now has blackmail as insurance against Newbie.

King's younger brother, Duke, is joining him for his next adventure. Duke is seventeen, giving him protection from the law. Duke can get away with more because the law is lighter on minors. Since this Misconduct is going to affect one of his followers, it has a certain level of delicacy. This is another reason why King chose Duke to help. Duke is his most trusted accomplice.

Tonight, King has Duke to drive in case he needs a quick escape. “Okay, start slowing down,” King tells Duke as they turn onto Newbie's street. He squints his eyes in the dark, trying to pick out Newbie's car, which he usually parks along the street. 'Only idiots park on the street,' King thinks to himself, 'it makes their cars much more vulnerable.'

“
Are we getting close?” Duke asks.

“
Yeah, yeah, keep going,” King rushes to reply, brushing off the question while concentrating. Duke continues creeping down the street, while King grips his Slim Jim in anticipation. “There it is!” King exclaims in a hushed, but excited, voice.

“
Which car is it?” Duke asks.

“
The Civic, you're starting to pass it,” King replies quickly, with a sense of urgency. Duke stops his car next to the Civic.

“
Remember, don't turn off the engine,” King instructs Duke as he opens his door.

“
Yeah, I KNOW,” Duke says defensively.

King quietly slides out, leaving his door open, and approaches Newbie's car. With the confidence that only experience can bring, King starts prying his Slim Jim through the top of the Civic's window. King is working as quickly and quietly as possible so as not to arouse any attention. It is a tight fit at the top of the Civic's window. And so, after lodging the Slim Jim in, King pushes it towards the car, opening up a larger space and leaving an indentation in the Civic's frame. Collateral damage is always possible during this kind of procedure.

King is so focused on getting inside the Civic, he doesn't see a light switch on inside Newbie's house.

Soon enough King hears a “click” as he manages to unlock the Civic's door. So far, so good, he thinks. The first barrier has been breached. Duke's car is still quietly idling beside him as King slides into the Civic's driver's seat. He turns his attention to the Alpine Stereo, sitting completely exposed, waiting for King to take it home. First, King wriggles the faceplate off, grinning as the bulk of the stereo becomes evident. This is going to be a piece of cake.

After King snips the last wire free, a red light flashes across his vision. Startled, he looks up, seeing a police car approaching. King's heart starts pounding. Feeling elated, he grabs the stereo and its face plate, and leaps inside his brother's car. Duke peels out just as King lands in his seat.

Even though Duke doesn't have a driver's license yet, he is still an excellent driver. King has made sure to teach him well. Duke speeds out of the neighborhood, watching the police car gaining momentum behind him, slowly closing the gap. King starts calculating his options.

“
I'm going to jump,” he tells Duke, throwing the stereo in the back seat.

“
What?” Duke asks, preparing for an approaching turn.

There is no time for King to respond; he is already opening the door. Right when they are in the middle of the turn, King throws himself out of the car, rolling on the ground. He has so much adrenaline pumping, King does not feel a thing. He instantly jumps off the ground and dives into bushes nearby. Lying low, King watches as the police speed by. It appears they have not noticed their target has lost a passenger. After the police car disappears behind the corner, King sprints in the opposite direction of the racing duo, with a spring to his stride. His Misconducts are always the most exciting when he has a close call. King revels in his giddy joy. Times like these are when he actually feels alive. King figures this was a successful Misconduct because he got away, and even though Duke will be persecuted as if he worked alone, it doesn't matter because Duke is still a Minor.

My mom has just gone to bed. I've had to wait a long time for her to retire. Usually she goes to sleep around 10:00 pm, and it's almost midnight! I need privacy, and that requires not having her around. Now that it has been a couple of days since Kira and I staged our pretend-fight, it's time for me to start doing my detective work, start trying to get Ramon to talk.

With this thought in mind, I log into AIM and see that Ramon is online. I start our conversation…

I want him to know that I won't be able to make Kira change completely. After pecking out these letters on my keyboard, I look up at my screen, and see that Ramon had asked me,

Hey types this out again, like he thinks I was purposely ignoring him the first time. I guess all he cares about is getting the investigation to stop. While I have every intention of telling Kira what Ramon says, I don't want him to know that. Despite the little show Kira and I gave him, I'm thinking that Ramon needs some extra convincing to get him to spill the beans. So, I continue to lure him in with my lie.

It seems like this is the way Ramon explains his actions sometimes, so I hope that he buys my story.

While I feel pleased that Ramon took my explanation, I also feel a sudden longing in my heart. He reminds me of a little kid pleading to be accepted by a bully. In this case, Kira is the bully, who is refusing to listen. At this thought, my face goes grim with resolute frustration.

I can sense his disappointment and try to make it better.

As I type this, I realize that I need to cover my ass in case my plan to get Kira to stop investigating doesn't work out.

It seems like we have reached a dead end, so I decide to steer the topic to what I really want to know.

I'm taken a little off guard with how forthcoming he's being with this information.

I'm not sure what else I can say at this point.

I think it's time to get this conversation rolling in a different direction.

My heart pounds with anticipation. This is the moment Kira and I have been waiting for. This is the point where this conversation will tip one way or the other. I'm praying that Ramon decides to talk.

He seems so strong about his answer, I want to know what makes him so positive.

I was afraid he was going to say that. It riles me up that he doesn't think he can trust me.

He seems to ignore my outburst. But, I want him to understand how serious I am, and how badly I want to know.

There's a long pause before I see Ramon write anything back. Is he weighing whether or not to tell me? Have I finally made a breakthrough?

I can't believe it! Ramon is finally telling me the truth. The time has come, the moment is here! I can't take my eyes off the screen as I quickly take in everything he's saying. Somehow what he has said all fits; it all makes sense.

I want to get all the details I can out of him.

There's another long pause as I soak this in.

I feel like I've already made this abundantly clear.

I find myself frozen. A video tape is just the hard evidence we need to convict these jerks!

It feels like my fingers can't type fast enough. I wish I was better at typing!!!

I don't know who Casey is, but I figure this is irrelevant. I decide to not say anything and let Ramon finish what he has to say.

I had no idea that anybody else knew that Ramon and I had gotten into a supposed fight.
And I can't believe he's calling it a fight too, when that's not really what happened.
It stings a little. But, it makes sense that Brent Andrews would see our “fight” as a reason to believe I would blame the vandalism on Ramon. I need to ask Ramon a question that's been pressing on my mind.

I wish Ramon had kept that tape as well. Why did he decide to give them a break?

I know this sounds convincing, and I congratulate myself with putting on such a good show.

Ramon pauses, and I'm waiting with baited breath.

He knows more! This is turning out better and better! I can tell that now I've really hit the jackpot.

Wow! Ramon meant it when he said everyone knew something. I'm beginning to feel like Kira and I were the only two who
didn't
know what actually happened.

Why would Ramon be so protective of Brent and Kurt?

Ramon is really getting into the story, and it is all making a lot of sense. The pieces fit together better than anything else people have come up with.

Kira and I couldn't figure out a reason for why Tyler's car had been vandalized. It had happened on a different night from everything else. But now I can see that Brent Andrews and Kurt wanted to make Ramon look guilty in Tyler's eyes.

I can feel anger growing inside. I'm like a mother bear wanting to protect her cub. It is not okay with me for someone to treat Ramon like this.