Corrupted Read online

  “Jason, what happened to your head?”

  “Nothing.” Jason quickly covered the patch with his hand, and Bennie realized he’d been hiding it earlier.

  “I saw, it looks white. Did somebody hurt you?”

  “No.”

  “Then what’s going on? Did somebody hit you?”

  “No.” Jason shook his head, his hand still firmly planted.

  “Did you bang it on something?”

  “No.”

  “Jason, please tell me what happened.”

  “Nobody did it to me.” Jason lowered his voice.

  “Did you do it to yourself?” Bennie asked, confused.

  “No, it just came out.”

  “What came out?”

  “My hair.” Jason looked up, stricken. His face flushed pink. “My hair, it’s, like, falling out. I found some in the shower and on my pillow this morning, and on my shirt when I took it off, around the neck. I’m afraid I’m going to be bald, like, I’m going to be totally bald like a baby.”

  “Oh no,” Bennie said, alarmed. Her thoughts raced with possibilities. There were childhood cancers, an immune disorder, or it could even be psychological. “Do you feel sick?”

  “No.”

  “Are you throwing up or anything?”

  “No.”

  “Do you have a fever?” Bennie put her hand on Jason’s forehead like a TV mom, but it didn’t feel hot. “When did this start?”

  “I don’t know, it’s just like, all of a sudden, like, my hair is falling out, and look, it’s, like, happening to my eyebrows, too.”

  Bennie leaned over, noticing that his eyebrows seemed oddly sparse.

  “Can you tell, like, right off? If the other kids see, or the big boys…” Jason didn’t finish the sentence, and Bennie placed a steadying hand on his soft shoulder.

  “Jason, you can’t see it easily, but we need to have a doctor look at you. What did your dad say?”

  “I didn’t tell him, and he was sitting on my other side, so he couldn’t see.”

  “Why didn’t you tell him, buddy?”

  “He was upset because we lost and like, I knew I would only make him worry more.” Jason’s eyes filmed, and his lower lip trembled. “Richard the Strong wouldn’t say anything.”

  Bennie squeezed his shoulder. “I don’t think Richard the Strong had to put up with what you’re having to put up with.”

  “Yes, he did, he had battles.”

  “Well, he wears a helmet.”

  “You remembered.” Jason managed a smile, and Bennie felt her heart lift.

  “For all we know, he’s bald under that helmet. So don’t worry too much about trying to be like Richard the Strong.”

  “You said to.”

  “I know, but I was wrong.” Bennie sighed inwardly. She had no idea how mothers did their jobs. It was impossibly hard, like taking the bar exam—every day for the rest of your life. “Jason, it’s good to be brave, but you’re going through a lot now, and it’s okay to say that it’s hard. Really hard, and really scary.”

  “It is,” Jason whispered. His eyes glistened with unshed tears.

  “I know, sweetie.” Bennie felt wetness come to her own eyes, but blinked them clear. She’d sensed Jason needed her to be strong, which was another Mother Thing. “Anyway, what I was saying was we need to get a doctor, to check you out—”

  “No, please don’t, they’ll know, they’ll make fun of me.” Jason wiped his eyes with his free hand. “Soon they’ll see, if it doesn’t stop, they’ll see. I won’t have any hair!”

  “We’ll deal with that when it happens, if it happens.” Bennie hesitated. “It’s possible that part of the reason this is happening is because you’re stressed, which is normal. We can get you some help for that, too, somebody to talk to.”

  “Like Frasier, you mean a shrink. You think I’m crazy.”

  “No, not at all. Not crazy, but stressed. Worried. Anybody would be nervous and anxious in this situation. I would be.”

  “So why don’t you see a shrink?”

  “I have in my life, and I would again, if I needed to.” Bennie had grown up with a single mother, who suffered from depression, and she’d been her mother’s caretaker, from childhood. She’d done her time in therapy, which was why she was so incredibly well adjusted, if you didn’t count her personal life.

  “They have a shrink that comes here, I heard people saying, making fun of the boy who had to see him.” Jason’s eyes flashed with new panic. “Really, I mean it, they’ll tease me, they’ll call me crazy, I don’t want anything like that to happen, I want them to leave me alone until I go home. When am I going home? Just tell me.”

  “I’m working on it, Jason.” Suddenly Bennie had an idea. “Sit here. I have to go a minute.”

  “Why?”

  “You’ll see. Stay here. I’ll be right back.” Bennie jumped up, signaling to the guard. “Sir, I’ll be right back. Please let him wait here for me.”

  The guard nodded back to her, and Bennie grabbed her purse, hustled from the room, waved her way past the security desk, and went outside. She caught up with the workman, loading a box on the van.

  “Hi, remember me?” Bennie asked him, as he turned around.

  “Sure, the mom.”

  “Can I ask you a favor? Will you sell me your hat for twenty bucks?” Bennie gestured at his black knit cap.

  “What, why?”

  “My son’s head is really cold in there, and I don’t want him to have to wait ’til I can buy him a new one.”

  “No problem.” The workman slid the hat off his head. “Take it for free.”

  “Aw, I’m happy to pay for it.” Bennie reached for her purse.

  “Put your money away, ’tis the season,” the workman replied, with a smile. “Merry Christmas to you and your boy.”

  “Thank you very much. That’s very kind of you.” Bennie gave him a grateful wave as she ran back up the steps, hurried inside, went back through the metal detector again, and was let into the visiting room.

  Jason looked up, still resting on his fist to hide his bald spot. “Where did you go?” he asked, as she reached him.

  “Here.” Bennie passed him the hat. “Put this on. It’s cold enough in here that everybody will think that’s why you have it on.”

  “Where did you get it?” Jason brightened, picking up the hat and pulling it on. “Do I look okay?”

  “Great!” Bennie threw her arms around him, and Jason got up and gave her a big hug back.

  “Thanks!”

  “You’re welcome.” Bennie patted him on the back, then let him go. “Now go back to your room and try not to worry, honey.”

  “Okay, Mommy.” Jason’s hand flew to his mouth. “Oops, sorry I called you that, it’s ’cause my mom always called me honey.”

  “It’s okay. Bye for now.” Bennie smiled, concealing the strength of the emotion welling up inside her. She wasn’t sure what to call the feeling, which touched a part of her heart so deep that she didn’t even know it existed. She’d often wondered when she’d be a mother, but she’d never thought of herself as mommy. Just the sound of the word got to her. Mommy.

  “Bye.” Jason turned away, then scuffed out of the room, his head down in his new cap.

  Bennie watched him go, her throat thickening. Her tears brimmed only after the door had closed, and the little boy was gone.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  Bennie left the waiting room and went to the security desk in the entrance hall, where a young guard in a blue uniform sat behind the desk. “Officer Dulaney,” she said, reading his nameplate. “I wonder if you can help me.”

  “Call me Stan. What do you need?” The young man looked up with a smile, his gelled hair shiny in the overhead light.

  “I’m concerned that my client is having a health issue. What can I do to get him medical treatment? Do you have an infirmary on the premises?”

  “We have a nurse who comes in, and a doctor, if necessary.”
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br />   “Great. What about a psychiatrist?”

  “We have one who comes in, Dr. Vita. You’re a private attorney, correct?” Stan frowned slightly.

  “Yes. Why?”

  “We don’t get many of those. There has to be a written request from the parent for the doctor or psychiatrist. You can’t make the request.”

  “Okay, but I’d like to get it scheduled as soon as possible.”

  “We can get him into the nurse later today. Dr. Vita has a waiting list. I bet it’ll take a month or two.” Stan leaned over. “He’s expensive. I heard it’s a couple hundred bucks for an evaluation.”

  “Good to know, thanks. Good-bye now.”

  “Good-bye. Merry Christmas!”

  “To you, too,” Bennie called back, troubled. She left, hurried to her car, climbed inside, and started the ignition, then reached in her purse for her phone and plugged in the number for Matthew, who picked up after one ring. “Matthew, I just saw Jason. Can you meet me for lunch today? It’s important.”

  “Yes, come by work at noon. Parnell Ironworks. I’ll meet you at the employee entrance.”

  “Done. See you then. Bye.” Bennie backed out of the space, turned around, and traveled down the driveway, then turned right when the traffic allowed, onto River Street. The dashboard clock read 10:15, and she pressed in the number for the Superior Court in Harrisburg.

  “Prothonotary’s Office. How may I help you?”

  “Hello, this is Bennie Rosato, and I filed an Application for Emergency Relief and A Request for an Expedited Briefing Schedule with the on-call judge yesterday. Do you know if any of those have been ruled upon yet?” Bennie rattled off the caption as she entered traffic, driving with care.

  “Please hold while I check.”

  “Thank you.” Bennie felt her heartbeat pound, emotionally involved in a case in a way that was new to her.

  “Ms. Rosato? We just received an order in this matter, granting your petition for expedited briefing.”

  “That’s wonderful!” Bennie’s spirits lifted, though she reminded herself that she’d gotten this tantalizingly close before. “How long does the Commonwealth have to file its response?”

  “Until five o’clock tomorrow, Friday. We were about to fax a copy of the order to your office, but it just came in. It hasn’t even been docketed yet.”

  “Did he rule on my Application for Oral Argument?”

  “No, just on the briefing.

  “Which judge was assigned to the case?”

  “Judge Wallace Kittredge. He’s new.”

  Damn. Bennie couldn’t research him without a track record of his opinions. She didn’t know whether he was Republican or Democrat, but even that wasn’t a reliable predictor of the way he’d rule, and she cursed again the fact that Pennsylvania elected judges, instead of appointing them.

  “Feel free to call later about oral argument.”

  “Thank you very much.”

  “You’re welcome, Ms. Rosato. Happy holidays!”

  Bennie hung up, then made her way toward Mountain Top, checking her email and messages on her phone when it was safe. She made a quick phone call to the office, which was picked up by Lou.

  “Bennie, you just waking up?”

  “No.” Bennie flushed unaccountably. “Why are you answering the phone instead of Marshall?”

  “She stepped away. So, did the earth move? Did you remember how to ride a bicycle? They say you never forget.”

  “I’m not that kind of girl.”

  “That kind of girl has a lot more fun than you.”

  “I’m doing just fine.”

  “But you’re giving this guy a shot, aren’t you?”

  “I’m thinking about it.”

  “Mazel tov!”

  “Shh, it’s supposed to be a secret.” Bennie braked behind a tractor-trailer, its big tires and mud flaps streaked with salt. She had never seen more salt than in northeastern Pennsylvania.

  “Relax. There’s no one around. Where are you? Aren’t you coming in?”

  “No, I’m staying in Jim Thorpe for the rest of the week.”

  “With Mr. Right? Excuse me, Sergeant Right?”

  “In two rooms.”

  Lou snorted. “Gimme a break. What happens in Jim Thorpe, stays in Jim Thorpe.”

  “Keep it classy, would you?” Bennie couldn’t help but smile. “How are things?”

  “We’re getting along fine without you.”

  “All right, I’m hanging up. Call me if you need me.”

  “Will do. Have fun.”

  “Bye.” Bennie hung up, and the traffic eased, so she traveled to Mountain Top in about half an hour, wending her way through the town, then into the outskirts, which turned into wide-open spaces, broken up by light industry. She spotted the Parnell Ironworks sign in front of the offices, next to a windowless building of white corrugated metal. She followed the driveway and passed a sign that read EMPLOYEE ENTRANCE, where she parked. In time, she spotted Matthew emerge from the door, in a white paper jumpsuit covered with blue spray paint.

  Bennie flagged him down, and he jogged toward the car, jumping inside just as she opened the door, letting in cold air. “Matthew, good to see you.”

  “Hi, thanks.” Matthew folded into the seat and closed the door behind him. A chemical scent wreathed the paper jumpsuit, and there was a fine spray of faint bluish paint on his cheeks, but it stopped where his goggles and mask must have been. “Sorry I couldn’t talk. It’s one of those days.”

  “Can I take you to lunch? Do you have time to grab a bite?”

  “No, I only take half an hour. We have a cafeteria but it’s employees only. Can we just talk here, in the car?”

  “Sure, I went to see Jason this morning—”

  “Thanks.” Matthew smiled, surprised. “I didn’t know you were coming up.”

  “I’m staying, to make it easier.” Bennie wasn’t about to tell him about Declan, but it felt uncomfortably like a material omission. “I filed the appeal yesterday, and we got good news this morning, in that the appellate judge ruled in our favor on expedited briefing.”

  “So that tells you something, right?” Matthew brightened. “It’s like he wants to hear about the case.”

  “Yes, but remember last time? We got exactly this far and then we lost.” Bennie met his eye. “But I think we have a problem with Jason. His hair is falling out. I saw his scalp above his ear, and his eyebrows are thinning.”

  “What? I just saw him and he was fine.” Matthew frowned. “Except he told me that Richie’s ganging up on him, with the older kids.”

  “I’ll see what I can do about that, if anything.” Bennie felt conflicted, but pressed it away. “About his hair, he hid it from you, and I’m worried. He’s going to see a nurse today, but I need a letter from you to get him seen by a doctor and a psychologist.”

  “A psychologist? Why?”

  “I’ve heard that stress can make your hair fall out, haven’t you?” Bennie kept her tone gentle. “I think it’s called alopecia. He’s worried that he’s going to go completely bald, which does happen.”

  “I never heard of that.”

  “The psychiatrist at River Street can’t see him for a couple of months, so I think we need to get him seen privately.”

  “Who’s gonna pay for that? You know, they’re charging me for Jason’s court costs and for staying at River Street. Is that nerve or what? They’re gonna take it out of my pay every week. The gal in Human Resources just told me, fifty bucks a week until I pay 517 bucks. Plus your fee, it adds up, no offense.”

  “I’ll do everything I can for you on my bill, and you’re probably insured for treatment for him. I really think he needs—”

  “Pssh!” Matthew waved her off. “You’re making too big a deal about this. You don’t have kids, do you?”

  Mommy. “No, but—”

  “They have ups and downs. If you get him out of there, the whole dang thing will blow over. For free.”

 
“I drafted a letter from you to the director of the prison, would you sign it?”

  “He doesn’t need a psychiatrist.” Matthew raised his voice, slightly.

  “I think he does.”

  “Well. I decide, I’m the client,” Matthew said, flatly.

  “Technically, Jason is my client.”

  “Then have him pay your bill.” Matthew pursed his lips. “You do the lawyering and leave Jason to me. You just get him home, where he belongs.”

  “I’m doing everything I can.” Bennie masked her frustration, and just then, her phone started ringing. She glanced at the screen, which showed Declan’s cell phone number.

  “Answer that if you want to.”

  “No, it can wait.” Bennie pressed the button to voicemail, but the call made her nervous.

  “I should get back to work anyway. The muckety-mucks are in today, and we got a big order from Canada. Sorry if I got loud, there. I try to be a gentleman, at all times.”

  “It’s okay. I’m sorry I got pushy.”

  “I’d better go. See you.” Matthew opened the car door, letting in a blast of cold air, then shut it behind him.

  Bennie watched him head for the employees’ entrance, then she picked up the phone.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  “Hi, Declan, sorry I missed your call.” Bennie kept the engine running for heat, looking through the windshield without really seeing anything. All she could think about was Jason, and there was nothing to see except snow, the corrugated building, and the cold pewter sky.

  “Doreen and I met with the lawyer. I struck out again. She doesn’t want to hire him.”

  “Why?” Bennie held her tongue, but it was becoming impossible to believe that Doreen really wanted Richie out of River Street.

  “She didn’t like him. She said he talked down to her.”

  “Did he?”

  “No. Not to my mind. She and I had words. I told her she needed to hire somebody fast. She told me to back off. It wasn’t pleasant.”

  “I bet. The Superior Court granted expedited briefing, so I hope I’m making some precedent for you.”

  “Congratulations.” Declan’s tone warmed. “It seems like you’re making excellent progress. I’ll try again. I’ll find somebody else. Cast the net wider. I can’t give up on Richie. I’m sitting outside River Street now, about to go in.”