Page 56 of What You Never Knew

She points to a set of worn wooden Adirondack chairs. “Have a seat, and I’ll go get us that beer.”

I do as she says but wonder why we don’t sit on the lake side of the house, which in my opinion would be much nicer. She’s back minutes later and hands me a bottle of cold beer. Easing herself down into the other chair with a deep sigh, she pulls a pack of cigarettes from inside the chest of her sundress.

“I like to watch the street traffic go by,” she explains, before lighting a cigarette and inhaling deeply. “Good to know your neighbors’ business, if you know what I mean.” I actually don’t. I’m the keep-to-yourself kind of neighbor, but I nod anyway.

Even sitting still, out of the sun, a layer of sweat collects along my top lip. It’s almost six o’clock and the heat shows no sign of letting up. I take a long, grateful sip of beer. “It’s certainly a hot one today,” I offer up as conversation.

“So you and Ezra are close?” she asks, squinting as she takes another inhale, detouring from the small talk entirely.

“Yes,” I answer easily. “We were good friends as children and have just sort of picked up where we left off as adults.” But now we have sex, I think to myself, but of course I don’t include that fact.

She takes a quick swig of her beer. “Funny,” she says.

“What’s funny?” I take the bait.

“Just that, after everything that happened between your family and Ezra’s you can still be friends, he was mighty angry. I know he blamed your mom for his dad leaving.” She takes another sip of beer. “And for his mom losing her marbles and all. Hell, I blame her too.” She looks over at me, a challenge in her cold eyes.

“I can see why,” I reply.

She gives a curt nod of approval. “I don’t give two shits about West, if I’m honest. The minute he stepped out on Willa with your mom, I lost all respect and fondness for the man. It’s Willa I care about, been friends with her all my life. She’s a good woman, should never have been put through what she was put through. First not being able to have kids and having to adopt Ezra, then her marriage falling apart, her husband accused of who knows what, murder maybe. Then he up and leaves. It’s enough to drive any woman mad.”

I’m deeply regretting coming for the beer. It feels as though I’ve been brought over to sit in penance for my mother’s sins. “Nobody should have to go through those things,” I say, hoping my obvious sympathy for Willa will end the discussion.

“You know, I saw him that night.” She takes a long inhale of her cigarette.

“Who?”

“West.” His name comes out on a plume of smoke. “It was a hot one, just like today. I couldn’t sleep.” She pauses to take another sip of beer. “It was before I had the air con installed,” she adds as an aside. “I went out back to sit by the lake and cool down a bit; was around one AM. Saw West come out through the back door and get in his boat and drive off in the direction of your cottage.” She points at me.

It’s a piece of information I didn’t have before. Was West at our cottage the night of my parents’ argument? And if he was, why? “You don’t know for a fact that he went to Avril Island, and even if he did, it doesn’t prove anything.”

She cocks her head to one side with a smug look on her face. “The police sure thought it did.” She drops her finished cigarette on the porch floor and crushes it under her sandaled foot, then with great effort bends down to pick it up and put it in an old coffee can. “Besides,” she continues. “If he wasn’t guilty, why the hell did he run?”

“I don’t know” is all that I come up with. I’m suddenly overwhelmed with exhaustion about the whole thing. I’ve convinced myself that West had nothing to do with my father’s disappearance, but now I learn he may have actually been there that night and cracks appear in the case for his innocence.

“Two men just vanish into thin air?” She snaps her fingers. “Two men in love with the same woman? It’s no small coincidence.” She chuckles to herself. “My friends accuse me of reading too many crime novels. Say it’s gone to my head, but in my opinion the police gave up too easily.”

“So you think West may have had something to do with my dad’s disappearance?”

She holds both hands up in an exaggerated shrug. “What do I know? I’m just the neighbor. Just telling you what I saw is all. Don’t have any more to go on than that.”

“Does Ezra know that you saw his dad leave that night?”

She nods. “It was a sore spot for a long time between us. Me going to the police with it. He got over it though, eventually. Was a right angry kid for a long time and made sure everybody knew it.” She gives her head a shake and chuckles. “He even went out to your place after you all left and spray-painted some nastiness across the side of the cottage, chucked a couple rocks through some windows. Police caught him, though, made him paint over the graffiti, and Willa paid to have the windows replaced.”

More details about back then that Ezra neglected to tell me. I’m starting to wonder how truthful he’s actually been with me. Is there nobody in this town I can really trust? Is there anyone who doesn’t have some reason to hate my family?

“So you see,” Judy unfortunately continues, “why I find it surprising that Ezra has become such good friends with you? Or you with him, for that matter, if you’re suspecting his dad might have caused your dad harm.”

“I guess we both just decided to leave the past in the past,” I say, before draining the last of my beer. I hold up the empty bottle. “Thanks for this, Judy. I certainly needed it.”

“My pleasure. Come on back for more later if you want. I’ll be here.” She starts the process of lighting another cigarette.

“Thanks, Judy, that’s kind of you,” I say, getting up out of my chair.

“Kindness is all you have these days,” she says. “Some people round here weren’t happy to hear that a Bennett had returned, but you didn’t have nothing to do with what happened back then, so I say give you a chance.” She leans back in her chair and narrows her eyes at me. “Now, if it was your mother turning up, well, that would be a different story. I’d certainly have some comeuppance to bestow on that woman.”

“Understandable,” I say, thinking she’d have to get in line. I give a last wave and head toward Ezra’s yard.