The first few days, Henry didn't really pay attention to it. About the middle of the week, however, it occurred to him that he was not depressed. He was actually happy. It was as if the previous five years had never happened. He could think about Annie and smile - remembering a happy time or some quaint idiosyncrasy. He could love her again - not only grieve over her.
He thought frequently about the boy. He had visited Marty again and had called the hospital every day to check on the boy or to talk to him. That kid had really gotten under Henry's skin.
Kate Burtch did show up. The kid was a liar. No druggy raped him. He was a dirty little whore, working the streets. He was her responsibility. She was taking him back home. Jerry Dissler had been called to remove her from the hospital. She was furious. Who did these people think they were, telling her what she could and couldn't do with this kid?
The Circuit Court Judge never handled her cases. When told by the magistrate that the case of Martin Toliver had been transferred to Circuit Court she marched in, interrupted the court in session and announced that there was no need for a hearing. She was in charge of that kid and was taking him out of the hospital and sending him home. The bailiff, at the Judge's instruction, forcibly removed her as the judge informed her that her contempt hearing would be held in conjunction with the child's placement hearing.
She came to court with Mervin Gross and the agency lawyer. Kate and Mervin would put this judge in his place. They were the experts in the child care business. No one, but no one was going to tell them what to do.
Gross, of course, buckled first. It took only one firm admonition from the judge. The man was a typical bureaucrat, wimpy and not very smart.
Kate took considerably more persuasion. It took a second contempt citation, a lot of cajoling from the agency attorney, white faced, panicky begging from Mervin and a stern admonition from the bench. The child in question would be placed in foster care, no changes would be made in his placement without approval by this judge and she would make a verbal apology to the court for her previous disruption. Those were the stipulations. She could agree to them now or there would be no suspended sentences on the contempt charges. Do as she was told or go to jail for seven years.
After being assured by the attorney that the judge did have the legal authority to make her place the child in foster care, that Contempt of Court was a very serious charge, that Ruth Mean, the Director of Child Services in Madison, could not overrule the judge and that he, indeed, had the legal power to jail her, it finally sank in. Her apology was inane but reluctantly accepted. Everyone in the courtroom realized that the art of apology was a completely foreign concept to Kate Burtch. Marty left the hospital after a week and went to the Group Home.
Until Annie's death, Henry had always been a congenial, witty man. He had never become unkind but those around him had become accustomed to a sad, sullen man. This jovial, joking, happy man was a stranger to them - a very pleasant, happy stranger who made the workplace much more enjoyable. Henry and Annie had lived in Milwaukee prior to Annie's death so his coworkers knew only the unhappy Henry. They knew of Annie's death and they understood so working with Henry had never been unpleasant but neither had it been the joy it was now.
The week had gone so well that by Friday Henry decided to do something that he had not done since Annie became ill. They had both loved fly-fishing. She was actually better at it than Henry but they had loved the outdoors, the togetherness and, of course the trout weren't bad. Henry was the better trout fryer. Annie often ask his secret but Henry would never tell her. "There ought to be at least one thing I can do better than you." And they'd laugh. Henry laughed now remembering.
As he drove home he wondered just where he'd left the equipment. It had been put it in the garage when he moved but he didn't remember seeing it recently. When he pulled into the garage, however, it was there - where it had always been. He realized that for five years he had really seen nothing. It's tough to see through a dark veil.
He backed the jeep out and headed toward the back door. He rounded the corner and stopped dead in his tracks. Marty was sitting on the back steps.
"'Bout time. I gotta poop."
Henry opened the door and Marty ran to the bathroom. Henry hardly had time to think through the situation before he heard the toilet flush and Marty came out and demanded, "OK, Uncle Henry, wash me. We don't hardly got no hot water at Aunt Myrt's and we only got a shower. I like baths better. Wash me."
"Uncle Henry. I like that."
"Uncle Cecil, he's the dad at where I live now, says it ain't right for a youngen to call a man by his first name. We got to call them Uncle Cecil and Aunt Myrt. You're a man so I thought I better call you Uncle Henry."
Marty was already in the bathroom almost completely undressed.
"Do your Uncle Cecil and Aunt Myrt know you're here?"
Marty reached down, picked up his pants and took a piece of paper from the pocket. "Oh, ya, here."
Henry read the note. "marty says he can stay with ya'll jes have him back time for bed sunday he got to be in school 8 so he need to sleep bout dark. myrtlebel troller"
Henry had heard the Trollers were good people but of limited intelligence. The note seemed to bear that out.
"Come on, wash me."
"You know. Marty, I'd like you to learn to say please when you ask someone to help you."
Marty hung his head and Henry thought he was going to cry. "You think I'm bossy like Aunt Myrt, don't you?"
"No. I think you're a fine boy who just hasn't had a chance to learn proper manners. I know what a fine boy you are. If you learn to say please and thank you, other people will know what a fine boy you are.
"Now, please ask me again."
Marty wasn't sure what Henry wanted. He'd already asked twice. "Wash me????"
"What did I just ask you to do?"
It registered with Marty. "Oh, ya, please wash me."
In the course of the bath, Henry got a detailed update on the condition of Marty's bottom and his information.
"Inflammation."
"Oh, ya, that."
When the bathing was complete, Marty asked if he could stay in the warm water a while longer. "It feels so good."
"You know, Honey. I bet you'd like the hot tub."
Marty did. The water stayed warm and it swirled around and it was big enough that Marty could pretend that he was swimming in it.
While Marty played in the hot tub, Henry called Jerry Dissler. "Marty showed up here this afternoon."
"I'm not surprised. I stopped in to check on him Thursday. He thinks you walk on water."
"Should I let him stay? I got a note from who seems to be the housemother saying he could stay. What do you know about her?"
"Come up from Mississippi or somewhere down south. She's a good woman. Ces is a good man. Not much education but they seem to like the kids and take good care of them - as good as they can on what the state pays them."
"Should I let him stay?"
"If you don't, Henry, you'll break his heart. As nearly as he understands love, he loves you."
"But what about Kate?"
"Don't worry about her. She's off to Madison or Milwaukee or Chicago every weekend. You didn't have other plans did you?"
"Well, I thought I'd go fishing but to tell you the truth, that boy's been good for me. I haven't felt this good in years. If you don't think there'll be any problems with CPS, I'll keep him for the weekend."
"How about every weekend?"
"What?"
"I'm on the board of Big Brothers. Marty needs you and I think you need him. I can set it up."
"I'd love it but I'm sixty-seven years old. They'd never approve me."
"Henry, you aren't the only one with clout in this county. We'll approve you."
It took a while to sink in. Henry had thought constantly of Marty during the past week. He remembered the bliss of holding the sleeping child. He remembered the boy's trust. He remembered his appealing audacity. He knew that it had been Marty Toliver who had turned his life around; who had needed him; who had cured his depression. Henry absolutely glowed at the thought of spending time with the boy every weekend.
Had it not been for a stroke of genius, Henry probably would have had to physically remove Marty from the hot tub. But a promise that the boy could play in there again later in the evening and the magic word - McDONALDS - almost levitated Marty out of the tub.
"McDONALDS!! I never been to McDonalds. But there ain't no McDonalds in Jefferson."
"There are some in Madison."
"What if Kiki's there?"
Henry knew that there was no danger of running into Kiki. Jerry had told him that she had been picked up in Chicago for soliciting and would probably be held for at least six months. Rick Olmstead, the County Prosecutor, had not yet decided whether to charge her in Marty's rape. Jerry was discouraging it. He didn't want Marty to have to relive it and the way Kiki was going, she's kill herself or be killed within a year anyway. Jerry admitted that it was kind of cold hearted but on the street or in jail, she'd be dead within a year anyway. She may not live long enough to get out of jail in Chicago.
Henry reassured Marty and at Marty's insistence, they took the jeep. It had been years since Henry giggled but Marty's excitement at going to McDonalds was hilarious. His behavior at McDonalds was beyond hilarious. He kissed the seventeen-year-old girl who served his happy meal. He kissed Uncle Henry. A grandmotherly lady thought she should also have a kiss so Marty favored everyone in the house with a kiss. Well, not everyone. There was a boy of about eleven or twelve who refused the favor but his twin sister kindly accepted. Marty ate his Happy Meal and then repeated the ritual of osculation. He was showing off - he knew it but people were laughing and they liked him and he had never been so happy.
Marty was constant chatter on the drive back to Jefferson. He described in the minutest of detail all the virtues of the toy he'd gotten in his happy meal. He exuded joy all the way home and Henry was delighted.
The Kmart in Fort Atkinson was still open so Henry stopped and bought Marty a pair of pajamas. He'd decided to take Marty to Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago tomorrow and he could buy the boy a better wardrobe then.
Sleepiness dulled the luster of the hot tub after about an hour and the pajama clad boy was happy to snuggle into Uncle Henry's lap. He was about to drift off when he looked up at Henry and asked, "Do you love me?"
Henry didn't have to think about it. "Yes, I do. I love you very much."
Marty smiled, snuggled closer and said, "I thought so. You know what? You're the only person in the world who loves me."
After fifteen minutes, tears of tenderness and joy in his eyes, Henry carried the sleeping boy to the guest bedroom, tucked him in and kissed his forehead.
Henry was finishing his first cup of coffee when Marty, sleepy eyes and yawning crawled into his lap. "I wanted to sleep with you."
"You don't want to sleep with me. I snore."
"What's snore?"
Henry's rather dramatic demonstration had Marty giggling. To Marty's disappointment, they didn't go to McDonalds. Henry fed him some bacon and eggs then hustled him off to get dressed. Henry did up the dishes.
Henry still needed to shower and dress so he suggested that Marty go play in the back yard. Marty didn't want to.
"Look what a nice day it is. I'm sure you can find things to do until I get my shower. Then I have a surprise for you."
"If I go out, will Fritz go with me?"
"I think you and Fritz would have a lot of fun. I know you like Fritz now. You were playing with him last night."
"Is Fritz gonna eat me?"
"No. What makes you think Fritz would eat you?"
"He keeps tasting me."
Henry almost ruptured himself to keep from laughing. "When Fritz licks you he's kissing you. That's how dogs kiss. Go on now. You and Fritz will have fun."
"OK. I like Fritz a lot but I ain't gonna dog kiss him."
After Henry had finished his ablution and started out the back door, he saw Marty, a stick at his shoulder as if it were a rifle, peering into the bushes - Fritz almost at a point beside him. "Be careful, Uncle Henry. There's lions out here. Me and Fritz already got ten."
"Well, let me know when it's safe. We need to go to Chicago."
"CHICAGO! Bang. That's the last one. Let's go.
Marty climbed into the Jeep.
"We're taking this car."
"I want to ride in the Jeep again."
"Chicago is a long way away. It will take us almost two hours. This car will be more comfortable."
"NO! We're taking the jeep."
Henry turned and walked back toward the house.
"Where you goin'?"
"Well, I don't want to go to Chicago alone and I'm going in the BMW so if you're going to just sit in the Jeep, I'm going back in the house."
"I thought you said you loved me."
"I do love you."
"Then why won't you do what I want?"
"Do you love me?"
"Yes."
Henry just looked at the boy. Marty thought for a minute and then said, "Oh, ya." And climbed into the BMW."