The Between Years

she arrived at the house, and saw what he was up to, she would at least become concerned if not suspicious about his behavior and take off on him.

    If anything, he needed a witness to make sure someone could relay the truth about what had happened. She would see the walls come crumbling down! He thought and stifled a laugh. On the other hand, she could try and stop the entire thing. She could call the police, the fire department, or whomever she needed to call in order to stop him from endangering himself. But by the time she showed up, he would be far too immersed in executing his plan for her to stop him. And he fully intended to come through for Kenny. Make a promise keep a promise, just like he'd told him.

    The plan still felt like an enormous cross to bear given that the house still meant a tremendous amount to him. The walls were chock full of memories from his childhood and beyond. It seemed to him like the floors, the walls, the ceilings and the windows were alive with generations. His only reason not to tear the walls down was because he didn't want to part with his memories, but he knew that he must, for Kenny's sake. Also for Kenny's good, he knew that he must part with his special boy too.

    If his Nana and Bupa could have known what he was about to do to that ancestral home-and there was a possibility that they could-what would they say? He thought. Of course, he cared that they would think and it made him pause to re-evaluate the situation. His parents and aunts and uncles would certainly lose any inheritance-or respect for him-they would receive, save for selling a lot. And he would lose any chare he was set to receive as well.

    But money was far from the foremost thought on his mind. Having a mission to accomplish was a wonderful thing, but figuring out exactly how he would do it quickly became a chore. He'd never torn down a wall before-much less an entire house-or anything else for that matter. He'd been a student and an intellectual his whole life and had been glad to leave grunt jobs to others. Even when people asked about him what kind of engine he had in his car, he was happy to tell them that he knew how to drive the car, but that he'd be damned if he knew what was going on under the hood!

    Whatever method he chose, he would have to consider Kenny's safety above all else. And he would need to use some tools that he hadn't used since he'd helped his dad with the yard work at the house as a teenager, but he was determined that he would manage.

    Then he considered what else he would be unleashing by bringing the walls down. For all he knew, there were two hundred years worth of living memories and spirits all pent up within the walls, and they might not want to be released. If anyone else was in there, they would have been in there with Kenny all those days. Years. And then he understood that there was a chance that he could be releasing something far worse than he'd imagined.

    Do I want to be responsible for a mistake like that? he wondered. Come on man, don't turn back. Time to be brave!

    Finally, he wondered what Carol and his family would think of him. He thought he'd passed the point of giving a damn what anyone thought of him, but he didn't want to leave a blemish like this on his personal legacy. He didn't want to be known as the librarian who'd gone off his rocker or had an emotional breakdown. But none of them would understand, he thought. If they'd spent the last few days-or years-in the house, and had seen the suffering that Kenny had been subjected to, certainly they would want him to do what was best for Kenny. And he was the boy's father, which meant that he knew best.

    He checked his watch and realized that how slim his time had really grown. With so much to do before tonight, he was determined not to be late for Kenny. In fact, he meant to catch him bright and early.

CHAPTER 29
    Just as Randy had expected, trying to find tools in the basement had quickly become a royal pain in the ass. The entire place was a mess in which he would never find anything and he wondered if his Uncle Herb had already helped himself to some of the treasure. A missing power saw had been his first clue. Maybe no one would notice that the smaller tools were gone in that sty. His dad would want to skin his brother alive if he ever found out, but fortunately for Herb, Randy would never have the chance to tell him.

    And so he needed to consider his alternative: the aluminum tool shed at the end of