Page 48 of The Serpent King

Travis gave Dill the same look. “Say it to my face.”

“No. You’re driving.”

Travis laughed and punched Dill in the arm again. “I knew it! How come you never—”

“Because.”

“Why?”

“I don’t want to wreck things. And I would.”

“Maybe not.” But actually, yeah, Dill, there’s a good chance you would.

Dill gave Travis an oh-come-on look. “I maybe already did wreck things. Besides, she’s leaving. She wouldn’t want to. I’d be too much of a complication for her plans.”

“You don’t know until you try. Thing about girls is—”

Dill chuckled and punched Travis in the arm again. “ ‘Thing about girls,’ huh? Now look who’s an expert.”

“I know a thing or two.”

“Like hell you do. Maybe you know a thing. You don’t know two.”

They pulled up to Dill’s house. The day begged for work outside—cloudy, crisp enough that you needed a long-sleeve shirt but not a jacket. The air smelled of brown grass and clothes drying somewhere.

Travis determined they’d need to get at the starter motor from below. They jacked up the car and put supports under it. Travis wiggled underneath with a set of wrenches.

“Can you help me get the end of my wrench over that top bolt?” Travis asked.

“Sure.” Dill helped him maneuver onto the bolt. “Where’d you learn how to work on cars?”

“My dad.” Travis grunted and broke the bolt free. He ratcheted the wrench to loosen it.

“Was that fun? Working on cars with your dad?”

“Not really.” Travis hoped Dill wouldn’t ask why. He didn’t.

Travis unhooked the electrical connection from the starter motor and clanked around with the wrench until he got onto the other bolt. He strained and loosened the bolt, supporting the old starter motor with his hand while he ratcheted the remaining bolt. The bolt came free and he lowered the starter motor. He wriggled out from under the car.

“You ever think about teaching your kids how to work on cars someday?” Dill asked.

Travis brushed dirt off his pants. “I haven’t thought much about having kids. But if I did, I’d teach them all kinds of things. And I’d let them read whatever they wanted.” Travis pulled the new starter motor out of the box and hefted it. He lowered himself to the ground and wriggled underneath the car.

He fitted the starter motor in place. He could see Dill’s face above him, through the engine compartment. They made eye contact. And all at once, Travis felt an overwhelming urge to relieve himself of one more weight that day, while he was on a roll. “Can I ask you kind of a weird question?”

“Sure. As long as it’s not about Bloodfall. Save that for Amelia.”

Travis slid one of the starter bolts in and hand-tightened it. “Did your dad ever hit you? Before he went away?”

Dill hesitated before answering. “Yeah, I mean, he spanked me. Sure.”

Travis finished tightening the bolt with the wrench. “That’s not what I mean. I mean did he hit you hit you. Really hit you?”

He and Dill made eye contact again.

“No. Not like that.” Dill didn’t ask why he asked. Travis gave thanks for that. Asking the questions indeed made him feel lighter. Less alone, somehow.

“When I have kids, I won’t lay a finger on them. I mean, except to hug them and stuff. But never to hurt them.” Travis slipped the other bolt in and hand-tightened it, finishing it with the wrench. He hooked up the electrical connection and scooted out from under the car.