Brian

CHAPTER 4

The children are getting accustomed to living with Michael. He is showing them the love they have always wanted in a father. Brian is growing closer to Michael. They often engage in hunting and fishing together, bonding as a father and son should.

During the summer months, Brian, his sisters, and some of the neighborhood children love exploring the woods that surround Michael’s home. They discover giant rock formations, an old rusted, abandoned milk truck, and a large sandpit. There is a small hole between two of the giant rocks which the children can’t resist climbing through. The space inside resembles a small cave. While visiting the rocks, the children disturb some bats that come rushing out at them from the opening in the rock. This unpleasant and unexpected incident scares them so much that they decide not to explore the rock formations anymore. Afterward, Michael informs them of how dangerous bats can be and tells them to stop playing in the rocks. They return to playing on the rusted, old milk truck and discovering the hidden treasures hiding within until the day they are caught by Michael and told, “Leave it alone, or I will have it removed.” That left the sandpit. The children love riding their bikes all over the sand mounds and flat areas, having races, and getting dirty. During the winter, parts of the sandpit will fill with water and ice over. Time for winter sneaker ice skating! Michael then insists the playing stop at the sandpit. It is too far from home and the owner would not approve. Brian is not convinced of Michael’s reasons for limiting the type and location of their play but knows they have to listen.

At this point, Brian and a neighborhood boy named John decided that since they are not allowed to play in the old, abandoned milk truck, they can create a fort in the woods. The fort is built of unused lumber, old blankets, and large tree limbs. Inside shelves are created to put things on, lawn chairs added to sit upon, and an old, worn-out rug to cover the ground. One day Amber stumbles upon it and asks her brother if she can come inside. He tells her “NO! This is for boys only.”

So, of course, she runs and tells Michael. Amber takes Michael to the fort. Inside he finds pornography, playing cards, flashlights, and snacks. Calmly he asks the boys to take down the fort, he gathers the pornography and leaves. Brian is really mad at his little sister and refuses to talk to her for days.

A few weeks later, a secret hideout is constructed in the neighbor’s backyard. An old truck cap is found in the far back corner of the property. The cap is propped up with cinder blocks which lifts it high enough to gain access. The children sit cross-legged on the old carpet they place on the ground. Amber sneaks into the secret hideout with Skip, John’s youngest brother, and finds their siblings playing strip poker. There are dirty magazines in the back corner along with a few cans of beer and cigarettes. Brian warns his sister, “You better not tattle on us or you will be sorry.” Not taking any chances the hideout is emptied the next day, leaving no evidence it ever existed. Within time the weeds grow to cover the cap and the secret hideout is forgotten.