Liars and Fools Read Online Free Page B

fools her about it, and she hadn’t brought it up either.
    Maybe I should call that psychic instead. I wondered how much it would cost to see her again. Probably Abby was right, and psychic readings were a scam. I’d never believed in psychics before, but the reading had seemed so…well, so real. I stood up, feeling restless, but couldn’t decide what to do. The room was quiet, and the air felt too still. Finally I sat back down, picked up the phone and dialed Joni’s number.
    â€œHello?” Joni’s voice sounded croaky.
    â€œIt’s me. Did I wake you up?”
    â€œNo, no.” She laughed and then coughed. “Well, yes. I was having a bit of a nap. But that’s okay. You know I’m always happy to hear from you.”
    I relaxed. Hearing Joni’s voice always made me feel better. “Um…I went to the marina after school.”
    â€œDid you?” Joni’s voice was neutral. She knew I wasn’t supposed to go there. She also knew that I needed to. Mostly I didn’t mention my visits to the marina because Joni told me she didn’t want to have secrets from my dad, but I needed to talk to someone.
    â€œUm, Joni…” My voice was suddenly thick, and I had to swallow hard and clench my teeth to hold back tears. “There was a For Sale sign on Eliza J. ”
    Joni waited for a long moment before she answered. “Oh dear,” she said at last. “Oh dear. I’ve been wondering when this would happen.”
    â€œYou have?”
    â€œI’m surprised he’s hung on to the boat for as long as he has, love. You know how much it costs to keep a boat in the water.”
    Actually, I didn’t have a clue. “Maybe I could pay. If I got a job after school or something.”
    â€œHoney, it’s hundreds of dollars a month. There’s no way you can cover that with babysitting. In any case, I don’t imagine it’s only about the money.”
    â€œMom loved that boat,” I said fiercely. “He’s got no right to sell it.”
    â€œOh, Fiona.”
    I lay down on the bed and closed my eyes. Joni sounded so sad. “She was your sister,” I said. “You know how important sailing was to her.”
    â€œI know how important sailing was to you,” Joni said softly.
    Everyone did that: changed the subject whenever I tried to talk about Mom. “You all want to forget about Mom, don’t you? That’s why Dad’s selling the boat.”
    â€œFiona! How can you say that? Of course we don’t.” Her voice cracked, and she started coughing and coughing. “Listen,” she said after she caught her breath. “No one wants to forget your mother.”
    I didn’t say anything. That sure wasn’t how it seemed to me.

four
    Dad looked up as I entered the living room. “Um, Dad?”
    â€œFiona. Good. I was about to come and find you.” He cleared his throat. “There’s something I want to talk to you about.”
    Was he going to tell me about selling Eliza J ? I held my breath and waited.
    Dad sat down in his armchair and ran his hands through his hair. He didn’t have a lot of it, and he combed it over the bald spot on top of his head. Mom always used to say he should shave his head, and I had to agree. Half the time, his hair was hanging the wrong way, and it didn’t cover the bald patch anyway.
    He gestured for me to sit, and I perched on one arm of the couch. I wondered if he was feeling bad robin stevenson about putting the boat up for sale without even talking to me about it. “What is it?” I asked him.
    He cleared his throat again and looked so miserable that I was almost tempted to tell him that I already knew. Almost. “The thing is…Well, I’ve been meaning to say something about this for a while. I suppose I should have brought it up sooner.” He looked at me a little desperately.
    â€œSo why didn’t