Of Royal Descent by Ember Shane Page B

do you know what you want to do?  I mean, when your dad gets here and you don't go with him, he's probably going to go all batshit crazy on us."  Chuck dropped his head and waited for a response.
    "And if I do go...  I miss my date with Addy, have missed my opportunity of meeting my grandfather, have missed school for absolutely no reason, and basically , will have figuratively castrated myself."
    "Yeah.   I'm up for whatever you want to do, but if I could just offer a quick opinion here," Chuck said, running his hand through his hair.  "If you go back with your dad, you're pretty much signing over your testicles for quite possibly the rest of your life.  I don't know Doyle, maybe you should think about moving out when we do get back to South Portland.  I love your parents and everything, but you gotta have some room to breathe."
    "Yeah, you’re right," I agreed.
    Chuck smiled.  "And hey, we could always be roomies if you wanted.  Think about the apartment upgrade if we combined forces."
    I laughed, knowing exactly what Chuck meant.  His idea of combining forces was continuing to live off his father, who would be more than happy to foot the bill for an apartment for the both of us.
    "Something to think about," I said grinning.  "In the meantime, I guess we should come up with a plan for our current situation."
    "So, you do want to stay, try and meet your grandfather, right?"
    I thought about the dream of my mother.  She had told me to run back home.  As real as it had felt, it still had been just a dream.  Then there was Addy.  The thought of never seeing her again left a bitter, metallic taste in my mouth, not to mention the effects on my other body parts.
    "Yeah, I do."
    "Ok then.  Did you tell them where we were?  The hotel?"  Chuck asked.
    " No, just that we were in Ohio.  But since he knew why we drove to Ohio, I'm assuming he has the same address that we have for William."
    "I f his plan is to stop you before you see William, it doesn't make sense to go straight to William's and just wait for us to show up.  It would be too late."
    "Maybe he thinks I'll return his calls in the morning and he could find out where I was that way?" I offered.
    "Maybe.  But if that was the case, why would he leave now - at ten o'clock at night, when their estimated arrival couldn't be much longer than a couple hours?  Besides, what's the guarantee you would turn your phone back on?"
    We sat quiet for a moment while we considered the situation.
    "Hey, do you remember that time about a year ago when we were hanging out at David Corbin's house and playing Xbox?  And you fell asleep on the couch?"  Chuck asked.
    "Yeah," I nodded, "How could I forget?  My dad showed up at the front door... asking why I hadn't come home," I finished slowly, realization dawning.  Chuck was making a point.  How had my dad known I was there?  It never occurred to me to ask him.  We never hung out there before, and we had told no one we were going.
    My phone buzzed beside me on the bed.  I flipped it open and read aloud:  "U OK?  U COMING HOME WITH M&D WHEN THEY GET THERE?"  I blew out a sigh and responded with:  "AM OK.  NOT COMING HOME YET."
    Chuck smiled.  "Hey, doesn't your phone have GPS?"
    I looked back down at my cell.  It was crazy to think what Chuck was suggesting.  Who tracks their adult children by GPS?  Maybe psychotic fathers who have willingly admitted they have withheld important secrets from their children.  I looked back up at Chuck.
    "I have an idea," he said.

 
    8
     
     
     
     
    " Do you remember when we were kids, and your dad built us that tree house in the backyard, and your mom would bring us up lemonade?" Chuck asked.
    I smiled ruefully .  "Of course I do.  That was the summer your mom passed away."
    Chuck stared out the El Camino’s front window as we bided our time, parked in a lot across the street from the hotel.
    "Yeah, well, I never told you this , but you saved my life that summer," Chuck