Page 61 of Outside Looking In

“Reading?” Sweat percolated on Nathan’s palms.

Walt pointed to the open journal on top of the box.

“I was looking for blankets, like I said, then I stumbled onto old theater programs.” Nathan found a program forCats(Really, Mum?Cats?)shoved inside the open box. “They caught my eye like the ones in your dad’s bedroom.”

“Why were you in my dad’s bedroom?” Walt shot back immediately. He would grow up to be an ace detective.

“Just the theater nerd in me, I reckon.” Nathan showed Walt the program.

“Dad said when I was little, I saw her dressed as the Wicked Witch inThe Wizard of Ozand I started crying.”

“She scared me, too. Being scared of the Wicked Witch is like a rite of passage for children.”

Walt peeked inside the box. Nathan stepped back to let him look, but he was hesitant to dig in.

“Dad doesn’t want us down here,” Walt said.

“I didn’t know that.”

“He doesn’t want us messing things up or getting injured.”

Things appeared extremely messed up already, Nathan thought.

Walt gave the box one last peek before closing it shut. “I’ll have my Dad get you an extra blanket for tonight.”

“Walt,” Nathan said quickly, his nerves threatening to spill over. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll be fine.”

“Are you sure?”

“Absolutely.” They walked to the basement door, and even though Walt didn’t seem suspicious anymore, Nathan’s nerves refused to subside. “Walt, can we keep this between us? Being in the basement and all.”

“Like a secret?”

“Right.” Nathan’s stomach twisted into a knot. “We shouldn’t tell anyone, especially not your dad and Uncle Liam.”

“Why not?”

“I don’t want to get in trouble. Uncle Liam could boot me off the farm for looking around down here.”

“I don’t think he’d do that,” Walt said with a smile.

Right. Because we’re a couple…or something like that.Nathan got desperate.

“Well, I don’t want you to get in trouble.”

“I would get in trouble?” Walt’s eyes opened wide. They threatened to crush Nathan.

“Your dad said not to be down here.”

“You were just looking for a blanket.”

Nathan’s palms were so sweaty they could’ve ended a drought. “I’ll ask Uncle Liam for one, like you said.”Nobody has to know I was down here poking through Mariel’s belongings.

“What if my dad sees the box had been opened?” He pointed to the ripped-open tape. Nathan had tried to be careful when opening, but it was obvious that it’d been tampered with. He didn’t know how often Mark came down here, if it was his own little secret.

“Then you…” Nathan gripped the banister. He had to pull the words out from deep inside his black soul. “Then you just lie.”

Nathan could feel the innocence being sucked out of Walt.