The People in the Park Read Online Free Page A

Dad’s firm. She watched TV day and night so she wouldn’t miss any breaking bit of news.
    Me? I just wanted to wake up from this nightmare. Apparently, Dad felt the same way. Every time he came into the kitchen, he turned off the TV. He wanted us getting our news from him, not from outside sources that might be wrong. So far, he had nothing new to report.
    He said he was working with his lawyers to prove that he had done nothing wrong. He said he could prove that all of his clients’ money was safe. He hadn’t misused any of his clients’ power of attorney, and he could prove it. His lawyers were going through his clients’ records now and would soon present the findings to the federal authorities.
    Mom announced that she was thinking about canceling the shopping trip for prom dresses. She said I could still go with Aunt Ira and Tiffany if I wanted a new dress. They would probably shop around here or go to St. Louis.
    “Mom, you can’t back out. You promised that you were going to buy Tiffany’s dress, too.”
    “We have to save money,” Mom said.
    “We’ll be all right,” Dad said, as if sensing my horror at having to go back on the promise to Tiffany.
    “We can take the money from my savings account,” I said.
    “Honey, it’s not the end of the world. Your Aunt Ira can certainly afford a dress for Tiffany,” said Mom.
    “I know, but you promised,” I said. “You can’t cancel.”
    I fled to my room and to the comfort of my bed. It would be just horrific if we cancelled. I hadn’t treated Tiffany as an equal. I thought of her as my poor cousin. Last year, Mom had promised her that we would all go to Chicago and shop on Michigan Avenue and visit the boutiques on Rush Street and get designer prom dresses, her treat. I couldn’t bear for her to go back on her word.
    We’re rich but now there was a possibility of losing it all, whereas Tiffany’s family would be maintaining a middle class standard of living and continuing on without any change in their lives. Aunt Ira would probably offer to buy my dress. Then we would have to shop at department stores and discount stores for a good deal. Plus, if Aunt Ira bought my dress, Tiffany would probably think she was better than me.
    “This just stinks!”
    I wished life could go back to the way it was last week. I didn’t have a care in the world. Life was great. We were on top of the world.
    Now this.
    Lost money. Lost status. Lost reputation. Lost dignity. Maybe we would have to move to a smaller house or apartment. Maybe we would have to sell my car that I got for my sixteenth birthday. So much uncertainty.
    How could I concentrate on my studies, on getting a dress to go to the prom, on the joy of driving my car? My life was so messed up.
    And I didn’t do anything wrong.
     
     
     
     

4
     
    The note on the car started my emotional withdrawal from Fairfield Oaks.
    I’d always thought of myself as an Oakie, the tag given to those with diehard school spirit. The name for our sports teams was the Spartans. I was a Spartan through and through. This was my school, a school I loved and thought I was a vital part of; evidently, not everybody thought the same.
    The note had pierced a place deep inside of me that stung as much as the shock of Dad’s arrest. I couldn’t deal with it now, so I tucked this new wound away in my heart, hiding it from everyone.
    I ran in the park again today, although I longed to walk leisurely with Mom and talk about what had happened. In just a few days, she had gone into a shell and locked me out. I wanted to talk to her and tell her what I was feeling. I wanted to talk about my fears and how scared I was that things were not going to work out for Dad. But I didn’t know how to reach her.
    I couldn’t talk to Dad either. He was so optimistic and assured me that everything would be OK. He didn’t want me to worry. How could I not? My life was changing. Our lives were changing. And I felt like I had no control over