Chapter 8

Chapter 8 Out of Whack The next morning, Pete showed Evan how to use a plumb bob to determine a true vertical. They were replacing the windows on the second floor, and they needed to get the window casings set in straight. It turned out to be a lot trickier than he thought. "You can't just set 'em according to the studs," said Pete, "because this is an old house and the studs are cockeyed. And you can't use the floor or the ceiling to mark against, because the floor slopes and the ceiling sags. Old houses. Everything is out of whack." Evan nodded. Old houses and old people, he thought. Pete showed him how the plumb bob worked. It was a heavy metal weight tied to a length of

string, and when you let the weight hang free, the string made a straight line "that goes all the way to the center of the earth," according to Pete. "Really?" asked Evan. "Yep. No matter where you go, no matter what you're standing on, if you have a plumb bob, it points straight to the center of the earth." He handed the plumb bob to Evan to try out. "That's gravity for you." Evan hung the plumb bob from his finger like a yoyo. "That is so cool." "Well, like my dad always said, 'Gravity is our friend.'" Now that Pete had gone to the hardware store to buy a new box of galvanized screws, Evan was wandering around the house with the plumb bob to see if he could find even one thing that was the way it was supposed to be. It was surprising. Evan would look at a door and think it was

straight, but then when he held up the string, he could see that it was crooked. The front door was out of whack. The railings on the stairs were out of whack. All the windows in the living room were out of whack. "This house is crazy!" he announced loudly, even though there was no one there to hear him. His mother had gone into town to talk with the insurance agent handling the fire claim, Jessie was off with Maxwell, and Grandma was taking a nap. "You can say that again!" A voice came from the kitchen. Evan walked in to find his grandmother wrapping her new scarf around her neck. Her injured arm was still in its sling, but she managed to get the scarf on with just one good hand. "Grandma, you're supposed to be napping." He put the plumb bob on the kitchen counter next to the toaster and noticed that his mom's cell phone was plugged into the outlet, charging.

His mother's phone was old, and the battery ran out just about every day. She kept saying she was going to replace it, but she never did. "Says who?" said Grandma. "Mom said." "I'm not four, Evan. I know when I'm tired, and I know when I'm not." Evan was so relieved to hear that she knew who he was, he smiled. But then he saw that she was putting on her snow boots, and the smile disappeared from his face. "Where are you going?" "For a walk," said Grandma. "It makes me crazy being all cooped up." "No," said Evan firmly. "Mom doesn't want you going out—" He was about to say alone, but he stopped himself. "Since when does your mother tell me what to do?" Grandma had gotten both boots on her feet and was now reaching for her dark green barn jacket. She slipped her good arm through one

sleeve and buttoned the loose coat over her injured arm. Evan was surprised to see how quickly and easily she managed the buttons. His grandmother really was amazing. "Please don't go, Grandma," said Evan. "It's getting late. It'll be dark soon." "I'll be quick. I just need to stretch my legs and see the sky. The trees are calling to me. Can't stand being in the house all day." She was going. Evan could see that there was nothing he could do to stop her. That panicked feeling came back. Something bad was going to happen. How could he stop it? What was he supposed to do? "I'll come with you," he said. "Fine, but be quick. There's not much daylight left. I'll wait for you out front." Grandma pulled her hat on her head, looped Jessie's scarf once more around her neck, and walked out the back door. Evan slipped his coat on first and checked to

make sure he had both gloves in his pockets. Then he started to hunt for his boots. One of them was in the boot bin, but the second one was missing. He emptied out the entire bin, looked under the bench, and even checked in the kitchen, but the boot was nowhere to be seen. After five minutes had gone by, he finally thought to look between the clothes dryer and the wall, and there was his boot, wedged in tight. He wrestled it out and got it on his foot, then hurried out the back door and around the house to the front yard. But Grandma was gone.