Chapter Four

--March, 1968

Moody Blues – “Nights in White Satin”

It was an unseasonably warm spring day as Bill pulled his father’s baby blue caddy into the white stone driveway. Janet, sitting shotgun, moved to get out but Bill stopped to comb his hair tight with the brylcreem he kept in the glove box. Janet watched skeptically as he groomed himself in the rear-view mirror. “It's just our family in there, loser.” She slammed the passenger door shut and left him to catch up. Grabbing the groceries from the back seat, Bill headed around the side of the house.

Nick was sitting in the garden with his sketchpad, trying to draw a tulip singing to bees. When he heard laughing coming from the back fence, he put the pad down and crawled over to a knot in the wood. Through the hole he spied his drunken neighbor, Connerty, crawling into the lap of Mrs. Connerty. She was topless and welcoming, sitting next to their backyard pool, among the tiki torches and plastic flamingos. When Connerty growled, she squealed in delight. This, Nick thought, was all that adults cared about, all that they had on their minds. He was about to shift to get a closer look, when his brother called out--

“Hey fruitfly, get away from the fence!” Nick stumbled backwards, spooked, and ran through his mother’s garden back towards the house.

“I’m not a fruitfly!” he yelled when he reached Bill.

His older brother playfully backhanded his head. “Mom’s gonna kill you for runnin’ through her zinnias.”

“She’s not gonna know!”

“She will if I tell her!”

Upstairs in her bedroom, Sandra smoothed Lynn’s hair in her make-up mirror ringed with glamour lights. “Maybe I could dye it?” Lynn suggested, hopefully.

“Oh, sweetheart...” her mother said, charitably. “Dyed hair is for whores.” Sandra had had a few. She took a sip of her over-flowing drink, then checked her make-up next to her daughter. “But you’re on the right track.” She smiled at Lynn, maternally. “There is always room for self-improvement.”

Lynn nodded, soaking the advice in. “I think you look beautiful, mom.”

“I know, sweetheart.”

**

Having changed into a two-piece bathing suit, Janet went out back with a towel to tan in the warm spring air. Reclining on a lounge chair, she plopped her AM radio down next to her. When she switched it on, the dulcet tones of Jefferson Airplane’s “Today” came blaring out. As she lowered the volume, Cody and Bill hurried out to sneak a cigarette. They lit up nearby, much to Janet’s annoyance. She propped herself up on her elbows to rip them a new one. “You guys are being stupid. You're gonna get caught.”

“By who? Mom and Dad are in the living room.”

Cody let his eyes train over Janet’s body. “Hi, Janet.”

She stared at him, humorlessly. “Cody.”

Bill went right on smoking.

“They're gonna smell it, dipshit!”

“No, they're not! Mom has allergies and Dad's got a bad knee, we'd hear him coming a mile away! So why don't you mind your own business?!”

Janet sat up, pissed they were cutting into her prime tanning time. “You're an idiot. Nannie and Pop-pop are coming over.”

Cody grinned. “Your Grandpa's coming over?! Does he still hate squirrels as much as he used to?”

Bill nodded. “About as much as Grandma hates Mickey Dolenz.”

Cody chuckled to himself. “That dude is 'weird with a beard,’ man!”

Janet rolled her eyes and laid back down, done with them.

**

Sometime later, with their cigarettes finished, Cody snuck into Janet’s bedroom. He looked over his shoulder before opening her top dresser drawer. He stared in wonder at all of her glorious underwear. He was just about to reach in when Janet returned from the shower, drying her hair with a towel. Seeing her, Cody quickly grabbed a handful of panties and high-tailed it out of her room. Janet tried to chase him, but he was too fast. “Dammit Cody, that's the last pair of underwear you steal from me!”

Snickering, he was almost down the hall when he ran straight into Mr. Benson in the hallway. “A little too old to be stealing women’s undergarments, aren’t we?”

Cody handed them over, caught. “Sorry, sir...”

“You’ll just have to talk a woman out of them - like the rest of us.” There was an unspoken tip of the cap. Cody smiled, sheepishly, and hurried downstairs.

William walked the underwear back to Janet. “Lose something?”

She took them back, grateful, and stuffed them in her drawer. “Thanks, he’s relentless.”

“Better get a move on, we’re leaving soon.”

“I know.”

William headed for the door. “You look nice, by the way.”

“I’m not even dressed yet...”

“Well, I’m sure you will look nice.” He exited, closing the door behind him as he went.

Women were always throwing themselves at William. If her father was complimenting her, Janet thought, she must be doing something right.

She dressed for dinner then, throwing on a long-sleeved mini dress and mary janes. She evaluated herself in the mirror. As a teenager, she could stand in front of the mirror for hours, making faces, preening like a bird. But something wasn’t right. Too wholesome maybe...

This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

Then it came to her. Grabbing a couple safety pins, she hiked the dress up a couple inches. Looking at her reflection now, she nodded, satisfied.

**

The family stood by their Cadillac waiting for Janet to emerge from the house. William was off to the side, avoiding his father-in-law. He pulled anxiously at his collar like a kid in church. His clothes often seemed like they didn’t fit him. Not that they weren’t perfectly tailored, there was just something uncomfortable about seeing him in some of the nicer duds. He was fiddling with his cuffs when he noticed Bill absent-mindedly chewing on his cuticles. “What did I tell you about biting your fingernails?” William said.

Bill reluctantly dropped his hand to his side. “That it’s a sign of weakness.” He rolled his eyes as his sister finally came out of the house.

“Janet, why are we always waiting for you?” her father asked.

“What took you so long?” Grandma Jean wanted to know.

“Sorry Nan, couldn’t find what to wear.”

Lynn took one look at her older sister and frowned. “You look like one of those hippies.”

“Shut up, I do not...”

“Yes, you do! And she’s wearin’ bad girl underwear, mom!”

“Lynn! No, I’m not, mom!”

Before a fight could break out, William shouted, “Everyone, quiet! Lynn, your sister looks very pretty tonight. And Janet...” He lowered his voice so only she could hear him. “...we’ll talk later. Now get in the car.”

William slid in the driver’s seat, still sipping his drink, much to Lynn’s chagrin.

“Daddy!” Lynn wailed.

William waved her off. “It’s fine!”

**

At Morris County Country Club, the grounds would have been sprawling even if there wasn’t a thirty-six hole golf course on the property. They had an Olympic-sized outdoor pool, about a dozen tennis courts, a cabana area, and a full working gym and spa. When the Bensons arrived, young men waited to take their car, to open the door for them. As they entered the clubhouse, William led the way in his seersucker jacket.

All around them, families were seated having dinner. Though she was hardly five feet tall at the time, Lynn couldn't help but notice the way that people reacted to them, especially the men. They stared at her sister, mouths agape. Lynn subconsciously began mirroring everything she was doing. At the moment, Janet was dragging behind. She passed Allen Buchard, an overweight 43-year-old, going the other way. He turned to watch her walk away.

Sensing him staring, Janet flipped around to catch him. “Gotcha!” she said.

Buchard immediately looked away and stumbled off, ashamed.

Janet frowned. She didn’t mean to scare anyone off...

Buchard quickly regrouped and headed towards the bar area. It was recently renovated with stained wood and green translucent fixtures. He joined the other fathers standing around, drinking their whiskey-sours: “Hi, boys.”

“Allen. That’s Bill’s daughter...”

“Get out! What's she seventeen?”

“Try fifteen.”

“Somebody call Jailbait Digest, boys!”

The group laughed but stifled it as William chose that moment to walk over. “A lot of talent here tonight, gentleman.” He ordered a stinger from the bartender and pointed to the cigar in the guy next to him’s hand. “You got one of those for me?” Harry Prager fished another out of his jacket without objection.

“Hey Bill, if my wife asks, I was eating the cucumber slices.” Those married over ten years chuckled.

“Ya hear Millie Runkoff wears a girdle?”

“No!”

“Bet your ass she does. Must be a mess down there!"

As the group cackled, Bill watched his father from afar.

“Hey Will, you hear that Kennedy announcement?”

“Oh, don’t get me started--” The group laughed again, charitably. “He’s taking all the wind outta McCarthy’s sails.”

Vic Partha shrugged. “I don’t know, the kids like him...”

“Kids don’t vote, Vic.”

“Still, you got Khe Sanh going with no end in sight and the picture of that cop shooting that prisoner didn’t help... you can’t underestimate someone who wants to get us out of there.”

“Whose side are you on, Vic?!”

“I’m just saying New Hampshire was close, that’s all...”

Bill appeared at his father’s side. “Dad? Mom says our table’s ready.”

William seized on the interruption, throwing an arm around his son. “Boys, you remember Bill, my oldest, don’t you? Bill’s President of his class at Pingry.”

“Very impressive. My daughter Julie wants to go there in a couple years. Got any advice for her?”

“Just... stay away from the boys.”

Oh, how everyone howled. William turned and smiled at his son. Bill stood in his father’s glow until William led him away. “Good one, son. I’m glad we get this little chance to talk. I’ve been meaning to speak with you. You know, I’ve given this a lot of thought and... well, I think it’s time you moved down to the first floor.”

William kept walking, but soon noticed that Bill wasn’t by his side. “What did I do?” Bill asked.

“Nothing. It’s just... your mother and I have been talking. Lynn’s getting older and I think it would be best if she had the room next to ours. So, she could be closer to Mom.” He clapped his son on the back. “You understand - don’t you?”

Bill nodded, somewhere else entirely.

William sat down at their table, but there were still a few stragglers. “Has anyone seen Nick?” Sandra wanted to know. Everyone shook their heads.

Beneath a nearby table, Nick crawled amongst people’s legs, pausing every so often to stare up into the shadowy recesses of a woman’s skirt. He had the most ridiculously awed look on his face.

While the family waited for their food to arrive, Janet stole away to the patio to smoke a quick cig. She was surprised to see she wasn’t alone. Glen Tonche stood all by himself, finishing his own cigarette.

“It’s you...” Janet said.

He smiled when he saw her. “It’s me.”

Janet tried to look effortless. “I didn’t know you belonged here.”

“We belong to a lot of places...” he said, trailing off. “You got a name?”

She smiled. “Yeah.” And held up her cigarette. “You got a lighter?”

“No, but we can knuckle fuck if you want...”

Janet blushed and stepped towards him. The two of them were quiet while she lit her cigarette off of his.

“I take it you’re one of those liberated girls?” Glen asked.

Janet took a long pull off her ciggy and replied while exhaling. “You’ll just have to wait and see, now won’t you?”

**

Back in the dining hall, William was in the middle of a story. “I said, ‘what do you get for the man who has everything?’ and the guy doesn’t even blink. He goes: ‘Seconds.’"

Everyone at the table reared back, laughing, as Janet returned from the smoking patio. She took her seat next to Matt Learner. He watched as she scooted her chair in and had to catch his breath.

“What?” she asked, a smirk on her face.

“Nothing.” He grinned. She fixed her hair. Under the table, they touched knees.

When the waiter came to take their orders, Janet said, “I’ll have the filet and the pomme frites.” Nearby, Sandra clucked her tongue, without looking up from her menu.

Janet sighed. “What is it, mother?”

“Nothing. If you think you can work it off...” She popped a pill in her mouth.

Janet did her best to ignore her mother. “I’m sure I’ll be fine.” She waited until Sandra was occupied before leaning in to speak confidentially with the waiter. “Instead of the fries, you can make it a salad.”

When everyone had finally ordered, William turned his attention to Janet’s boyfriend. “So, Matt--”

“Yes, sir?” he said, turning to what was hopefully his future father-in-law.

“What are your plans for college?”

“Well, Williams undergrad - god willing - Yale Law, an Officer’s post, then hopefully, county comptroller or state representative.”

William raised a glass. “A man with a plan... I like that. Reminds me of my oldest, Bill here--” But Bill had started to tear up.

When William noticed, his lips pulled back in a sneer. He quickly leaned in to whisper to his first born, “Don’t make a scene. Excuse yourself--"

Before he could even finish speaking, Bill addressed the entire table. “Excuse me.” He said before getting up and leaving.

The next morning, he ran away. When he came back after three days, everything was different. He was called in for a school meeting and sat with his mother across from his school’s elderly headmaster, Mr. Andrews. “I'm sorry son, but what kind of example would we be setting? We can't very well let you be class president anymore...”

Bill couldn’t believe what he was hearing, but let the words wash over him. When he hadn’t spoken in quite a while, he was asked to say something in his own defense.

Bill simply leaned forward in his seat. “But, I didn't run away from school... I ran away from home.”

But by that point, it didn’t matter.