Kat and Her Knowledge:

On the night before school began, I knocked on Kat’s bedroom door.

“Come in!” she called. I quietly opened the door. I peeked inside. Kat sat in her bed, reading the paper. She glanced up at me.

“Claudia,” she said. “Is something wrong?” I stepped inside and closed the door behind me.

“I have something to ask you,” I mumbled. Kat lowered her newspaper.

“Alright,” she said. “What is it?”

“Why was Danny-boy found guilty?” I asked. Kat gave me a sympathetic smile.

“Come up here,” she said as she patted her bed. I walked over and climbed on. Kat looked at me for a moment before sighing.

“Now,” she said. “To begin with, the people do not agree with the verdict.” I tilted my head at her.

“They don’t?” I asked. Kat shook her head.

“Everyone knew that he was innocent,” she said. “Yet, there was… a little pressure.”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“These are troubling times around us,” she explained. “You remember the book, 1984, that I had my class read last year?” I slowly nodded at her.

“Barely,” I said.

“Well,” she began. “In 1984, the government has taken away the rights of the people and ‘Big Brother’ controls everything.”

“That’s horrible,” I said. Kat nodded at me.

“Yes, it is,” she said. “You can say that life is imitating art at this time.”

“So… why was Danny-boy found guilty?” I asked.

“People are afraid,” Kat said.

“Of the government?” I asked.

“Yes,” she said. “They don’t want to see what will happen if they defy it.” I slowly tried to understand what she was saying.

“So that’s why Danny-boy was found guilty?” I asked. Kat nodded.

“These weren’t monsters on the jury,” she said. “They were our neighbors.”

“And they did it out of fear?” I asked.

“Exactly,” Kat replied. “But, they didn’t foresee what would come next.”

“When they put him away?” I asked. Kat nodded at me.

“They thought he would get a slap on the wrist, because of his mental condition,” she said. “But, the judge wanted to make an example out of him. So, he ended up with life in prison.”

“All because they found him guilty out of fear?” I asked.

“Precisely,” Kat said. I looked down at my hands.

“So, Milo was right…” I mumbled. Kat looked over at me.

“Who?” she asked. I shook my head at her.

“So, what will happen to him now?” I asked. She took me into her arms.

“He’s in prison right now,” Kat explained. “But, Paul’s working appeal his sentence.”

“Will it work?” I asked.

“Baby, I don’t really know this time,” she admitted. I looked at her with big eyes. Her words alone didn’t trouble me, but it was how she said. She sounded like she was trying to hold back her worry and keep her grace in check so not worry me. I held onto her as tightly as I could.

“What’s going to happen to us?” I asked. Kat patted me on the head.

“I don’t really know,” she said. “We will have to see when this whole mess sorts itself out.” I looked her deep in the eye.

“Kat,” I whispered.

“Yes, Claudia?” she asked.

“Can I stay in your bed tonight?” I asked. Kat gave me a little smile.

“Of course, love,” she said. I rested my head against her chest. I think she held onto me for her own comfort and security that night. We may have slept peacefully moments later, but the morning brought more of a stressful reality for all three of us through a chain of changes in one day.