It all started with old cars hidden in the woods. Just beyond a copse of scraggly trees, yards from a dirt road, there was a muddy patch. Half a dozen junked cars sat hidden in the switchgrass. Every once in a while a tow truck would drag a car away or back a car in. Jack figured it was a hiding place for a chop shop since none of the cars had all their parts. But Jack wasn’t one to ask questions.

Maybe it started with St. Mary’s Elementary School. It had once been beloved. The parishioners of St. Mary’s had donated their offerings to maintain the handful of simple brick buildings. The grounds had been well-tended and flowers used to adorn the feet and hands of the saints. However when Jack attended the school was overcrowded and understaffed. Jack had been one of the first brown-skinned kids to integrate this last refuge of poor white families avoiding public school. On his best school days, everyone ignored him. From his worst school days, Jack learned how to take a punch without flinching.

It could even have started at Dipsy’s Bar. That was where Jack’s grandfather, Timmy, met Brenda and decided to leave Jack’s mommy and his grandmother. Jack’s mommy looked for love anywhere she could find it including Jack’s bio dad. Jack only knew bits and pieces of the stories of his grandfather from when he helped his mommy to bed after one of her rough days. His stepdad told stories too but Jack never listened. When Jack rode his bike to the woods he would pass Dipsy’s Bar and think of what life would be like if everything was different.

Jack hid his bike amongst the leaf litter. Next, even though his arm ached, Jack quietly climbed one of the larger trees. From his perch, Jack watched the old cars. The old Pontiac was gone, but a blue Honda Fit was being dragged into its place. A throbbing bass boomed from the tow truck accompanied by the laughter of men who talked with their fists. Jack waited until they had gone and the music faded. Then he waited longer to be on the safe side. Jack knew to be cautious. Before he reached the Honda’s trunk, Jack could smell its secret. Pinching his nose, Jack opened the hatch. Everything changed for him in that moment and it all started with old cars hidden in the woods.