False Witness

The book is preceded by an epigraph: “The past is never where you think you left it” (0).

In 1998, Callie (Calliope), 14, is babysitting Trevor, 10. Trevor is the son of Linda and Buddy Waleski. Linda is a nurse, and Buddy is a sports bookie. As Callie bakes, Trevor taps on the glass of his fish tank. Even when Callie tells Trevor to stop, he continues. Trevor then joins Callie in the kitchen: “Trevor suddenly appeared behind her like a serial killer. He threw his arms around her, saying ‘I love you’” (1). Trevor goes to take a bath, while Callie makes herself an alcoholic drink and steels her nerves for the inevitable battle that comes with trying to put Trevor to bed.

Buddy comes home from work and sexually abuses Callie. When Trevor interrupts them, Buddy orders Trevor to drink some NyQuil and go to bed. It’s revealed that Buddy, an adult, has been sexually abusing Callie, a child, for months. Buddy is depicted as a pedophile/rapist who is obsessed with how small Callie is; he calls her nicknames like “little bit and baby girl and doll” (7). Further, Buddy has been videotaping his assaults and inviting his friends over to watch the videos.