The Bell Bandit

Evan Treski, alongside his mother and sister, surveys the full scope of the fire’s damage as they walk into Grandma’s house. The back door is missing, and there’s extensive damage to the kitchen, including “a hole [...] big enough to drive a car through” (17). Jessie asks where the stove is, and Evan, annoyed, tells her they had to get rid of it after the fire. Mrs. Treski admits that the fire damage is worse than she thought; Evan notices that his usually composed mother looks overwhelmed as she surveys the damage.

Jessie points out something on the ceiling, and Evan uses a flashlight to illuminate a two-foot-wide hole in it, opening to the room upstairs. This room is usually Evan’s when they stay at Grandma’s house. Mrs. Treski suggests that Evan stay in their grandma’s room for that night, but Evan feels uncomfortable with this idea and suggests he sleep on the couch instead. Mrs. Treski agrees and asks Jessie and Evan to unpack the car while she starts a fire in the wood stove.

At the car, Jessie tells Evan, “Nothing is the way it’s supposed to be” (22). Evan tells his sister to relax and that Grandma will be back tomorrow. He says their mother has already ordered repairs to the house, and they will stay for only three days. To himself, Evan thinks that three days sounds like a long time while he will be sleeping on a couch and wishing to go home.

As Evan gets the last bag of groceries from the car, a truck pulls into the driveway. He immediately feels protective of his mother and sister, as if he is responsible for keeping them safe. A man emerges from the truck. He introduces himself as Pete and says he will work on the house repairs. Pete shakes Evan’s hand and relaxes, realizing the man is in his early 20s. Evan gets his mother, and they walk through the house together to take in the full scope of the fire’s damage. He explains that it will be a few weeks before he can complete the repairs.

Pete goes to his truck after ensuring that the Treskis will be okay staying at the house that night. Evan follows. Pete asks Evan if he is “the man of the family” (25), and Evan shrugs, figuring that even though he is only 10, he must be since his father has been gone for more than two years. Pete asks Evan if he will help him with the repairs the next day, and Evan agrees, suddenly not as eager to leave Grandma’s house.

The snow worsens overnight, and their car battery dies, preventing Mrs. Treski from picking up Grandma from the hospital the next morning. Jessie spends the morning reading by the stove while Pete and Evan inspect the furnace in the basement. She inspects Grandma’s bookshelves, most of which are now damaged. Jessie locates her favorite book, The Big Book of Bells, which is more than 100 years old and includes information about her grandma’s New Year’s bell.

Jessie spends the next two hours reading about bells until she hears her mother’s voice, stressed and explaining to the AAA employee that she needs a new car battery as soon as possible because she needs to pick up Grandma from the hospital. Mrs. Treski explains that the fire began after Grandma put the kettle on the stove for tea, forgot about it, and left for a walk. When she returned, she found her house engulfed in flames. She broke her wrist when the fire department blocked her entrance into the burning house.

Evan is busy downstairs working with Pete, and Mrs. Treski leaves to pick up Grandma. Jessie decides to visit Grandma’s bell on Lovell’s Hill. She straps on snowshoes and goes outside, deciding to check on their tepee first before going to Lovell’s Hill. As she walks, Jessie recalls the previous summer when she and Evan built a tepee deep in the woods behind Grandma’s house. They planned its construction and spent two weeks building it. When they finished, they brought Grandma out to see it. She agreed when Evan said it would “last a hundred years” (36). Jessie reaches the tepee and climbs inside, thinking that this is one thing that will never change.

She continues, and as she begins climbing the hill, she sees a boy cross-country skiing toward her. Realizing that the boy does not see her, Jessie raises her arms and calls out to him. The boy stops short in front of her, and Jessie admonishes him for nearly running her over. He introduces himself as Maxwell. Jessie notes that he makes a repetitive movement on his skis, like an involuntary dance move. Jessie walks past him up the hill, and Maxwell asks to join her.

As they walk, Jessie learns that Maxwell and his family recently moved into the house closest to Grandma’s and that he spends a lot of time at Grandma’s house. Maxwell, who discovered the fire, ran home to tell his mother, and she called the fire department. In describing the fire, Maxwell exclaims, “You don’t see that every day!” (37), and Jessie thinks there is something odd about Maxwell. They continue their climb up the hill, and as she crests the hill, Jessie can see the crossbeam where the bell usually hangs. It is empty, and the bell is gone.

Evan feels a keen sense of accomplishment helping Pete repair the hole in the wall. As he stares at his work, he hears Jessie on the front porch, still wearing her snowshoes and exclaiming that the bell is gone. Evan sees an older boy following Jessie, rocking as he walks. Evan tells Jessie that she must have climbed the wrong hill and that the bell weighs 100 pounds, too heavy for someone to take. Evan says that no one would want to take the bell, anyway, but Jessie disagrees. She tells him that Grandma had the bell appraised; it’s worth $2500. Jessie insists that she and Evan must begin searching for the bell because New Year’s Eve is in three days.

Evan introduces himself to the boy who came in with Jessie, and he responds, “My name’s Maxwell. I’m smart!” (45) before rocking on his feet again. Maxwell explains that he spends a lot of time with Grandma watching television and doing puzzles. He says that Grandma often tells him that he is smart. The kids hear Mrs. Treski’s car and run to greet her and Grandma.

Evan goes back into the living room to greet Grandma. When Jessie tries to reach for her uninjured hand, Grandma quickly pulls it away. Evan notices that she looks different, her eyes constantly moving around the room “like a bird that won’t perch on any one thing” (48). Jessie asks numerous questions and begins talking about the missing bell, and after seeing the look on his mother’s face, Evan knows something is wrong.

Mrs. Treski tells Jessie to stop asking so many questions and that Grandma needs a few minutes to reacclimate to being home. When Jessie asks why Grandma would need to adjust to being back in her own home, Evan cuts her off sharply. Grandma asks for a cup of tea and walks toward the kitchen. She stops when she enters and notices the damage and in-progress repairs. She asks what happened. Mrs. Treski gently asks Grandma if she remembers the fire.

Anxiety rising in him, Evan steps in, explaining to his grandma that he and Pete will fix everything. Grandma turns to look at him and, angry, asks who Evan is and if he is the one who damaged her kitchen. Mrs. Treski tries to explain that he is Evan, her grandson, but Grandma says she does not know him and orders him to leave.