Anney Tells Bone About Tommy Lee

Bastard Out of Carolina chapter (7-9)

Anney tells Bone about Tommy Lee, Ruth's oldest son, who has stolen from everyone in the family. When he was younger, Anney says, he would steal candy and give it away, thinking that it made people like him. Now he has an excuse for everything, from why he beats his girlfriends to why he can't keep a job. Bone remembers Grey telling her with pride about how he learned to break locks from Tommy Lee, but she is ashamed at the thought of anyone who would steal from his or her own mother. Anney and Bone get in the car. Looks like it's time to apologize. Anney tells Bone how when she and Raylene were girls, they picked strawberries for a man and hid the unripe ones under ripe ones so that it looked like they were all ripe. Granny found out, bought up all of the green unripe ones, and made Anney and Raylene eat all of them until they were sick. Bone says that Anney must have hated Granny for it, and Anney is silent for a moment before saying that there's no other way to do it. Anney and Bone go to the Woolworth's candy counter. Anney pushes Bone toward the salesgirl and says that she has something to say. Bone starts to cry. Anney just waits, and then the manager comes over. He looks like he's going to laugh at them, and Bone suddenly feels anger. Bone tells the manager that she stole the candy and that she's sorry, but inside she hates him. The manager says that it's lucky that her mama found out when she did, and that to help teach her the seriousness of her crime, he's not going to let her come back to Woolworth's until her mama comes in and tells them that she has learned her lesson. Bone feels Anney's anger and