The Truth as Told by Mason Buttle

Mason rides Uncle Drum’s bike down to the hardware store to get supplies for the root cellar. At the hardware store, he sees Andy, one of Benny’s dads. He calls out Andy’s name and expects to see Benny coming down the aisle with something cool in his hands. Then, he remembers. “I see Andy’s face. Looking back at me. Like he’s been punched. And I remember. There was a funeral” (99). Andy leaves the store without buying anything. Mason buys his supplies and sits on the loving memory bench for his own grandfather, which is outside Bishell’s. Mason thinks about how so many people die when they are old, but not Benny. 

Mason and Calvin sweep out the root cellar and make a rope handle for the door, so they can pull it closed on one side and open on the other. When they leave, it is close to dark. Calvin’s parents are on the doorstep with bags of groceries. They come in and talk to Grandma, offering groceries because Calvin has been spending so much time there. They are thrilled Calvin has a friend and such an amazing orchard to play in. They quietly offer Grandma money to watch Calvin, but she declines, saying, “No, I won’t take a penny. He’s a friend. He’s always welcome here” (103). Calvin and his parents walk back home together, and Mason is happy for once that they sold part of the old orchard so Calvin could move in. 

Mason and Calvin find two buckets from the development construction sites to use as chairs. They sit in the root cellar, but Mason isn’t thrilled. It is dark in there, not like the tree fort. Calvin has an idea: He wants to make a skylight using a tunnel. They scavenge the dumpsters from the construction sites, looking for supplies, but all the tubes are too narrow or cut in half. Finally, the boys find the perfect tube. It is huge and still fully intact. Mason knows he could carry it himself, but he lets Calvin help him; this is Calvin’s project and Mason knows “[t]here is great glory in carrying home a prize” (108). Before they get back, though, Matt Drinker and his friends are behind them. Matt Drinker wants the tube for lacrosse accuracy practice. Mason tries to get him to leave them alone, but he won’t. Finally, Calvin makes a bet: He tells Matt that if he can get Calvin off the tube, he can have it. If Calvin stays on the tube, they get to keep it. He clings to the tube, locking his wrists and ankles. Mason is terrified. 

Matt jumps on Calvin. He tears at him, pulling his shirt so it stretches and comes out of its shape. Mason can’t stand to watch; he pulls Matt of Calvin, but Calvin insists they continue. Corey McBride, the most reasonable of the popular boys, demands Matt stop as well. As the fighting really gets going, a car slams its horn. Mrs. Drinker gets out. She demands the boys get in her minivan, and then, she checks on Calvin. Calvin is okay. Mrs. Drinker takes all the boys back to the Drinker house. Calvin is smiling, because they won their prize. Mason smiles back, thinking, “Sometimes there is a better team. But sometimes there is a team that wants it more” (111). 

Calvin brings paint and a bag of sand down to Mason’s house. They mix the paint and sand together and begin to paint the walls a pale color. At some point, Calvin starts to feel sick from lack of ventilation, and they move the farm tractor to block the door and provide a distraction. They paint for many hours. Mason thinks, “If I could do nothing else for the next one hundred hours, I would be happy” (117). When they finish, they begin painting the large Sonotube, which will become the skylight. They end up with paint in their hair and all over their bodies. They plan to install the skylight tomorrow. 

The next morning is Sunday. Mason comes outside with toast and waits for Calvin. A car pulls up the road. It is Lt. Baird’s police cruiser. Lt. Baird rolls down his window and talks to Mason, asking what he is up to. Mason gets nervous and sees the ugly green splotches in his vision. He keeps the root cellar a secret: “We are planning plenty. But I will not give up the root cellar” (121). Mason expects trouble, but Lt. Baird nods and drives away. Then, Mason sees Calvin. Calvin doesn’t ask about the police cruiser. They have too much work to do. 

Calvin and Mason plan to dig a six-foot hole down into the root cellar. Mason has never dug a hole that big. Calvin has a garden trowel, but they need a bigger tool; Mason finds the post-hole digger and uses that. They work all morning. They stop for lunch and return to finish the hole afterward. Finally, they hit the wood ceiling. Using a drill and his knowledge from construction projects with Benny’s dad Andy, Mason drills holes to make a round hole. They use a hammer and chisel, and finally, the wood drops out, and Calvin is up above, standing on the top of the root cellar. Mason is amazed: “And tell you what. There is light!” (128).