you.”
“What happened today?”
“I have a feeling you already know. I have a feeling everybody does.”
“You make good gossip,” Beth said. “You’re a very interesting man.”
“You said that before. I suppose I should be flattered.”
“But you’re not.”
“It’s the way you say it—sort of like when I say, ‘The secondary screwworm is a very interesting maggot.’”
She paused. “What did happen today?”
“I was a bad boy—I took something that didn’t belong to me.”
“So I heard.”
“Why don’t you tell me what happened today? That’ll save a lot of boring repetition.”
“You were instructed to assist in rescue operations in the Lower Ninth Ward. Instead, you recovered a body.”
“It wasn’t ‘instead’—it was ‘in addition.’ I guess they don’t give points for extra credit around here.”
“Were your instructions unclear?”
“I heard what they said. I disagreed.”
“You disobeyed.”
“I disagreed —there’s a difference. I’m not a machine, Beth; I don’t operate by remote control. In the field I have to make my own decisions.”
“And you decided to act in violation of direct orders.”
He turned and looked at her. “Look—this is not like the last time, if that’s what you’re thinking. I just couldn’t walk away from it, okay? It was the right thing to do, and I couldn’t let it go.”
“I know.”
They walked the rest of the way without speaking.
“Well, here we are,” Nick said. “I suppose a gentleman would walk you home, but after all, the place is surrounded by razor wire.”
“That’s okay. I know the way back.”
She started back toward the DPMU, but a few yards away she turned back again. “Will you be able to sleep?”
“The sleep of the righteous,” Nick said. “No problem.”
“I’m serious. Will you be able to sleep?”
“I will if you stop talking and go away.”
“All right,” she said. “Good night.”
Nick watched her until she reached the warehouse, then swung open the trailer door and crawled inside. On the floor to the left, Jerry was already in a deep sleep. He lay on his back with his chin slung low like a hammock; a deep, moaning sound was coming from somewhere inside him.
Nick nudged his shoulder. “Hey. Jerry.”
“Wha— Are we there yet?”
“Wake up, you big snitch.”
Jerry propped himself up on one elbow and rubbed his face. “What’d I do?”
“‘According to Jerry, you went out of your way to find the body,’” Nick recited from memory. “Thanks a lot.”
“Hey, he asked me. What was I supposed to do, lie?”
“Next time, just leave out a few of the details—that’s called editing . Where’s the boy?”
Jerry pointed toward his feet.
On the floor at Jerry’s feet, two equipment bags lay end to end. Nick slid one of them aside and found J.T. curled up in a tangle of blankets. The boy slept so soundly that he didn’t even appear to breathe; Nick considered laying two fingers on his carotid artery just to make sure.
“Poor kid,” Jerry said. “He was out cold the minute his head hit the pillow.”
“Did anybody see him come in?”
“Nah—they were all asleep before we got here. Most people work normal hours.”
“Most people are boring.”
“He can’t keep coming here, you know. It’s against the rules.”
“He slept on a rooftop last night, Jerry—if he slept at all. What was I supposed to do, leave him there on the levee with a bunch of strangers? I thought the kid deserved a good night’s sleep.”
“Doesn’t everybody,” Jerry said.
“Well, sleep fast. We’ll need to get up early to sneak him out of here before the rest of them wake up.”
“I thought the plan was to take him up to the Family Assistance Center.”
“We’ll do that first chance we get,” Nick said. “Right now he needs to sleep.”
Jerry heaved over onto his side, and Nick slid the equipment bag back in place to conceal the boy’s presence. His own sleeping
“What happened today?”
“I have a feeling you already know. I have a feeling everybody does.”
“You make good gossip,” Beth said. “You’re a very interesting man.”
“You said that before. I suppose I should be flattered.”
“But you’re not.”
“It’s the way you say it—sort of like when I say, ‘The secondary screwworm is a very interesting maggot.’”
She paused. “What did happen today?”
“I was a bad boy—I took something that didn’t belong to me.”
“So I heard.”
“Why don’t you tell me what happened today? That’ll save a lot of boring repetition.”
“You were instructed to assist in rescue operations in the Lower Ninth Ward. Instead, you recovered a body.”
“It wasn’t ‘instead’—it was ‘in addition.’ I guess they don’t give points for extra credit around here.”
“Were your instructions unclear?”
“I heard what they said. I disagreed.”
“You disobeyed.”
“I disagreed —there’s a difference. I’m not a machine, Beth; I don’t operate by remote control. In the field I have to make my own decisions.”
“And you decided to act in violation of direct orders.”
He turned and looked at her. “Look—this is not like the last time, if that’s what you’re thinking. I just couldn’t walk away from it, okay? It was the right thing to do, and I couldn’t let it go.”
“I know.”
They walked the rest of the way without speaking.
“Well, here we are,” Nick said. “I suppose a gentleman would walk you home, but after all, the place is surrounded by razor wire.”
“That’s okay. I know the way back.”
She started back toward the DPMU, but a few yards away she turned back again. “Will you be able to sleep?”
“The sleep of the righteous,” Nick said. “No problem.”
“I’m serious. Will you be able to sleep?”
“I will if you stop talking and go away.”
“All right,” she said. “Good night.”
Nick watched her until she reached the warehouse, then swung open the trailer door and crawled inside. On the floor to the left, Jerry was already in a deep sleep. He lay on his back with his chin slung low like a hammock; a deep, moaning sound was coming from somewhere inside him.
Nick nudged his shoulder. “Hey. Jerry.”
“Wha— Are we there yet?”
“Wake up, you big snitch.”
Jerry propped himself up on one elbow and rubbed his face. “What’d I do?”
“‘According to Jerry, you went out of your way to find the body,’” Nick recited from memory. “Thanks a lot.”
“Hey, he asked me. What was I supposed to do, lie?”
“Next time, just leave out a few of the details—that’s called editing . Where’s the boy?”
Jerry pointed toward his feet.
On the floor at Jerry’s feet, two equipment bags lay end to end. Nick slid one of them aside and found J.T. curled up in a tangle of blankets. The boy slept so soundly that he didn’t even appear to breathe; Nick considered laying two fingers on his carotid artery just to make sure.
“Poor kid,” Jerry said. “He was out cold the minute his head hit the pillow.”
“Did anybody see him come in?”
“Nah—they were all asleep before we got here. Most people work normal hours.”
“Most people are boring.”
“He can’t keep coming here, you know. It’s against the rules.”
“He slept on a rooftop last night, Jerry—if he slept at all. What was I supposed to do, leave him there on the levee with a bunch of strangers? I thought the kid deserved a good night’s sleep.”
“Doesn’t everybody,” Jerry said.
“Well, sleep fast. We’ll need to get up early to sneak him out of here before the rest of them wake up.”
“I thought the plan was to take him up to the Family Assistance Center.”
“We’ll do that first chance we get,” Nick said. “Right now he needs to sleep.”
Jerry heaved over onto his side, and Nick slid the equipment bag back in place to conceal the boy’s presence. His own sleeping
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