boy looked at me and I said, "Go ahead."
He took a breath. "Soon as I got in the car, I could see Tommy T. was real high. He's snapping his fingers. And stamping his feet. And singing to the music on the radio. Every once in a while he starts laughing like crazy. Terry starts singing and laughing, too, like it was all some big joke. Only I can tell he ain't really into it the way T.T. is. He's just copying him, like he always does. We head on down Ninth, playing that radio s'loud as she'll go. T.T. says to Terry, 'That was some good show.' Talking about the fight, you know?
And Terry says, `Yeah.' And they both laugh some more. Then T.T. says, 'Let's go on over to Coates's so's I can get me some new clothes.' 'Cause he's got blood up and down his shirt and pants from the fight. So Terry goes on down to Walnut Street and parks in front of the Deco. And we go up to Coates's place."
"Who's Coates?"
"He's this fat old faggot lives in the Deco apartment house, across from the Ramrod. He's got the hots for Tommy T. Do 'bout anything for him. Man, Tommy treats him like shit too." The boy laughed as if it was funny.
"Anyway, we get on upstairs and Coates lets us in. Tommy T. says to him, 'Give me some fresh clothes, you old faggot.' Then T.T. takes off his shirt and pants in front of him. Coates, he gets all hot and bothered and asks Tommy if he'll do him right there. Tommy grins and says, 'I will if you pay me fifty dollars. You gotta wash out my old clothes and ream my asshole too.' Coates says he'll do anything for some of that. So they go on back to the bedroom and-"
"I get the picture," I said sharply.
The kid looked shocked. It wasn't embarrassment. Judging from the way he'd been talking, there wasn't much that could embarrass him. It was the fact that he'd embarrassed me. It made his face turn red and his eyes go cold, brought his redneck pride to life -that fierce sense of propriety that had sent Kitty Guinn squirming away from me on the CPD bench. I'd inadvertently underlined the distance between his world and mine, and he didn't like it.
"Go on now," Naomi Trimble said gently, as if she were trying to soothe his sense of injury.
But it took a few moments for him to start up again, and, at that, I could still hear the wounded pride in his voice. "Me and Terry stayed in the living room while T.T. and Coates was . . . doing their thing." The boy gave me a withering look. "Soon as Coates and T.T. left, Terry starts acting crazy. He walks up and down in front of the couch, talking to himself and cussing. Then he starts tearing up the place. Pulling open all them drawers and closets. He says to me, 'Kent, I need to find me some more T's and B's right now. I need to stay high. It's my birthday today. And I'm gonna party the whole night long.' Then he says something that jus' knocks me out. He says, 'You know my dad give me that car for my birthday. He give it to me 'cause he's going away.' Man, I could not believe it!"
The kid looked off into space, as if he were still tasting the beauty of it. I heard the woman say, "Go ahead."
"Well, we's sitting there for a time, then we start hearing Coates in the other room, screaming and crying. That just seemed to freak Terry out more. It freaked me out some too. He jumps up and says. 'Fuck it. I ain't staying here.' He goes on over to the door, then he stops and takes them car keys out of his hip pocket and just drops them on the floor. He says, 'You tell Tommy T. he can have that car.' And I say, 'What're you doing, man? Your dad give you that car!' And he says, 'No, he didn't. He didn't give me nothing.' He looks at me real hard and he says, 'Kent, Tommy and me kilt a man tonight. And that's how come we got that car.' Then he walks out the door. Man, I lit out of there too. I wasn't gonna stick around after hearing that."
I glanced at the kid. His eyes were as stunned -looking as they must have been' when he'd heard Carnova confess.
"I thought it was the drugs talking," Kent
He took a breath. "Soon as I got in the car, I could see Tommy T. was real high. He's snapping his fingers. And stamping his feet. And singing to the music on the radio. Every once in a while he starts laughing like crazy. Terry starts singing and laughing, too, like it was all some big joke. Only I can tell he ain't really into it the way T.T. is. He's just copying him, like he always does. We head on down Ninth, playing that radio s'loud as she'll go. T.T. says to Terry, 'That was some good show.' Talking about the fight, you know?
And Terry says, `Yeah.' And they both laugh some more. Then T.T. says, 'Let's go on over to Coates's so's I can get me some new clothes.' 'Cause he's got blood up and down his shirt and pants from the fight. So Terry goes on down to Walnut Street and parks in front of the Deco. And we go up to Coates's place."
"Who's Coates?"
"He's this fat old faggot lives in the Deco apartment house, across from the Ramrod. He's got the hots for Tommy T. Do 'bout anything for him. Man, Tommy treats him like shit too." The boy laughed as if it was funny.
"Anyway, we get on upstairs and Coates lets us in. Tommy T. says to him, 'Give me some fresh clothes, you old faggot.' Then T.T. takes off his shirt and pants in front of him. Coates, he gets all hot and bothered and asks Tommy if he'll do him right there. Tommy grins and says, 'I will if you pay me fifty dollars. You gotta wash out my old clothes and ream my asshole too.' Coates says he'll do anything for some of that. So they go on back to the bedroom and-"
"I get the picture," I said sharply.
The kid looked shocked. It wasn't embarrassment. Judging from the way he'd been talking, there wasn't much that could embarrass him. It was the fact that he'd embarrassed me. It made his face turn red and his eyes go cold, brought his redneck pride to life -that fierce sense of propriety that had sent Kitty Guinn squirming away from me on the CPD bench. I'd inadvertently underlined the distance between his world and mine, and he didn't like it.
"Go on now," Naomi Trimble said gently, as if she were trying to soothe his sense of injury.
But it took a few moments for him to start up again, and, at that, I could still hear the wounded pride in his voice. "Me and Terry stayed in the living room while T.T. and Coates was . . . doing their thing." The boy gave me a withering look. "Soon as Coates and T.T. left, Terry starts acting crazy. He walks up and down in front of the couch, talking to himself and cussing. Then he starts tearing up the place. Pulling open all them drawers and closets. He says to me, 'Kent, I need to find me some more T's and B's right now. I need to stay high. It's my birthday today. And I'm gonna party the whole night long.' Then he says something that jus' knocks me out. He says, 'You know my dad give me that car for my birthday. He give it to me 'cause he's going away.' Man, I could not believe it!"
The kid looked off into space, as if he were still tasting the beauty of it. I heard the woman say, "Go ahead."
"Well, we's sitting there for a time, then we start hearing Coates in the other room, screaming and crying. That just seemed to freak Terry out more. It freaked me out some too. He jumps up and says. 'Fuck it. I ain't staying here.' He goes on over to the door, then he stops and takes them car keys out of his hip pocket and just drops them on the floor. He says, 'You tell Tommy T. he can have that car.' And I say, 'What're you doing, man? Your dad give you that car!' And he says, 'No, he didn't. He didn't give me nothing.' He looks at me real hard and he says, 'Kent, Tommy and me kilt a man tonight. And that's how come we got that car.' Then he walks out the door. Man, I lit out of there too. I wasn't gonna stick around after hearing that."
I glanced at the kid. His eyes were as stunned -looking as they must have been' when he'd heard Carnova confess.
"I thought it was the drugs talking," Kent
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