yesterday.”
“Remember the picture that Mrs. Barnes took and gave you a copy of?”
“Yes, I do.”
“Do you think you could find it and bring it next week when you come?”
“I think I know where it is. Feeling a little homesick, Son?”
“Something like that, Mom.”
And the next week when Mrs. Strong visited she brought the picture. There they were. The ten of them. And there was his freedom, once Billy could identify which one had stabbed Augusto Santos.
At the end of their visit, CJ said, “I need a big favor. I need you to ask Aunt Jackie to have Billy come back up to see me. I need to talk with him again. It’s important.”
“Sure I will, what’s so important?”
And not wanting to alarm his mother, he downplayed it. “No, it was just so good to see him after so long. I liked the company.”
“That’s good. I’ll be sure to tell her.”
That night as he lay back on his bunk, CJ Strong looked at the picture of the ten boys. He looked closely at the eight white faces. Kish Moira was Indian, so it wasn’t him. Of the other seven, he wondered who killed Augusto Santos.
Chapter 13
The meadow at Tod’s Point rolled down to Long Island Sound, a great green strip of grass pouring into the sea. Their work as summer lifeguards done, they had one more week before returning to college—he to Harvard, she to Columbia.
“Narragansett, Jersey Shore. Narragansett, Jersey Shore,” Valerie intoned as she plucked singular white petals from the wild daisy that grew along the side of the emerald swarth.
“Narragansett,” Eddie stated firmly, “We’ll get crushed in the traffic over the GW Bridge.”
“Narragansett, Jersey Shore,” Val continued. “Not so fast, Wheelwright. The law of the petals, rules.”
“I’ll give you the law of the petals,” he said and leaped across the blanket they were picnicking on and landed lengthwise on her. “Let’s wrestle.”
“I know what wrestling means to you: let’s fuck!”
“You are so crude. And so correct,” said the Harvard junior as he rolled off her, placing a hand on her hip.
They kissed, touched each other, but when Eddie stared to pull Valerie’s bikini bottom down, she punched him in the left side. “Not here!”
“What’s wrong?”
“We’re out in the open. People passing. Middle of the day.”
“It’s six. No one comes by here now.”
In a case of perfect timing, another young couple appeared at the top of the meadow and began walking toward the would-be lovers.
“Look, it’s Kish,” Val said.
Wheelwright sat up and smiled as Kishenlal Moira approached with a young woman he did not recognize.
“Great timing, Kish,” Wheelwright smiled.
Valerie laughed, “Yeah, Kish, great timing. You saved me.”
Moira laughed as he and his friend came to the blanket. Val and Eddie made room as the newcomers sat down.
“Val, Eddie, this is my friend Sophie.”
“Hi, Sophie,” Val greeted.
The four exchanged pleasantries. Kish then added, by way of saying Sophie is OK, “Sophie goes to MIT.”
Impressed, Wheelwright asked, “What year?”
“Junior,” the pretty girl said.
“Do you know Winston?” then without giving her a chance to answer, Valerie looked at Moira, “Does Sophie know Winston?” inquiring about their mutual friend Winston Trout who was a third-year student at the Cambridge school.
“Yes, I do,” Sophie Sorinku added. “It was Winston who introduced me to Kish a couple of weeks ago.”
“Small world,” Wheelwright added. “What do you study?”
“Same as Winston, materials science.”
“Don’t tell me you’re going to save the planet too?” Wheelwright laughed, referring to Trout’s well-known commitment, among his friends, to alternative forms of energy.
“I’m going to try,” Sophie laughed.
“Actually,” Kish began, “Sophie is on an internship at Trout Solar.”
“Yes,” Sophie jumped in, “I didn’t know Winston until I started my internship. Then we
“Remember the picture that Mrs. Barnes took and gave you a copy of?”
“Yes, I do.”
“Do you think you could find it and bring it next week when you come?”
“I think I know where it is. Feeling a little homesick, Son?”
“Something like that, Mom.”
And the next week when Mrs. Strong visited she brought the picture. There they were. The ten of them. And there was his freedom, once Billy could identify which one had stabbed Augusto Santos.
At the end of their visit, CJ said, “I need a big favor. I need you to ask Aunt Jackie to have Billy come back up to see me. I need to talk with him again. It’s important.”
“Sure I will, what’s so important?”
And not wanting to alarm his mother, he downplayed it. “No, it was just so good to see him after so long. I liked the company.”
“That’s good. I’ll be sure to tell her.”
That night as he lay back on his bunk, CJ Strong looked at the picture of the ten boys. He looked closely at the eight white faces. Kish Moira was Indian, so it wasn’t him. Of the other seven, he wondered who killed Augusto Santos.
Chapter 13
The meadow at Tod’s Point rolled down to Long Island Sound, a great green strip of grass pouring into the sea. Their work as summer lifeguards done, they had one more week before returning to college—he to Harvard, she to Columbia.
“Narragansett, Jersey Shore. Narragansett, Jersey Shore,” Valerie intoned as she plucked singular white petals from the wild daisy that grew along the side of the emerald swarth.
“Narragansett,” Eddie stated firmly, “We’ll get crushed in the traffic over the GW Bridge.”
“Narragansett, Jersey Shore,” Val continued. “Not so fast, Wheelwright. The law of the petals, rules.”
“I’ll give you the law of the petals,” he said and leaped across the blanket they were picnicking on and landed lengthwise on her. “Let’s wrestle.”
“I know what wrestling means to you: let’s fuck!”
“You are so crude. And so correct,” said the Harvard junior as he rolled off her, placing a hand on her hip.
They kissed, touched each other, but when Eddie stared to pull Valerie’s bikini bottom down, she punched him in the left side. “Not here!”
“What’s wrong?”
“We’re out in the open. People passing. Middle of the day.”
“It’s six. No one comes by here now.”
In a case of perfect timing, another young couple appeared at the top of the meadow and began walking toward the would-be lovers.
“Look, it’s Kish,” Val said.
Wheelwright sat up and smiled as Kishenlal Moira approached with a young woman he did not recognize.
“Great timing, Kish,” Wheelwright smiled.
Valerie laughed, “Yeah, Kish, great timing. You saved me.”
Moira laughed as he and his friend came to the blanket. Val and Eddie made room as the newcomers sat down.
“Val, Eddie, this is my friend Sophie.”
“Hi, Sophie,” Val greeted.
The four exchanged pleasantries. Kish then added, by way of saying Sophie is OK, “Sophie goes to MIT.”
Impressed, Wheelwright asked, “What year?”
“Junior,” the pretty girl said.
“Do you know Winston?” then without giving her a chance to answer, Valerie looked at Moira, “Does Sophie know Winston?” inquiring about their mutual friend Winston Trout who was a third-year student at the Cambridge school.
“Yes, I do,” Sophie Sorinku added. “It was Winston who introduced me to Kish a couple of weeks ago.”
“Small world,” Wheelwright added. “What do you study?”
“Same as Winston, materials science.”
“Don’t tell me you’re going to save the planet too?” Wheelwright laughed, referring to Trout’s well-known commitment, among his friends, to alternative forms of energy.
“I’m going to try,” Sophie laughed.
“Actually,” Kish began, “Sophie is on an internship at Trout Solar.”
“Yes,” Sophie jumped in, “I didn’t know Winston until I started my internship. Then we
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