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I said, "You poor little kid"

"My name is Jane Who are you?"

"Evan"

"Jane, Evan Evan, Jane"

"You poor screwed-up little kid"

"Round and round the et a pail of water"

I went over to the front of the tent and peered out through the flap The two sentries reress Pairs of warriors faced one another and crouched, ready for conal and two of the, parrying Then one straightened up and stood erect while the other lay still in the dust The winner took his place in line, others carried the loser off to the side, and Bowe

Behindin rhyme I hissed a volley of sibilant syllables at the sentries They turned, and I crooked a finger tosome question or other I turned and pointed wordlessly at Jane He looked at her, and while he was thus occupied I hit him as one hits rabbits, with a fist to the back of the neck It couldn’t have worked verysound and then made no sound at all

"Why did you hit the nice man, Evan? The black men are our friends Daddy said we must be nice to the black men and teach them the word of the Lord Uncle Bobby was a black ht Uncle Bobby the word of the Lord Uncle Bobby was my friend One day he showed h the routine a second time I pointed not at Jane but at the body of his fallen comrade, but with that exception it was an identical repeat perfor men in the back of the neck Now I could try the saraduate to the next level, that of shooting fish in a barrel

Why hit her? Why not just slip away and leave her? She was lost in childhood reverie, wrapped up in o

I went to her She was reciting a poe cadence I found it as incomprehensible that I had recently bedded her as I did that she went around sackingpeople up I said, "Jane," and put a hand on her shoulder

Her eyes met mine, her beautiful eed Jane turned off and Sheena turned on, and her eyes probed mine, and she saw me as she had not seen me before "White devil!" she shrilled, and leaped atin the candlelight

I hauled off and hit her in the head

I found Pluout canoes out into the water and sending them off downstream This, we had determined, was the only way to render theh the thick sides and bottoave Plum a hand, and we maneuvered them one at a time into the river and out of the picture

"The first heat’s over," I told her "Half of the clowns have knocked the other half out I got a close look at a couple of the their punches Some of the losers looked awfully dead"

"And now?"

"Now the winners pair off and do it again When they’ve lowered the nu to finish them off himself Of course they’ll be the three or four best of the bunch, which h for him That’s the basic flaw"

"He told ainst the best of the as all outdoors If his devotion to Knanda Ndoro’s not an act, then the Retriever was the only man alive Bowman ever respected"

"You do not like hi session, and I was still recovering frolad he’s on our side"

"We could leave now, Evan"

"Without hio It would be easy for us And he could get away by himself I do not think he could catch us, not without a boat, and I do not think he would even try Perhaps he would stay here with Sheena and her filthy killers He was happy with theuess you aren’t crazy about him, either"

"He always puts his hands on me And makes remarks about my color He is really enthusiastic about irls of mixed blood in America?"

"There are thousands of them"

"Then why does he find me so exotic?"

"Consider it a tribute to your beauty"

"I do not wish such tributes I have not told you this before, but you look ridiculous with your skin darkened And with that horrid paint on yourself"

"You don’t look so splendid, either"

"I do not feel splendid Can we leave him, Evan? He causes me to feel dirty inside Please?"

"No No, we can’t"

"I thought you would say that"

We ed to heave another canoe into the water and send it on its way Pluave her an expurgated version She was fascinated when I told her about the eence of Baby Jane

"She is how old, Evan? Ten? You see, it is even worse now than before I ah, but now you have made love with a ten-year-old"

"Cut it out"

"You must be ashamed of yourself"

"Daht because you are led merrily "Now you must not make love to me any more I am not the sort ould have relations with a married man"

"That’s fine with me"

She tossed her head "I will have to content myself with Sam"

"You stay away from-"

"Oh? You are suddenly jealous?"

"I’m not jealous"