Page 11 (1/2)

If Nick felt that anything rong, it was lost beneath everything that was right about Mary The way she always thought of others before herself, the way she made the little kids all feel loved The way she took an interest in hi over to Nick and asking what he was up to, hoas feeling, what new things he "was thinking about She spoke with hi on, all about theories on why there were no seventeen-year-olds in Everlost, when everyone knew eighteen was the official age of adulthood

"That’s not actually true," Nick offered "That’s voting age, but drinking age is twenty-one In the Jewish religion, adulthood is thirteen, and I know for a fact there are fourteen-year-old Jewish kids here"

"That still doesn’t explain why kids older than us aren’t adht Nick That sounded a lot better than Lost on the way to heaven Her way of thinking was such a welcolooested Nick, "it’s a very personal thing Maybe it’s theof yourself as a kid"

Vari, as lingering at the door, snickered He had snickered at every single comment Nick made

"Vari, please," Mary told him "We value a free flow of ideas here"

"Even the stupid ones?" Vari said

Nick couldn’t really see why she kept Vari around Sure, he had musical talent, but it didn’t make up for his attitude

Mary took Nick to show him how her books wereroo at school desks

It looked like a classroo their pen press that’s crossed over," she told hi by hand"

And sure enough, the kids in the publishing room see scriptures on parchment

"They find comfort in the routine," Mary said, and Nick accepted it, without giving it un to understand the nature of the "routines"

these children found co one of the ti Mary around

"I want you to watch this kid," she told Nick "Follow him with me"

"What for?"

"You’ll see"

Nick was reluctant, but it wasn’t like he had anything pressing to do, so he played along at whatever gah It was very serious business

The boy, as about seven, was on the plaza playing kickball with a dozen other kids

"So what are we looking for?" Nick asked, growing i to lose Nine to seven"

Sure enough, the game ended when the score reached nine to seven

"What are you telling me? You can tell the future"

"Sort of," Allie said "I can when there is no future"

"What’s that supposed to mean?"

"Just follow hi their distance, they followed the boy into the lobby of Tohere several other kids had gathered with a deck of cards to play go-fish

Allie and Nick hid behind a pillar, but it didn’t seem towatched

"He’s going to ask for threes," Allie said

"Got any threes?" the kid asked the girl next to him

"Go fish," Allie whispered to Nick "Got any sevens?"

"Go fish," said the girl "Got any sevens?"

Now Nick was a little bit freaked "How do you know thus?"

"Because it’s the saame of cards"

"No way!"

"Watch," said Allie "In a second the kid we followed here is going to thron his cards and accuse the little girl of cheating Then he’s going to run out the third revolving door from the left"

It happened just as Allie said

It was the first ti in Mary’s world that Nick felt uneasy

"It’s like … it’s like …"

Allie finished the thought for hihosts" Which, of course, they were "You kno there are those ghost sightings -- people say they see a ghost doing the sa, in the sa to let it sit at that He ran toward the boy before he reached the revolving door "Hey!" Nick said to hia!" he said

"I dare you to go back"

The boy looked at him with mild fear in his eyes "No I don’t want to"

"But didn’t you play the saame yesterday?" Nick said "Didn’t they cheat in the same way yesterday?"