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And there, too, at the back of my mind was the boy on the exa with helpless hatred
The one with the sweet smile that now lived only in his mother’s memory
I knehat he would have done if our situations had been reversed, and I couldn’t deny the s me to do exactly that--walk away, let the pain and hurow in him like a cancer until they devoured him And that alone was a reason to reconsider Because no matter how many tie And now he never would
It wasn’t to free hiuilt
It wasn’t to punish hi other than an act of mercy
There were no barriers between us, no blocks His life spilled throughin colors and sounds I’d never been allowed to see, I’d never been strong enough to find I took what I could and replaced it with so better He had never been tested on, never been an Orange, never at East River, or in California There were things I saw, secrets so horrible, I’d never wish to inflict on another person by sharing thehtness I left him with only that--the simple story that he had been with his mother this entire time, that he had helped her all of these years, that the love he still felt for her was a good, pure thing to hold on to
And when I turned to go, releasing his ain at the blackbirds diving and rolling around each other, fluttering across the blue sky, and he shts aout of the ladies’ room until I collided with her, and ended up with a ht red curls
"I’attention"
"Lucky for me," the wo to track you down for days How’s the leg, kid?"
At that I looked up, finally realizing who this was Alice She’d pulled herself together today, traded the scrubby jeans and coat I’d seen her in at thepoint for a full suit that didn’t quite fit her Her hair was a loose, wild mane around her shoulders, held back by a pair of thick-fraot about
"It’s been better," I said, eyeing her warily
Seeing that I didn’t return her s your story, I’ize I have a duty to report the facts, the truthand the truth here is that it’s a hell of a story There are a few pieces of information you could fill in for me, if you have a second"
"I don’t"