I hurried through the yards and made a roundabout way back to my car, spending as little time on the street as possible. No one saw me. I knew that much. It was done, and the doing of it wasn’t the trouble. I never imagined myself in this position; I never imagined that I’d ever have to kill someone in my entire life. But then soldiers probably think the same thing. Maybe cops too. Or maybe that’s all they think about. I never had. I had justified what I’d done before, stealing. No one ever got hurt, not really. Now I had killed two people in less than three months, and had a third hanging over me. It wasn’t the killing that bothered me. It was the time before and the time after, the time when I had to think about it, think about who I had become and how I got here. I thought about the guy dead on the sidewalk and if it was the message Froehmer wanted. I’d have to avoid the news for the next few days.

I liked the jobs where there weren’t any people around to screw up everything. But those days were gone. Froehmer had different ideas now. All I could hope was that he would make it worth my while. And he did. Mobley handed me an envelope. It was more money than I’d ever seen at once. I think even my father would have been impressed.

31

THE MOTHER

SHE WAS ON THE PORCH BEFORE I COULD GET OUT OF THE CAR. So I sat and waited as she walked the short walkway from the house to the curb. She didn’t want me inside. It was her mother’s house. So I stayed put.

I had texted her to see if I could come over. I don’t know the last time we’d had a conversation. She’d left me a few messages about child support, but I’d ignored them. I didn’t have any money. Now I did. Now I could do something for the kid. That’s why I’d wanted to come over, but I wasn’t sure what to say. She sat in the passenger seat and let me try to figure it out.

“How’s Eva?” I said.

“Real good.”

“Sixth grade?”

“Too smart for the sixth grade,” she said.

“She inside?”

“She has science club after school.”

I had told her I wanted to see Eva. That’s why I’d come after school. I tried to let it go. “What happens in science club?”

She shrugged. “I don’t know. I think they’re building a weather balloon or something this project. It’s over my head, I know that.”

“Mine too, I’m sure,” I said. “How’s your mother?”

“She’s good. Helping out a lot, where she can. She’s inside. You want to go see her?”