Quentin groans deep in his chest. “Stop trying to reason it out. You heard Colonel Eklund’s testimony. A man who did what Tom did in Korea doesn’t think like the rest of us. Not when it comes to the big things. In any case, there’s no point in you pushing him. Say good-bye and go back to your mother. I’ll try to find a way to get him to open up about the tape.”

“And if he doesn’t?”

“Then tomorrow should be a mighty interesting day in court.”

“Do you think Judge Elder will proceed after what’s happened to Walt?”

“It’s a murder trial, Penn. We still have a defendant, and we still have a jury.”

With that Quentin spins his chair and reenters the cubicle.

When I step in after him, I see that my father has been crying. The white, cracked skin of his face has turned an unhealthy pink, and there’s moisture in the white whiskers on his cheeks.

“I need a phone,” he says. “I need to call Carmelita.”

Carmelita Cruz, the jewel of Walt Garrity’s later life. “We can’t pass a phone through the wire.”

“I’ll hold mine up to the screen,” Quentin says, “after Penn says good night.”

He really is showing me the door.

Dad looks small and vulnerable sitting there, his hands folded on the little metal shelf before him. “Walt thought he owed me something for Korea,” he murmurs. “But he didn’t. We were always even.”

“Tell his wife that,” I suggest.

“I will.”

Quentin tosses his head to send me on my way, but I hang back long enough to take hold of the wire mesh and shake it. “Dad, what’s going to happen in court tomorrow?”

This time his eyes find mine, and they are free of dissimulation. “The truth’s going to come out. One way or another. Once and for all.”

It’s half past ten, and the house seems emptier than it has in a long time. After strident arguments and tearful partings, Annie and Mia have been transported by the FBI to private dorm rooms at the minimum-security facility at Pollock, the same place where Annie used to visit my father while he was in protective custody. After hearing about the street battle, Mia’s mother was elated that her daughter would be entering federal protection until the conclusion of the trial. My only consolation is that Annie and Mia will remain together, and this should carry them through their separation from the rest of us.