The question from Johona comes out of nowhere. Jesse had thought she was asleep beside him, thought he was the only one lying awake, mind racing. She’s under the sheet, in a T-shirt and panties, and he’s on top of it fully clothed. For the first time he notices a splash of freckles on her nose, something Claudine didn’t have. He likes them.

Would you bring them another baby to replace the one you stole? Beaumont asked him.

I would, Jesse replied. I’d bring them two.

Would you give up the girl to them?

No.

Your brother?

“He thinks they might settle for money,” Jesse says to Johona.

“How much money?”

“He didn’t know. However much it is, though, I’ll get it.”

“How? Not picking pockets.”

“Didn’t you tell me you wanted to go out with a bank robber?”

Edgar turns on the television. So he’s awake too. He flips through the channels until he finds a cartoon. It’s only 2 p.m., a long time until sundown. Johona’s stomach growls. Jesse puts his ear to it. “You got a bear in there?” he says.

“A hungry one,” Johona replies.

“There’s peanut butter, bread, some of that deviled ham. You want me to make you a sandwich?”

“I only like peanut butter with milk.”

“Me too,” Edgar says. “Only with milk.”

“Since when?” Jesse says.

“I’ll go out and get some,” Johona says. She picks up her jeans from the floor and pulls them on under the sheet.

Jesse feels a pinch of worry as she slips out the door. It’s daytime, and only Beaumont knows they’re here, but he’d still rather she didn’t wander. He sits at the table and makes the sandwiches.

“I’m feeling lucky,” Edgar says. “I bet I hit a super damn jackpot soon.”

“Okay, Big Time,” Jesse says. “What’ll you do with your winnings?”

“Get me a sweetheart too.”

“Johona’s not my sweetheart. She’s just traveling with us for a while. We’re looking out for her.”

“You’re a liar. I saw you kissing her. You was probably feeling on her titties and her cunny too.”

“What would Mama think if she heard you talking like that?”

“Mama’s dead,” Edgar says. “She can’t hear nothing.”

Jesse is surprised by this. Edgar normally backs right down when their mother is invoked. Jesse fears he’s given him too much rein lately. The best way to keep him safe has always been to keep him cowed.

Johona returns, and the three of them watch Bugs Bunny while they eat. Edgar fills Johona in on the local kid shows. “This here’s channel 8,” he says. “They used to have Commander Lee and Bostwick’s Western Corral, then they had Miss Cinderella.”

The telephone rings. Edgar jumps up and says, “I’ll answer,” but Jesse grabs the receiver before he can get to it.