On Monday morning the director called Hughes into the office and informed him that since Milligan was a ward of the state, it was against policy for him to be selling artwork. He had to contact the people, return their money and get the paintings back.

Hughes hadn’t known of the policy, and he agreed to refund the money. On the way out, he asked, “How’d you find out about the sales?”

“People have been calling here,” the director said. “They want more of Milligans paintings.”

April passed quickly. As the weather warmed, Christene played in the garden. David chased butterflies. Ragen worked out in the gym. Danny, who was still afraid of the outdoors from having been buried alive, stayed indoors and painted still lifes. Christopher, who was thirteen, rode horseback. Arthur spent most of his time in the library reading law statutes in the Ohio Revised Code, saying he would get on a horse only if he were playing polo. They were all happy to move to zone 2.

Milligan and Gordy Kane were assigned to work in the laundry, where Tommy enjoyed tinkering with the old washer and the gas-fired dryer. He was looking forward to moving to zone 3, where he would be allowed to wear his own clothes in the evenings.

One afternoon Frank Jordan, the musclebound bully, walked in with a load of laundry. “I want these washed right away. I’m expecting company tomorrow”.

“That’s nice,” Tommy said, going on about his business.

“I mean wash them now,” Jordan said.

Tommy ignored him.

“I’m a zone-four trusty, you prick. I can take your merits away. You’ll get bumped out of going to zone three.”

“Look,” said Tommy, “I don’t give a damn if you’re in the twilight zone. I don’t have to wash your goddamn personal clothes.”

“Hey!”

Tommy looked up at him furiously. What right had this common thief to remove one of his merits? “Stuff it,” Tommy said.

“Hey, cool it!”

Tommy clenched his fists, but Jordan walked off to report to the man in charge that he had given Milligan a hey-cool-it.

When Tommy got back to the dorm, he learned that Jordan had given Kane and Vito each a hey-cool-it as well. All because he knew the three of them were friends.

“We gotta do something about this,” Kane said.

“I’ll do something,” Tommy said.

“What?” Vito asked.

“Never mind,” Tommy said. “I’ll come up with something.” Tommy lay back in his bed thinking about it, and the more he thought, the angrier he got. Finally he got up, went around back, found a section of a two-by-four and started toward zone 4.

Arthur explained the situation to Allen and told him he’d better get over there before Tommy got into trouble.

“Don’t do it, Tommy,” Allen said.

“Shit, I’m not letting that big bastard get away with taking my merits, bumping me outta going to zone three.”

“You’re going off half-cocked. ”

“I’ll half-cock that son of a bitch with a busted head.” “Hey, Tommy, cool it.”