“You?” He shakes his head. “Sorry, can’t see it. You’re too pretty.”

I shake mine back. “Guilty as charged, Counselor. I was gruesome.”

“Can we please focus on Billy?” Nate snaps. “He’s the reason we’re here, right?”

My brother is famished, which is clear from the way he rips open the plastic Saltine packets on the table with his teeth and devours the crackers, one by one.

I text him under the table: Sit up. Be nice. Act human. No joke.

His eyes shift from his phone to DeFiore. His face softens, tone shifts. “So, Peter,” he says amiably. “Tell us about Billy. Is he okay? We’re very concerned.”

* * *

Nate’s life’s ambition is to surf the Banzai Pipeline in Hawaii, where the waves run a hundred feet high. He loves the beach. He used to love sports, but then he went to boarding school. Now, he drinks a lot. He snorts cocaine, takes ecstasy, and smokes a ton of weed. He tries to cut back, though not very hard. If please, allow me is Lawrence’s personal brand, not trying hard is Nate’s. At Columbia, he had a negative GPA for two semesters. He transferred to Reed, then SUNY Binghamton, but gave up in the end. He has a similar job history. Nate’s longest stretch of employment was six months, including the time he tried, and failed, to intern for Lawrence. Our plan to join the foundation was predicated on me doing all the work, so when I took off, he didn’t see the point. One of the husbands in Eleanor’s set got Nate the position at Bessemer, and when he eventually quits, someone else’s husband will find him some other job at some other company. Or Lawrence will rehire him. Or he’ll go back to rehab. Or something. Nate doesn’t need a job because he needs the money; he needs a job because he needs a life. But he’s unwilling to feign interest in a phony career simply to fill up his days. So, he’s left with no purpose and nowhere to go. Other than surfing, Billy’s case is the first thing I’ve seen him get emotional about since he discovered Hawkins Cove, our childhood hangout in Southampton, when he was eight years old.

I can’t tell from DeFiore’s expression how much he knows about my brother, though I’m sure the Bowtie offered a preview. The Bowtie’s not a fan of Nate’s either. But he’s keen on Billy because Billy is Eleanor’s favorite.

“Incarceration is a shock,” DeFiore is saying. “But Billy’s holding his own. He isn’t bothering anyone. More important, no one’s bothering him. Which is good since he’s not getting out until he sees a judge. Apparently, he thought he’d be released today. That is not happening.”