square head. “You see pit when he’s got somethin in his mouth.”
“The ID card at the shelter said ‘Labrador mix,’ ” said Chris. “They put that tag on all the dogs, even the beagles. People want to adopt Labs.”
Ben let go of the toy. Django dropped it at Ben’s feet, sat, looked up at him, and smiled.
“He wants to play more,” said Ali.
“If I had a dog like this, I’d play with him all the time,” said Ben. “But it wouldn’t be right for me to keep him in my apartment all day while I was at work.”
“Dog’s all ass,” said Lonnie.
“That’s the pit in him,” said Ben.
“All that power in his ass, I bet he can fuck like a machine, too,” said Lonnie.
“Not anymore,” said Chris. “My parents had him fixed.”
“See, man, why they have to do that?” said Lonnie.
“Someone should do it to you,” said Ali.
“I’m not done, though,” said Lonnie. “I’m gonna have a big family. I’m into kids, see, and I got the means to make ’em. Also, Yolanda is fertile as mess. I’m like one of them sperm banks you read about, and Yolanda’s the vault. Couple times a day, I got to make a deposit.”
“That doesn’t even make sense,” said Ali.
Chris looked up to the deck, where Isaac was talking intently with his father. Chris felt a slight pang of jealousy. Isaac was a better worker than Chris, more skilled, more diligent, and more conscientious. Isaac deserved to get a shot at running Flynn’s Floors someday, more so than Chris. What hurt Chris was the realization that his father had to know this, too, and would be torn by his loyalty to his son and this exemplary employee.
“Hey,” said Hector. “I was wondering where all the women was.”
Hector, the young, curly-haired worker from Isaac’s crew, stepped into the circle, playfully elbowing Ben to move him aside. Hector tapped Chris’s beer bottle with his own.
“If it ain’t Hector the Dick Inspector,” said Ben.
“You inspect the vergas, ” said Hector pleasantly. “I will work. And faster than you, my friend.” In the light of the fire, with his glassy eyes and wide grin, he looked a bit drunk.
“Ali, Lonnie,” said Chris, “this is Hector.”
Hector nodded, then gave them a small bow. “Nice to meet you.”
“You, too,” said Ali.
“Hector works on one of our crews,” said Chris.
“The best crew,” said Hector. He was a competitive type and could back up his boasts.
“I thought your name was Mary,” said Ben.
“My name is not Mary,” said Hector.
“Sure it is,” said Ben. “Mary Cone.”
Hector’s face contorted as he figured it out. Then he smiled with delight and pointed his finger at Ben. “ You are maricone! ”
They laughed and drank more beer. Katherine and Renee joined them, and the circle enlarged. Everyone took a step back from the fire. They were all sweating, and the alcohol was not cooling them down. Kids ran through the yard, and one of Isaac’s crew was dancing with a young woman in the light of a torch to a Tejano ballad playing on the stereo.
“Where’s your shadow tonight?” said Chris to Lonnie. “He usually comes to this thing.”
“Luther?” said Lonnie. He shook his head. “I don’t get up with Luther too much anymore. Luther lost, man.”
“He druggin?” said Ali
“Luther’s doin everything wrong,” said Lonnie. “Just runnin with the wrong people, basically. One of ’em he met at the Ridge originally. Remember DeMarco Hines?”
“From Twelve,” said Ali, naming the unit housing the most violent boys.
“Last time I seen Luther, I told him, it’s time to get away from those kinds of people and stop all that nonsense. You too old to be in that game. But he wouldn’t listen. Thing is, Luther isn’t bad, not like DeMarco.”
“Luther had no business being in Pine Ridge to begin with,” said Ali. “You put someone in with boys who got sickness for real, he’s gonna catch a virus.”
“Luther got arrested as a runner one too many times,” said Lonnie. “Police would jump out their cars and grab him, and then he kept violating his parole. That’s all it was.”
“Imagine the law, on foot, catchin a young kid like that,” said Ben.
“We used to look back and laugh at the police while we was runnin from ’em,” said Lonnie. “But that boy was just too slow.”
“Bad luck,” said Hector, trying to contribute to the conversation.
“There’s the other kind of luck, too,” said Chris. “I saw an old friend of mine, earlier tonight. Eight, nine years ago, he was your basic fuckup, just like me. Now Jason’s a lawyer, looks like fresh money. And I’m…”
“Chris,” said Katherine.
“All because he stayed in the SUV,” said Chris, “and I got out.”
“Who you talkin about, man?” said Lonnie.
“My boy Country.” Chris raised his bottle in weak salute. “The one who didn’t get out of the Trooper.”
No one commented. Chris tipped his head back and killed his beer. Katherine looped her arm though his and touched her thigh to his.
“I’m gonna get something to eat,” said Ali, pouring the rest of his beer out onto the grass. “I already broke a promise to my mother. I gotta put some food in my stomach before I drive home.”
He walked across the lawn and up the steps to the deck. Thomas Flynn stood before the grill, flipping the last of the burgers. Ali went to him and put a hand on his shoulder, and Flynn took a couple of steps back in mock retreat.
“Don’t worry, Mr. Flynn. I don’t want anything.”
“Not tonight.”
“I’m not working tonight. But you know I’m gonna have to come back to you.”
“That’s what you do.”
“I can’t accomplish anything without folks like you,” said Ali. “Anyway, want you to know, I appreciate your patience.”
They looked at each other with respect, and Ali reached out and shook Flynn’s hand.
“Do a shot with me,” said Flynn.
“Nah, I don’t mess with that stuff. But thanks.”
Flynn pointed his chin out into the yard. “I see Lonnie and his brood made it.”
“Lonnie went forth and multiplied.”
“What was his friend’s name? The one who could never show up for work on time.”
“Luther. He’s not doing so good.”
“They can’t all be success stories.”
“I know it.”
“Last time I saw Luther, I spotted him ten dollars until payday.”
“You never want to see Luther again, just give him ten dollars.”
Flynn waved his spatula toward the screened-in porch. “Go on, get something to eat.”
“Thank you.”
Ali headed for the food table, and Flynn poured a shot of Beam. He sipped it, watching his son, his friend Ben, and their girlfriends standing by the fire pit out in the yard. Chris and Ben looked older than their years. He had seen them wearing the shirts they had on tonight many times before. Chris had missed the experience of high school sports, the senior prom, cap-and-gown day, and so much more, and now he was a man too weathered to enjoy his own time. Flynn lowered his head in regret.
“What are you brooding about, Tommy?”
Amanda had appeared at his side.
“Nothin, Amanda.”
“I had a nice talk with Katherine earlier.”
