Gone

itself.”
    “I don’t think I said it quite that well.”
    Edilio slapped him on the back. “You said it well enough, man.”

    “Sam’s back.”
    “What?”
    “Sam. He’s back. He’s coming down the highway.”
    Howard’s chest tightened. He was halfway down the steps of town hall, on his way to McDonald’s for one of Albert’s waffle-burgers.
    It was Elwood, Dahra Baidoo’s boyfriend, who had deliveredthe news. He sounded relieved, there was no denying it. He sounded glad. Howard made a mental note that Elwood was disloyal, but he realized at the same time that he might have bigger issues to worry about than Elwood’s loyalty.
    “If Sam’s coming back, it’s on the end of a leash held by Drake Merwin,” Howard blustered.
    But Elwood was off to tell Dahra and was no longer listening.
    Howard looked around, feeling a little lost, not quite sure what to do. He spotted Mary Terrafino pushing a shopping cart loaded with juice boxes, A&D ointment, and some bruised apples across the plaza toward the day care. Howard trotted down the steps and caught up with her.
    “T’sup, Mary?” he asked.
    “Um, your time?” Mary said, and laughed at her own wit.
    “Yeah, you think? My time’s up?”
    “Sam’s on his way.”
    “You saw him?”
    “I had three different people tell me he’s coming down the highway. You better rush out and stop him, Howard,” Mary crowed.
    “He’s one guy, we’ll kick his butt.”
    “Good luck with that,” Mary said.
    Howard wished Orc was here. With Orc at his side, he didn’t have to put up with any of Mary’s lip. But one-on-one was a different story.
    “You want me telling Caine you’re on Sam’s side?” Howard demanded.
    “I didn’t say I was on anyone’s side. I’m on the side of theprees I take care of. But here’s what I notice, Howard: I notice you hear Sam’s name and all of a sudden you’re ready to wet yourself. So, you know what? Maybe it’s you who is disloyal. After all, if Caine is so great, why would you be scared of Sam? Right?” She leaned against her basket and got it rolling again.
    Howard swallowed hard and argued with his own fear. “It’s no big thing,” he told himself. “We have Caine and Drake and Orc. We’re cool. We’re cool.”
    He believed that for a good twenty seconds before he broke and ran for Orc.
    Orc was in the house he had taken over and now shared with Howard, just across the street from where Drake lived. It was on a short street, the closest place to town hall that you could live. Kids called it Bully Row.
    Orc was asleep on the couch with a DVD of a kung fu movie playing at blasting volume on the TV. Orc had taken to staying up through the night and sleeping days.
    It was a lousy house, in Howard’s opinion, badly decorated and smelling of garlic, but Orc hadn’t cared. He wanted to stay close to the action in town. And he wanted to stay close enough to keep an eye on Drake across the street.
    Howard searched for the remote and shut off the TV. There were empty beer cans on the glass-topped coffee table, and cigarettes in an ashtray. Orc was now drinking a couple beers a day.
    Since Bette. That’s when the drinking had started in earnest. Howard was worried about Orc. Not that he exactlyliked him, but Howard’s fate was bound up with Orc’s and he didn’t like the picture of what his world would be like if Orc dumped him.
    “Orc, get up, man.”
    No response.
    “Orc. Get up. We have trouble.” Howard poked him in his shoulder.
    Orc opened one slit eye. “Why are you bothering me?”
    “Sam Temple is coming back.”
    It took Orc a while to process that. Then he sat up quite suddenly and grabbed his forehead. “Oh, man. Headache.”
    “It’s called a hangover,” Howard snapped. Then, when Orc shot him a murderous look, he softened and said, “I have some Tylenol in the kitchen.” He filled a glass of water and tapped two pills into his palm and brought them back for Orc.
    “What’s the big deal?” Orc asked. He’d never been exactly quick, but now Orc’s thick-headedness was really irritating Howard.
    “The big deal? Sam is coming back. That’s the big deal.”
    “So?”
    “Come on, Orc. Think about it. You figure Sam is cruising into town and he doesn’t have some kind of plan? Caine isn’t here, man, he’s up the hill. Drake, too. Which means it’s you and me in charge.”
    Orc reached for one of the beer cans, rattled it, sighed contentedly when he heard an inch of beer