Chapter Twenty-Five

T he summons looked like a ransom note — letters cut out of a newspaper or magazine. vIgiL MeEtinG tW0-THirTy. The wackiness of the note, those crazy letters, made it seem childish and ridiculous. But that same touch of the childish also gave it an air of something not quite rational, faintly threatening and mocking. That was the special quality of The Vigils, of course, and Archie Costello.

Thirty minutes later, Jerry stood before The Vigils in the storage room. The nearby gym was occupied by fellows either practicing basketball or boxing calisthenics and the walls echoed with thuddings, bouncings and whistles blowing, like a grotesque sound track. Nine or ten Vigil members were present, including Carter who was getting tired of this Vigil crap, especially when it meant he had to miss boxing, and Obie who looked forward to the meeting with pleasure, wondering how Archie would proceed. Archie sat behind the card table. The table was covered with a scarf of purple and gold — the school colors. In the exact center of the table: a box of chocolates.

" Renault, " Archie said softly.

Instinctively, Jerry came to attention, squaring his shoulders, sucking in his stomach, and immediately disgusted with himself.

" Have a chocolate, Renault? "

Jerry shook his head, sighing. He thought wistfully of the guys out on the football field in the sweet fresh wind, tossing the ball around before practice began.

" They're good, " Archie said, opening the box and taking out a chocolate. He inhaled its flavor and popped it into his mouth. He chewed slowly, deliberately, smacking his lips in exaggerated fashion. A second chocolate followed the first. And a third followed the second. His mouth was crammed with candy now and his throat rippled as he swallowed. " Delicious, " he said. " And only two dollars a box — a bargain. "

Somebody laughed. A short bark that was instantly cut off as if a needle had been lifted from a record.

" But you wouldn't know about the price, would you, Renault? "

Jerry shrugged. But his heart began to beat wildly. He knew there had to be a showdown. And this was it.

Archie reached for another chocolate. Into his mouth. " How many boxes have you sold, Renault? "

" None. "

" None? " Archie's gentle voice curled in surprise and wonder. He swallowed, shaking his head in mock puzzlement. Without taking his eyes from Jerry, he called, " Hey, Porter, how many boxes have you sold? "

" Twenty-one. "

" Twenty-one? " Archie's voice was now filled with awe. " Hey, Porter, you must be one of those hustling, eager-beaver freshmen, huh? "

" I'm a senior. "

" A senior? " More awe. " You mean to tell me you're a big-shot senior and you've still got enough spirit left to get out there and sell all those chocolates? Beautiful, Porter. " The voice full of mockery — or was it? " Anybody else here sell chocolates? "

A chorus of numbers filled the air as if The Vigil members were calling bids at a weird auction.

" Forty-two. "

" Thirty-three. "

" Twenty. "

" Nineteen. "

" Forty-five. "

Archie raised his hands and silence fell. Someone in the gym fell against the wall and shouted an obscenity. Obie marveled at the way Archie ran the meetings and how The Vigils quickly took his cues. Porter hadn't sold ten boxes, if any at all. Obie himself had only sold sixteen but had called out forty-five.

" And you, Renault, a freshman, a new student who should be filled with the spirit of Trinity, you haven't sold any? Zero? Nothing? " His hand reached for another chocolate. Actually, he loved them. Not as good as Hershey with almonds but an acceptable substitute.

" That's right, " Jerry said, his voice small, a wrong-end-of-the-telescope kind of voice.

" Do you mind if I ask why? "

Jerry pondered the question. What should he do? Play a game? Tell it straight? But he wasn't sure if it would make sense if he told it straight, especially to a roomful of strangers.

" It's personal, " he said finally, feeling like a loser, knowing he couldn't win. It had all been going so beautifully. Football, school, a girl who had smiled at him at the bus stop. He had edged close to her and seen her name written on one of her books — Ellen Barrett. She had smiled at him two days in a row and he'd been too shy to speak to her but had looked up all the Barretts in the phone book. Five of them. Tonight he was planning to call them up, track her down. It seemed to him that he'd be able to talk to her on the phone. Now, for some reason, he had the feeling he would never talk to her, never play football again — a crazy feeling but one that he couldn't shake.

Archie had been licking his fingers, one at a time, letting the echo of Jerry's response linger in the air. It was so quiet that he heard someone's stomach growl intimately.

" Renault, " Archie said, friendly, his voice conversational. " I'll tell you something. Nothing's personal here in The Vigils. No secrets here, understand. " He took a final suck at his thumb. " Hey, Johnson. "

" Right, " a voice called behind Jerry.

" How many times you jack off every day? "

" Twice, " Johnson replied quickly.

" See? " asked Archie. " No secrets here, Renault. Nothing personal. Not in The Vigils. "

Jerry had taken a shower this morning before school but now he smelled his own perspiration.

" Come on, " Archie said, a good friend now, encouraging, coaxing. " You can tell us. "

Carter blew air out of his mouth in exasperation. He was losing patience with Archie's cat and mouse crap. He had sat here for two years watching Archie play his silly games with kids, having Archie act the big shot as if he ran the show. Carter carried the responsibility for the assignments on his shoulders. As president, he also had to keep the other guys in line, keep them psyched up, ready to help make Archie's assignments work. And Carter wasn't crazy about this chocolate stuff. It was something beyond the control of The Vigils. It involved Brother Leon and he didn't trust Leon as far as he could throw him. Now, he watched the kid Renault, looking as if he was ready to faint with fright, his face pale and eyes wide with dread, and Archie having fun with him. Jesus. Carter hated this psychological crap. He loved boxing where everything was visible — the jabs, the hooks, the roundhouse swings, the glove in the stomach.

" Okay, Renault, play time is over, " Archie said. The gentleness was gone from his voice. No chocolates in his mouth. " Tell us — why aren't you selling chocolates? "

" Because I don't want to, " Jerry said, still stalling. Because — what else could he do?

" You don't want to? " Archie asked, incredulous.

Jerry nodded. He'd bought time.

" Hey, Obie. "

" Right, " Obie answered, stung. Why the hell did Archie have to pick on him all the time? What the hell did he want now?

" Do you want to come to school every day, Obie? "

" Hell, no, " Obie responded, knowing what Archie wanted and giving it to him but resentful as well, feeling like a stooge, as if Archie was the ventriloquist and Obie the dummy.

" But you come to school, don't you? "

" Hell, yes. "

Laughter greeted the answer and Obie allowed himself a smile. But a quick look from Archie wiped the smile away. Archie was dead serious. He could tell that by the way his lips were tight and thin and his eyes flashing like neon signs.

" See? " Archie said, swiveling back to Renault. " Everybody has to do things in this world they don't want to. "

A terrific sadness swept over Jerry. As if somebody had died. The way he felt standing in the cemetery that day they buried his mother. And nothing you'could do about it.

" Okay, Renault, " Archie said, a finality in his voice.

You could feel the room tense. Obie sucked in his breath. Here it comes, the Archie touch.

" Here's your assignment. Tomorrow at the roll call, you take the chocolates. You say, 'Brother Leon, I accept the chocolates. ' "

Stunned, Jerry blurted out " What? "

" Something wrong with your hearing, Renault? " Turning aside, he called, " Hey, McGrath, did you hear me? "

" Hell, yes. "

" What did I say? "

" You said the kid should start selling chocolates. "

Archie returned his attention to Jerry. " You're getting off easy, Renault. You've disobeyed The Vigils. That calls for punishment. Although The Vigils don't believe in violence, we have found it necessary to have a punishment code. The punishment is usually worse than the assignment. But we're letting you off cheap, Renault. We're just asking you to take the chocolates tomorrow. And sell them. "

Jesus, Obie thought in disbelief. The great Archie Costello is running scared. The word " asking" was the tipoff. A slip of the lip, maybe. But as if Archie was trying to bargain with the kid, asking, for crying out loud. I've got you, Archie, you bastard. Obie had never known such sweet victory. The goddam freshman was going to screw Archie up, at last. Not the Black Box. Not Brother Leon. Not his own cleverness. But a skinny freshman. Because Obie was certain of one thing as if it was a natural law, like gravity — Renault wasn't going to sell the chocolates. He could tell by looking at the kid, standing there scared, like he could shit his pants, but not backing down. While Archie was asking him to sell the chocolates. Asking.

" Dismissed, " Archie called out.

Carter was surprised at the sudden dismissal and he banged the gavel too hard, almost splitting the crate he used as a desk. He had a feeling that he had missed a beat somewhere, had missed a crucial moment. Archie and all his subtle crap. What the kid Renault needed was a stiff jab to the jaw and another to the belly. That'd make him sell the frigging chocolates. Archie and his stupid let's not have any violence. Anyway, the meeting was over and Carter felt like working out, like working up a sweat with the gloves and the big bag.

He banged the gavel again.