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Sheriff Ribbon added that authorities are looking at the possibility that the youth was involved in the slaying last year of another Auden co-ed, Susan Biagotti.

'At the time,' he said, 'it appeared that the girl was killed during a robbery. But the way we're looking at it now, it might have been the first in this series of killings.'

Some residents greeted the news of the arrest with cautious relief. 'Ofcourse, we're glad he's been caught, 'said a New Lebanon housewife who refused to give her name, 'but it seems like there's still a lot of questions. Was he doing this alone? Is it safe for my children to go back to school?'

Others were less restrained in their reaction. "We can breathe again,' said one Main Street shopkeeper, who also insisted on anonymity. 'My business came to a standstill the last couple of weeks. I hope he gets the chair.'

Under state law, a fifteen-year-old can be tried as an adult for murder, but no one under eighteen can be sentenced to death. If the jury convicts the youth of first-degree murder, his sentence could range from thirty-five years to life and he would have to serve at least twenty-five years before he would be eligible for parole.

Diane had found a psychiatrist cartoon in a magazine and cut it out for Dr Parker. It showed a little fish sitting in a chair holding a notebook. Next to him was a huge shark lying down on a couch and the little fish was saying to the shark, 'Oh, no, it's perfectly normal to want to eat your psychiatrist.' Diane kept studying the cartoon and not getting it. But the expression on the face of the shark was so funny she broke out in laughter.

Which wasn't as loud as the laughter that escaped from Dr Parker's mouth when she looked at the clipping. Maybe the woman did have a sense of humour after all. Dr Parker pinned the cartoon up on her bulletin board. Diane felt ecstatic, as if she'd been given a gold star at school.

Sarah was in the waiting room. Dr Parker had asked to see Diane first today. By herself. This troubled Diane, who wondered what kind of bad news the woman had to report. But seeing the doctor laugh, she sensed this was no crisis. As Dr Parker rummaged through her desk Diane told her about Ben Breck.

'Breck? I think I've heard of him. Let's look him up.' She spun around in her chair and found a huge book. She opened it and flipped through. 'Ah, here we go. He's forty one ... Impressive. Summa cum from Yale, ditto an M.A. and Ph.D. in psychology. Ph.D. in education from Chicago. He's taught at a number of Ivy League schools. Currently tenured at Chicago. Published extensively in the journals. Visiting at Auden, is he? Lucky you.'

'So I should take him up on it?'

'Cheap tutoring from an expert. I'd say there isn't much of a choice there.'

'I've already told him I would.'

'I think you'll see some dramatic improvements in Sarah.' The doctor looked at her watch. This session will be very short, Mrs Corde. A few minutes with you, a few with Sarah. I'm not going to charge you for the time.'

'My horoscope for this month must've said, "You will meet two generous therapists."'

Dr Parker's sense of humour had been spent on the cartoon; she ignored the pleasantry and dug again with some irritation into the bottom of her desk drawer. Finally she extracted a small black box.

The doctor said, "You're going to see Sarah carrying this around with her. Tell your husband and son to leave it alone. Don't touch it, don't listen to it, don't ask her about it. Unless she says something first.'

Diane asked the most innocuous question she could think of. 'Is it a tape recorder?'

That's right.'

'What's it for?'

'I'm going to reconstruct Sarah's self-esteem.'

'How?'

She answered tersely, 'Sarah's going to write a book.'

Diane smiled, a reflex. Then she decided that the joke was in poor taste and she frowned. Dr Parker pushed the recorder, a blank cassette and an instruction book toward Diane, who scooped them up and held them helplessly. When the doctor said nothing more Diane said, "You're not joking, are you?'

'Joking?' Dr Parker looked as if Diane were the one making the tasteless comment. 'Mrs Corde, I'd think you'd know by now I rarely joke.'

Diane Corde believed that the perfection of children's fingers was proof that God existed, and she thought of this now watching her daughter hold the tape recorder, examining it with some small suspicion and turning it over in her pale hands. Diane unfolded a tattered copy of the instruction manual and took the recorder back. She set it on the living room coffee table. In her left hand she held two AA batteries and a new cassette.

'I think we should ...' She examined the instruction sheet.

'Lemme,' Sarah said.

Diane read. 'We have to-'

'Lemme.'

Click, click, click. There.'

Diane looked down. Sarah had the machine running and was pressing the Play and Record buttons simultaneously, saying, Testing, testing.'

'How did you do that? Did you read the instructions?'

Sarah rewound the tape and pressed another button. Diane's tinny voice repeated,'... read the instructions?'

'Mom, come on. Like, it's easy.' She looked at the recorder then back up to her mother. 'Dr Parker wants me to make up stories and put them in my book.'

That's what she said.'

'I don't know what to write about. Maybe Buxter Fabricant?'

'I think Dr Parker would like to hear that story. He's the dog that became president, right?'

'I like Buxter-' Sarah scrunched her nose.'-but I already wrote that story. I could write a story about Mrs Drake Duck . . . No, no, no! I'm going to write a story about Mrs Beiderbug.'

'Sarah. Don't make fun of people's names.'

'It's going to be a good story.' Sarah dropped the recorder in her Barbie backpack.

Jamie appeared in the doorway. He was eating a sandwich and carrying a glass of milk. From the way he was looking at Sarah, Diane knew he wanted to talk about something out of the girl's presence. He turned and walked back into the kitchen. She heard the refrigerator door opening and the shuffle as he pulled out a plastic gallon jug of milk.

Diane stood up and walked into the kitchen. She took a package of chicken from the freezer and set it on a pad of paper towels, taking her time as she cut away the plastic wrapper. Jamie sat at the table and silently stared at his glass of milk, which he then gulped down. He stood, filled the glass again and returned to his chair. She thought it was odd that though Sarah had problems with language, speaking with Jamie was often far more difficult.

She asked, 'Practice today?"

'Yeah. Later.'

'Then you have weight training?'

'Not today.'

There was nothing more she could do with the chicken and she decided to boil potatoes, because that would give her an excuse to stay in the kitchen for as long as he wanted her to be there. She began peeling. The silence was thick as oil smoke. Finally she said, We know you didn't have anything to do with it, Jamie.'

The prosecutor hadn't presented the boy to the grand jury but he had warned the Cordes sternly that he would have to testify at Philip's trial. And that there was a chance new evidence might arise implicating him further.

Jamie drank the milk like a man on a bender. He stood and she prayed he was just going to the refrigerator, not leaving the room. He poured another glass and sat down again. He asked, 'Did Dad like look through my room or anything?'

'Did he what?'

When he didn't repeat the question she said, "Your father wouldn't do that. If there was something bothering him he'd talk to you.'

'Uh-huh.' Her son sat with his head tilted, studying the glass. Diane wanted to tell him how much she loved him, how proud they were of him, how the incident at the pond - whatever had happened - was one of those ambiguous glitches in the complicated history of families that don't touch the core of its love. Yet she was afraid to. She believed that if she did, the words would turn his heart as thick as his sculpted muscles and he would move further away from her.

'Jamie-'

Sarah appeared in the doorway. 'He's here, Mommy! Dr Breck!'

Diane looked toward the living room and saw a car parked in the driveway. 'Okay, I'll be there in a minute.'

Sarah left and Diane said to her son, 'Your father loves you.' She stood and ran a hand through his hair, feeling his neck muscles tense at this. He said nothing.

10

A suspect had been arrested but Tom the pink-cheeked deputy was still taking his job seriously.

Nobody had relieved him of his command yet. Besides, he was hugely aware that somebody had gotten past him at least once and that Sarah had hightailed it into the woods right under his nose; he wasn't letting Ben Breck put a foot on the front porch until he had the Queen's okay.

Diane nodded. 'It's all right. He's expected.' She turned to the man standing on the concrete walk. 'Dr Breck?'

'Call me Ben, please.' He walked past the deputy into the house.

Breck was over six feet tall, with dark, unruly hair laced with gray. Forty-one, she remembered Dr Parker had said. He had boyish qualities - his voice and face, for instance - and you could see exactly what he had looked like when he was twelve. He seemed to be in good shape but he was pale and this gave him the deceptive appearance of weakness. His eyes were dark. He wore black jeans and a tweed sports coat over a dark blue shirt. His hands were small and his fingers almost delicate. He slouched. Diane, accustomed to her husband's military posture, was put off by this initially. Almost immediately though this aversion flipflopped and became pleasantly quirky. He carried a battered briefcase.

Diane motioned him to the couch. He glanced out the window. 'Is there, uhm, something wrong?"

'Oh, the deputy? No, my husband's a detective. He's involved in the case where those girls were killed.'

The students?'

That's right. The Sheriffs Department sometimes has a deputy keeping an eye out on the houses of the investigators.'

Sarah bounded down the stairs and halted in the arched doorway to the living room, clutching her pink backpack and gazing at Breck. Diane noted that she had changed clothes and was now wearing her favorite T-shirt, bright blue and emblazoned with a seahorse. The girl brushed a long tail of hair from her face and said nothing.

'Sarah, this is Dr Breck.'

'You're my tutor.'

'That's right. I'm pleased to meet you, Sarah,' Breck said.

To Diane's surprise, the girl shook his hand.

Jamie walked quickly through the living room, wearing his biking shorts and a sweatshirt.

'Oh, Jamie ...'

He glanced at the three people in the room and didn't say a word. He left by the front door. She saw him leap on his bike and pedal quickly out of the driveway.

'Wrestling practice,' she explained to Breck.

'Ah.' Breck turned to Sarah. What've you got there?'

'My backpack.'

'What's in it?'

'Barbie. And Redford T. Redford-'

That's one of her stuffed bears.' Diane felt a need to translate.

That's a clever name.'

Sarah announced, 'He's the world's smartest bear. And I have my tape recorder.'

'Tape recorder? Oh-oh, are you recording what I'm saying? Like a spy?'

'No!' Sarah smiled. 'I'm writing stories.'

'Stories?' Breck's eyes went wide. 'I've never known anybody who writes stories.'

'Dr Parker is having me write a book.'

Breck said, 'I write books. But mine are very boring. Students use them in class. I'll bet yours are more interesting than mine. Sarah, why don't you sit over here next to me?'

Diane asked, 'Can I get you anything?'

'A salt shaker,' Breck said.

'Pardon?'

'Actually, the whole carton would be better.'

'Salt'

Breck said, 'Please.'

Diane walked into the kitchen and Breck turned to Sarah. 'How do you spell "chair"?'

'C-H-A-I-R.'

"Very good.'

Sarah beamed.

'How about "table"?'

She closed her eyes and thought for a minute. She shook her head. Then she said, T-A-B-E-L. No, L-E.'

That's right. How "bout "tablecloth"?'

The girl went quiet, her mood changed fast as a balloon popping. 'I don't know.' Her face became sullen.

Tablecloth,' Breck said.

Diane, returning with the blue carton, felt an electric rush across her face - sympathetic fear. She's getting upset, she's going to be blocked and you're bucking for a tantrum, boy...

Breck opened his briefcase and pulled out a sheet of black paper. Diane handed him the salt. Breck took it and poured a large pile onto the paper then spread it out smoothly. Mother and daughter watched - one with fascination, one with caution. Breck said to Sarah, 'Let's spell it together.'

'I don't know how.' She stared at the salt. Diane stood in the doorway until she saw what she believed was a glance from Breck, requesting privacy. She retreated to the kitchen.

'Give me your hand,' Breck said to the girl.

Reluctantly Sarah did. He took her index finger and drew a T in the salt with it. "You feel it?' he asked. "You feel what a T is like?'

Sarah nodded. Breck smoothed the salt. 'Do it again.'

She hesitated, then started the letter. It was a clumsy attempt, looking more like a plus sign.

'Let's try an A.'

'I can do that one,' she said and smoothed the salt herself.

For a half hour they made salt letters. A hundred 'table's. A hundred 'cloth's. A hundred of those words put together, making a third word. Even though Sarah struggled fiercely to spell it correctly - and did so the majority of times - Breck did not seem interested in her results. Less a tutor than a sculpting instructor, Breck urged her to feel the shape of the letters. Diane crouched like a peeping Tom, peered through a crack in the kitchen door and watched.