See Them Die полностью

In the hallway of the building in which Alfredo Gomez lived, Sixto suddenly knew what had to be done. Perhaps he had known it all along, perhaps he had known ever since he'd gone into the drugstore, known without admitting it to himself. But he knew now that one could not stand committed by refusing to commit oneself. And he knew now that more than the mere presence of police on the street was necessary to prevent the senseless murder of Alfredo Gomez. He recognized that he must choose a side and choose it now, and that once he had made his choice he would have to defend it. He was very young to be finding himself at such a crossroad. Too young, perhaps, to be making a choice which would influence another's life as well as his own. But the crossroad was there, and he faced it, and he made his choice unheroically. He made his choice the way most choices are made, made it through a combination of character and conviction. For Sixto, no other choice would have been possible. The choice was as much a part of him as his hands. "Papa," he whispered.

'Wha's dee matter?" Papa said.

"Sit down. I wann to talk to you."

The boys sat on the steps leading to the first floor. It was dark in the hallway, and quiet. Most of the building's tenants were out in the street watching the siege. But even though he knew he would not be overheard, Sixto whispered. And because whispering is contagious, Papa whispered, too. Side by side in the darkened hallway, the boys talked.

"Wha's dee matter?" Papa asked again.

"Papa… this… this is all wrong."

"Wha's all wronn?"

"What we going to do. To Alfie."

"Zeep say…"

"Papa, please. Listen to me. Please."

"I lis'nin', Sixto."

"Iss wrong to kill Alfie, Papa."

"Wronn? But Zeep say…"

"Iss wrong! Papa, look… look, you like it here? You like this city?"

"Si."

"We come here… is nice here… is better. We don' want to be like that Pepe Miranda up there!"

Papa hesitated for a moment, confused. Then he said, "Pepe Miranda's the grays thin' ever happen this neighborhood."

"No, Papa. No. He brings shame to us."

Papa shook his head. Gently, like a father about to explain something to a favored child, he covered Sixto's hand with his own. Then, with little patting motions characteristic of the slow movement which had earned him his nickname, he said, "No, no you wronn, Sixto. He the grays thin' ever happen aroun' here."

"Papa, he kills people!" Sixto said, pulling back his hand.

"St. He's brave."

"Papa, that's not…"

"He's a brave man," Papa insisted. "He hole off all dee cops, an' he…"

"He's not brave! He's no good! He don' care for you or me, ony for himself. He iss bad, an' he brings disgrace to us."

"No, Sixto," Papa said slowly. 'Wo es verdad. De ningun modo…"

"Don' speak Spanish!" Sixto said. "We here now, we speak English." He paused. "Papa, you understan' what I'm saying?"

"St, yo comprendo. Pero…"

"Don' speak Spanish!"

"Why I cann speak Spanish?" Papa asked, puzzled.

"Papa, listen to me," Sixto said desperately. "We not gonna kill Alfle."

"Sure, we gon' kill him," Papa said, nodding.

"No. No, we not. We kill him, then we doin' wrong. Like Zip. Like Pepe."

"Zeep bought me pidaguas, Sixto," Papa said.

"Papa, he iss bad."

"Zeep? Bad?"

"Yes, yes."

"An' Pepe?"

"Yes, him too."

"No," Papa said. He shook his head. "Zeep say he iss good."

Sixto was trembling. He did not want to play his trump, and yet he saw that Papa was still unconvinced, saw that more was needed.

"Papa, you think I am good?"

"Si."

"Would I do something bad, Papa?"

"No. I don' think so."

"Papa…"

He sucked in a deep breath.

"Papa… the one who called the police… the one who told them where Pepe wass… it was me. I called them."

The hallway was silent. He felt at once that he had made a terrible mistake, that he had revealed something which should have remained secret. Papa studied him with blank eyes.

"You tole on Pepe?" he asked incredulously.

"Yes."

"How you know where he wass?"

"I saw him yesterday. I recognize his picture from the paper. All day, I wonder about it. Then I think… I think it's best to tell."

"But… but tha's bein'… a rat, Sixto."

"No."

"But you tole on Pepe!"

"Yes."

"Why? Why you do this?"

"Because he iss bad."

Papa was silent for a long time. Then he scratched his head and said, "If Pepe iss bad, why does Zeep say…?"

"Zip only wants to be big. He thinks it makes him big to boss. But it's ony big when you let everybody live his own life. Papa, listen. Please. Please listen." He suddenly felt like crying. He clutched Papa's arm fiercely and said, "Papa, we go this way now, we never stop, you hear?"

"I hear. Si, si."

"We go this way now, we get like Zip, and then we wind up like Pepe. We bring more shame to the barrio. We hurt ourselves."

"Si, si, comprendo."

"Papa, quien adna al reves anda el camino dos veces. If we take the wrong road, we make the journey twice."

"But… Zeep iss bad?"

"Yes, yes."