Chapter One

“And for Christ's sake, doNOT file a report!”

It was Ann's way of giving specific instructions,without giving specific instructions. And she didn't need to elaborate.

Tomasina Vencenzi stood opposite Ann's desk and watched her spin a blue file folder across the cheap plastic veneer. She trapped it under her fingertips and turned it so she could read the tab. Tomasina didn't bother opening it. There was no need.“The Babysitter” wasn't news.

The guy was a small time dealer, but what made him precious, and the subject of their conversation, was the fact he wasn't in it for the money. Not anymore. He was one of the chosen few: He had the quick smile, the easy jokes, the smooth manner. He was the “party guy;” always a few goodies jingling at the bottom of his pocket, just for his favorites. He had an eye for the ladies, but his “girlfriends” seemed to be getting younger all the time. His“corner” was outside the chain-link fence over by the Catholic School for Girls.

“Take care of this for me,” Ann had said, her voice sounding like a truck axle, reversing up a grade. Ann had a voice that would cut glass.

On the way home, Tomasina stopped by a thrift shop and picked out a cheap cotton dress. It was boring-beige with a simple leaf pattern in brown. It was well worn and two sizes too small. She took it home and dumped it into a bucket of soapy water and washed the back stoop. Then she hung it out to dry. The next day, after she had struggled into it, Tommy ripped part of the hem down and tore a couple of holes in the fabric; one over her navel and another just below her left nipple.

She drove out past the Girls' School and there the dude was! God's gift to little girls, slouched back against his favorite tree. “The Babysitter.”

He was well past forty, and the girls the guy was chatting-up through the chain-links, couldn't have been more than eighteen. Tommy drove on by, turned the corner and got parked. She was wearing a pair of ratty old tennis shoes and when she got out, she started to run. She did about five blocks, out and around, and back. It was unusually warm and humid for April. By the time she got to the car, her hair was damp and clinging, her dirty dress had circular stains under the pits and she could feel it sticking along her spine. She looked; the bastard was still there, but down to one little kitten. Tommy waited him out.

The girl eventually laughed brightly and accepted something through the fence, his fingers lingered on hers. The child glanced around and, assured no one was watching, she pulled back the lapel of her school uniform. Her breast looked like a honey bun; with a raisin. She gave him a moment, then closed her shirt and skipped off toward the basketball court. The guy returned to his tree, took a second to check the inventory in his pocket, and then squeezed the front of his jeans. Tomasina could see the glint reflecting off his teeth a half block away.All primed and ready for me, she thought, and moved along the street on the opposite side, then crossed over, w