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for a year, fancying himself to be a soulful literary novelist in search of the ultimate truth found only in the core of American decadence (or something like that). He’d mentioned going to rock concerts in San Francisco and the Bay area. He’d never said much about his jobs, which had led me to believe they must have been ignoble rather than worthy of his delicate sensibilities. He’d finally come to his senses when he realized he could make more money by droning about Cannery Row than by living there.
    If Carlton was indeed Edward’s father, then Edward would not be related to me in any form or fashion. Caron, however, would be Edward’s half sister. Her reaction was difficult to predict, but I doubted it would be accented with whoops of delight. Nor would Carlton’s family be thrilled. I’d met them once and been appalled by their pedigreed pomposity and hypocrisy.
    I was still lost in dark thoughts when Caron and Inez came into the office through the back door.
    “What Is Going On?” Caron demanded, quivering with indignation.
    I shrugged. “Beats me.”
    “She means out front,” Inez said helpfully.
    I realized I’d been too preoccupied to notice the noise from the portico. Edward’s cheerful babble had been replaced with the jarring sounds of metal on metal. The crowd was no longer laughing, but instead was roaring with approval or groaning. Individual voices bellowed encouragement. The din was worse than I’d imagined it might be.
    “Oh, that,” I said. “Cling and Clang are attempting to cause grievous injury upon each other. Bloodshed is not allowed.” I flinched at a particularly loud clash. “In theory, anyway. Is there a first-aid kit in the bathroom?”
    Caron peered through the doorway at the windows in front, then brushed a few papers off the corner of my desk and perched there. “This is so embarrassing, Mother. We could hear them from three blocks away, and the traffic’s so snarled that we gave up and left the car behind Luanne’s store. Those two men look ridiculous.”
    “Like comic book characters,” Inez said, still standing since she didn’t have the nerve to clear off a corner of the desk for herself. “Or toys, anyway. My nephew got a set of action figures for his birthday. It came with a cardboard castle and all these little weapons and shields, as well as plastic horses and a green dragon. His dog chewed off the dragon’s head the same night.”
    I looked at Caron. “This is all your fault, dear. If you’d signed up for home ec, all we’d have to worry about is a cooking demonstration.”
    “That’s so not fair! You told me I had to take all the AP classes so I could get through college in three years. The only reason Rhonda’s taking AP history is because Louis Wilderberry is. She’s terrified that he’ll dump her for somebody else, so she clings to him like a tick. She’d probably follow him into the locker room if the coach would let her.”
    “She waits outside after every practice and game,” added Inez. “She’d better hope he doesn’t get into a college that requires decent SAT and ACT scores. The only way she’ll get into any college is if her father pays for a library wing or endows a chair.”
    “I thought she made good grades,” I said.
    Caron rolled her eyes. “A toadstool could make good grades if it took typing, home ec, basic English, beginning Spanish, and math for morons. She gets straight A’s in phys ed because she’s a cheerleader.”
    “Enough,” I said as I stood up. “I’m going home. You’ll have to stay until that nonsense out front is finished and you can lock up.”
    Caron glared at me. “What if we have other things to do?”
    “Then you’ll have to do them later. I’ll slip out the back door and walk, so you can have the car to go do your other things. Should the issue of bail arise, don’t call me.”
    Inez cut me off before I could make my escape. “Are you okay, Ms. Malloy? You look kind of pale. You