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can never discover their true backgrounds.”
    “I know. It’s insane.”
    “Perhaps. But prevailing theory is that most youths eventually outgrow their impulsiveness and stupidity; therefore, if their criminal histories are kept confidential, the stigma of juvenile indiscretions will not follow them into adulthood.”
    “‘Indiscretions’? Are you serious? We’re not talking about stealing hubcaps, here. We’re talking about violent rape. And probably a lot more—if only we had access to their juvie records.”
    His visitor folded his pudgy hands across the globe of his midsection and smiled serenely.
    Hunter stared at him. “You didn’t.”
    “Well, I was not permitted to take them with me. But a person who shall remain nameless did allow me to take a peek.”
    “And?”
    Wonk removed his black-framed eyeglasses carefully; one temple clung to the frame by white adhesive tape. He gazed toward the ceiling and, in the staccato of bureaucratese, began to recite chapter and verse from memory. Hunter wondered for the hundredth time if his research assistant was some kind of savant.
    “William Michael Bracey, a.k.a. ‘Billy B.’ Age twenty. That is the individual in the top file. Born in Arlington . Raised by a single mother. Three half-brothers by different fathers. The others turned out reasonably well. Not William, however. Truancy at age eleven. Shoplifting arrest at twelve. His mother paid restitution, so nothing happened to him. Associating with gangs since the age of fourteen. Left school before his sixteenth birthday. Arrested several months later for stealing a car, but the victim did not wish to prosecute. Suspected in a violent gang attack that put an honor-roll student in the ICU for weeks; but when the young man came out of the hospital, he either could not or would not identify his attackers.
    “William and several other gang members then were arrested for the robbery of a corner grocery in the District, during which the owner was shot several times and later died. There were eyewitnesses to that incident, which is what led to the initial arrests. In fact, William— ”
    “Don’t call him that. We’re not on a chummy, first-name basis with this dirtbag .”
    Wonk blinked. “Sorry. Anyway...Mr. Bracey?” Seeing no objection, he continued. “Mr. Bracey was initially identified by both witnesses as the one who actually shot the store owner. In their initial statements to the police, they said the shooting was entirely unprovoked; the victim had already surrendered the contents of his cash register.”
    “Tell me about him.”
    “He was a gentleman in his forties, an immigrant from Japan , with a wife and four children. The Post clipping in the file reports that Mr. Takahashi was a beloved local resident, very hard-working. He was a huge baseball fan and quite active sponsoring Little League teams. His family and the community were absolutely devastated.... Is something wrong?”
    “Nothing. Everything. Continue.”
    “When Mr. Bracey came to trial, neither of the eyewitnesses would testify. You’ll see a note near the back of the file, written by an assistant prosecutor who comments about likely witness tampering. But without their testimony, there was no case.”
    Hunter didn’t say anything.
    “There is nothing further in his official record, not until the Copeland attack. Believe it or not, Dylan, that was his first criminal conviction.”
    Hunter flipped open the file folder. Bracey’s photo was paper-clipped inside the cover.
    Hollow cheeks, thin lips, dirty-blond hair, empty eyes the color of ice.
    “So, that makes this piece of crap a ‘first-time offender.’”
    “As far as the courts and the DOC are concerned—yes. And that is probably why they admitted him into that rehabilitation program.... That is the extent of what I learned, but there is more detail in the file about his family, past associates, addresses, and so on.”
    “That should be helpful.” Hunter took a last