Американские боги
Chapter 7
Nottogetblamedforthedeathsofthemenonthetrain."Itwasn’tme,"heheardhimselfsaying,"itwasmydeadwife."Hecouldimaginetheexpressionsonthefacesofthelawofficers.Thenpeoplecouldargueaboutwhetherhewascrazyornotwhilehewenttothechair…
HewonderedwhetherWisconsinhadthedeathpenalty.Hewonderedwhetherthatwouldmatter.Hewantedtounderstandwhatwasgoingon—andtofindouthowitwasallgoingtoend.Andfinally,producingahalf-ruefulgrin,herealizedthatmostofallhewantedeverythingtobenormal.Hewantednevertohavegonetoprison,forLauratostillbealive,fornoneofthisevertohavehappened.
"I’mafraidthat’snotexactlyanoption,m’boy,"hethoughttohimself,inWednesday’sgruffvoice,andhenoddedagreement.Notanoption.Youburnedyourbridges.Sokeepwalking.Doyourowntime…
Adistantwoodpeckerdrummedagainstarottenlog.
Shadowbecameawareofeyesonhim:ahandfulofredcardinalsstaredathimfromaskeletalelderbush,thenreturnedtopeckingattheclustersofblackelderberries.TheylookedliketheillustrationsintheSongbirdsofNorthAmericacalendar.Heheardthebirds’video-arcadetrillsandzapsandwhoopsfollowhimalongthesideofthecreek.Eventually,theyfadedaway.
