The ELI Event B007R5LTNS Read Online Free PDF

double-pole double-throw in there—it’ll do the same thing if you wire up just one side of it. There’s a couple of other switches too, just in case you need them. That okay?”
    “Yeah, thanks. Really,” the boy said as he poked his nose into the bag to examine his new treasures. “How much for these?” he managed.
    The old man screwed up his face, thought hard for a moment. “Oh, I expect forty cents ought to cover it.” Robin looked up at him with mild suspicion. “Um, they’re used,” he lied. “Got ’em out of an old top-loading VCR a fella brought in on trade. They’ll work fine, though.”
    The boy considered this for a moment. “Okay.” Satisfied, Robin pulled the familiar sock from his jeans pocket, untied it, removed eight nickels. He carefully retied the sock before passing the coins, one by one, through the fence to the old man.
    As always, Robin dropped them into the waiting hand from a couple of inches up. Another odd thing, the old man reflected: since they had known each other, they had never shaken hands, never exchanged a pat on the back; in fact, never touched at all, except with their eyes. At first, it had hurt the old man’s feelings; now, he just accepted it as part of the boy’s complex, singular makeup.
    Another quick glance over the shoulder, and the bag was hidden again in the boy’s pocket. “Um, I gotta go. Mrs. Faraday, she’ll be lookin’ for me. Thanks.” The fleeting but sincere smile appeared again, giving the old man all the thanks he needed. The boy raised his hand and waved as he coaxed his voice to speak. “So long.”
    “Sure, sure! Any time,” the old man said cheerily. “Glad to do it. Say now, you’ll let me know how those parts work out, hey?” he called, but the boy was already off, heading toward the play area at an awkward trot. The old man looked after him until he had crossed the lot and disappeared around the corner of the orphanage. “So long, Robin,” he whispered.
    “Hey, Bird!” Mike called to Robin as he trotted up to the group of boys. “Hey, where you been? I been lookin’ for you—somebody I want you to meet!” A small, dark, tough boy of fourteen, Mike was a natural bully, the group’s leader by default. He grabbed Robin by the arm and ushered him roughly through the group, positioning him next to a boy Robin had never seen.
    “This is Tom Butler, the new kid,” Mike said to Robin. “He just came in from Nebraska, and I’m showing him around. Tom, this is our resident bozo, Robin.” He chuckled and raised his voice so all the boys could hear. “We just call him ‘Bird’, don’t we, guys?”
    The boys laughed their agreement as Tom, a blond, freckled fifteen-year-old, extended his hand to Robin. Before Robin had time to respond, Mike slapped a half-empty pack of cigarettes into Tom’s outstretched hand.
    “Here, hold these a minute. I gotta show you something.” He reached into his jeans and withdrew some coins; selecting a dime and a nickel, he stuffed the others back into his pocket. Robin immediately drew back, but was roughly returned to his place by a tall boy called Iggy and Mike’s main hanger-on, Rance, a nasty little piece of work who liked to burn ants with a magnifying glass.
    “Aw, come on, Bird,” Mike coaxed sarcastically. “Ain’t nothin’ to be scared of. We just want to show Tom here how smart you are!” More laughter. “You do it all the time for us.” He leaned over close to Robin and stage-whispered, “Besides, you want Tom to like you, don’t you? Well, don’t you?” Robin nodded shyly.
    “Great! I knew you wouldn’t let me down! Now then…” He looked toward the house, made sure they were out of sight of Mrs. Faraday’s office. Holding out his hands, one coin in each palm, he winked at the new boy. “This is about one funny-ass gag, Tom—check it out!”
    Turning back to Robin, he delivered his set-up as skillfully as ever. “Now Bird, I want you to pay real close attention. In