Summary

In Chapter 8, as Milo goes to pick up Bernie form childcare, he thinks about a who had lived neared Milo and who had died after being hit by a truck. Milo slightly envies the fact that the man was freed in this way from all of his professional and familial worries. In Chapter 9, Milo picks up Bernie from childcare. The children are being supervised by Nick Papadopoulos, the brother of the usual babysitter. Nick says that he has been hired to build a deck; he invites Milo to join him on the job that week for pay. Milo says that he will consider the offer. Milo finds Bernie fighting with another boy over a toy. As Milo takes Bernie home, Bernie says that he overheard Maura talking on the phone with a man from work named Paul. Maura was apparently saying disparaging things about...