WHO WILL WEEP FOR ME

There were several little unlit nooks throughout the Boston Latin High School corridor system. One was near the gym and the darkest was at the end of a long corridor without lockers where several storage rooms were located. Marie DelVeccio had chosen the darkened area as her preferred site for sneaking a cigarette. She had bragged about this to Sorelli who voiced his disgust thinking about his mother’s overindulgence in smoking and her cigarette butt ashtray overflow.

DelVeccio also liked to cut her study class prior to lunch period on Mondays. This was also a fact she leaked to Sorelli who looked at his watch and wondered if today would be the one day she might violate her routine. When he heard the clop-clop-clop of DelVeccio’s footsteps he backed into the dark space and held the bookbag open with both hands.

DelVeccio was hurrying down the corridor with both eyes on her hand fishing in her handbag for her cigarettes. They were at the bottom of the bag in a slot cut in the lining to avoid teacher probing. “Ah, here you are you suckers.” She looked behind her making sure there were no observers and ducked into the darkened nook. Before she could turn to light her Winston filter, complete darkness enveloped as she felt a rough cloth bag brought down over her head, shoulders and locking at her elbows.

Sorelli faced her back as he tightened the large bookbag and threw DelVeccio to the floor. He positioned her supine and straddled her legs. Muffled shouts of curses and muted screams barely penetrated the bookbag. Sorelli said nothing. He wore his tight leather gloves and began pummeling DelVeccio’s head where her face should be. Her twisting movements brought the brutal blows to include her mouth, ears, jaw and neck. Sorelli felt small cracks as her nasal bones splintered and her attempted protests assumed a liquid gurgling quality.

Sorelli did not speak. He punched his captive in the breast area, the sides of the chest and both shoulders. DelVeccio’s wild wiggling attempts sequestered by Sorelli’s body weight lessened and his victim began moaning with hiccups interpolating her muted sobbing. Sorelli stopped his vicious blows and stood up. He didn’t want her dead. His goal was punishment, although he had dreams the night before of producing sterilization similar to what happened to Lena but he didn’t know how to do it.

Sorelli gave DelVeccio a few swift kicks to the thighs careful not to leave any telltale evidence from his shoes or to induce bleeding. He wanted to shout words like “whore”, “slut” and “harlot” but it would result in voice recognition. He stopped his assault as she just lay there with the newly purchased bookbag tightened around her upper torso. He looked at his watch and quickly departed for the lunchroom. His vengeance had taken less than five-minutes.

Feelings of euphoria; of a great weight lifted from his shoulders; of penance performed; and of profound relief coursed throughout Sorelli’s mind and body. He entered the noisy lunchroom and waved to Lena Masiello who acknowledged his arrival with a welcome smile.

“Edmund. Over here.” She was with two other girls. Masiello introduced them to Sorelli. “Linda and Cathy this is my friend Edmund Sorelli.”

“Hi. I hurried straight from my last class. I hope you girls won’t mind if I steal Lena away for lunch.”

The two teenagers giggled and waved goodbye with their fingertips as they entered the food line.

“You’re right on time. Oh Edmund, I was so looking forward to us talking again.” They placed their books on an isolated small table for two to reserve the space as they moved to the cafeteria line.