Now that Chino has all the pieces of the puzzle, he realizes that Nazario and Vera had planned it all along. Vera no longer wanted to be married to Vidal, and Nazario was in a position to make this happen. Vera used Bodega to teach her to fire a gun, then killed her husband with Bodega’s gun, knowing that Bodega would willingly accept the blame. He also realizes that it was Nazario who set fire to the apartment building in order to frame Fischman, and that the trip to visit Cavarelli was designed to fool both Chino and Bodega.

Chino expects more of a public outcry over Bodega’s death, but life in Spanish Harlem goes on. On the day of Bodega’s funeral, Chino finds Sapo flying a kite on the roof of a building. Although Sapo knows the truth, he has chosen to keep a low profile. He tells Chino that “‘Bodega might be dead but his empire is out there for the taking’” (204). Sapo reminds Chino of when they used to play Kid Comets, a game that involved

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