The Trees

by Percival Everett

“Long time ago. It was their daddies who killed Emmett Till back in the fifties,” Hayes said.

“You know why Baptists don’t fuck standin’ up?” Dill asked. “Tell me.” “They’re afraid somebody might think they’re dancin’.”

“People die every day—you know that, right? And a lot of them don’t have nobody. Nobody claims them, so we do. We clean them up and send them to labs and schools all over. In a way, we’re saving lives.”