Stone Kiss by Faye Kellerman Read Free Book Online

side is, yes.”
    “This side as opposed to…”
    Jonathan stared out the window.
    “How far away are we from the religious side?” Decker asked.
    “Don’t worry. You’ll know when you’re there.”
    Tree studded and filled with multicolored tulip beds, Liberty Field contained the requisite courthouse, the hall of records,
     the main police and fire stations, and a library. There was also a small lake, a botanical garden, an indoor skating rink,
     a bowling alley, and a community center, where the Quinton High School production of
The Pajama Game
was playing.
    Traveling past the park, Jonathan steered the van onto a road sided by copses of denuded trees. Minutes passed; then new groupings
     of houses came into view. These were smaller, less adorned, and more functional. The driveways held cheaper cars and vans—sometimes
     even two vans. The lots were smaller and barer, and the shopping district was quite different from its upscale cousin. Except
     for the word “Quinton” every now and then, it could have been interchangeable with the religious stores and shuls and same-sex
     parochial schools of Boro Park. The residents were also identical, down to the wigs and black-hat dress. It was hard to reconcile
     the two areas as a single town. Decker asked why the two populations chose to share, when each area had such a distinct identity.
    “At this point, the municipality needs every single bit of property tax to keep Quinton going. If the Frummies seceded, there
     wouldn’t be enough money to keep the services going.”
    “Are there problems between the two halves?”
    “Yes,” Jonathan said. “But they need each other. There have been some compromises. But there have also been some nasty wars.
     At the moment, the Frummies want their own school district, but they want the city to pay for it. They don’t understand the
     concept of separation of church and state. Even worse, they don’t understand why it’s good for them in the long run.”
    “They have a point,” Decker said. “They pay in taxes, but don’t get anything back.”
    “You’ve been talking to Rina. All the Orthodox like the voucher system.”
    “Yes, she likes the voucher system, but she’s come to realize that there’s a point in maintaining a strong public-school system.”
    “Well, then she’s a first,” Jonathan said. “The Frummies get the fire department, the garbage pickup, the police department.
     And lately, there’s been some talk about their using the public schools in the morning, then going to the yeshivas in the
     afternoon so the yeshivas wouldn’t have to hire teachers for secular studies.”
    “That seems like a good idea,” Decker said.
    “Unfortunately, the Frummies don’t want the teachers teaching evolution, or sex education, or biology of any kind. Things
     that are mandatory in the Quinton school curriculum. Plus”—Jonathan sighed—“the Frummies don’t care about secular education.
     They were dragging down the standardized test scores. There was a big town meeting about it. It got ugly. Here we are.”
    Jonathan parked the car.
    Decker said, “You don’t approve.”
    “I’m not saying you compromise your principles,” Jonathan said. “But you don’t have to create spectacles. Then when you throw
     in the embezzlement charges… It reflects poorly on all of us.”
    “No group is perfect.”
    “Of course not. And the vast majority here are wonderful. But when you choose to make yourself visible, you do have an obligation
     to be a
Kiddush Hashem
.”
    Kiddush Hashem
: it more or less meant to set a good example for God.
    “Ready?’ Jonathan asked.
    “Sure.”
    The rabbi opened the door to the van and got out. Decker followed him up the stone walkway to an unassuming two-story brick
     house similar to those in Boro Park. Jonathan didn’t bother to knock. He opened the door and stepped inside.
    “Chaim?” Jonathan turned to Decker. “Come in. They’re expecting us.