Prologue

A novel is an organization, a network, a "closed system of collective paralysis". This novel organizes scraps of information I heard from a dozen or so different people. These people are actually in the novel. I didn't realize that all their information formed a single story until I learned what, chronologically, occurred at the very end, and then this information crystallized.

People never just tell you what happened, but they're always mixing in their thoughts about what happened, so that's in here too.

I know the exact date for the first chapter, because that was in the newspapers. I know the date when they opened Senachwine's grave too and some other dates for the same reason. A few of the dates I know precisely, but for different reasons. The rest are guesses.

Anyway, as best I call tell, this is what happened...