Olivetti

Olivetti reflects that his decision to reveal Beatrice’s stored words is justified because this is an emergency. He can only reveal previous typed missives in reverse order—from most recent to least recent. Olivetti instructs Ernest to listen patiently and then types out Ernest’s message to Beatrice from a few moments ago to demonstrate that his attempts to recover Beatrice’s past writings will work. Olivetti follows Ernest’s message with Beatrice’s last words before the laptop arrived: “I don’t know what to do” (66). Suddenly, Ernest hears a noise, so he grabs Olivetti and runs from the store.

Ernest carries Olivetti back to his apartment and up to the roof. Hiding behind the air-conditioning unit, he settles in to focus on what Olivetti wants to say, but his father interrupts, so Ernest leaves the typewriter in the hiding place. Felix tells Ernest again that the family must return to work and school; he reminds Ernest that following a normal routine was the only way the family withstood “the Everything That Happened” (71). Ernest considers telling his father about Olivetti, but he knows that doing so would complicate matters. He also feels that he must solve the mystery of his mother’s disappearance by himself.

Olivetti recalls that when the children were younger, Beatrice and Felix would take them and Olivetti to the roof. Beatrice would type a spontaneous story as they all helped piece a plot together. He remembers Ernest being hesitant with ideas while the other siblings jumped in. As Olivetti reminisces alone on the rooftop, crows come and peck at him.

Ernest’s siblings board their buses to go to school, but he returns to the apartment building before his bus arrives. As he nears the door, Quinn approaches, calling out to him. He tries to hide in the bushes near the entrance, but she finds him and demands that he return the typewriter. She says that she left the shop unlocked, thinking that he might return to look for clues. She turned off the security camera, but she knows that Pop will be angry when he sees that the typewriter is missing. The two introduce themselves, and Ernest decides to show Quinn what Olivetti can do.

Ernest heads to the roof with Quinn. He sends the crows scurrying and shows Quinn the typed-on page from the pawn shop. Olivetti types out a few short paragraphs from Beatrice about finding solace in the library. Olivetti knows that he will “never get back those words” (86), but he feels that his contribution will help Ernest find Beatrice.

Quinn is so shocked at Olivetti’s typing that she smacks Ernest. He recognizes his mother’s words from long ago, before “the Everything That Happened” (71), when she still kept the habit of waking up early to write. Quinn realizes that Olivetti wants to help him by supplying Beatrice’s memories. Quinn reads from the paper, reciting Ernest’s line about feeling responsible, but Ernest refuses to reveal why he blames himself for Beatrice’s disappearance. Quinn says that she feels guilty for not trying to stop Ernest’s mother. She also says that she knows how blame feels because of her own experience of her parents’ divorce. Ernest is not sure why Quinn wants to talk about serious subjects. Suddenly, Olivetti announces that they should head to the library.

Olivetti is miffed that the “two youngsters” cannot be patient enough to read more of his messages. They wrap him in a blanket and carry him in Ernest’s backpack. This reminds him of his time in storage in a typewriter repair shop before Felix brought him to Beatrice. At the time, Felix used Olivetti to type a marriage proposal, and Beatrice typed back, “Forever.” Olivetti also remembers when little Ezra and Adalynn fought over their turn to type; Beatrice told Adalynn that she would always be able to take a turn “forever” since Olivetti would never leave them.

Seeing the library makes Ernest remember the way things used to be, when his mother would take him and his siblings there for story hour. Quinn tells the librarian, Mrs. Vivian, that they are looking for Beatrice Brindle, and she recognizes Ernest right away. Mrs. Vivian says that Ernest’s mother is the only one still visiting the lonely library, which is slated for closure, but Beatrice hasn’t visited in weeks and now has an overdue book. Quinn bluntly informs the librarian about Beatrice’s disappearance, and Mrs. Vivian is shocked, saying, “I’m so sorry, Ernest. After everything your sweet family has been through” (101). Ernest escapes to the bathroom with Olivetti.

Upset, Ernest demands to know why Olivetti sent them to the library when it was an unhelpful clue. Olivetti says that they will not know what is helpful until they follow all the clues, and he insists that Ernest would do better to listen patiently. Olivetti also claims that he knows Beatrice better than Ernest; this idea upsets Ernest. Olivetti begins typing a memory from Beatrice—a letter to someone named Thiago. Quinn barges in and wants to see the letter. She says that Thiago is the maintenance man at Ernest’s apartment building; Quinn met Thiago that morning when she was trying to find Ernest. Quinn sees Ernest’s cell phone and uses it to text herself so that her number will be in his phone.

Quinn asks Ernest what Mrs. Vivian meant about his family, but he claims not to know. Quinn reveals that she has just checked out C. S. Lewis’s The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe because it was the last book that Ernest’s mother checked out (and is now overdue). Ernest remembers reading the story with his whole family.

Quinn finds Thiago and greets him; Thiago hugs Ernest, saying how sorry he is that Beatrice is missing, and begins to cry. Thiago says that she was the only person who befriended him after he came from Brazil. Ernest is shocked that he did not know his mother was a friend of the maintenance man. Thiago tells them that in the last couple of weeks, Ernest’s mother began taking the number 12 bus on Tuesdays—not something she usually does. Ernest wants to check the bus-route maps that his father keeps, and Quinn insists on coming too.

Quinn is astounded by the many books in the Brindle apartment. She asks Ernest which title is his favorite, and he shows her a dictionary. He says that he likes dictionaries because the definitions are unchanging and reliable. Quinn compares his dictionary habit to her dumpster habit. She explains that she started searching for treasures in dumpsters when her parents got divorced, thinking that if she found a treasure for the pawn shop, they might reconnect. Now, she just loves to search for special objects to collect. Quinn tries to tell Ernest that he should give his family more of a chance to get to know him. Then, Felix arrives and is surprised to see Ernest at home rather than at school. Quinn calls herself Ernest’s friend, which also surprises Felix. While Felix takes Ernest into another room, Quinn grabs Olivetti and runs off with him.

Felix reprimands Ernest for skipping school, and Ernest questions his father about skipping work. Felix claims that he had to change clothes after spilling something on his shirt; he plans to take Ernest to school. Ernest leaves the room and discovers that Quinn and Olivetti are gone.