And life has pretty much returned to normal. Cricket passed her boards; she’s agreed to help Ricky adopt a puppy. Bean is happy. I don’t know that she’d ever try to run away again, but the point is moot: I doubt Cricket will ever give her the opportunity.

I suspect that some people with whom I’ve shared this whole odyssey must privately find it rather absurd; after all, this was only a dog, and what is the loss of one small animal compared with the crushing burden of daily human loss and tragedy in this city? But to us, who have so much and who have lost so little, this was an instructive experience of just how small a town New York can be, if only for a moment.

In some instances, names, specific sites of imprisonment, and gang-related body art have been altered to protect the identity of certain individuals in this story.

Related:

• Archive: “Features”
• Articles by Jonathan Hayes
• Table of Contents: Dec 4, 2006 issue of New York | Subscribe!