Dear Martin

Justyce writes to Dr. King to tell him that Manny is dead, and he can't continue this way. 

Manny's family waits for Justyce to be well enough to attend the funeral. He wishes they hadn't. He wishes he could just leave the funeral but there is a lot of media outside. He worries about what they are already speculating: he or Manny did something to provoke the attack. As the funeral ends, Justyce gets a clearer sense of the "collective sorrow" (126). He sees SJ and her tears, but he also sees Jared and his friends with their families. Justyce believes Jared and his dad are partially responsible for Manny's death because had they not pressed charges, Manny would have gone hiking like planned. When Justyce makes eye contact with Jared, he can feel fury rising within him, but he also sees that Jared's eyes are haunted with despair.

After the service, Justyce's mom enters the bathroom as SJ comes out. Justyce feels conflicted, as he wants to hug and kiss this white girl at the funeral for his best friend who was killed by a white person. During their conversation, Justyce tells SJ that he misses her. Before they can continue, his mom comes out of the bathroom and SJ excuses herself. Justyce's mom warns him that SJ clearly has feelings for him, and he ought to make sure she remains just a good friend. Justyce is angry at his mother for her prejudice, especially given that SJ is one of the few people to ever make him feel important. Before Justyce can say anything to his mom, reporters ask him questions, and his mom whisks him away. Someone in the crowd bumps Justyce's injured arm, but the pain that "shoots from his shoulder through his entire body […] is nothing compared to what's inside him" (130). 

A grand jury decided to indict Garrett Tison on multiple counts. The decision to indict runs counter to the cases of Shemar Carson and Tavarrius Jenkins. Some members of the community are upset because Tison is being charged with felony murder and aggravated assault. Tison's defenders say that he was simply "defending himself from thugs," that "those boys had a gun" (131), or they're making "an example of him" after the prosecution "pulled the race card" (131). A trial date has not been set. 

A month and a half after the shooting, Justyce heads over to the Rivers' house for a dinner celebrating Tison's indictment. Justyce has been dreading the visit, as he misses Manny tremendously and he anticipates it will be heartbreaking to spend time alone with his parents. Inside, Dr. Rivers gives him a long hug. They make small talk about Justyce returning to school while they settle down for dinner. They don't talk while they eat, and Justyce is glad because "Manny's absence makes it almost impossible to breathe, let alone talk" (135). After eating, the Rivers tell Justyce that Quan, Manny's cousin who was arrested for killing Officer Castillo, has requested that Justyce visit him. Justyce agrees to go, though he wonders why Quan wants to see him. Finally, the Rivers give Justyce the expensive watch that they intended for Manny on his 18th birthday. It is engraved with Manny's initials. Justyce fights back emotions and though he knows the Rivers want him to say something, he can't; instead, he puts the watch on his wrist.  

Though Justyce is suspicious of Quan's desire to see him, Justyce can't stop thinking about him and goes to the juvenile detention center. As Justyce enters and goes through the various checkpoints inside, he feels trapped and nervous, especially given that most of the kids inside look like him. After briefly discussing the tragedy of Manny's death, Quan reveals that Tison was Castillo's partner. When Justyce can't wrap his mind around this revelation, Quan explains that the night Castillo was killed, Tison was there. After this new information, Justyce wonders whether Tison's reaction to he and Manny in the car, though still completely inexcusable, may have been because he'd seen a Black teenager kill his partner. After all, Justyce had seen what PTSD did to his father.

When Justyce asks Quan why someone would kill Castillo, Quan explains that in his neighborhood, "resistance is existence" and that in order to live, you have to "do whatever it takes to stay at the top" (143). When Justyce challenges this approach, Quan counters that Justyce's way of doing things resulted in his injury and Manny's death. Quan tells Justyce to face facts: "white people don't got no respect for us, dawg. Especially, the cops" (143). Quan points out that Justyce "and Manny were good dudes, and y'all still got a raw-ass deal" (143). Quan explains the Black Man's Curse, citing the rich, white kid who murdered his dad and was sentenced to sixty days, while Quan committed petty theft and was sentenced to a year.

Quan admits that was when he gave up and questioned why he should do the right thing if people were going to assume the worst about him on sight. Justyce finds he can't argue with him and earnestly asks what he's supposed to do. Quan advises him to use other people's fear and find a "crew to roll with" (145), specifically suggesting that he get in touch with Martel Montgomery, the leader of the Black Jihad gang. Justyce doesn't want to get involved with a gang and says as much to Quan. Quan gives him Trey's number anyway, saying that he can get Justyce in touch with Martel. As Justyce leaves the juvenile facility, he can't stop thinking about what Quan said about how Black men are treated in society. This is the sort of thinking that he tried to get away from when he wrote to Dr. King; however, King's approach didn't help and he has stopped writing to him. He puts Trey's number in his phone. 

To avoid calling Trey, Justyce hangs out in Doc's classroom. SJ bursts in and turns on the television to show them the image of Justyce as "Thug Extraordinaire" (148) from the Equality Brigade on the news. However, the rest of the guys are not being shown. The anchor and pundits suggest that despite reports about Justyce's academic prowess, he was clearly "leading a double life" in which the "thug life [wasn't] removed from the kid" (148). They even question Justyce and Manny's ties to Quan, suggesting that the Range Rover at the shooting of Officer Castillo may have been Manny's.

SJ leaves the room to answer a phone call from Jared. Justyce expresses his frustration to Doc, lamenting his decision to pose for that photo. When Doc asks if he's still pursuing his Dr. King experiment, Justyce tells him it's pointless. Justyce explains that when he was shot, he thought about how King was a good person but was still killed. Doc argues that had King known he'd be killed, his behavior wouldn’t have changed. Doc points out that people are casting Justyce "as the bad guy" (151) because they are trying to make sense of things. If Justyce and Manny were dangerous, it is an easier pill to swallow than to realize that Tison "made a snap decision based on skin color" (151). Doc acknowledges that Justyce shouldn't have to deal with the fallout of that tendency, but he reiterates that Justyce can only control the type of person he becomes.

SJ returns claiming that Jared seems repentant and has asked his dad to call around and get the full photo (including Blake in Klan costume) shown on television. When Justyce questions his motives, SJ points out that he seemed broken. Doc reminds them that Jared and Manny were close friends and that Jared is likely grieving as well. After Doc leaves the room, SJ apologizes for avoiding Justyce after the debate tournament. She explains that she wasn't sure what was going on between Justyce and Melo or Justyce and herself. She promises that she won't bail on him again. 

Julian Rivers has left his position at the Davidson Wells Financial Corporation after reportedly being a part of the Justice for JAM (Justyce and Manny) movement. After seeing images of Rivers in a march that shut down highways, the CEO claims the company lost major clients and revenue, forcing him to investigate and possibly dismiss Rivers. According to the CEO, Rivers and the company "mutually agreed to part ways" (155). The trial date for Tison still hasn't been set.