The Client What follows is a list of example sentences involving infinitival constructions taken from: ¯ John Grisham, The Client. New York: Island Books, 1993. The numbers in parentheses indicate the page number where the sentence appears. 1. Mark was eleven and had been smoking off and on for two years, never trying to quit but being careful not to get hooked.(1) 2. He had caught Mark hiding the cigarettes in a shoebox under his bed day before, and threat- ened to tell all if his big brother didn’t show him how to do it.(1) 3. Most of the other kids in the neighborhood were into beer and pot, two vices Mark was determined to avoid.(2) 4. The only time their father had spent at home was to drink and sleep and abuse them.(2) 5. He’d taught him how to throw a football and ride a bike.(2) 6. Don’t try to swallow the smoke.(4) 7. I’ll teach you how to inhale later.(4) 8. He thought this would really impress his little brother, but the ring failed to form and the gray smoke dissipated.(5) 9. I think you’re too young to smoke.(5) 10. They had consoled each other and conspired to survive.(5) 11. They had plotted ways to protect Ricky.(6) 12. Mark convinced her to file for divorce.(6) 13. He had heard stories around the trailer park of teenagers using these woods to meet girls and smoke pot.(6) 14. He closed the trunk, looked around again as if he were expecting to be watched, then disappeared into the car.(7) 15. He’s trying to kill himself.(7) 16. How am I supposed to know?(7) 17. Ricky raised his head as if to retreat.(9) 18. Ricky watched the driver’s door, waiting for it to fly open and the crazy man to lunge out and kill Mark.(9) 19. I’m trying to save his life, okay?(10) 20. Why is that so hard to understand?(10) 21. The grass was slightly tramled around the rear of the car and he knelt as if to inspect it.(10) 22. If someone was watching from the trees, he seemed not to care.(10) 23. He just wanted to hurry up and die.(10) 24. Ricky was ready to run.(10) 25. Another minutes passed, and Mark began to fidget.(11) 26. He exhaled slowly and stared through the windshield while trying to determine if any of the precious, deadly gas had entered his blood and begun its work.(11) 27. He inhaled slowly and closed his eyes to savor the gas.(11) 1 28. He cried and talked to himself as he waited for the gas to hurry, before he’d give up and use the gun.(11) 29. It took guts to do this.(11) 30. The note on the dash required the body to be cremated.(12) 31. His foot slipped as he tried to stand and run, and the man grabbed him.(13) 32. The left was beginning to swell.(13) 33. He rubbed the knot above his eye and tried to breathe deeply, still staring at his jeans.(14) 34. Just you and me, pal, off to see the wizard.(16) 35. The door was about to fly open.(16) 36. He held his breath, and was about to squeeze the trigger when the man jerked it from him.(16) 37. Mark clutched his knees and tried to stop crying.(16) 38. On a television show once some nut was about to jump off a building,(17) 39. Mark tried to read the label.(19) 40. My client killed a man and hid the body, and now my client wants to kill me.(20) 41. Romey relaxed again and closed his eyes as if trying desparately to take a nap.(20) 42. I said, it’s nice to have you here.(20) 43. he’ll want me to get in the car and take a little drive.(22) 44. I’m sorry you want to die and all, but I have to take care of my mother.(22) 45. You see, kid, the feds have to have a body to prove there was a murder.(23) 46. Romey moved the gun gently along his leg as if to warn Mark against any sudden moves.(23) 47. The FBI has dug up half of New Orleans trying to find it.(23) 48. He stopped at the stump and turned, expecting to see the lawyer lumberring after him with the gun.(25) 49. he decided to jump out and start blasting away with the gun.(25) 50. he expected people to notice, and when they looked at him they were supposed to see succcess.(28) 51. They were supposed to gawk in fear and get out of his way.(28) 52. The hair was black and full, colored to hide a bit of gray.(28) 53. The eyes were very dark brown, and so close together that if one could stand to look directly into them for more than two seconds, one would swear Barry was cross-eyed.(29) 54. Supposed to meet me here forty minutes ago.(29) 55. The restaurant was beginning to fill.(30) 56. They needed to talk.(30) 57. He was cunning and corrupt, completely willing to buy people who could be bought.(30) 58. His first had come at the tender age of eighteen when a local prosecutor attempted to prove.(31) 59. The victim was a senator, the first ever to be murdered, they alleged, while in office.(31) 60. No corpse, no pathology reports, no ballistics, no bloody photographs to wave around the courtroom and display for the jury.(32) 61. There was an informant who was unstable and unreliable and expected to be chewed up on 2 cross-examination, if he indeed made it to trial.(32) 62. or his blustering interviews with any journalist bored enough to quiz him.(32) 63. they were stupid enough to have dinner, then go look at the body just for the hell of it.(33) 64. They had bribed every winoand street bum who claimed to be an informant.(33) 65. He would like to move it, but he could’t.(33) 66. He needed a new lawyer, and he needed a continuance or a postponement or a delay, hell, anything to slow this thing down so he could think.(34) 67. He’d disposed of lots of them, and he knew how to hide them.(34) 68. Barry wanted to move the little fella,(34) 69. You don’t want to know.(34) 70. Sure I want to know.(35) 71. The whole world wants to know.(35) 72. It was a childish thing to do, but harmless.(35) 73. if they got blood on them he wanted to see it.(35) 74. His lawyer was quite good, and had managed to stall and delay for two and a half years until finally the judge lost patience and orderd a trial.(36) 75. the judge was forced to grant another continuance.(36) 76. Ricky backed away from the tree until he was in the weeds, then found the narrow trail and started to run.(37) 77. It was almost five-thirty, time for their mother to arrive home after nine long hours at the lamp factory.(39) 78. he really needed, at this crucial moment, to discuss the matter with his little brother so they could get their lied straight.(40) 79. someone needs to come get him.(40) 80. I really don’t want to say.(41) 81. He trid to make his voice even deeper.(41) 82. She was stalling, trying to keep him on the kine so she could trace it.(41) 83. He walked to the door and peered through the dirty curtains, half-expecting squad cars to come flying in from all directions— loudspeakers, SWAT teams, bulletproof vests.(42) 84. The boys were not required to be home when she arrived.(42) 85. It was rumored to have been seen behind one of the mobele homes.(42) 86. Mark vowed to live a clean life and stay away from trouble.(43) 87. It had to be a crime to watch someone commit suicide and not stop it.(43) 88. There was no effort to remove the body.(44) 89. Another cop knelt by the license plates and waited with his radio for a report to come back.(45) 90. They asked if more paramedics were needed to carry his big ass.(45) 91. Lots of laughter as they strained to lower him.(45) 92. What if she tried to wake him and got scared?(45) 93. The grip didn’t hurt, but the cop meant to be obeyed.(45) 94. They joined the circle of policemen, who were now quiet and waiting to see the kid.(46) 3 95. He wanted to lie.(46) 96. Mark tried to breathe normally and act pitful.(48) 97. Dianne was biting her nails and waiting for a doctor to call.(49) 98. Dianne glared at Mark, who was weak and needed to sit.(51) 99. It would take hours to tell the truth at this point.(51) 100. It hurt to hide this from her.(52) 101. the things Romey told him had nothing to do with Ricky’s condition.(52) 102. The doctor said to go to St.Peter’s.(52) 103. They said they would call in a children’s psychatrist to meet us at the hospital.(52) 104.