Cruel Zinc Melodies

24

One of the teamsters told me, ‘‘The red tops all headed out. There was an explosion somewhere up that way.’’ Red tops being another slang term for tin whistles. Because of the red flop hats the uniformed ones favor.

‘‘We heard it. It’s why we hurried back. I didn’t want to spend time entertaining the Watch. Anything happen here?’’ Max wasn’t exactly getting his money’s worth out of these teamsters.

‘‘That head rat’s been looking for you.’’

Singe put her trophy into a rat basket and headed inside. I followed. Tinnie started after me but changed her mind. She wasn’t eager to find herself hip deep in big bugs. Or even regular rats.

I glanced at the sky before I went in. We might be in for a change of weather. Back to what we’d been enjoying.

I found John Stretch leaning against a pillar, exhausted. ‘‘You all right?’’

‘‘I will sleep well tonight. I do not look forward to doing this again.’’

‘‘I do appreciate—’’

‘‘We are being paid well. And this, surely, will win our people a great deal of respect.’’

I nodded, though I wasn’t sure. Some people wouldn’t like it much once they figured out that there had to be a psychic connection between John Stretch and the everyday vermin.

We’d have to create some tall tale to cover that.

I said, ‘‘The guys outside said you were looking for me.’’

‘‘I wanted to tell you that something has changed down below. Suddenly. And big.’’

‘‘Maybe twenty minutes ago?’’

‘‘Yes.’’

I told what we’d witnessed. Singe did a lot of nodding.

John Stretch said, ‘‘I am afraid the bugs that are left are about to get loose.’’

I tried my famous lifted eyebrow trick, ordinarily reserved for beautiful women. The ratman took it to be a request for more information.

He said, ‘‘Sudden as a slap in the face, the bugs just ran.’’ That was one for the Dead Man. ‘‘That mean the job is done?’’

Too bad ratpeople can’t laugh. John Stretch was in a mood for it. ‘‘Close, maybe. But you have not dealt with the ghost issue.’’

‘‘Ghosts wouldn’t be your problem. You’re the bug man.’’

‘‘The bug man might have to deal with ghosts in order to get his bug killers to the bugs.’’

‘‘You had ghost trouble?’’

‘‘No. But I hear ghosts are why there are no workers here today.’’

‘‘Uh . . . let’s take that up after we get moving. We’re done here. We need to get gone before the Watch comes back.’’ And they would. That’s the kind of guys they are.

They knew Mrs. Garrett’s boy had been seen within a mile of some excitement. It would be his fault, somehow. Or he knew whose fault it was but he was likely to hold out on the good guys.

Given word that it was time, John Stretch and his gang scooted like scalded rats. I noted a definite lack of enthusiasm for rounding up and removing their hunting cousins. But none had failed to appropriate at least one big bug corpse.

‘‘Those will be some good eating,’’ Singe explained.

I’d crunched a few tropical bugs in my day, just to get by. It wasn’t a gourmet experience. But tastes differ. Especially for different races. There are even species that think people are tasty.

‘‘If we could find some grubs, that would be really fine.’’

‘‘Yeah?’’