Faded Steel Heat

80

Tinnie and Tama eyed me expectantly. I told Tama, "He'll live. And he's in a more charitable mood than I'd have thought. It must have been love at first sight, Tinnie. He wants to adopt you. Offered me three shiny new groats if he could have you for a niece."

"That's not funny, Garrett."

"That's what I told him. I said you don't have any sense of humor. He said, ‘Just wait till I tickle her fancy.' "

Tinnie snapped, "Why're you laughing, Tama?"

"I'm trying to visualize those words coming out of Marengo's mouth. It isn't a pretty picture."

I said, "He told me to go ahead with the library. And let him know if we found anything."

Tama said, "Since you have his blessing, you and the niece-apparent go to it. I have work to do." Tama pushed through the crowd. Even mistresses have responsibilities. Freecorps officers continued to gather. Maybe they were worried they might have to look for work.

Tama did what none of them dared. She entered Marengo's sanctuary.

Tinnie murmured, "I don't know what to make of that relationship. Most of the time she acts like she doesn't care."

"She can't afford to, too much," I said. "And she probably wonders about you and me, too."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"That I don't understand, either, but my New Year's resolution was to stop trying to figure out relationships. I'll deal with what people show me."

Tinnie paused to think. She's bright but she sometimes forgets to wake her brain up before she lets her mouth take off. Two of us doing that at once causes problems.

Dean says we were made for each other.

Dean has said the same thing about me and several bright, picturesque young ladies. He's even said it about me and take my pick of his platoon of homely nieces. Real nieces. Dean believes I need more stability. He doesn't like the way I live.

"Now you're drifting off on me?"

"Didn't get enough sleep last night."

"Bragging or complaining?"

"I was thinking about Dean."

"Why?"

"He's gone. They both are."

"Really?" The news startled Tinnie. "I never thought—"

"It's the times."

"Uhm?" She became very quiet. She didn't say anything until we were back among the books. "Is it permanent, Garrett?"

"What?"

"The split with your partner."

I glanced around. I tapped my ear. You couldn't be sure who was listening. The Call were paranoid by nature. After last night they would be doubly so. "It had to happen. My sympathies aren't what they used to be. Dean wouldn't see things my way. He wouldn't listen to reason."

"And?"

"So they sneaked out."

The facts awed me whenever I recalled that the Dead Man actually let himself be moved. Maybe even asked to be moved.

Ah. I could find him. If I could unearth Saucerhead. Tharpe must have been in on it. He was one of very few people the Dead Man would trust to help.

I'd be expected to figure that out for myself. Far be it from my pet fruit bat to speak up.

"If the split is permanent... " There was an edge to Tinnie's voice. She had something in mind. Maybe something risky.

The Goddamn Parrot shuddered and twitched, fell of his perch. He flopped around amongst the books. Dust flew. Inarticulate noises spewed from his beak.

"I don't know." I stared. Had something happened to the Dead Man? The bird seemed to be trying to talk. Maybe His Nibs was making a desperate effort to get through.

Or maybe darkness was overtaking him at last.

Maybe, before he checked out, he would be kind enough to share his thoughts about what he'd overheard.

If he'd been paying attention. Chances were he'd fallen asleep and this was one of his nightmares leaking.

Tinnie said, "He's been acting strange for a long time."

I opened a book. "How would you know what's strange for that runt condor? You weren't in on getting me stuck with him, were you?" Her sense of humor could include a prank like the Goddamn Parrot. Especially if she thought I deserved it.

"No. But I think Morley showed a lot of flair, finding him."

"That Morley is a piece of work, isn't he?" I grumped.

"Are we going to move in out here?" Tinnie asked. "I haven't been home for days. I imagine Uncle Willard is starting to steam."

"He'll boil over when he finds out you were with me."

"He likes you, Garrett."

"Sure. From a distance."

"He's not blind or stupid."

In a minute we'd be back to me moving into the Tate compound. "You want me to take you home?"

"I don't think my cute new uncle can do it for a while. Besides, he tickles."

I looked around. We'd been through scores of books. That didn't amount to ten percent of the heap. Less if some of the drifts had formed atop dunes of documents not immediately evident.

I didn't want to leave. The library was a great excuse to hang around the heart of The Call. Just being at the North English place would put me next to a lot of interesting stuff. Nobody would notice me after a while. I would become part of the furniture.

"This is a great opportunity... " No sense letting Tinnie in on everything. What she didn't know she couldn't share with friends whose politics were suspect.

"I understand that. I don't want you to waste it. But Uncle Willard will be foaming at the mouth."

"Especially when he hears what you've been doing."

She grinned. Those devils wakened in her eyes. "We could give him one more reason for—"

"Wicked, wicked woman. Right here?"

"Look around. Nobody ever comes in here—"

Click! The door opened. "Excuse me. I hate to interrupt, but—"

"That's all right, Ed," I told the stiff-backed officer.

He winced. "The old man asked me to include you in our response to a problem that's just come up. He told me I'd find you here."

"He was right again. What kind of problem?"

"Murder."

"Ah, shit. Not again." I shed some dust and the book I was pretending to skim. "What can I do?"

"The old man says you're the expert." Ed looked Tinnie over. He had no trouble with his sexual identity and was one hundred percent in favor of redheads.

The guy might be all right after all.

"Let's go."