“Sure,” Glottis said. “Justice is for the other guy.”
“Everyone wants to be the exception,” I grumbled, then sighed. “So, what are you doing with your time?”
“Drivin’!”
“Where?”
“Everywhere! And when I stop I ask about Miss Colomar.”
“Hey! We were supposed to do that together!”
“And we will, Manny. A lot. But I might as well ask while I’m out. And besides,” he went on, “you only talk to people. I’ve been talking to demons, too. Bus drivers and whatnot.”
“Yeah?” I was impressed. He’d thought of an angle I hadn’t. “That’s good thinking, Glottis.”
“I know it!” he said. “If Miss Colomar hitches a ride, the drivers will stop at the Rub-a-Mat and strongly suggest that everybody get out and get something to eat.”
“Assuming she hitches a ride on a bus, and the driver is one you talked to, but that improves the odds.”
“Yeah. And I’ve even been looking through Mr. Velasco’s port log. I haven’t seen Miss Colomar’s name, but I did see a Flores.”
“Are you kidding me?!” I exclaimed. “Man or woman?”
“Woman,” Glottis answered, which was a relief since I half-expected him to say it was a gigantic hound. “Maybe it’s Mr. Flores’ wife,” he added, which reopened the doggy possibilities.
“Where’s Velasco?” I asked.
“Probably napping in his office,” Glottis answered with a short, bark of a laugh.
“Well, I’d better talk to him. I’ll see you later, mano.”
“Check,” he said.
Glottis was right about Velasco. When I got him awake he said, “Well, hell, Manuel! What’re you doin’ here?”
“I gotta ask you a question,” I said. I showed him the picture of Celso’s wife. “Ever seen this woman?”
Velasco took the picture. “Oh, if this is the woman you’re lookin’ for, take my advice and forget about ’er.” He sounded amused. “She sailed out of here weeks ago in a cozy port-side cabin built for two, and she wasn’t alone.”
“Actually, that’s Celso’s wife.”
“Ah. Now it all makes sense.” He handed the picture back. “Didn’t think she looked like your type.” I didn’t know I had one.
“You’ve got all the details in your log?” I asked. “Can I show it to Celso?”
“If you bring ’im down here, you can. That log ain’t leavin’ this here desk.” Velasco thumped the worm-eaten, salt-limned mass of petrified wood with his fist for emphasis.
“Fair enough,” I said. “How come you haven’t told Celso yourself?”
“Like I told you before, Manny, I ain’t good with names. I just write ’em down in my log and forget ’em. Ain’t no business of mine what people do with themselves.”
“Makes sense,” I said, sensing another rebuke about my having been a reaper. “I’ll bring Celso down here sometime, if that’s OK with you.”
“You do that, son,” he said and waved me off.
I left the docks went back to my hotel. I collected my mail from the front desk and, quickly fanning through it, found a letter from Salvador. I went to my room and locked the door and drew the curtains (feeling a little foolish as I did it) before opening the envelope.
Manuel,
We have intriguing news for you. It appears that Domino Hurley has been made office manager in Don Copal’s place. What has become of Copal is unknown. As far as we can ascertain, he has not been seen since his meeting with Hurley and the fat man. Our attempts to trace his whereabouts have so far been unsuccessful.
We continue to be able to access the DOD computer network and have taken further steps to ensure that we may continue to do so. Curiously, it seems that the IT department of the DOD has not detected our activities. The fact that there are so few computers in the Land of the Dead in private hands may explain this lax security. Although we have not made much progress in unraveling the secrets of our enemies, we have identified a number of disaffected agents and other employees of the DOD who may be eager to join our ranks.
We have heard nothing of Mercedes Colomar here in El Marrow. We are certain that Domino Hurley continues to search for her, and may be employing his agents in the search. You must be careful, Manuel, and pray you do not come to Hurley’s attention.
It is desirable that the LSA expand in Rubacava. Be in no hurry, but keep watch for suitable recruits. A mere handful—three or four—would be enough to strengthen your position immeasurably. Please report any news you may have as soon as possible.
Another slip of paper contained a note from Eva.
Manny,
I hope you’re keeping well. Sal and I have been working hard at the computer trying to find some trace of these creeps. Sal doesn’t say so, but I know he’s frustrated. I think he was hoping to find something quickly. But it’s going to take a while. They haven’t gotten away with it this long by being sloppy.
The pigeons are doing just fine. I hope you’re OK with them being called Manny and Meche. I think it’s symbolic of the whole struggle. Did you ever think I’d write a sentence like that? Anyway, we’ve lined up a trainer for them and soon we’ll have our airmail service. Maybe our next message will come on these ‘gossamer wings of truth’ as Sal calls them. He’s such a scream.
Well, sweetheart, you just find that Meche woman and we’ll expose these SOBs. And if you see Domino, kick him in the tuchis for me.
You wouldn’t think two people that different would be mixed up together, but there you are.
Salvador’s news about Domino rattled me and I wasn’t so sure any more it would be such a good idea to go out looking for Meche myself with him still on the prowl. I couldn’t afford to have him find her first, so Glottis’ going out on his own was starting to look a lot more attractive. It was my job to find Meche but, on the other hand, Glottis could cover more ground without me since he didn’t have a regular job to hold down. I thought that maybe I should just fork over some money and have Glottis go all the way to El Marrow and back. I could keep tabs on people already contacted by phone.
I’d have to discuss the new plan with Glottis in the morning. In the meantime, I went out for a couple of hours and then, having seen no one interesting lined up for Paar in the TV listings, got some sleep when I returned to my rooms. Writing to Sal and Eva could wait until I had something to write.
“Oh, yeah!” Glottis crowed the next morning when I told him what I had in mind. “Gonna tear up them roads!”
“That’s great, carnal, but don’t forget to ask about Meche while you’re at it. And watch out for Domino, for Christ’s sake, will you?”
“Don’t worry, Manny,” he said. “I’ll only talk to demons and the people who live at the road stops.”
“And get me the phone numbers of these places, too. I wanna keep tabs on them from here.”
“Check. When do you want me to go?”
“Tomorrow, just like we planned. I’ll get some money for you before you leave. Go back the way we came, touch base with all the people we talked to on the way here, but come back by a different route. I want you to make new contacts.”
“Got it. Anything else?”
“Not that I can think of right now, except maybe stay out of El Marrow if you can help it. The Bone Wagon’s one car Domino will know on sight.”