“Eleanor? No. Why?”
“It’s haunted. It gives me the creeps. I know a fireplace I’d like it to meet.”
“Sir, you’re disparaging my first love.” Maybe he didn’t know that story.
“Where is Chodo now?”
“I don’t know. Wherever Belinda is, I imagine.”
“Maybe. And maybe she lost track of him, too.”
“What?” That couldn’t be. That wouldn’t be good. Especially not for Belinda.
But she wouldn’t have rolled Chodo out if she hadn’t been sure she had everything under control. Would she?
“You know where she might be?”
“At home?”
“She flew there if she is. She didn’t leave town through the gates.”
My subversive side urged me to keep him talking. He was letting slip facets of the Watch’s capabilities, both to collect information and to move it. Meaning that Block and Relway had more manpower than was suspected. Which implied that…
Well, every implication suggests something else. This time the indicators pointed to a possible serious outbreak of law and order.
Which would stumble once it inconvenienced our more substantial royal subjects. Privilege means private law.
“You know everything I know, Colonel. Really. I don’t have any interest to protect. Other than my poor front door.”
“There are rumors about you and Belinda Contague.”
“I’ve heard. She started them. They aren’t true.” I cocked my head, listening to a voice only I could hear. Like the Dead Man was giving me the razz without including Block. “Yeah. Good point. I’ve got stuff I need to do. Now that I can get out without being eaten by dragons. Dean! Good. You’re home.”
The old boy had come to the office door. He looked grumpy.
I said, “You need to get hold of the door guy. Those morons bent the hinges.”
Dean scowled at Colonel Block, dragged his haul on toward the kitchen. He doesn’t approve of Westman Block. Simply because Block exists in his peculiar professional niche he guarantees that there’s mischief afoot. Dean would prefer a world where the law and order were fixed in place before he arrived.
Block said, “You’re not going to help me.”
“I gave you everything I’ve got. Including the news that I don’t have any reason to hold out on you. What more do you want?”
“I hope that’s true.” He headed for the front door. I followed. He said, “You’re a likable guy, Garrett. I don’t want you to get in so deep we can’t save your ass when the big changes come.”
“Say what?”
“The wild era is about over, Garrett. We’ve worked hard to do what Prince Rupert wants done. The rule of law is about to dawn.”
I had no idea what that was about. It sounded scary.
I’m a law-and-order guy myself. But I don’t want the people involved interfering in my life.
I did say, “You’re too optimistic. How bleak a season would it be if your hard-liner secret backers get everything they want?”
Block beamed. “Wouldn’t that be marvelous?”
He didn’t get it. And never would. People like him make life inconvenient for the rest of us.
“You’ll let me know what you find out from those guys, won’t you?”
“You don’t make me want to do you a lot of favors.”
“My heart is breaking. Here’s something I really do want to know. How come those idiots wear those stupid green pants?”
Block chuckled as he slipped outside.
I closed the door shut easily enough. Fortress Garrett remained sound and inviolate.
20
I checked Dead Man. He wasn’t stirring. I told Dean, “I’m going out. I’ve got stuff to do.” I mapped a route in my head. Morley’s place, Temisk’s office, then the Bledsoe to check on the burned woman.
“You have your stick?”
“What?” His asking startled me.
“Shouldn’t you be ready for the worst? Considering recent events?”
I gawked. That was out of character. But he was right. And didn’t know the half. A lot of bad guys saw me at Whitefield Hall. Some would believe I was hooked up with Belinda.
I loaded up on self-defense devices, a few enthusiastically disapproved by the city Watch.
The boys at The Palms weren’t pleased to see me, but they didn’t haul out any cleavers. For a wonder, though, I caught Morley working for the second day in a row.
“What’s going on?” I asked Puddle. “What’s his problem?”
Puddle’s face exploded in a big old ugly, broken-tooth grin. “He’s down here getting in da way. He don’t got to be upstairs.”
I raised an eyebrow.
“One a dem silver-elf womens is here.”
I chuckled an evil chuckle. “It took me a long time… Hey, buddy! I came to see what you think about last night.“
Morley pulled up a chair. “Sit. Puddle, tell Skif we want a pot of tea. The real stuff. My friend doesn’t like weed leaves.”
“You don’t really drink herb tea, do you?”
“I serve it. You give the marks what they want. I’ve heard a rumor, says you’ve already had some excitement today.”
“A double dose. Some Green Pants guys tried to break in. Then Block showed up, wanting to know all about everybody’s business.”
“And you told him?”
“The truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. I don’t know nothing about nothing. He mostly wanted to know what happened to Belinda and Chodo after the party. He didn’t care about the fires, the riot, or the dead men.”
“Belinda better take care of Chodo. We’re picking up storm warnings. Some of the underbosses are getting ambitious.”
“Rory Sculdyte?”
“Teacher White, too.”
That wasn’t good. Though they do tend to kill only each other. Which Relway would encourage wherever he could. “Figures. They got out alive.”
“You said the Green Pants Gang hit your place again?”
“Yes.” Stupid me, I’d been too excited about being able to get out. I hadn’t gotten the promised reports from John Stretch and Melondie Kadare. “Block’s gang has them. He claims he has all but two locked up now. One of those two is following me right now.”
“We can take care of that.”
“You might want to be better prepared than yesterday.”
“Same guy?”
“I think so.”
“Not to worry. Help is on its way. About last night. What happened?”
“You were there.”
“I was kitchen help, Garrett. I didn’t see anything.”
“You saw as much as I did. Probably more. You had a whole crew in there and none of them were blind.”
“I’m sure it was your fault everything turned weird. Weird things happen when you’re around.”
“Only because of my unfortunate taste in friends.”
“You’re a misfortune for anyone who gets close to you. What’s the thing with Block and Chodo?”
I explained.
He said, “There was a lot of confusion. Somebody might’ve grabbed Chodo.But you would’ve heard about that from Belinda. She’d want Daddy Garrett to save her again.”
“Maybe.”
“Want some advice, Garrett? Stay away from Belinda. No telling how hairy it might get, but she isn’t likely to be the winner.”
I drank the tea Skif brought. “They’ll be that knee-jerk?”
Of course they would. The Outfit includes the most old-fashioned people alive. They don’t want a girl running the show.
I mused, “I wonder, though. Last night fell apart on Belinda, but it didn’t go the way anybody else expected, either. She’s no dummy. And she’s got a big head start.”
“She remains, still, just a woman.”
“I’m telling you, don’t underestimate her. Especially if you suddenly notice yourself between her and somebody giving her a hard time.”