The Ear, the Eye and the Arm (33 page)

At the same time, their code of honor would insist that Mrs. Horsepool-Worthingham be forced to call Father herself. The English tribe would punish her in their own way later. Never again would they come for tea; never would they invite her to their houses. In many ways, they operated like Garikayi's clan in Resthaven. Mrs. Horsepool-Worthingham was about to be declared a witch.

Tendai hesitated on the porch as the memory of how the villagers turned on Myanda came back to him. "Maybe this isn't a good idea," he whispered.

"It's
fair
," Rita whispered back. "You can bet the She Elephant would be punished for her
 
crimes.
 
Why
 
should
 
the
 
Mellower's mother be any different?"

"Look." Tendai pointed at the front gate, which was certainly behaving strangely. It was shivering. A wire looped around a hinge sawed steadily, but the women were talking so loudly they couldn't hear it. All the other hinges had been cut, and as Tendai watched, the last one divided in two.

The gate fell in with a
whump.
The burglar alarm began to whoop in panic. The ladies all dropped their cups and spilled tea and cream tarts over the lawn.

In the gateway, nearly filling the gateway, stood the big black shape of the She Elephant.

Thirty-two

For an instant, everyone was petrified. Then the robot came forward, saying, "Do-you-have-an appointment? Do-you-have-an- appointment?" The She Elephant smashed it to one side and charged into the garden.

"You!" she bellowed in a terrifying voice. Tendai pushed Rita behind him. Rita tried to Wheel the Kiddie Koop inside, but in her panic only smashed it into the door frame. Kuda yelled, "Trashman!" The ladies of the Animal Fanciers' Society scrambled into the dry fountain, and all of them tried to climb the mermaid at once. Mrs. Horsepool-Worthingham grabbed a pitchfork that was leaning against the porch.

She placed herself between the children and the She Elephant and aimed the pitchfork.
"You
will leave this property at once," she said in a steely voice.

The She Elephant halted and stepped back. She tripped over a garden gnome and fell with a splat onto a freshly watered bed of marigolds. Roaring with fury, she clawed her way up and lunged at the Mellower's mother. Calmly, Mrs. Horsepool-Worthingham jabbed at her and tore a big hole in her black dress.

"Oooo," said the members of the Animal Fanciers' Society huddled in the fountain.

The She Elephant went berserk. She ranged around the garden, smashing tea tables, kicking garden gnomes and uttering the most terrible curses. Every time she broke something, the ladies in the fountain cried "Oooo!" like a covey of frightened doves.

And still Mrs. Horsepool-Worthingham attempted to drive her toward the gate. "Get inside and lock the door," she crisply ordered Tendai. Tendai tried to push the Kiddie Koop to safety, but Rita had managed to snap off a wheel. The broken spike dug into the porch. "Trashman!" wailed Kuda, and suddenly the man was there, yanking the Kiddie Koop in the opposite direction.

"Tell him to stop!" shouted Tendai. But Kuda was so frightened, he could only cry. Trashman wedged his fingers under the lid and pulled. The lock snapped; the lid tore off its hinges. Trashman lifted the little boy out and danced around with glee.

The She Elephant almost grabbed the pitchfork out of Mrs. Horsepool-Worthingham's hands. The small woman parried and ripped off another strip of cloth. Tendai knew the battle couldn't go on much longer. The Mellower's mother was panting for breath. The only reason she had lasted this long, as Tendai knew from evil experience, was because the She Elephant was drunk.

He dashed to the back garden, where Fang and Slasher were hurling themselves against the wire of their cage. Tendai took a deep breath. He was terrified of the dogs. They were so excited, they might well mistake
him
for the enemy. But it was Mrs. Horsepool-Worthingham's only chance.

With shaking hands he unbolted the lock. The dogs barreled out, knocking him over and scratching him with their toenails. They flew to the front garden. Fang fastened onto the She Elephant's left ankle and Slasher onto the right. She stamped furiously, shaking the dogs up and down. Mrs. Horsepool-Worthingham leaned on the pitchfork to catch her breath.

The big woman lurched around until she was able to catch each dog by the scruff of the neck. Swearing loudly, she hurled them across the garden and into a gooseberry hedge.

"Oooo," moaned the members of the Animal Fanciers' Society.

Next, she tore the pitchfork from Mrs. Horsepool-Worthingham's hands and turned it around. The Mellower's mother stepped back — and tripped over Pasha's Favorite! The cat had gorged itself on cream and was lying like a side of bacon in the middle of the tea party. The small woman landed on him. The cat squawked. The pitchfork whizzed over them both to bury itself in a tree.

The She Elephant didn't bother to retrieve it. She launched herself at Rita. "Help!" Rita shrieked as she was stuffed under the big woman's arm.

"You, too!" snarled the She Elephant at Tendai, who had followed the dogs to the front garden. "Come here or I'll break her neck!"

Tendai knew she meant it. He approached the big woman and gasped as she snatched him up. She hoisted him to her hip, bending him double at the waist. The little bag from Resthaven — the one Myanda had given him — fell out of his pocket and landed at the feet of a toppled garden gnome. The ground bounced past as he was carried outside. Behind them, Trashman trotted with Kuda perched on his shoulders.

Tendai's head bobbed up and down as the heavy feet of the She Elephant struck the pavement. Rita tried to yell, but the big woman squeezed the breath out of her. Tendai was afraid she had been hurt. A moment later he heard his sister cough. "Fat cow — oof!" grunted Rita. She never knew when to keep quiet.

They arrived at a taxi stand just as one was landing. A dignified gentleman in a three-piece suit alighted. He raised his eyebrows at the She Elephant. "I say!" he cried as she kicked his feet out from under him. Using Tendai's head to push back the door, she forced her way inside.

"Do what you're told or I'll rip your throat out," she growled at the driver. She wedged Rita under a foot and clamped her big hand over the terrified man's windpipe.

"Please, madam. I can't breathe, madam," he squeaked. The She Elephant shifted to let Trashman and Kuda inside. She loosened her hold slightly on the driver's neck.

"Don't try any funny business. If I see you touch that panic button, you can kiss your tonsils good-bye!"

"You're most unmannerly," said the elegant gentleman outside. "No cause to grab a cab like that. It isn't rush hour. I say, my good man, what do I owe you?"

"This one's on the house." The She Elephant grinned. "Get out of here!"

"I have a wife and kids." The taxi driver moaned as he took off.

"Who cares? Take us to Mufakose and don't break any speed limits." The She Elephant settled back, and the driver felt his throat for bruises. Trashman and Kuda excitedly pressed their noses against the window and discussed the scene passing below.

"How did you find us?" asked Tendai.

"A little birdie told me you got off in Borrowdale." The She Elephant felt in one of her pockets. She frowned at the many holes torn out by Mrs. Horsepool-Worthingham. Finding a flask of
kachasu,
she uncorked it with her teeth and swigged it down. The sickly smell of raw alcohol filled the taxi. "A member of the old Filed Teeth gang was questioned by the police. She told them you went to Mazoe. She told
me
where you really went — for a price. You brats have cost me plenty; and I intend to get every penny back." The She Elephant finished the
kachasu
and tossed the bottle to the floor. "I looked off and on for days, until I saw
him.
" She nodded at Trashman, who was waving at a passing bus.

"He was sitting outside the gate, looking
like someone'd taken his last marble. 'What's wrong?' I asked. 'Kuda,' he answered, banging on the gate. Took me by surprise, all right, I didn't know he could talk."

"Kuda," said Trashman, turning from the window to beam at the little boy. Kuda beamed back.

"So why go to all the trouble to find us?" Tendai asked wearily. "You have everything you want in Dead Man's Vlei. You're practically a queen."

To his surprise, the She Elephant's face twisted with grief. "Your father took everyone away!"

"Good," said Rita.

The She Elephant put her foot down more firmly. "You spoiled little maggots don't know anything. We were happy."

"Sure. Running a slave ring — oof!" said Rita from the floor.

"Where do you think the
vlei
people are now? In a nasty hospital where they can't get fresh air or work how they please. They get drugs pumped into them to keep them quiet.
They're
never going to work in a bank or teach a class at the University."

Tendai had the uncomfortable feeling she was right. "Granny was unhappy."

"Don't you believe it! She had the time of her life whining about us. 'You're all going straight to hell, yesss,' " the She Elephant said in a perfect imitation.

"Well, you stole children."

"Why not?" The woman seemed honestly surprised anything was wrong with this. "People want brats. I supply them."

"By hurting their parents!"

"The way I look at it, I make one lot glum and the next happy. It balances out, see? And I make a profit. Now stop your squeaking. I want to rest." The She Elephant dug her fingers into the taxi driver's neck. He yelped. "Just a little reminder. Don't even
think
of dropping in on a police station."

The taxi descended when they got to Mufakose, and, under the She Elephant's directions, settled down on a deserted parking lot. She produced a glass vial and snapped it under the driver's nose. He slumped over the controls.

"You didn't —" began Tendai.

But the woman cracked a vial under his nose before he could ask the question "You didn't kill him, did you?"

Thirty-three

Tendai awoke slung over someone's shoulder. His head ached and his mouth felt numb. For a moment it was like being carried across Dead Man's Vlei, but this time he wasn't in a bag. The sun was setting behind a cluster of small houses. It was evening, and people were coming home from work.

Mufakose thronged with a fascinating mix of food sellers and gamblers with playing cards and bottle tops. Peanuts roasted on charcoal braziers. Women sat behind bright cloths heaped with mangoes. Street musicians banged their drums while dancers jigged around the dusty road. It wasn't frantic, however, like Mbare Musika. These were ordinary folk relaxing after a hard day's work.

Tendai blinked to clear the cobwebs from his mind and saw a creature he never expected to encounter again. The Blue Monkey strode along with its leash dragging in the dust. It counted a roll of money clutched in one paw. The animal glanced up at him, bared its fangs and continued to count.

To the right, the She Elephant toted Rita, and behind came Trashman with Kuda. Kuda carried a paper cone full of roasted peanuts. He was feeding them into the man's mouth. Trashman chewed them up, shell and all.

"I get this much to boogie in the street," complained the Blue Monkey.

"Wait till I get paid," the She Elephant said.

"I want it
now,
or I'll pull the nearest fire alarm."

Grumbling, the She Elephant peeled off more notes from a wad she produced from a pocket.

"Nice dress," remarked the Blue Monkey. "Is that a new style with the air holes?"

Tendai thought they must look strange in Mufakose. All the other people were normal, law-abiding citizens. They arrived on buses and strolled along the walks to pass the time of day with friends. Children came out of the little houses to greet them.

The She Elephant swaggered among them like a gangster. The Blue Monkey drew stares, which he answered with rude hand signals. Tendai saw the people of Mufakose frown: these weren't the kind of visitors they wanted in their neighborhood.