that flanked the steps of the
office.
Del raised a finger and said "Don't" about
the time Jem launched himself onto the blue elephant's saddle and
started bouncing. Del put his finger down, giving up.
I got out on my side and found myself in
rock-climbing position against Bo Peep's chest. I looked up into his
nostrils. "Howdy."
He receded a step. Gravity stopped pulling my arm
hairs toward his body.
Del sized me up, gave Erainya an amused
"my-bodyguard's-bigger-than-your-bodyguard" kind of smile.
"You want to take a look around the shop?" he asked her.
He led us through the open hangar doors. Bo Peep
trailed about twenty feet behind, Jem doing tight fearless orbits
around him and asking what PlayStation games he liked.
The tour was quick. Del waved in different
directions, said a few words, snuck occasional glances at Erainya to
see if bags of money were forthcoming. The corrugated walls of the
warehouse were lined with workbenches and machine tools, welding
equipment, scrap metal shavings heaped in corners. In the middle of
the room were three carnival rides in various states of assembly —
a Super-Whirl with the multicolored base attached but the seats
scattered around the cement floor like massive wobbly Easter eggs; an
eight-armed Spider Rider stripped to just the hydraulic mechanisms; a
miniature carousel that looked pretty much complete.
"I can have the two ready in a few hours if I
call up some of my boys," Del promised. "The carousel's
cash-and-carry."
Del led us over to the Super-Whirl and started
pointing out the hydraulics underneath. "Forty-five-degree
lift-and-twirl action. Thirty rpms. You don't get any better on a
trailer-mounted unit. It's a classic."
Erainya nodded sagely. "How much?"
"Very reasonable. Thirty thousand."
Erainya managed to keep any reaction off her face. I
set my mouth hard, thinking about the few people I'd known in my life
who dealt in cash amounts that large and were fearless enough to tote
it around in grocery bags. None of them were nice people.
Jem had been jumping on the balls of his feet,
anxious to try out everything. Finally he broke loose and ran toward
one of the disassembled carriage units on the ground. Del lifted his
finger, thought about the last time he'd told the kid "Don't,"
then turned to Erainya instead. "That's not safe."
"Jem," Erainya said. Jem scootched to a
stop, reined himself back to his mom's side. He didn't stop grinning.
"It's late," Del reminded us. "Let's
talk business."
Erainya said, "So this is all you got?"
"Right now. We can also repair any old units you
got."
She nodded toward the Cro-Magnon man looming behind
me. "You always need him in the room?"
Del glanced at Bo Peep, then at me. He apparently
decided the security risk was not high. "Get a Nehi, Ernie.
We'll be in the office."
Bo Peep drifted away. The rest of us followed Brandon
out of the warehouse. "You got to understand about Ernie,"
Del said as we crossed the yard. "Guy's gone state-to-state with
the carnies so long, on the lam, he's just about fanatical to me for
giving him a settle-down job, no questions asked. You worked the road
long?"
"I know Ernie's type," Erainya assured him.
We walked up the office steps between the plaster
horse and the blue elephant. Both glistened with hysterical smiles.
Inside, the reception area was no more than seven
feet square, rafter beams lower than a miner's cabin, walls so old
and dim and brown it was impossible to tell what they were made of.
Whatever it was, it was solid enough to accept nails, which is how
the majority of things were posted — an old Hung Fong's calendar,
some company notices, photographs of workers at the shop, pictures of
the rides. Up along the top of the walls were ripped fragments of old
party decorations in several different colors. A truly impressive
collection of gimme caps hung on more nails behind the receptionist's
desk.
The receptionist, in fact, was about the only thing
that wasn't nailed to the wall. She
office.
Del raised a finger and said "Don't" about
the time Jem launched himself onto the blue elephant's saddle and
started bouncing. Del put his finger down, giving up.
I got out on my side and found myself in
rock-climbing position against Bo Peep's chest. I looked up into his
nostrils. "Howdy."
He receded a step. Gravity stopped pulling my arm
hairs toward his body.
Del sized me up, gave Erainya an amused
"my-bodyguard's-bigger-than-your-bodyguard" kind of smile.
"You want to take a look around the shop?" he asked her.
He led us through the open hangar doors. Bo Peep
trailed about twenty feet behind, Jem doing tight fearless orbits
around him and asking what PlayStation games he liked.
The tour was quick. Del waved in different
directions, said a few words, snuck occasional glances at Erainya to
see if bags of money were forthcoming. The corrugated walls of the
warehouse were lined with workbenches and machine tools, welding
equipment, scrap metal shavings heaped in corners. In the middle of
the room were three carnival rides in various states of assembly —
a Super-Whirl with the multicolored base attached but the seats
scattered around the cement floor like massive wobbly Easter eggs; an
eight-armed Spider Rider stripped to just the hydraulic mechanisms; a
miniature carousel that looked pretty much complete.
"I can have the two ready in a few hours if I
call up some of my boys," Del promised. "The carousel's
cash-and-carry."
Del led us over to the Super-Whirl and started
pointing out the hydraulics underneath. "Forty-five-degree
lift-and-twirl action. Thirty rpms. You don't get any better on a
trailer-mounted unit. It's a classic."
Erainya nodded sagely. "How much?"
"Very reasonable. Thirty thousand."
Erainya managed to keep any reaction off her face. I
set my mouth hard, thinking about the few people I'd known in my life
who dealt in cash amounts that large and were fearless enough to tote
it around in grocery bags. None of them were nice people.
Jem had been jumping on the balls of his feet,
anxious to try out everything. Finally he broke loose and ran toward
one of the disassembled carriage units on the ground. Del lifted his
finger, thought about the last time he'd told the kid "Don't,"
then turned to Erainya instead. "That's not safe."
"Jem," Erainya said. Jem scootched to a
stop, reined himself back to his mom's side. He didn't stop grinning.
"It's late," Del reminded us. "Let's
talk business."
Erainya said, "So this is all you got?"
"Right now. We can also repair any old units you
got."
She nodded toward the Cro-Magnon man looming behind
me. "You always need him in the room?"
Del glanced at Bo Peep, then at me. He apparently
decided the security risk was not high. "Get a Nehi, Ernie.
We'll be in the office."
Bo Peep drifted away. The rest of us followed Brandon
out of the warehouse. "You got to understand about Ernie,"
Del said as we crossed the yard. "Guy's gone state-to-state with
the carnies so long, on the lam, he's just about fanatical to me for
giving him a settle-down job, no questions asked. You worked the road
long?"
"I know Ernie's type," Erainya assured him.
We walked up the office steps between the plaster
horse and the blue elephant. Both glistened with hysterical smiles.
Inside, the reception area was no more than seven
feet square, rafter beams lower than a miner's cabin, walls so old
and dim and brown it was impossible to tell what they were made of.
Whatever it was, it was solid enough to accept nails, which is how
the majority of things were posted — an old Hung Fong's calendar,
some company notices, photographs of workers at the shop, pictures of
the rides. Up along the top of the walls were ripped fragments of old
party decorations in several different colors. A truly impressive
collection of gimme caps hung on more nails behind the receptionist's
desk.
The receptionist, in fact, was about the only thing
that wasn't nailed to the wall. She
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