sleeping rough like me. He belong to you? For real?”
She sighed and picked up her camera bag, hoisted the heavy thing over her shoulder, and girded herself to push past him on the way out if she had to.
“Never mind.”
“He’s not yours yet , is he?”
Becca shook her head. “But he needs someone to start feeding him or he won’t last long.”
“Mmmm. True dat.”
“Well, nice meeting you,” she said with a tight, sarcastic smile. “Gotta go.”
“But we haven’t met. Not yet. Name’s Moe Ramirez,” he said, approaching her with some of the same caution she’d shown the dog just moments ago. The similarity was so striking that she couldn’t help laughing again—it was hard to stay mad at this freak when he was stalking toward you on tiptoes. She decided to let it go. Punishing him for existing wouldn’t bring the dog back.
“Becca,” she said, not quite ready to give up her last name, although he didn’t look equipped to Google it. Then again, he did have a laser, so who could say? “What’re you doing, anyway?” she asked.
“Banishing. Cleansing.”
“Kinda figured something like that. Banishing what , exactly?”
“Little nasties, psychic chum in the waters of the C.U.”
“C.U.?”
“Collective Unconscious.” He squinted at her through the colored lenses. “I see you .” He chuckled. “And you ain’t one a them. That’s why I din’t chase yo ass outta here, you dig?”
“Not really…. One of who?”
“The cultists, that’s who. The brethren of the Starry Wisdom Church. Wisdom my ass. I got more wisdom in my teeth than those motherfuckers got in they heads all combined.” Moe cackled and Becca jumped. “S’all right, s’all right, I’m just sayin’….” He was wagging his head from side to side now, and it gave him the look of a giant insect with cardboard antennae and red and blue eyes.
“I met one of them,” Becca said. “Didn’t seem so bad.”
He leaned in close, as if smelling her. “Met ‘em? Did you, now? Did you meet him in the flesh or in the astral? Huh? That’s what I thought. Not all of ‘em can access the ethers, and for now those what can, can only do it when they dreaming. But that’s all gonna change if the wards ain’t kept in place.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Well, see here now, my fair lady. They call Boston The Hub , right?”
“Sure.”
“How true it is. And when you at the hub, you bound to see some of the cracks. That’s what I’m talkin’ about. And Maurice, that’s me but you can call me Moe ‘cause we friends…Maurice is charged with sealing those cracks best he can. There’s one among them been buildin’ a infernal machine gonna change everythang. You watch for it. I hope the day don’t come when it works its dark magic, but if it does, you keep your music on, you hear?”
“Yeah, okay…I need to try to find that dog, Moe, if you don’t mind. The one you scared off.”
“Right. I know you think I’m fulla shit, but heed my words, Lady. There ain’t no such thing as coincidence. And that means that we are well met. We may not know the reason yet, but you keep that in mind.”
“Okay, I’ll do that.”
“The one I spoke of been haunting the riverbank, doin’ experiments in desolate places like this here mill, seein’ if he can get a rise outta the dirty water. So you be on the lookout. I seen that there urbex patch on your camera bag, and I knew you was all right, but you shouldn’t be in a place like this alone.”
“I’m not alone.” Becca grinned, and realized that she’d already developed an inexplicable affection for the crazy old bum. He had a way about him.
He smiled back at her, revealing a gold tooth. “See, I knew you was all right. Told you we was well met. You got headphones?”
“Uh…no, not on me, no.” In fact she might have had ear buds in her camera bag with her iPod, but affection or not, the thought of letting him borrow them skeeved
She sighed and picked up her camera bag, hoisted the heavy thing over her shoulder, and girded herself to push past him on the way out if she had to.
“Never mind.”
“He’s not yours yet , is he?”
Becca shook her head. “But he needs someone to start feeding him or he won’t last long.”
“Mmmm. True dat.”
“Well, nice meeting you,” she said with a tight, sarcastic smile. “Gotta go.”
“But we haven’t met. Not yet. Name’s Moe Ramirez,” he said, approaching her with some of the same caution she’d shown the dog just moments ago. The similarity was so striking that she couldn’t help laughing again—it was hard to stay mad at this freak when he was stalking toward you on tiptoes. She decided to let it go. Punishing him for existing wouldn’t bring the dog back.
“Becca,” she said, not quite ready to give up her last name, although he didn’t look equipped to Google it. Then again, he did have a laser, so who could say? “What’re you doing, anyway?” she asked.
“Banishing. Cleansing.”
“Kinda figured something like that. Banishing what , exactly?”
“Little nasties, psychic chum in the waters of the C.U.”
“C.U.?”
“Collective Unconscious.” He squinted at her through the colored lenses. “I see you .” He chuckled. “And you ain’t one a them. That’s why I din’t chase yo ass outta here, you dig?”
“Not really…. One of who?”
“The cultists, that’s who. The brethren of the Starry Wisdom Church. Wisdom my ass. I got more wisdom in my teeth than those motherfuckers got in they heads all combined.” Moe cackled and Becca jumped. “S’all right, s’all right, I’m just sayin’….” He was wagging his head from side to side now, and it gave him the look of a giant insect with cardboard antennae and red and blue eyes.
“I met one of them,” Becca said. “Didn’t seem so bad.”
He leaned in close, as if smelling her. “Met ‘em? Did you, now? Did you meet him in the flesh or in the astral? Huh? That’s what I thought. Not all of ‘em can access the ethers, and for now those what can, can only do it when they dreaming. But that’s all gonna change if the wards ain’t kept in place.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Well, see here now, my fair lady. They call Boston The Hub , right?”
“Sure.”
“How true it is. And when you at the hub, you bound to see some of the cracks. That’s what I’m talkin’ about. And Maurice, that’s me but you can call me Moe ‘cause we friends…Maurice is charged with sealing those cracks best he can. There’s one among them been buildin’ a infernal machine gonna change everythang. You watch for it. I hope the day don’t come when it works its dark magic, but if it does, you keep your music on, you hear?”
“Yeah, okay…I need to try to find that dog, Moe, if you don’t mind. The one you scared off.”
“Right. I know you think I’m fulla shit, but heed my words, Lady. There ain’t no such thing as coincidence. And that means that we are well met. We may not know the reason yet, but you keep that in mind.”
“Okay, I’ll do that.”
“The one I spoke of been haunting the riverbank, doin’ experiments in desolate places like this here mill, seein’ if he can get a rise outta the dirty water. So you be on the lookout. I seen that there urbex patch on your camera bag, and I knew you was all right, but you shouldn’t be in a place like this alone.”
“I’m not alone.” Becca grinned, and realized that she’d already developed an inexplicable affection for the crazy old bum. He had a way about him.
He smiled back at her, revealing a gold tooth. “See, I knew you was all right. Told you we was well met. You got headphones?”
“Uh…no, not on me, no.” In fact she might have had ear buds in her camera bag with her iPod, but affection or not, the thought of letting him borrow them skeeved
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