The Scattersmith

4. Trunk Call

"I was so worried," said Mr Tangen, rubbing the palms of his massive, red hands on his thighs. "What took so long? Why didn't you answer me when I called you? Have you been crying?"

"No," I said, answering only Mr Tangen's last question. I looked up into Mr Tangen's disbelieving, bearded face. "Well, yes. I fell down. But I wasn't hurt, just surprised. I'm OK now."

"I don't know what I would have said to your Mother or Aunt if something happened to you on Blakes Road. What was I thinking?"

"I thought you said it was safe?" I said. Mr Tangen looked devastated.

"Was it that Seth?

I shook my head and took a swig of hot chocolate. "No. Nothing like that," I said. "He was perfectly normal."

"Really?" said Mr Tangen. He'd obviously met Mr Seth.

"Well, not normal," I conceded. "Kind of grumpy."

"Yes?"

"And direct."

Mr Tangen blanched, and he seized my arm causing me to slop chocolate milk. "You didn't go into his house, did you?"

"I'm not stupid. Mum would kill me if I set foot in a stranger's house."

"She wouldn't need to. I'd do it first." I didn't doubt the big man.

I skulled what was left of my chocolate and held Mr Tangen's unconvinced gaze.

"It's just, well; I didn't know what to think," said Mr Tangen. "Well, thank the North Star you're OK. Now: on your way. Band and basketball practice ended half an hour ago." He opened the clasp on the leather money pouch attached to his belt and pulled out 11 crumpled one dollar notes: what I was owed, plus a bonus dollar. "On your bike, Paddy," he said dismissing me. "Would be a shame to be caught out when you're so close to your target. See you Thursday. On time, if you please!"

###

It was about 9 o'clock when I got home. As I walked in the door, Katy screeched then stuck her beak under her wing as the cold wind whipped through the door, ruffling her feathers. "Sorry, Katy," I said closing the door behind me.

I walked to the kitchen. There was a blackboard stuck to the wall above the sink where we wrote each other messages. In my Aunt's loopy copperplate, was scrawled:

"Beltway Emergency Meeting. Back at lunchtime."

That probably meant she'd be back around four o'clock, when her voice wore out. Aunt Bea loved long meetings.

I'd almost forgotten about the dreaded Beltway. The Old Stump Highway skirted the north of town, and had served travellers for over a century. But it could no longer cope with the volume of cars. On Friday nights and Sunday afternoons, the road resembled a car park. The Government had decided to build a new freeway, called the Beltway. The only problem was that, as designed, it would bypass Quakehaven altogether. That meant fewer tourists and shoppers. The threat was so serious that, for the first time in history, Aunt Bea and Mr Barker actually agreed on something: the Beltway had to be stopped.

I had a glass of milk, then went into Mum's bedroom. Mum and Aunt Bea's father - my granddad, a doctor and explorer - added the room to the back of the main house after he'd picked up a bug in Singapore on one of his voyages. The room was bright, with three walls made entirely of double-glazed glass. The fourth wall, against the larder, was plastered.

In his final years, granddad's health had deteriorated and he installed a fireplace there to keep him warm. It was perhaps the only conservatory in existence with a red brick chimney!