Part 58 (2/2)
”About what's happening here in the Grove.”
”He knew?”
”Oh he knew all right.”
”I think that maybe I should talk to him,” Tesla said. What time's it in New York?”
”Just after noon,” said Witt.
”You two make whatever arrangements you need to make about the climb,” she said. ”Where's D'Amour's number?”
”Here,” Hotchkiss said, pa.s.sing a pad over to Tesla. She pulled off the top sheet, with the digits and the name (Harry M. D'Amour, Hotchkiss had written) scrawled on it, and left the men to their deliberations. There was a phone in the kitchen. She sat down, and dialled the eleven numbers. It rang at the other end. An answering machine picked up.
”There's n.o.body here to take your call at the moment. Please leave a message after the beep. ”
She started to do so. ”This is a friend of Jim Hotchkiss, in Palomo Grove. My name's-”
A voice broke into her message.
”Hotchkiss has friends?” it said.
”Is this Harry D'Amour?”
”Yeah. Who's this?”
”Tesla Bombeck. And yeah, he does have friends.”
”Every day you learn something. What can I do for you?”
”I'm calling from Palomo Grove. Hotchkiss says you know what's going on here.”
”I've got some idea, yeah.”
”How?”
”I've got friends,” D'Amour said. ”People plugged in. They've been saying for months something was going to break out on the West Coast, so n.o.body's that surprised. Saying a lot of prayers, but not surprised. What about you? Are you one of the few?”
”You mean psychic? No.”
”So what have you got to do with all this?”
”It's a long story.”
”So cut to the chase,” said D'Amour. ”That's a movie expression.”
”I know,” Tesla said. ”I work in movies.”
”Oh yeah. What as?”
”I write them.”
”You written anything I'd know? I see a lot of movies. Keeps my mind off my work.”
”Maybe we'll meet sometime,” Tesla said. ”Talk about movies. Meanwhile, I need your take on a few things.”
”Like what?”
”Well, for one: have you ever heard of the Iad Uroboros?”
There was a long, long-distance silence.
”D'Amour? Are you still there? D'Amour?”
”Harry,” he said.
”Harry. So...have you heard of them or not?”
”As it happens, yes.”
”Who from?”
”Does it matter?”
”As it happens, yes,” Tesla returned. ”There's sources and sources. You know that. People you trust and those you don't.”
”I work with a woman called Norma Paine,” D'Amour said. ”She's one of the people I was talking about before. She's plugged in.”
”What does she know about the Iad?”
”First,” D'Amour said. ”Around dawn something happened on the East Coast, in dreamland. Do you know why?”
”I've got a good idea.”
”Norma keeps talking about a place called Oddity.”
”Quiddity,” Tesla corrected him.
”So you do know.”
”No need for the trick questions. Yes, I know. And I need to hear what she has to say about the Iad.”
”That they're the things about to break out. She's not sure where. She gets mixed messages.”
”Do they have any weaknesses?” Tesla said.
”Not from what I hear.”
<script>