AMP: Artists' Meeting Place and Resource Collective

For earlier Chapters and an explanation of this dreadful story, see blog: The Cardiff Grandma. WARNING: This novel contains fake Welsh.

In the previous episode, Peppet, as Wiggton, with the sought-after crate in his pocket and a rifle stuck down a pantleg, leaves the Cornishman behind in the bar...

The Cardiff Grandma Chapter 4c

He hailed a cab. It drove past him. He tried again and the second time the taxi pulled over and stopped just ahead of Peppet, splashing him a slushy mix of snow and dirt as it did so. Peppet climbed into the back of the foul smelling cab and barked his destination.

"Hotel ! th Street and Ave!"

Peppet was an unaturally suspicious man: he had to work at it. He didn’t like anyone knowing where he was staying -- this wasn’t something he’d picked up in his time in the military, it was a result of having three failed marriages and three ex-wives.

The cab driver pretended to understand, muttered "something" in a language Peppet didn’t recognize and then accelerated away into the oncoming traffic.

In his hotel room a half hour later, his mustache began to thaw. As it did, something hard and small fell from it onto the tatty floral bedspread. Peppet picked it up and stared at it. It was a piece of a human finger. Ring finger? Index? He couldn’t absolutely identify it but he was sure of one thing: It was another piece of the puzzle…

Back in the seedy bar, the locals had successfully detached the TV from the wall and the bartender strutted freely about while everyone stared at him dully – the game had for all intents and purposes been lost in the second quarter – and Tresovian the Cornishman had ceased to wonder why that idiot messenger boy from Grandma hadn’t seemed to give a rat’s ass about the message he’d come for. It was as if the miserable bastard didn’t know the derivation of "americ". Oh well, not Tresovian’s problem. Tresovian’s problem was the plaid inch-tall gnome goose-stepping back and forth across the tabletop. Which reminded him: where had he put that last hit of acid?

(to be continued)