Page 27
"Would it help to have a map?" asks the Fry. The question gets Cy mad. "Map wont help me," he says. "I need to see stuff. I need to be places. A map is just a map. It aint being there. "
They stand at a corner on the outskirts of Joplin. Its like divining for water. Nothing looks familiar. "He doesnt know this place," Cy says. "Lets try another street. "
Block after block, intersection after intersection, its the same. Nothing. Joplin is a small town, but not so small that a person could know all of it. Then, at last they get to a main street. There are shops and restaurants up and down the road. Its just like any other town this size, but—
"Wait!"
"What is it?"
"He knows this street," says Cy. "There! That ice cream shop. I can taste pumpkin ice cream. I hate pumpkin ice cream. "
"Ill bet he didnt. "
Cyrus nods. "It was his favorite. The loser. " He points a finger at the ice cream shop and slowly swings his arm to the left. "He comes walking from that direction. . . . " He swings his arm to the right. "And when hes done, he goes that way. "
"So, do we track where he comes from, or where he goes?"
Cy chooses to go left but finds himself at Joplin High, home of the Eagles. He gets an image of a sword, and instantly knows. "Fencing. The kid was on the fencing team here. "
"Swords are shiny," the Fry notes. Cy would throw him a dirty look if he werent right on target. Swords are, indeed, shiny. He wonders if the kid ever stole swords, and realizes that, yes, he probably did. Stealing the swords of opposing teams is a time-honored tradition of fencing.
"This way," says the Fry, taking the lead. "He must have gone from school, to the ice cream shop, to home. Home is where were going, right?"
The answer comes to Cy as an urge deep in his brain that shoots straight to his gut. Salmon? More like a swordfish Misting on a line, and that line is pulling him relentlessly toward . . . "Home," says Cy. "Right. "
Its twilight now. Kids are out in the street; half the cars have headlights on. As far as anyone knows, theyre just