…’ said Ruby.
‘You got bad vision because you don’t eat your kale,’ said Consuela.
‘I have bad eyesight because of genetics,’ said Ruby. ‘I’m all with you on the good diet theory, but eggs is eggs and facts are facts.’
‘Facts you know, and yet still you eat all that junk,’ said Consuela. ‘So why are you calling?’
‘I just wanted to congratulate you on your new job.’
Silence, then, ‘What new job is that?’
‘I read you are working for the scientific institute, so I guess you’re looking at the diet of those snakes.’
Silence.
‘What snakes?’
‘The yellow snakes.’
‘That was not in the paper,’ said Consuela. ‘This is all on the low down.’
‘Downlow,’ corrected Ruby.
‘Downlow, low down, is no matter, what I am saying is it is not to be chitter-chatted about.’
‘I know,’ said Ruby, ‘I just sort of figured it out.’
‘Well, I hope you will figure out how to keep your mouth shut,’ said Consuela. ‘So why are you calling when I’m all busy and up to my eyes cooking?’
‘I thought you might be able to help me with an ingredient.’
Ruby explained and Consuela listened and then thought about it, clucked her tongue and told Ruby to hang on and hung up.
While Ruby waited she took the opportunity to look up in her encyclopaedia just what might make these mushrooms worth the trouble.
Maitake: (also known as Hen of the Woods or Ram’s Head) a choice delicacy, known to have many health benefits, including boosting the immune system and improving blood pressure. Grows in large circular clusters of spoon-shaped caps at the base of oak trees, grey on top and white beneath. September-November. Spores when magnified are elliptical and smooth.
Makes a nourishing and meaty mushroom stew.
Twenty minutes later, Consuela called back with a name.
‘You have to go to Mo’s store, he’s … what do you say …’
‘A mycologist?’
‘A heart pounder.’
‘Say again?’
‘Que guapo.’
‘Really?’
‘I asked him out and guess what he says – “maybe”. What good is maybe! His store is Daily Supplies in Little Mountain Side,’ she said. ‘No one else will have them, not late in the year as it is.’
‘Where’s Little Mountain Side?’ said Ruby.
‘Look it up,’ said Consuela. ‘I got larger fish to fry,’ and the call was over.
After supper Ruby did just that, first checking the map that covered the walls of the guest bathroom off the downstairs hall – no sign of Little Mountain Side.
Must be out of town, she thought.
She went into her dad’s home office and found a map of the surrounding area and spread it out on the desk. It was not, as she had expected, somewhere near Little Bear, nor was it to the north-east in the Wolf Paw range. Little Mountain Side turned out to be quite a way south of Ridgepoint, which was probably why Ruby had never heard of it: to get there meant a detour off the Pine Forest Pass as the town was tucked away on the far side of the second Sequoia Mountain.
Mrs Digby had recently given up ‘getting behind the wheel of an automobile’ due to the ‘volume of numbskulls on the roads’, (her words) and so unless she could find someone willing to pick the mushrooms up for her, it was going to be a morning’s bus ride for the old lady.
Ruby thought for a minute.
Maybe I’ll do her a good turn, make that bus trip myself, discover a new part of the world and clock up some girl scout points while I’m at it. To be honest Ruby could use the good press; after she’d been caught up in a street brawl (not her fault) and had been issued with six hours community service, her angel status had waned. The chance saving of Baby Lemon had restored a little of her good-kid status, but topping it up would do no harm.
If she was honest this was only part of the reason for making the trip. There were tales about the Sequoia Mountains which more than piqued her curiosity. Rumours of unidentified flying objects and little green men appealed to Ruby Redfort, and while she doubted any of them were based on fact, she wouldn’t mind taking a look for herself.
That decided, Ruby kicked off her shoes, switched on the portable TV and slumped into the beanbag, clicking through the channels until she reached Horror on 44.
A dark-haired girl dressed in a check shirt, jeans, but no shoes, was sitting at home with her dog. She was listening to music on her record player, and the dog was asleep. The girl sipped lemonade while flipping through a comic. Then all of a sudden the hound began to howl.
‘Hey there, Rex,’ said the girl, ‘what are you barking at?’ She stared into the dark.
‘There’s nothing out there.’ The dog continued to whimper.
The camera panned out of the window and into the woodland. In the darkness something moved.
Ruby looked over at Bug. He was fast asleep, no howling, no whimpering.
Her thoughts strayed to the strange happenings of recent weeks.
She picked up her pencil.
To date there were three known dangerous criminals wanted by Spectrum 8:
The Count: a psychopath, thief and murderer with no real motivation for his evil deeds, other than the prevention of boredom and the pursuit of pleasure. What Ruby now knew for sure was that he was working for someone else, and what he had recently imparted during their crypt encounter was that he wasn’t particularly keen on the arrangement any more. However, what wasn’t clear was how he had come to be in the power of another, nor who that individual could be.
The Australian: a close acquaintance of the Count and equally ruthless.
Ruby was not sure what drew these two together, but guessed they had known each other for more than a few years. It would seem the Count had requested the Australian’s assistance to help tie up loose ends; they trusted each other, and from the way the Count had talked, he had great respect for her.
Lorelei: estranged daughter of the Australian and sometime employee of the Count. Lorelei was a law unto herself, that was beyond doubt now. She had gone rogue, betrayed the Count twice (there would be no third chance) and was hell-bent on raining havoc and destruction on those who strayed across her path – which put Ruby well and truly in the firing line.
Then of course there was the mole, the double agent, the traitor, puppet master, bad egg, bad apple … Call them what you liked, someone was pulling the strings; the question was, who?
And the Count was scared.
Not exactly a soothing thought. What kind of soul could make a soulless monster tremble?
The girl on the TV was getting twitchy: she was beginning to feel sure something was lurking out there in the darkness.
Ruby got up and went over to her own window and stood there looking out into the black. Somewhere something evil lurked. It was a big wild world and this dark soul could be a thousand miles away. They could be watching from Mars or they might be just around the next bend in the Dry River Road. However, what seemed most likely of all, was that this enemy was already within and stalking the corridors of Spectrum.
The sixty-four-thousand