Page 101 of I Am the Messenger

The Doorman wants a walk later, so we go. We meander through the streets of town, and I try to guess where the next addresses will be. "Any clues, Doorman?" I ask.

There's no reply. He's far too busy carrying out his casual, investigative style of sniffing.

What I haven't recognized till now is that the answers are signposted. They're everywhere, at the top of every street and at every intersection. What if the messages are hidden in the titles? I wonder. The book titles. All I'd have to do is match the street to one of each writer's books.

Simpler than you think, I tell myself. The napkin's still in my pocket, along with the Ace of Spades. I pull both out and look at them. The names watch me, and I swear they

see it when I understand. I lean down a moment and speak excitedly to the Doorman.

"Come on," I say. "We have to get moving."

We run home, or at least we go as fast as the Doorman will allow. I need the books, the street directory, and, hopefully, a few minutes.

Yes, we run.

Each book waits and I sit there with my old Gregory's, trying to find a match with any of the titles. I go through Graham first again. There's no Human Street, no Factor Street, no Heart Street.

After a minute or so, I find it.

I hold the book in my hand.

It's black, and the title's written in gold on the spine. The Power and the Glory. There's no Power Street, but my eyes grow large with realization when I go back a few pages. The name greets my eyes like a fist. Glory Road.

I grin and ruffle up the Doorman's fur. Glory Road. That's bloody brilliant. I'd love to live on Glory Road.

On the map, it's way up on the edge of town.

Now I go through the Morris West titles. It's faster this time.

The Clowns of God.

I find a Clown Street in the upper part of town.

Last of all, Sylvia's one is Bell Street, from The Bell Jar. According to the directory, Bell Street is one of the small side streets off the main street of town.

Now I check that none of the other titles also match, but I'm safe. They're the ones.

Just one question for each street.

What number?

Now I have to dig.

This is spades, so I have to dig.

The clues must be in the books, so now I shove the other ones to the side and focus on the three finalists. I feel kind of sorry for the ditched ones, to be honest. They look like the losers of a dramatic, tumultuous race, sitting on the floor. If they were people, they'd each have their head in their hands.

First, I reach for The Power and the Glory. I read well into the night, and it's one o'clock before I look up from the pages. I have no clues yet, and I can feel frustration starting to creep in. What if I've missed it? I wonder, but I'm certain I'll know it when I see it. For all I know, the numbers on Glory Road might only go up to 20 or 30, but I read on. I feel I must. This is what it's all about. Quitting now would be a sin.

At 3:46 a.m. (it's burned into my memory), I find it.

Page 114.

At the bottom of the page, in the left corner, there's the symbol for spades, drawn in black. Next to it are the words Nicely done, Ed.

I collapse back onto the couch in triumph. It doesn't get much better than this. No stones. No violence. It's about time this all became civilized.

Now I go straight to The Clowns of God and flick through. I can't believe I didn't just do this to begin with. It's definitely much easier than trying to find the clues in every word on every page. Simpler than you think, I remind myself.