"Pardon me, madam," the cop said, and beat a hasty retreat.
When we landed on Hi-nin's roof, Mrs. His-tara came up with him.
She looked at me sympathetically. "You are perhaps molting, beloved
friend?" Her large eyes retracted and filled with tears. "Such a
season!"
"No--no, dear. Just--getting a little fresh air."
I put Hi-nin on the front seat with me. He gave me a big-eyed,
toothless smile and sat down in perfect quiet, except for the soft,
almost sea sound of his breathing.
It was during one of those brief and infrequent silences we have that I
noticed something was amiss. No sea sound.