Perdido Street Station - China Mieville [133]
Yagharek shook his head slowly.
“So you see,” said Isaac heavily, “I’m afraid that until I sort out what in the name of Jabber’s arse I’ve let loose over the city, and until I’ve brought Lublamai back from wherever he is, I’m afraid that the problems of flight and crisis engines, exciting as they are, are on something of a low burn for me.”
“You will let slip my shame . . .” hissed Yagharek quickly. Isaac interrupted him.
“David knows about your so-called shame, Yag!” he shouted. “And don’t look at me like that, that’s how I work, this is my colleague, that’s how come I’ve made fucking progress in your case . . .”
David was looking sharply at Isaac.
“What?” he hissed. “Crisis engines . . . ?”
Isaac shook his head irritatedly, as if a mosquito was in his ear.
“Making headway in crisis physics, that’s all. Tell you later.”
David nodded slowly, accepting that now was not the time to discuss this, but his bulging eyes betrayed his amazement. That’s all? they said.
Yagharek seemed to be twitching with nervousness, with a great bulge of misery that washed up through him.
“I . . . I need your help . . .” he began.
“Yeah, as does Lublamai here,” shouted Isaac, “and I’m afraid that counts for a damn sight more . . .” Then he softened slowly. “I’m not dropping you, Yag. I’ve no intention of doing that. But the thing is, I can’t carry on just now.” Isaac thought for a moment. “If you want to get this done as quick as possible, you could help . . . Don’t just fucking disappear. Stay the fuck here and help us sort this out. That way, we can get back, sharpish, to your problem.”
David looked askance at Isaac. Now his eyes said, Do you know what you’re doing? Seeing that, Isaac blustered, and rallied.
“You can sleep here, you can eat here . . . David won’t care, he doesn’t even live here, I’m the only one that does. Then when we hear anything, we can . . . well, we can maybe think of some use for you. If you know what I mean. You can help, Yagharek. That’d be damn useful. The quicker this gets sorted, the quicker we’re back on your programme. Understand?”
Yagharek was subdued. It took some minutes before he would speak, and then all he would do was nod and briefly say that yes, he would stay at the warehouse. It was clear that all he could think of was the research into flight. Isaac was exasperated, but forgiving. The excision, the punishment that had befallen Yagharek, had settled on his soul like lead chains. He was selfish, utterly, but he had some reason.
David fell asleep, exhausted and miserable. He slept in his chair that night. Isaac took over caring for Lublamai. The food had passed through him, and the first noisome duty was to clean up his shit.
Isaac bundled up the fouled clothes and shoved them into one of the warehouse’s boilers. He thought of Lin. He hoped she came to him soon.
He realized he was pining.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Things stirred in the night.
In the morning, in the small hours and again when the sun had risen, more idiot bodies were found. This time there were five. Two vagrants who hid under the bridges of Gross Coil. A baker walking home from work in Nigh Sump. A doctor in Vaudois Hill. A bargewoman out beyond Raven’s Gate. A spattering of attacks that disfigured the city without pattern. North; east; west; south. There were no safe boroughs.
Lin slept badly. She had been touched by Isaac’s note, to think of him crossing the city just to plant a piece of paper on her door, but she had also been concerned. There was a hysterical tone to the short paragraph, and the plea to come to the laboratory was so utterly out of character that it frightened her.
Nevertheless, she would have come immediately had she not returned to Aspic Hole late, too late to travel. She had not been working. The previous morning she had woken to find a note thrust under her door.
Pressing business necessitates the postponement of appointments until further notice. You will be contacted when resumption of duties is