The Tambinder Engine (part fifteen)

The Tambinder Engine 

(part fifteen)

Writer B.

I’m sorry I’m so late. The Head Crew are under the stresses, everyone’s been telling us magnetism’s harmless, at least because the head is shielded, so your filling’s aren’t getting pulled out or whatever. Just no one buys it, the third drowning since last year. I want to say !!! So your lucky you don’t work down here. It wasn’t before they put it up to full power, and cabled the whole plant onto the engine, all of us with that nervous shake, and Victor coming down would say obstructions. Everything that stops the flow makes the engine chop, and surge when it lets go. That’s what Victor said. Better safety gear, we said, and he told us we’ll look into it, he meant Herbertson. Herbertson’s no use. But Dustin, he wants to fire you. Your on scut because your being reviewed yet. Everyone thinks it’ll come over like a disease. Dustin, scare Herbertson. We can’t, but your free to.

Writer C.

It’s a lot to expect. I’m not rich. If we look at the past, and add up everything I’ve done, mostly in terms of money, and money again, and further money, and here you can remind yourself that I’m not being sarcastic, because I am not sarcastic; I am speaking entirely to the point. But I have spent more money, because you have the truth of me—in respect of all my help to you having made you a dependent in a foreign land; thus all my help to you having made your fate, whatever it will be, something of my responsibility. The apartment is better than that caravan you’ve been using. Otherwise, you won’t like it. I have signed the lease, as my signature is honorable, and I have paid the deposit, which is, of course, the favor you feel I owe. You will not pay me back. Nothing will happen in your life to make that possible. But stay in your new home, be clean, use the cards I’ve sent to buy linens and clothes, and food for the fridge. Will I visit, Dustin? No, I will not. I don’t rule out your visiting me, but I won’t give you my address.

Writer C. [Deenie felt certain, also that Writer C was Victor]

 I can’t advise. I understood you had done an attack on Herbertson. Or, I was told you’d blocked his way with the car, which was my old car, which I’d given you so you could continue with your job. And you got out and made him lower his window, and said to him, stop the goddamn engine. And he put his window up again, not acknowledging you, but on his phone tried to have one of the guards come to his house to force you off. And when it emerged the guards had no mandate for leaving company grounds, whether Herbertson is chief officer or not, he called the police, very reluctant. When the police car turned up the street, you drove away at a nice, legal pace, and the policeman observed to Herbertson that he saw no trouble. The agitated Herbertson gave him your tag number. All right, Dustin, I’m smiling. The police spoke to me and I told them all I could—as you know, having had your visit. I told them also that if Herbertson made himself unavailable to the Head Crew, who are feeling very dispirited. The woman who did reception outside the station has drowned herself now. Dispirited, and panic won’t be long. Where was I? If, if, if. I told them Herbertson had brought this on, and will bring more on, if he does not, in fact, stop the engine. He won’t, be sure of it, and he won’t see any wrong in his proceedings, and we’ll have more drownings. I saw in the paper one not a plant worker, nothing to do with Bitterroot. Shame.

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The Tambinder Engine

The Tambinder Engine (part sixteen)

(2025, Stephanie Foster)