Free The Mopwater Files by John R. Erickson Page A

saw Tim, he was tied to a tree. The coyotes, remember?”
    â€œOh yes. It’s coming back.” She yawned. “And I have found the solution to your problem. It’s so simple, I don’t know why I didn’t think of it sooner.” She closed her eyes and raised her wings. “The universe is composed of three basic elements: rock, paper, and scissors.”
    â€œI thought the elements were fire, water, and . . . something else. Milk? No, cornmeal. I don’t remember.”
    â€œNo. Rock, paper, and scissors. Rock is hard and can break scissors. Scissors are sharp and can cut paper. Paper is obscurative and can cover rock. Which is the strongest of the three elements?”
    â€œWell, I . . . I really don’t know. But what does this have to do with . . .”
    â€œIt has everything to do with everything, oh Rabbity Hank. It means that all things are strong, but all things are weak. Rufus is a rock. If you are a scissor, he will break you. So you must be . . . what?”
    I puzzled over the answer. “A bigger rock? A sludge hammer? I don’t know, Madame.”
    Her eyes flew open. “Paper, you ninny. You must attack him with your strength. Cover rock with paper. Attack the large with the small.”

    And then she dropped her voice to a whisper and told me the secret for winning the fight.
    You’d probably like to know the secret, wouldn’t you? Ha, ha. Not yet. Be patient. We have to wait and see if it worked.
    My next problem was getting out of there. Madame wanted to keep me for the rest of the sum­­mer, if you recall, because she was getting bored with her roots and snakes, I suppose. It took me several minutes of hard talking to convince her that I had a steady job and really needed to be going.
    She walked me to the mouth of the cave. “And I suppose this is good-bye, Rabbity Hank. Will you come see me again sometime?”
    â€œSure, Madame, especially if your trick works and I survive the fight with Rufus. I’m still a little concerned about that.”
    â€œOh piffle. Of course it will work. It’s based upon universal principals. But just in case, I wish you luck.”
    â€œThanks, Madame. See you around—I hope.”
    And with that, I left her there, waving her wing. I walked past the tree where . . . yikes, I almost walked into Big Tim. He had worked himself loose and was sulking in a big coil on the ground. I made a wide detour around him, set my course to the east, and headed down the creek.
    I arrived at the appointed hill on time, and with a few minutes to spare. Plato and Beulah had been watching for me, and when they saw me on the hill, they came at a run.
    Plato was the first to speak. “Hank, by golly, we weren’t sure you’d make it, and to be honest, Beulah and I were hoping you wouldn’t. It’s just too risky, Hank. It’s not worth it. We’ve put up with Rufus for a long time and surely we can stand it a while longer.”
    Beulah nodded. “Plato’s right. It’s not your problem, Hank, and if anything happened to you . . .”
    â€œWhat Beulah’s trying to say, if I may intrude here, is that we would be upset, Hank, very upset if . . . I mean, we appreciate your concern but . . . Hank, that dog is a killer. I know you’re a pretty skilled fighter, but this guy is a professional thug. Call it off, Hank. Go home. Save yourself for another day.”
    Beulah nodded. “We’ll understand.”
    I looked past them and saw . . . gulp . . . a huge Doberman pinscher coming up the hill. His little green eyes were sparkling and he wore a toothy smile.
    â€œSorry, but I started this thing and I’ve got to finish it.”
    Plato shook his head and walked a few steps away. “I knew it. Beulah, I told you he wouldn’t listen to reason. Pride, that’s what it is, just stubborn pride.”
    By that time I could hear Rufus’s footsteps. Boom, boom,