Chapter 9

"Gentlemen," Roger said as soon as they had calmed down enough to speak. "I do believe that was a merman."

"Can't have been," Tom said. "Mer-folk haven't been seen for a century at least."

"Shows how much you know," retorted Michael. "What do you think that was?"

"Let's just get the foreman," Roger said. "The creature might come back. Why do you think it attacked in the first place?"

"Cause they're bloody heartless savages!" Tom said. "Every last devil. They'll kill you as soon as look at you."

"Maybe," murmured Roger. "In any case, let's bring around the foreman. He has a pistol at least."

They quickly walked to the central office of the factory. When the three men told the overseer of the factory what had happened, he laughed boisterously.

"What?! A merman! Good god, men, have you already drunk your fill at the Fox 'n Tree?"

"It were a merman, sir," said Roger. "He almost got me by the leg, but I managed to shake him off."

"No one's seen the damned things in years. Probably all died off by now," the foreman said.

Tom gave a pointed look to his companions.

"I know what I saw, sir! Michael, say what you saw," Roger said.

Michael sighed. "Maybe it was just a large fish. I don't know, Roger, we're all dead-tired by shift's end."

"Damn it, Michael, don't doubt yourself now!" Roger said.

"Ok, Roger, I'll come out just to settle you down. Can't have you going on about sea monsters and such tomorrow to the other men. They'll want to see for themselves and pretty soon, every man will be standing around the river waiting for a magic merman to appear." The foreman heaved himself out behind his desk. "Let's go."

As the three men made their way back to the river's edge, Rory was trying his hardest to roll back into the river. When they came around the corner, he splashed out of sight. The foreman looked around.

"Good god, why does it smell like burning hog flesh? Stinks to St. Anthony here," the foreman said.

"The river caught fire, sir. Something's unnatural about that shite we dump into the river," Roger said.

"The only thing that's shite is your brain," the foreman said as he knocked Roger on the back of his head. "Go home, and come back tomorrow with this nonsense out of your head. And turn on that spigot!" The foreman strode away.

Tom frowned as he plucked his pipe from his mouth, exhaled a long stream of smoke, and turned the waste pipe back on.

The black sludge seeped into the river, and into Rory's heart.