Page 119 of Tamiko and the Two Janitors
Until Jiro.
Kip still couldn’t decide if it was a blow to his ego or ananswer to some kind of unspoken prayer. Either way, Jiro was very good atkeeping him humble. The guy was there at the right times, in the right ways.Propping him up. Wiping his nose. Holding his hand.
“Where are we going?” Kip asked.
Tami’s acceptance had half-wrecked his composure. She was sosweet about the whole thing, no trace of hurt or hesitation. But Ash’shappiness had become Kip’s total wreckage. And Jiro’s quick thinking, hissalvation.
Not many people would be so glad to have been shoved fromthe second story.
Kip’s fingers twined more tightly with Jiro’s. “Why are wein a cornfield?”
“It’s a puzzle.” He glanced over his shoulder, for thepath—such as it was—forced them to walk single file. “Didn’t you say squirrelslike games?”
“Gotcha. This is your corn maze.” Kip forced his attentionoutward, senses straining. There weren’t any wolves nearby. Still, he triggereda couple of readymade sigils to give them some cover. “How far are we from theentrance?”
“I didn’t bring you in the usual way.” Jiro walked on,towing Kip like a sluggish barge. “It’s harder if you have to start from themiddle.”
“Where’s Biddie?”
“We left her at her tree.”
Kip winced. “How long have I been out of it?”
“A while.” Jiro stopped and studied him in the scantmoonshine. “The lights and everything. Tami loved it.”
“Yeah.”
“You did good,” he said, sounding proud.
Kip swallowed hard. “Did my best.”
“I know.”
The fact that he reallydid… sorta helped.
A little farther, and the path opened into a wide circle ofhard-packed earth. Jiro marched straight to the center and made Kip spin inplace, like for a game of Blind Man’s Bluff. Ten different openings led intothe area where they stood. Each as likely as the next.
“How many acres does this maze cover?” Kip asked.
“Twelve—give or take.”
“How long does it take most people to find their waythrough?”
“First-timers in daylight, without the aid of a compass,usually take ninety minutes.”
Kip frowned. “That’s specific.”
He waved a hand vaguely, not giving away any particulardirection. “We have a few towers set up in case anyone runs into trouble. Firstaid, water, a guide out.”
“Lifeguards in a sea of corn.”
“That’s the idea.” Jiro slid his hands into his pockets.“Whoever’s on duty has a line of stopwatches. We time the groups for Grandad.He wants to know if the maze is too easy or too hard. It helps us plan the nextyear’s design.”
“You do it all from scratch?”
Jiro nodded. “It’s different after dark. Disorienting. Itcan take people twice as long.”
“After hours?”
