"Ok, lissen. Dis guy...er...well, 'e ain't a guy, 'zactly...but...er...dis...er...Joe...he...ah...he don't like fer ya to stare, 'kay? So's when 'e gets in here, jus' find somethin' else ta do with yar fraggin eyes, ok? We needs dis gig crazy-stoopid-like, ok?"
Rottin glared at me like I'd done something wrong and scratched his stump irritably. I'd noticed that he did that when he was really nervous about something. I thought about nodding dumbly, because, well, I'm dumb, and because I've learned that when folks think you've done something wrong, acting dumb can help. I'm not sure why, 'cause like I said, I'm --
"ARE YA EVEN LISSEN'N TO MEE