“He means me. Is it a service you wish my client to provide? Because if it’s a service, you’ll have to clear it with the student officers, who have him on retainer. Government regulations. You know how it is. Of course if it’s a dare instead of a service, we can do that, no problem.” At the word “dare,” even more kids moved into listening range. Six or seven were clustered around us, and as everyone knows, when there’s a few kids in a group it draws more and more, like curiosity has its own gravity.

“It’s a dare,” says Tiggor.

“Dares come with a price, too; what do you want the Schwa to do?”

“You say he can do things and not be seen,” Tigger says. “So let’s see if he can go into Old Man Crawley’s and bring something back.” A bus came and went, but none of the kids got on. The public buses run every ten minutes, and this was worth ten minutes of everyone’s time.

“Let me consult with my client.”

I pull the Schwa aside, and he whispers, “I don’t know, Antsy.”

Tiggor laughs. “See, I told you,” he says to the other kids. “He’s a fake. Ain’t no such thing as an invisible boy.”

“Well, he did walk through the girls’ locker room without getting seen,” one kid says.

“So,” says Tiggor, “does he have the pictures to prove it?”

“Yeah,” I tell Tiggor, “you wish you had pictures.”

Tiggor looks at me and hooks his thumbs in his pockets like he’s a gunslinger ready to draw. “Twenty bucks says he can’t do it.”

“You’re on,” I said without a second thought—such is my faith in the Schwa. But the Schwa tugs my sleeve.

“Antsy . . .”

“What do you want him to bring back?”

“So, how about a dog bowl,” Tiggor says. Everybody agrees that’s the perfect item. There’s about twenty kids around us now.

“Anybody else care to take the wager?” I ask.

The kids who had seen the Schwa in action all looked down and shook their heads. Only those who were not yet believers would bet against the Schwa.

“I’m in for five bucks,” says one kid.

“Two bucks over here,” says another. And by the time the betting frenzy’s over, fifty-four bucks are on the line.

We caught the next bus, and all the way home the Schwa was bouncing his knees up and down like he’s gotta go pee, but I know it’s because he’s all nervous.

“Come on, Schwa, take it easy. There are so many dogs in there, you’ll probably trip on a bowl on the way in.”

“And if I get caught?”