You’re the first person I’m telling, because I’ve come to find you reliable. But when I get stressed the words don’t come out right. Anyway, it was all covered up at first. Next to the dry-stream where the dog walkers let their dogs do their business. On a dogless stroll, you can’t lurk about, so I set to using my binoculars towards the big tree. Meanwhile, I went up to the thing and gave it a nudge with my steel cap toe. Wasn’t more than a sheet of tarp it was rolled in, like sushi. Well, the thing flipped over and wasn’t damp underneath. Couldn’t smell it…but then I wouldn’t know what to smell for. Some damned fool was going to have to open it, so it may as well be me. Not like I’ve anyone pulling on my coat tails to come home. Well, surely enough I ended up crouching over it and poking it with a stick. And that’s when this.. stuff got all over my new raincoat. Like a puff of glitter, it was. Surely it was nearly my eyes if I hadn’t been wearing my spectacles. Presently, I heard a crunching of leaves and gravel. I felt at least two large men stood behind me… I brushed more sparkles off me, and turned around, smiling-like. Well, I was right that they were big, but they weren’t thugs or anything. Just tall suited gentlemen, with briefcases and those long, pointy umbrellas. The kind you’d see in any city street. Not out here, though…. “Afternoon, gentleman,” I said and dopped my cap. The men just nodded slightly. “We’ve come litter-picking,” one said, in a stony voice, as he opened his briefcase. Meanwhile, the other man hooked the…thing… onto his umbrella-tip and lowered it into the case, and snapped it shut. Both gave a sort of nod, turned and walked back down the path. What with it being so misty, I couldn’t tell where their vehicle was. Truth was, I was just glad to be rid of the pressure of dealing with the roll up thing. Could’ve sworn I’d seen it wiggle as it went in the case… but then my eyes aren’t what they were. None of my business, anyway. Mother used to try and tell me not to get myself involved in other peoples affairs. Fat lot of good that did me.
