Trashland a Go-Go Read Online Free Page A

more secure. She fished through a pile of trash. She was so hungry. She hoped there would be something she could eat without getting too ill. Like a Twinkie. Those things lasted forever. She knew she probably wouldn’t be that blessed.
    The longer Coco wandered the wasteland, and the more she got to know Rudy, the less she believed she was dreaming. Her dreams had never been this vivid or detailed. She couldn’t recall ever having smelled a dream. Just as Coco began to weigh the possibility of having completely lost her mind, she unearthed a half eaten bag of trail mix from what appeared to be a crumpled mess of someone’s study notes. She examined the bag briefly before tilting her head back and pouring the mix into her mouth. It tasted vaguely of rubbish. She was so hungry she hardly noticed it.
    Rudy buzzed around Coco’s head, exhausted. He landed in the mess of her hair, burrowed in and made himself a little nest of a bed.
    Reclining and relaxing in her hair, Rudy said, “A little ways up, there is a hut. They may even let us stay the night. From there we can start fresh in the morning. Shouldn’t be much farther now.”
    Normally Coco would find the mere thought of an insect making itself at home in her hair utterly repugnant. In this case, given that she had annihilated his home and he had still been so kind as to escort her to some kind of civilization, she made an exception. Besides, her hair was a mess already—stiff and fried from the electrocution. It had also begun to collect bits of paper, lint, and anything else the wind might have blown into it. Maybe this hut place would have a shower?
    Excited by the prospect of cleanliness, Coco jumped to her feet and started off.
    “Do you mind if I just take a nap here?” Rudy wheezed from her matted hair.
    “Just don’t lay any eggs in there.” Coco cringed.
    “I’m not making any promises.” Rudy yawned and rolled over.
    As Coco walked she could hear the faint sound of his teeny, tiny snoring.

Coco didn’t notice that Rudy was awake until he landed on her nose. She could almost hear his small fuzzy smile as he said “Something smells exquisite!”
    She wanted to believe him. He sounded so pleased with what he smelled. Whatever was creeping into her own nostrils made her eyes water. It smelled like the alley behind the club where Coco danced—the one that was shared with a butcher shop. She was glad, more than glad—relieved—that it was nearing dusk. She could only imagine what it must smell like around here at high-noon.
    Coco stopped in her tracks. “What is that smell?”
    Rudy pressed on, salivating. “We must be close to the Oracle now.”
    “The who?”
    “This old woman. She can read your fortune. She’s a strange old bat, but they say she sees things. Then they happen.” Rudy shrugged four shoulders. “But they say a lot of things, don’t they? For all I know she’s just an old lady in a meat hut.”
    “MEAT hut?”
    “She might be able to help you. It’s worth a shot. Maybe we could even spend the night there!” Rudy’s already globular eyes widened. He drooled.
    “I don’t know that I want to stay in anything called a meat hut .” Coco winced.
    Rudy looked back at her as he followed the enticing stench. “Said the stripper who did what exactly with sausage?”
    “Brautwurst.” Coco scowled. She knew she shouldn’t have told him that.
    She followed him reluctantly, feeling insulted. As they neared the Oracle, Coco continued to ponder what in the hell a meat hut could possibly be. And the stench got stronger.
    By the time they could see the hut, the smell was unbearable. Coco’s stomach lurched. Rudy was leaving an alarmingly obvious trail of slobber in his wake. It dropped into the air after him and landed like a fine mist across Coco’s forearm as she walked behind him. She kept trying to switch sides, or just walk a bit slower or faster, but Rudy never flew in a straight line. He made loops and swirls and zig-zags,