“Rat Girl. Got you.”

The rat snatches the meat and darts into a crack between stones. I jump up and twist round.

Behind me stands the big Educator. The one who shouts at children in the food hall when they don’t line up straight.

He’s grinning.

His ghost hand moves forward, a blur arriving before the flesh. I sidestep and slice with my knife just as his real hand catches up with his ghost. Two fingers fly through the air and land in the sand with small soft sounds. He howls, pulling his hand into his chest. Blood runs down his wrist and drips onto his boots.

“Ahhh. Guh…”

His ghost leg kicks out, flows through me and I roll to where his fingers lie in the sand before his real leg catches me. And then I run along the alley, grab my empty snatch bag and I’m gone.

His fingers are warm in my hand before they drop into the pouch at my waist.