"There’s gonna be a crackdown," Starlitz told him. "Or a big crack-up ... I’m not sure yet, but I can smell it coming. The system here is gonna blow." His words hung on the empty air. Starlitz scratched his bristled head and smirked, with a scary parody of candor. "I know what I’m talking about," he muttered. "I got a definite feel for this kind of situation."