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packaged. She gave him a pat, then picked him up, dandling a baby
effortlessly.  You must be packaged safely, because Mommy is going out for a
while. I
have to go and play with little Craig once more to try to salvage him. Because
at the moment he s the only breather
I have left who ll work with me. And you breathers are so useful for some
things. Yes, you are.
Carol carried Joe into an unfinished side-room, about eight feet by ten,
hardly more than a large storage closet.
Barrels and crates and boxes almost filled the place. A second door, the upper
half of it glass-paneled, led to another, much larger, darkened room or area,
where streetlight entering by distant windows showed bare concrete walls and
floor, sawhorses, scraps of lumber, a can of paint or two.
He got only one glance out through the glass panel, for Carol promptly lowered
him to the floor, left him sitting there leaning against something solid at
his back.
Before she straightened up, she kissed his forehead briskly, as people who
kissed their dogs might do.  I d like to give you a real kiss, Joey, of a kind
you ve never had. But there just isn t time. Not right now.
Her feet in high heels tapped back into the finished rooms of the apartment.
The door closed solidly behind her, so only the street lighting, very distant
and indirect, reached him now. He could hear vague sounds of movement from the
apartment for a little while, then there was silence.
They hadn t bothered to gag him, so it seemed he was free to yell for help as
much as he liked Johnny hadn t been gagged either. Well, maybe later he would
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try.
They hadn t even bothered to take away his gun.
The viewer built into Craig Walworth s back door showed him that Kate
Southerland was standing just outside.
She looked just about as she had when he had seen her last, blue jacket and
all. Without consciously intending to do so, he spoke her name aloud.
His voice was low, but Kate evidently heard him through the door, for at once
she rattled its handle.
 Craig? Her voice coming through the thick wood sounded dazed and empty.
 Craig? Let me in, please. Her image in the viewer appeared dazed too,
staring glassily forward as if she could see him through the door.
Taking his eye from the viewer, Walworth turned himself around in a full
circle, looking at his brightly lighted kitchen. He did not really see
anything of the cheerful colors. His mind was devoid of plans, and he felt
that he was waiting for something to be explained to him. When he had turned
to face the door once more he tried looking through the viewer again. She was
still there, and once more the handle of the door rattled.
 Hell, why not? he said aloud.  Come in. If you re a phantom I won t be able
to keep you out anyway, will I?
It took him a full ten seconds to undo all the alarms and fastenings armoring
the door, and then he swung it wide.
Kate walked in at once. Before he did anything else he locked the door
completely up again. Then he turned to look at her.
She certainly looked real and solid enough, and her confused state was even
plainer than it had been through the viewer. Her face was paler than he
remembered it, her hands kept rubbing each other nervously, her eyes jumped
erratically about the kitchen, looking everywhere but straight at him.
Abruptly she began to speak in a staccato voice.  This place where I ve been
staying you see, he broke in there today, while it was still daylight. Cloudy,
but still so bright when I ran outside that I thought I was going to die.
 Huh. He studied Kate s face desperately, trying to make sure that it was
real. If he fired his pistol at it, what would happen?  Somebody broke in on
you somewhere, huh?
 Enoch Winter. Her empty blue eyes flicked at Walworth, then past him at the
stove.  He was looking for the old man, I know. He said he said Joe had told
him where the old man might be sleeping. He looked in all the vaults, I
think.
 Joe, said Walworth, just to be saying something.
 Yes. Kate s eyes fixed on him suddenly.  Do you know where Joe is?
 I don t know any Joe, lady, he said, suddenly remembering who Joe must be.
 I have the feeling that Joe has been here recently.
 Why in hell should Joe be here?
 Joe shouldn t be in hell, Kate answered instantly making as much sense,
Walworth thought, as anything else she had said so far. She appeared to stop
to think.  I don t know why he should be in this place, then, she went on.
 But he was here.
 My God. Walworth was speaking to himself again.  I think it really is Kate.
Then there must have been someone who looked just like her in the
morgue someone they found in that rooming house I don t know. God, what a day
and evening this is turning out to be.
Kate nodded at him, a wise-old-woman sort of nod that made her look crazier
than ever.  You speak of God a lot, don t you? They can, too, you know. It s
not really like it is in the stories. They can handle holy things. They re no
worse than we are, really.
 Sure, whatever you say. Suddenly Walworth remembered leaving the phone off
its cradle, back in the other room. Immediately he felt pleased with himself
for having his head on so straight now that he remembered that.
 Excuse me one second, he said, and left the kitchen.
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Sure enough, there was the loose phone; score one for the consistency of the
world and dependability of his brain.
He hung it up, not bothering to find out if there was someone on the other end
of the line now or not. He could call back later for help if it was necessary,
but right now it looked like maybe he was going to fly home from this trip on
his own.
On his way back to the kitchen he hoped fiercely that his visitor was still
going to be there. She was, he saw with considerable relief, and she still
looked like Kate. But a Kate still really out of it, staring now with great
apparent interest at the icemaker on his refrigerator door
Why couldn t he see her reflection in the chrome?
Some trick of angles
Going up to the girl, Walworth quietly touched her on the elbow. She started,
not at all the way a phantom ought to behave, and turned her quietly wild gaze
on him.
Those eyes of hers made him shaky.  Kate, d you know what? Everyone thinks
you re dead. Hey, now, don t start flying around outside the window, or do
anything silly like that, hey? He could hear the real pleading in his own
voice, and it disgusted him.
She looked at him with a total lack of intelligence.  What?
 I m just telling you, don t do anything silly until I have the chance to show
the world that you re still alive and in one piece. That s going to get me off
one hook, anyway. Now you are here, right? He squeezed her jacketed elbow.
 Sure you are.
 I m here. Of course I am.
 Great. What brings you to my place tonight, anyway? Not that I mind. His
hand, falling back to his side, brushed the butt of the gun still stuck in his
belt, and he wondered if it would be smarter now to put the weapon away. He
decided to carry it with him a little longer, just in case . . . in case of
what, he didn t exactly know.
 I must find Joe. Kate s fine forehead creased in puzzlement.  I went to his
apartment tonight, right after sunset, but he s not there. He s been here
, I can feel it.
She raised both hands to her head.  Oh, those people drugged me, that night
when I was here . . . maybe you . . . but you re not one of them.
 No, no I m not.
Kate let her hands drop to her sides, and her speech fell back into its
earlier lifeless tone.  I think I left something here . . . I didn t have any
money with me when I wanted to go shopping.
 Shopping. Sure. Walworth stared at her for a little while.  My God, they [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]