[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
that, in turn, took them off on a variety of side trips. Ben didn t tell Miles everything, particularly where it
involved anything dangerous, because he knew it would only worry Miles. Willow appeared from the
shower, and Ben sent down for dinner. Miles seemed to grow more comfortable in the sylph s presence
after a time, and she in his, and they began to talk with each other like real people. Much of what Miles
had to say to Willow left her mystified, and much of what she had to say to him left him speechless but
they got along. The evening wore on, the questions mostly got answered, and the lights of the strip began
to brighten the casinos and lounges against the night skies.
Finally, Willow drifted off to bed, and Miles and Ben were left alone. Ben poured them a brandy from
the bar stock, and they sat together staring out the window.
You have a place to stay? Ben said after a time. I never thought to check.
Miles nodded, his gaze distant. Down a floor or two. Down with the commoners. I booked it with the
plane tickets.
That reminds me. Ben was on his feet. I have to call the airport right now for a flight out tomorrow.
Washington?
Ben nodded. Where the heck is Woodinville? he called back as he crossed to the phone.
North of Seattle. Miles stretched. Make sure you make reservations for three.
Ben stopped. Wait a minute, you re not going.
Miles sighed. Sure, I m going. What do you think, Doc? That I m leaving just when this is getting
interesting? Besides, you might need me. You don t have all the connections you used to. I do. Not to
mention credit cards and money.
Ben shook his head. I don t know. This could be dangerous, Miles. Who knows what we re up against
with Michel Ard Rhi? I don t like the idea
Doc! Miles cut him short. I m going. Make the call.
Ben gave up arguing, made the reservations on an early morning PSA flight, and returned to the sofa.
Miles was staring out the window again.
Remember when we were kids and we did all that pretending? Remember how we created all those
make-believe worlds to play in? I was thinking about how lucky you were to find one for real, Doc.
Everyone else has to live with the world they ve got. He shook his head. Not you. You get to live what
others can only wish for.
Generated by ABC Amber LIT Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html
Ben didn t say anything. He was thinking about how differently they looked at things. It was the
difference in their realities. Landover was his reality; Miles had only this world. He remembered how
desperately he had wished for exactly what he had now just two short years ago. He had forgotten about
that. It was good to remember it again.
I am pretty lucky, he said finally.
Miles did not reply.
They sat together in silence, sipping brandy and letting their private dreams take shape in the playground
of their thoughts.
Their flight out of Las Vegas was at 7:58 A.M. on PSA flight 726, a smaller jet making a single stopover
in Reno on its way north to Seattle. They arrived early at the airport, camped out in an empty terminal
until boarding, and took seats at the rear of the airplane to avoid drawing any more attention than was
necessary. Ben had bound up Willow s hair in a head scarf, covered her face with skin-toned foundation
cream, and clothed her head to foot to hide her skin, but she looked like a walking sideshow
nevertheless. Worse, she was more listless than ever. Her strength seemed to be simply draining away
from her.
When they had taken off the second time out of Reno and Miles was dozing, she leaned over to Ben and
whispered, I know what troubles me, Ben. I need to nourish in the soil. I need to make the change. I
think that is why I am so weak. I m sorry.
He nodded and hugged her close. He had forgotten about her need to transform from human to tree
every twenty days. Perhaps he had simply blocked it away when he had agreed to bring her on this
journey in the misguided hope that it wouldn t prove to be a problem. But the twenty-day cycle had
obviously come around again. She would have to be allowed to change.
But what would the elements in the soil of this world do to her body systems?
He didn t like to think about it. It made him feel helpless. They were trapped here now, trapped until he
found Abernathy and retrieved his medallion.
He took a deep breath, gripped Willow s gloved hand tightly in his own, and leaned back in his seat.
Just one more day, he promised silently. By tonight, he would be on Davis Whitsell s doorstep, and his
search would be over.
* * *
The phone rang in the living room, and Davis Whitsell pushed back his bowl of Wheaties, got up from
the breakfast table, and hurried to answer it. Abernathy watched him through a crack in the bedroom
door. They were alone in the house. Alice Whitsell had gone to visit her mother three days ago. Show
dogs were one thing, she had said on leaving talking dogs were something else. She would be back
when the dog if that s what it really was in the first place was gone.
Probably just as well, Davis had insisted afterward. It was easier to concentrate on things when Alice
wasn t running the TV or her mouth.
Abernathy didn t know what he meant. What he did know was that as far as he could determine he was
Generated by ABC Amber LIT Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html
no closer to reaching Virginia than before. Despite his host s repeated assurances that everything would
be fine, he was beginning to grow suspicious.
He listened as Davis picked up the receiver. Davis Whitsell. There was a pause. Yes, Mr. Stern, how
are you? Uh, huh. Sure thing. He sounded very eager. Don t worry, I ll be there!
Davis placed the receiver back on its cradle, rubbed his hands together briskly, cast a quick look down
the hall in the direction of Abernathy s bedroom, then picked up the phone again and dialed. Abernathy
continued to stand at the door and listen.
Blanche? Whitsell said into the receiver. His voice was hushed. Let me talk to Alice. Yeah. He
waited. Alice? Listen, I only got a moment. I just got a call from the Hollywood Eye! Yeah, how about
that? The Hollywood Eye! You thought I was nuts, didn t you? One hundred thousand dollars for the
interview, a few pictures, and out the door! When it s done, I put the dog on the plane, wish him luck,
and we get on with our lives a hell of a lot richer and a hell of a lot better known. The Eye will have the [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
zanotowane.pl doc.pisz.pl pdf.pisz.pl fopke.keep.pl
that, in turn, took them off on a variety of side trips. Ben didn t tell Miles everything, particularly where it
involved anything dangerous, because he knew it would only worry Miles. Willow appeared from the
shower, and Ben sent down for dinner. Miles seemed to grow more comfortable in the sylph s presence
after a time, and she in his, and they began to talk with each other like real people. Much of what Miles
had to say to Willow left her mystified, and much of what she had to say to him left him speechless but
they got along. The evening wore on, the questions mostly got answered, and the lights of the strip began
to brighten the casinos and lounges against the night skies.
Finally, Willow drifted off to bed, and Miles and Ben were left alone. Ben poured them a brandy from
the bar stock, and they sat together staring out the window.
You have a place to stay? Ben said after a time. I never thought to check.
Miles nodded, his gaze distant. Down a floor or two. Down with the commoners. I booked it with the
plane tickets.
That reminds me. Ben was on his feet. I have to call the airport right now for a flight out tomorrow.
Washington?
Ben nodded. Where the heck is Woodinville? he called back as he crossed to the phone.
North of Seattle. Miles stretched. Make sure you make reservations for three.
Ben stopped. Wait a minute, you re not going.
Miles sighed. Sure, I m going. What do you think, Doc? That I m leaving just when this is getting
interesting? Besides, you might need me. You don t have all the connections you used to. I do. Not to
mention credit cards and money.
Ben shook his head. I don t know. This could be dangerous, Miles. Who knows what we re up against
with Michel Ard Rhi? I don t like the idea
Doc! Miles cut him short. I m going. Make the call.
Ben gave up arguing, made the reservations on an early morning PSA flight, and returned to the sofa.
Miles was staring out the window again.
Remember when we were kids and we did all that pretending? Remember how we created all those
make-believe worlds to play in? I was thinking about how lucky you were to find one for real, Doc.
Everyone else has to live with the world they ve got. He shook his head. Not you. You get to live what
others can only wish for.
Generated by ABC Amber LIT Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html
Ben didn t say anything. He was thinking about how differently they looked at things. It was the
difference in their realities. Landover was his reality; Miles had only this world. He remembered how
desperately he had wished for exactly what he had now just two short years ago. He had forgotten about
that. It was good to remember it again.
I am pretty lucky, he said finally.
Miles did not reply.
They sat together in silence, sipping brandy and letting their private dreams take shape in the playground
of their thoughts.
Their flight out of Las Vegas was at 7:58 A.M. on PSA flight 726, a smaller jet making a single stopover
in Reno on its way north to Seattle. They arrived early at the airport, camped out in an empty terminal
until boarding, and took seats at the rear of the airplane to avoid drawing any more attention than was
necessary. Ben had bound up Willow s hair in a head scarf, covered her face with skin-toned foundation
cream, and clothed her head to foot to hide her skin, but she looked like a walking sideshow
nevertheless. Worse, she was more listless than ever. Her strength seemed to be simply draining away
from her.
When they had taken off the second time out of Reno and Miles was dozing, she leaned over to Ben and
whispered, I know what troubles me, Ben. I need to nourish in the soil. I need to make the change. I
think that is why I am so weak. I m sorry.
He nodded and hugged her close. He had forgotten about her need to transform from human to tree
every twenty days. Perhaps he had simply blocked it away when he had agreed to bring her on this
journey in the misguided hope that it wouldn t prove to be a problem. But the twenty-day cycle had
obviously come around again. She would have to be allowed to change.
But what would the elements in the soil of this world do to her body systems?
He didn t like to think about it. It made him feel helpless. They were trapped here now, trapped until he
found Abernathy and retrieved his medallion.
He took a deep breath, gripped Willow s gloved hand tightly in his own, and leaned back in his seat.
Just one more day, he promised silently. By tonight, he would be on Davis Whitsell s doorstep, and his
search would be over.
* * *
The phone rang in the living room, and Davis Whitsell pushed back his bowl of Wheaties, got up from
the breakfast table, and hurried to answer it. Abernathy watched him through a crack in the bedroom
door. They were alone in the house. Alice Whitsell had gone to visit her mother three days ago. Show
dogs were one thing, she had said on leaving talking dogs were something else. She would be back
when the dog if that s what it really was in the first place was gone.
Probably just as well, Davis had insisted afterward. It was easier to concentrate on things when Alice
wasn t running the TV or her mouth.
Abernathy didn t know what he meant. What he did know was that as far as he could determine he was
Generated by ABC Amber LIT Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html
no closer to reaching Virginia than before. Despite his host s repeated assurances that everything would
be fine, he was beginning to grow suspicious.
He listened as Davis picked up the receiver. Davis Whitsell. There was a pause. Yes, Mr. Stern, how
are you? Uh, huh. Sure thing. He sounded very eager. Don t worry, I ll be there!
Davis placed the receiver back on its cradle, rubbed his hands together briskly, cast a quick look down
the hall in the direction of Abernathy s bedroom, then picked up the phone again and dialed. Abernathy
continued to stand at the door and listen.
Blanche? Whitsell said into the receiver. His voice was hushed. Let me talk to Alice. Yeah. He
waited. Alice? Listen, I only got a moment. I just got a call from the Hollywood Eye! Yeah, how about
that? The Hollywood Eye! You thought I was nuts, didn t you? One hundred thousand dollars for the
interview, a few pictures, and out the door! When it s done, I put the dog on the plane, wish him luck,
and we get on with our lives a hell of a lot richer and a hell of a lot better known. The Eye will have the [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]