Come and Find Me A Novel of Suspense - By Hallie Ephron Page 0,22
did it again, this time without a scratch. Then I started charging kids in the neighborhood to watch. Earned enough to buy myself a Game Boy. Ash . . . uh, Susannah stood sentry and whistled if my mother was on her way out to investigate.”
“Sounds like you two were quite a pair.”
“Oil and water.”
“Siblings,” he said. “Definition: two people who run in opposite directions and end up crashing into each other.”
Diana laughed. GROB sat on the beach. Nadia sat beside him. She unlinked Nadia’s hand from GROB’s, and the two avatars just sat there in a long silence that neither of them rushed to fill.
Finally, Diana said, “Thanks for telling me about yourself. And for sharing this special place.”
“Special,” he said, “and sad.”
“Sad?”
“Yes . . . no.”
“I’m sorry. Do you want to talk about it?”
“Maybe one day. But not here. If we ever meet . . . in the real world. I hope we do.”
Diana stared out at the virtual ocean, wondering if she’d ever sit on the sand on a real beach and gaze out at the horizon separating sea from sky. In the real world, waves were irregular and unpredictable, not like these waves that unfurled as regularly as wallpaper patterns. Predictability. That was this virtual world’s greatest strength and greatest weakness.
Suddenly little eddies seemed to be forming in the sand in front of them. The swirling patterns grew, and grew, until the entire beach heaved and boiled.
“Oh, shit,” said GROB.
Instinctively Diana grabbed her chair arms and pushed back. A downward whirling vortex grew in the sand, and up from its depths shot an avatar clad head to toe in gleaming battle armor.
“This is what you wanted to show me?” Diana managed to say.
“Hell, no!” In an instant, GROB was standing over Nadia, planted between her and the armored avatar that hovered over them. It raised its arm and an avalanche of blue phalluses fell from the sky and seemed to bounce off a barrier, like an invisible bubble surrounding her and GROB.
Flying phalluses. Soon there’d be tumbling toasters. It was completely ridiculous—Diana realized that. But still she felt assaulted, and when she tried to move Nadia and found she couldn’t, she started to panic. She smashed down on the mouse, clicking over and over as she grew short of breath. She should never have come here.
“Take it easy,” GROB said. “They can’t hurt you,”
It took three tries before Diana typed /home correctly into the transporter, but Nadia simply disappeared and reappeared right where she was. She typed in random coordinates. Once again, Nadia faded and came back. Diana clicked all over the screen, trying in vain to get a menu to come up so she could get out of there.
Two more armored avatars circled overhead
“Assholes!” GROB said. “I hate this. Jesus, don’t these people have anything better to do?”
More blue phalluses rained down around them, bouncing off the invisible barrier that she assumed GROB had created. Diana reared back each time one of the freakish objects splashed into the water or crashed into the sand and exploded.
Her hand shaking, Diana reached for her computer’s power switch. It was the only way she could think of to make it stop.
She could barely hear GROB’s voice over the sound effects. “I’m sorry . . . never should have . . . let’s get . . .” GROB extended his hand toward Nadia. “Let’s go now!”
Diana recoiled, standing and knocking over her desk chair. Was there anywhere safe? She had to turn the computer off. Press the power switch and hold it down until the system surrendered.
“Come on!” GROB moved closer to Nadia, his hand overlapping hers. For the moment, at least, the explosions had stopped. “I can get us out of here. Trust me.”
Could she trust anyone? Her breath came in gasps as she steadied herself against the desk and stared at the monitor.
“Give me your hand!” GROB said.
It felt as if the sound still echoed as the empty voice balloon over GROB’s head faded and disappeared.
She reached for the keyboard and watched her fingers as they typed link/, almost as if someone else were in control of them. Why would that work when nothing else she’d typed had made a difference? But Nadia’s hand connected with GROB’s, and instantly new surroundings materialized around them—the ocean and beach littered with phalluses became an old-fashioned town green with a pergola and trees.
With a click Diana had Nadia release GROB’s hand and she could breathe again.