The Leveller - Julia Durango Page 0,36

. for the water sprite boss in Sirens of the Seylon Sea?”

“God, no!” I say, giving him a small swat on the arm. “But the truth is almost as fruity. My full name is Phoenix Ray Bauer. Phoenix for the mythological bird, Ray for Ray Bradbury, my mom’s favorite author.”

“Sounds like our moms are . . . were . . . the same kind of crazy. My full name is Elwyn Brooks Salvador.”

“No idea who Elwyn Brooks is,” I say. “Sorry.”

Wyn laughs. “Don’t worry, no one does. But I’m sure you’ve read Charlotte’s Web by E. B. White?”

“Yes, and—?” I say, not quite following.

“Elwyn Brooks . . . E. B.?”

Now I am really laughing. “Wow, E. B., that is almost as embarrassing as my name.”

“Well, my mom’s maiden name was Brooks, so I give her a pass on that one. But the ‘Elwyn’ was certainly cruel and unusual punishment.” He grumbles, though he is smiling. I remember the photo of his mother on the piano; he has that same warm smile that reaches the eyes.

“Maybe Elwyn is a little old-fashioned,” I say, “but I give your mom an A+ for originality. Charlotte’s Web is one of my favorites. Besides, Wyn’s a cool nickname. Like, for the Wyn!” I yell, raising my hand in the air for a high five.

Now he is shaking his head and laughing at me. “For the win!” he agrees, slapping my hand.

We walk in silence together for a few more moments, as if we’re both trying to stretch this brief carefree interlude as long as we can.

“So when did things turn bad?” I finally ask. As much I’m enjoying our walk, I know my parents must be truly worried by now. I’ve never taken this long on the job. “Here in the MEEP, I mean.”

“Thanksgiving Day,” he says. “I could tell right away that something was wrong. My usual frequency code sounded different, a pattern I didn’t recognize. When I arrived at the Landing, I thought about stopping at the main control panel to make sure everything was all right, but the damn Christmas in the MEEP promotion started that day, and I just wanted to get the hell out of there.”

I snort a little at that, and he raises his eyebrows at me.

“My dad was lead developer on Christmas in the MEEP,” I explain.

“No offense to your dad,” he hurries to explain. “It’s my dad I was annoyed with. Christmas in the MEEP and this one-year anniversary has consumed him for months. We’ve hardly seen him. And once again, he bailed on my grandmother and me for Thanksgiving.”

“I get it, believe me,” I say, pushing my hair behind my ears as a breeze sweeps over us. “You should know though, your dad feels bad about that.”

Wyn shrugs and his face turns unreadable. “So anyway, I left the Landing in a hurry and walked through the portal. I came through the wardrobe, then immediately left the bedroom. I was heading down the stairs when I heard a noise.”

He pauses and I raise my eyebrows at him in question.

“An impossible noise,” he says, looking out at the ocean again.

I continue to stare at him, trying to be patient. “What do you mean an impossible noise?” I finally say, unable to wait any longer.

He turns to face me again. “I heard someone open and shut the wardrobe door.”

UNCORRECTED E-PROOF—NOT FOR SALE

HarperCollins Publishers

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“ARE YOU SAYING THINGS TURNED BAD WHEN SOMEONE FOLLOWED you into the MEEP?” I ask Wyn, as we continue along the seawall. “Why? Anyone who has a beta code could have entered. I do it all the time in my line of work.”

“Yes, but I have my own private frequency, Nixy. I coded it myself, with help from my father. We’re the only two who know it. And I knew that he wasn’t going to follow me . . . he was in California for the anniversary launch.”

“So what did you do after you heard the noise?”

“I went back to the bedroom, but it was empty. And when I opened the wardrobe door, there was nothing but Black.”

A small chill runs down my back, though the virtual Havana sunshine is perfect and the temperature warm. “Okay, what happened then?”

“Well,” says Wyn, blowing out a slow breath from his cheeks, “I still wasn’t that worried. I figured maybe it was just a technical glitch—maybe my ear trans needed replacing or the MEEP network was acting up. I use a lot of beta programming, so it wouldn’t be too