Read Online Fantasy & Science Fiction Mar-Apr 2013 by Spilogale Inc. - Free Book Online
Authors: Spilogale Inc.
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realized that everyone was gone.
The whole camp was gone, in fact. Bedrolls had been packed up and carried away. The curtain around the latrine had been taken down and the waste pipe closed back up. Even the water leak was patched (with what looked like a wad of gum). Next to me, someone had written in chalk, TONIGHT: L-38.
I wondered how to find L-38. Probably Kat could have explained it to me.
Someone had filled my water bottle for me before closing up the water pipe. I wondered what time it was and reached for my gadget.
It was gone.
I went through my bag, double-checked the spot where it had been plugged in to charge the night before…nothing. My money, which was deep in the bag I'd had under my head all night, was still there, but the gadget had been in my hand when I fell asleep and someone had taken it. Stolen it.
It probably shouldn't have surprised me as much as it did. These people routinely stole water and trespassed rather than pay rent. Stealing from a person is different, but I doubted swiping my gadget had been some sort of collective decision. Although leaving me sleeping surely had been.
If I could find my way to L-38 tonight, I could ask for it back. That might work. I sighed heavily and headed for the stairs.
Upstairs, I went to the sandwich shop, hoping to find Thor. He jumped up when he saw me and pulled me into a hug.
"That was your mom, wasn't it?" he said.
"Yeah," I said into his shoulder. "It was."
"She pretended—"
"She knew I was keeping it a secret," I said. We sat down. "They sort of mentioned your dad, too."
"Yeah, guess he's not the only lowlife on board, huh?" Thor had already bought two sandwiches, and passed one over to me, along with a pop. I would have liked to refuse on principle but I was too hungry.
"Yeah, it gets worse, too. Who do you think the sex offenders are?"
"Uncle Paul," Thor said. "I don't trust any man who wants me to call him 'uncle' when he's not actually my relative."
"Huh." I couldn't talk; too busy eating.
"And I totally bet that jerk doctor who didn't want to treat Tom's ankle properly was one of the ones who had his license yanked."
I swallowed. "I don't know where Janet looked this stuff up. Can we check?"
"I bet we could from your dad's computer. But database access like that costs money, and some of these people are probably using false names here—someone would have noticed the license thing, otherwise. Also, digging for this information takes time. Janet has assistants." He looked a little wistful. "Someone else will do it, though. It'll get around."
"Ha. We could start rumors about people we don't like. My dad, for instance."
"True. I mean, he's already a kidnapper. Maybe he's also defrauded people, molested children, and eaten kittens."
"He'd never eat a kitten. Too much work for too little meat."
"Wait, are you quoting something he's said ?"
"He was kidding around at the time." I looked at Thor. "He's not always awful, you know? Back when I was little we got along better."
"Well, I'm glad he's not always horrible to you."
"He's not."
"Good."
I finished my sandwich and was thinking about buying another one when the shop owner brought over two banana splits.
"Dammit," I said, between bites. "I have money, you know. I could be buying my own breakfast. Lunch. Whatever this is."
"I was kind of thinking of this as a date," Thor said, looking at his own banana split and turning bright red. "So I'm paying, okay?"
A date.
"Well, okay," I said, taking another bite of banana split.
When we'd finished eating, Thor said, "Hey, I had a message for you. Not from your mom."
"Oh?"
"Or your dad, either. Someone from Stead Life wants to talk to you. They tried reaching you by phone and mail and couldn't get you, so they came to me. They said you could go straight to their office, if that would be easier than calling. They're on the Cruise Ship part of Rosa, level thirty-two, west edge."
" Stead Life wants to talk to me?" This made me
The whole camp was gone, in fact. Bedrolls had been packed up and carried away. The curtain around the latrine had been taken down and the waste pipe closed back up. Even the water leak was patched (with what looked like a wad of gum). Next to me, someone had written in chalk, TONIGHT: L-38.
I wondered how to find L-38. Probably Kat could have explained it to me.
Someone had filled my water bottle for me before closing up the water pipe. I wondered what time it was and reached for my gadget.
It was gone.
I went through my bag, double-checked the spot where it had been plugged in to charge the night before…nothing. My money, which was deep in the bag I'd had under my head all night, was still there, but the gadget had been in my hand when I fell asleep and someone had taken it. Stolen it.
It probably shouldn't have surprised me as much as it did. These people routinely stole water and trespassed rather than pay rent. Stealing from a person is different, but I doubted swiping my gadget had been some sort of collective decision. Although leaving me sleeping surely had been.
If I could find my way to L-38 tonight, I could ask for it back. That might work. I sighed heavily and headed for the stairs.
Upstairs, I went to the sandwich shop, hoping to find Thor. He jumped up when he saw me and pulled me into a hug.
"That was your mom, wasn't it?" he said.
"Yeah," I said into his shoulder. "It was."
"She pretended—"
"She knew I was keeping it a secret," I said. We sat down. "They sort of mentioned your dad, too."
"Yeah, guess he's not the only lowlife on board, huh?" Thor had already bought two sandwiches, and passed one over to me, along with a pop. I would have liked to refuse on principle but I was too hungry.
"Yeah, it gets worse, too. Who do you think the sex offenders are?"
"Uncle Paul," Thor said. "I don't trust any man who wants me to call him 'uncle' when he's not actually my relative."
"Huh." I couldn't talk; too busy eating.
"And I totally bet that jerk doctor who didn't want to treat Tom's ankle properly was one of the ones who had his license yanked."
I swallowed. "I don't know where Janet looked this stuff up. Can we check?"
"I bet we could from your dad's computer. But database access like that costs money, and some of these people are probably using false names here—someone would have noticed the license thing, otherwise. Also, digging for this information takes time. Janet has assistants." He looked a little wistful. "Someone else will do it, though. It'll get around."
"Ha. We could start rumors about people we don't like. My dad, for instance."
"True. I mean, he's already a kidnapper. Maybe he's also defrauded people, molested children, and eaten kittens."
"He'd never eat a kitten. Too much work for too little meat."
"Wait, are you quoting something he's said ?"
"He was kidding around at the time." I looked at Thor. "He's not always awful, you know? Back when I was little we got along better."
"Well, I'm glad he's not always horrible to you."
"He's not."
"Good."
I finished my sandwich and was thinking about buying another one when the shop owner brought over two banana splits.
"Dammit," I said, between bites. "I have money, you know. I could be buying my own breakfast. Lunch. Whatever this is."
"I was kind of thinking of this as a date," Thor said, looking at his own banana split and turning bright red. "So I'm paying, okay?"
A date.
"Well, okay," I said, taking another bite of banana split.
When we'd finished eating, Thor said, "Hey, I had a message for you. Not from your mom."
"Oh?"
"Or your dad, either. Someone from Stead Life wants to talk to you. They tried reaching you by phone and mail and couldn't get you, so they came to me. They said you could go straight to their office, if that would be easier than calling. They're on the Cruise Ship part of Rosa, level thirty-two, west edge."
" Stead Life wants to talk to me?" This made me
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