Read Online In Between by Kate Wilhelm - Free Book Online

garage, straighten up a little in the kitchen, and we’ll be ready. Deal?” He nodded. “And, Sam, you know how limited we really are. There might not be much we can do for your friend.”
    Sam saluted and set about his chores. It didn’t take long. Standing on the back patio, breathing deeply of the incoming marine air, he closed his eyes for a moment. They didn’t need the food they grilled, or the beer and wine they drank; they didn’t need anything since they were never sleepy, tired, too hot or too cold, hungry. He doubted that they needed to breathe. But he drew in a long breath of cool ocean-scented air and it was good. They were pretending, just pretending to be normal, and that was good, too, he thought. That was good.
    Then, thinking of the pretense that was their way now, he wondered how Ben was doing in the pretense of his life. The decision to look in on Ben and the transition were almost simultaneous. He stood in Ben’s study, where Ben was yelling at someone on the phone. Ben was pale, drawn and haggard. Next to his desk stood a short, plump woman who looked at Sam with a wide smile.
    â€œI’m so happy to see you,” the woman said. “I was certain you’d pop up if I waited. It’s good to see you, my dear. My goodness, what ever have you and Lori been up to here? I’m afraid Ben is a quivering mess of nerves, and everyone else gone, vanished. I’m afraid you’ve been naughty.…”
    The Voice! She was moving toward him with her hands outstretched, smiling broadly, not at all intimidating, nothing but good will apparent in her features. She had dimples in her unnaturally pink cheeks, bright blue eyes, frizzy white hair. She was inches from touching him when he cried, “No!” And he was back in the cabin in the woods, breathing hard, shaking.
    â€œSam! What’s wrong? What happened?” Lori jumped up from her chair and ran across the room to put her arms around him. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
    â€œI have seen a ghost,” he said hoarsely. He cleared his throat and held her tighter. “The Voice,” he said. “She was there, she almost touched me, and I jumped back here. Lori, if she’d touched me, held my hand, she would have taken me to quarantine, or something.” He shuddered. “We’d have been separated and she would have started searching for you. Never go back there, Lori, back to Ben’s place. Never.”
    â€œNever,” she said. “Let’s sit down a minute. Tell me about it.”
    They sat on the sofa holding each other and spoke in whispers. “She looked like what your favorite aunt ought to look like, or your grandmother,” he said. “Someone you trust without question. But what if she can look like anyone she chooses? We can’t trust anyone who can see us. She might have workers who would report to her if we’re spotted. Spies. Cops. A ghost APB.”
    â€œThat means we can’t go back to see our families,” she said in a faint voice. They had both been talking about doing that, just looking in on her parents, his parents, his sister.
    â€œOr the cemeteries where they buried us.” They had talked about that, too.
    â€œMaybe any place we’d be likely to revisit.”
    â€œDo you think she can trace us to this place?”
    Lori pulled away and said, “I don’t see how. If she knew about it, she’d have shown up already, wouldn’t she?”
    â€œYeah, right. But let’s beat it as soon as you’re done with the computer stuff.”
    Sam had been at the resort only twice, and that had been ten years ago, and the place that had come to mind was the restaurant. That was where he and Lori were standing now. Before, there had been a crowd; today there were two tables with people, four men at one table, three women at another.
    Lori hurried to the group of men. Pointing, she said,