Read Online NANOVISION: What Would You Do With X-ray Vision? by Paul Harry - Free Book Online

Ethyl.
    “Yes, right here
with me in my purse. And you needn’t worry. I’ve already spoken with members of
my staff and they’ve agreed to take a look at Daniel when we get back. I
promise you Judy, he’ll be in good hands.”
    Judy smiled
weakly. “I know...” she answered. “... and I can’t thank you enough.”
    “Well, we better
get going,” said Ethyl. “We have a good six hour drive ahead of us.”
    The two women
shook hands and Ethyl made her way around to the driver’s side. She got in
while Judy said one last good-bye to Daniel.
    “Well, I guess
this is it. Are you ready?” she asked.
    Daniel turned his
head to the open window. “Yeah, I suppose,” he answered. “Will you visit?”
    Judy nodded her
head and pulled a tissue from her bag. She dabbed her eyes and readjusted her
sunglasses. “Yeah, I’d like that,” she confided. “I want to see how you’re
making out. Maybe in a few months.” There was a slight tremor in her voice, oh,
if her coworkers at the FBI could see her now, she thought. “Hey, I almost
forgot!” she exclaimed. “I’ve got a present for you.” She reached into her
purse and pulled out an eyeglass case, handing it to Daniel.
    “What is it?” he
asked, feeling the case.
    “Sunglasses,” she
replied, “for when you get your bandages off. You can be like Ray Charles.”
    “Whoooo?”
inquired Katie.
    Judy laughed.
“Ask your Grandmother... She’ll explain.”
    In a last
farewell bid Judy bent her body low and reached through the window. She grasped
Daniel by the neck and gave him a long hug.
    “You take care
now. You hear me?”
     
     
    *    *    *    *
     
     
    The drive to
Santa Clara was relatively uneventful, well, except to Daniel. Though he didn’t
realize it at the time, something very special was happening−absolutely
nothing. The ride to Santa Clara was filled with boring talk, personal
interlude, and the discovery of what a normal life is. This was not something
that Daniel was used to. He had lived in Las Vegas for almost ten years and
couldn’t remember traveling anywhere except to Disneyland once when he was a
kid. For all intents and purposes, Northern California could have been Europe.
But that was not the thing that made Daniel revel in the moment. It was the
simple fact that he felt safe here in the car with Ethyl and Katie. Here, there
would be no surprises to shatter his reality, no coming home to find his Dad
drunk or depressed over losing all his money. Things with Ethyl and Katie
didn’t work like that. This was definitely a new experience.
    “So tell me about
Santa Clara,” he said, his curiosity brimming over. “Where exactly do you
live?”
    “We live in Los
Gatos,” bragged Katie “It means "the cats" in Spanish. We have a lot
of wild cats in the area that eat people...”
    “Katie Mulroy,”
Ethyl piped in.
    “Oh, all right,”
acquiesced the youngster.
    “You’ll have to
excuse your cousin, Daniel. She has a tendency to let her imagination get away
with herself.” 
    “It’s okay...
Aunt Ethyl... May I call you Aunt Ethyl?”
    “I’d like that.” 
    “Aunt
Ethyl−what exactly do you do?”
    Not to be
outdone, Katie jumped back into the conversation. “She runs a nano tech firm in
Santa Clara... she’s the CEO.”
    “Katie, what have
I told you about interrupting?”
    “I never get to
say anything,” Katie complained, slumping back down in her seat.
    The girl made
Daniel laugh. She reminded him of Zac. “So Katie, what grade are you in?” he
asked.
    “I’m in fourth
grade. My teacher is Miss Myers... she’s really cool, she lets us brings our
pets to school.” 
    “You have pets?”
    “We have a dog,”
interjected Ethyl, “an Irish Setter.”
    “She’s really
nice,” said Katie, proudly. “Her name is June Bug−she likes to lick and
chase balls. Do you have any pets?”
    “No,” responded
Daniel. “I’ve never had one.”
    Cognizant of
Daniel’s downcast tone, Ethyl quickly