The I Inside by Foster Alan Dean

Author:Foster, Alan Dean [Foster, Alan Dean]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Science Fiction, Fantasy
ISBN: 9780446320276
Amazon: 0446320277
Goodreads: 35155
Publisher: Aspect
Published: 1984-01-01T08:00:00+00:00

XII

THREE stories of heating and air-conditioning equipment towered above him, throbbing softly to itself. The dark gray mass was alive with clicking service panels and bright warning lights. Everything was functioning as intended, and there were no signs of wandering service technicians.

He took no chances—kept to the dark places as he made his way silently to the edge of the roof. When he reached the fence he dropped to his belly. No telling when some searcher on the ground might idly play his seeker beam over the tops of the surrounding skyscrapers.

Taking the compact telescope from his pocket, he extended it to its full length and stuck it through the wire mesh of the fence. Ninety stories below, the sounds of the city were muted and weak. The location of Lisa's codo was imprinted permanently on his brain, and he had no trouble picking it out.

The little scope was all that its seller had claimed. It provided a fine view of the porch and the high transparent windows behind. The glass had been replaced with admirable speed. Unfortunately, all the curtains were pulled. He cursed himself silently for forgetting that possibility.

Lights showed behind the curtains. Once or twice he thought he could see a shape moving against the light, a faint silhouette of uncertain outline. He watched for over an hour. The lights stayed on. Someone beside himself was losing sleep.

River mist chilled him. She was there all right. The key question was whether or not she had company, and if so, how closely she was being watched. If she had freedom to move about her own rooms, he might be able to get in touch with her just long enough.

Folding the telescope, he put it back in his pocket and stood, then commenced an inspection of his surroundings. It didn't take long to find the service bay he was after. Once more a lock yielded to his tools.

Inside the bay he found repair equipment, fiberoptic jumps, powerpacks for supplying energy to temporarily disconnected facilities, and brackets holding dozens of tools. He helped himself to several potentially useful items while searching for the phone.

He lifted the unit and was relieved to hear a normal dialtone. There was always the chance it was a straight-line, connected only to some unknown service exchange. Taking a deep breath, he dialed Lisa's number, thankful he'd had the presence of mind to note it when he'd first visited her home.

As he waited anxiously, he gazed across the darkness at her building. There were several rings, then a familiar voice, hesitant and soft.

"Hello?"

"Lisa! Can you talk?"

"Is that you?" She was sharp enough not to use his name.

"Yes."

"Where are you?"

"Safe, for now."

"But where? Tell me and I'll come to you. I would have the other night but they held me back."

"I wondered about that. Where's Tarragon?"

"In the other room, with his people. I'm in the bedroom. They leave me alone in here." A pause, then, "You've got a lot of people upset."

"That wasn't my intention, Lisa. I'm trying as hard as I can not to upset anyone, but they're making it damn difficult for me.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.