Videodrome by Jack Martin

Author:Jack Martin [Martin, Jack]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 0821711660
Publisher: Zebra Books

“. . . As our players attempt to cross this bridge . . . and win a prize package worth five thousand dollars!”

Max’s attention was captured briefly by the effusions of a game show announcer. He located the voice. It was coming from a cubicle close to the stairs. Through an opening in one of the partitions, he saw a compressed black-and-white image worming on the picture tube of a taped-together TV set.

On the screen what appeared to be three oversized playing cards—a king, a queen and a jack—cavorted for the amusement of an unseen audience, as well as for a saucer-eyed bum in a misshapen overcoat and lumpy sweater who sat transfixed in his own viewing area. Momentarily diverted, Max’s eyes followed the antics of the red queen. But before he could see what she was up to, his visual access was blocked as a matron entered the cubicle and set a sweating glass of orange juice before the bum.

Max was jarred by the interruption. He blinked, remembering where he was and what he was here for, and repositioned himself on the staircase so that he could oversee as much as possible of the first floor.

The matron with her tray progressed along the aisle between the partitions, pausing to exchange words with a tall young woman in a black turtleneck sweater and white smock. The tall woman issued further instructions and, at last, veered off in the direction of the stairs.

Max rose to intercept her.

She did not glance up from her clipboard.

“Exciting,” said Max. He held out the cassette she had sent him. “Very lively.”

Bianca O’Blivion finally acknowledged him. Almost fearfully she took back the cassette and slipped it into her pocket.

“Careful. It bites,” he said.

He ascended the stairs with her. Though she kept her eyes straight ahead, he felt her disapproval. He adjusted the cuffs of his clean shirt.

“I dressed up,” he said, “and nobody noticed. That’s not very supportive.”

Bianca gave him only a cursory glance. “You’re looking very . . . brisk today.” The word seemed to give her some trouble. Her lips hardly moved.

Once again he gave up trying to win any points with her.

As they entered the privacy of the office, she turned to him with her full attention at last.

“So you’ve watched the cassette.”

“Yeah.”

“And?”

“It changed my life,” said Max sarcastically.

Bianca paced.

“I’m not surprised,” she said softly, not unsympathetically. “It’s dangerous, you know.”

Max pressed the topic. “Because your father admits he’s somehow involved with VIDEODROME?”

“More than that. It bites. Isn’t that what you said?” She assessed him, her penetrating eyes locking on him from behind her large glasses. “What kind of teeth do you think it has?”

Now he felt nailed to the floor, pinned in place for her detached, scientific observation. Like one of her subjects, patients, whatever they were, down below.

“Why don’t you tell me?” he suggested.

“You look very uncomfortable, Mr. Renn. You have the demeanor of a man who is hallucinating. Are you?”

“Is it obvious?”

“To me it is. Just like my father. Before the brain operation.

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