Magic Feathers by Mike Resnick

Author:Mike Resnick
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: ePublishing Works!
Published: 2011-04-11T00:00:00+00:00

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II. The Wooden Stick

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Friendship noticed the wooden stick immediately. It was thin & flat, about the length of two fingers, rounded at the edges. It reminded him of a physician's tongue depressor. Uncertain kept it in his shirt pocket. He would pull it out every once in a while & tap his keyboard or the edge of his desk with it, while he worked at his computer.

Friendship found himself remembering many things about Uncertain. His quick smile; his bright eyes flashing like water-colors; his slow, careful movements, like those of an inexperienced painter. He always wore flashy capes, nothing conservative. Uncertain's expressions & gestures & even his voice when he spoke to a client on the telephone hid nothing. One glance, or a word or two, reminded him that Uncertain was a man incapable of deception. This was why Friendship had helped him through his training program. Looking back on it now, Friendship had felt a measure of paternalism toward him. There was no possible way Uncertain could be deceiving the firm. If he was involved in any impropriety, it must be completely unintentional, & in two days time Friendship would tell Chakra Moon Wary exactly that. He was ashamed for his participation in this little game of cat & mouse, no matter how inconsequential his role might be.

Still, there was the wooden stick. It meant nothing, of course; Friendship knew that. But it was inconsistent behavior—or was it just a nervous habit, brought on by the pressure to succeed at H & L? Friendship had felt such pressure himself; it had thrown off his sleeping patterns for a time, until he could adjust to the long hours & harried pace. Shortly after he'd completed his training program, he'd suffered migraine headaches for the first time in his life. But all in all he'd done pretty well. Some people cracked under the pressure. Unforgettably Blue had collapsed in the elevator from exhaustion, & Simplicity had to be sedated & pried out of her new Mercedes-Benz 560-ST in the parking lot across the street because she wouldn't let go of her steering wheel. "The car won't stop! The car won't stop!" she kept shrieking, her eyes bugging out like headlights. So what was a little stick-tapping?

Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap.

Friendship asked Uncertain to accompany him for broth.

"Thank you," replied Uncertain. "That would be wonderful!"

In the lounge, they talked about many things: The unfortunate state of the economy, corporate downsizing, white-collar lay-offs, ballooning unemployment, the sky-rocketing cost of higher education & how little it would buy one in this day & age. Just chit-chat, but Uncertain involved himself in every bit of it, listening intently to Friendship's tossed-off comments, & responding in his usual animated way when he had an opinion of his own to express.

Finally Friendship asked Uncertain about his personal life. Uncertain had gotten married last year, "To the most beautiful girl alive. Her name is Concerned." He smiled. "Isn't that a fabulous name? It sounds so serious. I'm always catching her with this worried look on her face.

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