Each passing month, Michael continued to check the printouts as though he was merely waiting for them to change. He felt like a lookout on a lonely tower, staring into the night, watching for an enemy that he knew was somewhere beyond the horizon. He didn’t tell Lya that he still had nightmares which replayed the moment in the subway tunnel when he had thrown the star-stone into the path of the train. Like watching the stark images of an old black-and-white movie, he could still see the small dwarved figures scrambling after the crystal. He could still hear the rushing clatter of the train overtaking them.
But they had disappeared, leaving no trace, and he knew that they were still down there. He feared that he had given them the key to begin their work anew, and he would watch for any clues revealing their presence.
Michael scanned the printouts and waited for each month’s new report, but he still had not decided what he would do … if it changed.
When it changed.
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