by Joss Ware
And the first header from Sage was: Lou’s GONE!
Followed by: WHERE ARE YOU?
And: LOU IS MISSING!!!!!!
Theo’s heart dropped to his knees. He couldn’t get the first message opened quickly enough.
Where are you? So relieved to hear from you. Have you heard from Lou? He’s missing. He left a note that he was going to find you. Is he with you?
The next message was a little less calm: Are you in contact with Lou? Where are you? Are you safe? Please respond. I’m waiting!
And the final one was practically shouting, which, if one knew Sage, was something one knew didn’t happen often—despite her fiery hair. DON’T SEND A MESSAGE AND THEN NOT CHECK YOUR EMAIL FOR HOURS WHEN YOU KNOW I AM SITTING HERE ALL THE TIME, THEO! What the hell is going on? We’re worried about you and Lou. I NEED TO HEAR FROM YOU. PLEASE.
Ooops.
And shit.
Theo concentrated. Lou? You there?
Waiting. Waiting.
Lou?
Meanwhile, he typed: Sage, sorry. Dont have much access. Lou not w me. Will lyk asap. Am fine.
He sent the message then got up and walked over to the window, as if that might make the connection better. Lou. He tried again.
Just then, he heard the soft ding of the message program on the computer and, at the same time, felt the sensation of a mental response: What the fuck? The meaning, if not the actual wording, of Lou’s grumbly message came through loud and clear.
Where are you? Theo asked him.
He opened the email message—which was of course from Sage again. Finally!! Glad you’re okay. Where are you? I’m worried about Lou. Zoë said she met him leaving Envy. He said he was going to look for you. Haven’t you been in touch with him through your mental-thingy?
Lou stirred in response. On my way to find you.
Idiot. Theo sent back an affectionate reaction to him, and then began typing to Sage: Am talking to Lou now thru mental-thingy :) He is OK. Dont worry. More ltr.
Theo messaged back to Lou: Are you safe?
Dude. The heartfelt reply came through loud and clear.
Theo grinned in the light of the monitor and sent a message back. I’m coming to find you. Lou was southwest; he could feel the direction from which their connection was coming.
No! Not necessary.
The sensation and emotion in that response was vehement and unambiguous. Theo mulled on that for a minute, holding back his automatic, protective reaction. They might be twins, but it was certainly as if Lou was the grandfather and he was the younger man—at least physically. Lou was seventy-eight years old, and looked and moved that way. Theo did not like the idea of him out there alone.
Theo. Stay there. Am coming to you. Another very strong message. Help with Blizek.
But . . . Lou was by far the smartest man Theo had ever known—not that he’d ever fully admit that to his brother. Theo still couldn’t get Lou to admit that Torvalds—not Jobs—was the greatest genius who’d ever existed. Lou had lived in this new world as long as Theo had; in fact, he’d actually lived through the Change while Theo was unconscious in the subterranean chamber until he was found, days later.
Okay, he sent back in response to Lou. At least he knew he could always check on him. Network? he asked. He couldn’t imagine Lou leaving Envy without a microcomputer or some way to tap into the network. Maybe he’d even planned to set up NAPs along the way too.
Later. Driving. Roads are for shit.
Theo smiled and let the connection lapse. He hoped he wasn’t making a mistake, leaving Lou on his own. But he was right: he needed his help here. And he was a grown man, for God’s sake.
Despite the fact that the Resistance movement was Lou’s life and breath, and that he worked long hours with Theo (and Sage) to develop the network, to rebuild a very incomplete, but growing, Internet, and to begin to pull contacts together, he had no other life. Little pleasure and no adventure. Sure, Theo was known as the reckless one—but that was just because he was so overt about it.
It had, after all, been Lou who’d rewired the fire alarms to go off during midterms their junior year of high school. And who’d tried to make a sort of snowboard/ski jump off the top of their house in Seattle. (It was on the side of a small hill, which made it a logical attempt . . . or so they argued when confronted by their parents.)
Most of the people in Envy thought the old man was crazy, with his talk of conspiracies and repression—either that, or, more likely, people simply didn’t want to believe what he claimed could be true. Or, even more likely, there were just plain fearful of what would happen if they confronted the truth.
Theo had seen that sort of ignorance, fear, and apathy over and over. He’d also seen the effects of propaganda from powerful entities—such as had happened in Hitler’s Germany, as well as with twenty-first century North Korea before the Change. People could believe and buy into the most illogical, incorrect things if their minds were manipulated and their information restricted. The Strangers had their ways of doing both.
So Lou and the others kept their theories and knowledge to themselves as they quietly built their network of computers, and also of contacts embedded in various settlements around Envy.
Theo resolved to make communication with his brother regularly until he arrived. If he was in a truck, he guessed it couldn’t be more than a few days.
In the meantime, he had tonight—after dinner—to look forward to.
Thus, to say Theo was disappointed, when he sat down for dinner to find the table missing Selena, was an understatement. But . . . yeah. She wasn’t there, and although he, Sam, Frank, Tim (Tom?), and Vonnie all took their seats, there wasn’t even a place set for her. Yet the fact that Jennifer, who obviously ate with them as often as she assisted Selena, was also absent didn’t bother him in the least.
“Selena’s with a patient,” Vonnie explained, as if she’d read his mind. She set down a large dish with her customary verve, and the long-handled spoon became unbalanced and tipped out onto the table. “Two new ones today, plus Robert’s been holding on and Selena thinks he’s almost ready to go now too.”
Theo nodded and resisted the temptation to glance back down the hall toward what he’d come to think of as the hospice ward. Instead, he dug into the soup, spooning up quarter-sized carrot slices as he inhaled the delicious smell of roasted peppers.
“That probably happens a lot,” he said.
“Yeah,” Sam replied. His expression, although not as cool as it had been earlier, wasn’t what one would consider warm either. “All the time. We’re all used to it.” Same with his tone of voice.
Theo figured holding the hand of a dying person might put a bit of a damper on any amorous thoughts Selena might have had anyway. Probably just as well. There were other things he could be doing until the time was right . . . not that that meant he wouldn’t try and catch up with her later. Definitely.
But until then, he could easily occupy his time. “She’s going to be busy for a while,” Vonnie said, looking at Theo.
He got the message. But at the time, he didn’t realize it was going to be three days before he actually saw Selena again.
He did realize, though—with a start late on that third day—that he was feeling settled here at Blizek Beach. Working in the arcade, helping Frank with his garden and the animals and out on the grounds of the estate, he’d found some other things to occupy his time and thoughts.
He was comfortable. And even happy. And that was despite the fact that he couldn’t wait to back that hot piece of Selena into a dark corner somewhere . . . if he could ever get her alone.
“So . . . ,” Vonnie said as Theo brought a stack of dishes over to her after dinner one night. “How long you planning on sticking around here?”
The evening loomed ahead. Theo was getting a little restless, ready for companionship from someone he could talk to. He’d heard that one of Selena’s new patients had passed away, but that Robert was still clinging to li
fe, against all odds. He wondered if she’d be able to get away. Surely she needed a break. Frank had commandeered Sam and his friend (whose name Theo had finally confirmed was neither Tim nor Tom nor even Tyler—but Andrew) to help with some work in the garden.
Theo grinned at Vonnie. “Just until I clear the table. I’ll let you handle the scrubbing and rinsing. I don’t want to ruin my hands.”
She laughed and bumped him cheerfully with her round hip as he dropped off the dishes. “You know that’s not what I meant. And at least you’ll clear the table without me having to ask, unlike Sammy-boy. If Frank doesn’t snag him quick enough, he disappears and heads down to the river to fish or over to Yellow Mountain to hang out with his friends. He might even do his homework, but it’s never top of the list.”
“Sounds like a typical teenager to me,” Theo said. “But he seems like a responsible kid, anyway.”
“He is, more than some. Misses having a dad around, though. Frank . . . well, he’s a good man, a very good man. But he’s too busy with all his projects to give him much time, and too durned deaf to hear half the things anyone says.” The dishes clashed and clattered merrily in the sink.
Theo turned back to the table. Holy crap. She wasn’t hinting—was she?—about how long I’m going to stay and how badly Sam needs a father. Was she?
After all, he’d only been here a week. And besides that, the kid didn’t seem terribly pleased with the idea of Theo being around. And why would Vonnie even think of him and Selena hooking up? Everyone else seemed to think that the age difference—such as it was—was some sort of cardinal sin.
“What happened to Sam’s dad?” Theo asked, figuring since she’d brought it up . . .
He didn’t miss Vonnie’s secretive smile. Holy Jewish Mother, she was matchmaking. How the hell should he take that?
“He and Selena had a disagreement and there was a big tragedy involved. She left—we all left; me, her, and Sammy-boy—and eventually ended up here. Was about seven, eight, maybe ten years ago now,” Vonnie said, her little nose wrinkling up. “We met Frank and he invited us to stay here.”
“A disagreement?” Theo asked.
Now Vonnie stopped all of her exuberant ablutions and looked at him. “He didn’t understand her and he didn’t trust her, when it all came down to it.”
Down to what?
“He was a damn fool,” Vonnie said, clanging and clinking at the sink again.
“Who was?”
Theo’s stomach did a pleasant little flip at the sound of Selena’s voice. She walked into the kitchen, giving him the briefest of glances—cool, so casual—and scooped up a handful of almonds.
“Brandon,” replied Vonnie, a definite sneer in her voice.
Selena’s expression tightened. “Didn’t you always teach me not to tell tales?”
Vonnie snorted, but instead of replying, she offered Selena a plate already filled with food. “Eat something and don’t lecture me. How’s Robert?”
“Doing all right. He’s not ready to go yet . . . maybe tomorrow or the next day. Stubborn guy. I expect Frank will be like that when it’s his time too.” She glanced toward the window, where the sun was low to the horizon, and nibbled on a piece of red pepper. Her hair, which had been pinned up, was sagging and hanging in sexy little strands around her face and neck. She was wearing jeans and, instead of a loose tunic, a short shirt that showed the curve of her ass and was buttoned down the front.
Hmmm . . . easy access. And his skin was already prickling with expectation.
Theo dried his hands on a towel and caught Selena’s eyes. “I’m sorry to hear that,” he said, referring to the dying man and trying to keep his thoughts on the matter at hand . . . not on the way that one button between her breasts was straining a bit more than the others. He’d be happy to relieve its pain. “Is he in a lot of discomfort?”
Selena drank some water from the cup Vonnie handed her, and met his gaze briefly over its rim. “He says he’s not,” she said as she lowered the glass, “but he is.” Her lips tightened a bit and she shrugged in acceptance. “The marijuana helps sometimes, and the tea, but it can’t eliminate all of the pain.”
“That must make it even harder for you, knowing there’s not much you can do.”
She nodded. “I wish I had some of the medicine and treatments they had . . . before. Or at least, more information about how they alleviated pain then. It might help.”
I might be able to help you with that. Either me or Elliott. Theo folded the towel and set it on the counter. “I’m going to go back up to the arcade. There are some things I want to check out up there.” He took care not to look at Selena—both for his own sake, and Vonnie’s as well.
“Where’s Frank?” Selena asked as Theo paused to get a drink of water.
“He went out to work in the garden, same as he always does,” Vonnie replied.
“Sammy go with him?”
“Yes. He didn’t get away fast enough.”
“Darn,” Selena said. “I wanted him to help me move that big shelf for the supply room.”
“I’m sure Theo would help you,” Vonnie said in a very smooth voice. “Wouldn’t you, Theo?”
And that was how it happened.
“You didn’t fool her in the least,” Theo said to Selena as he followed her down the hall. His heart was suddenly racing, and his belly had become embarrassingly filled with fluttering butterflies. He felt like a middle-schooler going to his first dance.
She tossed back a smile at him that did nothing to calm the upheaval in his stomach. “I know. But it made me feel better.”
He felt odd, following a woman to . . . well, he assumed, her bedroom. But he wasn’t quite certain. Maybe she did need help moving a big shelf. Probably not.
But it was a little strange to him, knowing that this was all planned. That they were going to have sex. Could it be any less spontaneous? Could it be any more awkward, for a first time? Any less . . . special?
And why was he making such a big deal about it? It was going to be good, no matter how it went.
They started up a flight of stairs near the far end of the large house, and Theo couldn’t resist asking, “Your supply room is on the second floor? Not very convenient, is it?”
Selena curled her fingers on the top of the banister, stepped up, and turned to give him a hot smile as she went around the corner. “I have a feeling you’ll find it very convenient.”
Oh, yes. A dart of lust shot through him, and he vaulted up the last few steps with a little jump, landing next to her. “If you’re sure . . .”
“I’m su—”
But Theo’d decided he was through with waiting, and he had her in his arms before she could finish her sentence. He found her mouth easily, covering it with his as he edged them away from the stairs. Instinct from living in a deteriorating world for fifty years had him shifting from the railing at the top of the landing, and instead pulling her up against his chest as he leaned against the wall.
Steadying himself, so that he could put all his energy and effort into tasting and enjoying her, he smoothed his hands up over her delicate shoulder blades, crossing them to stabilize her as he deepened the kiss.
Selena had at first stiffened in surprise. But now she melted against him, pressing Theo into the wall and received his kiss, drawing his tongue and lips into her mouth as if she wanted to devour him. Theo lost himself for a moment, just drinking in her smell, the soft, welcome lines of her body, the way he tilted back, stable, against the wall, holding her against him. Everything became hot and sleek as their kiss eased into serious business.
His hand found her ass, sweeping over that sweet round curve as he slipped his knee between her legs. “I’ve missed you,” he said. “Where have you been?”
“I really do,” she said, shifting back a bit, clamping her teeth around his lower lip and tugging at it, “have something heavy . . . for you to move.”
Theo closed his eyes against the niggling pleasure-pain at his l
ip, the muscles beneath his skin shivering with want. She released him and then swiped her tongue in a little apologetic dance over his throbbing lip.
“Want to make me work for it, do you?” he murmured, slipping his fingers between them to give relief to that straining button on her blouse. And then the one below it.
“Oh, yes,” she replied, pressing down onto the knee he’d slipped between her legs. “I wanted to get you all hot and sweaty first.”
Another button. And then another. He slid his hands beneath the opening of her shirt, taking care of the still tender ganga slashes on the front of her shoulder. For a moment, he paused and looked down at them, a stab of anger and something like fear shooting through him. “Selena,” he whispered, imagining those awful, evil nails scoring her smooth, tanned skin . . . and somehow, her getting away from such a threat. Miraculous.
How? And why would she risk it again? At least he knew she hadn’t gone out the last few nights. He’d been watching.
As if reading his mind and looking for a way to detour it, she shifted, her hand cruising down between them to cover the raging hard-on straining the buttons of his shorts. The confident weight of her hand, cupping him, sliding over the center of his desire, drove all other thoughts from his mind. He couldn’t hold back a groan as she found the length of him through the fabric, up and along, back and forth, as he filled his hands with her bra-clad breasts.
“About that heavy thing . . . you needed me to move,” he muttered. “Can I do that later?”
She laughed against him and then slipped away, quickly and suddenly. “Come on,” she said, her eyes hot and her full mouth curved with promise and humor. “You can show me what you’ve got.”
He liked the sound of that.
Theo followed as she darted down the hallway past what had likely been bedrooms and guest suites when Brad Blizek lived here. Her shirt flapped open behind her, and her sagging hair was now drooping even further. And her slender feet . . . bare and quick beneath her jeans.