“Charlie …” Eric said warningly. He noted that Gabriella did not object to the idea. All that made him hesitate was the belief she was angling for a long-term relationship, something that appealed to him not at all.
“Maybe we’ll do this again tomorrow,” Adrienne suggested.
“Okay by me,” Charlie replied, nodding toward his friend. “If Selvem’s brightest designer can tear himself away from his work, that is.”
They paid, strolled down the mirrored hallway toward the elevators.
“Wasn’t that something?” Adrienne was saying. “I mean, a real Syrax, right in front of us. I could have reached out and touched him."
“He probably wouldn’t have allowed it." Gabriella eyed herself in one wall. “I hear they don’t like to be touched. Maybe it has something to do with the field they carry.”
“Is it a protective device?” Adrienne asked.
“No,” Eric told her. “I read somewhere that it’s some kind of radiant suit, necessary for maintaining proper pressure and atmosphere. At least, that’s what the writer of the article claimed.”
“Seems plausible,” said Charlie, who appreciated reason even if his profession did not always demand it.
They parted company in the street-level lobby. Gabriella gave Eric a discreet if lingering kiss while Charlie groped Adrienne. She made a show of seeming flustered. The two men watched as the women departed.
“Nice,” Charlie opined. “Maybe some weekend we can all go skiing.”
“I don’t know the first thing about skiing, Charlie.”
“I’ll teach you. You ought to get out more. You're in better shape than I am, so if I can do it, you can, too.”
“I wish I had your confidence.”
“And I wish I had your b'ains. Hey, speaking of good shape, I don’t know who’s handling the company end of this new ring opto business as far as promo is concerned, but it—”
“I’ll do what I can, Charlie. You know that. Though why they’d listen to a designer, I don’t know.”
They sauntered out onto the street. Rush hour had gone its frenetic way while they’d enjoyed supper and the game, but the streets were still full of those who’d worked late and were hurrying homeward.
Around them the steel and glass towers of downtown Phoenix were ablaze with light. Dominating all lesser spires was the aerial warning beacon and laser rainbow which crowned the Associated Dynamics building. The skyscrapers were scattered judiciously about the central corridor, letting the moon shine through. The placement was by design. It does wonders for the mental health of a great city when its citizens can stroll the streets unintimidated by their surroundings.
On a small structure nearby, laser light crawled across a display several stories tall. A few older-style neon signs clung to street-side establishments.
Taking the place of the fleeing workers were people out for an evening’s pleasure. There were couples locked arm in arm, others holding hands, solos looking to make eye contact. A few Hare Krishnas edged around Eric and Charlie, neat in their uniform three-piece gray business suits and saffron turtlenecks, their top knots bobbing behind them. Harares on a street corner harangued passersby, pressing leaflets on any who’d take them. Their hysteria was muted by the fact that it was stili in the nineties.
Looking westward, they could see a slow line of cars crawling toward the Black Canyon freeway, inching their way up Van Buren. Commuters heading home to Flagstaff and Payson, Yuma, Havasu City, and Kingman, and football fans returning to Vegas and points north. There were no beggars and plenty of laughter in the crowds.
Street-level restaurants exuded spicy odors of Mexican food. Bookstores and art galleries promised nourishment for the mind and eye. It was all so different from the downtown metropolitan environmnents of even fifty years past.
A great deal was due to the intervention of the Colligatarch. The Authority had cleaned things up quite a bit as well as making it possible for more citizens to enjoy the good things of life. There were fewer families of great wealth, but the appalling poverty of the past had been largely eradicated. Life on planet Earth was pretty good. Nothing compared to the twin paradises of the colony worlds, but few mortals aspired to such heights. Most were content with their lives.
And as Charlie had pointed out, there was always the chance the Authority would reach out some day and choose some ordinary joe or jane to make the wondrous journey. Eric never thought about it. He was no dreamer.
Van Buren station was only a few blocks away. They ignored the programmed hail of a robocab and turned east down the boulevard. After sitting at their desks all day and a dinner table all evening, it was better to exercise a little before committing themselves to the confining seats of a tube car.
They were crossing Second Street when the car cut across in front of them, its powerful rear-mounted electric engine humming silently. Several passengers were visible through the transparent front even though the glass was darkened against sun and onlookers. All except the driver were watching opto. The bright lights of a nearby hotel penetrated the tinted glass, revealing the car’s interior.
That’s when Eric glimpsed the girl. It was very quick, and as she turned languorously to face him, it seemed she was looking straight through him. A tiny, elfin face; huge, haunted eyes of indeterminate color; a small mouth; and hair pulled back in a single relaxed wave to caress her neck like an auburn blanket.
Then car and passenger were gone around the corner. Eric stood gaping for half an eternity.
Then he began to run.
III
Charlie struggled to keep up but fell farther and farther behind. Startled onlookers stumbled out of Eric’s path. A few sent imprecations flying after him. He did not hear them any more than he heard the frantic shouts of his friend.
He turned the corner, slowed. The car had vanished, whether down Second or up around Washington he didn’t know. His eyes searched desperately, but there were three directions it could have taken at the next intersection. All he could do was stand there, trying to see above the crowd. A few strollers eyed him uncertainly. None more so than Charlie. He was puffing hard when he finally arrived.
“What the hell was that all about? You get a wasp in your pants?”
At first Eric didn’t hear him. When he looked over he spoke quietly. “No. No, I saw someone.”
“No kidding? You going to tell me who? A friend, a killer, Miss Universe?” When his friend’s silence continued he added sarcastically, “Give me a hint: animal, vegetable, or mineral?”
“Hmmm?” Eric’s eyes still clung to the intersection, hoping the car might magically reappear. “It was a girl.”
“Some girl! She give you the finger or flash you?”
“Neither. She didn’t do anything.” He added thoughtfully, “I think she might have looked at me. I’m not sure.”
“Sorry I missed her. She must’ve been something else. You ever think of trying out as fullback for the Scorchers? They could use one.”
“I’m sorry if I bumped anyone,” Eric murmured, remembering those strollers he’d rudely shunted aside during his mad dash for the corner.
