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She scowled, shaking her head.  Why is your face changing like that?
His face felt as though it were crawling with insects. He massaged
his brows, his cheekbones, trying to make the sensation stop. His face
seemed to be growing thinner.  I don t know. I don t know why any of this is
happening. I don t know why I tried to kill you. He looked up
sharply. 
You must not trust me
.
 I thought you wanted me to trust you.
He shook his head.  I want you to believe me. But  his voice
became hard   do not trust me. No. Not at all. Not until you re sure. Until
we know that I can be trusted.
She stared at him, and he looked away.
Please, Max Hurry
!
!
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Chapter 9
She was tightening the cords around his wrists when the door chime sounded.
 Will that hold? she asked, yanking on the knot. She circled around
and stared at his face, with an expression caught somewhere between
fascination and terror. He could hardly blame her.
He shrugged.  Maybe you should let him in.
Page 44
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As they waited for Max to come up from the lobby, he tried to remember what he
could of
Tamika Jones; but in this area, as in so many others, he could find only
shadows of memories.
He was adrift in darkness; and he dared not question her, for fear
of confirming her worst suspicions. He could only guess at Tamika s
feelings as she d watched a monster who claimed to love her change, like a
human chameleon, into the man she herself had known and loved.
 Willard, she said, interrupting his thoughts.  If you are
Willard 
He raised his eyes questioningly.
 What the hell did they do to you? she whispered and there was more than just
fear in her voice.
Before he could answer, the inner door chimed. Tamika checked the
monitor before opening the lock.  Ali Maksam, she murmured in relief.
Max entered, wearing what looked like a white spacesuit, with a fabric hood
enclosing his head and a dark visor across his eyes. The Logothian
moved with a sinuous, rippling gait, which was only partially concealed
by the suit. He paused and gazed at Ruskin, who was still sitting
crosslegged, and now bound, on the floor. Max s expression was concealed by
the hood;
but when his voice hissed out, the dismay was plain to hear.  What is the
meaning of this?
Ruskin was silent while Tamika locked the door again. She stood, glancing
between the two of them, the weapon still in her hand.  It was necessary,
Ruskin said, tugging instinctively on the cords that bound his wrists.  You
tell him, he said to Tamika.
 Where the hell do I start?
 At the beginning. Don t try to make sense of it. Just say what
happened, from the beginning.
She nodded, eyes half closing. When she spoke, it was in a different
voice harsh, angry, afraid.  You tried to you came to the door, and you tried
to kill me. But it wasn t you. You were different. I don t 
 Please, Max whispered, crossing the room.  I do not understand.
They looked at one another in silence.  None of us understands, Ruskin said.
 Why don t you sit, Max? But don t get too close. He tugged
experimentally on the cords binding his wrists.  I don t know if this
would really hold. I might do something that I can t control.
Max nodded and settled into a position on the floor that seemed
more coiled than cross-legged. The Logothian, Ruskin knew, could move fast
at need.  Tamika, might I ask you to dim the lights, please? Max asked.
 But leave them bright enough to keep a watch on me, Ruskin cautioned.
 Yes. That would be satisfactory, for now, Max said.
Tamika complied and drew up a chair, so that the three of them formed a
small circle in the gloom. Ali Maksam adjusted the visor on his hood to a
more nearly transparent setting and blinked at them with eyes that were large
and dark, with glittering diamonds at their centers.
Tamika cradled the weapon in her hand. She began explaining.
A man had come to her door and identified himself as Willard Ruskin. Having no
reason to fear or doubt that it was Willard, she d not checked the
monitor before opening the door.
Instead of her friend, however, she d come face-to-face with a [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]