Savant

monitor. He has slipped beyond graded rings or grids of probability. He is somewhere east of Oceanus Aethiopicus, south of Septentrio, north of Lis Incognita, on a heading west, his back and shoulder to the Mar del Norte.

Distance is no longer measured in miles but by bathymetry. He is a shark swimming in lazy dangerous circles, drawn by the smell of blood in the water as he goes down deeper into the land of the lost.

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25

Trask supposed that it was pointless to continue working on the notes about American violence, considering that he had no outlet for the research. But at this juncture it was as much momentum as anything that had kept him working on the story—if indeed it was a story. He was too logy to begin looking for another job yet, and he couldn't sit around watching television, so immersing himself in the homicides was a harmless obsession, he felt. He was razoring clippings and assembling his voluminous notes chronologically when a knock surprised him.

'Hey,' he said through the opening in the door, astonished to see the attractive face of Barb Rose, of all people.

'Hi. Any chance I could talk to you for a second?'

'Yeah. Come on in.' Why the hell not? He opened the door wide and ushered her in.

'Thanks. Feeling about the same?'

'Pretty much. I'm a little better. I don't get many colds or flu bugs but when I do…they take forever to shake. Have a seat.' He pointed to the only available place besides his own chair where he was working, and was suddenly conscious of all the clippings and work-ups adorning his apartment walls. No reason to hide them now, he supposed.

'I'm not going to stay, hon. I just—' She held out a small bag. 'Brought you something for your cold. Go ahead and have some while it's still warm.'

'Thanks.' He almost said—jokingly—what is it, a cup of hemlock? But he sat it on the little bar between the kitchen and living area and took the lid off the container. 'Ahh! Smells good.' Yellow thick broth of some kind.

'Chicken soup,' she said, with a smile. 'Fix you right up. I thought you might need some.' She was rather self-conscious all of a sudden, and moved toward the door. 'I'm going, Vic. I just wanted to tell you I heard about you leaving and stuff and wanted to say goodbye.'

'Come on. Stay for a little while. Sit. If you don't mind the mess—and aren't afraid I'll give you whatever I've got. I'd appreciate the company.' He meant it, surprising himself as he said it. Every time he was able to think clearly, he could see more and more what a total horse's ass he'd been. He thought he'd been particularly shitty about Barb.

'Okay. But just for a minute.' She sat on the edge of the sofa. 'I'll stay to make sure you eat that.' She laughed warmly.

'Right.' He got a spoon and tried some. 'Umm. That's very good.'

'We Jews are great believers in the healing properties of some good hot chick' n soup!' She gave the word a comedic emphasis. Trask took a few more spoonfuls. Tried not to slurp, but it was difficult. 'This stuff is delicious.' The more soup he ate the better Barb Rose looked to him. 'I gotta say something to you before you leave. And not just because you brought me chick' n soup. I've been a real asshole. Toward you.'

'You're right. What can I say?' She had a beautiful smile.

'Don't cover up your feelings like that, Barb. You gotta learn to say what you really think.' They both laughed. 'But I know I have. I can't explain it. I…'

'That's the past. Forget it. I wasn't always such an easy person to work with. We're a lot alike. Very competitive.'

'Yeah. That's for sure. I haven't been thinking clearly…about a lot of things, of which—of whom—you were one. Anyway—hope you'll accept my apology.'

'Not necessary. I thought you got a real bum deal at the station, by the way. Not that my opinion is worth anything. I suppose you know I'm leaving?'

'No. Leaving KCM?'

'Yep. Gave my notice a few days ago.'

'I hadn't heard. May I ask where you're going?'

'New York.'

'New York?'

'CNBC.'

'All right! Congratulations. That's great.'

'I'm pretty excited.'

'You should be.' He was happy for her. 'That's wonderful, Barb. I'm jealous. How the hell did you get that— not that you're not good at what you do—but wow! New York!'

'It was weird. A guy we worked with in Memphis went out to the Coast. His specialty is business and entertainment news. And CNBC just hired him to create a new department and he called me.'

'That's terrific. I'll bet Babaloo is grief-stricken!'

'Babaloo is Babaloo. He had the gig filled by the time I was out of his office. Ditto with yours. He knows a million young writers and broadcasters just crying to crack a market like Kansas City, so it's pretty easy. Even with the crappy money KCM pays.' She gestured around the apartment. 'I like your wallpaper. Who's your decorator—the Kansas City Star?'

'Yeah.' He laughed. 'I'm still wound up on this story and I can't stop. I don't have anywhere to go with it but—what the hell. Gives me something to do besides worry about what to put on my resumes.'

She nodded. Got up from the sofa and eyed her watch. 'Gotta run, kid. Let me know when you land somewhere. Okay?'

'Sure. I don't—I haven't even begun to think about a gig. But I can always get a thing reading news at a little station somewhere. You know—just to put beans on the table. I may not be in too big a hurry to relocate. I've been wanting to write for a long time—and I might try that while I've got the free time.'

'Let's keep in touch,' she said.

'I'd like that. Really.' He moved around the counter and reached out to give her a friendly pat. She leaned in to the side of his cheek, making him wish that he'd shaved.

'I won't give you a real kiss because I don't want the flu,' she said, smacking air. 'But—bye, hon. Take care and get well.'

'Don't be surprised if you get a phone call from me one day. Okay?'

'Okay,' she said. He opened the door for her and she went out. 'Have fun,' she added, in the old-time radio lingo for goodbye.

'Likewise.' He'd never really let himself think about how well-built this woman was. Barbra Rozitsky was a looker. He felt better than he'd felt in a week. 'Kill'em in the Big Apple,' he said to her departing back, and she smiled and waved.

He closed the door and finished his soup. Then he looked up a telephone number in the Rolodex on his desk, and pressed the buttons on his phone. After a few moments, a man's voice said hello.

'Hello. May I speak to Kit please?'

'May I tell her who's calling?'

'Her father,' he said.

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26

Death is alone. An impossible monster. A hybrid killer with a core as inhuman and beastly as can be conceived. Like an inexplicable strain of pathogenic bacteria, the core continues to evolve almost independent of the host being.

Death's thoughts are of food—burritos at the moment. But on other levels, its dark, poisonous, ectogenous malignancy continues to feed on information and remembered pain and pleasure, changing, growing, spreading