Part 23 (2/2)
”You? You're special. All of you are special. Think of yourself as a bloodhound. And there is something else.” Lucy hesitated for a moment. ”You have conditioning against pain.”
Tony made a face. He wasn't sure he followed.
”You're tougher than most,” Lucy tried to clarify. ”You have a high pain threshold. You can take a beating, and not feel it as bad. Isn't that right?”
He nodded reluctantly. He could indeed take a punch. Several punches. It was never about how hard he could hit, but how hard he could get hit, how much punishment he could sustain before his legs dropped him out of a fight. He had never been knocked out. He had sustained deep knife cuts, caught fingers in car doors, hard knocks from accidental falls, and every time, he would simply grimace where others would scream out. He always thought he had nerve damage. His mother was the same way, but hers had beyond her limit.
”That is why Tim-Timechose you,” Lucy whispered and smiled at him. ”You are very special to us.”
”Sorry about all that,” Tony said and meant it.
”It's okay. You didn't completely freak out on me.”
”Has it happened before?”
”Mmhmmm, you would not believe the things people will say or do sometimes. Or maybe you do?”
”Maybe.”
”Well, anyway. You were chosen for those reasons. Following your instincts is exactly what we need. A departure from logic. Believe me, if it were as simple as placing a phone tap we would have done it already.”
That made Tony think. Lucy became quiet, recognizing the magic of thought when she saw it.
”Let's find a phone booth,” Tony finally said. ”Find a listing of golf courses. There can't be that many around. And there can't be that many open in March.”
”Do you have a name in mind?”
”Yeah,” Tony answered as he put the Mustang into gear. ”Anything to do with clouds. And Lucy?”
”Yes?”
”Let's drive slow this time. No more warp? Okay?”
Lucy winked at him and smiled. ”Okay.”
They drove deeper into British Columbia, looking for a phone booth. They found a new-looking motel just off one of the ramp ways. A huge sign framed with unlit bulbs said ”Happy Site.” Tony parked the car, which coughed and sputtered bad enough for him to get a wondering look from Lucy. He was thinking it, too. The beast was sick. Hauling a.s.s across the nation just might have taken its toll. They left the Mustang on the parking lot and went to the Happy Site's reception desk. He asked the receptionist for a telephone book, which the young man produced without a word. Tony took it and sat down on a cushy chair, near a window with a view of the parking lot. Lucy joined him, sitting with her hands between her knees, and watching him with interest.
”You got a pen and paper?” Tony asked. She immediately got up and went to the receptionist. She returned with both and handed them over.
Tony wanted to ask her if she went that far for nothing, how far would she go if he actually offered something. It was an old joke, and he kept it to himself. He took the pen and paper, and wrote down what he found. ”Mountain Greens,” he muttered in a light but clearly impressed tone. There was an address for Party Cloudy Road.
”Got something?” Lucy asked.
”Yeah, maybe,” he answered. He tucked the paper inside his jacket. ”Follow me.”
They left the motel without looking back at the receptionist and walked briskly to the car. The seats were still warm.
”Well?” Lucy demanded as she sat next to him. ”What's up? Are you going to tell me or just leave me hanging?”
”Sorry,” he said. He didn't want to keep anything from this one. ”Can you play golf?”
”Golf?” she repeated sceptically.
”Yeah.”
”Still thinking about your dreams?”
”Yeah.”
She nodded slowly, understanding softening her features. Truly, she thought, who could really understand where these wondrous creatures came up with their ideas. But, given how they were p.r.o.ne to be wrong with their predictions, Lucy learned long ago to hold her breath. This time though, she felt no doubt at all.
She felt quite lucky instead.
”You have an address?”
”Yup.” He held it up, over the steering wheel. ”Shouldn't be too hard to find. It's a golf course after all.”
Lucy smiled. ”Have you ever played?”
”Golf?” he perked up. ”Once. Well. No. I went walking around the greens with a buddy once. He played. I watched. Just there for the exercise. And it was summer. Just shootin' the s.h.i.+t, y'know.”
She frowned slightly at the word. Tony liked seeing the crease between her eyes.
”How did it look?”
”Boring. Much rather club a seal. But I was with a buddy, so it wasn't bad. I knew nothing of the game really, and I remember asking him how long it was going to take to play. Two or three hours, I figured. He laughed at that. Five hours later, we were done.”
”Oh, well,” Lucy said, not impressed. ”Maybe I'll try it sometime.”
”You can swing a club?”
”I can swing anything,” she grinned.
Tony grinned back. ”I bet you can. Let's drive.”
One hour later they arrived at the golf course-there hadn't been the slightest bit of fast time, Tony thought. Perhaps 'fast time' was only for the highway driving. There were no walls barricading the course, only open fields that could be seen from the road. The greens were more crab apple yellow, and deserted. But Tony had a hunch. A mighty powerful hunch. He felt it when he first saw the ad. He felt that if he had his eyes closed and were just tracing the page with a finger, he would have stopped on that same ad. The feeling was that powerful. He opened his door and glanced at Lucy.
”We're here,” was all he said.
Chapter 30.
The world.
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