The Solution
Page 9
«You can't do this,» David moaned. «You can't do this!»
«lt is now fifteen minutes,» Ax said.
I closed my eyes and wished I could cover my ears to keep out the sounds. But it was thought-speak I was hearing. And you can't block that out.
150 It took two hours for David to become a nothlit. A person trapped in morph.
Two hours. But that two hours of horror will last forever in my mind. If I live a hundred years, I will still hear his cries, his threats, his pleading, each night before sleep takes me. And beyond sleep, in my dreams.
Once we were sure he was trapped, Ax and I morphed. I morphed into bald eagle, Ax into harrier. We took turns carrying the helpless rat out across the beach, across the breaking surf, out to the tiny, desolate rock a mile or more from shore.
There were other rats there. Guess there had
151 to be a food supply. But the rocks and the waves kept humans away from the place.
We left him there. And we flew away.
«Rachel?» Ax said.
«Yeah?»
«l think ... I think I will never want to speak of this again.»
I didn't answer. I was still listening to the thought-speak cries that followed us for so long. That long, wailing, «Nooooo!»
At last, the cries were left behind us.
We flew over the Marriott resort where the summit meeting had taken place. It still looked pretty bad. There were repair crews everywhere. No sign of the world leaders.
Maybe they'd decided to take the meeting somewhere else. I can't even imagine what they made of the whole thing. Hard to explain being attacked by elephants and rhinoceroses here in ... well, never mind where "here" is.
Something kind of snapped in me after that. I didn't suddenly become all soft and mushy or anything. I didn't turn into a wimp. But somehow the joy I'd gotten from combat, the thrill I'd gotten from battle against impossible odds . . . well, I guess maybe I just grew up a little.
We never heard from David again. Not di-
152 rectly, at least. But months later I heard some kid at school talking about the rock.
It was haunted, he said. He and his family had passed close by on a boat. He swears he'd heard a faint, ragged voice crying, "No! No!"
153 Don't; miss
o
Hello. My name is Tobias. I ..."
I hesitated. The secretary was looking at me skeptically. Like maybe I'd come in looking to borrow a quarter for the video game at the convenience store.
"My name is Tobias." I told her my last name. Weird. I could barely remember it. It felt like I was using an alias. "I think Mr. DeGroot wanted to talk to me."
She was puzzled. I looked at her nameplate. Ingrid.
"It's pronounced DeGroot. It rhymes with boat."
"Oh."
"Let me just check with Mr. DeGroot." She picked up her phone and punched a line. "Mr. DeGroot, there's a young boy named Tobias --- out here. He says - oh. All right."
154 She hung up the phone.
"I guess he does want to see you," she admitted. "Right through that door."
I checked the door. Fine. The lawyer's office was still sharing a wall with the laundromat. If I started yelling it would take Rachel about three minutes to morph and come through that wall.
Three minutes is a very long time when you can't even fly.
I used the doorknob. Yes, human hands were very cool. As a bird I'd have been totally defeated by a doorknob.
DeGroot was younger than I'd expected. More in his twenties or thirties than really old. He was wearing a white shirt and red suspenders. His jacket was thrown casually over a chair.
He jumped up and smiled.
"So, you are Tobias."
"Yes. I'm Tobias."
He looked me up and down. I did the same to him.
"I've been hoping I could locate you, Tobias. Have a seat, please. Would you like some water? A soda? Coffee? No, I guess you don't drink coffee at your age. A soda? We have Coke, diet Coke. And we might have some Dr. Brown's cream soda. I'd have to have Ingrid check."
If he was getting ready to pull a gun and shoot
155 me, or expecting to have Visser Three come storming in the door, he hid it very well.
I relaxed a little. But I was baffled. Water? Coffee? Soda? What was the right answer?
"Urn ... um ..."
Good grief. You'd think it was Final Jeopardy and the category was Obscure Modern Poets. I was so out of practice being human.
"I'd like a Coke!" I practically yelled.
DeGroot pressed his intercom. "Ingrid, our young friend would like -"
"- a Coke. Yes, I heard him. All the way out here."
The lawyer and I stared at each other till the Coke came. I gripped the can self-consciously and pressed it to my beak. Lips.
It had been a long time since I'd tasted sugar. I almost burst out laughing. It was like being Ax in human morph. The taste of sugar was overwhelming! And the coldness. I hadn't felt cold in my mouth in a very long time.
"Tobias, where have you been staying? Your legal guardians both seemed to think the other one had you."
Not a question I wanted to answer. "I take care of myself."
DeGroot smiled. "No doubt. But you are under age. You can't 'take care of yourself.' Not legally."
156 "You can't lock me up," I said. Literally true. One thing about being an Animorph: No home, no building, no school, no jail or prison could hold me.
The lawyer looked pained. "That's not what I am talking about."
"Okay. What are you talking about?"
That seemed to set him back a little. It was weird. I had a toughness I'd never had when I was human. As a human I'd been a bully magnet.
"Here's the thing. I represent your father's estate."
"My father is dead." That's what I told him. But over the years and especially lately I'd begun to wonder.
"Tobias . . ." He leaned across his desk. "Your father, that father, the man who died? That may not have been your real father."
"What?"
"I have a document . . . it's a strange situation. Very strange. Look, Tobias, I'm going to level with you. My father used to run this office. He's dead, too. He left this document along with the rest of his clients' papers. But on this he wrote me specific instructions. Very specific. On the date of your next birthday your father's last statement was to be read to you, if at all humanly possible."
157 I didn't know what to say. If this was a trap, it was a weird one.
"Are you okay? You don't seem surprised."
No, I didn't, I realized with a start. I had forgotten to make facial expressions. It was something I didn't do as a hawk.
"I am surprised," I said. I twisted my face into what I hoped was an expression of surprise. But it occurred to me that I was facing a new problem: He'd said he'd read the document on my next birthday.
When was my birthday? I couldn't exactly ask him.
"Now there's this new complication. A woman named Aria, who says she is your cousin. Your great-aunt's daughter. Apparently she's only just learned of your situation. She's a very acclaimed nature photographer and she's been on long-term assignment in Africa. She wants to meet you."
"Why?"
"You're family. She wants to help you."
"Oh."
"She'd like to meet you tomorrow. At the hotel where she's staying. If that's okay. It's the Hyatt downtown. Do you know where that is?"
I could have said, yes, I am familiar with their roof. A peregrine falcon has a nest there in a niche in the radio tower. And the thermals are great, sweeping up the south face of the build-
158 ing, warm air radiating up from the street below and gaining strength from the sunlight reflected off all those windows.
What I did say was, "Yeah, I know where it is."
"She's very concerned for you."
"Uh-huh."
"Do you need money? A place to spend the night?"
"No. I'm fine."
I almost laughed. Rached had picked out my wardrobe. I looked like a poster boy for Tommy Hilfiger.
"I get by okay. Dm ... so when did you say you're going to read this document?"
"On your birthday."
"Ah. Okay. Bye."