Speculative Fiction Collection

"I have done over fifteen hundred dives," I said, and let that sink in. The number was astronomical for a guy my age, even for a professional. "I have done free diving down to eighty meters. I have worked as a commercial diver and in commercial salvage." They were listening and nodding, concentrating on me while recording the conversation. "Then you, of all people, should have known better," said the little guy. "I did know better!" They were acting like the shark was the victim, not me. "How many people in the whole fucking galaxy could have come up alive, huh? How many would have had the technology and experience and conditioning?" "If you want our congratulations, you got 'em," said Odenny. "But we're more interested in what you were doing."

I duck through the door behind her. The place is jammed with customers. "You have any money? I didn't think to ask Miss Jennifer for any." TK answers, "don't worry, just tell me what you want." "Large with extra sugar and cream." TK grins and focuses her attention on the line of people stretching from the entrance down to the counter. They all sidestep and she walks unimpeded front of the pack. "One large black, and one large with extra sugar and cream." The barrista, a girl of about 18, repeats the order in a flat monotone. "And these are on the house. Everyone gets free coffee for the next two hours." "Free for everyone," the clerk answers then puts our order together. TK snickers and hands the coffee over.

The diner stood off the highway outside a small town optimistically called Hope. Hope was being stuck in the middle of the Northwest and wishing you were someplace, anyplace else. And Hope was also the name on the tag pinned to the dead woman in waitress uniforms that was currently lying against the wall inside the _Barbie-Q Roadhouse_. I had to stop myself from worrying at the connection: looking for patterns when sometimes there are none at all. I wasn't worried about Hope (the waitress, not the town). I didn't get called down here for a murder: shit, murder is an honest-to-God American pastime. Just look at the statistics. No, I got called in because of the Marilyn. The Marilyn was also dead. All in all, there were five dead people in the Barbie-Q: two waitresses; a balding man who - from his bag full of cheaply-printed catalogues - was some sort of a general salesman; the diner's manageress; and Marilyn. They had been shot by a machine gun, probably an Uzi. Marilyn's head left a red smear against the glass of the booth she sat in. She was there alone. What the hell was a Marilyn doing out here?