Dark Zone

97

When Deidre Clancy finally managed to get out of bed, her chest begin to shake. She felt as if all the blood had rushed from her head and refused to come back.

She went to the bathroom and ran water on her face, then saw the pile of towels she’d left on the floor. Her stomach turned, but this time the urge to vomit was gone; the worst of her illness had passed.

Deidre turned on the bath and took off her robe and got in, spraying herself with the wand as the tub filled up. When she was finished, she threw the soiled towels into the tub and filled it with water again, poking them a bit before letting it drain; she had no washing machine in the small apartment and couldn’t face the idea of going to the Laundromat today, and maybe not tomorrow, either. After a few rinses the towels were clean enough to be hung on the rail and ledge outside the window. That done, she cleaned the tub and took a proper bath, the water as hot as she could stand it.

A half hour later, she got out, wrapped herself in a thick terry-cloth robe — she was now out of bath towels — and walked to the tiny kitchenette to measure out coffee for the ancient pot. When it was ready she poured herself a cup without her usual cream and went to the small living room, intending to veg out until her senses recovered sufficiently for her to come up with a plan for the rest of the day.

After a few minutes, she turned on the television, expecting to flip absent-mindedly through the offerings.

The first image she saw looked like something from a James Bond movie or maybe Schwarzenegger — helicopters buzzing in the air, circling a tower of smoke.

The Eiffel Tower, she realized.

A very good model, she thought. She punched the button for the next channel, but the image remained.

She glanced down at the remote, making sure she had pressed the proper button. The image remained.

It was the real Eiffel Tower.

Two more presses brought her to CNN. She watched the screen as a breathless correspondent based in London announced: “These are live pictures from Paris, where a group of terrorists has attempted an attack on the Eiffel Tower. Police and local military units are battling them now. The American President landed at Charles de Gaulle Airport just a few minutes prior to the attack, and sources close to the French police say that American intelligence agents provided a last-second warning against the terrorist strike. As you can see, the operation is ongoing. . ”

Deidre watched as one of the news helicopters zoomed its camera in on the grid work of the tower. A man was hanging upside down near the side, his leg caught in a cable. Two French policemen were climbing up from below; another was trying to get to him from above.

The large man didn’t look like a terrorist. He had blond hair and was in jeans and—

Deidre dropped the remote as the man’s face briefly came into focus.

It was Tommy Karr. And he was smiling.