Are You Afraid Of The Dark

Ta

Ta

Ta

"Those bitches!"

AT IRMA'S INTERNET Cafe, Diane was busily operating a computer. She looked up at Kelly.

"Have we left anyone out?" Kelly said, "Elle, Cosmopolitan, Vanity Fair, Mademoiselle, Readers Digest…" Diane laughed. "I think this does it. I hope Kingsley has a good caterer. He's going to have a big party."

Vince carballo was looking at Grace Seidel excitedly. "You know Kelly?" "Oh, yes," Grace said. "She's one of the most famous models in the world." Vince Carballo's face lit up. "Where is she?" Grace looked at him in surprise. "I don't know. I've never met her." His face reddened. "You said you knew her." "I mean-everybody knows her. She's very famous. Isn't she beautiful?" "You have no idea where she is?" Grace said thoughtfully, "I do have kind of an idea." "Where?" "I saw a woman who looked like her get on a bus this morning. She was traveling with someone-" "What bus was it?" "It was the bus to Vermont." "Thanks." Vince Carballo hurried away.

TANNER THREW THE pile of faxes and e-mails to the floor and turned to Pauline.

"Do you know what those bitches have done? We can't let anyone see Prima." He was thoughtful for a long moment.

"I think Prima will have an accident the day before the party and blow up." Pauline looked at him a moment and then smiled. "Prima II." Ta

TANNER LED THE way into the redbrick building and walked over to Prima. Ta

Andrew looked after them. "You're not taking me with you?" "No. You stay here. Just remember: six o'clock, three times." "I'll remember." As they walked outside, Pauline said, "What if he doesn't remember?" Ta

CHAPTER 45

AT WAS A perfect day for flying. KIG's 757 was speeding over the Pacific Ocean under an azure blue sky. Pauline and Ta

Pauline said, "Darling, do you know it's a shame that people will never know how brilliant you are?" "If they ever found out, I'd be in big trouble." She looked at him and said, "No problem. We could buy a country and proclaim ourselves the rulers. Then they can't touch us." Ta

Pauline stroked his hand. "Did you know that I wanted you from the first time I saw you?" "No. As I remember, you were very impertinent." "And it worked, didn't it? You had to see me again, to teach me a lesson." There was a long, erotic kiss.

Far away, lightning flashed.

Ta

Ta

In the distant sky, there were more flashes of lightning.

"I hope there isn't going to be a storm," Pauline said. "I-I hate flying in rough weather." Ta

Ta

Ta

Pauline was screaming.

IN THE REDBRICK building at KIG, Andrew Kingsley was operating Prima, his fingers flashing over the keys in remembrance. Watching his target on the screen, he could see an image of his brother's plane being buffeted by three-hundred-mile-an-hour hurricane winds. He pressed another button.

AT A DOZEN branch offices of the National Weather Service, from Anchorage, Alaska, to Miami, Florida, meteorologists were staring at their computer screens in disbelief. What was happening seemed impossible, but it was happening.

WORKING IN THE redbrick building, Andrew was grateful that there was still one thing he could do to help make the world a better place. He carefully guided an F-6 tornado he had created-up— up-higher and higher…