Everybody Pays Read Online Free Page A

she hit the ground.
    12
    “Seven, as promised,” the crone said. “You took nine, but only seven counted.”
    “I know,” the blonde woman answered. “Now bring him back.”
    “You did it very quickly. Where did you learn such skills?”
    “In the Army.”
    “When we reach back, he can return at any age, as I told you. He was twenty-three when he was taken. That was almost four years ago. The aging process continues even . . . there. How old do you want him to be when he passes through the gate?”
    “I want him to be a baby. A newborn baby.”
    “Yes. Ever since this started, thousands of years ago, people like you have been called vigilantes. But it’s not for justice, is it? It’s always for revenge. What did he do that you want to kill him as a baby? Are you related to one of the victims?”
    “Not one of the victims,” the blonde said. “Him. He’s my brother. We were separated when I was five and he was only a year old. They put us in different homes. I didn’t even know he existed until . . . it was in the papers. My parents, the ones who adopted me, they never told me.”
    “And you want to reach back for him, have him pass back through the gate as a baby, so you can kill him yourself? For what he did to your name?”
    “No,” the blonde said. “I want to
raise
him myself. So he can honor it.”
    for David Hechler

LAST DATE
    I was on time for our Thursday-night date, but Bonnie never showed. I know things like that can happen, so I wasn’t worried, not at first. The thing is, I couldn’t find out
what
happened to her until the next Thursday, a whole week.
    So I was a little early the next Thursday night. I figured I might stay a little later, too—I held on to the money I was going to spend on her from the week before, and I was really loaded.
    She was late. That’s what I thought, at first. But I didn’t do anything with anybody else. I never do—not since I found Bonnie. That would be cheating, and George Steckle never cheats. Ask anyone. My boss, the guys in the shipping room, my landlady—anyone. I pay all my bills, right on time. In fact, I’m debt-free. That’s very important, to be debt-free. It means you don’t owe anybody anything.
    When it got past midnight, I knew she wasn’t coming. I was really upset. Sad and upset. Bonnie would never break a date with me, I knew that.
    I’m ashamed of myself for what I did next. I went back on a different night. Not on a Thursday, the way we always do. I went on a Friday. The very next night, I admit it. That’s a busy night, usually. I know that from before—before I met Bonnie, when I used to go a lot.
    But she wasn’t there. I sat there for hours and I never saw her. And if she had been there, I would have seen her. I know the place like the back of my hand—I had been going there for years before Bonnie came.
    The way I figured it, something was wrong. Maybe Bonnie was hurt, or in the hospital or something. I knew she wasn’t on vacation, or gone home to visit her family, or anything like that—she would have told me first. I mean, Bonnie isn’t the kind of girl who would just stand you up on a date. She has very good manners, and she’s very considerate as a person. You can tell she was raised right—her parents did a good job.
    But I didn’t do anything. Not then. I just figured, okay, I’d come back when I was supposed to. On Thursday night, I mean. And then everything would be all right.
    I could hardly wait for the next Thursday. I mean, I wasn’t jumping up and down or anything. And the guys at work didn’t say anything, so I know they didn’t notice. They really get on your case if they notice things; that’s the way they are. The way everybody is, I guess.
    I always wear my good suit when I have a date with Bonnie. I only have the one, but I keep it real nice. And I have different ties, so it looks different when I wear it at different times, if you know what I mean. So I got dressed up, and I went for our