Space-Time of Death: an Al Squires of the Protectorate Novel

Ch.8.2: Don't Hate the Player, Haight-Ashbury!

Norah, Mattie, and I took a trolley can down to when Buena Vista was located. It was mostly a silent trip; Mattie and Norah looked out the trolley to keep watch in case Feng was on a passing sidewalk, while I was looked worriedly at my emitter. When I was painting it, I took a quick diagnostic on it. Turned out that the battery was being drained, despite the forcefield still being weak. I thought that it would be at least 80% by then, but it turned out that it was already under 70% and dropping. It was possible that the witch added this little power drain when she put the whammy on it, as a sort of contingency. However, I couldn't be sure without a proper diagnostic. The Catch-22 was that would take time neither I nor Sylvie had. Even if I left it with my holographic copy over in my workshop, I couldn't risk going out into the field without it.

Norah nudged me to get my attention when we made it to our destination. Setting my thoughts back to the mission at hand, I got up from my seat on got off with them. For about half the afternoon, we roamed around the southern end of the district either searching for Feng or asking any hippie we met if they saw him. We even showed Dylan Feng's picture to any who'd stopped to help. Unfortunately, we had no Joy with that tactic.

After that, we decided to go over to Buena Vista Park and look for him. About an hour or two later, after still not getting anything, we took a rest break to get off our feet for a bit. Even though our sandals had hidden built-in modifications for comfort and speed, both mine and Norah's dogs were still barking. Mattie didn't say anything, but I could tell from her face that she needed to rest as well. We all then sat down on a park bench that had a great view of the Golden Gate Bridge.

"You know, you'd think that they'd named this park Golden Gate, and the other Buena Vista," I mused as I looked at the sight before us while massaging my feet. "Seeing as you can actually see the bridge from here."

"True," Norah said as she did the same with hers. "However, 'Buena Vista' means 'good view' in Spanish. So, it works out either way."

"We ain't here to sightsee, remember?" Mattie said discouraged as she leaned on the bench. She looked around a few times. "Shoot," she added, "That pretty China-girl said that this place wasn't a big place. I'm sure we covered the whole south-side of this place and half of this here park, and nobody seems to have seen our boy."

"Yeah, you'd think an Asian Bob Dylan wannabe would stick in people's memories," I replied wryly as I put my moccasins back on.

"Can your smart mouth, Squires," Mattie replied with an eyeroll as she got off her perch. "You're the one not pulling your weight. Don't think I didn't see ya looking at that doodad of yours when we were on the trolley. What's with you and that thing, anyhow?"

I glanced at the emitter briefly before looking Mattie square in the eye. "It's a personal matter," I said, choosing my words right. "It doesn't concern you."

Mattie scoffed. "The hell it don't," she said, with disbelief. "I bet I know damn well why you were lookin' at it like that. Now that ya know that Sylvie's in danger, y'all are startin' to feel guilty for what ya did to her. And that thing reminds you of what you've done!"

I scoffed at this remarked. "It amazes me how you can be so pissed off at something that didn't even happen to you," I snarked. "And something you know so little about, as well."

"You know that Sylvie prefers to put her feelings into her work," Mattie replied. "I'm only doing what she can't do herself, 'specially now. I'm simply defending her honor."

"How gallant of you," I said sarcastically. "You do realize that you and Sylvie weren't even officially a couple when this allegedly happened, right?"

Mattie's face turned red as she scowled at me. "IT'S THE PRINCIPLE OF THE THING, YOU S UMMBIT—"

"Okay, that is it!" Norah said, irked, before leaping onto her feet, then turned and grabbed Mattie and me both by the wrist and into the nearest relatively secluded part of the park.