"Rickman," Rembrandt Brown slowly says as he looks at the Marine colonel, with rage deep under his breath. "You. YOU MURDERER!!!" Remrbandt lunges forward and tackles Rickman to the ground. "TELL ME WHERE QUINN IS! WHERE'S QUINN?"
Rembrandt feels himself being pulled away and his armns restrained. "LET ME GO!" he shouts. "THAT'S RICKMAN!"
"Remmy," says Wade Welles. "It's not him."
"Who is he?" he asks.
"He would be our world's Colonel Rickman."
Rembrandt looks at the Marine colonel, who just got off the ground. "Uh, I'm sorry," he says. "I confused you for someone else."
"What is going on?" asks Colonel Rickman.
"Allow me to introduce us," says Maggie. "I am Captain Maggie Beckett of the U.S. Marine Corps, and this is my superior, Colonel Angus Rickman."
"My name is Wade Welles," says Wade. "That is Rembrandt Brown."
"Elizabeth Mallory called my cell phone last night," says Maggie. "She told me you and Mr. Brown had called her a few minutes ago. I came here tpo ask you questions."
"Questions?" asks Rembrandt.
"We've known about you for the past two years," says Maggie. "At the very least, we would like to know why you tried to kill Colonel Rickman here."
"It's a long story."
"Then perhaps you should join us."
Maggie leads the two of them to an olive-green Ford Crown Victoria sedan. On the door is stenciling reading "US MARINE CORPS FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY".
The Ford Crown Victoria is crossing the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, right above the San Francisco Bay. Soon it takes an exit off the bridge which serves Treasure Island and Yerba Buena Island. Rembrandt is familiar with the place, having once been stationed at the Treasure Island Naval Station when he was in the United States Navy.
Wade and Rembrandt can see that the car is headed towards Yerba Buena Island. The car parks near a building.
"This place was constructed two years ago," says Maggie as she opens the driver's side door of the Crown Victoria. "Follow us."
The four of them enter the building. They are now in a lobby, with couches and tables and a receptionist's desk. They enter the hallway and Maggie presses the button for an elevator.
"We have six subbasement levels," says Maggie. "We will be going down to Sub-Level 1." She presses the button for Sub-Level 1 and the Otis elevator descends.
The doors open, and the four of them emerge into a lobby, like the one on the first floor. A Marine MP sits at a table.
"Are these guests, sir?" asks the MP.
"They are guests of mine," replies Colonel Rickman. "We are bringing them here for questioning."
"Yes, sir."
The guard allows the four of them to enter the hallway. Wade notices not all of the people in here are Marines; some are technicians in lab coats.
"What is this place?" asks Wade.
"We will tell you after I question you," says Maggie.
They all enter one of the rooms. It appears to be a conference room, with a table and chairs and a projection screen in the back.
"I believe I shall question the woman first," says Maggie.
"Okay, Captain," replies Colonel Rickman. "Mr. Brown can wait in the lobby."
Maggie and Wade sit down. Maggie takes out a hand-held Sony audiocassette recorder. "I'd like to ask you some questions. First of all, how long ago did you start sliding?"
"Well, it started in October of 1994."
"Good," says Maggie. "How did it all begin?"
"It started one day as I was working at the Doppler Computer Superstore in San Francisco. Quinn Mallory was my co-worker. Everything seemed normal until he said something to our boss, Michael Hurley. He was fired. He then kissed me. Later that day, Quinn came back and I confronted him about the kiss. He claimed not to know what happened. it was later that day when Quinn asked me to his house to show me something."
"What was it?"
"He showed me that he created a device which could open a wormhole. Professor Arturo and I were there. He opened it right in front of us. He said that one of his counterparts from another dimension visited him and explained everything and solved the equation on the blackboard. He told us the wormhole leads to the same planet in a different dimension. He could not yet control which dimension he goes to. He invited us along a trip. We went through and found ourselves in a world where San Francisco was frozen over. We also found out that another man had driven through the wormhole."
"What car was it?" asks Maggie.
"It was a red Cadillac."
"Continue."
"Anyway, there was this tornado coming, and so Quinn decided to activate the timer before the timer counted down to zero. We jumped in and landed in Golden Gate Park. It was later, when we saw a statue of this guy named Lenin, that we realized that we were not home. And so from that point on, we slid randomly from world to world."
"And now you made it back."
"As far as we can tell. The history books do not tell a history different from the one we remember."
"So where is Quinn Mallory? And Professor Maximilian Arturo."
"When we opened the way home, Quinn told us to go ahead of him. We waited for him, but he did not follow through."
"And what of Professor Arturo?"
"He was killed three months ago."
"Can you describe the circumstances?"
"We landed in a world where we saw a man get shot. The professor knew him, or rather, knew his duplicate from this world. Anyway, this U.S. Marine captain arrested us. It was your duplicate. She brought us to this military base where we met her version of Colonel Angus Rickman."
"What a coincidence."
"Anyway, your counterpart was assigned to a project which was researching sliding. They could not open a stable wormhole. Quinn decided to volunteer, hopiong that they could help us get home. Soon, we opened a stable womrhole, and Quinn and your duplicate started sliding. Along the way, they managed to find our home world. Quinn once said that it might have something to do with the fact that he used the original timer as a prototype, and the sliding generator tracked it to its home world."
"Original timer?"
"We had to replace timers a year ago. Anyway, the world where we were was about to be irradiated by pulsars, so we decided to evacaute the population. But Colonel Rickman had an ulterior motive. He had some disease which he treated by stealing brain fluid from others. Just before we left that world, he murdered the professor. He then escaped with the timer that had our world's coordinates. so we joined up with your duplicate and we chased him. Just yesterday, we captured his timer and used it to slide home."
"What about the timer you were using?"
"Quinn might have it, and it is set to track the timer Rickman used. Of course, he should have come here by now. I don't know what happened."
Maggie stopped the casette recorder. "Thank you, Miss Welles. I will now interview Mr. Brown. If you will step outside."
Wade stepped outside. Less than three seconds later, Rembrandt Brown came inside.
"Maggie," he says.
"Hello, Mr. Brown," says Maggie. "I would like to ask you a few questions."
"Okay."
"How did you meet Quinn Mallory?"
"Well, Maggie, I was booked to sing the national anthem at the World Series in Candlestick Park. I was driving along the street when suddenly this whirlpool appeared right in front of me! The next thing I knew, everything was covered in ice! It was there that I met Quinn and he told me about parallel universes. There was this tornado coming, and he opened up another vortex. I jumped through and ended up in Golden Gate Park. I was really mad at Quinn because my car was left in the other world."
"What kind of car was that?"
"A red Cadillac."
"Continue."
"Since I didn't have a car, I took a taxi. When I paid the fare, I was arrested! It turned out I was not home. I was taken to this prison. Frotunately, Quinn and the others rescued me and I joined them and slid with them for two and a half years."
"And what happened to Professor Arturo?"
"He was killed three months ago. We were helping these people on another world to develop sliding so they can escape their world which was gonna be destroyed. But this colonel named Rickman- who looks like the Colonel Rickman here- had some disease and he was attacking people to treat himself. We got in the way, and he shot and killed the professor. And I am truly sorry for attacking your Colonel Rickman."
"And what of Quinn Mallory?"
"Rickman-the other Rickman, I mean- had the timer with our world's coordinates. We chased him from world to world, and we managed to take his timer. We opened the vortex to this world, but Rickman attacked, and Quinn told us to go ahead of him. When we reached the other side, we waited for him but he did not come. We assumwed he would follow us using his timer, but we haven't heards from him."
"Did anyone join you when you were chasing Rickman?"
"Yes. It was your double, Maggie. You see, Rickman killed her husband as well as the professor. She was left behind with Quinn. I don't know if they're still alive." Rembrandt takes out the timer he had kept with him. "According to this, we can open a vortex tomorrow night. Maybe Quinn lost his timer back on that island; maybe we should go back."
"Well, Mr. Brown, I want to thank you for your time. I'm sure you want to get back to your family."
Rembrandt and Maggie leave the conference room, joining Wade and Colonel Rickman.
"How did you know about us?" asks Rembrandt.
"Captain Beckett and I were summoned by the Joint Chiefs," says Rickman. "They told us that the FBI investigated your disappearance, and that the White House turned over the matter to the Pentagon."
"I'd like a phone number where you two can be reached," says Maggie. "I'm going to discuss our interviews with the colonel here. One more thing." Maggie pulls out two cardboard cards. "These are my cards. If Quinn makes it home, I want you to call me. It has my office and my cell number."
"You got it," says Wade.
"I'll take you back to the Mallory house or anywhere in San Francisco you want to go."
Minutes later, the U.S. Marine Corps Ford Crown Victoria staff car parks next to the Mallory house. Rembrandt steps out.
"You're not coming with me?' asks Rembrandt.
"I'm going to my parents' house," says Wade. "They've been waiting over two years to see me."
"Have you called them?"
"Yeah, I spoke to my mom. She was so happy."
"I'll be staying here, Wade. I'll need your number."
"Do you have a pen?" Wade asks the driver, who is a Marine corporal.
"Yes," he replies, handing Wade a Bic pen.
Rembrandt hands Wade Maggie's business card, and she writes a number on the back and returns it to Rembrandt. "Take care," he says. He kisses her on the cheek.
Rembrandt heads towards the Mallory house. He looks as the Marine staff car disappears from sight.
"This is the place," says Wade.
She and Maggie look at the townhouse where Wade lived all of her life. It is a townhouse, sharing walls with the neighboring townhouses forming a row. There are many such houses in San Francisco.
"I'll go down with you," says Maggie.
"Do they know you?"
"Yes, they do."
Maggie walks up to the front door and rings the doorbell. A middlge-aged woman opens the door and sees the Marine captain.
"Mom," says Wade.
"Wade!" shouts her mother. They both give each other a hug, and tears flow down their cheeks. "I've been waiting two years for this! When I spoke to you on the phone, I couldn't believe it."
"I missed you so much too."
"Congratulations," Maggie says to the two of them. "I must be going now."
Wade enters the living room, looking around the place she has not been to for more than two years. The layout is still the same, with the couches and the coffee table and the Magnavox wide-screen color television. There is a Time magazine on the coffee table; Wade scans through it to digest the changes in her world during her abscence.
But is this her world? After all, twice before did she think she was home.
Wade climbs the stairs and enters the bedroom she had as long as she could remember. It is the same as it was when she left, with the bed and the dresser and all the posters. There are two personal possessions she had. Looking under her bed, she sees her journal and her photo scrapbook. Looking through these, she reads every word, sees every photograph.
"I'm really home," she says. She then goes down to the living room where she sees a middle-aged man.
"Dad," she says.
"Wade," replies her father, giving her a hug. "Your mom told me about you coming back. I'm so glad you're here. This is the happiest day of my life."
"I know," she says. "Have you told Kelly?"
"No, we haven't. We'd like you to call her."
"I'll give you her number," says Mrs. Welles.
she gives her daughter the number. Wade then dials the phone number on the kitchen phone.
"Hello," a female voice says.
"Kelly?" asks Wade. "It's me, Wade. I'm home."
Rembrandt sits on a chair in Quinn's bedroom. He looks at his surroundings. He sees the telescope and the poster with the caption "I Brake For Asteroids". He sees Quinn's high school graduation photo sitting on a dresser.
He spent the past few hours browsing the Internet, looking up information about himself. So far, everything he read is just as he remembered.
"So this is your room, Q-Ball," says Rembrandt. "I remember when I was mad at you for taking me along. I never said this out loud before, but I forgive you."
"Rembrandt," says Elizabeth Mallory. "Wade Welles is on the phone."
Rembrandt answers the phone. "Yes?" he asks.
"Remmy, this is Wade. My parents and I invited Mrs. Mallory to dinner at Red Lobster. We want to invite you as well."
"Red Lobster? You know I'm gonna be there."
That Wednesday evening, the Welles and their guests arrive at a Red Lobster restaurant in San Francisco. It is a nice casual place, with varnished wooden tables. Along with Wade, her parents, and her sister Kelly, Rembrandt Brown, Elizabeth Mallory, and Maggie Beckett were all invited.
The seven of them splurge when it comes to giving theri order to the waiter, an order that includes two appetizers. Minutes later, the appetizer is served, along with the complementary salad that goes with the entrees.
"So you knew Mrs. mallory here?" asks Wade.
"Yes," replies her mother. "We first met her back in January of 1995, at Yerba Buena. Captain Beckett introduced us, and the Marines were building a research facility there. We invited her over every Christmas and Thanksgiving. You know that she's a widow, and with her son missing and all."
"I'm so glad that Wade came back," says Elizabeth Mallory. "I just hope Quinn comes back."
"He's out there," says Rembrandt. "I know that Q-Ball is coming back. He has to."
"Tell us about yourself, Mr. Brown," says Wade's father.
"I was born here in San Francisco in 1956," replies the singer. "When I was eighteen, I enlisted in the Navy right out of high school. I spent four years in the Navy, including a six-month tour on board a destroyer. I began my singing career after leaving the Navy, moving to Detroit for a while. I was in this band called the Spinning Tops, and I became known as the Cryin' Man. I went solo after that, and then my singing career faded. I did go into music production. In October of '94, I was booked to sing the national anthem in the World Series. I drove right into the vortex, and spent the next two years sliding from world to world."
"I was in the military," says Wade's father. "I was in the Army for six years, and I did a tour in Vietnam."
"So did my husband Michael," says Elizabeth.
"What about you, Maggie?" asks Wade.
"I was born during the Vietnam War," says Maggie, wearing a black dress. "After graduating college in 1990, I was commissioned in the Marines through Officer's Candidate School, and I later became a pilot. I served in the Gulf War. I was awarded a Bronze Star for my service. Anyway, in 1995 I made captain and was assigned to Yerba Buena."
Wadew looks at her sister. "what has happened to you since I was gone?" she asks.
"I finished law school, and I passed the state bar last year," says Kelly Welles. "That same time, I was hired by the Alameda County District Attorney's Office in Oakland. I'm gonna be a prosecutor for a while before moving on."
"Are you engaged to someone?"
"No, I'm not."
"What will you be doing, Mr. Brown?" asks Wade's mother.
"I'm gonna have to get a job and a place of my own," replies Rembrandt. "I can't expect Mrs. Mallory to subsidize me. Tomorrow's Monday and that will be a good time to renew my life at home."
"Tell us moire about your adventures," says Elizabeth.
And so Wade and Rembrandt relate the two-and-a-helf years of stories they accumulating through sliding. They mentioned how they ended up on a world about to be destroyed by an asteroid, where Quinn's duplicate was an athletic star, their encounter with the kromaggs, their chase of Angus Rickman, and other stories. It takes a whole hour for them to tell their stories.
Finally, dinner is finished and the hour is late.
"Listen," says Maggie. "I'd like to invite you back to Yerba Buena."
"For what?' asks Wade.
"To see the facility."
"You never told us," says Rembrandt. "What is the facility for?"
"Sliding."
Rembrandt feels himself being pulled away and his armns restrained. "LET ME GO!" he shouts. "THAT'S RICKMAN!"
"Remmy," says Wade Welles. "It's not him."
"Who is he?" he asks.
"He would be our world's Colonel Rickman."
Rembrandt looks at the Marine colonel, who just got off the ground. "Uh, I'm sorry," he says. "I confused you for someone else."
"What is going on?" asks Colonel Rickman.
"Allow me to introduce us," says Maggie. "I am Captain Maggie Beckett of the U.S. Marine Corps, and this is my superior, Colonel Angus Rickman."
"My name is Wade Welles," says Wade. "That is Rembrandt Brown."
"Elizabeth Mallory called my cell phone last night," says Maggie. "She told me you and Mr. Brown had called her a few minutes ago. I came here tpo ask you questions."
"Questions?" asks Rembrandt.
"We've known about you for the past two years," says Maggie. "At the very least, we would like to know why you tried to kill Colonel Rickman here."
"It's a long story."
"Then perhaps you should join us."
Maggie leads the two of them to an olive-green Ford Crown Victoria sedan. On the door is stenciling reading "US MARINE CORPS FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY".
The Ford Crown Victoria is crossing the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, right above the San Francisco Bay. Soon it takes an exit off the bridge which serves Treasure Island and Yerba Buena Island. Rembrandt is familiar with the place, having once been stationed at the Treasure Island Naval Station when he was in the United States Navy.
Wade and Rembrandt can see that the car is headed towards Yerba Buena Island. The car parks near a building.
"This place was constructed two years ago," says Maggie as she opens the driver's side door of the Crown Victoria. "Follow us."
The four of them enter the building. They are now in a lobby, with couches and tables and a receptionist's desk. They enter the hallway and Maggie presses the button for an elevator.
"We have six subbasement levels," says Maggie. "We will be going down to Sub-Level 1." She presses the button for Sub-Level 1 and the Otis elevator descends.
The doors open, and the four of them emerge into a lobby, like the one on the first floor. A Marine MP sits at a table.
"Are these guests, sir?" asks the MP.
"They are guests of mine," replies Colonel Rickman. "We are bringing them here for questioning."
"Yes, sir."
The guard allows the four of them to enter the hallway. Wade notices not all of the people in here are Marines; some are technicians in lab coats.
"What is this place?" asks Wade.
"We will tell you after I question you," says Maggie.
They all enter one of the rooms. It appears to be a conference room, with a table and chairs and a projection screen in the back.
"I believe I shall question the woman first," says Maggie.
"Okay, Captain," replies Colonel Rickman. "Mr. Brown can wait in the lobby."
Maggie and Wade sit down. Maggie takes out a hand-held Sony audiocassette recorder. "I'd like to ask you some questions. First of all, how long ago did you start sliding?"
"Well, it started in October of 1994."
"Good," says Maggie. "How did it all begin?"
"It started one day as I was working at the Doppler Computer Superstore in San Francisco. Quinn Mallory was my co-worker. Everything seemed normal until he said something to our boss, Michael Hurley. He was fired. He then kissed me. Later that day, Quinn came back and I confronted him about the kiss. He claimed not to know what happened. it was later that day when Quinn asked me to his house to show me something."
"What was it?"
"He showed me that he created a device which could open a wormhole. Professor Arturo and I were there. He opened it right in front of us. He said that one of his counterparts from another dimension visited him and explained everything and solved the equation on the blackboard. He told us the wormhole leads to the same planet in a different dimension. He could not yet control which dimension he goes to. He invited us along a trip. We went through and found ourselves in a world where San Francisco was frozen over. We also found out that another man had driven through the wormhole."
"What car was it?" asks Maggie.
"It was a red Cadillac."
"Continue."
"Anyway, there was this tornado coming, and so Quinn decided to activate the timer before the timer counted down to zero. We jumped in and landed in Golden Gate Park. It was later, when we saw a statue of this guy named Lenin, that we realized that we were not home. And so from that point on, we slid randomly from world to world."
"And now you made it back."
"As far as we can tell. The history books do not tell a history different from the one we remember."
"So where is Quinn Mallory? And Professor Maximilian Arturo."
"When we opened the way home, Quinn told us to go ahead of him. We waited for him, but he did not follow through."
"And what of Professor Arturo?"
"He was killed three months ago."
"Can you describe the circumstances?"
"We landed in a world where we saw a man get shot. The professor knew him, or rather, knew his duplicate from this world. Anyway, this U.S. Marine captain arrested us. It was your duplicate. She brought us to this military base where we met her version of Colonel Angus Rickman."
"What a coincidence."
"Anyway, your counterpart was assigned to a project which was researching sliding. They could not open a stable wormhole. Quinn decided to volunteer, hopiong that they could help us get home. Soon, we opened a stable womrhole, and Quinn and your duplicate started sliding. Along the way, they managed to find our home world. Quinn once said that it might have something to do with the fact that he used the original timer as a prototype, and the sliding generator tracked it to its home world."
"Original timer?"
"We had to replace timers a year ago. Anyway, the world where we were was about to be irradiated by pulsars, so we decided to evacaute the population. But Colonel Rickman had an ulterior motive. He had some disease which he treated by stealing brain fluid from others. Just before we left that world, he murdered the professor. He then escaped with the timer that had our world's coordinates. so we joined up with your duplicate and we chased him. Just yesterday, we captured his timer and used it to slide home."
"What about the timer you were using?"
"Quinn might have it, and it is set to track the timer Rickman used. Of course, he should have come here by now. I don't know what happened."
Maggie stopped the casette recorder. "Thank you, Miss Welles. I will now interview Mr. Brown. If you will step outside."
Wade stepped outside. Less than three seconds later, Rembrandt Brown came inside.
"Maggie," he says.
"Hello, Mr. Brown," says Maggie. "I would like to ask you a few questions."
"Okay."
"How did you meet Quinn Mallory?"
"Well, Maggie, I was booked to sing the national anthem at the World Series in Candlestick Park. I was driving along the street when suddenly this whirlpool appeared right in front of me! The next thing I knew, everything was covered in ice! It was there that I met Quinn and he told me about parallel universes. There was this tornado coming, and he opened up another vortex. I jumped through and ended up in Golden Gate Park. I was really mad at Quinn because my car was left in the other world."
"What kind of car was that?"
"A red Cadillac."
"Continue."
"Since I didn't have a car, I took a taxi. When I paid the fare, I was arrested! It turned out I was not home. I was taken to this prison. Frotunately, Quinn and the others rescued me and I joined them and slid with them for two and a half years."
"And what happened to Professor Arturo?"
"He was killed three months ago. We were helping these people on another world to develop sliding so they can escape their world which was gonna be destroyed. But this colonel named Rickman- who looks like the Colonel Rickman here- had some disease and he was attacking people to treat himself. We got in the way, and he shot and killed the professor. And I am truly sorry for attacking your Colonel Rickman."
"And what of Quinn Mallory?"
"Rickman-the other Rickman, I mean- had the timer with our world's coordinates. We chased him from world to world, and we managed to take his timer. We opened the vortex to this world, but Rickman attacked, and Quinn told us to go ahead of him. When we reached the other side, we waited for him but he did not come. We assumwed he would follow us using his timer, but we haven't heards from him."
"Did anyone join you when you were chasing Rickman?"
"Yes. It was your double, Maggie. You see, Rickman killed her husband as well as the professor. She was left behind with Quinn. I don't know if they're still alive." Rembrandt takes out the timer he had kept with him. "According to this, we can open a vortex tomorrow night. Maybe Quinn lost his timer back on that island; maybe we should go back."
"Well, Mr. Brown, I want to thank you for your time. I'm sure you want to get back to your family."
Rembrandt and Maggie leave the conference room, joining Wade and Colonel Rickman.
"How did you know about us?" asks Rembrandt.
"Captain Beckett and I were summoned by the Joint Chiefs," says Rickman. "They told us that the FBI investigated your disappearance, and that the White House turned over the matter to the Pentagon."
"I'd like a phone number where you two can be reached," says Maggie. "I'm going to discuss our interviews with the colonel here. One more thing." Maggie pulls out two cardboard cards. "These are my cards. If Quinn makes it home, I want you to call me. It has my office and my cell number."
"You got it," says Wade.
"I'll take you back to the Mallory house or anywhere in San Francisco you want to go."
Minutes later, the U.S. Marine Corps Ford Crown Victoria staff car parks next to the Mallory house. Rembrandt steps out.
"You're not coming with me?' asks Rembrandt.
"I'm going to my parents' house," says Wade. "They've been waiting over two years to see me."
"Have you called them?"
"Yeah, I spoke to my mom. She was so happy."
"I'll be staying here, Wade. I'll need your number."
"Do you have a pen?" Wade asks the driver, who is a Marine corporal.
"Yes," he replies, handing Wade a Bic pen.
Rembrandt hands Wade Maggie's business card, and she writes a number on the back and returns it to Rembrandt. "Take care," he says. He kisses her on the cheek.
Rembrandt heads towards the Mallory house. He looks as the Marine staff car disappears from sight.
"This is the place," says Wade.
She and Maggie look at the townhouse where Wade lived all of her life. It is a townhouse, sharing walls with the neighboring townhouses forming a row. There are many such houses in San Francisco.
"I'll go down with you," says Maggie.
"Do they know you?"
"Yes, they do."
Maggie walks up to the front door and rings the doorbell. A middlge-aged woman opens the door and sees the Marine captain.
"Mom," says Wade.
"Wade!" shouts her mother. They both give each other a hug, and tears flow down their cheeks. "I've been waiting two years for this! When I spoke to you on the phone, I couldn't believe it."
"I missed you so much too."
"Congratulations," Maggie says to the two of them. "I must be going now."
Wade enters the living room, looking around the place she has not been to for more than two years. The layout is still the same, with the couches and the coffee table and the Magnavox wide-screen color television. There is a Time magazine on the coffee table; Wade scans through it to digest the changes in her world during her abscence.
But is this her world? After all, twice before did she think she was home.
Wade climbs the stairs and enters the bedroom she had as long as she could remember. It is the same as it was when she left, with the bed and the dresser and all the posters. There are two personal possessions she had. Looking under her bed, she sees her journal and her photo scrapbook. Looking through these, she reads every word, sees every photograph.
"I'm really home," she says. She then goes down to the living room where she sees a middle-aged man.
"Dad," she says.
"Wade," replies her father, giving her a hug. "Your mom told me about you coming back. I'm so glad you're here. This is the happiest day of my life."
"I know," she says. "Have you told Kelly?"
"No, we haven't. We'd like you to call her."
"I'll give you her number," says Mrs. Welles.
she gives her daughter the number. Wade then dials the phone number on the kitchen phone.
"Hello," a female voice says.
"Kelly?" asks Wade. "It's me, Wade. I'm home."
Rembrandt sits on a chair in Quinn's bedroom. He looks at his surroundings. He sees the telescope and the poster with the caption "I Brake For Asteroids". He sees Quinn's high school graduation photo sitting on a dresser.
He spent the past few hours browsing the Internet, looking up information about himself. So far, everything he read is just as he remembered.
"So this is your room, Q-Ball," says Rembrandt. "I remember when I was mad at you for taking me along. I never said this out loud before, but I forgive you."
"Rembrandt," says Elizabeth Mallory. "Wade Welles is on the phone."
Rembrandt answers the phone. "Yes?" he asks.
"Remmy, this is Wade. My parents and I invited Mrs. Mallory to dinner at Red Lobster. We want to invite you as well."
"Red Lobster? You know I'm gonna be there."
That Wednesday evening, the Welles and their guests arrive at a Red Lobster restaurant in San Francisco. It is a nice casual place, with varnished wooden tables. Along with Wade, her parents, and her sister Kelly, Rembrandt Brown, Elizabeth Mallory, and Maggie Beckett were all invited.
The seven of them splurge when it comes to giving theri order to the waiter, an order that includes two appetizers. Minutes later, the appetizer is served, along with the complementary salad that goes with the entrees.
"So you knew Mrs. mallory here?" asks Wade.
"Yes," replies her mother. "We first met her back in January of 1995, at Yerba Buena. Captain Beckett introduced us, and the Marines were building a research facility there. We invited her over every Christmas and Thanksgiving. You know that she's a widow, and with her son missing and all."
"I'm so glad that Wade came back," says Elizabeth Mallory. "I just hope Quinn comes back."
"He's out there," says Rembrandt. "I know that Q-Ball is coming back. He has to."
"Tell us about yourself, Mr. Brown," says Wade's father.
"I was born here in San Francisco in 1956," replies the singer. "When I was eighteen, I enlisted in the Navy right out of high school. I spent four years in the Navy, including a six-month tour on board a destroyer. I began my singing career after leaving the Navy, moving to Detroit for a while. I was in this band called the Spinning Tops, and I became known as the Cryin' Man. I went solo after that, and then my singing career faded. I did go into music production. In October of '94, I was booked to sing the national anthem in the World Series. I drove right into the vortex, and spent the next two years sliding from world to world."
"I was in the military," says Wade's father. "I was in the Army for six years, and I did a tour in Vietnam."
"So did my husband Michael," says Elizabeth.
"What about you, Maggie?" asks Wade.
"I was born during the Vietnam War," says Maggie, wearing a black dress. "After graduating college in 1990, I was commissioned in the Marines through Officer's Candidate School, and I later became a pilot. I served in the Gulf War. I was awarded a Bronze Star for my service. Anyway, in 1995 I made captain and was assigned to Yerba Buena."
Wadew looks at her sister. "what has happened to you since I was gone?" she asks.
"I finished law school, and I passed the state bar last year," says Kelly Welles. "That same time, I was hired by the Alameda County District Attorney's Office in Oakland. I'm gonna be a prosecutor for a while before moving on."
"Are you engaged to someone?"
"No, I'm not."
"What will you be doing, Mr. Brown?" asks Wade's mother.
"I'm gonna have to get a job and a place of my own," replies Rembrandt. "I can't expect Mrs. Mallory to subsidize me. Tomorrow's Monday and that will be a good time to renew my life at home."
"Tell us moire about your adventures," says Elizabeth.
And so Wade and Rembrandt relate the two-and-a-helf years of stories they accumulating through sliding. They mentioned how they ended up on a world about to be destroyed by an asteroid, where Quinn's duplicate was an athletic star, their encounter with the kromaggs, their chase of Angus Rickman, and other stories. It takes a whole hour for them to tell their stories.
Finally, dinner is finished and the hour is late.
"Listen," says Maggie. "I'd like to invite you back to Yerba Buena."
"For what?' asks Wade.
"To see the facility."
"You never told us," says Rembrandt. "What is the facility for?"
"Sliding."