MAP OF THE PROBLEMATIQUE

Chapter 11: It Can't Come Quickly Enough

"Joe...." I panted once we were safely away. "Where are we going?"

"Come away, o human child, to the waters and the wild, with a fairy, hand in hand; for the world's more full of weeping than you can understand....."

I puzzled at David's little rhyme. "What's he talking about?"

"Manhattan. We're going to Manhattan."

"Oh, my God. That place.... Joe, that place is condemned. The entire city is underwater. You know we can't just..... Lydia, what about Lydia?"

"I hate to say it, but Manhattan would be the perfect place to look, love. You said the cops haven't gone there yet."

"Oh, Jesus...." I could feel my eyes well over with tears. I sniffed. "How long?"

"How long......?"

"'Till we get there."

"One hour, nineteen minutes and thirty-seven seconds." Joe looked at me. "You should try sleeping, Wendy. It would do you well."

I nodded, sighing as I scooted down in the copilot's seat with David, who curled up in my arms. Another pleasant little suprise. I didn't mind it in the slightest. I had enough wearwithal to muster up a forlorn and yet comforted smile before slipping off into the land of nod.

The whole town was submerged. I sat alone in the little helichopper, watching the swings on a public playset twist and float around each other as the tides made them dance. But as my eyes went down the line, they fell on the final swing to discover that it was occupied. Lydia had her favorite dress on, and as she pumped her legs, she defied the pull of the tides, getting higher and higher. The muffled sound of the water was so silent and serene that it was almost deafening; I thought I would lose my mind. Her little head snapped up, her hair billowing out around her. The blue of her eyes was unnatural. "Mommy..... Wendy...... Can you hear me, Wendy?"

"Wendy!"

"Huh! What--" I bolted awake, instinctively putting my hands out in front of me to shield my face. Realization sunk in with the sunlight, and I rubbed my eyes against them both.

"Wendy, we've made it."
"Mmm..... The city, huh?"

"Yes, love. Manhattan."

"What time is it?"

"Only a few minutes past seven."

I opened my eyes to find our little helichopper docked at what used to be a high-up balcony on one of the city's many skyscrapers; the benches and walkways were getting old, but the plantlife flourished, overtaking half the balcony and making it into some sort of makeshift garden. Across the way perched two massive lions, spewing water from their mouths. Water trickled from their eyes, making it look as if they were crying, and despite the fact we were at a safe distance, I could still feel a slight spray. "Wow...." I whispered.

"This is where Professor Hobby is," David explained in a rush. "Now please, can we go in?"

He handed Teddy to Joe and as he ran for the doors, Joe called after him. "You sure you know what you're doing, where you're going?""Of course. I will find him."

"And what do we do in the meantime?"

David shrugged, disappearing into the building before we got to interrogate him any further. I sighed. "Oh, well..... Care to go for a swim?" I smiled sheepishly, and Joe returned it.

"Not in these waters, love."

"Huh," I scoffed, crossing my arms over my chest. The two of us started to walk around the little unorthodox "garden," and for awhile it was comforting to not have to say anything. We barely spoke, in fact, for at least ten minutes.

"Did you sleep alright?"

"Mmm," I shrugged. "I s'pose. Dreamed of Lydia most of the time."

"We'll find her, love." Joe squeezed my shoulder. "I know it."

"Yeah, yeah...." I nodded, kicking at the leaves that had collected at my feet. Sniffling, I raised my eyes to the horizion as the sun continued to rise. "Sometimes I think I'm going blind, Joe."

"Going blind?"

"I mean.... well..... for one thing, sometimes I feel as if everything I've built and worked for-- my job, my daughter, my.... my life-- it's all just been swept away, you know? What I mean, is: sometimes I feel like I'm beginning to forget, too."

"What exactly have you forgotten?"

"Oh, little things..... the way she laughs. The way her eyes light up when she hears her favorite song. The way she says my name. 'Mommy.' Mommy......." I hadn't even realized I was crying until I tasted the salt on my lips. "What's gonna happen to us, Joe? To her? I don't know, you-- you hear about these things all the time on the news: little children snatched from their homes and the next person that sees them is the coroner as he has to pull their pieces from a suitcase at the bottom of a lake..... Oh, shit......" I was sobbing at that point, and grabbed ahold of the railings to balance myself as I felt my head spin and my stomach threaten a northern evacuation. Nothing happened, but I ended up collapsing against the low stone wall.

"My God, Wendy....." Crouching down next to me, Joe put his arms around my shoulders. "Careful, love. Don't. Don't think like that."

I gave a short and bitter laugh, leaning into him as he helped me back up to my feet. "Y-you know, they should have p-programmed you to be a ps-psychologist. You're very good at it."

Joe smiled. "Come on, now, love. Let's get you back into the chopper. I'm sure David will be coming back to us soon."

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Music: Chapter named after the song "It Can't Come Quickly Enough" by the Scissor Sisters. Has a strange feel to it (strange is a good thing in this instance, ha), a mixture of rock and ethereal (sp?). Plus, the lyrics are amazing. Seriously, if you can't get to the song, at least Google the lyrics. :P