Christ Clone Read Online Free PDF Page B

apologetic than he would have liked. 'I've got coffee? Juice? Coke?'
    Eyes fixed on the screen, Daniel didn't look up. 'Coke will be fine, thanks.'
    Malone went back to the kitchen and took a glass from the sink.
He flicked on the tap and rinsed the glass in the stream of water, then turned to the fridge and pulled open the freezer compartment door.
The sound of ice cubes dropping into the glass had a comforting ring to it, but this time it was followed by the crack and fizz of a can being opened rather than the sound of a Scotch bottle top being unscrewed.
He returned to the bedroom and handed the drink to Daniel.
    Malone contemplated striking up a conversation with the lad, but after trying to come up with an opening line, thought better of it.
Guessing the set-up was going to take a while, he told Daniel he'd be in the living room if he was needed.
    Returning to the kitchen, Malone opened the cupboard under the sink, picked out a bin liner and set about cleaning the room. With each of empty can, box, and piece of trash he picked up, he felt himself getting stronger.
    It took him a surprisingly short time to clear the room of its debris, filling three garbage bags. The cold night air greeted him as he took the bags out to the end of his driveway; there was a gentle breeze, and as he looked up at the stars he took a deep breath of fresh air. As he looked around at his neighbour's houses, things seemed different; maybe it was because he hadn't stopped to really look at things in a long time, or maybe it was just because he was sober. He went back inside, grabbed the TV remote and took up his position on the recliner chair. As Malone flicked on the TV, Daniel came into the room.
    'You finished already?' Malone asked.
    'Nah, it's going to take about a half-hour to fine tune things.'
Daniel paused before continuing, 'Look, you probably don't want to talk about it, but what gives with the wall?'
    Do I really want to tell this story to a stranger? Malone asked himself. It had been so long since he'd spoken in depth to anyone outside of a bar, but then he thought, what the hell.
    'It's about my daughter; she went missing five years ago.' Malone started to tell his tale — the tale of his guilt about not picking her up from school, and his fruitless search for her. He told Daniel about his loss of faith, and then turning to alcohol. As the story progressed,
Daniel listened ever more intently.
    Finally, Malone told him about Mary Salinas' disappearance, the similarities, and how it had revived his need to find his daughter. 'She was only fifteen, she'd hardly begun her life, and now she could be anywhere . . . or worse.' Malone trailed off. His eyes were filling up.
    'So this was five years ago, right?' Daniel asked.
    Malone nodded.
    'Man, she would have been the same age as me.' Immediately, he blushed at what the words 'would have been' implied. Glad to have the computer set-up in the other room as an excuse to change the subject, Daniel suggested they go back to verify everything was ready to go.
    Daniel sat at the computer and rebooted it. As it closed down and restarted, he took another look at the wall and in particular, Mary's picture. Malone's daughter looked so innocent and so lonely. He thought about his own childhood, how lonely he'd been growing up in the orphanage. He'd often dreamed that his parents were out there searching for him the same way Malone was seeking his daughter, that in some weird way he'd only been lost rather than abandoned.
    'So how much do you know about computer programs?' Daniel asked.
    'Not much, but it's a case of having to learn quickly. I need to use this to get as much information as I can,' Malone said, thinking about the task ahead.
    Daniel checked out the wall one last time. He seemed to be thinking about the two Marys, and he must have felt Malone's frustration.
'Look, I think I could probably retire on the money I'd charge to get you up to speed on this. What would you say if I did your