Man Made Boy Read Online Free PDF Page A

you, Madame.” I stumbled shakily back to the door.
    “See you tonight at The Show,” she said. “Don’t disappoint me.”
    “Of course not, Madame! See you tonight!” Then I left, wondering how I was going to do that when my mom had specifically told me I wasn’t allowed to see her act.

    THE TROWE WERE the ones who had dug out the catacombs beneath the theater that we all lived in. It was some impressive work, navigating around city plumbing, sewers, electrical lines, and subway lines. Most levels were furnished like apartments. But the trowe lived on the lowest level, and they had purposely left it more cavelike. The rough stone walls gleamed damply in the harsh halogen lights that lined the stairwell. At the bottom of the stairs was a large, black, iron door, dotted with rust and grime. I lifted the massive door knocker and brought it down three times. Each time it struck, it echoed back up the stairs. After a few minutes, I heard a bolt slide open. Then the door swung inward. Ku’lah stood in the doorway.
    “Boy.” Her thick, white eyebrows curled down. “Again.”
    “Good evening, Lady Ku’lah. I have, uh, well, I went with Ruthven to pick up some clothes for the den.” I held out the bag.
    Ku’lah nodded and took it from me. “Thank you.”
    “Oh,” I said. “There’s a…a shirt…in there for…uh…”
    “Spit it out, Boy. I have things to do.”
    “It’s a shirt for Liel.”
    She looked at me for moment, her face totally expressionless. I caught myself holding my breath. I was half expecting her to tell me to get lost and stay away from her daughter. But then she turned her head back inside and bellowed, “Liel, come here!”
    “What is it?” Liel’s voice called back. “I’m in the middle of something.”
    “Now!” yelled Ku’lah.
    After a moment, Liel’s head poked around from behind the door, her slanted, diamond eyes glittering in the light.
    “Hey, Boy,” she said.
    “Hey.” I tried to sound cool. Not sure I succeeded.
    Liel looked back at her mother. “Awesome, Mom. Thanks for conforming to trowe stereotypes yet again and being rude to guests. Couldn’t you at least invite him in?”
    “Oh, it’s okay,” I said quickly. “I can’t stay long, anyway.”
    “Boy has something for you.” Ku’lah thrust the bag back into my hands and went inside.
    Liel and I stood for a second in silence. I wondered if she felt the same kind of crazy electricity that I did when we were alone together. She looked at me curiously as she leaned against the iron door, her long, white hair framing her smooth, dark green face.
    “You have something for me?” she asked.
    “Yeah, uh, I went shopping with Ruthven and—”
    “No shit!” She leaned forward. “You went
outside
? How was it?”
    “Oh, uh, it was cool. Kind of intense, but you get used to it.” Sure. First time out of the theater. No biggie. “Anyway, uh,Ruthven was buying clothes for the trowe so, I, uh, picked out yours.” Before she could respond, I grabbed her shirt out of the bag and handed it to her. She held it up and examined it for a moment, then nodded appreciatively. The knot in my chest loosened a little.
    “You picked this out?” She sounded surprised.
    “Well, uh, this girl helped me.”
    “You went shopping with a
human girl
?” Her eyes grew wide. “That’s so amazing!”
    “Yeah, I guess. It was—”
    “Liel!” Ku’lah’s voice came from inside.
    “Listen, I have to get ready for The Show.” Liel put her hand on my upper arm. “But I definitely want to hear more about going outside and the human girl. Stop by the dressing room after the performance tonight.”
    “Really?” I tried not to gush.
    “Totally! We’ll go to the Cantina and you can tell me the whole thing.”
    “Okay, yeah…uh, sure, that sounds awesome!”
    “And thanks for the shirt,” she said.
    “You like it?” I asked.
    “Completely.” She smiled at me, her sharp, bright, perfect teeth gleaming in the halogen