Memoria Read Online Free PDF Page A

naturally as he could, trying to figure out exactly where he was. Streets were teeming with people: up and down subway stairs, in and out of cars and buses, thousands of people on their way home or to the bar as night descended on New York City. They hurried to get in from the cold drizzle. The dirty blackened sky flashed lightning and rattled with thunder, threatening a good downpour.
    Frank raised his collar, craned his neck forward and walked faster in order to lose himself in the crowd. The coming rain would make people take cover in shops' doorways and subway tunnels, making it hard for him to hide. It wasn't easy for a camera to detect him in the crowd, especially because they couldn't trace his movements without his electronic bracelet.
    He walked past an electronic supplies store with rows of TV screens in its window. All were tuned to the same channel, and on all of them, the red Breaking News sign flashed in the lower part of the screen. Above it, he saw Kathleen's face. Frank edged along the crowd until his face was pressed against the glass. The news ticker read, Baker's daughter found dead in West End .
    The picture of a middle-aged man replaced Kathleen's on the screen. John Baker, the great scientist who had founded Memoria, and one of the most influential people in the world, stared back at Frank. He had Kathleen's eyes and the same shape lips.
    How stupid could he be! Frank shut his eyes and wanted to cover his face but remembered that his hands were cuffed and wrapped in fabric.
    He should have known!
    But of course. That's where Kathleen had acquired her expensive tastes, her manners, her human skills. Frank wasn't quite clear what she had done with herself all those years, though. The murder could have something to do with her job. Just before the explosion, Freeman had indeed said she'd been working but he hadn't told Frank where or for whom.
    His own picture came up on the screen. Frank startled. The picture wasn't good quality: it looked like a security camera shot taken somewhere in his neighborhood. Why would the cops use that when they'd just taken his mug shots ?
    Frank turned away from the window and hurried on, trying not to run as he negotiated the crowd. He felt as if every passerby recognized him from the photo. It took him longer than he would have liked to settle his nerves: the people hurried along each their own way and didn't seem to notice him hurrying his own way, too.
    Frank slowed down. He had to think what to do next. He had no money. He had to get rid of the handcuffs and lie low somewhere for a while. And he needed to have a good think. Who attacked the station, and why? What did they want with him?
    Frank stopped and felt the inside pocket containing Freeman 's paperwork. He had to collect this parcel from Kathleen's at the post office. It could be the key piece of murder evidence that could exonerate him and expose the criminals.
    Now how would he do it? They could easily recognize him at the counter. A face isn't something easy to conceal, and even if it were, a postal worker or someone would surely spot the handcuffs and call the cops. There had to be a way around it.
    A soft and soothing voice overhead helped him loosen up. It came from the speakers mounted on the wall. " ... happiness and prosperity. They are Memoria's gift to you. Plus one free yearly session, yours at any time, in one of our branches all over the world. Memoria's caring staff will be pleased to-"
    The rest of the pitch was drowned out by the honking of traffic. A bright orange flower blossomed on a large publicity screen mounted on the building's corner. Frank felt the urge to walk into one of their branches and take advantage of the offer. But to do that, he would have to fill out a special form giving his name. that would allow their computer to identify him as a suspect on the run. Frank could barely resist the desire to erase Kathleen's death from his memory, but that wouldn't drop the charges against