Stalking the Unicorn: A Fable of Tonight Read Online Free PDF Page B

joined the elf just as the train stopped and the doors slid open.
    "Where are we now?” asked Mallory, looking around the unmarked platform.
    "Unicorn Square."
    "New York hasn't got a Unicorn Square."
    "I know,” replied the elf. “That's my pet name for it.” Suddenly he giggled. “That's quite a pun— pet name!"
    "Hilarious,” muttered Mallory, looking around for a staircase. “How do we get out of here?"
    "The escalator."
    "There isn't one."
    "It'll be along any minute,” said Mürgenstürm. “Try lighting a cigarette. Oh, and you might step about three paces to your left."
    "Why?"
    "Because you're in the way."
    Mallory moved aside, “In the way of what?"
    "The escalator,” answered the elf.
    No sooner had the words left his mouth than a shining silver ramp was lowered into place, coming to rest exactly where Mallory had been standing. It hummed mechanically as the stairs began moving upward.
    "Where does this take us?” asked Mallory, stepping onto a stair just behind Mürgenstürm.
    "Up, of course."
    They rode in silence for a few minutes.
    "How high up?” asked Mallory at last.
    "Ground level."
    "We've been riding for three or four minutes,” said Mallory. “Where did we start from?"
    "The subway level."
    "Thanks."
    They emerged into the open air in another minute. It was chilly and drizzling, and Mallory pulled the lapels of his suit jacket up.
    "Looks deserted,” he commented. “Where are we?"
    "Fifth Avenue and 57th Street."
    Mallory looked around him. The buildings seemed vaguely familiar, but somehow the angles were slightly askew. He cocked his head to the right. It didn't help.
    "Where are all the cars?” he asked.
    "Who'd go driving in this weather?” asked Mürgenstürm, shivering noticeably.
    "What about cabs?"
    "Here comes one,” answered the elf, pointing south on Fifth Avenue, where a large elephant decked out in sparkling finery was walking up the street toward them. It carried a howdah on its broad back, and in it an elf with a megaphone was pointing out the wonders of Manhattan to a number of other elves who listened with rapt attention. The elephant suddenly spotted Mallory and Mürgenstürm, spread its ears out, extended its trunk toward them, and trumpeted.
    "I meant like Yellow Cabs,” said Mallory, stepping back around the corner and out of the elephant's sight.
    "Yellow Cab at your service, sir,” cried a voice, and Mallory turned just in time to avoid bumping into a bright yellow elephant, also resplendent in its trappings. “Non-stop to Fifth Avenue and Central Park,” continued the elf who perched on its back. “Guaranteed arrival before midnight."
    "That's only two blocks from here,” said Mallory.
    "Not the way old Jumbo goes,” replied the cabbie. “He zigs and zags and backtracks like crazy. Not fast, mind you—it's a perfectly smooth ride, and much better than some of those modern, stripped-down models—but determined. There's a fruit stand at 58th and Broadway that he hasn't missed in twenty years. Great memory!"
    "Why don't you train him better?"
    "Break his spirit?” said the outraged cabbie. “I wouldn't think of it!"
    "It seems to me that there ought to be a happy medium between breaking his spirit and spending two hours to travel a hundred yards."
    "We travel miles!" protested the cabbie. “Of course, we don't go in a very straight line ... but then, getting there is half the fun.” He glared at Mallory. “It's New Year's Eve and I'm a busy man, a very busy man. Now, do you want a ride or not?"
    "We'll walk,” replied Mallory.
    "Your loss,” said the cabbie. He kicked the yellow elephant with a tiny foot. “Come on, Jumbo—mush!"
    The elephant squealed, pivoted 180 degrees, and headed off at a trot, ignoring his rider's frantic instructions.
    "Does everyone around here make as little sense as you and that elephant driver?” asked Mallory.
    "I thought he made perfect sense,” replied Mürgenstürm.
    "You would,” said Mallory. “Let's get