The Beholder Read Online Free PDF

stood slowly, her mouth half-open. “But Jason, don’t you understand? It’ll be better if—”
    Jason darted out of the office without listening to her objections, a furious scowl twisting his features. Coworkers looked up as he passed, startled, and those standing in his way parted to avoid him. He burst through the revolving doors and into the outdoors, and ran into a nearly solid wall of heat. Even in the shade of the skyscrapers he found it difficult to breathe. He paced, restless. Needing to walk off some of his anger, he thrust his hands in his pockets then started roaming the streets, weaving through the rush hour crowd.
    His stomach rumbled, reminding him that he’d only had a cup of coffee that day. So he dropped in on a café a couple of blocks from the office and slid into a booth. After ordering a sandwich and a Coke, he closed his eyes with relief as the chill of air conditioning swept against his back, relaxing him somewhat.
    Where should I go?
    He chewed his sandwich slowly, sipping between bites. After all, he had heaps of time. Nothing but time. When he was done eating, he stepped back into the heat and roamed towards the George Washington Bridge, still unsure of his destination. He paused on a corner, waiting for the red light to change, and glanced at his watch. Frowning, he brought it closer and stared at the rapidly moving minute hand. It was turning as quickly as a second hand should. Darn. My favorite watch. He shook his hand, hoping to set the watch straight again, then looked up and froze.
    The sun was racing across the sky, and it was speeding by. Panicked, Jason glanced around and saw all the people and cars speeding past him at an impossible rate. It was as if the whole world was moving on a fast-forwarded videotape while he stood still.
    He took another look at his watch. 1:45 p.m. A few seconds later it turned to 1:47 p.m.
    Suddenly Jason remembered the letter on his coffee table, telling him to be at Times Square at 2:23 p.m. After a few tentative steps he broke into a run. Times Square was several miles away from the bridge. I won’t make it in time, he thought as he darted along the pier.
    Except … as soon as he began to move, he noticed the people around him had slowed again. The faster he moved, the slower the rest of the world moved. It made no sense, and his head spun with adrenaline and panic. It made his arrival at Dave and Buster’s seem suddenly very important. His feet pattered against the pavement as he rushed along block after block.
    At 2:09 p.m. he was still too far from Times Square.
    I need to run faster, he told himself. In that moment, the entire world stopped moving—except for Jason. Pedestrians froze in mid-step; police sirens that had been wailing in the distance went mute.
    Times Square loomed before him. He was nearly there. But he’d already run for many blocks. His leg muscles burned and forced him to slow. As he did so, everything around him began to move again.
    When Jason finally stepped onto Times Square, he stopped short at the excruciating pain coming from his wrist. He grabbed for his watch, but it had become white hot and was singeing his skin. He scraped frantically at the clasp with his nails, but it fought back. When he finally undid it, the watch fell to the pavement with a dull thud. Jason rubbed his wrist, careful in the spots where it had blistered from the heat.
    He bent to take a last look at his ruined watch and stared in disbelief at what he saw. The time on its face was 2:23, and the watch had stopped working. Fear crawled up his spine.
    People swarmed the square, and Jason scanned the crowd, waiting, though he had no idea what he was waiting for. Each second ticked inside his brain until the time somehow seemed perfect. Then he took a breath and blinked. Bright light filled the space, turning people to beautiful silver ghosts, their movements graceful and smooth. Everyone looked perfect … except no one seemed to notice the phenomenon