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[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ] him could really be such a dork. Like he has to wait for his dad to get back before he can take the car? Buffy said helpfully, I think his parents have been dead for, um, a couple hundred years. Cordelia wasn t exactly paying attention. Oh, good. So it took her a moment to process Buffy s little ha-ha joke. I mean What? Angel s a vampire. Buffy seemed to take such delight in so informing her. I thought you knew. For a moment, Buffy had her. Then Cordelia said, in a sarcastic tone, Oh. He s avampire. Of course. But the cuddly kind. Like a Care Bear with fangs. Willow piped up. It s true. The narc s narc, that was Willow Rosenberg. Cordelia gave Buffy a knowing look. You know what I think? I just think you re trying to scare me off because you re afraid of the competition. Look, Buffy, you may be hot stuff when it comes to demonology or whatever, but when it comes to dating,I m the Slayer. Yeah, right. Here I am, slaying away. Knockin em dead. So busy I don t even have time to sit alone in my crummy apartment and even miss Xander, for heaven s sake. She looked back down at her book, reminding herself that positive was magnetic, and negative was Generated by ABC Amber LIT Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html repellent. I am right where I m supposed to be and notdying for something to eat! She hurled the book across the room, sitting there on the verge of tears. She was starving. She was frightened. She wanted to be rich again. She hated all this struggling. The phone rang. Cordelia jumped, startled, and picked it up. She said, using her new positive tone of voice, Hello. This is Cordelia Chase. Cor, it s Margo, said the voice on the other line. Cordelia thrilled. You were such a hit at my party. Yes, yes, yes. Thanks. I had a great time. I want to have you over to my place she winced as soon as I m done redecorating. Well, guess who saw my videotape of the party, and guess who wants to meet you? Margo asked in a leading way, which meant it had to be someone important. Someone who could help her. A director? she asked excitedly. A manager? An assistant to an assistant who s ready to spring for lunch? Russell Winters. Cordelia could scarcely believe her ears. The investment guy? Oh, Cordelia, he s a lot more than that, Margo said, clearly amused. He helps people get started in their careers. He knows everyone and . . . he wants to meet you tonight. Cordelia s eyes widened. Tonight? Well, let me check my calendar. She was so excited she thought she might pass out. Still, she made herself wait a beat, as if she actually had to consider the entire matter, before she answered. I ll have to cancel a couple of things, but I m sure I can Wait. She took a little breath. I don t have to have sex with him, do I? Cause I couldn t . . . I m nearly positive that I couldn t No, no, Margo assured her on the other end. He just likes to help people. I don t think he enjoys sex at all. Cordelia said happily, Oh, good! He ll send a limo for you at eight. And it wasn t a joke. The limo actually came. A long, sleek, black shark like the ones that traveled the highways starting around the northern end of Orange County. The closer you zeroed in on Los Angeles, either coming south or north, the more limos you started seeing. And now she was in one, and it wasn t last year s prom or anything. It was real life. She rode in the very back, in plush comfort. Queen C triumphant. She drank mineral water and munched some nuts. Delicious, protein-filled, energy-laden nuts. She couldn t help but hum a happy, Generated by ABC Amber LIT Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html tuneless melody to herself. Now,this was the way it was supposed to be. The limo glided toward the sprawling mansion. The enormous building was like a castle, one of those places where people live in a room for years and no one realizes they re there. It was beautiful, perfect, oozing wealth and wonderful networking possibilities. Talk about being connected. She could scarcely believe her good fortune. But she had to believe. Absolutely believe. The limo approached a huge iron gate. There was a guard in a little building who hit a button. The gates swung open. As the car glided through, Cordelia intoned, People will be attracted to my positive energy and help me achieve my goals. Oh, yeah. Happily she popped a nut into her mouth. Behind the limo, the large gates swung shut with a clang. ACT FOUR In Angel s apartment Doyle looked on, obviously impressed, as Angel wrapped up an array of gear: timer, detonators, plastique explosive, a small set of tools, rope, and a few odds and ends. Wow. You re really going to war here. Doyle looked thoughtful. Guess you ve seen a few in your time. Angel surveyed his materiel. Fourteen. Not counting Vietnam. They never declared it. Doyle nodded. Well, this is good. You re taking charge and fighting back. He looked curiously down at Angel s collection of stuff. Do you really need all this? Angel did a quick mental run-through. Yes, he needed it all. If he could have carried anything else a grenade launcher, if it would have helped he would. Whatever it took, this was Russell Winters s last night on earth. He felt another pang as he thought of Tina and said simply, A Girl Scout told me: Be prepared. Well, best of luck. Doyle looked very concerned and extremely sincere. I got some fairly large coin riding on the Vikings tonight, but I ll be with you in spirit. Angel stopped him. You re driving. Doyle registered a wee bit o shock. What? But . . . no. No, no. I m not combat-ready, he insisted. I m just the messenger. And I m the message, Angel retorted. In Russell Winters s mansion Cordelia told herself giddily that she should have brought a canteen and a compass. It was that big. That fabulous. That gorgeous. Generated by ABC Amber LIT Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html Wow. He has a house as big as a football field. Wow. He has a butler. He wants to meet me. Wow. She wanted to pinch herself, but she didn t want to leave a mark. Not that he would care. Okay, he might care. But he wouldn t care because he expected her to do anything with her arms. And he wouldn t want to look at her arms. He didn t care about anything about her, right? Except whatever it was that had attracted him to her. Her laugh? Her smile? She hadn t even realized Margo knew him or would send him the tape of the party, and she didn t know what he looked like, anyway. To be honest, when the butler had answered the door, she d almost chimed in with Hi, Mr. Winters. The butler moved along silently, and Cordelia was sure he could hear her heart pounding. Finally, finally, things were going to start being positive. Life was good. The future was good. Because she mattered. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ] |