Cathedral of Dreams Read Free

her blouse. Maria always dressed handsomely.
     
“You look very beautiful today,” Keith said, settling into the start of his workday. Purpose was a wonderful emotion. It brought the realization that he was effective and necessary. Even though he recognized that his personality stepped into a new place when he was at work, it was okay with him. He suspected that there were actually several unique but complimentary personalities within him. The work personality was perhaps his most refined and familiar. No wonder, for he spent more hours at the Office of Goods and Services than he spent anywhere else in Newcity.
     
“Thank you,” Maria said. “And you look dashing.”
     
Keith nodded and placed his arms on the counter.
     
Maria handed him a stack of paper. “Hard copy reports from maintenance and shipping.” She flipped down about half way. “The blue page starts the shipping reports. Could you deliver them downstairs before you start?”
     
“Of course.” Keith always accepted a job where he got to go somewhere or deliver something. Although he enjoyed sitting in front of his terminal and shuffling through quality or maintenance reports, he rather liked the movement. He picked up the hard copies. The information would already be in the system, but they produced hard copies as backup, the Stack Printer ejecting neat bundles of reports all day. The reports would then be distributed by hand and eventually stored in filing cabinets in their individual offices.
     
Maintenance offices were one floor down and Shipping was two floors below that. Keith decided to walk. After observing himself in the mirror that morning, he figured he could use the exercise.
     
He left the offices and strolled down the hall, shoved on a large metal door and entered the lighted metallic stairwell. There was no carpeting on the floor, and ribbed metal strips ran across each step. The landing was long and wide, and several doors were set back from the open space just as the doorway he now occupied. He stood there for a moment, secure in the small, closed-in space around him. He took two steps and the landing opened before him.
     
He walked down the stairs and stopped on the next landing. He took his time. A small sign announced the maintenance offices. Keith wandered across the landing and stood in the alcove for a brief moment before pulling the door open. The halls were empty. For having so many people in Newcity, there were a lot of places that appeared empty.
     
Newcity, he knew, was at full capacity. Everyone understood that another building was going up somewhere. But most of those who lived in Newcity would never see the next residence. Perhaps some of the children he had seen would be transferred there.
     
He delivered the paperwork to the receptionist in Maintenance without noticing or focusing on her or the offices. He had been there before and was rather businesslike in his communications. Back into the hall, through the door to the stairs, and he entered the next alcove. It felt good to stand in the small space, but he quickly made his way down to the next level. Just as he turned to go down the stairs toward shipping he stopped and glanced over his shoulder. A small, darkly dressed figure—a child?—hunched down into the corner of one of the alcoves.
     
Keith's heart beat a little faster and the feeling of dread returned. He scurried down the stairs, while simultaneously turning his thoughts to something pleasant, the possible meeting with the woman from the Companion site that evening. It appeared to work. His nervousness subsided. At least he hoped that he had felt nervous. That emotion would not register as a threat. Yes, nervous. He had not expected to see anyone in the stairwell, especially a child. It wasn't dread, then. There was a difference.
     
As with Maintenance, Keith quickly delivered the reports to Shipping. This time, instead of using the stairs, he traveled the long hallway to another courtyard—similar