Gifted Read Free Page B

had
become unreal. Only Sue was real, and Sue was someplace beyond him.
She had ordered him to wait, or he would have been at her side at
once.
    The doctor came out to greet him. “She’s got
pneumonia, Gene,” she said quietly.
    “Will she be all right?”
    “I don’t know. She’s old.”
    “And if I made her young again?”
    The doctor winced. “I think she’ll be fine,
though,” she said lamely. “Why don’t you go to her? She’s asking
for you.”
    The Genie didn’t have to be told twice. With
a gesture of crossed arms and a wrinkle of forehead, he was at her
side. She was crossed and tied with tubes, or so it first appeared,
and her skin was very pale.
    “Sue,” he said quietly, as he caught her hand
in his. “What is this needle doing here? Shall I take it out?”
    She laughed—and the laugh became a terrible
cough. “No,” she said at last, when she could speak clearly. “It’s
intravenous. Good for me.”
    “What can I do to help?”
    “Nothing.” She shrugged. “Nothing but stay.
Do you mind? I told ‘em you were my son. They won’t make you
leave.” She coughed again; the rattle of phlegm at the back of her
throat was constant. She was in pain, and that hurt him, although
he didn’t understand why.
    “Sue—let me help you. Let me make you
young.”
    The cough was laughter, he tried to tell
himself that.
    “Always on with wishes, aren’t you?” But she
caught his hand and held it tightly. “I wouldn’t be young if it’d
kill you, Gene. And you’re what I wished for, you know. You’ve been
a good friend. What’d the doctor say? Tell me the truth.”
    “She said she didn’t know whether or not you
would be all right.”
    “That’s what I thought. She looked pretty
grim.” She was quiet for a moment; the rattle of her chest rose and
fell. “But I don’t mind being dead, you know.”
    The Genie nodded; he’d heard it all before,
and he knew she found comfort in the belief. But he heard an edge
of fear to the words, and rested his head against her chest—whether
to comfort her or himself, he wasn’t certain.
    “I’m afraid of the dying,” she whispered, as
she stroked his hair with her free hand. “I wish—I wish you could
come with me, and stay with me, no matter where I went.”
    And the magic swelled up, recognizing in her
words a true wish; it pushed at the inside of his skin, radiating
heat, warmth, life; it rushed out through the pores, the eyes and
mouth, and the tips of his fingers. He closed his eyes in fear and
terror, pleasure and fulfillment, waiting the end.
    The end did not come; there was no end
waiting, and no loneliness either. He saw the shape of her death in
her face, and felt peace. He caught both of her hands in both of
his, and kissed her forehead gently. “Sue,” he whispered, as tears
trailed down her cheeks. “I
will
come with you and stay
with you, forever.”
    She laughed, she always laughed.
    She was laughing when they left that room
together.
     
     
    THE END

Short Stories by Michelle West and Michelle
Sagara
     
    The first six stories released are connected
to the Essalieyan Universe of the novels I write for DAW as
Michelle West. Since those are my most asked-for short stories,
those are the stories I wanted to make available first. The rest of
the stories will be released in chronological order from the date
of their first appearance, which are listed in brackets beside the
titles, along with the anthology in which they first appeared. All
of the stories have new introductions (which will probably come
through in the samples if you’ve already read the stories but want
to read those.)
     
    In the Essalieyan universe
:
     
Echoes (2001,
Assassin
Fantastic
)
Huntbrother (2004, Sirius, the Dog
Star )
The Black Ospreys (2005, Women of
War )
The Weapon (2005, Shadow of Evil )
Warlord (1998, Battle Magic )
The Memory of Stone (2002, 30 th Anniversary DAW
Fantasy ) * * *
Birthnight (1992, Christmas
Bestiary )
Gifted (1992, Aladdin,