Two men of mystery cross paths.
A short story balanced on the unknown.
"I was downtown with buddies, defending a stool in one of the college bars. At least until one pimply kid said a few words that he shouldn't have, and the bouncer suggested I leave. Of course my friends tagged along, since my money was paying for our day. It was late afternoon. We walked up the block, and I spotted this fellow sitting by himself, filling up one end of a long bench, his left leg thrown over the right and his skinny arms crossed and that thin old face wearing an expression that almost fooled me. Almost. But then those big empty eyes glanced my way, just for a second. And I knew. Like that, I could see through him.
"We walked past, but I couldn't let it go. I had to stop and look back, and one of the guys said, 'What's wrong?'
"'Him,' I said.
"'That old guy sitting? What about him?'
"'He's not.'
"'Not what?'
"'What he looks like.'"
A prolific science fiction author, Robert Reed is best known for his Great Ship stories. Reed has been nominated for eight Hugo Awards, winning in 2007 for his novella, "A Billion Eves."
Genre: Science Fiction
A short story balanced on the unknown.
"I was downtown with buddies, defending a stool in one of the college bars. At least until one pimply kid said a few words that he shouldn't have, and the bouncer suggested I leave. Of course my friends tagged along, since my money was paying for our day. It was late afternoon. We walked up the block, and I spotted this fellow sitting by himself, filling up one end of a long bench, his left leg thrown over the right and his skinny arms crossed and that thin old face wearing an expression that almost fooled me. Almost. But then those big empty eyes glanced my way, just for a second. And I knew. Like that, I could see through him.
"We walked past, but I couldn't let it go. I had to stop and look back, and one of the guys said, 'What's wrong?'
"'Him,' I said.
"'That old guy sitting? What about him?'
"'He's not.'
"'Not what?'
"'What he looks like.'"
A prolific science fiction author, Robert Reed is best known for his Great Ship stories. Reed has been nominated for eight Hugo Awards, winning in 2007 for his novella, "A Billion Eves."
Genre: Science Fiction
Used availability for Robert Reed's Old Man Waiting