Dreams Ltd (9 page)

Entranced by Jenny’s story I didn’t reply right away and only after few seconds I realised that she was still expecting an answer from me. I nodded quickly.

“That’s for sure. Everybody has a choice.”

“Exactly! As for the rules and regulation, yes, we have to obey by them and it’s not very nice but it’s OK. If you agree to live here for the rest of your life you can break any of them and many people do. But if you want to get back, you will have to find a job and try to earn the points.”

“What about you?” I asked suddenly.

“What about me?”

“How many points have you earned so far?”

Jenny stretched over to the coffee table and turned the static counter on. The screen was showing a number “271”.

“Not very much, as you can see but I don’t despair. Walk and you shall reach…”

“That’s true.” I answered vaguely and in order to avoid depression which I felt as soon as I thought about myself being in Tally, I began to think about Christopher Laroche and Dreams Ltd instead. I won’t have to learn how to survive in this place, I won’t have to obey by the local rules for too long, I won’t get stressed out about the idea of an unachievable freedom and about my static counter which doesn’t show as many points as I’d like it to. I won’t let myself drown in this prison, in this swamp which kills every living species by its system. It’s all about them but not about me and soon enough I won’t be a part of this anymore.

As I glanced at the clock I realised that it was quite late.

“I think I’m going to go, it’s late…”

“Yeah, I’m going to bed too.” Jenny stretched and got up from her chair.

We stopped at the door.

“Don’t worry too much, it just looks like it is hard to live here but you’ll get used to it.”

I shivered inconspicuously; I didn’t want to get used to being here, I didn’t want even to think about it.

“And thank you for the jam.” She smiled and her face transformed into quite a pretty one again. “It doesn’t look like I’m going to get slimmer anyway so at least I can make myself happy by eating sweets.”

“You are welcome. And you know where I am, so come whenever you want to.”

“Ok.

I said “goodbye” and left her apartment.

I woke up late, probably affected by the fatigue I’ve had for the past two days. After I washed my face and brushed my teeth I sat on the bed and started thinking about my plans for the day ahead. The most important thing was to find Laroche as soon as possible and if I want to find him I have to travel somewhere within the city. If I have to travel I will need some points or coupons to pay for the taxi or bus and if I need coupons I have to pay for them with the money I got from The Corporation. Everything seemed so practical and simple but there were a few more questions in my mind: where can I find an exchange point and where do I start my search for Laroche?

After pondering about the first question I came to a conclusion that it’ll be easier to pay for the taxi with coupons I still have and then, after I get more “credits” I’ll think about Laroche again.

I had a quick breakfast of some toast and jam (there was a third jar in the fridge), brushed my hair, put the trainers on and left the house. I decided not to carry the parcel around with me all day long - nobody can guarantee I’ll find Laroche today. A bundle of bank notes was sitting at the bottom of my bag. Should I exchange all the money straight away or keep some back for later? The answer to this question could only be found at the exchange point.

The day was hot and unbearably humid. As I left the Bell-Oak Park territory I headed up another street where there was more cars were driving by. It didn’t take me long to catch a taxi - not too many people were so keen on paying a lot for the pleasure and most of them preferred to wait for the bus that just stopped at the bus stop not very far from where I was standing. “Bell-Oak Boulevard” was the name of the bus stop. I memorised the name of the street and approached the yellow “Tazi” at the curb.

A puffy-faced fellow was already impatiently tapping his fingers on the dusty steering wheel.

“Where would you like to go?”

“I need you to find an exchange point where I could buy some coupons for money.”

The driver nodded towards the passenger seat as though saying “get it”.

I sat on the back seat.

“How much will it cost to go to the nearest one?” I clarified about the “nearest” point deliberately because I didn’t want to be taken to the other end of the city.

The guy got the hint.

“One and a half coupons. It’s not that far from here.”

I gritted my teeth - that was expensive, I’ll only have two coupons left after this ride, but then this was exactly why I was going to go to the exchange - to get some more of them.

“Let’s go.”

The driver scratched his unshaved cheek, glanced at the side mirror, honked at a slow pedestrian and merged with the traffic.

The building where the exchange point was located looked fairly decent: a four-storey glass construction was shimmering in the sun displaying many shades of blue, only the name was a bit of a let-down - “TallyBank”. This word caused an unpleasant association in my head but overall the place looked more than credible: flowerbeds, parking space for a couple of dozen cars, a few benches along the sides of the driveway. I was thrilled to see all this after having some truly dark thoughts on the way here - I was afraid to see a narrow shabby hut with a barred window and a miserable woman inside, and even less pleasant characters hunting for their next victim outside.

I exhaled with a sense of relief, paid the driver and got out of the cab.

The hot air was filled with a smell of grass and a huge variety of flowers growing in the flowerbeds around the bank. I couldn’t see many customers though and only met one man in a suit by the entrance. I pushed the glass door and entered the main hall. Booths selling coupons were situated along the right wall; I selected the nearest door and slipped inside.

The woman behind the glass welcomed me. I replied and asked:

“What is the buying rate for one point now?”

The question was a bit silly as I’ve never dealt with “point” currency before but the woman replied without any hesitation or even the slightest hint of embarrassment.

“The rate is always the same; it’s remained stable over the past fifty years.”

I silently thought to myself “How long has this shithole been around then?”

“And how much money is it for one point?”

“We sell one point for one thousand dollars.”

Holy cow! I nearly started a coughing fit from the shock. One thousand dollars for one point? One bloody point!? This isn’t just a robbery it’s…. it’s…

The woman watched how the mask of politeness came off my face with an admirable composure.

“How many points you would like to purchase?”

I inhaled loudly.

Did I really think that it would be possible to keep any “leftover” money for myself? How bloody wrong I was! It’s only possible to buy fifty points with all the money I’ve got. And fifty points is nothing here! A couple of weeks’ worth of bus rides and a few trips to the supermarket, and that’s if I am lucky because I still have no clue about the cost of food here…

“Erm… I’d like to buy fifty points.” I handed the cashier the whole pack of my precious bank notes. Ultimately, I can earn more money later but I will never be able to get out of Tally without finding Laroche first, hence it is necessary to use all the means possible.

The cashier quickly counted the notes using the counting machine - they zoomed through it with a swishing sound, and then stared at me.

“Is there anything else I can help you with?”

I stood there motionless.

“Are you going to give me any coupons?” I knew I sounded sarcastic but I couldn’t help it.

The woman blinked at me with her black eye-lashes layered with mascara.

“The points are already on your counter. Please take a look at your bracelet.”

I raised my hand and looked at the small screen - and so they are: instead of a zero there was now a fifty. I looked at the woman again and asked in a total bewilderment:

“But what about the paper coupons? I used them to pay for the taxi and I’ll need them in a shop later…”

The cashier explained to me in a friendly tone:

“You do not need them. The paper coupons are inconvenient and short-lived. All taxi drivers and vendors can simply scan your bracelet, subtracting the amount required.”

A silence hung in the booth. Her heavily made-up eyes were piercing me patiently waiting for new questions. Still confused and amazed, I could not think of anything to say and I had nothing left to do but to simply thank the cashier and leave the booth.

As I stepped out onto the hot street I looked around, wondering where to go now. How big is this city and how hard will it be to find one particular person amongst all the others? Surely there must be an information desk somewhere, but where is it?

Once I reached the road I stopped on the sidewalk, looking at the bypassing cars. Many of them were about twenty or thirty years old; they sped past me squeaking their brake pads and uttering loud claps of the rusty exhaust mufflers. There were also completely new vehicles - sparkling, smooth, polished and shiny. These were certainly owned by the wealthy people – owners of the shops and restaurants, large ranches or employees of the banks - those who had the right to change these blue numbers on the counters. I glanced at the bracelet - number fifty was glowing dimly in the rays of the midday sun. Looking at the passers-by I noticed a policeman standing in the distance on the corner. Maybe I should ask him? If I don’t break any rules, why wouldn’t he answer some of my questions? I searched for a sign pointing to the one-way traffic - there wasn’t any and headed towards the crossing. As I approached the policeman he made a suspicious grimace.

“What do you want?” he muttered, wiping off the sweat flowing out of his cap with one hand and holding the baton with the other.

“Hello. I just wanted to ask.... Could you please tell me how to find the directory enquiries? I'm looking for someone but I don’t know their address.”

“And who is this person to you?” the policeman became even more suspicious.

“Urm…” I couldn’t think of an answer on the spot. “Well… You know… My friend and I saw him once in a bar and I really liked him. I even overheard his name but as I was ready go up to him it was too late and he was gone. And now I’d like to try…”

“Have you fallen in love, stupid girl?” an idiotic smile appeared on the man’s face. The way he was treating me made me blush with indignation and he mistook my red cheeks for an embarrassment. Good for me!

“Go away! I am not wasting any time on fools like you!”

I realised that my last chance to get some information is slipping away and started wailing loudly.

“Please mister what should I do now? Where should I go? Where do I look for him? I’ll die from the grief and it will be your fault…” I have never said anything more stupid in my entire life but it was too late to stop now and I had to play this role till the end. “How could you leave me in such…”

“Damn you, girl!” the policeman swore but the anger in his voice was fake. “You are like a little leech! If only someone loved me like this! Can you see the telephone box across the street?” I looked in the direction he was pointing at and saw a small dusty phone box. “There is an address book. If you know the name of your man you can find his address.”

“Thank you so much!” I thanked him again but this time it was sincere.

“Just don’t jump in his bed straight away.” his voice caught up with me as I walked towards to the phone box and I heard his muffled laugh.

“Of course not!” I waved at him and smiled. “What a bastard you are.” I said to myself as soon as I turned my back to him.

As I was flipping through the dusty pages of the address book I prayed for the name Laroche to be there. Please let it listed! God, let me accomplish this task easily and painlessly. My finger was slipping down the page and my lips were whispering Labaro... Lacey... Laderman... Laguerre... Lakovski... Lambeck... Larkins... Laroche... Laroche!!! I almost jumped up. I found him! And I found not just any Laroche - I found THE Laroche - the one I needed - Christopher!