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The warm night air had dried Sid’s tuxedo jacket but failed to reach the shirt underneath, and exertion was overcoming his u-suit. He flapped his arms free of the jacket, one after another. Without slowing, he let it fly behind him. The breeze hitting his wet shirt brought immediate relief.
His legs burned with the effort of pushing himself up and over another arched bridge leading from the residential area into a commercial zone. As he pedaled, his mind gnawed on Jayna’s accusations. She seemed convinced that his purchase of Realms had been part of a broader plan to…To what, exactly?
As he raced down the bridge towards the commercial district, a glimmer of realization flashed into his head but disappeared as suddenly as it had arrived. The idea flitted around the fringes of his mind, teasing him with understanding yet remaining stubbornly out of reach. His brain was so intent on catching the elusive thought that he nearly missed the flashing blue and red lights immediately ahead of him.
He slowed instinctively and looked down at the bike’s speedometer, but without the control module he had no idea how fast he was going.
A lot more than twenty kph, that’s for sure.
The flashing lights belonged to a small Manutai police pod. Sid tried to ride past the pod, but an officer in a white uniform shirt and blue wrap-around lavalava stepped into the roadway and motioned for him to stop.
Sid eased the bike to a standstill. His breathing was deep and ragged, but his frustration had finally begun to fade.
“Please get off the bicycle, sir.” The officer’s voice was soft but measured and left no room for argument.
Concern replaced the last bits of his anger, and Sid did as he was directed.
“You were traveling at nearly fifty-five kilometers per hour. The island-wide speed limit is twenty.” The officer shined a light on the mutilated bicycle. “Would you care to explain how that’s possible?”
“I was just…” Sid began, but he couldn’t find the words. What would he say? I vandalized the bike so I could run away from all my troubles. I’m trying to outrun my own stupidity.
“Sir, I think it would be best for you to come into the station and answer a few questions.”
A sudden wave of panic gripped Sid. He hadn’t considered the consequences of disabling the bike’s controls. He hadn’t considered that this was, in fact, a crime, and that Manutai was not known for being tolerant of criminal mischief, and that the speed governor was tied to a legal speed limit.
His night had just become significantly worse.
Chapter 35
Before Sid could try to talk his way out of his predicament, a second police pod arrived, and a woman in uniform stepped out. Her long silver hair was pulled into a tight, severe bun, and Sid decided she was definitely the more intimidating of the two officers, despite her slight build and advanced age.
“It’s OK, Officer Damuni. I’ll take it from here.”
Officer Damuni did not appear pleased but politely deferred to his superior officer. “Yes, Lieutenant.” His eyes narrowed as a taxi pulled to a stop behind the lieutenant’s pod. “Should I stay as backup?”
The lieutenant looked pointedly at Sid. “That won’t be necessary. Mr. Hayes won’t give us any trouble. Isn’t that right?”
Embarrassment churned in his gut, and Sid nodded sheepishly.
“What should we do with the bicycle?” asked Officer Damuni.
The taxi door opened, and Emmaline stepped out holding his tuxedo jacket. “Attach it to the cab,” she said. “He’s paid for it. It’s his.”
The lieutenant pursed her lips but nodded in agreement.
Officer Damuni grumbled as he secured the bicycle to the taxi, and Emmaline handed Sid his jacket. “I believe this is yours.”
Sid took the jacket from her. Thank heaven for Emmaline. She was always there to steer him in the right direction. No wonder he had relied so heavily on her lately.
But had he been relying on her too much?
Humiliated, Sid climbed into the taxi and sat next to Emmaline. As soon as they began to roll, the elusive thought returned to his mind. This time he caught a tiny glimmer of understanding.
“I’ve contacted Hazel to start damage control,” Emmaline said, “but I don’t think there will be too much to do if you and Jayna patch up this little misunderstanding as quickly as possible. She’s apparently staying at the SAPP house tonight. Do you want to try and contact her now, or wait until morning?”
Sid didn’t answer for several long seconds. At last, he turned to Emmaline and asked, “Tell me again why you thought it was a good idea for me to buy the Realms of Neptune?”
Emmaline fidgeted slightly before answering. “The park has potential, and mermaids are big right now.”
