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Copyright 1985 by William Sleator
All rights reserved. No part of this publication reproduced or transmitted in any form or by an:. electronic or mechanical, including photocopy. r - - or any information storage and retrieval system - known or to be invented, without permission :n from the publisher, except by a reviewer who wza quote brief passages in connection with a revi for inclusion in a magazine, newspaper, or
Library of Congress Cataloging in PublicatisТ Dc..
Sleator, William.
Singularity.
Summary: Sixteen-year-old twins Harry an B.rn. stumble accross a gateway to another universe. wnc a distortion in time and space causes a dramatic change in their competitive relationship.
[1. TwinsЧFiction 2. Science fiction] I. Title. PZ7.S6313Si 1985 [Fic] 84-26075 ISBN 0-525-44161-1
Published in the United States by E. P. Dutton. Inc 2 Park Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10016 Published simultaneously in Canada by Fitzhenry & Whiteside Limited, Toronto
Editor: Julie Amper Designer: Edith T. We.nh-c
Printed in the U.S.A. W First Edition 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

This book is dedicated to my sister, Vicky S. Wald. \We were never actually twinsЧthough people sometimes thought we wereЧbut we are just as important to each other as any twins I ever heard of.

Singularity
By William Sleator

Checked out of the Library, Copied, Digitized, and Edited for Digital Release by Drahcir. Look for more torrents by Drahcir on demonoid.com, isohunt.com, and other torrent sites. Seed and Enjoy!!!


Chapter 1

It was my twin brother, Barry, who wanted to go to the houseЧand Barry knew how to get what he wanted.
It all started with a letter from a lawyer in a place called Sushan, Illinois. An uncle of MomТs had died. She had inherited his house.
Our family was reasonably well-off, but Mom and Dad were still excited about this windfall. What the inherited house meant, basically, was the money they would make from selling it. There was never any question of giving up our own home in a suburb of Boston.
УYouТve never said much about this generous Uncle Ambrose of yours,Ф Dad said.
УI must have been about ten the last time I saw him,Ф said Mom. УThe thing I remember most about him is his glass eye. It had such a peculiar fixed stare, while the real one rolled and jerked around like a birdТs. I asked him to take out the glass eye. He eagerly obliged.Ф
УSpend much time at this house?Ф
УNever saw the place. He didnТt have much to do with the family.Ф
УWeТll get this lawyer to put it on the market right away.Ф But it wasnТt going to be that simple. The next envelope from Sushan was a large manila one. In it was a letter, explaining that the house contained a good deal of furniture, much of which might be quite valuable, as well as personal papers and books. The lawyer felt that it would be in MomТs best interests to deal with these items herself. Furthermore, he added, if the house was left in its present unoccupied state for much longer, there would be the problem of vandalism.
The envelope also contained a set of keys.
УWell, I certainly canТt go until we come back from California,Ф Mom said, irritably jangling the keys. They were leaving in three days for a convention of DadТs in San Francisco, and after that they had made plans to travel along the Pacific coast. They would be away for two weeks. Barry and I werenТt going. That had been fine with us, at first. We had never been left at home on our own before.
But then Mom had begun organizing certain friends and neighbors to feed us and check up on us and supervise our activities to be sure we didnТt get into any trouble. By the time she got through phoning and scheduling and writing things down on her calendar, it looked as though there would hardly be a day that weТd be left on our own. She also made a long list of DoТs and DonТtТsЧmostly DonТtТs, such as, DonТt have any parties.
That part bothered Barry more than meЧhe was more popular than I was. But we were both dismayed when we realized that we were going to be more restricted than when Mom and Dad were around. Barry kept reminding Mom that we were sixteen and practically adults. УI mean, we shave every day now,Ф he pointed out. УDoesnТt that mean something?Ф
УIt doesnТt mean I trust you to stay here unsupervised, with all the kids in the neighborhood looking for a place to hang out,Ф she said. Barry begged and pleaded and sulked, and even threw a couple of tantrums. But Mom remained implacable.
Now, three days before their departure, Mom shook the keys on the old, greenish metal chain and sighed. УWe canТt change our California plans now,Ф she said. УWeТve already made all the reservations and paid for everything.Ф
УSo you can go to this Sushan place when we come back from California,Ф Dad said.
УI bet itТs just a crummy mobile home in the middle of a cornfield,Ф Barry said. The closer we got to their trip, the more bitter he became. It was going to be a miserable couple of weeks.
УNo, itТs a big lonely old house in the country, I know that much,Ф Mom said. УMy mother said it was the most uncomfortable place sheТd ever stayed in, and wouldnТt go back there after I was born. And he gave it to me.Ф She laughed and shook her head. Then she set down the keys without looking at them. УThe story was Uncle Ambrose made a lot of money on the stock market. Then he lost it in the crash. Millions he lost, overnight.Ф
Barry picked up the keys. He didnТt look at me or change his expression, but at that moment I knew what he was thinking. Barry and I could sometimes figure out what was going on in one anotherТs minds. At one time it gave us a lot of pleasureЧwe used to make a game of it and could startle other people. But in the last couple of years our special communication had begun to irritate Barry. I had learned to keep my mouth shut about it. Just as I had kept my mouth shut, a year ago, when he had told Mom we didnТt want to dress alike anymore.
УWell, if he was so rich once, there probably is a lot of valuable stuff thereЧmaybe even hidden money, who knows?Ф Barry said. УHe could have been one of those crazy old people who dresses in garbage bags and lives on cat food, and then dies and they find a million one-dollar bills hidden in the mattress.Ф Reran a finger carefully over the edge of one of the keys. УAnd if the house stays empty much longer, bums will start going in and camping out there, and going through stuff. Our stuff. And then we can just say good-bye to all the money and treasure he hoarded there for his whole life.Ф
УYouТre letting your imagination run away with you,
Barry,Ф Dad said. УIТll bet the only things this Uncle Ambrose
hoarded were National Geo graphics.Ф
УBut he was rich once,Ф Barry argued. УItТs very likely that he did save some stuff from that time. People pay a lot of money for old furniture, donТt they? And how about silverware? Maybe even jewelry and stuff. And now itТs oursЧI mean, MomТs. ItТs just plain dumb to sit here and let other people walk off with it.Ф
Mom was really getting worried now. УThere must be some family heirlooms there,Ф she said. УThey belong in the family. IТd just never forgive myself if we let them slipФЧshe clenched her fistsЧФ but IТve been looking forward to this trip to California so much! I donТt even want to miss o.e day!Ф She sighed again. УBut I suppose itТs my duty.Ф
УI bet one old oriental rugЧthat somebody might be stealing from the house right nowЧwould more than pay for two tickets from Boston to Sushari,Ф Barry said.
УSo thatТs what youТre driving at,Ф said Dad.
УYou two boys going to that house by yourselves?Ф Mom said.
УIТm not sure IЧФ I started to say.
УWhatТs the matter? Are you scared?Ф Barry accused me.