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68. HAND-EYE Now it was Milgrim’s turn, on the Biedermeier vanity stool, the remains of Ajay’s luxuriant top-curls darkly littering the spread towels. Ajay himself was in Hollis’s huge scary shower, ridding himself of the aerosol product Chandra had applied to the sides of his head. Staunchly unwilling to see her cousin naked, she faced away from the shower as she used an electric clipper on Milgrim’s back and sides. Milgrim, seeing Ajay naked, thought he looked like a professional dancer. He was all muscles, but none of the bulgy kind. The idea, now that Chandra had had a good look at Milgrim, and at his hair as it had been the day before, was to give him a different cut. He found himself imagining a Milgrim wig for Ajay, something he was sure he’d never imagined before. It was getting steamy, but he heard Ajay crank the shower down, then off. Soon he appeared beside Milgrim in a white robe with corded trim, carefully knotting its belt. The top of his head was now Chandra’s initial approximation of Milgrim’s previous look, though it was black, and damp. Milgrim’s own indeterminately brownish hair was falling on the towels. “I’ll have to trust,” Ajay said to Chandra, “that that wasn’t a joke.” “For the sort of retainer your friend has me on,” Chandra said, over the burr of the clipper, “you’ll get no jokes at all. I’d never tried it before. Seen an instructional video. I’ll do better next time. Keep your chin down.” This last to Milgrim. “Really it’s to cover bald spots. Up top. Going that heavy on the sides may be pushing the envelope a bit.” She shut the clipper off. “Pushing the envelope,” said Ajay, “is what we’re about. High speed, low drag.” He toweled his head. “Do these people know you’re a perfect idiot?” asked Chandra. “Ajay,” said Garreth, through the door. Ajay flung the towel in a corner and went out, closing the door behind him. “He was always like that,” said Chandra, Milgrim not knowing how that was supposed to have been. “It wasn’t entirely the army.” She gave the hair on top of his head a few brisk snips with her scissors, then removed the towel she’d draped around his neck. “Stand up. Have a look.” Milgrim stood. A different Milgrim, oddly military, perhaps younger, looked back at him from the wall of fogged mirror above the twin sinks. He’d buttoned the collar of his new shirt, to keep hair from getting inside, and this contributed to the unfamiliarity. A stranger, in an air tie. “That’s good,” said Milgrim. And it was. “I wouldn’t have thought to do that. Thank you.” “Thank your friend on the bed,” said Chandra. “Most expensive cut you’ll have had.
Easily.” Ajay opened the door. He was wearing Milgrim’s wrinkled cotton jacket. His shoulders were slightly too wide for it, Milgrim thought. “Your shoes are a bit too long,” Ajay said, “but I can put something in the toes.” “Milgrim,” said Garreth, from the bed, “come and sit. Fiona here tells me you’re a natural with the balloons.” “I have good hand-eye coordination,” Milgrim volunteered. “They told me in Basel.”
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TITLES BY WILLIAM GIBSON Neuromance
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VIKING an imprint of PENGUIN BOOKS
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1. CABINET 2. EDGE CITY 3. SLUT’S
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45. SHRAPNEL, SUPERSONIC 46. TORTOI
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To Susan Allison, my editor
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accommodations. A peculiarly narrow
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They’d run with that tallness, em
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2. EDGE CITY Milgrim considered the
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lot. They always made that squealin
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positioned pocket, quite far down o
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3. SLUT’S WOOL She woke to gray l
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The Italian girl brought her a pot
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“Fully.” He forked baked beans
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small army of people who understand
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Milgrim preferred to regard that by
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public toilets as remarkably semico
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No exterior signage. The label, ins
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advanced, but the promise of it had
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6. AFTER THE GYRATORY The Neo’s p
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Milgrim nodded, looking around at t
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7. A HERF GUN IN FRITH STREET Bigen
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“Aldous will take you back to the
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8. CURETTAGE Milgrim, cleaning his
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9. FUCKSTICK When she opened Cabine
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of darts in her life, but didn’t
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interesting, required volunteers, t
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system. Then back, without exiting,
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squirrel suit. He was okay. Hot, to
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and splashed it into the sink. She
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“How so?” “Are they serious a
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to the hotel. We’ll phone you.”
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“Hollis?” She looked up. “Mil
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something he pointed out to me, in
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15. THE DROP Fitzroy,” Clammy sai
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“What were the other people like,
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16. HONOR BAR She was waiting for M
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founder and CEO.” “CEO,” he r
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“No,” Milgrim agreed, and took
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“But it was your rule, remember?
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18. 140 The Neo rang while he was s
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19. PRESENCES Tossing makeup and to
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20. AUGMENTED Milgrim glanced up fr
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“I know another Bollard, plus the
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pale Scandinavian wood, emerging in
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She’d actually seen suits like th
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She stepped back into the elevator,
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His therapist had suspected that hi
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his camera. Now it was Foley’s tu
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And two more black-suited minders.
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“Were you ever a model?” “No,
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sense of what she didn’t like tha
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The Neo rang, from a different pock
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he put his phone in his jacket pock
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“Depends how much it matters to h
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26. MOTHER RUSSIA Kleenex?” Milgr
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strap of his bag was securely over
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When the elevator stopped again, an
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“Found a gym. Hacky.” “Hackne
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28. WHITE PEAR TEA The cost of wifi
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“Borrowed laptop. Lost phone.”
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29. SHIVER Sleight,” Bigend said,
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30. SIGHTING Milgrim left the white
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In Basel, they had questioned him c
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lobby. Outside, the air had been sc
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seen him. He smiled ruefully, white
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32. POST-ACUTE The waitress was dep
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Hounds haven’t often done things
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haven’t been sold off, otherwise
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“Blue Ant didn’t send anybody.
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33. BURJ She got the iPhone out of
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“Bye, Heidi.” The pale gold bul
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Imagining explaining that to Winnie
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“Would he have to know?” “Did
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35. DONGLE As the train pulled out
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was heavier than he would have expe
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“A roll-in. Vinegar and brown pap
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“That’s less dangerous?” “N
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37. AJAY Inchmale’s spirit-beast,
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“ ‘Engrish,’ ” said Heidi,
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38. GETTING HOTTER Bigend was havin
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“I don’t know what he thinks,
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“Give it a speed-dial code,” sa
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40. ENIGMA ROTORS His room here ove
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unfamiliar. Voytek wore a wool card
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“Toilet. Loo.” “In back. With
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He held the door for her. “Welcom
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“Because of who and what they see
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hurt would constitute a dropped bal
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“That’s bad for you?” She loo
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“Not quite. He becomes a hookup a
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43. ICHINOMIYA Thanks for meeting o
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any more. I’ll understand.” Mer
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“Good,” said Milgrim, before Bi
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“I don’t think he did either, m
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“I don’t think he’d like that
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The tall woman’s large, startling
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military contracts, at least it is
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ut the manta, merely a black, devil
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Something moved, three feet above B
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And Milgrim fell, amazed and unthin
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49. GREAT MARLBOROUGH All was forwa
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50. BANK-MONUMENT Milgrim had never
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51. SOMEONE Hollis lay fully dresse
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ear lobby, do some work on my lapto
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yours. Total fanboy.” “That wou
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cushioned. “Archaic expression,
Page 214 and 215: “You told her that?” “And she
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Page 218 and 219: 53. CRICKET The phone’s cricket-n
Page 220 and 221: 54. AIR GLOW Ferguson,” said Winn
Page 222 and 223: 55. MR. WILSON There were few guest
Page 224 and 225: “Milgrim.” “How much does he
Page 226 and 227: 56. ALWAYS IS GENIUS Milgrim, on hi
Page 228 and 229: “You refer,” Bigend said, “to
Page 230 and 231: 58. DOUCHE BAGGAGE Voytek was very
Page 232 and 233: toward one wall, raising the racket
Page 234 and 235: under her majorette jacket. “Look
Page 236 and 237: 60. RAY Milgrim, in his stocking fe
Page 238 and 239: “You and that Heidi,” said Fion
Page 240 and 241: “A sigil?” “The sigil of forg
Page 242 and 243: 62. WAKING Milgrim woke with a leg
Page 244 and 245: 63. CURLY STAYS, SLOW FOOD With Gar
Page 246 and 247: filigreed instrument Inchmale had u
Page 248 and 249: 64. THREAT MANAGEMENT The toilet in
Page 250 and 251: “Did you have story time first?
Page 252 and 253: 65. LEOPARD SKIN IN MINIATURE She s
Page 254 and 255: There was something on the bedside
Page 256 and 257: 66. ZIP Benny’s civilian bike, Mi
Page 258 and 259: “We saw him,” Fiona said. “He
Page 260 and 261: 67. A CRUSHED MOUSE Ajay, looking p
Page 262 and 263: translucently ancient waxed cotton
Page 266 and 267: 69. THE GIFTING SUITE Here?” She
Page 268 and 269: keeping this on. I’m doing someth
Page 270 and 271: 70. DAZZLE The penguin smelled of K
Page 272 and 273: couldn’t identify at all. “I’
Page 274 and 275: “That’s for you to work out. A
Page 276 and 277: and Heidi, and you and the others,
Page 278 and 279: he’s sleeping with Hollis. I mean
Page 280 and 281: Milgrim lowered the helmet to his s
Page 282 and 283: “I’m sorry,” he said. “What
Page 284 and 285: 73. THE PATCHWORK BOYFRIEND In the
Page 286 and 287: 74. MAP, TERRITORY The heels of Mil
Page 288 and 289: “I’m not going anywhere without
Page 290 and 291: 76. GONE-AWAY GIRL Milgrim stood, f
Page 292 and 293: 77. GREEN SCREEN The broken wheel o
Page 294 and 295: “Did you finish your Breast Chase
Page 296 and 297: 78. EL LISSITZKY Care for mineral w
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Page 300 and 301: Pep, following instructions, hadn
Page 302 and 303: And then he found Chombo, and Foley
Page 304 and 305: 82. LONDON EYE Thumbing the wings t
Page 306 and 307: 83. PLEASE GO What was that?” she
Page 308 and 309: 84. NEW ONE Fiona’s drone’s bat
Page 310 and 311: okay?” she’d asked, giving his
Page 312 and 313: getting him wherever he’s now got
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painfully with the orange leather u
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now.” “At Blue Ant?” Aldous n
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THANKS: My wife Deborah and daughte
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45. SHRAPNEL, SUPERSONIC 46. TORTOI
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