‘They can’t hear me!” she said desperately—and just as she said it, she
recalled her dream about Hilde and the gold crucifix.
“It’s the price we have to pay. Although we have sneaked out of a book,
we can’t expect to nave exactly the same status as its author. But we really
are here. From now on, we will never be a day older than we were when we
left the philosophical garden party.”
“Does that mean we’ll never have any real contact with me people
around us?”
“A true philosopher never says ‘never.’ What time is it?”
“Eight o’clock.”
“The same as when we left Captain’s Bend, of course.”
“This is the day Hilde’s father gets back from Lebanon.”
“That’s why we must hurry.”
“Why—what do you mean?”
“Aren’t you anxious to know what happens when the major gets home to
Bjerkely?”
“Naturally, but. . .”
“Come on, then!”
They began to walk down toward the city. Several people passed them
on the way, but they all walked right on by as if Sophie and Alberto were
invisible.
Cars were parked by the curbside all the way along the street. Alberto
stopped by a small red convertible with the top down.
“This will do,” he said. “We must just make sure it’s ours.”
“I have no idea what you mean.”
“I’d better explain then. We can’t just take an ordinary car that belongs to
someone here in the city. What do you think would happen when people
noticed the car driving along without a driver? And anyway, we probably
wouldn’t be able to start it.”
“Then why the convertible?”
“I think I recognize it from an old movie.”
“Look, I’m sorry, but I’m getting tired of all these cryptic remarks.”
“It’s a make-believe car, Sophie. It’s just like us. People here only see a
vacant space. That’s all we have to confirm before we’re on our way.”
They stood by the car and waited. After a while, a boy came cycling
along on the sidewalk. He turned suddenly and rode right through the red car
and onto the road.
“There, you see? It’s ours!”
Alberto opened the door to the passenger seat.
“Be my guest!” he said, and Sophie got in.
He got into the driver’s seat. The key was in the ignition, he turned it,
and the engine started.
They drove southward out of the city, past Lysaker, Sandvika,
Drammen, and down toward Lillesand. As they drove they saw more and
more Midsummer bonfires, especially after they had passed Drammen.
“It’s Midsummer, Sophie. Isn’t it wonderful?”
“And there’s such a lovely fresh breeze in an open car. Is it true that no
one can see us?”
“Only people of our own kind. We might meet some of them. What’s the
time now?”