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Neither one us had anything to say after that and Mallinger returned to her cruiser I waited until she was safely in her car before pulling off the shoulder and accelerating--slowly--to thirty-five

"D Mallinger," I said aloud as I watched her ie recede in my mirror "I wonder what the D stands for"

I don’t knohat I expected from Victoria A quaint ha pictured on a postcard, I suppose Instead, I found a tired, dihterhouse and a laer coh money into the town to support a sh school, city hall, fire station, and a law enforcement center, but none of them were new There was a Wal-Mart, of course A few fast-food joints, bars, convenience stores, and a tiny barn that sold Co Christhts and street laold garlands, and red ribbons appeared as gray and exhaust-stained as the drifts plowed along the boulevards

Yet there was another side to the city as well--snow-covered baseball and soccer fields, several parks, three lakes with beaches closed for the winter, and the Des Moines River A few blocks off Main Street I discovered a chare and venerable houses with sprawling porches and tire swings in the front yard, rolling hills ans, and skis, as well as so the sky seemed It stretched frorain elevators way down south with only the dome of the courthouse and a few church steeples for competition

Now this is what a small town should look like

Much of what I knew about Victoria I had learned froas station where I stopped to fillnoon But first things first Using the ated the streets until I found 347 Second Avenue and rolled into the parking lot It was a sn above the door and s read: FIT TO PRINT The sn in the corner of thelisted services: Black/White & Color Copies ? Print From Disk/Color Laser Prints ? Manuals, Reports & Newsletters ? Flyers, Brochures & Transparencies ? Binding, La & Custom Tabs ? Instant Posters, Banners & Exhibits ? Business Cards & Letterhead ? Invitations & Specialty Papers ? High Speed Internet Access ? PC & Mac Rental Stations

I kneas screwed before I even left my car

The kid behind the counter looked like he was about sixteen He smiled as if he meant it when he said, "Good afternoon, sir, how may I help you?" He was Hispanic, with dark hair, dark eyes, and a naio Tapia His accent was faint--you had to listen hard to hear it, but it was there To the right of hiht copiers of various size and function; a wo what looked like newspaper clippings To the left was an equal number of PCs and Apples separated from each other by soft privacy walls Behind the counter I could see several large printers and a couple of machines I couldn’t identify

"You provide Internet access," I said

"Yes, sir"

"Do you keep track of who uses your machines and when?"

"Sir?"

"Is it possible to learn who used your coiven time?"

The smile disappeared and his face closed down

"No," he said

"So, if I were to log onto one of your machines"