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"We start with this roo we can froin, with your i me the "expert" That’s not exactly true, but at least now I’ "Okay, the nuure out is whether this is your rooestures toward the open closet door Now that my eyes have adjusted to the darkness, I can see that plain dark dresses and skirts hang inside He says, "Either this is your place, or in this universe I’ queen"

That ain I point at a dark square of leather on the floor "That ht?"

"Gotta be" Theo kneels down to check it out

I steal a glance out theto look around Although there are few streetlights here, the h for me to see This clearly isn’t our same house, but I think it’s still near the Bay Area--even in such a different neighborhood (sround is unmistakable My bedroom is on the first floor of the house Outside myis a lone sweetshade tree; tethered to it, with a chain lock, is an old beater bicycle with fat tires

"Check this out," Theo says as he gets to his feet I turn around to look at the wallet he’s showingdeal is--okay, so driver’s licenses look different here--and then I realize that’s not his license It’s a military ID

"You joined the ar why the hell I practically shaved , I realize that Theo’s wallet is stuffed full of photos, all of thenore the picture in front, a snapshot ofwith our arms around each other

He continues, "We have black-and-white photography We have a conspicuous lack of any smartphones or other modern tech here in your room That means we’re in one of the worlds that hasn’t advanced as far, right?"

"Normally, it woulde of inventing the Firebird"

"How can they do that if nobody’s even come up with color film yet?"

"We’ll have to see Every world develops in its oay" I lean closer, trying to get a look at es in his wallet "Do you have a photo of Paul?"

"Doesn’t look like it"

Of course I don’t know Paul in this universe, at least not yet If I did, I wouldn’t be with Theo We’ll have to figure out where he is in this world It would be just like Conley to play a dirty trick and hide the next splinter of Paul’s soul in a dimension where we live in different cities, or countries, or continents

It doesn’t o to rescue hiet over this," Theo murmurs "It’s so different but so not, all at the saes can throw you off"

"Not as ed"