The Citadel and the Wolves by Peter Goodman Read Free Book Online Page A

after class when I spoke to him the other day. This was Thursday afternoon after class. Maybe the discussion group had been cancelled and no one had told me about it. I glanced at the chairs that were arranged in a semi circle in the middle of the floor. Another chair stood in front of the semi circle. No, it hadn’t been cancelled. Someone had gone to some trouble, Mr Whitehouse. I hesitated before I entered Room 100B. I sat in one of the chairs in the semi circle, slipping off my schoolbag. I felt alone. I was alone.
    I read the title of the group discussion on the whiteboard in front of me as I waited for the others to arrive:
    Parallel Universes
    Fact or Science Fiction?
    I glanced at the door anxiously. I sighed to release some of the tension. I began wishing Wendy was here too. Then Mr Whitehouse strode into the room with coffee in two plastic cups. He smiled broadly when he saw me. I was early.
    “Jade, I hope you like sugar in your coffee?”
    “Yes,” I whispered.
    He gave me a coffee. I thanked him with a nervous smile. I sipped a little. It was sweet and warm.
    This began to feel like a very informal affair. It wasn’t like class. I suddenly felt relaxed. The others would be here soon.
    “Do you believe?” asked Mr Whitehouse seriously.
    “Parallel universes?”
    “Yes.”
    “I’m not sure.”
    “Intrigued?”
    “Yes.”
    He chuckled.
    I was relieved when the others began to arrive in ones and twos. I was no longer alone. I recognised one or two in the group including Rod Stiles who was in year 11. He was a keen science fiction buff. He read all the latest stuff. He wrote a short science fiction story that was published in the school magazine. Jane Cahill, year 10, who sat next to me, once claimed that her uncle had been abducted by aliens. They found him three days later in the woods. He’d been on a bender. I was in good company then. We exchanged friendly smiles. We were the believers. One chair remained empty in the semi circle.
    Mr Whitehouse sipped his coffee sitting in the chair in front of the group. He put the coffee down on the floor.
    He spoke, “So, who wants to kick off?”
    We hesitated, waiting for someone else to raise his hand. I was confused briefly. I had a question of my own. What am I doing here? Do I really believe in parallel universes? What are parallel universes? I considered myself to be a sensible kind of person. Then another thought crept into my mind. Many sensible people still believe in God. Did I believe in God too? I was getting confused again. How could a 13-year-old girl cope with all of this? I didn’t want to start a debate with myself. Daddy is a scientist. I don’t think he believes in God. He believes in what is real, and our universe is real, isn’t it? Parallel universes? Black holes? I rather like the idea of a very mysterious universe of which I’m a part. There were many unanswered questions out there in the darkness of the infinite. It was scary too. That has to be the reason why I’m here. Then Rod Stiles raised his hand.
    “Rod?”
    “Do you believe in parallel universes, Sir?”
    The question amused Sir. “Do I believe in parallel universes? Some of us do. Others think they are merely the creations and imagination of the modern fantasy and science fiction writer, like the FTL spaceship, faster than light to the uninitiated. But Albert Einstein told us that we couldn’t travel faster than light. Was he right? Why shouldn’t we be able to travel FTL in the far future?”
    It began to warm up. Jane raised her hand next.
    “Jane?”
    “What would we find in a parallel universe, Sir?”
    “Earth,” answered Mr Whitehouse almost immediately, “though it would be a very different earth from the one we know.”
    “How different?” I asked without raising my hand.
    “A comet wiped out the dinosaurs 65 million years ago.”
    I thought briefly of ‘Robinson’s Comet.’
    Mr Whitehouse continued, “In our parallel universe, dinosaurs will still