Free 21 Tales by Dave Zeltserman

he enjoy himself with Almondo sneaking around, spying on him, acting as if he were some kind of fiend? Heile felt a hotness flushing his cheeks. It was so damn unfair! Before coming to Acapulco he lived a hellish existence, last trying to satisfy his perversion in Los Angeles. The movie showings he attended there did nothing but fill him with loathing, what with the operators and other patrons leering at him, considering him as one of their own. He had tried buying his own movies, but had always been overcome with a paralyzing fear that he would somehow be discovered. In Los Angeles he was nothing but a freak, in Acapulco he was normal—at least until Almondo had to think he saw something.
    He felt a presence and noticed Almondo standing next to him. The waiter was gazing at the cliffs. "I have bad news for you, Senor Heile," he said, his lips twisted up slightly. "This is the last day I will be able to wait on you. Tomorrow you and me will be very far apart. That is why I had to come tonight."
    Oscar Heile looked up, his mouth opening dumbly. An incredible wave of joy welled up within him, almost making him burst out in tears. "I will miss you," he said when he could finally talk. Then he pointed at his empty champagne glass. "Tonight I will drink in your honor."
    "Certainly." The waiter nodded, picked up the glass and filled it, his back partially turned to Heile.
    Oscar Heile sat back in his chair. The oppressive black cloud Almondo had brought had finally lifted. For the first time in a month Heile felt happy—truly, completely happy.
    He noticed the divers had finished their swim and were now climbing the cliffs. Roberto was already halfway up. The diver disappeared in a part of the rock formation where Heile knew a bottle of tequila was hidden. When Roberto reappeared, he turned towards the fat man and started waving his arms over his head, indicating through a private signal how many shots of tequila he had just downed. Heile counted eight waves. A burst of adrenalin nearly floored him. Eight shots of tequila! Roberto had only before worked up to six! He had added two more shots in honor of Heile's return.
    Oscar Heile felt dizzy. His hand shook as he reached for the champagne, Eight shots! He still couldn't believe it. Today could be the day. In his excitement he took most of the champagne in a single gulp and then stared at the almost empty glass, confused. It had an odd bitter taste. All at once it was like a hand gripped his heart and yanked. The champagne glass dropped from him, shattering onto the terra-cotta floor. The hand once again gripped his heart and almost ripped it out.
    He turned helplessly. Almondo was staring at him, his eyes shining defiantly. Heile knew the waiter had poisoned his champagne. Those black shining eyes were telling it all, damning Heile, damning him to hell ...
    The honey-blonde jumped up and screamed that Heile was having a heart attack. Heile opened his mouth but only a sick gurgling came out. One tremendous pull yanked at his heart and he fell out of his chair.
    A crowd gathered to watch him die. His eyes fluttered from one face to the next. All he could feel was envy. Then, as the last few convulsions rocked his body, he wished more than anything he had a mirror.
     

Almost Human
     
     
    This is one of my very early stories, and Almost Human is every bit as much noir as it is science fiction.
     
     
    Robert Danby watched as the holographic image of his wife's head formed in the glass compartment. As it crystallized, the facial expression of the holograph suggested disorientation. Within seconds the expression changed, the disorientation shifting to fear.
    “It's so lifelike.” Danby uttered softly. “Nothing at all like the emulograms I've seen before.”
    “Uh huh." I nodded. "The ones you see in stores are fairly crude. They duplicate a few movements and phrases, but they don't really act or sound like the real thing.” I compared the alpha waves generated by the