Melanie Jackson newest thrill ride Death Drop plunged its passengers down at forty miles an hour Fifteen times the speed of a normal elevator Faster than gravity Like the tower the elevator was black with one difference It had a huge blood-red pomegranate painted on one side Death Drop was based on a Greek myth Hades the king of the under world gave a pomegranate to a beautiful woman named Persephone whom he had kidnapped She ate a few seeds Who wouldn’t Pomegranates are bittersweet refreshing But sly Hades had put a spell on the pomegranate Eating the seeds meant that Persephone had to marry Hades and spend half of every year with him Behind Death Drop people kayaked on False Creek The water was blue green in the sun The kayakers didn’t seem to be thinking about nature though 2
Death Drop With their paddles they pointed up to the tower that had been built for the elevator Everybody was talking about the big drop To reach the elevator you walked up the tower’s curving windowless corridors You got treated to special horror effects To die for the ads prom ised There was even a famous painting of Persephone on loan from England I had arrived early for baseball practice at the park across the street I’d decided to see what all the hype was about In orange flame-shaped letters a sign explained that groups of twenty at a time went in The next group had to (cid:90)(cid:68)(cid:76)(cid:87)(cid:3)(cid:88)(cid:81)(cid:87)(cid:76)(cid:79)(cid:3)(cid:87)(cid:75)(cid:72)(cid:3)(cid:191)(cid:85)(cid:86)(cid:87)(cid:3)(cid:74)(cid:85)(cid:82)(cid:88)(cid:83)(cid:3)(cid:70)(cid:85)(cid:68)(cid:86)(cid:75)(cid:72)(cid:71)(cid:3)(cid:71)(cid:82)(cid:90)(cid:81)(cid:3) in the elevator While waiting I tossed my baseball up and down She’s gone I looked down A kid with sausage like blond curls was talking to me 3
Melanie Jackson Out of the whole Death Drop lineup why come to me for help I didn’t look very respectable My la Angels T-shirt was streaked with mud Besides I was a boy Kids with prob lems needed a nice lady A middle-aged motherly type (cid:179)(cid:60)(cid:82)(cid:88)(cid:3)(cid:70)(cid:68)(cid:81)(cid:182)(cid:87)(cid:3)(cid:191)(cid:81)(cid:71)(cid:3)(cid:92)(cid:82)(cid:88)(cid:85)(cid:3)(cid:80)(cid:82)(cid:80)(cid:34)(cid:180)(cid:3)(cid:44)(cid:3)(cid:68)(cid:86)(cid:78)(cid:72)(cid:71)(cid:17)(cid:3) I didn’t put a lot of friendliness into my voice She scowled My aunt she said as if I should know Right I said I glanced up and down the line of people If I left it to help the kid I’d lose my place I spotted an attendant at the entrance He wore black jeans and a black T with a pomegranate design He was pale with a pinched expression like he didn’t want to be there Maybe he thought he was too good to be taking tickets I told the kid That’s who you need Someone who works here 4
Death Drop She shook her head The sausage like curls bounced She pointed to me To my baseball shirt Angels she said Angels help people Screams ripped through the air Death Drop was plunging The top half of the elevator slid back Now the passengers could see the ground hurtling toward them The elevator tipped forward They screamed louder (cid:55)(cid:75)(cid:72)(cid:81)(cid:178)(cid:192)(cid:68)(cid:80)(cid:72)(cid:86)(cid:3)(cid:79)(cid:72)(cid:68)(cid:83)(cid:72)(cid:71)(cid:3)(cid:73)(cid:85)(cid:82)(cid:80)(cid:3)(cid:87)(cid:75)(cid:72)(cid:3)(cid:72)(cid:68)(cid:85)(cid:87)(cid:75)(cid:17)(cid:3) Death Drop zoomed right into them (cid:50)(cid:85)(cid:3)(cid:86)(cid:82)(cid:3)(cid:76)(cid:87)(cid:3)(cid:68)(cid:83)(cid:83)(cid:72)(cid:68)(cid:85)(cid:72)(cid:71)(cid:17)(cid:3)(cid:55)(cid:75)(cid:72)(cid:3)(cid:192)(cid:68)(cid:80)(cid:72)(cid:86)(cid:3)(cid:90)(cid:72)(cid:85)(cid:72)(cid:3) gas-powered from jets built in a circle around the elevator No one was at risk of getting burned The elevator landed People stag gered out One guy looking kind of green ran into a washroom The blond kid was still watching me With a great effort I kept my voice patient About my T-shirt The Los 5
