105 / 180
105
then clumsily passed over it with the trimmer – making it
look something like his brother’s goatee, which, true, still
needed some work. He’ll have the dreads done at the
nearest hair stylist’s. There like that.
Max quietly stepped out into the room, holding the
chronomatizer ready to shoot. He glanced into the kitchen.
Cerberus was tied up. At first the dog turned his head in
surprise, then he snarled. “You won’t fool Cerberus,” Max
understood. Gregor was sleeping, leaning back against the
slanting back of the chair. Max set the mode of the injector,
set it to 25 years and pressed it into his brother. Let him feel
his fall back into childhood.
When the convulsions stopped, a toothless infant
floundered in Gregor’s clothing. His brother’s body was at
most three months old. Max pulled Gregor out from the
folds of his raglan coat and put him on the coffee table,
quickly dressed himself in his brother’s clothing, and it was
only then that the room filled with a child’s wailing.
Through the crying Max already could make out indistinct
swear words – his brother had his adult consciousness. The
roar of the faithful Cerberus joined in to the crying.
Max grabbed the cell phone, notebook computer and car
keys. He wanted to take everything – because he liked his
brother’s things so much. He found documents and money
in a suitcase, and threw the two devices, running shoes,
several pairs of jeans, and a jacket from the wardrobe into