like us to take you inside?’ Reese asked.
Foley was surprised at that. She guessed, once the citizen was awake, regulations would allow you to offer assistance. Or maybe her partner still had some human feelings after all.
‘Oohhh The woman’s eyes almost crossed. Foley guessed she would have trouble standing, much less walking. ‘Okay,’ the citizen added weakly.
So now they could use the identiplate. Sometimes, Foley swore, she could make no sense at all out of those numping regulations! Foley gently picked up the citizen’s limp hand and pressed the woman's thumb into the plate below the doorbell. The door shooshed open.
Reese and Foley each took one of the woman's arms and helped her inside.
'Welcome home, Jennifer!’ a computer voice chirrupped merrily. No surprise that the computer was one of those outdated models, all warm and insincere.
Since the lights didn’t come on, there was no way to tell where they were going. They took her into what should have been the living-room.
‘Ma’am,’ Reese spoke with as much concern as Foley had ever heard. ‘You should reprogram. It's dangerous to enter without lights on.'
‘Lights on?’ the citizen replied groggily.
The computer activated the lights at tho voice command. Voice activation? This program was even older than Foley had imagined!
And the furniture in this place! She was sure there wasn’t anything in here made after 1990. The scratched coffee table, sagging couches and threadbare chairs, all reminded Foley of the kind of stuff you’d find in one of those charity stores - except the stuff in those stores would be in a lot better shape.
The two officers eased the citizen down on the sofa.
'Just take it easy and you’ll be fine,’ Reese said brusquely. ‘And you be careful in the future.
The citizen - Jennifer - looked groggily up at the two officers.
‘The future?’
There was the oddest expression on her face - like there was something wrong with the future. Maybe, Foley thought, she was just reading into the woman’s expression. Still, it wasn’t surprising. When you lived in a place like Hilldale, you didn’t have much of a future to look forward to.
‘So long. Mrs McFly,’ Foley called, trying to sound cheerful despite it all.
‘So long,’ the citizen replied, still half in her tranked-out stupor. In a way, Foley couldn’t blame her for turning to chemicals. Who knew - maybe Foley would have done the same thing if she had been stuck in a dead-end place like this?
Sometimes she really hated this job.
‘Mrs McFIy!’
Jennifer woke up. That’s what the police officers had called her Mrs McFly. And they had talked to her about the future. Was that where she was? The future? She remembered getting in the DeLorean with Marty and Doc, the lights and noise, and then that display that said they were in 2015. That's right! She had been all excited about being here with Marty, and had started asking Doc Brown all those questions.
And then what?
She must have fallen asleep. But how could you fall asleep if you had just gone someplace as exciting as the future? And why wasn’t she in the DeLorean anymore? Had something happened to Marty and Doc? It must have - they wouldn’t just leave her all alone -would they? And why had she been with the police?
And where had the police left her?
She stood up and looked around. The policewomen had called her Mrs McFly. Could this be where she lived - in the future?
The first thing she noticed was a large picture window that looked out over the grounds of what must be a very large estate. There were manicured lawns, formal gardens, and row after row of neatly trimmed hedges, all leading back to a charming white gazebo in the distance. The view was all quite lovely, except for one thing. It was daylight out there. Hadn’t it been getting dark a few minutes ago, when the cops brought her in?
Jennifer frowned as she looked at the room around her. Shouldn’t the furniture be nicer if they
Foley was surprised at that. She guessed, once the citizen was awake, regulations would allow you to offer assistance. Or maybe her partner still had some human feelings after all.
‘Oohhh The woman’s eyes almost crossed. Foley guessed she would have trouble standing, much less walking. ‘Okay,’ the citizen added weakly.
So now they could use the identiplate. Sometimes, Foley swore, she could make no sense at all out of those numping regulations! Foley gently picked up the citizen’s limp hand and pressed the woman's thumb into the plate below the doorbell. The door shooshed open.
Reese and Foley each took one of the woman's arms and helped her inside.
'Welcome home, Jennifer!’ a computer voice chirrupped merrily. No surprise that the computer was one of those outdated models, all warm and insincere.
Since the lights didn’t come on, there was no way to tell where they were going. They took her into what should have been the living-room.
‘Ma’am,’ Reese spoke with as much concern as Foley had ever heard. ‘You should reprogram. It's dangerous to enter without lights on.'
‘Lights on?’ the citizen replied groggily.
The computer activated the lights at tho voice command. Voice activation? This program was even older than Foley had imagined!
And the furniture in this place! She was sure there wasn’t anything in here made after 1990. The scratched coffee table, sagging couches and threadbare chairs, all reminded Foley of the kind of stuff you’d find in one of those charity stores - except the stuff in those stores would be in a lot better shape.
The two officers eased the citizen down on the sofa.
'Just take it easy and you’ll be fine,’ Reese said brusquely. ‘And you be careful in the future.
The citizen - Jennifer - looked groggily up at the two officers.
‘The future?’
There was the oddest expression on her face - like there was something wrong with the future. Maybe, Foley thought, she was just reading into the woman’s expression. Still, it wasn’t surprising. When you lived in a place like Hilldale, you didn’t have much of a future to look forward to.
‘So long. Mrs McFly,’ Foley called, trying to sound cheerful despite it all.
‘So long,’ the citizen replied, still half in her tranked-out stupor. In a way, Foley couldn’t blame her for turning to chemicals. Who knew - maybe Foley would have done the same thing if she had been stuck in a dead-end place like this?
Sometimes she really hated this job.
‘Mrs McFIy!’
Jennifer woke up. That’s what the police officers had called her Mrs McFly. And they had talked to her about the future. Was that where she was? The future? She remembered getting in the DeLorean with Marty and Doc, the lights and noise, and then that display that said they were in 2015. That's right! She had been all excited about being here with Marty, and had started asking Doc Brown all those questions.
And then what?
She must have fallen asleep. But how could you fall asleep if you had just gone someplace as exciting as the future? And why wasn’t she in the DeLorean anymore? Had something happened to Marty and Doc? It must have - they wouldn’t just leave her all alone -would they? And why had she been with the police?
And where had the police left her?
She stood up and looked around. The policewomen had called her Mrs McFly. Could this be where she lived - in the future?
The first thing she noticed was a large picture window that looked out over the grounds of what must be a very large estate. There were manicured lawns, formal gardens, and row after row of neatly trimmed hedges, all leading back to a charming white gazebo in the distance. The view was all quite lovely, except for one thing. It was daylight out there. Hadn’t it been getting dark a few minutes ago, when the cops brought her in?
Jennifer frowned as she looked at the room around her. Shouldn’t the furniture be nicer if they
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