Judy nodded—“That’s where they said it started.”
“I also heard there was a similar thing going on up north of Augusta, but that Kingston Depot was the biggest. My parents never really talked about it. It was just something happening on the news,” Robby said.
Brad frowned and looked down at his hands.
“Well, I don’t know what to tell you,” he said. “Maybe they didn’t know that I live out there, or maybe I was fine because I don’t have city water. Who knows?”
“And you didn’t go into town that week, or happen to see the news?” Robby asked.
“I was busy working,” Brad said. “When I get busy, everything else just falls away. Just ask my ex-wife. She’d tell you, if she were still alive.”
“There’s a chance she’s still around,” Judy said. “You never know.”
“No,” Brad said, “she died years ago.”
They sat through an awkward silence. Brad wanted to change the subject, but knew they might construe that as an admission that he had something to hide. He thought he could feel their eyes on him, but when he finally looked up, Robby and Judy were looking elsewhere.
“Do you have any theories on what happened?” Robby asked.
“I don’t think I have enough information for a good theory,” Brad said.
“Doesn’t have to be informed to be good,” Judy said.
“The whole thing is just puzzling,” Brad said. “More so now than before I talked to you guys. I thought everyone just left, or evacuated, or whatever. Then, the other day, I saw the corpses for the first time. So I figured some people didn’t make it out. But now you guys are saying that most of the people just disappeared into the sky. Evaporated or at least became invisible, right? Well that puts it right in the realm of some brand new force. Something we’ve never seen or heard of before has now acted upon our neighbors. It’s too much of a coincidence to believe that it doesn’t have anything to do with the coordinated tornadoes or multi-story snowfall. So that means that this new force has powers many times greater than anything we’ve ever heard of.”
“So you’re thinking aliens,” Robby stated.
“I didn’t say that,” Brad said. “Just a force.”
“Or Rapture, right? Why not Rapture?” Judy asked. “Why can’t your great and powerful force be God?”
“I’m just not a religious person,” Brad said. “That’s always been stuff I was asked to believe with no physical manifestation. When something inherently physical happens, religion is not my first thought.”
“But it all fits, doesn’t it?" Judy asked. “I’m no Bible scholar, but people disappeared into the sky, and we’re left here with Hell on Earth.”
Robby took in a deep breath. Brad looked over at the boy and wondered how previous conversations on this subject between Judy and Robby had ended. Robby didn’t look exasperated, but he wasn’t exactly nodding in agreement with Judy’s proposal.
“So you think we’re the only wicked ones?” Brad asked. “Everyone else ascended?”
“Perhaps,” Judy said. “Or maybe that part was just misunderstood. Lost in translation, you know? Maybe it’s not about good people get Raptured and the bad people stay here to witness the battle. Maybe God just has another purpose to leave us here on Earth for a while.”
“So what’s the difference then between my theory and yours? Either way, we’ve got an ultra-powerful force changing the landscape around us. Whether it’s God or not, how does that affect what we do from here?” Brad asked.
“It changes everything,” Robby said. Something was different about his voice when he spoke these words. Brad looked up at Robby and for the first time wouldn’t have characterized him as a boy—he would have Robby said was a young man. When Brad’s eyes met Robby’s, the young man continued—“Because I’m going to fight it. And if it’s not God, then I’m going to win.”
BRAD GOT BACK to the D.F.—the Dead Ferret house—a little after nine. After living so long in isolation, he didn’t wanted the conversation to end. It seemed like after they went their separate ways, he would never see Robby and Judy again. Before they left for the night, he helped Robby shut down and refill the heaters, and retrieve the half-full water keg. They strapped it in on the back of the truck next to an empty barrel. Robby could have done the work himself—he had a lift-gate on the back of the truck and used a dolly to move around the barrels, but Brad enjoyed making himself useful after enjoying their hospitality. He made tentative plans with Robby to meet up the next day.
Judy vanished while Brad and Robby did chores. Brad only saw her again as Robby got in the truck and honked the horn. Brad waved as Judy appeared from across the parking lot and climbed into the driver’s seat. He couldn’t tell for sure at his distance, but in the light from the cab of the truck, it looked like Judy had been crying.
Brad wondered about that as he walked home.
Brad slept well that night, feeling that somewhere reasonably close to him other people slept as well. He finished brushing his teeth in the morning and when he heard the horn of the same truck outside the D.F., Brad ran to the window and saw Robby sitting behind the wheel. When he smiled, toothpaste dripped down Brad’s chin and onto his gray sweater. He changed it out for a hooded sweatshirt and dressed as fast as he could. He checked the window several times as he pulled on his coat and boots, hoping Robby wouldn’t get impatient and leave.
He jogged across the lawn to the beat up old truck.
“Hi,” Brad said. Waving through the truck’s windshield.
“Come on in,” Robby said, waving. His voice was drowned out by the truck’s engine.
Brad slid into the passenger’s seat and wondered if he should offer to drive. Robby looked uncomfortable behind the big steering wheel. When Robby put the truck into reverse, Brad strapped on his seat belt and tried not to look nervous.
“I thought I’d show you where we get water,” Robby said.
“Cool,” Brad said.
“Do you know your way around?” Robby asked.
“Mostly, sure,” Brad said. “A bit.”
“There’s a spare map behind your seat,” Robby said.
Brad reached back and grabbed a magazine-shaped book of local maps. He flipped through the pages and saw several annotated spots. He located his own house and saw it already bore a star and the letters “D.F.”
“Ha,” Brad barked a laugh. “You’ve marked me.”
Robby smiled as he turned onto the main road—“Wouldn’t want you to get lost. Check out page D-three, you’ll see where we’re going.”
“Vyermin Labs on Hardwick Lane?” Brad asked. The map showed a small square and the label for the business. It sat on a small side street, not far from the airport.
“Yes,” Robby said. “They’re an environmental engineering firm. The facility is on city water, but they’ve also got a deep well with a tremendous capacity. We’ll fill up these barrels in minutes.” Robby pointed to the bed of the truck where Brad saw a half-dozen of the white water kegs.
Robby wasn’t exaggerating. When they pulled up to the big garage attached to the office complex, Robby backed in and they moved the barrels down next to the pump. Robby started up a portable generator wired into a breaker panel next to the frost-free hydrant. The outlet pipe on the hydrant filled the white barrels with a smooth, steady stream. It took less time than filling six glasses of water at a sink.
When he’d filled the barrels, Robby unwrapped two sterile containers and took samples from the first and last barrel. He beckoned Brad to follow him and led the way into the main building, putting on a headlamp as he walked.
“Should we shut down the generator?” Brad asked.
“No, it runs the stuff inside as well,” Robby said. He pointed at the extension cord which snaked in the door from the garage and down the hallway of the facility.