“That’s his house,” Seth said, happy to possess knowledge Skylar wanted. He pointed past a huddle of mesquite trees and a ridge of honeysuckle. As they walked toward the lake, Larry’s back yard became more visible. It was heavily wooded near the water but opened to an expanse of grass that approached his enormous brick home. There was an outdoor kitchen that appeared to border a swimming pool.
“I think he might be cooking something on the grill,” Skylar said. “See that smoke?”
Even though he wanted nothing more than to impress the young starlet, Seth wondered about the wisdom of Skylar revealing her presence to Larry or anyone else nearby. Even if Thomas was being dramatic about his food supplies, the presence of the world’s most famous actress would surely attract visitors the way bugs were drawn to light.
The boys reached the shoreline and raked their fingers through the shallow water.
“Dad!” cried Ben. “There’s something gross floating on the lake.”
“Shhhh!” Seth whispered hoarsely. “I told you to be quiet!”
“But Dad!”
“I’m going to walk over there,” said Skylar, pointing toward Larry’s house.
“Are you sure that’s a good idea?”
“What’s the big deal. I’m sure he—”
“Hi, there,” said a voice.
Seth had been so busy shushing the boys and negotiating with Skylar that he hadn’t noticed a figure approaching along the mesquite tree line. It was a man with wiry arms and a paunch of a gut, dressed in a blue Polo knit shirt and khaki cargo shorts. His hairline was receding from two directions, as if the forehead and crown were in a contest to reach the middle of his scalp. A pair of binoculars hung from a strap around his neck.
“I’m Larry. I live next door.”
Larry reached forward as if to shake their hands, and that’s when he finally recognized Skylar. His face crumpled in a way that might have been reverence or disgust or both.
“Oh, my God,” he stammered. “I’m… I’m so pleased to meet you.”
“Nice to meet you,” said Skylar in a cheerful voice that was nothing like her normal speaking tone.
“I don’t underst—oh, wait! You signed on for that film Thomas wrote. Are you guys, like, dating now?”
Skylar stepped backward and crossed her arms over her chest.
“Um, no. I wouldn’t say we’re dating.”
Larry smiled. Seconds elapsed while they stood there looking at each other. Seth hoped he didn’t come across to Skylar this way, so creepy and silent and staring.
“I can’t believe you’re here,” said Larry ponderously. “I love your work.”
“Thanks.”
Beyond Skylar the boys approached, and everyone turned to watch them.
“Dad,” called Brandon. “The water has something floating on it. Like dirt.”
“Yes,” said Larry. “The wind is carrying a fine grain ash. If it contaminates the water and kills the fish, that will pretty much seal our fate.”
When they were near enough, Seth grabbed his sons and pulled them close, his arms slung over their shoulders.
“I’m Seth, by the way. These are my two boys.”
“I was wondering why I hadn’t seen Thomas since all this happened,” Larry said. “I didn’t realize he was hosting guests.”
Larry leered at Skylar again, who, judging by the look on her face, had concluded this journey outside was a mistake.
“Thomas doesn’t talk to me often,” he said. “But he did tell me about The Pulse. It’s a lot like this, isn’t it?”
Larry gestured in a general way, over his head and toward the lake behind him. In the distance, clouds of smoke climbed into the air.
“I thought the rain might have put out the fires,” he continued, “but it didn’t.”
“Well,” Seth finally said. “We just came outside to get some air. Probably should head back inside. Right, Skylar?”
“For sure.”
“Why would you go indoors?” asked Larry. “My house is like an oven.”
“I don’t want my boys to breathe all this smoke.
“From here, though, it looks like your windows are open.”
“I’m going to take them inside. Just to be safe. It was nice to meet you.”
“You, too.”
Larry turned to Skylar and reached again for her hand, which he clasped between both of his own.
“I’m so glad to finally meet you,” he said. “I was a science consultant on several films and met several actors. I even met Roark once.”
Skylar didn’t answer, but the horrified look on her face left no doubt about how she felt.
“Let’s go,” Seth said. He let Skylar walk ahead of him and pushed Ben and Brandon behind her.
“Come by if you need anything,” Larry said as they shuffled away. “Like if you need to borrow a cup of sugar.”
Seth raised his hand but didn’t turn around. He knew they’d made a very bad mistake and wasn’t sure what to do about it. Larry was even stranger than Thomas had made him seem, and eventually there would be a price to pay for having put themselves on his radar.
But what? Would he come for Thomas’ food? Convince others to come?
“And I’ll do the same,” Larry added.
TWENTY-THREE
It seemed all his life, Thomas had been failing to please women.
One day when he was twelve years old, his mom picked up the phone and found herself talking to her husband’s mistress. The girl, barely out of college, explained how his father had been fucking her every morning while pretending to be at the gym. The way his mother handled this unexpected news was to get drunk and wait for her husband to come home so she could stab him with a broken beer bottle. And though she hadn’t gone through with her plan, she did kick his dad out of the house for a while, and Thomas had spent those terrible weeks doting on his mother even as she verbally abused him for it. She growled and yelled and broke down in angry tears, and all the while he convinced himself she didn’t mean to say those things, she didn’t mean it when she slapped him across the face, she didn’t mean it that one awful morning while she sat in front of her vanity yanking at her tangled hair and hoarsely whispered words he could still hear today: I hate you, Thomas.
With time he came to understand why he fell so hard for women like Natalie and Sophia: It wasn’t true love unless you were forced to work for the tiniest bit of affection. And when he finally met someone devoted to him, Thomas was put off by it. As early as their second date he knew he would never love Gloria the way he should love a wife, but she was beautiful and driven and wanted desperately to be married. They suffered five years avoiding conflict (and eventually each other) before Gloria summoned the nerve to leave him. Because for Thomas to leave her would have meant another failure.
Today smoke loomed on the horizon, and soon flames would reach the shore of the lake, and then what? Would they be forced to leave? Would the water protect them? Would they be overrun by hordes of starving people? There was no way to know. To spend even a single moment thinking of anything else seemed frivolous.
But Thomas couldn’t help himself. He wished he knew how to comfort Natalie. He resented having to order Seth and his boys to remain indoors. And his relationship with Skylar was a disaster. She had flown here, ostensibly, to discuss his screenplay, but her obvious flirting at the airport hinted at a possible romantic interest he never would have imagined. And there was no use pretending he wasn’t flattered by her attention. This was a woman who was every man’s fantasy, who had flown halfway across the country to have an in-person conversation that could easily have happened over the phone. Who now loathed him for refusing to share his food.