The tour group moved from one novelty to another, but Abbie remained in place. She recalled what Doris Vanderkamp had told her: When the soldiers came, all of us who worked at the City got rounded up and sorted out to find if any visitors were among us. I looked for Jesse, I waited for him, but he wasn’t to be found. Nor his sister that he talked about. Maybe they found a way to escape the troops, but I doubt that, since Jesse was in a bad way with his wound and his sister was also hurt, or so he told me. My own guess is that they went through the Mirror. It’s against the rules but the rules were being broken right and left. That’s what I think, anyhow. They’re safe there in the future, I think, probably flying through the air or visiting the moon.
That was the belief Miss Vanderkamp had chosen to adopt, and Abbie had adopted it as well.
“It’s like a tomb in here,” Soo Yee said, shivering.
“No more a tomb than a gravestone.”
Soo Yee said, “I’m sorry. They were like your children, I know.”
Jesse and Phoebe Cullum. “Their father was a well-meaning drunkard, and I was a poor substitute for a real mother. But yes, I loved them, in my way. Not a tomb, Soo Yee, because I think they are not dead.”
It was her benediction. The words were swallowed by darkness and the mineral smell of old earth, deep rust, autumn rain. And what was changed by her coming here? Nothing she could name. And yet.
Take care of your sister, Jesse.
“Are you praying?”
“Yes.”
“But the tour is leaving. I don’t want to be left behind.”
“Then let us join them.” Abbie turned away from the empty Mirror. “I’m ready for daylight now.” Daylight, and whatever came next.
Were they our betters? No. They are people like us, Aunt Abbie, no better than some and no worse than others. From what I have learned of their world I can say with confidence that they have not brought forth a paradise on Earth.
But if there is such a thing as progress, perhaps Futurity is entitled to some part of the disdain with which they regard us.
Until the world is perfect we pay the price of progress by acknowledging the sins of the past. It is the business of the future to chastise us, and we ought to accept that chastisement. One of the secrets of these people is that they, too, were chastened by visitors from a distant future. Mr. Kemp is among those who refused the chastening. That is what makes a lie of all his rosy visions, and that is why his plans for us have gone so wrong.
Time is short and I do not know whether I will see you again. If not, I thank you for your countless kindnesses and I apologize for all the hardships I exposed you to. Don’t fear for me, Aunt Abbie. No matter where I might find myself at the end of all this trouble, I will try to conduct myself in a way that would make you proud.
I make no other predictions—as always, the future is unclear.
Yours truly,
Jesse Cullum
BY ROBERT CHARLES WILSON
from Tom Doherty Associates
A Hidden Place
A Bridge of Years
Mysterium
Darwinia
Bios
The Perseids and Other Stories
The Chronoliths
Blind Lake
Spin
Axis
Julian Comstock
Vortex
Burning Paradise
The Affinities
Last Year
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
ROBERT CHARLES WILSON was born in California and lives in Toronto. His novels include Mysterium, which won the Philip K. Dick Award; Darwinia, winner of the Aurora Award; The Chronoliths, winner of the John W. Campbell Memorial Award; Blind Lake, a New York Times Notable Book; and Spin, winner of the Hugo Award for Best Novel. You can sign up for email updates here.
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CONTENTS
Title Page
Copyright Notice
Epigraph
Part One: The City of Futurity, 1876
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Part Two: Runners, 1877
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Part Three: The Siege of Futurity, 1877
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Epilogue: Magnificent Ruins, 1889
By Robert Charles Wilson
About the Author
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
LAST YEAR
Copyright © 2016 by Robert Charles Wilson
All rights reserved.
Cover design by Michael Graziolo
Cover elements © 2016 Shutterstock
A Tor Book
Published by Tom Doherty Associates
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The Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available upon request.
ISBN 978-0-7653-3263-9 (hardcover)
ISBN 978-1-4668-0078-6 (e-book)
e-ISBN 9781466800786
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First Edition: December 2016