that something had been in the back stairwell she’d gone into Toby’s
room the night before all the years they had been married, there had
not been as many gaps in their communication with each-other since
they’d come to Quartermass Ranch. They wanted their new life not
merely to work but to be ct, and they had been unwilling to express
doubts observations. For that failure to reach out to each , though
motivated by the best intentions, they might pay with their lives.
Indicating the tablet, she said, “Is it anything?” It’s everything I
think. The start of it. His account what he saw.” He Spot-read to
them about the waves of virtually palpable sound that had awakened
Eduardo Fernandez in the night, about the spectral light in the
woods.
“I thought it would’ve come from the sky, a ship,” she said. “You
expect … after all the movies, all the books, you expect them to come
in massive ships.”
“When you’re talking about extraterrestrials, alien means truly
different, deeply strange,” Jack said. “Eduardo makes that point on
the first page. Deeply strange, beyond easy comprehension. Nothing we
could imagine–including ships.”
“I’m scared about what might happen, what I might have to do,” Toby
said. A blast of wind skirled under the back porch roof, as shrill as
an electronic shriek, as questing and insistent as a living creature.
Heather crouched at Toby’s side. “We’ll be okay, honey. Now that we
know something’s out there, and a little bit about what it is, we’ll
handle it.”
She wished she could be half as confident as she sounded. “But I
shouldn’t be scared.”
Looking up from the tablet, Jack said, “Nothing shameful about being
afraid, kiddo.”
“You’re never afraid,” the boy said. “Wrong. I’m scared half to death
right now.” That revelation amazed Toby. “You are? But you’re a
hero.”
“Maybe I am, and maybe I’m not. But theres nothing unique about being
a hero,” Jack said.
“Most people are heroes. Your mom’s a hero, so are you.”
“Me?”
“For the way you handled this past year. Took courage to deal with
everything.” didn’t feel brave.”
“Truly brave people never do.” said, “Lots of people are heroes even
if they it dodge bullets or chase bad guys.” People who go to work
every day, make sacrifices for their families, and get through life
without hurting people if they can help it–those are the real heroes,”
Jack told him. “Lots of them out there. And once in a while all of
them are afraid.”
“Then it’s okay if I’m scared?” Toby said. rmore than okay,” Jack
said. “If you were never afraid of anything, then you’d be either very
stupid or me. Now, I know you can’t be stupid because you’re Insanity,
on the other hand . . . well, I can’t be )sure about that, since it
runs in your mom’s family.” he smiled. Then maybe I can do it,” Toby
said. “We’ll get through this,” Jack assured him. Heather met Jack’s
eyes and smiled as if to say, You did that so well, you ought to be
Father of the Year. He winked at her. God, she loved him.
“Then it’s insane,” the boy said. Frowning, Heather said, “What?”
“The alien.
Can’t be stupid. It’s smarter than we are, can do things we can’t. So
it must be insane. It’s never afraid.” Heather and Jack glanced at
each other. No smiles this time. “Never,” Toby repeated, both hands
clasped tightly around the mug of hot chocolate.
Heather returned to the windows, first one, then the other. Jack
skimmed the tablet pages he hadn’t yet read, found a passage about the
doorway, and quoted from it aloud. Standing on edge, a giant coin of
darkness. As thin as a sheet of paper. Big enough to drive a train
through. A blackness of exceptional purity.
Eduardo daring to put his hand in it. His sense that something was
coming out of that fearful gloom.
Pushing the tablet aside, getting up from his chair, Jack said, “That’s
enough for now. We can read the rest of it later. Eduardo’s account
supports our own experiences. That’s what’s important. They might’ve
thought he was a crazy old geezer, or that we’re flaky city people