“Want to go check on your brother?”
“I’d like to. Do you think it’s safe?”
“No. But it beats standing around here waiting for whatever is happening to find its way to us. We’ll make sure he’s okay. Then I’ll come back here and watch over my dogs.”
Nodding, Gus squared his shoulder and straightened up. “Sure. Just let me change my shoes.”
“Yeah,” Paul replied, glancing back down at the bedroom slippers. “I reckon you might want to do that first. Might want to put some clothes on over those pajamas, too. And Gus?”
“What?”
“Might be best if you bring along a gun.”
“I reckon you’re right.”
***
Artie Prater slept, which was exactly what he’d been afraid of. His wife of five years, Laura, was out of town. She worked for the bank in Roncefort, and once a year, all of the bank’s employees went on a mandatory week-long retreat. This year, they were in Utah, enjoying steak dinners and attending seminars about things like team-building and synergy. Artie liked to tease Laura about these things, but only because he was secretly jealous. He’d been unable to find work for over a year, and it bothered him that he couldn’t provide for his wife or their new son, Artie Junior. The upside was that while she was at work every day, he’d been able to stay home and take care of Little Artie. Laura reciprocated by getting up with the baby at night, which relieved Artie to no end.
Artie had always been a deep sleeper. His mother had once said that he could sleep through a nuclear war, and that wasn’t far from the truth. He’d slept through 9/11, waking up in his college dorm room later that night and wondering why everyone was staring at the television and crying. Since becoming a father, Artie’s biggest fear was that the baby would wake up crying, perhaps hungry or in need of a diaper change or shaking from a nightmare, and he’d sleep through it. That’s why he was grateful when Laura was there to get up with Artie Junior at night, and that’s why he dreaded these rare times when she wasn’t home.
They had a baby monitor in the house. A small camera was mounted above Little Artie’s crib. It broadcast a signal to the monitor, which was plugged into the bedroom’s television. With Laura out of town, Artie had turned the volume on the television all the way up, filling the room with white noise and the soft sounds of his son’s breathing. Then, bathed in the glow from the screen, he’d sat back in bed with his laptop and played a video game. It was early— too early to sleep—but Little Artie had been tired and cranky, and Artie knew from experience that he should rest when the baby rested. He promised himself that if and when he got tired of the game, he’d sleep lightly.
Except that he hadn’t. He’d fallen asleep playing the game, barely having the presence of mind to sit the laptop aside before passing out. He slept through the power outage, and did not wake when both the laptop and the television shut off, as well as the baby monitor. He slept through the howling dogs and the terrified screams and the numerous gunshots. He slept through the explosion. He slept as his neighbors were murdered in their homes and out on the street. He slept, drooling on his pillow and snoring softly as two shadowy figures entered his home. He slept, unaware that in Artie Junior’s nursery, a large black crow had perched on the edge of his son’s crib. He slept as the crow changed shape. He remained asleep as the bedroom door opened and a shadow fell across him, as well.
He didn’t wake up until the baby screamed, and by then it was too late.
The last thing he saw was the figure in the room with him. The baby’s screams turned to high-pitched, terrified shrieks. Artie bolted upright and flung the sheets off his legs, but before he could get out of bed, the intruder rushed to the bedside and loomed over him. The man’s face was concealed in darkness. It shoved his chest with one cold hand and forced him back down on the bed. In the nursery, the baby’s screams abruptly ceased.
“W-who . . . ?”
“Scream,” the shadow told Artie. “It’s better when you scream.”
The pounding on Axel’s door grew louder and more insistent. The chain lock rattled and the door shook in its frame. Candlelight flickered, casting strange shapes on the walls. The pounding came again. Gripping his walking stick like a club, Axel tiptoed into the living room and peeked through the curtains. Jean Sullivan stood on his porch, holding Bobby in one arm and beating on the door with her fist. Breathing a sigh of relief, Axel lowered the stick and hurried to the door. He fumbled with the locks as Jean hammered again.
“Mr. Perry? Axel? It’s Jean from next door. Please let us in!”
She sounded frantic. Releasing the chain from its hasp, Axel turned the knob and yanked the door open.
“What’s wrong?” he asked. “What is it?”
Jean stumbled into the house and slammed the door shut behind her. Bobby held tight, his arms and legs wrapped around his mother. The boy looked terrified. Axel stared at them both in concern.
“What is it?” he asked again.
“Didn’t you hear me knocking? Or all the noise outside?”
“No,” he admitted. “I don’t hear so good these days. I came inside after the dogs started barking. Was going to fix myself a bite to eat, but with the power out, I decided to just go to sleep instead. I was laying down when I finally heard you. I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay.” Jean turned around and locked the door behind her.
“Did you say there’s trouble? What kind of trouble?” “I don’t know.” She turned back to him. “People screaming and shouting. Gunshots. Something exploded on the other side of town. I think there are a couple of fires, too.”
Axel gaped. “Good Lord . . .”
“Bobby, I need to put you down, sweetie. Mommy’s arms need a break.”
Shaking his head, the boy buried his face in her hair and clung tighter.
“Bobby . . .”
“No, Mommy. Bad things are out there.”
“We’re safe now. Mr. Perry won’t let anything happen to us.”
“Your mother’s right,” Axel said, not understanding any of this, but trying to sound brave for the boy.
“Whatever’s going on, it can’t get you in here.”
Bobby peered doubtfully at the old man from between his mother’s hair.
Grinning, Axel raised the walking stick. “If it does, I’ll whack it with this.”
“That’s just an old stick.”
“Oh no, it’s much more than an old stick. You see, this walking stick has magic.”
“No it doesn’t.”
“Bobby,” Jean chided, “be polite.”
“But Mommy, there’s no such thing as magic. It’s just make-believe, like in the cartoons and Harry Potter.”
Axel winked at the boy. “Magic is more than just stories, Bobby. Where do you think the lady who made up those Harry Potter books got the idea from? I reckon magic has been around as long as human beings have, and that’s a long, long time.”
He paused. Axel couldn’t be sure, but he thought he heard somebody screaming outside. He wondered if he should go out and check, but then decided that Jean and Bobby were his primary responsibility now.
“So what can it do?” Bobby asked, pointing at the walking stick.
“I cut this branch off a magic tree a long, long time ago when I was just a little older than you. We lived way down in a hollow on the other side of Frankford, back near where the quarry is today. There was a cave at the far end of the hollow—more of a sinkhole, really. My daddy filled it up over the years because our cows kept falling into it. But next to the hole was a big old willow tree, just as gnarled and ugly as I am now. The tree’s name—”
“Trees don’t have names, Mr. Perry.”
Jean frowned. “Bobby, manners!”
The boy stuck his bottom lip out and pouted. “But I called him mister.”
“It’s okay,” Axel soothed. “Everything has a name, Bobby. Not just people, but animals and trees and even rocks. God gives everything a secret name. This old willow tree’s name was Mrs. Chickbaum.”
“That’s a funny name.”
“Aye, I reckon it is. But that was what my mother said its name was, and she knew about these things.”
“Was your mommy magic?”
Axel was surprised to find himself tearing up as he answered. “Yeah, she was. My mommy was magic. And so was old Mrs. Chickbaum. Not in a way that you’d probably understand. The tree couldn’t fly or turn people into salamanders. But you felt better in its shade. You rested easy underneath its branches. There was a little spring to the left of her trunk, and that water was just about the best I’ve ever tasted— clear and fresh and ice cold.”
“So Mrs. Chickenbaum made things better?”
“That’s right. Nothing bad happened around her. And this walking stick came from Mrs. Chickbaum and I’ve had it ever since, and it’s always brought me nothing but good luck, for the most part. So I reckon we’ll be safe enough here. Okay?”
Bobby smiled, and then slowly relaxed. “Okay, Mr. Perry.”
Jean lowered him to the floor and sighed. Axel heard her back crack and her joints pop as she straightened up again.
“He’s not as light as he used to be,” she said, stretching.
“No,” Axel agreed. “He’s growing quick. Gonna be a fine boy, Jean. You do good with him.”
“Thank you, Axel. You’re good with kids.”
He shrugged, blushing. She smiled then, and Axel saw some of the fear ease from her face. He motioned toward the couch.
“Why don’t you two sit down?”
“We’d better not,” Jean said, glancing back to the door. “It’s really bad out there.”
“And you don’t know anymore than what you told me?”
She shook her head. “Not really. But with the power and the phones out, and the dogs, and now all this screaming and such—I’m scared.”
“Well, I don’t suppose we should be standing around here talking about it in the living room. I reckon we’re sort of exposed up here. Maybe we should head down into my basement for a while? I hunker down there when there’s a tornado warning or a really bad storm. We’ll be safe enough. It’s not finished—not much on the eyes. Just a concrete floor and cement block walls, but it’s dry. I’ve got a kerosene heater I can turn on to keep us warm. And the stairs are the only way in or out, so we’ll have plenty of warning if somebody breaks in or anything.”
“That’s a good idea.”
“I’ll get a few bottles of water and such from the kitchen. Can you help me carry it? This danged arthritis makes it harder for me to do things like that these days.”
“Sure,” Jean said, and then turned to her son. “Bobby, come on. We’re going downstairs with Mr. Perry.”
The boy was standing in front of the mantel, staring up at a picture of Axel and Diane in happier days.
“Who is that?” he asked, pointing at the picture.
“That’s my wife,” Axel explained. “Mrs. Perry.”
“How come she doesn’t live here with you?”
Jean hissed. Her hand fluttered to her mouth.
“Bobby . . .”
“It’s okay,” Axel said. He knelt in front of the boy. His knees groaned at the effort. “Mrs. Perry passed on some time ago.”
“Do you miss her?”
“Oh, yes. Not a day goes by that I don’t. She was magic, too, you know. A different kind of magic, maybe. Not the type like that old willow tree, but magic all the same.”
“How?”
“She made my life better just for being in it.”
He made his way to the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. Jean and Bobby followed along behind him. Axel was dismayed to notice that the appliance was already warming inside. He pulled out a few bottles of water and three apples, and then quickly shut the door again. Jean took some of the items from him and handed one of each to her son.
“I’m not so scared anymore,” Bobby said.
Jean patted his head with one free hand and ruffledhis hair. “Good. See? I told you Mr. Perry would know what to do.”
“Yeah.”
Somebody screamed in Axel’s front yard. Jean heard it first, then Axel. It was a woman, judging by the sound, though they couldn’t be sure. The sound warbled without pause and then ceased abruptly.
“I reckon we’d better head downstairs,” Axel whispered. “And we should probably be quiet from this point on. I’ll snuff the candles out up here and relight them once we’re in the basement.”
He beckoned for them to follow him and then tiptoed to the basement door. He juggled his walking stick and the items in his hand, and finally managed to open the door. The staircase and the handrail both disappeared into blackness halfway down. Cold air drifted up from below. Axel wondered if he’d left one of the cellar windows open.
“Careful now.” He said it so quietly that Jean and Bobby both had to lean forward to hear him. Then he started forward, using his walking stick to guide him in the dark. Bobby followed along close behind him, timidly holding onto Axel’s pants leg with one hand. Jean brought up the rear and shut the door behind them.
The darkness became absolute.
***
Ron Branson and Joe Dickie hid behind the post office, wondering what to do. The evening had started out like normal. The two of them had been polishing off a case of Golden Monkey Ale, playing cards and talking about various women in town who they’d never have a chance to sleep with. Then the power had gone out and the shouts and screams had started, followed by gunfire and explosions. They’d gone outside to see what all the fuss was about and had ended up walking through the neighborhood in dazed, abject horror. Their pleasant, warming buzzes had evaporated, leaving them cold and sweaty. Both men shivered, more from fear than the night air. They clung to one another and listened to the town dying.