“You might think that, darlin’, but the loss should be treasured. Don’t lose him by pushing your grief too far away. Cherish it.”
“I could never—” I heave out a sigh. Concentrating, hard, lets me suck down the swell of tears.
Life is pain, lately. Here’s me, used to partying in the streets and yelling “Fuck the world” off of cliffs at midnight at impromptu raves. Am I just getting too old for bravado? Is that what this is? Both your parents being gone makes the whole world seem old, dry, and lifeless.
“If you ever need someone to talk it through with, I’m here. So is Ron. When he’s not off fishing.”
“Thank you.” I run my hand over the arrow-shaped ends of the fence palings. I remember these. I once tried to walk the tops, pretending I was a stunt woman. The fence is on the verge of collapse in a couple of places, which matches the house. “I don’t plan on staying long.”
“You don’t? Well, I’m here, and you cannot have much in the pantry, so you’re welcome to join us at the table. Any time. Good neighborliness is a motto of mine and Ron’s.”
Six months past the funeral and this is my first visit since then to his house in Revenant. It’s my house, now. Has Justin has moved into the Carolina house? He wasn’t thinking of selling like I am.
“I just want some clarity on the accident, so I thought I’d ask the sheriff in town. I know the insurance company was satisfied and the police, too. Just…I need more.” I twist my mouth. I already talked to both a deputy and Sheriff Baxter. The sheriff shrugged and said this was a nothing burger, which makes me hate that expression more than ever. “Anyway, I shan’t be bothering you with the details, Molly.”
“Oh! Please do. I might even have things to tell you.” She taps her nose. “Every bit of gossip, every move that’s suspicious, I get to knowing. I knowthings.”
“Suspicious…” I try not to widen my eyes and stare. I partially succeed. “I’m not that concerned. Only, he was so safety conscious. Whether he was boating or at work.”
Liar, I so fucking am concerned.
“Mmm-hmmm.I know.”
I knowseems her signature saying. A wind whisks up the hill, stirring dust and making a chill creep over me. Goosebumps rise on my arms. I hug myself, hinting I need to go get warm. The town is a hundred yards below, in the hollow of the valley, and gets less of the winds.
Molly opens her mouth.
“And…” Her voice squeaks as she lifts her cane. She turns to waggle it toward the very white, neat, and tall buildings of the Revenant Institute, where they stand across the valley on the other side of town where all the industrial stuff happens.
We make bodies our business.The company motto…logo? It trots out whenever I think of it. Father worked there for much of his life and was always bringing home samples of whatever they made. My worst memory of it is the tour dad took us on when we were kids. An Egyptian mummy sat on display behind a glass case in the foyer. Creepy as fuck. The company head was Lawrence Skinner. That family has such an apt surname. He had a thing for the ancient Egyptians. His son, Clay, probably runs it now.
Clearly, Molly finds the chill enervating. Her eyes are sparkling and wide, and she inhales loudly then coughs. “Excuse me.” She launches into a longer spate of coughing.
“Are you okay?”
She nods.
I wait for her to stop, hoping this isn’t a sign of something serious.
I went to Revenant elementary, same as Clay, though later he went elsewhere for a fancier education.
Near the institute’s jutting towers, cuddled up to it but not terribly visible, lies the squat Large Hadron Collider building. Most of the important LHC structures are underground. To the left of that is, from memory, a furniture factory, a truck mechanic, then some engineering place. Those might have changed since I left. The fishery is still there, off to the right and closer to the wharf.
Molly smiles and pats her chest.
“And?”
“I’ve heard things about that collider machine. Bad things.”
“Oh? The LHC? They’ve had one in Europe for decades.” With one raised eyebrow, I wait for whatever crackpot theory she has to spill. ThatAngels and Demonsmovie is probably to blame.
Honestly, I only have coffee, some water in bottles, breakfast cereal, a few odd packets of snacks, and one carton of milk in the house. And no electricity. It’s getting cold. If I ask, she will invite me to supper, though I was aiming to wallow in some misery tonight.
“When they turn it on you can feel it in your guts, like it’s warping the world, making not-right things happen. I swear I’ve seen creatures.”
Probably possums or similar. Shivering, I hug my shoulders. “Doesn’t it run all the time? I heard that.”
“It does, yes, but it has thesepeakswhen the things may happen. And there’s more,” she continues.
