Distinct

by Hamill, Ike

  The dog looked up, barked, and then went back to sniffing. A second later, Gordie was running west.

  ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪

  Robby didn’t call again. He simply chased after the dog on foot, cursing himself the whole way. It was one thing to let Gordie run around back at home. In a new place, with possible danger around, he should have put a leash on him. Gordie hated wearing a collar, let alone a leash, but it would be better to have him sulking at the end of a leash than running loose in the city.

  Gordie stopped to sniff at the base of an ornamental tree and Robby thought he was actually going to catch him. He would grab the scruff of the dog’s neck and then tell him forcefully to behave. At least that was his plan. In reality, as soon as Robby got within two paces, Gordie was off again, darting down a fancy walkway with glass overhead and marble underfoot.

  The sound of his nails on the marble spooked the birds that had taken up residence under the canopy of glass. They took flight all at once. Gordie barked up at them and kept running.

  Robby saw where the dog was headed. On the other side of a narrow park, the river looked gray. When Gordie had the notion to swim, nothing could hold him back. Robby pictured him bounding over the guardrail and landing in water below with no way to get back up on the shore.

  As Gordie ran through the gate of the park, Robby cupped his hands around his lips and tried one more time.

  “GORDIE! STOP!”

  Miraculously, the dog stopped.

  Robby jogged after him, slowing as he approached. When he finally laid his hand on the dog’s back, Robby’s sigh of relief washed through him.

  “What’s wrong with you?” he asked.

  He looked down and saw what had stopped the dog.

  “Oh,” Robby said.

  CHAPTER 8: GLADSTONE

  LISA AND BRAD WERE sitting at the dining room table. Magazines and books were laid out in front of them. Romie came through the door breathing hard. She propped herself up with her hands on the counter and looked at her friends, waiting for them to look up from the book they had between them.

  “Romie, you’re all sweaty, what happened to you?” Romie asked herself.

  Lisa looked up and waved her over.

  Romie was about to make another comment and then she saw the blood smeared on Brad’s shirt. She came around the counter.

  “What’s so engrossing? Where’s Robby? Is he here yet?” Romie asked.

  Brad looked up.

  “Romie, who was the biggest band at Woodstock?”

  “What?” Romie asked. “Where’s Robby? Did you even hear me?”

  Lisa waved at her impatiently and gestured at the chair. “Just shut up and get over here. Who was the biggest band at Woodstock?”

  “That sounds right,” Romie said.

  “What sounds right?” Brad asked.

  “The Who,” Romie said.

  “Wait,” Lisa said, putting her hand on Brad’s arm. “Do you know about Abbot and Costello?”

  “Of course,” Brad said.

  “Don’t say of course, like it’s a given,” Lisa said.

  Brad nodded.

  “You two mind filling me in on exactly what’s going on here?” Romie asked.

  Lisa spun the book that she was holding.

  ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪

  “What is this, a joke?” Romie asked.

  She looked at the picture. It was a long shot taken at an outdoor concert. The photo was taken from the back of the stage, perhaps on top of the drummer’s platform. Four performers with their backs to the camera were wearing similar, but different color uniforms. Yellow, red, blue, and purple, their bowing bodies were decked out in shiny silk. To their right, another man was dressed all in black. He seemed to be associated with, but not exactly part of, the band.

  Beyond the stage the sea of people extended as far as Romie could see.

  “It’s not a joke,” Brad said. “This book gives their setlist and talks about all the guests who came out and sang with them.”

  “I saw that movie three times,” Lisa said. “I would remember.”

  Brad nodded.

  “It’s a joke,” Romie said. “The Beatles did not play at Woodstock. My brother was the biggest Beatle fan in the world. He had a poster in his room from January of 1969—the rooftop concert. This book is just a joke.”

  She flipped to the next page and ran her hand over photos of the band playing the famous concert. Their pristine Sgt. Pepper’s uniforms didn’t last long. In the next picture, Paul was still wearing the pants, but had stripped the jacket and was wearing a black shirt. Lennon had a fur coat.

  “And that’s not all,” Lisa said.

  She grabbed the document that had started the conversation—the framed photo.

  “When did 9/11 happen?”

  “On 9/11,” Romie said. “What kind of question is that.”

  “What year?” Brad asked.

  “2001,” Romie said.

  Brad smiled and clapped.

  Lisa threw up her hands. She turned to Brad. “So you have 2001 and The Beatles. I have 2003 and Crosby, Stills, and Nash. Romie has…”

  “STOP!” Romie yelled. “Start from the beginning.”

  “I think we don’t belong together,” Brad said.

  ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪

  Romie paced in front of the window. Lisa was at the sink, pouring herself a glass of water. Only Brad was left at the table as he tried to make sense of the books and magazines in front of him.

  “So, as far as we know, there’s a time back when everything aligned for us,” he said.

  “It’s impossible to know,” Lisa said. “My knowledge of history is spotty. I can remember a few dates here and there, but is that enough to make a judgement?”

  “I have my database,” Brad said. “When the Casual Government guys were cutting me off from the rest of the world, I downloaded all the encyclopedias that I could get my hands on. If we could find something like that around here, we could compare.”

  “To what end?” Lisa asked.

  “Wait!” Romie said, spinning. “You guys were so excited about this alternate reality shit, that I forgot why I rushed home.” She dug in her pocket and pulled out the memory card. “Where’s Robby? He has to look at this.”

  Brad threw up his hands.

  “Gone,” he said. “I think he split early for his trip. When we spoke this morning, he was still talking about having lunch with us, but then he packed up and bolted.”

  “Great,” Romie said. “Well, you guys need to take a look at this, regardless.”

  ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪

  They huddled around the screen while Romie opened the file.

  “That’s Luke,” Lisa said, pointing.

  “Good,” Romie said. “At least we all agree on that.”

  “Are we sure?” Brad asked. “I was at the trial of Hampton. Several people testified that Judy betrayed Luke and got him killed. That was one of the reasons they justified that she should be sacrificed. They argued that she had turned.”

  “Those guys were all snakes,” Lisa said. “We shouldn’t trust anything they said.”

  Brad nodded. “Not all of the witnesses were in that deep though. Some were exonerated, and they said the exact same thing—Luke went off to find Judy and only Judy came back. They found his gun and the trace of some vines.”

  “That doesn’t mean anything,” Lisa said.

  “Regardless of whether he’s dead or alive, I saw video of him walking through a solid door. Later, that same facility was sabotaged. I think it’s time we talked about Ghost Pete,” Romie said.

  Lisa nodded. She told Brad that she had seen the image of Pete several times. Two of the sightings were new to Romie. Lisa had held back from sharing them after seeing how spooked Romie got at the subject.

  “I think Ghost Luke and Ghost Pete probably have something in common,” Romie said. “I just wish I knew what. Robby would be able to figure this out. How long is he going to be gone, anyway?
”

  “The longest he has ever been away is six days,” Lisa said. “Remember? He said it was going to be a week, but then he came back a day early.”

  “Because Gordie lost his stuffed monkey,” Brad said.

  “That’s right,” Romie said.

  “I think it might be longer this time,” Brad said.

  They both looked at him.

  “He didn’t say anything in particular, it’s just a vibe I got. It was the way he told me that he would be back. It almost sounded like he was trying to convince himself instead of me.”

  Lisa nodded.

  “He has been acting strange lately. Distracted or something.”

  “Okay,” Romie said. She stood up and started to pace again. “So, Super Brain isn’t around to give us the answer. I suppose it’s up to us mere mortals to figure this thing out.”

  “What’s the big deal, anyway?” Lisa asked. “You weren’t all that concerned when I saw Pete.”

  “This is on camera,” Romie said, ticking off one finger. She ticked off the next one. “And, like I said, all signs indicate that he committed sabotage on their water tower. It’s probably just a coincidence, but he also committed that sabotage the day after we talked about it being a good solution for those folks to use as their water supply.”

  “What did Carrie say?” Brad asked.

  “I didn’t talk to her,” Romie said.

  “I thought that was the whole reason you went over there? I thought you wanted to talk to Carrie?” Lisa asked.

  “Other shit came up,” Romie said, gesturing at the screen. “They have this new guy, Mike, and he set up a battery house and this water tower. Now the battery house has burned up and the water tower leaks.”

  Brad crossed his arms and his brow furrowed.

  “What now?” Romie asked.

  “Nothing,” Brad said. “Probably nothing.”

  CHAPTER 9: UPSTATE NEW YORK

  “OKAY,” TY SAID, “WE need to get going.”

  “Wait, wait, wait. What did you mean that he wasn’t from Earth? What does that mean?” Tim asked.

  They heard Jackson shifting around in the dark.

  “Quickly,” Ty said. “If you’re right about the patrols…”

  “The guy had maps that were like cloth, and photos printed on metal. People who saw them said they didn’t look like anything they had seen before. It was all from some other planet or something. And then they said that his body died one part at a time. His heart stopped beating a while before he stopped breathing—like minutes before. Like ten minutes after they were sure that he was dead, he had a seizure and then started talking again. They say that he wasn’t human.”

  The wind brought a sound that could have been a distant engine.

  Tim couldn’t see his friend, but he knew the expression that would be on his face. Ty was impatient to go. Back in the car, Murphy started her low, anxious whine.

  “We can take this road down past the roadblock?” Ty asked.

  “Yeah,” Jackson said. “It runs parallel to 87. There’s a crossing point a couple miles down.”

  “Thanks, kid,” Ty said.

  Tim heard him moving towards the car.

  “Stay safe, Jax,” Tim said. “Anything weird happens, don’t hesitate to grab Amy Lynne and come down to Connecticut, okay?”

  “Yeah,” Jackson said. “Okay.”

  Tim remembered what Jackson had said. “And don’t let her join up with those Origins. They sound like weirdos.”

  “Yeah,” Jackson said.

  Tim didn’t like the way Jackson had agreed. There was no conviction behind it.

  “Come on,” Ty called from the car.

  “Take care of yourself,” Tim said. He jogged back to the car.

  ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪

  Jackson stayed with them, following close behind as Ty navigated the dirt road. Someone had kept it clear, dragging aside the trees that had fallen over the rutted tracks. It seemed to take forever to traverse the two miles.

  “This must be it,” Tim said.

  Sure enough, Jackson whipped around the vehicle and sped up the hill to the highway. The headlight of his motorcycle turned a tight circle and then he came back down the hill to stop at Ty’s window.

  “It’s all clear, but go east as fast as you can. I don’t know if they have any other patrols.”

  Ty nodded. He accelerated up the slope. They bounced over the shoulder—the frame of the car scraping on the pavement where the gravel had washed away.

  Tim and the dogs were tossed to the side as Ty spun the wheel and the tires grabbed the pavement. Tim turned and watched the road behind them. As they crested a hill, he saw something dark in the road, way back.

  “Roadblocks and conspiracies,” Tim said. “Patrols. What’s wrong with people?”

  “More scared, less rational.”

  “Maybe we should go back,” Tim said. “The weirdos are still in the minority, I’m sure of it. There are still plenty of people who will listen to reason. Maybe if we stick around, we can make sure that fear doesn’t take over. You have fought so hard to keep everyone calm about diseases.”

  “You wanted to go warn Robby.”

  “You’re right,” Tim said. “We could have sent word though.”

  “Maybe,” Ty said. “But they are at the point where they are blocking roads.”

  Tim nodded and turned around to settle back into his seat. The road was dropping down into another valley. It was straight and they could see for a good distance. Ty let their speed open up. Trees flew by on either side.

  “Careful of deer,” Tim said.

  He didn’t say anything when he saw a patch of fog off to the right of the road. There was a stream over there, and the mist was surely just related to the warm air and cool water. Still, Tim would have felt better if Ty showed some caution. Instead, he kept his speed even and didn’t even veer to avoid where the mist encroached on the road.

  “What’s Ty short for?”

  “Tyson. I’ve told you a dozen times.”

  “And you say that every time. Why is it always a dozen? Why doesn’t that number go up?”

  Ty turned slowly to look at him. There was half of a smile in the corner of his mouth. It was better than nothing.

  “If you’re making conversation just to keep me awake, can you come up with something more interesting?” Ty asked.

  Tim thought about it for a minute.

  “Back in the hospital in Rochester, what do you think was walking the hallways?”

  “Probably nothing.”

  Tim shook his head. “No, I know what nothing sounds like. Nothing is pretty damn quiet. The hallway walker made a bunch of noise. Even Cedric heard it.”

  “I don’t mean literally ‘nothing’. I mean it was nothing to worry about.”

  “Why not?”

  “Everyone knew about it and I never heard of it hurting anyone.”

  “So it existed before the Elementals?”

  Ty nodded. “There was a woman who worked there for thirty years. She was the only one who claimed to know when the hallway walker came to the hospital. She said it came the same year that they got an MRI machine.”

  “Coincidentally? Did she think the two things were connected?”

  “I never asked,” Ty said. He didn’t say anything for a few minutes. Tim was about to change the subject when Ty finally opened up. “By the end of September, a bunch of the interns decided to make a study of Herbie.”

  “That’s what you called him?”

  “Some of us, yeah. We picked Tuesday, late. If you ever want to cut your hand open, do it Tuesday, after midnight. The staff has just turned over and we hardly ever have patients.”

  “I’ll keep that in mind when the world has hospitals again,” Tim said.

  Ty grunted and then wiped his mouth. He looked like he was done talking.

  “Sorry. Keep going.”

  After a minute, he did.

  “A few of us had just finish
ed our shifts. A couple people actually came in on their time off to help. Even a few who were on-duty and should have known better were helping. We staked out hallways and places where Herbie had been heard and we all had our phones out. Someone said that Herbie wouldn’t come if you had a camera, but we wanted to stay in contact with a group text. It quickly turned into just a chatroom. Nobody really took it seriously.”

  Ty laughed.

  “We were all just blowing off steam. There’s nothing in school to prepare you for how hard that first year is going to be. Sometimes I think that the point of those long shifts is to disrupt the illusion that reality makes sense.”

  “How so?”

  Ty sighed.

  “In school, you’re completely focused on how stuff works and how to fix it when it doesn’t. Memorization and logic are key. When you get into the real world, the first thing you have to learn is how to cope. It bends the mind. With a combination of overwork and sleep deprivation, some of that stress is lessened in a way. The whole thing starts to feel like a drug trip, so some of the terrors are a little less terrifying. At least I think that’s what was happening.”

  Ty had to slow for a turn. As soon as the road straightened again, he drove even faster.

  “I suppose it’s easy to understand why we had a fixation on death and spirits. We were dead serious about trying to track down Herbie, but it was also just one big joke. One person reported that they heard him. A minute later, someone else chimed it. At first, of course, I assumed that they were all making it up. Our positions had been randomized by one of the guys. He gave us assignments and put it all in his spreadsheet. Then he recorded the reports.”

  Ty cracked his window for some fresh air.

  “I was one of the last people to hear him that night. I had already typed up a note to the group to say that he was coming down my hall. I was going to send it as a joke. My finger was hovering over the button when I did hear him. Of course I thought it was one of us. It would have been a perfect time for a prank. But just that one time, I heard him approach and then walk right by me. The sound was there, but I didn’t see a single thing.”