She hadn’t done it, he told himself. She wouldn’t have. Zoe was okay. She was asleep in bed. Her tummy was better. In the morning, they’d crack open a new jar. Peaches. Yeah, they’d have peaches for breakfast. Emma would play with them both in the yard.
Lucas bolted across his front lawn, leaves swirling in his wake as he shoved through the kitchen door. He wanted to yell out their names but was afraid they wouldn’t answer. He switched on the flashlight, blinding himself before clicking the switch down to minimum. The kitchen was empty.
His forward momentum turned inward like a punch to the gut as his footfalls slowed but his heart continued to pound. Emma lay on the couch in the living room, her eyes open, squinting into the flashlight beam.
“Turn that off,” she muttered.
“Did you?”
“I heard it too. Woke me up. Figured you’d come to your senses.” She sat up and reached for her cigarettes.
“It wasn’t me. Where’s the gun?”
“Still on the table, I guess.”
And it was. Right where she’d left it. Right where he’d left it. He slipped it into his pocket. Leaving it behind for Emma was a mistake he wouldn’t repeat.
“You should’ve done it, Lucas,” mumbled Emma from the living room. He could picture the cigarette bobbing in her lips as she spoke. “His mother would’ve thanked you.”
Gently, he touched the metal to make sure it was cold despite Emma’s assurance. He walked by the locked room to stand in Zoe’s doorway. The pressure behind his eyes had gotten a little better. A sliver of moonlight fell across his little angel, her chest rising and falling ever so slowly, the covers tucked up under her chin.
Lucas wiped the corners of his eyes and settled to the floor at her side.
* * *
“Daddy, don’t go.”
Lucas knelt and gave her a hug. The overcast morning made the green of her eyes dingy. The whites were muddy too. Poor baby was still exhausted.
Hell. Probably his own vision going. He was forty, after all.
At least she felt fine. Between the two of them, they’d polished off an entire jar of peaches. A gust of wind sent leaves whipping about. Zoe was bundled against the chill and took no notice of the temperature in perfect child-like fashion. Emma watched them both from the door.
Pulling away from Zoe’s grip, he had to smile. With very little work, that pout was going to make her demands utterly irresistible by the time she was driving age. His smile faltered inwardly, but he was pretty sure he’d managed to keep it intact outwardly for Zoe.
“I’ll be back in a little while. I’m just going to visit with one of the neighbors for a few minutes and when I get back we’ll have some fun, okay?”
“Puzzles?”
Lucas nodded. “You betcha. While I’m gone you and Mommy can play in the fort. That is, if you’re willing to tell her where it is.”
Zoe’s tiny brow scrunched, considering the ramifications.
He nodded reassuringly to the girl and stole a glance back at Emma. She scowled but gave a curt nod which prompted a rush of giggles from Zoe. “Be back in no time.”
Before he turned the corner, he glanced back. Zoe had taken Emma’s hand and was leading her toward the mound of leaves. Lucas thought he might have seen Zoe wince and rub her stomach but his own stomach was feeling rough. A whole jar of peaches had not been the best plan. His headache wasn’t helping matters.
He should make a run down to Weaver’s too. It was a small private pharmacy at the back edge of the subdivision. Maybe no one had thought to raid it. He could look for some vitamin C and cold medicine. Maybe their cache of antibiotics. He’d risk the noise and take the car so he could stock up. They couldn’t afford to catch the flu.
The mystery of the gunshot from the night before was gone as soon as he approached the Levesque house. It’s wrap-around porch made it odd in a neighborhood of condos. Probably the original house on this tract of land. The house’s newest feature – the one he had to force himself to acknowledge – was the splash of red against the wall to the right of the door. A rocking chair lay on its side. A woman’s body sprawled against the wall behind it as if the chair had been a jug and she’d spilled out when it tipped.
Lucas didn’t need to look closer. In the early days, he would have buried her or covered her body.
At first, they had claimed folks randomly. Militaries and police forces around the world had treated their arrival as an invasion. An attack, mankind could resist. Once people realized there was no return for their loved ones, their bodies had been terminated with impunity. The visitors didn’t run or hide, though. They didn’t fight back. And they didn’t stop coming.
The only indication they were reacting to the slaughter was the day they stopped taking adults. Most people would kill their doctor, their mechanic or even an old uncle if they were suddenly a monster, even a nonviolent one. But precious few would shoot a child.
Now there were probably more of them than people.
A car started, the noise bouncing around between the houses and Lucas couldn’t be sure where it was coming from. The rattle of the engine he recognized.
He got home in time to see Emma backing out of the driveway. Zoe’s booster seat was empty and he didn’t see her small head poking up in the front seat the way he’d let her ride lately.
Emma came to a stop beside him but kept her gaze straight ahead. “Do her a favor, Lucas. And yourself.”
“What are you talking about? Where are you going?” He leaned down and looked in the seats and floorboards. No bags or supplies of any kind. She wasn’t going far at least. Unless she’d packed the trunk. “Where’s Zoe?”
Emma didn’t answer.
The back of his head throbbed, and his eyes ached. “Is she okay?”
“She’s in the damned fort.” Her voice was choked and when he leaned in he could see her eyes were sunken and red. She eased the car forward forcing him to withdraw. Before he knew it, she’d pulled away.
Dead leaves, brown and red and yellow, crawled along the surface of the mound in the yard. With each step, the tingle in the back of his skull grew hotter and the space behind his eyes more painful. Kneeling at the opening of the refrigerator box he couldn’t see inside. He opened his mouth to speak but couldn’t find the sound of a single word.
“Daddy?”
“Y-yes, honey.” Tears ran down his cheeks. “Come on out, baby. Come on out.”
“It’s dark in here, Daddy,” she said, her voice slow and sleepy. And far away. Much farther away than he could rationally account for given the size of the box.
“It’s okay. Come on out. Let’s go find a good puzzle.”
A slow deliberate scuffle and scraping came from inside the box as she crawled out feet first. She was wearing her neon green boots and a purple jacket. The one they’d bought last year knowing she would grow into it.
She stood with her back to him as he reached out for her. He imagined he could hear the car engine over the rustling leaves and the black noise in his ears. That he and Emma could stretch out beneath the stars again. That the twins still cried in their cribs, just needing a feeding. Maybe clean diapers. That the screaming in the back of his skull and the pounding behind his face would quiet, if only for a second. That the gun was not so cold in his hand.
Zoe turned slowly as if far beneath the sea or deeper still within a dream. Her gaze bottomless and dark.
* * *
“Here, honey,” said Lucas. “Open up for Daddy.”
Lucas nudged the spoon between her lips. Some of the potato broth spilled and he wiped it from her cheek with his thumb. At least it was warm and that was good on a cold winter evening. She walked slowly beside him never looking up, never speaking.
She swallowed and he quickly spooned in another bite.
The pain behind his eyes had eased
with the season but the pressure in the back of his skull had not. The throbbing screwed with his visual cortex most of the time these days. Sometimes he saw other worlds, especially on the nights when he set up a row of flashlights for her to stare at while he caught a few minutes of sleep.
Not tonight though. When the sun set today they would walk side by side while the million nameless stars blazed overhead. If he could find the strength, and the pain in his skull eased just a little, he would look into her eyes.
And they could look back into his.
Biographies & Sources
The Taking of Ireland
Retold Tales from The Book of Invasions
(Modern retelling of tales from Lebor Gabála Érenn, 11th century)
Lebor Gabála Érenn, or The Book of Invasions as it is also sometimes known in English, dates back to the eleventh century. Written by an anonymous author, it is made up of 12 manuscripts consisting of five different versions of the story. Though up until the seventeenth century the original manuscript was considered an authoritative historical source, it is now believed to consist mainly of myths. Its plot closely echoes the Old Testament, starting with the creation of the world and telling the history of Ireland until the Middle Ages. It combines Biblical stories with pre-Christian history of the Celts and their pagan myths. These are modern retellings taken from Flame Tree’s Celtic Myths and Tales book; written, compiled and edited by a team of experts and enthusiasts on mythological traditions.
Bo Balder
A House of Her Own
(Originally Published in F&SF, 2015)
Bo Balder is the first Dutch author to have been published in F&SF and Clarkesworld. Her short fiction has also appeared in Escape Pod and other places. Her SF novel The Wan, by Pink Narcissus Press, was published in 2016. She is a member of SFWA, Codex Writers and a graduate of Viable Paradise. Bo has always wanted to be an SFF writer. For that reason, she practised a series of pointless professions like dishwasher, rowing coach, computer programmer, model and management consultant. When she isn’t writing, you can find her madly designing knitwear, painting or reading Ursula K. Le Guin, Iain M. Banks or Jared Diamond. Visit her website at: www.boukjebalder.nl
Jennifer Rachel Baumer
Sin Nombre
(First Publication)
Jennifer Rachel Baumer lives, writes, runs, bakes and procrastinates with her husband and cats in the Sierra Nevada foothills. Her work can be found in publications from Cosmos to On Spec, Lady Churchill’s Rosebud Wristlet, Penumbra, and many genre anthologies. She’s fascinated by viruses and hemorrhagic fevers, and by the animals that carry them. The first time she ever heard of a veterinary virologist was when one tried to take her to emergency because of an infected cat scratch. Jennifer resisted, but added virologists to the list of things that fascinate her.
George Chesney
The Battle of Dorking
(Originally Published in Blackwood’s Magazine, May 1871)
George Tomkyns Chesney (1830–95) was a British Army general and the founder and first president of the Royal Indian Civil Engineering College. He entered the army as second lieutenant in 1848 and spent most of his military career in India. Upon his return to Britain in 1892 he was elected the Oxford Conservative representative in the British Parliament. While Chesney wrote several novels and contributed stories to magazines, he is best known for the highly influential The Battle of Dorking, originally published anonymously. The novella initiated the genre of invasion stories that became popular in Britain in the light of threatening German victory in the Franco Prussian War in 1871. The warning about the possibility of abrupt invasion was translated into several languages and published overseas. It became a popular read in the years preceding the First World War.
George Allan England
The Thing from – ‘Outside’
(Originally Published in Science and Invention, April 1923)
George Allan England (1877–1936) was an American writer and explorer, best known for his speculative science fiction inspired by authors such as H.G. Wells and Jack London. After a period of translating fiction he published his first story in 1905, leading to over 330 pieces now accounted for. England attended Harvard University and later in life ran for Governor of Maine. Though unsuccessful in that endeavour, he transferred his interest in politics into his writing where themes of socialist utopia often appear. England died in a hospital in New Hampshire, though there is a legend claiming he disappeared on a treasure hunt.
Austin Hall
The Man Who Saved the Earth
(Originally Published in All-Story, December 1919)
Austin Hall (c. 1885–1933) was an American short story writer and novelist who claimed to have written over 600 stories. He was also a farmer and worked on a ranch. Though the majority of his works were westerns, Hall began writing science fiction and fantasy and in 1916 his story ‘Almost Immortal’ was published. Together with ‘The Rebel Soul’ and its sequel ‘Into the Infinite’, ‘Almost Immortal’ delves into the exploration of human personality while infusing it with the theme of vampirism and immortality. Along with George Allan England’s ‘The Thing from – “Outside”’, ‘The Man who Saved the Earth’ was reprinted in the very first edition of the pulp magazine Amazing Stories (April, 1926).
Maria Haskins
Long as I Can See the Light
(Originally Published in People Are Strange, 2016)
Maria Haskins is a Swedish-Canadian writer and translator. She writes speculative fiction and poetry, and debuted as a writer in Sweden in the 1980s. Currently, she lives just outside Vancouver with a husband, two kids, and a very large black dog. She fell in love with fantasy and science fiction as a child while reading the works of Ursula K. Le Guin, Ray Bradbury, and J.R.R. Tolkien, and has no plans on ever falling out of love with these genres. Her work has appeared in several anthologies – Flash Fiction Online, Shimmer, Gamut, and elsewhere.
Suo Hefu (索何夫)
Blind Jump
Translated from the Chinese by Cai Yingqian (蔡盈倩) and Collin Kong (孔令武)
(Originally Published in SFWorld, China’s largest circulation science fiction magazine, 2015)
Suo Hefu (索何夫) is a Chinese science fiction writer. Born in 1991 in Sichuan Province, he began writing in 2014 and has achieved greater notice since he won the Best New SF Writer Galaxy Award and Chinese Nebula Award. He is studying History at Xinjiang University. He tends to write technically realistic stories with vivid details, and has written numerous short stories such as ‘Exobabel’, ‘God’s Servant’, ‘Blind Jump’, ‘1871’, ‘Tinder’ and ‘Spartacus’; now he is working on his first novel. Cai Yingqian (蔡盈倩) and Collin Kong (孔令武) are both Masters Graduates of the School of Translation and Interpreting at the Beijing Language and Culture University.
Rachael K. Jones
Home is a House that Loves You
(Originally Published in PodCastle, 2017)
Rachael K. Jones grew up in various cities across Europe and North America, picked up (and mostly forgot) six languages, and acquired several degrees in the arts and sciences. Now she writes speculative fiction in Portland, Oregon. Contrary to the rumours, she is probably not a secret android. Rachael is a World Fantasy Award nominee, Tiptree Award honouree, and winner of Writers of the Future. Her fiction has appeared in dozens of venues worldwide, including Lightspeed, Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Strange Horizons, and Nature. Follow her on Twitter @RachaelKJones
Claude Lalumière
Being Here
(Originally Published in Tesseracts Nine, 2005)
Claude Lalumière claudepages.info is the author of Objects of Worship, The Door to Lost Pages, Nocturnes and Other Nocturnes, and, most recently, Venera Dreams: A Weird Entertainment (a Great Books Marquee selection at The Word on the Street Toronto). He has published more than 100 stories, several of wh
ich have been adapted for stage, screen, audio, and comics. His books and stories have been translated into seven languages. Originally from Montreal, he now lives in Ottawa.
Rich Larson
Water Scorpions
(Originally Published in Asimov’s Science Fiction, 2016)
Rich Larson was born in Galmi, Niger, has studied in Rhode Island and worked in southern Spain, and now lives in Ottawa, Canada. His short fiction appears in numerous Year’s Best anthologies and has been translated into Chinese, Vietnamese, Polish, Czech and Italian. He was the most prolific author of short science fiction in 2015 and 2016. His debut collection, Tomorrow Factory, comes out in May 2018, and his debut novel, Annex, follows in July 2018. Find more at richwlarson.tumblr.com and support him via patreon.com/richlarson
H.P. Lovecraft
The Shadow over Innsmouth
(Originally Published by Visionary Publishing Company, Pennsylvania, April 1936)
The Shadow out of Time
(Originally Published in Astounding Stories, June 1936)
Master of weird fiction Howard Phillips Lovecraft (1890–1937) was born in Providence, Rhode Island. Featuring unknown, extra-terrestrial and otherworldly creatures, gods and beings, his stories were some of the first to mix science fiction with horror. His inspiration came predominantly from mythology, astronomy and the supernatural and gothic writings of such authors as Edgar Allan Poe. Plagued by nightmares from an early age, he was inspired to write his dark and strange fantasy tales; and the isolation he must have experienced from suffering frequent illnesses can be felt as a prominent theme in his work. Lovecraft inspired many other authors, and his most famous story ‘The Call of Cthulhu’ has gone on to influence many aspects of popular culture.
Angus McIntyre
The Hunted
(First Publication)
Angus McIntyre was born in London and now lives in New York, where he mistreats computers for a living. His short fiction has appeared in Abyss & Apex and Black Candies, and in the anthologies Ride the Star Wind, Mission: Tomorrow, Humanity 2.0, Swords & Steam, and Principia Ponderosa. His science-fiction novella The Warrior Within will be published by Tor.com in March 2018. He is a graduate of the 2013 Clarion UCSD Writer’s Workshop. Find out more on his website: angus.pw.
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