by Susan Lowry
“Kevin,” Lucy cried, “how horrible it must have been!”
“Well, I’m glad you finally feel that way about us,” Chris said. “We appreciate the truth. So there could be survivors out there after all; non-telepathic ones.”
“You suspect this Doctor Inch actually created the plague?” Jack mumbled.
Kevin began to sob. It had been an unbelievable nightmare, keeping that secret all those months.
“Wonder what the archives have to say about her?” Kate said. “If she’s for real, there should be articles written. That name doesn’t sound at all familiar.”
Kate blinked at Kevin. “Do you think that vitamin injection was really an antidote?”
“That’s my theory,” Kevin said, wiping his eyes and coughing so hard he had to sit up so he wouldn’t choke. Lucy gave him a tissue and patted him on the back.
Kevin slid back down into the cushions so Jack could check his vitals again. Jack removed the stethoscope from his ears finally and began to speculate.
“If Inch really did engineer that plague – and please, let’s not rush to that conclusion – but, it would only make sense she’d have also created the antidote; a protein or something that binds with the virus, something that can deactivate it. That’s one explanation for you having no symptoms, right?”
“What about Hannah?” Kevin had been left more confused than ever after she’d got sick.
“Something she didn’t get that she needed?” Chris speculated.
Jack shrugged. “If they were trying to impregnate her then they were probably giving her hormones and who knows what else to prepare her for the insemination… they might have had to give her a longer course of treatment with the antidote because of that, longer than Kevin would have needed possibly. And, you did leave before the procedure was complete.”
Kevin closed his eyes. All he wanted to do was sleep.
“Is there anything else you needed to tell us Kevin?” Chris said gently.
“Leave him Christopher,” Lucy chastised.
“That’s okay,” Kevin’s voice was worn thin. “I think that’s about it anyway.”
***
(January 13th, Year Three, PA)
Rose was getting on his nerves; she didn’t understand a thing about him, now that he couldn’t ping. Travis was not getting out of the chair and he glared at her in frustration.
“I’m begging you to put an end to this moping! You’re only making things worse,” Rose insisted. “Kevin’s told you his story and you know everything that we do now. I’ve been over and over it so many times. There’s no point in fixating on it a minute longer, since there isn’t anything you can do. I’m becoming afraid for you Travis dear. You never visit anymore. Not even Lucy. You never do anything except play on your touch-screen.”
Travis had no desire to do much at all now that his life had so drastically changed. He was an entirely different person than who he’d been when he was born. At least Kevin understood what it was like not to be able to ping in a society where everyone else could. Travis was so thankful it had not been the plague that made Kevin so ill that day before Christmas, and in fact, he no longer even begrudged him for stealing Lucy away from him. He didn’t want to be a father now, anyway.
But he did have high hopes for the children of Moonstone. Psychopaths like Inch couldn’t exist in a telepathic civilization where the people would never allow someone to become so deranged.
Thanks to Jack and the astronaut, who’d restored Google, Travis had been able to do his own investigating. Doctor Lena Inch came up as a Biomedical Engineer researching life-extending vitamins and micronutrients – but he knew what she really was. She was a murderer who had destroyed his mother, his entire family and friends, the human race, and most of the animals.
Even if Kevin’s children did not inherit telepathy, Travis surmised they’d turn out okay. They couldn’t possibly miss something they’d never known, or long for it in the same way he did.
Fate could not have been more punishing. He’d lost his ping in a telepathic realm, the odd one out among so few survivors he could count them on his fingers. He would never stop missing his telepathy or forget what it had meant to him. It was the cruelest of ironies.
Chapter Twenty- Seven
Too Soon
(May 23rd, Year Three, PA)
Kate halted in her tracks, dropped her flowered gift bag on a rock beneath the tree, and clasped her cheeks in astonishment. Just weeks before his first birthday Ben was sending a sign that he was telepathic after all! His first amazing ping was sailing into her head.
What a little monkey. A minute ago he’d whimpered in Jack’s arms, not wanting Kate to leave. She’d kissed his cheek cheerfully and said, “Don’t cry Ben. Mama will be back soon.”
She should have known from his unexpected response there was something up his miniature sleeve when he’d given her a white-toothed grin and waved, ready to gift her with his charming surprise.
Giggling and proud, Kate sent him a reply, glanced briefly back and blew him a kiss. She picked up her bag. Her exciting news could be saved for later she decided; her brand new niece, delivered with Kate’s help at 3:00 am that morning, was in the spotlight for now.
Travis was already there in Sarah’s living room, more absorbed in his touch-screen than the baby. Sarah had gone to her bedroom to rest and Chris was nowhere to be seen. Lucy and Rose were sitting on either side of the wooden cradle, their bellies blooming conspicuously.
Rose had conceived very soon after Eduardo’s arrival; with still three-and-a-half months of gestation left, she struggled out of her chair. Although a little rounder, she was roughly the same size as Lucy, who had only a month to go. But it was no secret that Rose was having twins. Lucy was cheerful but she appeared tired and her eyes were a little sunken.
“What a darling niece I have,” Kate chortled as she studied the sleeping newborn in the brightness of the day and with a little sleep behind her. “So what’s the verdict? Have they made up their minds?”
“Sarah’s sticking with what she wanted all along,” Lucy chirped, “April it is!”
Kate laughed. “But it’s already May.”
“Well, apparently she doesn’t care,” Rose chuckled, “and it is a beautiful name, my dear, don’t you think? I love it.”
Kate continued to peer down at the infant. “I knew it – she does resemble Chris. Look at that. Such full, rosebud lips, and… yep, I’m right – that child’s a redhead.”
***
(June 8th)
Lucy had grown so tired of battling with her pillows and Kevin didn’t fool her, pretending to be asleep. She’d dragged her weight the few inches to the edge of the bed deciding some hot tea might help. There she paused, not even certain why, listening to the hum of a soft spring rainfall.
The clock said it was 2:00 am; Kevin grumbled and rolled over as Lucy put her feet on the cool floor. As she stood, something shifted inside her. She thought it was her imagination and took a step when a high-pressured hose seemed to have been turned on inside of her and shrieked.
Kevin sat upright. “What’s wrong?!”
She dashed to the bathroom. “Oh… Kevin,” she called from the tub, “it’s my water… I — I’m early!”
Having suffered three near-death experiences, Lucy had a keen understanding of nature’s power over her body and was fully prepared to collaborate with its wisdom in childbirth. The baby was coming early though, and that, she had not anticipated.
But, not dangerously early, Kevin told her, insisting that since there wasn’t anything they could do about it now anyway, it was best to keep positive. He held her tight until she felt reassured and then she calmly pinged Jack and Kate.
Kevin began the preparations dutifully while Lucy took a nervous stroll around the living room. It wasn’t long at all before her belly cramped up tight like hard wood and wouldn’t let go, making her sink onto the couch where she curled up, panting, waiting for it to stop.
&nb
sp; When Kate and Jack arrived Lucy found herself grinning bravely. “I’ll be just fine… really. Is Ben with Rose and Eduardo?”
Kate nodded as she felt Lucy’s belly.
“Oh, did Travis get woken up?”
“Yes, but they know how long this takes. I’m certain the four of them went back to sleep,” Kate said, helping Lucy get under the covers in her bed.
But, a few minutes later Kevin came back to the bedroom with Travis, whose dark hair was sticking up on one side.
“Travis – I’m so sorry,” Lucy said, “but you should be home sleeping.”
“Why can’t I stay? Isn’t it okay?”
“Well darling, I — I don’t know if –” she’d begun, but a nauseating cramp had taken over, preventing her from speaking and she was afraid she was going to be sick. She pushed air quickly through her lips until the pain subsided enough that she could speak again.
“I’m doing okay Trav, really! Not sure this is such a good idea for you though… I — hear things can get a little intense. What’s the use of you getting scared darling?” Lucy chuckled lightly and then winced.
“I won’t be scared. You’re the one going through the pain.”
Lucy understood how desperately Travis wanted to ping with her right then, how horribly frustrated and angry he felt at not being able to help her the way he’d always done.
But Jack addressed him sternly, “Go home to bed son. There’s nothing you can do and it will be hours before the baby comes.”
Lucy had never seen a look quite as defeated as what was in his eyes and she couldn’t take it. He had been so brave for her all of those times. “Let him stay!” she protested. “Thank you for coming darling. I need you, I really do!”
“And I need someone to help get me through a long night,” Kevin said in an even deeper tone than usual. He sighed, scratching his stubbly chin and looking quite exhausted. “What about a game of chess Trav?”
Kate put her arms around Travis. “Good idea. He’ll be just fine Jack.”
“Well… all right.”
It was quite a while before the next contraction came and Lucy felt almost blissful for a few minutes, she was floating on air – the dream she’d been waiting for all of her life was about to come true.
Travis had left in search of the chess set Kevin said was buried in one of the living room cabinets but did not return and Lucy’s joy was soon forgotten as her body brought her to a whole new level of pain. She needed to relax, to breathe… and NOT to push.
While she was puffing and huffing and attempting to blow out the tension, so she could go with the flow, let her body do what it was supposed to be doing, the reality was sinking in – her baby was premature!
The next, seemingly endless contraction left Lucy so exhausted she could not imagine being physically capable of another one. She was dreading being swept back into such torture, and wanted the entire labour to be over now! Kate wiped her brow as the following one snuck up on her, speaking encouragingly throughout it.
Remembering that Kate had already gone through this, not that long ago, Lucy drew some comfort in having someone with her who understood entirely. But with the labour progressing so rapidly, the game of chess had never begun and Travis, who must have heard Lucy’s moans, had stayed in the other room. When she became quiet and was speaking calmly to Kate, he returned – pale and more anxious than she’d noticed before.
“What is wrong Travis?” she mumbled weakly.
He shook his head, and although he tried, his revealing eyes did not make light of whatever had frightened him. “Nothing to worry about Lucy, but… ” he looked up at Jack, “um… there’s something outside.”
“What is it son? What could be out there?” Jack, Kate, and Kevin abruptly left, following Travis into the other room and leaving Lucy entirely alone.
“Out there – between the trees,” she heard Travis say from the far side of the cottage.
But it was so dark. She wondered how they could see anything out there in the middle of the night in the rain. Her muscles wanted to push again. She began to pant and then grunt, and when Jack rushed back and told her to try to stop, she couldn’t. Their voices were distant, coaching her, telling her she was doing fine – but she knew that she wasn’t. She was failing.
Finally, the contraction eased, she relaxed into the pillow, and Jack examined her again.
“This is going quicker than anticipated Lucy.”
“It’s too early!” Lucy held on to Kevin’s arm. “The baby hasn’t grown enough!!!”
“It’s going to be fine Lucy, just relax now,” Jack insisted.
But Lucy was far from convinced and through the next contraction she squeezed Kevin’s hand. When a moment of respite finally came she gazed up at his concerned gray eyes. He brushed a wet string of hair from her cheek and she focused on the strength in his arm and the firm, broadness beneath his shirt. The father of her child couldn’t have been in better physical shape.
Kate had a knack for soothing, reassuring words, which Lucy desperately wanted to believe while her muscles constricted, but she was left further drained with each agonizing round. In between she had started to slip into a sleepy haze. But now, when the pain returned, the sharp stabbing intensity cleared her mind and she could not fight the terrible images that appeared before her eyes each time – Hannah, dead in the yard, her baby infested with plague, and Kevin’s gravestone.
Her diaphragm pushed without her control and inside she was shouting, ‘What if it isn’t okay?!!!’
By sunrise she was past the point of wanting to scream out for an end to the torture, she had no strength left, labour had won and she was giving in. But then, something Lucy hadn’t even considered happened, and it was better than the morphine drip after the plane crash that killed her step-family. It was pain-free bliss. She barely noticed Kevin, at the foot of the bed, watching eagerly for the baby to appear.
“It’s okay to push now Lucy!”
Didn’t Jack know that had not been an option for an eternity?
“There’s the head,” he declared.
She opened her eyes to see Kevin gaping in awe.
“You’re almost there,” Kate encouraged.
As the baby’s shoulders arrived, Lucy had no doubt she was stretching beyond the point of no return – but she didn’t care. The pain that was skillfully being drawn out of her was replaced with pure, refreshing energy.
“No worries, you’re not going to tear,” Jack announced, “I’m almost certain.”
Didn’t matter if she did – Lucy couldn’t imagine being afraid of anything at that moment.
Yet, when that titanic contraction subsided Lucy knew she was still in trouble. She’d pushed so hard and had not succeeded. Even with all discomfort removed she could reason – and Lucy knew that her body, and more importantly, her baby’s, could only hold out so long.
Kevin was peering at Jack with almost pleading eyes and Jack made a heavy sigh, “One more time Lucy… this should be it.”
***
(June 12th)
“It was too much to ask any of you,” Lucy insisted.
“But you didn’t need to ask sweetie. It was clear you were in trouble,” Sarah whispered, watching April as she suckled eagerly at her breast. “And we’re all just fine now, aren’t we?”
“It wasn’t at all healthy for you,” Lucy maintained. “But I’m not complaining; my poor Noah might not have made it without you. I appreciate everyone so much!”
Sarah’s face was serene as she watched her baby sleeping in her arms. Just two weeks old and Lucy saw how nicely filled out and healthy April was; so different from Noah – whose transparent skin was purplish-pink, his hands and feet disturbingly bluish.
“He’s just so… tiny. Look at him Sarah. Do you think he’s going to be okay? I know Jack says he will, but —”
“Well first of all he’s only four days old,” said Sarah gently. “And at three-and-a-half weeks premature, you can’t expect him
to be as big as April, you shouldn’t be comparing because that is only going to make you worry.”
Kate set a cup of soup on the side table for Sarah and another one next to Lucy and sat down. She peered at Lucy sternly. “Jack says that despite his size he’s an outright warrior. Just look at that face, your Noah is special, trust me.”
“He’s an out-and-out four pound trooper,” Sarah agreed, carefully placing April back in her cradle. She flopped back into her big upholstered chair and lifted the steaming mug to her mouth. “And sweetie, how many moms get an NICU set up right in their own home? With all the oxygen he needs, an incubator, and a doc that practically lives with you. I think he’ll be okay.”
Lucy felt eternally grateful for Jack’s adaptability. Delivering her Noah with all the responsibilities of a preemie had made her understand the meaning of worry with a clarity she’d not appreciated until then.
But at the moment she was focusing on Travis who was determined not to be noticed. His hair had grown too long and he wore it over his eyes. His touch-screen seemed to have become his life and Lucy’s concerns over him ripped at her heart once again.
She suddenly remembering something that had been bothering her for days, “Travis darling, what was it that you saw out in the woods the other night, when Noah was being born?”
Travis gazed up at her blankly and then he blinked. “Oh… that.” He shook his head. “It was nothing, probably just the wind,” he mumbled. He shrugged and pointed his nose back down toward whatever he was viewing with his thumbs working rapidly.
***
(September 10th)
“Come quickly Travis,” Lucy cried. She ran out on the rickety dock close to the end where he was dangling his feet in the water under the hot sun. She stopped and waited and he turned slowly, squinting up at her.
“She’s okay Trav. Lucky for Rose, they couldn’t wait to be born, came out like they were in a race, one after the other. No special pinging needed – not like with Noah. A boy and a girl! You have to come see them darling, they are just beautiful. Rose wants you to.”