there with you,” said Amy. “‘Far too precious’? Just yesterday she was trying pretty hard to end one life. Mine!”
Atticus pointed to a large window.
“Look!”
They all turned to gaze out.
“What?” asked Dan.
“I saw a bolt of lightning,” said Atticus.
“So?” said Dan dismissively. “Itdoes happen, you know. It’s called a storm !”
At that moment another bolt oflightning appeared in the sky. Only it wasshooting upward, not down to the earth.
The others stared, openmouthed,while Atticus gazed pointedly at Dan.
“Oh,” said Dan sheepishly. “That’s,uh, that’s not good.”
“Ya think?” exclaimed Atticus.
An announcement was broadcast
over the station PA system.
“They’re calling our train,” said Amy. “Let’s go. But make sure Isabel doesn’t spot us.”
They took great pains to make sure they got on the train without Isabel or her people seeing them. However, they were so focused on Isabel that they failed to see someone else watching them . As Amy and Dan got into one car and Jake and Atticus into another, this person climbed aboard a car that was in between them.
Sinead Starling pulled her hat downlow and took her seat for the long rideahead.
“Stupid train,” exclaimed Jake.
He and Atticus were sitting in Amy
and Dan’s compartment. Jake was working on his laptop but his Internet connection kept failing.
“How can something like this happen in the twenty-first century?” he wanted to know.
Amy was looking out the window at the passing scenery. With all the worries
she had, Amy seemed at peace. It might have been the beautiful landscape she was watching as the train made its way to the West Coast. Or it might have been that she was resigned to whatever fate would befall her. Perhaps she didn’t really even know for sure.
She said, “I sort of like the train. Atleast you can see things you can’t at thirty-five thousand feet.”
“Yeah, but apparently you can’t get asolid Internet connection,” complained Jake. He looked at his screen. “Okay, I’mback on. Excuse me while I do some
digital sleuthing.”
Dan, who was watching Amy watch Jake with a lovey-dovey expression, rolled his eyes, sighed, and sat back in his seat. Dan could tell this was going to be a
very, very long ride. He snatched a glance at Atticus. He really liked Atticus, but the last official Guardian on earth could become very stoic on occasion. This appeared to be one of those occasions as he silently looked out the window.
“Is that snow?” exclaimed Amy.
They all looked outside, all except Jake, who was still glued to his laptop
screen.
Dan said, “How can it be snowing? Itwas seventy-five degrees in Chicago. Andwe’re not that far from there.” He quicklychecked his phone’s weather app.
“It’s thirty degrees out there! How
can the temperature drop forty-five degrees just like that?”
Then Dan blinked, and the snow seemed to simply vanish. “Okay, I am big-
time freaking out now.” As he continued to watch, a thunderstorm started up. But, like back in Chicago, the lightning was shooting upward. Dan gripped his seat and paled. Isabel Kabra, curse her, had been right that the apocalypse was coming. In fact, it was apparently already here. As they continued to stare out the window, all those meteorological anomalies disappeared and the sky cleared.
Atticus pointed to a distant hill. “Look!”
As they watched, the mound of dirt trembled and then came crashing down, taking some houses, and no doubt people, with it.
The train roared on.
“Was that an earthquake?” asked
Amy. “I didn’t feel anything.”
“The whole world has gone crazy,”
said Dan.
“No,” announced Jake.
They all gaped at him.
He was finally looking up from his laptop.
“The world has not gone crazy. In fact, it’s starting to make a lot of sense.”
Dan peeked
Atticus pointed to a large window.
“Look!”
They all turned to gaze out.
“What?” asked Dan.
“I saw a bolt of lightning,” said Atticus.
“So?” said Dan dismissively. “Itdoes happen, you know. It’s called a storm !”
At that moment another bolt oflightning appeared in the sky. Only it wasshooting upward, not down to the earth.
The others stared, openmouthed,while Atticus gazed pointedly at Dan.
“Oh,” said Dan sheepishly. “That’s,uh, that’s not good.”
“Ya think?” exclaimed Atticus.
An announcement was broadcast
over the station PA system.
“They’re calling our train,” said Amy. “Let’s go. But make sure Isabel doesn’t spot us.”
They took great pains to make sure they got on the train without Isabel or her people seeing them. However, they were so focused on Isabel that they failed to see someone else watching them . As Amy and Dan got into one car and Jake and Atticus into another, this person climbed aboard a car that was in between them.
Sinead Starling pulled her hat downlow and took her seat for the long rideahead.
“Stupid train,” exclaimed Jake.
He and Atticus were sitting in Amy
and Dan’s compartment. Jake was working on his laptop but his Internet connection kept failing.
“How can something like this happen in the twenty-first century?” he wanted to know.
Amy was looking out the window at the passing scenery. With all the worries
she had, Amy seemed at peace. It might have been the beautiful landscape she was watching as the train made its way to the West Coast. Or it might have been that she was resigned to whatever fate would befall her. Perhaps she didn’t really even know for sure.
She said, “I sort of like the train. Atleast you can see things you can’t at thirty-five thousand feet.”
“Yeah, but apparently you can’t get asolid Internet connection,” complained Jake. He looked at his screen. “Okay, I’mback on. Excuse me while I do some
digital sleuthing.”
Dan, who was watching Amy watch Jake with a lovey-dovey expression, rolled his eyes, sighed, and sat back in his seat. Dan could tell this was going to be a
very, very long ride. He snatched a glance at Atticus. He really liked Atticus, but the last official Guardian on earth could become very stoic on occasion. This appeared to be one of those occasions as he silently looked out the window.
“Is that snow?” exclaimed Amy.
They all looked outside, all except Jake, who was still glued to his laptop
screen.
Dan said, “How can it be snowing? Itwas seventy-five degrees in Chicago. Andwe’re not that far from there.” He quicklychecked his phone’s weather app.
“It’s thirty degrees out there! How
can the temperature drop forty-five degrees just like that?”
Then Dan blinked, and the snow seemed to simply vanish. “Okay, I am big-
time freaking out now.” As he continued to watch, a thunderstorm started up. But, like back in Chicago, the lightning was shooting upward. Dan gripped his seat and paled. Isabel Kabra, curse her, had been right that the apocalypse was coming. In fact, it was apparently already here. As they continued to stare out the window, all those meteorological anomalies disappeared and the sky cleared.
Atticus pointed to a distant hill. “Look!”
As they watched, the mound of dirt trembled and then came crashing down, taking some houses, and no doubt people, with it.
The train roared on.
“Was that an earthquake?” asked
Amy. “I didn’t feel anything.”
“The whole world has gone crazy,”
said Dan.
“No,” announced Jake.
They all gaped at him.
He was finally looking up from his laptop.
“The world has not gone crazy. In fact, it’s starting to make a lot of sense.”
Dan peeked
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