The Last Day

SIXTY-NINE

Ward looked out across the backyard from the dark kitchen. He thought he saw a shape moving fast up the slope beyond the pool. In the den Alice had seated herself on the hearth. She was staring into a candle.

“This candle is about shot,” she said. “You got any more?”

“Yes,” Natasha said. “In the kitchen. I'll get one.”

“I'll get it,” Leslie said. “Where are they in the kitchen?”

“The drawer next to the fridge,” Natasha said. “There are a dozen or more.”

When Leslie came back, she lit a long candle from the dying one, and pressed it into a vacant ring in the candleholder. Ward noticed the large butcher knife in her hand.

“Just in case,” she said, holding up the knife so the blade caught the light. “I, for one, will not go gently into that good night.”

“Not a bad idea,” Natasha said. “What time is it?”

Ward glanced down at his watch. “Ten,” he said.

“Do you have a flashlight or anything, besides that candle?” Alice asked.

“Yes,” Ward said, “but we don't want the guy out there to be able to see what we're doing in here.”

“God, this is all so freaky, don't you think?”

“Yes, Alice,” Natasha said, looking at Ward. “We certainly do.”

“So, you're like a little-kid doctor? And what're you?” she asked Leslie.

“I'm a secretary,” Leslie said.

“Oh,” Alice said. “So you're like a typer?”

“Yes,” Leslie said. “And also a filer, and a phone answerer.”

“Cool,” said Alice. “How much money do you make?”

Even in the low light, Ward saw Leslie roll her eyes.

“You know, my mother went off the deep end and I need some funds quick, so I sure could use a job.”

“Too bad we don't have any jobs that entail stealing our inventory,” Leslie said.

“So, Mr. Hartman told me your kid died,” Alice told Ward. “You didn't tell me that. You definitely told me you didn't have any kids. I remember stuff like that.”

“I didn't want to go into it at the time.”

“When did he die?”

“It happened a year ago today,” Natasha said.

Ward thought about the circle around the date on the calendar in the kitchen.

“If you'd have told me the truth, I wouldn't have taken his toy car, you know. I'm not heartless. I'm basically a good person.” She took a picture from the mantel and held it so she could see it in the candlelight. “Is this him?”

“That's him,” Ward said. “His name was Barney.”

“He was a cute kid. Let me ask you something,” Alice said. “You remember drawing my picture on the plane?”

“Yes, I do.”

“Well, something happened to the picture. And I really liked it a lot. What I wonder is, could you like maybe draw me again?”

“I'd be happy to,” Ward said.

Alice looked at Natasha. “He can really draw people good. Did you know that?”

“Yes,” Natasha said. “Ward's a very talented man.”

“Well, he should draw all the time. He could like sell pictures of people. He could make some money drawing like kids and stuff. I really wish I hadn't torn it up. It was just because that investigator dude pissed me off. Do you mind me talking so much? I mean, I could shut up.”

“No.” Natasha smiled warmly. “It's distracting.”

“So, do you like living out here in the middle of nowhere?”

“Most of the time the inconvenience is convenient,” Natasha said.

“That doesn't make any sense,” Alice said.

“Well, when you're out here, it takes effort and energy to go anywhere. So instead of going to stores and spending money when you get bored, you don't leave home. And it's isolated, which is a good thing most of the time.”

“But like if you need the cops, like now, they're a long way off,” Alice said. “Wild animals make me nervous. Not to mention murderers running around in the woods. Why is a killer trying to kill you?”

“He thinks we did something to him, which we definitely didn't do.”

“Like what?”

“He thinks Dr. McCarty killed his son,” Leslie said.

“I thought your son was dead?” Alice said, confused.

“Our son died because of an accidental electrocution. The man outside's son was hit by a car, and I operated on him. There was something else wrong; and he died from that. He didn't die because of anything I did, but because I didn't know he had something else wrong. There was no way for anybody to know.”

“So, just tell him that,” Alice said.

“He wouldn't believe it,” Leslie said.

“Is he crazy?” Alice asked.

Leslie said, “Seems pretty obvious he's past the reasoning stage.”