- - End of All Things, The (36 page)

Justin led Shadowfax down the street to the museum. It was located in a Victorian house with a wide lawn. A sign, which swayed and creaked in the breeze, gave the hours of operation and admission rates. As with the bookstore, he respected the contents too much to simply muscle his way in and leave them exposed to the elements. Picking the locks took only a moment. 

The door squealed as he pushed it open, and he listened intently for any reaction to the sound before stepping into the hallway. The interior was dimmed by the heavy curtains over the windows, and it smelled pleasantly of old wood and dusty cloth. Except for a few signs which asked visitors not to touch, it looked as though he had stepped back in time into the home of a nineteenth century family. 

The two oil lamps on the mantle were the first things he took. He wrapped them in a shawl draped over the back of one of the scroll backed sofas, as though its wearer had just left the room, and carried them out to the wagon. Shadowfax stomped her hoof when she saw him, as though to express her impatience to be leaving. “Just a few more minutes, I promise,” he said.

It took him a while to carry everything out to the wagon. From the kitchen, he selected a set of cast-iron cookware, suited for use on the stove they had at home. He hadn’t paid much attention to what they had in the house already but was operating on the principle of “better safe than sorry.” He found an old-fashioned peeler mounted on the edge of the table. A crank turned the food in a spiral beneath the blade. It wasn’t something they needed, but it seemed the kind of item that would amuse Carly. Likely, she’d insist they have potatoes for supper just so she could try it out.

In the open pantry, there was a tin tub with a washboard. Carly had been washing their clothes in sinks and creeks when she could, and Justin realized with a bit of surprise how their tasks had fallen into traditional gender roles. With a grimace of guilt, he vowed to take on more of the household chores, but his grimace turned into a grin when he pictured himself offering to “share” the duty of mucking Shadowfax’s stall. He was pretty sure that was one job she’d be glad to leave categorized as “men’s work.”

He gathered up the tub and washboard and piled in other household items he thought Carly would find useful. On his way out, he grabbed the small pendulum clock from the mantle. He could set it tomorrow at noon by watching when the fence posts cast no shadows. Carly would be glad to have a clock again, even if it wasn’t completely precise.

He found a selection of woodworking tools in the basement; it was the reason he had gone there in the first place. It took him a while to collect all he needed. He wouldn’t have to find a lumber store, thankfully. He had noticed some wood stored in the barn that would work perfectly for his project. The more he thought about it, the more excited he became about his plan. He’d never built anything, but the book made it seem like something he’d be able to handle.

He lugged the last box of tools out to the wagon and relocked the museum door behind him. “One more stop,” he told Shadowfax, who seemed a little huffy at being drawn away from yet another flower bed. “Then we can go home, and you can get some dinner. I only pray you don’t faint from hunger along the way.”

The maternity store was untouched as well, though the door was unlocked. Justin stepped inside, and his gaze landed on an outfit on the clearance rack. He grinned. This was going to be fun . . .

Carly flew to the front door when she heard the jingling of Shadowfax’s harness and the crunch of the wagon wheels on the gravel. Justin was home, and all was right with her world again. She ran out to greet him, jumping up into his arms and wrapping her legs around his waist as Sam bounced around his feet.

“Whoa, I guess you’re happy to see me,” Justin chuckled. He gave Carly a kiss, set her back down on her feet, and patted Sam’s head. Tigger gave an imperious yowl so he bent and petted her, too. “How are you feeling?”

“I’m mad at you,” Carly said, pressing kisses all over his face. “Furious, actually.”

“I can see that.”

“Shut up. Let me finish yelling at you.” Carly tilted her head and kissed him, long and slow and deep. She drew away and brushed his lips with her own as though she couldn’t help giving him one last kiss before she continued. “You scared me to death. You’ve been gone all day.”

“I went shopping,” Justin said. She gave him a reproving glance and peeked into the wagon, but the contents were concealed under a tarp.

“What did you get?” 

“You’ll see. Let me unharness Shadowfax, and then we’ll go through it all.”

Carly watched him through the window. He patted the horse on her shoulder, and she bumped him with her nose. She saw Justin laugh and give Shadowfax the petting she wanted while they walked to the barn. A few minutes later, Justin emerged with bits of hay on his clothes, which must have come from giving Shadowfax her dinner. He stopped at the wagon, grabbed two large bags, and carried them into the house. He brought them into the living room, and Carly sat down on one of the armchairs, nearly bouncing with eagerness to see what they contained. 

Justin sat down in the chair opposite of hers and opened the bag. “I found some maternity clothes at a shop in town. I hope you like them.”

“Lemme see! Lemme see!”

He pulled out a dress that looked like a muumuu in bright orange, hideously bedecked with giant blue flowers, and handed it to her, with an expectant expression. However, Carly struggled to keep the horror from her face. It was, quite possibly, the ugliest thing she had ever seen—almost
impressively
ugly. She didn’t even know what to say. Justin smiled coaxingly, and Carly had to drop her gaze.

“Oh, and I found you these.” He pulled another outfit from the bag. It was lavender, printed with white flowers, and had a pair of matching pants that looked like they’d fit a bull elephant. Carly bit the inside of her lip. Hard.

“And this one, for when the weather gets a little warmer.” 

It was a shapeless dress in the most hideous shade of brown Carly had ever seen, and it was decorated with lime green circles. It looked like it had been made from a hippie’s discarded curtains.

“Well, what do you think?” 

Carly looked up at Justin and saw his eyes were twinkling with mischief. He burst into laughter. “You should have seen your face!”

She swatted his shoulder. “That’s not funny!” But she laughed even as she scolded him.

“I couldn’t help it. I’m sorry, but I had to.” He handed the second bag to her. 

Carly took a peek inside and was relieved to find comfortable clothes in a variety of earth tones. Not the bright, vibrant colors she usually preferred, but nothing tacky. She smiled. “Thank you.”

“I think you’ll like the coat.” He pulled it out, and Carly gave a little squeal. It was heavy, down filled, and bright pink with wide bands of faux fur around the cuffs and hood. “It’s so cute! Thank you!” Carly kissed him, and Justin beamed. He’d gotten her white snow boots, lined with fur. They didn’t match the coat perfectly, but she could tell he’d tried. The scarf and mittens, however, were blue. “They didn’t have anything that would match,” he said apologetically.

Carly didn’t care. The amount of effort he’d put behind it was touching. She was a lucky woman, she reflected, as she drew him down for a long, sweet kiss.

Carly went to try on one of her maternity outfits while Justin unloaded more items from the wagon. She pulled out the tummy of the jogging suit and tried to picture how she’d look when she was further along.
Short and fat, apparently.
She laughed at herself a little. She’d never been vain, but she was a little worried Justin wouldn’t find her attractive once she got bigger.

She went back out into the living room and saw him in the kitchen, plunking a few cans onto the table.

“The grocery store had already been looted,” he said. His words had that carefully nonchalant tone that she was beginning to recognize as his
don’t-worry-Carly
voice. “This was all that was left.”

Like the grocery store at home in Juneau
. “During the Crisis?”

Justin shook his head. “Some of it, perhaps, but there was little debris inside, which makes me think it was done by people in the town since the Crisis ended.”

“Are they still in the town?”

“I didn’t see anyone, but they might have hidden when they saw me coming.”

Carly shuddered, thinking of Justin being watched from behind curtains, maybe by someone with a gun or crossbow. “Please, don’t go back there.”

“I won’t. I think I got everything we need.”

“Was there a vet’s office?”

“I got de-wormer for all of the animals.” He gave her a little smile. “Though I probably should have gone ahead and stocked up for other creatures. You know, for when you start collecting pigs, elephants, and monkeys.”

Carly appreciated his attempt at humor, but it didn’t distract her from the very troublesome reality of her animals having no protection from disease. “What about vaccinations? For the baby?”

He shook his head. “I’m sorry, Carly.”

A chill swept over her before she sat down heavily in one of the armchairs. “What are we going to do?”

Justin rubbed the back of his neck. “Honey, there really isn’t much we
can
do. The baby will get a certain level of immunity from your milk, at least temporarily. I’ll keep checking clinics we pass, and maybe we’ll find something.”

She knew he added the last sentence because he wanted to give her some hope, but she could tell he didn’t expect to find anything. She pressed her hands over her still-flat abdomen as though she could shield her baby from the dangers of their new, uncertain world. She told herself she just had to have faith. Surely, if all of this was meant to happen, she wouldn’t be blessed with her baby just to see it get sick and die.

Justin handed her two canvas totes, likely his way of distracting her from her worries. Carly peeked inside. “Books!” 

“Yeah, the only book store in town was very small, and most of what they carried were used titles, but I got you everything I thought you’d like.”

“Oh, Justin, thank you!” She threw her arms around his neck and gave him a smacking kiss on the cheek this time. “I love you.” One of the titles was the classic
What to Expect When You’re Expecting
, a book her friend Michelle had said was a big help to her.

“I got a few things for the baby.” He lifted out another bag and handed it to her. 

Inside, there was a selection of tiny outfits. Carly held them up. Little smocks with matching pants in pastels, but no pink or blue. Itty-bitty socks. A little sweater in yellow with a duckling embroidered on the lapel. At the bottom of the bag was a plush teddy bear, as soft as a whisper, and a bright yellow rubber duck that made her smile.

“I wasn’t sure what sizes to get,” Justin said, “so I picked a variety. And since we don’t know if it’s a boy or girl, I tried to get colors either could wear.”

Carly blinked hard to force back the tears. “Perfect.” She put her arms around Justin and laid her head on his chest. “Absolutely perfect.”

He put his fingers under her chin and lifted Carly’s face for a soft kiss. 

Chapter Eight

Carly woke in the middle of the night and reached for Justin, but she found only an empty spot where he should be. She sat up, looked around, and saw him at the window. He noticed she was awake and held out a hand. “Carly, come see.”

Carly slid out of bed and picked her robe up from the foot of it. She put it on while she wiggled her feet into her slippers. The floors in this house were always cold. She shuffled over to him, yawning. “What is it?”

“The first snow.”

She leaned back against him, and Justin’s warm arms enfolded her. Carly looked out the window at the white world, lit by a brilliant moon that peeked through the snow filled clouds. Fat flakes brushed against the window on the way down, and the blanket of snow over the earth seemed to shimmer in the moonlight.

Carly sighed. “It’s beautiful.” She reached out to touch the window and shivered lightly at the chill radiating from the glass. She was so glad they were snug and safe in their warm little house instead of trying to travel through the snow.

It was early November, to the best of their reckoning. Neither of them was sure of the date. Justin moved his arms downward, and his hands cupped over the small mound of her belly lovingly, protectively. Three months along. Carly wasn’t showing much, yet, despite Justin’s efforts to fatten her up. She knew Justin was worried about her, but in this case, Carly didn’t know how to reassure him. Her nausea had tapered down to an occasional bout in the morning, and so she was able to eat more but Carly hadn’t gained as much as he thought she should.