asked once all introductions were made.
“Just what we brought with us in our truck,” Jim replied.
“You should come by my house. I’ll cook everyone dinner,” she offered.
An hour later, they all gathered in Maria’s dining room and marveled at the food she had prepared. There was chili, cornbread, and a salad with the freshest of vegetables. After everyone sat down, she asked where they were all from.
Charlie explained how he and Morgan were from England and had met Andy in Bermuda.
After a spoonful of chili, Maria turned to Jim and Ben. “What about you two?”
Andy watched the cousins carefully as Jim answered for both of them. Unfortunately, he revealed nothing more than what she already knew: that they had been living in Virginia at the time.
“Virginia’s near Washington DC, right?” Maria asked. “I was always terrible at geography.”
“Yeah, DC sits at the north of the state,” Ben answered.
Maria turned to her brother. “Julio, do you remember those three boys who passed through here about a year ago? They were a little older than you. I think they were from somewhere near DC, right?”
Julio shook his head. “It was Philadelphia.”
“That’s right, Philadelphia. I think they were on their way to Phoenix to find old friends or something. They didn’t say much about where they came from. It seemed like it was something they didn’t want to talk about.”
“How did you learn English?” Charlie asked.
“My father sent us to a private school that taught in English half of the day,” she replied, and Andy noted an edge in her voice.
Sitting at the end of the table, Morgan was the first to excuse herself. She had been quiet all evening and now looked tired and pale. After thanking Maria for the meal, she asked Andy for her pistol before returning to their house a few blocks away.
After she left, Jim turned to Andy with a look of concern. “Is she okay?”
Andy forced a smile. “She’s fine, just a little tired.”
***
Andy woke up to the sound of Morgan crying and crept quietly into her room to avoid waking Charlie across the hall. “Morgan?” she whispered softly as she tiptoed toward the bed, moonlight streaming in through the window. With Morgan’s back to her, she could see her body shaking. She sat down on the edge of the bed and gently stroked Morgan’s hair. It was something her mother used to do when she was upset. Morgan made no effort to sit up or move but continued to cry. It broke her heart to see her friend in such a state.
“Andy…how can I raise a child in this world? A child that I don’t even want.”
She didn’t say anything. She just remained still and let Morgan speak through her sobs. “I’m so tired…so tired of feeling like there’s no end to it all. Every day is such a struggle. Food…water… petrol. Even going to the bathroom is an effort. Will things ever get easier?”
“We’ll do what we’ve always done,” Andy said. “We’ll adapt and we’ll get through it together.” She knew she was trying to reassure herself as much as Morgan.
“But where are we going to go? We can’t stay here. This town is empty and there’s no food. No ocean to fish, no garden to grow. It’s dry and dead here. And hot. I can’t sleep at night. All I do is sweat, and the bigger I get, the more I’ll sweat…”
“…Shh…It will be okay. We don’t have to stay here. It’s just temporary until we come up with something better.”
Morgan rubbed her moist eyes and looked up at Andy. “I’m so sorry I’m such a burden. All of this is my fault. If I hadn’t…if those boys had never—”
Andy abruptly stopped her. “Don’t you ever say that. You’re not a burden, and none of this is your fault.”
“But if it weren’t for me, we’d still be happy in Bermuda.”
“Morgan, I never wanted to stay in Bermuda forever. I wanted to come home. I’d wanted to return for a while, but I was only going to leave if you and Charlie wanted to.
“Just what we brought with us in our truck,” Jim replied.
“You should come by my house. I’ll cook everyone dinner,” she offered.
An hour later, they all gathered in Maria’s dining room and marveled at the food she had prepared. There was chili, cornbread, and a salad with the freshest of vegetables. After everyone sat down, she asked where they were all from.
Charlie explained how he and Morgan were from England and had met Andy in Bermuda.
After a spoonful of chili, Maria turned to Jim and Ben. “What about you two?”
Andy watched the cousins carefully as Jim answered for both of them. Unfortunately, he revealed nothing more than what she already knew: that they had been living in Virginia at the time.
“Virginia’s near Washington DC, right?” Maria asked. “I was always terrible at geography.”
“Yeah, DC sits at the north of the state,” Ben answered.
Maria turned to her brother. “Julio, do you remember those three boys who passed through here about a year ago? They were a little older than you. I think they were from somewhere near DC, right?”
Julio shook his head. “It was Philadelphia.”
“That’s right, Philadelphia. I think they were on their way to Phoenix to find old friends or something. They didn’t say much about where they came from. It seemed like it was something they didn’t want to talk about.”
“How did you learn English?” Charlie asked.
“My father sent us to a private school that taught in English half of the day,” she replied, and Andy noted an edge in her voice.
Sitting at the end of the table, Morgan was the first to excuse herself. She had been quiet all evening and now looked tired and pale. After thanking Maria for the meal, she asked Andy for her pistol before returning to their house a few blocks away.
After she left, Jim turned to Andy with a look of concern. “Is she okay?”
Andy forced a smile. “She’s fine, just a little tired.”
***
Andy woke up to the sound of Morgan crying and crept quietly into her room to avoid waking Charlie across the hall. “Morgan?” she whispered softly as she tiptoed toward the bed, moonlight streaming in through the window. With Morgan’s back to her, she could see her body shaking. She sat down on the edge of the bed and gently stroked Morgan’s hair. It was something her mother used to do when she was upset. Morgan made no effort to sit up or move but continued to cry. It broke her heart to see her friend in such a state.
“Andy…how can I raise a child in this world? A child that I don’t even want.”
She didn’t say anything. She just remained still and let Morgan speak through her sobs. “I’m so tired…so tired of feeling like there’s no end to it all. Every day is such a struggle. Food…water… petrol. Even going to the bathroom is an effort. Will things ever get easier?”
“We’ll do what we’ve always done,” Andy said. “We’ll adapt and we’ll get through it together.” She knew she was trying to reassure herself as much as Morgan.
“But where are we going to go? We can’t stay here. This town is empty and there’s no food. No ocean to fish, no garden to grow. It’s dry and dead here. And hot. I can’t sleep at night. All I do is sweat, and the bigger I get, the more I’ll sweat…”
“…Shh…It will be okay. We don’t have to stay here. It’s just temporary until we come up with something better.”
Morgan rubbed her moist eyes and looked up at Andy. “I’m so sorry I’m such a burden. All of this is my fault. If I hadn’t…if those boys had never—”
Andy abruptly stopped her. “Don’t you ever say that. You’re not a burden, and none of this is your fault.”
“But if it weren’t for me, we’d still be happy in Bermuda.”
“Morgan, I never wanted to stay in Bermuda forever. I wanted to come home. I’d wanted to return for a while, but I was only going to leave if you and Charlie wanted to.
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