There had to be something different; something off. Things couldn’t go so wrong on a perfectly lovely day. Not again. If something was off, maybe he would feel better, somehow.
It was overcast, but still bright with the noontime sun, and a breeze had picked up. Across the street, the Arsenaults’ house also looked perfectly normal. Except … their garage door was open. That was unusual. Keith kept some expensive tools in his garage and it was never open when he wasn’t in there.
He glanced at Mrs. MacLean’s house, next to the Arsenaults. The screen door was wide open, blowing slightly in the breeze, rocking gently back and forth. Alex found that unsettling and turned away, but his eyes lingered on the swinging screen door. At least something was off.
Turned out that didn’t make him feel better after all.
When he went back to the living room he found Shadow lying on the couch, chewing on one of her favourite toys: a stuffed bear that Alex had sewn up so many times it now resembled a stuffed tree stump with legs. He sat next to her and patted her back. She looked at him for a second, smelled his hand, and then went back to chewing.
He still had no idea what was happening. Did this have something to do with the disease that his friends had been talking about? What was it? Hyper-AIDS? That made no sense—they would have shots and medicine, not evacuation. But if it wasn’t that, then what?
The TV. His dad said that they announced whatever this was on the news. They would still be talking about it. If it was enough for Keith Arsenault to leave his tools out for the world to take, then it had to be all-day newsworthy. He turned on the TV.
“... is still unclear exactly how long this situation will play out. Back to you, Cathy and Rob.” It was a man standing on a street—not a street in Sydney, but definitely not that far away. The same overcast sky was behind him. Alex could also see big, green, tarp covered army trucks parked in the background.
The image flicked to the studio of the local news (local—coming out of Halifax, a good five-hour drive away).
“Thank you, Colin Farris, on the scene in Port Hawkesbury,” said the female anchor—Cathy. Port Hawkesbury is way closer than Halifax. Whatever they’re talking about is the same thing as here.
As if hearing Alex’s thoughts, Rob the anchor gave the situation. “It’s the same story across all of Nova Scotia this morning. And across the Maritimes and eastern United States. Riots have broken out, fires have been set ablaze, and a fearful populace can only watch on. Most residential areas in the province have been evacuated, but if you are watching this from your home, we remind you to lock your doors and windows and await evacuation teams to take you to a safe-zone.”
Alex felt good that he had done as much as he could, at least according to Rob-the-anchor. However, he still had no idea what had caused the evacuation situation. Again, the news people knew what he was looking for.
“There has been much speculation about the cause of this mass disturbance,” Rob continued. “Right now, officials are withholding comments until any answers can be confirmed, though it does appear that—”
Cathy the other anchor jumped in. “Rob, I’m being told that we have footage from the downtown area that—”
The phone rang and Alex thought it was the loudest noise he’d ever heard. He let out a short, high-pitched yelp which caused Shadow to jump up and run out of the room. “Thanks, girl,” Alex called after her, with an awkward chuckle. “Nice to know I can count on you.”
He ran to the phone. His father was talking before he could say anything.
“Alex? They won’t … they won’t let me leave. Are you okay?”
“Yeah,” Alex said, his heart still racing. “What do you mean they won’t let you leave?”
“They’re not letting anyone out.” He paused. “Why weren’t you home? It was so important. Why did you leave?”
Suddenly Alex felt a pang of anger rising in him. He took a deep breath. “I had to get Shadow! She—”
He was cut off by the sound of his dad yelling; not at him, but at someone in the place—the safe-zone he had called it. “My son is still out there! No, he’s at my house right now! If I can just get ... where are you going? Hello? Hey! Hello! Alex? Alex?!”
Caught up in what was happening on the other end, Alex didn’t answer right away. “Dad. I’m here. What’s—”
“I’m going to try to find someone in charge of all this ... get a way out there. I’ll be there soon. Okay?”
“Yeah, okay.” Suddenly a terrifying thought hit Alex. “Dad! Is Mary still—”
“Mary is here. I picked her up right before I went home to get—” He stopped and sighed. “I’ll be there soon, all right? Promise me you will stay there and not leave for any reason. You got it?”
“Yeah.”
“And don’t open the door for anyone but me.”
“Yeah.”
“I’ll be there soon.”
“Okay. See you soon.”
His heart was pounding. He wasn’t sure if anyone was coming to get him, and he still had no idea what was happening.
Looking at the TV, he got a partial answer. On the screen was jumpy camera footage of a street in Halifax. It must have been coming from an apartment above the street. He recognized one of the stores in the background from a family trip. A man stood in the middle of the street. Then he wasn’t standing anymore. Alex quickly realized that he’d been gunned down. He was lying, crumpled, as several figures in riot gear approached him. When they were about ten feet away the man started
