“They have to let you through, don’t they?” Jillian asked. “You’re a native Pittsburgher!”
April added more rum to her drink. “Yes, but this isn’t driving across the river to New Jersey. This is going to another planet. Elfhome. The world of elves. Different stars. Different moon — well — looks the same, but it’s not the same moon. Totally different sun. Not our world.”
“Yes, but you can drive to it,” Jillian pressed.
“It’s like going to another country.” April took a drink and shuddered slightly. “Canada or Mexico — if they dropped off the face of the planet for thirty days at a time. There’s only four highways still connected to Pittsburgh. A concrete trench and three fences topped with barbwire surround the rest of the area. Even returning residents need a passport, and all vehicles are searched for stowaways. Trucks start to line up two days before Shutdown in special parking lots, and they have first priority for getting in and out. New EIA employees are second-level clearance, and scientists are third. I’ll be last in line.”
“So you might not get in?” Jillian started to cry. Louise struggled not to start, too.
“Oh, oh, don’t do that. Here, have ice cream.” April pulled out several pints of Häagen Dazs, three bowls, and a half dozen spoons.
Louise couldn’t see how ice cream could help, but April did have exotic flavors like Bananas Foster, Caramel Cone, and Midnight Cookies and Cream. The last proved to be fudge and chocolate wafer cookies in chocolate ice cream. The twins were distracted by sampling each of the flavors.
“I have one edge: I’m a native Pittsburgher.” April hunted through the freezer and added Dulce de Leche and Rum Raisin to the selection. “Normally the last hour or so, the only vehicles they let through are the returning residents.”
Louise gasped as she realized that if April went to warn Alexander, she probably would have to stay until the next Shutdown to come back. “What about your work?”
“I might lose my job over this.” April took a big swallow of her Coke and rum and winced. “Oh, that’s strong.”
“I’m sorry,” Louise said.
“It’s okay. It’s a crappy job. I’ve been meaning to look for another.”
“We could call. . someone,” Jillian said. “There’s Esme’s sister, Lain. She’s in Pittsburgh. She could warn Alexander.”
“I don’t know if Lain knows about Alexander.” April waved her spoon loaded with Bananas Foster. “Esme didn’t want me to tell her family. And phones are very unreliable during Shutdown. All of Pittsburgh tries to call out to do business that one day a month. You basically start dialing at midnight and listen to ‘all connections are busy, please try again later’ for a couple of hours. No, no, don’t cry! I’m going to drive to Pittsburgh!”
“You said you might not get through!” Jillian wailed.
“I can call people while I’m waiting at the border. I won’t have anything better to do. My whole family still lives in Pittsburgh. My mom and dad, my uncle and three cousins — I’ll call them all. They still live just across the river from Old Man Bell. I’ll have one of them go over and warn Alexander and see about maybe getting her to Earth. She can stay with me.”
“Really?”
“It probably would have ruined both our lives if I had tried to keep her when she was a baby. I was stupid young and had a lot of growing up to do. I couldn’t even keep a plant alive. Old Man Bell, he has a world of patience and was ready to make Alexander his entire world. But I always regretted having to let her go.”
If or rather when they found surrogate mothers for the babies, would they be able to let them go? April had done the hard thing because it was better for Alexander. Whatever they chose for the babies, they had to remember to do what was best for them.
“We should go home,” Jillian announced, pushing away her empty bowl.
April snagged her purse from off the floor by the couch. “Okay, I’ll take you home.”
“We can take the train.” Louise wasn’t sure how sober April was.
“What kind of mother would I be if I let you go home on a train alone at this time of night?”
“You’re not our mother,” Jillian pointed out.
“I could have been.” April was completely right there. A fraction of an inch in the right direction and they would have been born eighteen years ago. “Come on.” April paused at the door, wavering. “Remind me to let the car drive itself.”
The alarm woke Louise. She lay in the darkness for a minute, confused. Then she remembered that it was Shutdown and Pittsburgh was back on Earth. They had gone to bed early so they could spend all night trying to reach Orville, assuming that he was the Wright listed in the phone book. Her eyes adjusted to the dimness and she made out Jillian sitting on her bed, sheets piled around her, face illuminated by the screen of her phone. A quiet voice said, “All circuits are busy, please try again later.” Jillian grunted as if hit, and her fingers moved on her phone’s keyboard.
