Dark Fall II
Part I - The Vanished
Chapter 3: Fetch Rock
It was close to evening the next day that Zack when was driving along the dirt road through the heavily wooded area toward where Fetch Rock was supposed to be. It was 5:45 PM, and the evening sun was beginning its long descent, lighting up the partly clouded sky in a beautiful orange. Not that the sky could be more than barely seen through the canopy of trees overhead.
Zack had driven quite a ways from the last real town. For a while, it had been nothing but open country. Then it had suddenly turned into woods, and then the road had forked, until it had become one long, endless dirt road.
Zack was having a hard time knowing if he was going the right way or not since this road was not on the map. As far as he knew from the locals he had gathered information from beforehand, he probably was going the right way. They had said to simply take the first fork that that was not on the map and follow the dirt road all the way and he would eventually hit the town. And that was exactly what he was doing right now.
The locals… he hadn't been able to ask about Fetch Rock without eliciting a sudden strong attention not just from the person he was asking, but also from everyone else who was standing around in earshot. It was as if he had dropped some incredible secret that was never supposed to have come out of his mouth.
One guy had asked what business a tourist like him might have with Fetch Rock. Zack kept his business to himself, but the man had tried to talk him out of going.
Zack had felt stares lingering on him up until he'd left and driven out of sight.
He had been driving for a good long while now. Driving this far in the middle of nowhere made him nervous. He'd filled up on gas right before making this trip, but he couldn't help the encroaching paranoia of what might happen if he kept driving and never came across town. What if he drove so long, hoping to eventually come upon the town, and it never showed up? He imagined getting lost, his car finally giving out in the middle of nowhere, without any gas, where he was all alone out here without anyone to call for help. He was certain there was no way he would be getting cell phone service all the way out here.
But his fears were eventually allayed when suddenly he turned a curve and came to an opening where the trees ended, and just beyond it was the town.
It came up on him so abruptly that it surprised him. Everything he'd heard was true. This was one of the prettiest New England towns he'd ever seen. Pretty white and red brick buildings surrounded on one side by green forest as far as the eye could see, and surrounded on the other side by the Atlantic Ocean. It was breathtaking. The final touch to the perfect scene was the lighthouse that Zack could see sitting prominently like a sore thumb on a tiny island in the ocean a ways out from the town.
The first thing Zack noticed was that there wasn't a sign welcoming him to Fetch Rock or anything like you'd usually see when entering a small town. Actually, as far as he could see, there were no road signs anywhere, not even speed limit signs. Zack wondered if the police ever busted anyone for speeding here. Zack downgraded his speed to 30 miles per hour just to be on the safe side, then down to 10 miles per hour as he approached the downtown area. You really never could tell with these small towns.
The town had a very old fashioned small town look to it. Zack felt honestly as if he'd gone back in time to a much simpler era. There was little that was modern whatsoever in sight, save for the few cars he would see every now and then parked on the sides of the street. The cars being used in this town were modern. But his was the only car driving on the road at this time.
Even though the place looked like a town straight out of perhaps a century or two ago, it was extremely well maintained. None of the buildings were dilapidated nor showed any signs of decay. The paint on every building looked fresh, and all the buildings stood out brightly. Zack had never seen an old town like this that looked as nice as this one. It struck him that he probably never would again.
Zack was driving through the downtown area when it struck him that he hadn't seen any people this entire time. It was as if the town was completely deserted, though he told himself that couldn't possibly be.
Zack downgraded his speed further and looked around carefully. On closer inspection, he realized that he COULD see people, they were inside the buildings, watching him through the windows. He suddenly realized there probably wasn't a single window in which one or several people weren't staring out at him.
Way to make a guy feel welcome. Zack thought.
Well, Zack was here on a mission. And these people weren't going to deter him one bit.
He pulled over into a gas station, quite possibly the only gas station in town. As with everything else, there was no sign. It wasn't an Exxon, nor a Texaco, nor anything recognizable like that.
Now, surely they have to have trucks coming from the outside to refill the gas. Zack thought to himself
Zack tried to imagine an eighteen wheeler trying to make its way through the woods on that dirt road around those curves.
Zack pulled up to the pump, killed the ignition, and got out of his car.
No sooner had he done so than a short, stocky man came running out of the building towards him.
He stopped suddenly about 10 feet from Zack, as if he'd suddenly decided Zack had some kind of contagious disease that he might catch from getting too close.
The guy stared at Zack up and down. The man looked about in his 60s, was wearing a red cap with no logo, a plaid shirt, and some jeans with a hole ripped in the right leg.
"Can I help you?" he asked with a tone that came off more along the lines of what the hell are you doing here rather than a friendly greeting, as he eyed Zack warily.
"I need to fill up my gas." Zack said.
"I'll get that for you." the man said, still eyeing him suspiciously.
The man walked around the pump over to Zack's vehicle and started to pump the gas.
"Are you staying in town long?" the man asked with a tone that suggested it would be preferable if Zack didn't.
"I'm here on business." Zack said matter-of-factly. He'd already decided that he wasn't going to let this guy nor any of these people get to him, no matter what they did.
"There ain't no business to be conducted in Fetch Rock." the man said as he filled Zack's rented Expedition. Zack noted there was no gauge on the pump showing the price. Actually, there wasn't even a sign in front of the gas station showing any price. It was then that he realized that none of the buildings in Fetch Rock had signs.
Zack fished his wallet out of his pocket and pulled out a picture.
"Have you seen this woman?" he asked, holding it towards the man.
The man hunched over and looked at the picture like it was a firecracker that might go off at any second. He snorted.
"You another cop?"
"I'm her husband."
He looked at Zack. Something seemed to light up in the man's eyes, but then it quickly went away.
"No, I ain't seen her. Everybody here will tell you the same." he said gruffly.
"You're sure?"
He didn't look at Zack as he continued to fill his vehicle. "It's just as we told the other cops that were nosing around here. Fetch Rock don't get many visitors. If she'd have been here, we would've seen her."
"Where do you guys keep your police station?" Zack asked.
The man pointed up the road from where Zack had come.
"You go up the road. It's just past three streets up, next to the municipal building. It's the fourth. But you don't take the fourth to get to it, 'cause you don't go near the municipal building. That's off limits to outsiders. You take the third street or go up to the fifth street and go 'round till you come to the station. They'll tell you the same thing they told those detectives that came in town last week. Nobody's seen your woman. Ain't nobody been in Fetch Rock an entire year up 'till the outside police came snooping around."
"Well, I'll feel better when I've checked into it and asked around myself." Zack said firmly.
The man grunted.
"Waste of your time. I'm telling you, your woman didn't come here."
"Do you have a hotel?" Zack asked.
The man turned and gave him a look like he didn't understand.
"What?"
"A hotel. You know, a place to stay, eat, get refreshed, all that good stuff. While I'm at it, could be so kind as to point me to a good eating place? I'm kind of famished."
The man looked at him for a few seconds. Then he pointed back up the road.
"Second street. Take a right. Take a left on the first street, then go up a ways, and take a right on the third street you come to. Large gray building. White picket fence outside. Can't miss it."
"Are we talking the hotel or the restaurant?"
The man grunted.
"The place you'll be staying. If you want some good eatin', you go up this road and take a left on the second street. Diner there. It's where all the townsfolk gather this time of evening. But I'd be careful if I were you."
"Why should I be careful?" Zack pressed him.
"'Cause yer tresspassin'." the man said sharply.
"As I said, I'm just here to find my wi..."
"I've said it before, an' I'm gonna say it again." the man said roughly. "You ain't gonna find her here. You'd best be taking care of your business and be gettin' along. And don't be prowlin' around after curfew."
"I won't." Zack said respectfully. "I'm not here to cause any problems. I just want to reassure myself that she was never here and then I will be out of your hair. I don't want to disrespect your town or your rules in any way."
The man grunted. Zack's Expedition was done being filled. The man replaced the pump and capped the gas tank.
"Is it possible I can talk to the mayor of your town, or whatever you call your leader?" Zack asked.
"The mayor is out at present." the man said. "He won't be back until the mornin'."
"I see. Oh, I almost forgot." Zack reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet. "How much do I owe you?"
"No charge." the man said gruffly.
"Oh, you sure?" Zack said, confused at the sudden turn of generosity.
"We don't got no need for money in this town. Never have."
"But don't you ever buy or sell or anything like that?"
"Our Lord provides for us. He provides everything we need."
"But you don't get stuff from the outside or anything like that? Goods? Merchandise? Don't you have an economy of any sort here?" Zack pressed.
"Our Lord provides for us." the man repeated firmly.
"How is it that you have gas if no one ever comes from the outside to pump it in?" Zack continued.
"Our Lord provides for us."
"The Lord creates a never-ending supply of gas for you? Boy, is the rest of the U.S. economy getting stiffed. The president could sure take a few lessons from you people!" Zack said, suddenly realizing his sarcastic tone might not go over real well.
The man looked frustrated. "The Lord created the universe and the heavens and the Earth out of nothing. The world has faltered by trying to become their own gods, and so He has handed you all over to your own wickedness. That is why the Lord doesn't provide for you like he does us." the man said, pointing at the sky or Zack as he talked, Zack couldn't tell which.
"So, basically, I couldn't ask God to magically fill up my tank for me whenever I need to run to the store because I'm a dirty rotten sinner and I don't have my stuff as together as all of you?"
"It is only the wickedness in your heart that dares you to ask such a question." the man said certainly, still pointing as he spoke.
"I see." Zack said, maybe betraying his sarcasm with his voice a little too much. "And you actually require a gas station? Why couldn't God just fill up all your tanks on demand? Why do you even need to pump gas? Does God's gas last longer than regular gas? Do I now have supernatural holy gas that would last me if I decided to drive from here all the way back to LA? Or will I barely be able to get down the road because I'm a dirty rotten unbelieving sinner?"
"Your gas will last you as long as any other gas."
"You didn't answer any of my other questions."
Zack knew it probably wasn't a good idea to push it and make any of these people angry. But he couldn't help it. He had lots of genuine questions, and he could feel his sarcastic side screaming to break free. And it's not like the people of this town had exactly tried to give him a friendly welcome anyways.
"The Lord's ways are not for any of us to question. He is righteous and just in all that He does."
Zack wanted to retort by saying that that was a cop-out, but he decided it would be best to leave it be.
Instead, he gave as friendly a smile as he could and said, "Well, thanks for the information!"
The man just grunted. Zack opened the door to get back in his vehicle. He was halfway inside when he said:
"Oh, one more thing. I noticed you guys have a port and a lighthouse, but no boats."
"This was a port town when it was first settled. But we no longer need 'em."
"So you don't get supplies delivered by boat?"
"I told you! Our Lord provides everything we need!" the man said, sounding exasperated by this point.
"Right. Sorry. Just asking. Have a good day!"
The man said nothing as Zack started his car and began down the road. The man stood and watched him the whole time. Everybody else continued to stare out at Zack through the windows.
(2)
Zack's next stop was the inn. He wanted to get his sleeping arrangements taken care of before he went to get a bite to eat.
The "inn" (which, once again, had no sign) was a tall, wide, very old looking building (but still in perfect condition) with gray siding. A white picket fence surrounded the front of the property, and a cobblestone path led up to the stairs to the porch.
The front lawn was well maintained, and the bushes were properly trimmed. Zack had not seen a single thing in this town that wasn't superbly kept up. The town was so utterly clean compared to anything he'd ever seen before.
Zack made his way along the path and up to the front door. He stopped short of it. He wasn't sure if he should knock or just go right in. He decided to be courteous and knock.
He knocked about three different times and waited on the porch for about five minutes. When no one came, he decided to see if he could just go in. The door was unlocked. He allowed himself inside and closed the door behind him.
Inside the building, it looked like a place where you could check in. This surprised Zack, considering how many visitors Fetch Rock was likely to get on a regular basis, especially if they were accustomed to giving everyone not from around here the same kind of welcome he'd had so far. But the Oriental rug beneath his feet on the wooden floor led up to a desk that actually had a bell. There was a door right behind the desk that Zack presumed might be an office, and to the left was an opening that led somewhere else into the house. To the right of the desk was a stairwell heading up.
Zack walked over to the desk and rang the bell. "Hello?" he called.
He heard nothing for a few seconds, then finally heard footsteps coming from the opening next to the office.
An older woman appeared cautiously from behind. She stopped short at the sight of Zack much like the gas station attendant had. She looked about in her 70s, short, petite, with her gray hair rolled up in a bun on top of her head. She had double type glasses nestled on her face, and was wearing a white dress with white and yellow flowers all over.
"Can I help you?" she said, carefully walking over to the desk. Her tone of voice indicated she was about as eager to help Zack as the gas station attendant had been.
A man appeared cautiously from behind the opening. He looked around the same age as her. He was beefy, balding, and had a thick, curving moustache. He was dressed in pants, white shirt and red sweater vest. He stood and stared at Zack with his hands resting on his hips.
"I'd like to have a room to stay in, please." Zack said normally, intent on not letting these people intimidate him no matter how much they tried.
The lady stared at him with a look that showed off how extraordinarily he was probably inconveniencing them.
"Will you be staying long?" she asked gruffly.
"Maybe several days. Don't really know yet."
She looked almost horrified. The beefy man, who Zack assumed was her husband, said nothing.
"Well," She said, looking down at the papers on her desk. "I think we do have one room you could take."
Zack couldn't imagine that any of the rooms could possibly be occupied, but he withheld the sarcastic remark that was running through his head right now.
"Will you be bringing in any luggage?" she asked him.
Once again, Zack had to stop himself from saying "D'uh."
"Just two bags. I travel light."
"I see." the woman said.
She reached down under the desk and produced a key.
"It's going to be the very first room on your right when you reach the top of the stairs. We do NOT serve food here. You will have to make sure you have your own food on hand should you feel like having a midnight snack. Do NOT go out after curfew."
"Thanks for the heads up. I'll make sure to keep myself fully stocked. Do you happen to have a convenience store around here?"
"The only store is the supermarket." she said, staring at him. She gave him the directions.
"Thanks." Zack said. "How much do I owe you per night?"
She looked shocked. "We don't use money here. Everything is free. Our..."
"Your Lord provides everything you need. Sorry. Keep forgetting." Zack said.
Her mouth hung open as she gaped at him.
"I'm... uh, just going to go and get my bags and get settled in my room. I promise I won't be in you guys' hair or anything like that, nor that of anyone in this town."
Their looks suggested that as long as he remained in town, he was. But they didn't say anything. They just stood and stared at him.
"Okay." he said as he gave a smile and friendly wave and turned out the front door.
Weird.
As he walked up to the path to his car, he saw a teenager and a little girl standing in the middle of the street, staring at him. Zack smiled and gave them a friendly wave as well. They didn't respond in the slightest. As Zack got to his car, he could see that multiple people had now ventured out from the safety of the buildings and were now casting stares in the direction of the hotel.
Zack decided to ignore them and keep about his business as if nothing were even slightly off. He refused to let these people intimidate him from doing what he needed to do.
He got his two bags from the car and took them back into the house. The couple was still standing in the same positions, watching him closely.
Take a picture, why don't you. Zack thought as he trudged up the steps, ignoring them.
The room itself was spacious, but nothing special. There was a bed, a night table, a dresser, a large window that gave a nice view of the town, a closet, and a bathroom.
Zack set his luggage next to the bed. He wanted to climb in it and collapse. But that would have to come later. He still had things to do. He'd have plenty of time to sleep after curfew.
Zack walked over to take a look out the window and saw several people staring up at him. Not at the building, but straight up at his window.
Freaky. Zack thought. It would have been one thing if they had been staring at the building itself, but they were looking straight up at his room. How did they know specifically which room he was staying in? Did the hotel owners call around town to let everyone know? Or was his just the room that was commonly given to outsiders? Neither would have surprised him.
He washed up a bit, then stepped outside of his room. He locked the door, though somehow he didn't think it would do any good to keep anyone from going in with another key and prying. It was time to head out and find that restaurant.
(3)
The restaurant was not obvious, just like everything else in this town. The building was nice, as expected, but once again, there was no sign nor any indicator of what it was. Zack had hoped he was not walking into the wrong building, but upon entering, he knew that he had gotten it right.
He was instantly assaulted by the smell of food when he entered the door. Considering he hadn't eaten in hours, it smelled very good to him.
He was a little offset by the fact that the diner was just as friendly as the rest of the town, although he should have been expecting that by this point. The moment he entered, literally every person inside stopped talking and eating and looked up to stare at him intently. They had been talking and carrying on as normal right as he'd entered, but upon them looking up and seeing him, the place had become so silent you could hear a pin drop.
Zack stood and waved nervously. Nobody waved back.
"Can I help you, sir?" the hostess appeared, almost out of nowhere, as if she'd intended to startle him a bit. She had a cold look on her face that Zack had come to know quite well in this town.
"Uh... table for one, please?"
Stare.
"Right this way, please."
Zack followed her as she took him over to a table over in the far right corner of the establishment.
"Do you know what you want?" she asked him coldly after he was seated.
How would I know what I want? Zack thought to himself. I've never eaten here before.
"Can I see a menu, please?"
Glare.
"Give me just a few seconds, sir."
She came back a minute later and plopped down a dusty menu in front of him.
He looked it over for a few minutes. She stood beside the table the entire time, gazing down upon him. He ignored her and everyone else, even deliberately taking longer than he needed to choose.
Not letting you people get to me.
"I'll just have a cheeseburger and fries, please."
"Drink?" she asked disgustedly, grabbing the menu from him.
"Shiner."
She glared at him like she didn't know what he was talking about.
"It's beer? You know, like Coors, Miller, Budweiser, ect? I'll take Coors if you don't have Shiner..."
"We don't carry any name brands from outside the town, sir. We have our own." she said as she continued to glare at him.
"Oh. Well, then in that case, I'll take whatever you got!"
"Tap or bottle?"
"Bottle. Maybe two."
She took the menu and wandered off without a word. Zack paid no attention to the people that were staring at him. He pulled out his iPhone and pretended to be doing stuff on it casually, though there was definitely no signal out here.
She brought back the bottles, which did not have any labels on them. That did not surprise him. Zack wondered if they had merely taken bottles of an actual brand and ripped the labels off.
The twist tabs, however, had no identifying logo.
"So, I didn't notice a brewery in town." Zack pressed.
"It isn't obvious." she said.
"I'll say. You've got no signs for anything anywhere. Must be hell for your tourist trade."
"We don't get many visitors out here in Fetch Rock."
"Oh, really? That's a shame. You've got such a lovely town." Zack said, trying really hard to keep the sarcasm level down.
"We must take good care of what the Lord gives us."
"By the way, I haven't noticed any kind of farmland or animals either. Where do you get the meat for your hamburgers? Or do I simply not want to know what I'm eating?" Zack was losing the war at keeping his sarcasm down.
"The Lord provides everything we need." she said a little frustratingly.
"Maybe I need to go to church more often." Zack said. "I mean, God makes burgers and gas and beer and everything else and just outright gives it to you. Does it materialize magically in the back of the restaurant, or does it fall from the sky like manna?"
She looked pissed. Zack knew it was probably a bad idea to keep pressing these people like this. But he couldn't help it. He was asking legitimate questions that he was genuinely curious to know the answers to. Everyone in the restaurant stared at him coldly, with emotionless expressions.
"The Lord will not be mocked!" she said to him.
"Hey, no, sorry, that's not what I meant." he said, throwing his hands up. "I was just asking out of curiosity. I really want to know. If the Lord really is capable of providing everything, maybe I would consider converting to your religion, too."
"Neither shall the rocks, nor the mountains, hide the unbelieving when He breaks from the clouds on that day! They..." the woman had started on, pointing sharply in the air with every word, but another guy had appeared behind her and laid his hand on her shoulder.
She looked him in the eyes guiltily, and he glared into hers.
"Excuse me." she said, as she left to tend to her business.
The man, a big guy who was surely somewhere around six feet with curly black hair set on top of a square shaped head, took a seat at the table opposite Zack.
Maybe Zack's pressing had done something after all. This was the first time anyone from the town had actively tried to engage with him.
"If you have any questions, you will want to take them up with our mayor, Archimedes Demarion." the man said to him point-blank.
"I would like to talk to the mayor. He's actually at the top of my list." Zack said.
"Sadly, he's out of town for the day, but you will surely meet with him tomorrow." The man had his had his hands folded on the table as he spoke. "May I ask what business brings you to Fetch Rock?"
The man seemed stern, but not as outright rude or unfriendly as the rest of the people had been so far.
Zack pulled out the picture of his wife and showed it to the man.
"This is my wife. She went missing a few months ago. Her car was found abandoned near the fork that leads directly to your town out in the middle of the forest."
The man's eyes lit up in recognition.
"Ah. You must be..."
"Zack Martin."
"Mr. Martin. We've already had the police coming through our town asking many questions. As we told them, we have not seen this woman at all. I'm very sorry for your loss, but I can assure you she's not nor was ever in this town."
"I just had to come and find out for myself." Zack put Maya's picture back in his wallet.
"I understand. But I can absolutely assure you that it is a waste of your time."
"I'm supposed to believe you," Zack said. "But so far this has been the coldest, most unfriendliest town I've ever been to in my life. And I've barely been here an hour! And I'm supposed to be satisfied that supposedly no foul play of any sort took place while everyone here acts like my being here is a massive inconvenience, as if you guys have got some great, big secret to hide?"
"The people of this town are not used to outsiders. We are a very closed off community, very kept to ourselves. We do not like having outsiders nosing around in our personal business. That's just the way we are here. We live in isolation and we prefer to keep it that way. But this does not mean that we are bad people nor that we would ever do anything to physically harm anyone. Your presence here simply makes people uncomfortable."
"Did Maya's presence make anyone uncomfortable?" Zack pressed.
"I can understand how you feel," the man said, not being phased by the question. "But you cannot go looking for conspiracy under every nook and cranny just because something doesn't fit your definition of normal."
"Her car was abandoned. The driver's side door was wide open. Like she was running from something."
"Well... I don't know anything about that." the man said. "I hope she's alright. I really do. But you are not going to find her here. Talk with the mayor in the morning. He will help allay any of your suspicions. I can assure you that no 'foul play,' as you say, has ever happened, nor will ever occur at Fetch Rock."
Zack sighed and ran his hand through his hair.
"If you feel like you need to continue searching, I understand." the man said. "Just respect our town and our traditions. The people here are very wary of you. Don't give them any reason to be wary any further. Try to take care of your business and wrap it up as soon as possible."
"They are not the only ones a little uncomfortable." Zack said.
The man smiled, and reached out his hand.
"Mark Millar." he said.
Zack reached over and cautiously shook his hand.
"If you ever need a friend in this town, or you can't find Archimedes, come talk to me. I'm usually here most of the day."
"Will do." Zack said.
Zack didn't entirely trust the man, but he didn't sense the same kind of malice in him that the rest of the town seemed to exude towards him.
"Now, if you will excuse me," Mark said, standing. "I have things to take care of. Enjoy the rest of your stay at Fetch Rock."
Zack was tempted to laugh at that, but instead waved him off politely with his hand. He was not going to risk alienating the one friend he might have in this town.
As Mark left, the waitress brought Zack's two bottles of beer. She left them on his table without saying a word. Zack twisted the top off his first beer and downed it. He was instantly surprised at the taste. It had a very unique flavor to it. Dark, but smooth. Similar to Shiner, but he almost thought this was better. He was pretty certain he had never tasted it before. Or maybe he was only imagining it. Certainly, some brands like Coors tasted completely differently in Colorado than it did elsewhere in the nation, so maybe they DID brew their own beer.
The waitress brought him his food. She still had a look of disgust on her face toward him. He briefly wondered if she might have put something in the food that might make him sick. He decided to chance it anyways. Once again, the quality and taste surprised him. He thought it might exceed many other establishments in the U.S.
Zack didn't get sick as he ate, though he figured that would probably come later, if at all.
Zack realized as he was eating that the people in the restaurant had started focusing on him less and were back to being absorbed in their own conversations, even though they were speaking in much lower tones than they probably would have normally been if he hadn't been there.
When the waitress came to get his plate, he said, "So, I take it the meal is on the town, too?"
"If you mean do you need to use money, no. The Lor..."
"The Lord provides everything you need. Right. Got that a hundred times already."
She looked like she could have stabbed him to death and enjoyed it immensely.
"The meal was very delicious. The Lord is good!" he tried to save as he lifted his second beer in toast and then finished it off real quickly, though he realized that statement probably came off as more sarcastic than he intended it to as well.
The woman left without a word.
Oh, well. Can't win them all.
Zack felt weird about just getting up and leaving without paying. But nobody paid him any mind. The food had been really good. He would have to keep coming back as long as he was here. He was sure it would thrill that waitress. Not that he knew of any other restaurant in the town, though there would certainly have to be, he thought. But with no signs on anything whatsoever, he would have been hard pressed to find another restaurant anyways. And he didn't really want to have to go about interrogating the locals any more than he had to.
(4)
Zack was beginning to feel like a celebrity at this point. Well, he already almost was a type celebrity in the rest of the nation. Except he was apparently a celebrity here in a much creepier sort of fashion. The streets were occupied with people now. He found it strange, since no one had been outside when he had first arrived. Had they all seen his car coming and ran into the buildings? But if they were intimidated, they sure had a funny way of showing it. He didn't come into eyeshot of anyone without them turning and staring at him.
He eventually managed to find the supermarket.
It was a lot easier to find than the restaurant. It was pretty big. And the outside actually looked like a place where you would go to find groceries. (Again, there was no sign.)
The inside was a little weird, though. There were no checkout stands. There were shopping carts and a stand with tote bags for customers to use, the kind that were normally used by the save-the-Earth conscientious customers, but they were the only bags here that he saw.
He took one of them and went browsing through the store. He saw few employees. The few he did see were going about meticulously straightening or stocking shelves, or doing cleaning.
This in and of itself seemed odd. Zack had worked in a grocery store when he'd been a teenager as his first job. He'd never before seen a retail establishment in which every single employee actually seemed solely dedicated to their job.
He only saw two teenagers, and they were working as diligently as the adults. Not standing around, not chit-chatting nor slacking off. Not even smiling. No one smiled, come to think of it. And people were still staring at him, though surprisingly not as much here as when he'd first arrived.
Zack wandered around the store with his bag in his hand feeling kind of lost. He wondered, was he supposed to just take whatever he wanted and walk out?
Probably. But the whole idea of taking stuff without paying for it made him feel too weird.
Zack thought that if he hadn't been pretty wealthy at this point of his life, he'd probably have wanted to consider moving here just for the fact that he didn't have to pay for anything. It was almost a Utopian dream come true, except for the fact that no one was very friendly (Mark was okay), and he could only imagine how much the people here would freak at an outsider actually trying to come and live here. Not that he would likely be able to actually find any real estate for sale here.
As Zack walked around, he saw that the store was normal in a number of traditional ways, and not so much in others.
They had a deli counter, a meat counter, a very well stocked produce section, and even a florist with a decent selection. Again, Zack had to note that he was certain not all of these flowers came from the area.
Nothing was carried in any brand name whatsoever. The chips, for example, had a good variety, but they were in blank brown chip bags that had the names written on them. It was the same for any other merchandise in the store whether it was jelly, canned food, cleaning supplies, or anything else.
No way. Zack thought. No way was all of this stuff was solely produced here in this small town. They were kidding to try and make everyone on the outside think such. They must have ships coming in and bringing them stuff, Zack thought. That's the only way he could figure it out. But the question was, why? And why would they lie about it?
Zack didn't quite consider himself an agnostic, but he had a very hard time believing that God would pick just one specific little town out in the middle of nowhere and make and give the people absolutely everything that they would ever need.
Zack wandered around, getting a few snacks for later and stuff he thought he might need that night.
He took several bottles of the mystery beer he had liked so much.
He felt very strange just walking out with his items, but nobody tried to stop him nor seemed to care.
The sun was on the verge of sinking just beyond the horizon for the evening. A perfect temperature with a cool breeze blowing as the sun set on the beautiful town made Zack's walk back the hotel a very pleasant experience.
He barely cared that anyone was staring at him anymore. He was tuning everyone else out by this point.
He thought about how much he would have enjoyed taking this walk with Maya and felt another stab of pain in his gut. He could feel tears once again threatening to well up in his eyes. He was pressing on, but everything still felt so different, so much less meaningful without his soul mate at his side.
He longed to be taking this walk with her, his hand in hers, as they simply walked and enjoyed the beauty of the town and each other's presences.
When he entered the 'inn,' the owners were not out in front. He half expected to see one or both of them when he entered his room, prying through his stuff. But it was empty.
He checked his belongings. No sign they had been shifted through, which surprised him, unless they had been really careful. Zack had noted the exact positioning of all his things before he'd left the room.
He locked the door and laid down on the bed.
He was exhausted, yet his mind was racing, and he didn't feel like falling asleep just yet. Outside, the sun was halfway down the horizon, and darkness was slowly beginning to overtake the town.
Zack reached over into his bag and pulled out some paperwork pertaining to the new club he was working on.
He perused it for a while and did some minor work on it, hoping to occupy himself for a bit and keep his mind off other things.
He took one of his beers and began to gulp it down. The room did not have a refrigerator, it seemed, so he would have to enjoy both now while they were cold. He was glad he had not gotten any other perishable groceries and brought them with him.
After he finished the last beer, the town was now fully dark. He returned his paperwork to his bag, sighed, and decided it was time to get some sleep. He did not check to see if people were still outside looking up at his window.
He turned out the light, stripped down to his underwear, and slipped in between the covers. At least the beds were comfortable.
As per his habit that would probably never be broken, he turned on his side and reached out to grasp invisible air.
He felt so empty.
How he would have given anything to have had his wife in his arms right now.
He started to cry again. He took a part of his blankets, bunched them up, and pulled them close to himself as he began to fantasize he was holding her again, but it was just not the same.
Eventually he slipped into a slumber where he started to dream about her again. They were together again just like they used to be when the world was a much better place. These dreams came off and on throughout his slumber until the nightmare started up again.