The idea made me think about what Tuck had told me the night before, his description of spinning from the loss of his mother, the farm, and life as he’d known it. I’d been so bereft during that time too, and especially when he’d turned away from me, but in the midst of my pain, I’d still had music. What if I hadn’t? What other choices might I have made? Where might I have gone for meaning, perhaps taking wrong turns along the way?

The same way Tuck had. And it opened up a wellspring of understanding in me. And a new level of forgiveness.

It also added context to his deep hurt when I hadn’t believed him on the airplane. Tuck had never hesitated to take blame for something if he thought someone else would suffer more in the fallout—I knew that all too well. He’d done the same thing when Abel died, not declaring his innocence because he saw it as throwing Abel under the bus—again. But he had denied any wrongdoing when it came to Charlie’s drugs, and I hadn’t believed him. How terribly that must have stung.

We’d walked on the outskirts of what looked like quaint towns, past people who waved, their faces filled with worry as we waved back and moved on by. Just like the other states we’d been in, broken-down cars sat in the roads, the occasional older vehicle rolling past. No one bothered us here, and we didn’t attempt to talk to anyone, though we might have to eventually as Hosea had only been able to provide us a ride and a day’s worth of food. We both understood—their mission was to help as many vulnerable people as possible, and Tuck was capable.

Thankfully, the weather was mild, so much so that at one point I took off my jacket and tied it around my waist. “Do you think this weather has to do with the solar flares?”

“Maybe. It’s obviously affected the sky and so it’s possible it affected the weather. But I’m also not well-versed in a typical Kansas winter.”

I squinted into the sky he’d just mentioned, purple clouds floating over a lavender background. “Tuck… Hosea mentioned several solar flares hitting over the course of a day. Do you think that means they hit different parts of the world? Could this be a worldwide disaster?” Might other nations come to our rescue? Or is the whole planet dark?

“It could be. But all we can do right now is focus on getting home. It’s the best way to survive. And then we hope more information trickles in from there. Once we’re safe.”