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Chapters (40)
  1. The Jane Tucker School for the Blind
  2. Ten Years On
  3. ONE
  4. TWO
  5. THREE
  6. FOUR
  7. FIVE
  8. SIX
  9. SEVEN
  10. EIGHT
  11. NINE
  12. TEN
  13. ELEVEN
  14. TWELVE
  15. The Blind Train
  16. THIRTEEN
  17. FOURTEEN
  18. FIFTEEN
  19. SIXTEEN
  20. SEVENTEEN
  21. EIGHTEEN
  22. NINETEEN
  23. TWENTY
  24. TWENTY-ONE
  25. TWENTY-TWO
  26. TWENTY-THREE
  27. TWENTY-FOUR
  28. Safer Rooms
  29. TWENTY-FIVE
  30. TWENTY-SIX
  31. TWENTY-SEVEN
  32. TWENTY-EIGHT
  33. TWENTY-NINE
  34. THIRTY
  35. THIRTY-ONE
  36. Dedication
  37. AFTERWORD/ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
  38. BY JOSH MALERMAN
  39. ABOUT THE AUTHOR
  40. What’s next onyour reading list?

Ron twists the dial. He’s speaking to her, Malorie can see his mouth move, but the radio inhales the words.

She wants to thank him. Wants to tell him he doesn’t have to go looking for his sister today. He could go tomorrow. He can do whatever he wants whenever he wants to. He’s earned that.

He doesn’t have to seek her out at all.

But…

But he should.

It strikes her then, a truth erupting from nothingness. Yes, Ron Handy should search for his sister. Otherwise he will die, as he is now, living in this squalor and confinement, no sense of purpose, no purpose at all.

Suddenly, with violent clarity, Malorie knows she’s going to search for her parents.

The physical rush following this decision steals her breath.

She secures her fold. A voice comes through the radio, a woman.

“They’re not necessarily taller than they were before…but wider. They take up more space…”

Ron kicks the radio.

“Oh, just go away!” he yells. But does he speak to the creatures…or Malorie? “Take the train,” he says then, turning the radio down. “Oh, please, Malorie, for both of us. Take the train.”

She doesn’t have to see his eyes to know that he’s crying.

“I’m going to,” she says. And her eyes don’t have to be open for her to cry, either. “Ron, I’m sorry I upset you. You didn’t do anything to deserve this today. I’m so sorry.”

“Take the train, Malorie.”

Then, as if it’s the only way for him to survive, as if it’s what’s kept him alive this long, Ron laughs.

“Now, shoo, you!” Levity again. “I’m expecting a murder of friends to arrive any minute and I have sprucing to do.”

“Thank you, Ron.”

She’s thinking of a blind train. And the distance between here and there. Thirty miles roll out before her like a fallen spool, thread unraveling from her once stable fingers, never to be wound perfect again.

Get to the train.

Take it.

To her parents.

“Malorie?” Ron asks. As if he isn’t sure she’s still here.

“Yes?”

“Take those filthy pages with you, if you don’t mind. I don’t want anybody thinking I read that sort of stuff. I’m a respected man, after all. A scholar. And it’s important for us thinkers to keep doing what we do best. Waiting for that inevitable death. At peace. And alone.”

SIX

Tom packs his one bag. But he wants to bring two. He wants to bring a lot. What better place to experiment with his inventions than in the real world? He considers hiding some from Malorie. And if he can’t fit them in, maybe he doesn’t need a change of pants, a change of shoes, or even food after all.