Chapter 10 9. Pray

Barbie and Julia Shumway didn't talk much, and had nothing to talk about.After leaving the town center, Barbie saw only one car on the way, but the windows of the farmhouses on the side of the road were almost all lit. Residents outside the town center always have a lot of farm work to do, and no one fully trusts the West Maine Power Company, so almost every household has a generator.When they passed the WCIK radio station, there were two red lights on the roof as before, and even the light bulb cross in front of the studio was also on, shining white like a beacon in the dark.Above the buildings, the star-studded sky still glows brightly, releasing endless energy without the need for generators.

"I fish here a lot," Barbie said. "It's a place of peace." "Is the harvest rich?" "It's plentiful, but sometimes the air smells like the gods' dirty underpants, maybe fertilizer or something. I've never dared to eat the fish I catch." "That's not manure—it's the smell of bullshit, and arguably smugness." "what?" She pointed to a steeple-shaped shadow that hid the starlight. "Christ the Holy Savior Church," she said, "the WCIK station you just passed, which is sometimes called Radio Jesus, is run by them."

He shrugged. "I guess I've seen the church. I know the station. If you live around here and have a radio, it's hard not to notice the station. Are they fundamentalist?" " "They moderate the hardline Baptist denomination. I only go to Congo churches because I can't stand Reverend Lester Coggins. I hate the kind of schadenfreude that thinks everyone who isn't my disciples will go down. Hell guy. I guess there are people of every faith. But then again, I really wonder why they can afford such high power AM stations." "Donations from believers?"

She snorted. "Maybe I should ask old James Rennie. He's the deacon there." Julia's car is a Prius petrol tram.Barbie had thought it unlikely that the publisher of a pro-Republican newspaper would drive such a car (although he felt it would be more suitable for First Congregationalists), but the car's engine was quiet enough to make the radio very loud. clear.The only problem was that this was west of Mill Town and the WCIK station was so strong that the other FM channels couldn't be picked up by the radio at all.Tonight the host on WCIK radio kept playing the damn accordion music, giving Barbie a headache and thinking it sounded like a band that died of the plague was playing a polka.

"Why don't you switch to AM?" she said. He did so, but only muffled voices remained until he finally switched to a sports station.Just before the broadcast of the game between the Red Sox and the Mariners at Fenway Park, the host asked the audience to observe a moment of silence for the victims of the "Western Maine Incident." "Accident," Julia said, "I've never heard that word on sports radio. You might as well turn the radio off." After a mile or so past the church, they began to see lights shining through the trees, and after turning a bend, the lights became as blinding as a Hollywood movie premiere.Two searchlights were set up in the area, shooting obliquely into the sky.Every pothole in the road casts a distinct shadow, and the trunks of the birch trees look like slender ghosts.Barbie felt as if they had sailed into a film noir of the late 1940s.

"Stop, stop, stop," he said, "we're very close to our destination, and it doesn't look like there's anything, but believe me, we're there. If things don't change, the electronics in your little car are very It could all explode all of a sudden." She stopped the car, and the two stepped out of the car together.For a while, they just stood in front of the car, squinting into the blinding light, and Julia even put her hands over her eyes to shade them. Behind the lights, two army trucks with brown canvas carports were parked, facing each other.There are many sawhorses on the road as roadblocks, and sandbags are tied to the brackets to strengthen the fixing effect.In the darkness, the sound of motors running continuously, it sounded not just one, but several.Barbie saw the thick cables for the searchlights snaking straight into the woods where the rest of the blinding light came from.

"They formed a circle with lights," he said, twirling his index finger in the air like a umpire's home run sign in a baseball game. "The lights are erected around the town, not only shining into the town, but also shining into the sky." "Why are you facing up?" "If a plane is allowed to pass through here, the lights going up can be used as a warning sign for air traffic. I guess their biggest fear is tonight, and by tomorrow, they will be able to completely block the air over the whole town of Mill, and it will definitely be guarded." As watertight as Uncle Scrooge's purse."

Because the light spread, they could still see what was behind the searchlight position.There were six heavily armed soldiers standing in a neat line with their backs turned to them.Although the engine of Julia's car was quite quiet, the soldiers must have heard the sound of the car approaching, but none of them looked around or anything. Julia yelled, "Hello, Bingge!" No one turned around.Barbie didn't expect this to happen.Although Julia had told Barbie everything Cox had said on the way here, Barbie decided to try it herself.Since he could see the badges of the soldiers, he knew what to do.The Army was likely to lead the operation—Cox mentioned this a little—but this group of soldiers was not the Army.

"Hey! Marines!" he called. no response.Barbie approached again and saw a black line like the horizon hanging in mid-air above the road, and finally decided to put the matter aside for the time being.In contrast, now he is more interested in the soldiers guarding the barrier."The Dome," perhaps, Shumway said that's what Cox said. "I really didn't expect to see you scouts on American soil," he said, taking a few steps closer. "It's kind of like Afghanistan back then, isn't it?" no response.He came closer again, and the sound of his footsteps was especially loud on the hard gravel.

"It's a relief, though. I hear a lot of sissies in the Scouts, and if it's that bad around here, they're supposed to send the Rangers." "Dead common people." One of the soldiers muttered. Although the reaction was small, it was enough to cheer Barbie up. "Take it easy, Brother Bing; take it easy and let's talk about the situation here." No response again.He continued walking, and was already close to the barrier (or dome).This time he didn't get goosebumps, or the back of his neck, but he knew the barrier was there, he could feel it. He saw another thread dangling in the air.He didn't know what color that thread would look like in daylight, but he guessed it would be red.Red symbolizes danger.The line was spray-painted, and he'd bet all the money in his account (just over five thousand dollars in it) that it would go all the way around the barrier.

Like seams on cuffs, he thought. He clenched his fist and tapped where the lines on his side of the barrier were, making a sound like knuckles on glass that made one of the marines jump. Julia said, "I'm not sure if it's a good—" Barbie ignored her.He felt angry.In a way, he'd been waiting all day for a moment to vent his anger, and this was the perfect time to do so.He knew it wasn't doing them any good - they were just sentinels - but it was hard to hold back the anger. "Hey, Hailu's! Do me a little favor!" "Get out of here, man. Though the speaker doesn't turn around," But Barbie knows that man is the leader of the happy squad. He recognized the tone, after all he had spoken to people in the same way many times in the past. "We have a mission, so I have to ask you to do us a small favor and leave quickly. If the time and occasion were different, I would either happily buy you a glass of beer, or give you a good beating, but at this moment I can't help it. So, can I ask you to get out of here?" "No problem," Barbie said, "but it doesn't look like we're on the same side anymore. I really don't want to." He turned to Julia. "Did you bring the phone?" She held up her mobile phone: "You should buy a mobile phone, this is a trend." "I have one," said Barbie, "from a disposable mobile phone I bought in the special section of the electronics store, and I almost never use it. I leave it in a drawer when I'm leaving town, thinking There's no way it will be useful tonight." She handed him the phone. "I'm afraid you will be responsible for dialing this number. I have other things to attend to." She raised the volume so that the soldiers standing far away from the blinding lights could hear her. "After all, as the editor of the local paper, I had to take some pictures." She raised the volume slightly again, "Not to mention that in this photo, I can also capture a few soldiers with their backs to the town, desperate to save themselves." "Ma'am, I hope you don't do this," the leader said.He is a strong man with a strong back and a waist. "Stop me," she said defiantly. "I think you know very well that we can't do that," he said, "and the reason we turned our backs there is because that's what we were ordered to do." "Sea and land," she said, "you'd better roll up this paper order tightly, then bend down and stuff it for me in your not-so-smelling hole." In the bright light, Barbie saw Jean The scene that impressed him deeply: she spoke viciously and ruthlessly, but her eyes shed tears.Compared with the searchlights powered by large generators, the flashing lights were not very bright, but Barbie could see that every time the flashing lights were turned on, the bodies of the soldiers would shrink slightly.Maybe hope the fucking military badge doesn't get photographed, he thought. U.S. Army Colonel James O. Cox once said he would wait by the phone until half past ten.Barbie and Julia Shumway got there a little later, keeping Barbie from making the call until 11:20.But Cox must have been on the phone, because it only rang halfway before Barbie's ex-supervisor picked it up: "Hi, I'm Kenny." Barbie was still angry, but she still laughed: "Hi, sir. Just like before, I'm still that stinky bitch who took advantage of everything." Cox also laughed out loud, and the tacit understanding between the two is undoubtedly still there. "Captain Barbara, how are you doing?" "I'm fine, sir. Except I'm Dale Barbara now, and I'm not a captain anymore. These days, I just lead the grill and fryer at the local diner. I'm not in the mood to talk about that right now though. .I'm confused, sir, because I'm looking at a bunch of Marines who are like dead civilians, and none of them dare look back into my eyes, and it makes me fucking angry." "I understand, but you should also understand the situation on our side. As long as these people can help you, or can solve this situation, you can see their faces, not just their butts. You want to believe me ?" "Go on, sir. That's not a positive answer." Julia was still taking pictures non-stop.Barbie walked to the side of the road, and from his new position he could see an area behind the truck with tents, a small tent that seemed to serve as a mess hall, and a parking lot for more trucks.The Marines camped here, and possibly even larger camps beyond Routes 119 and 117.His heart sank, knowing that this meant that this would be a long-term war of resistance. "Is the woman from the paper here?" Cox asked. "Yes, I'm taking pictures next to you. Also, sir, no matter what you tell me, I will pass it on to her. After all, I am now on the civilian side." Julia had taken quite a few pictures by this time, so she paused for a moment to smile at Barbie. "I understand, Captain." "Sir, stop calling me captain." "Okay, I'll call you Barbie. Does that feel better?" "Yes, sir." "As for how much information that lady decides to make public... for the sake of the residents of your small town, I rather hope that she will have enough judgment to make a decision." "I think she's fine." "If she emails the photo to anyone outside, like a news magazine or The New York Times, then you might find yourself unable to even try to go online." "Sir, it's really inappropriate to—" "This is a decision from above, I'm just telling you the truth." Barbie sighed, "I'll tell her." "Tell me what?" Julia asked. "If you tried to email those pictures, they'd probably cut off the town's internet." Julia made a gesture that Barbie doesn't usually associate with pretty Republican ladies.He turned his attention back to the phone. "How much information can you tell me?" "Everything I know," Cox said. "Thank you, sir." But Barbie still doubted that Cox would really tell everything.The military never tells everything, drags out everything it knows. "We call that barrier the 'dome,'" Cox said, "but it's not round, at least we don't think so. We think it's a container with the edges exactly the shape of the town boundary, which I suppose should That's right." "Do you know the height of the dome?" "The top of the dome is about a little over 47,000 feet. We don't know if the top is flat or round, at least not yet." Barbie was so taken aback that she couldn't speak a word. "As for the depth...no one knows. Now we can only confirm that it is more than a hundred feet, which is the depth we are digging at present. The excavation site is on the border of Chester's Mill Township, and the Union Administrative District to the north." "TR-90 Combined Administrative District." Barbie heard her own voice gloomy and listless. "It doesn't matter what it's called. We dug down forty feet or so in the sandstone pit, and the spectrograms I saw drove me nuts. The metamorphic rock formations in both places were all cut off by the dome." .Although there is no crack in the rock formation, you can see on the analysis map that some rock formations in the north have dropped a little. We checked the earthquake report from the Portland Observatory and found something. At 11:44 a.m. There was an earthquake there at 2.1 on the Richter scale, so that's when it happened." "Great. He was going to say it ironically," But because of being too surprised and confused, it turned out that this sentence sounded like it came from the heart. "While none of this is entirely certain, there is a high degree of confidence. Of course, the investigation has just begun, but at present, it seems possible that the depth of the dome is as high as it is. And if the height is increased by five miles... " "How do you know? By radar?" "No, this thing doesn't show up on radar. Unless you hit it head on, or look very close, there's no way to spot it. Casualties since the dome came out were minimal, but the thing still God damn strong bird trap, inside or outside alike." "I know, I saw those bird carcasses." Julia had now taken all the pictures she needed, and stood beside Barbie, listening to what he had to say. "Then how do you know the altitude? With lasers?" "No, the laser will go straight through the dome, so it's impossible to calculate. We're using missiles without warheads. We sent a squadron of F-15s from Bangor this afternoon at four o'clock. I'm surprised you didn't Hear the sound of fighter jets." "Maybe heard it too," Barbie said, "just got my head filled with other things." Like the little plane, the pulp mill truck, and the people who died on Route 117.And that's part of the so-called low number of casualties. "Those missiles kept bouncing back... until they got to 47,000 feet and passed over there. I'm just saying this to you. I'm really surprised we didn't lose any fighter pilots because of it." "Did you send fighter jets directly over there?" "Less than two hours ago, we just completed this mission." "Who the hell did this, Colonel?" "We don't know yet." "Is it one of our own? An experiment that went wrong? God bless, isn't this whole thing an experiment? You have to tell me the truth, and you have to explain it to the whole town. These The residents are all fucking freaked out." "I understand, but this matter really has nothing to do with us." "How do you know it's not?" Cox hesitated for a moment.When he spoke again, his voice was lowered: "The sources in our department are very reliable. Some of us know the information that those bastards in the National Security Agency have, even the CIA. There was an unprecedented exchange of intelligence." It's possible that what Cox said was the truth, but it's also possible that it wasn't.After all, he is just a man who does what he is told.If he had been sent here on this cold autumn night to stand guard with these useless marines, Cox would have stood there with his back turned to him, too.He may be reluctant to do so, but an order is an order. "Could it be a natural phenomenon?" Barbie asked. "There's this natural phenomenon that fits perfectly with the boundaries of towns that humans have drawn? Every corner and every fucking turn? What do you think?" "I'm just asking. What about the density of the dome? Do you know?" "Water seeps through," Cox said, "but only a little." "How is it possible?" Although he and Gendron had witnessed the strange flow of the river and knew that some of the water had penetrated the dome, he still couldn't help asking. "I don't know, how do we know?" Cox sounded annoyed, "We've only been working on this for less than twelve hours, and just being able to figure out the height of the dome is enough to congratulate each other on the back." .We'll figure it out sooner or later, we just don't really know right now." "What about the air?" "The rate of air permeation is much higher. We set up a monitoring station in a nearby town...um..." Barbie heard the faint sound of the paper flipping, "over there in Harlow. The measurement of jet test', I think it should be confirmed by measuring the change of air pressure caused by air rebound. In short, air can pass through the dome, and the degree is much higher than that of water, but scientists say it is not completely circulated It's going to mess up the weather on your side, bro, but no one's sure how much it's going to change, or how bad it's going to be. Heck, maybe it's going to make Chester's Mill The weather in town is becoming like Palm Springs." He let out a feeble laugh. "What about air particles?" Barbie thought she knew the answer to the question. "No," Cox said. "Air particles can't penetrate, at least we think so. But you have to know, this effect works both ways. If air particles can't get in, they can't get out. It means that the vehicle Exhaust fumes..." "No one has to travel that far to drive. Chester's Mill is probably only four miles wide. As for the diagonal—" He looked at Julia. "Seven miles at most," she said. "We didn't think car fumes would be a big deal either," Cox says. "But I would say that every house in town has a well-functioning, expensive oil-fired boiler—in Saudi Arabia, that's a lot." The most popular bumper sticker for a while, that reads: 'We're warming New England' - and new oil-fired boilers require electricity to start the igniter. Considering that the season for home heaters isn't here yet, your Gasoline storage is probably not going to be a problem, but we don't think it's going to help you in particular. If it goes on for a long time, it's going to be a good thing for you from a pollution standpoint." "You think so? You should really come here when it's minus thirty degrees. If you add a cold wind—" He paused for a moment, "Will it still be windy here?" "I don't know," Cox said. "Ask me again tomorrow, and then I may be able to tell you what happens theoretically." "We can burn wood for warmth," Julia said. "Tell him." "Miss Shumway said we could burn wood for warmth." "This is what you have to be careful about, Captain Barbara - Barbie. Yes, you have a lot of firewood, and you can light it without electricity, and you can keep adding firewood. But the firewood produces ash, which produces carcinogens , this is the place to be damned." "The heat here is turned on at..." Barbie looked at Julia. "November fifteenth, she said," "probably around here." "Miss Shumway says it's mid-November. Is there anything you can do to get the situation out of the way before then?" "All I can say is that we're going to try like hell. Now let me get to the point of this conversation. So far we've had a lot of scientists, and they all agree that what we're dealing with is a force field—" "Like," Barbie said, "teleport me to the ship, Scott." "What did you say?" "Leave me alone. Carry on, sir." "They all agreed that the force field didn't come naturally. Either there was something near the outside that was causing the effect, or it was centered around the town and radiating out and creating the situation. The scientists felt the aftermath More likely. One of them also said that this situation is similar to opening an umbrella." "That is to say, you think the source is in the town?" "We think it's possible. And we happen to have a decorated soldier in town—" Veterans, Barbie thought, and it's been eighteen months since she received her medal in the Gulf of Mexico.Only then did he finally realize that whether he wanted to or not, his service seemed to have been extended.And this is the so-called "extended service period for the safety of the people". "—his specialty was finding al Qaeda bomb factories in Iraq, finding them, and destroying them." That said, the energy for the force field still basically comes from something like a generator.He was thinking about it as he drove back to town in the dark with Julia Shumway.Propane is the fuel.He realized that propane and batteries had become the new monetary standard at Chester's Mill. He knew very well that people must burn wood.When the weather gets cold and the propane runs out, they burn wood.It doesn't matter if it's hardwood, softwood, or dead twigs.Then comes a lot of fucking carcinogens. "The machine that activates this force field is not the same generator that runs in every house in your area tonight," Cox said. Who has such a way." "So the government wants that device," Barbie said, gripping the phone so hard it almost crushed it. "That's the real point, isn't it, sir? Because it's a world-changing thing, so the people in the town are only second in line, and to put it bluntly, an acceptable civilian casualty rate." "Please, don't get too dramatic," Cox said. "Our interests are aligned in this matter. If the force field engine is really in town, find it, just like The same way you used to find bomb factories, and then just turn off the machines and the problem would be solved." "If it's really in town." "If it's in town, yes. Would you try it?" "Do I have any other options?" "Not in my opinion, but I'm a professional soldier. Free will was never an option for us." "Kenny, this is a fucking disaster." Cox took a moment to answer.While there's silence on the other end of the phone (just a faint hum, presumably the entire conversation being recorded), Barbie can almost hear him thinking.Then he said, "That's true, but you're still a bitch who takes everything." Barbie couldn't help laughing. On the way back, as he passed the dark silhouette of the Church of Christ the Saviour, he looked at Julia.In the light of the dashboard, her expression looked tired and serious. "I'm not going to ask you to keep your mouth shut," he said, "but there's a part I think you'd better keep secret." "The force field engine may or may not be in town." She took one hand off the steering wheel, reached behind the seat, and stroked Horace's head, as if doing so would make her feel more comfortable and reassured. "right." "Because if there's an engine in the town that's creating the force field—that's what your colonel calls the dome—then someone must be controlling that machine, and someone from the town." "Cox didn't say that, but I'm sure he must think so." "I'm going to keep that part of it a secret. Also, I'm not going to email any photos." "great." "In any case, those pictures have to be published in the "Democrat" first." Julia continued to pet the dog.Barbie was always on edge when someone drove with only one hand, but not tonight. After all, they were the only car on Little Bitch Road and Route 119. "Also, I also know that sometimes what is really good for everyone is definitely more important than a good story, so it won't be like The New York Times." "That's right," Barbie said. "If you find the engine, I won't have to go to the Food City supermarket to buy things so often. I hate it." She looked scared. "Do you think Food City will open tomorrow?" "I think so. When the situation changes suddenly, people are always slow to change their past habits, and then they can face different situations well." "I think I'd better do my shopping on Sunday." she said thoughtfully. "When you go shopping, remember to say hello to Rose Dunchel. She may bring her loyal Anson Wheeler along to do the shopping." He remembered his advice to Rose earlier, and laughed again He said, "Buy everything, especially meat." "What did you say?" "If you had a generator at home—" "Of course, I live above the newspaper office. It's not a bungalow, but a decent apartment. And that generator is a duty-free item." She said proudly. "Then you remember to buy meat. Meat and canned goods, and more canned goods and meat." She thought for a while.The town center was in sight now, and there were fewer lights in the town than usual, but still plenty.How long can this last? Barbie wondered.Then Julia asked, "Has your colonel given any advice on finding the engine?" "No," Barbie said. "My job used to be to find the shit, and he knew that." He paused, then asked, "Do you think there might be a Geiger counter in town?" "I know where it is. It's in the basement of the town hall. To be precise, it's on the second floor. There's a fallout shelter there." "Are you bluffing me?" She smiled. "I'm not fooling you, Holmes. I did a feature story three years ago, and I took some pictures with Peter Freeman. In the basement, there is a large conference room and a small kitchen. And There's a flight of stairs going down from the kitchen, and that's where the refuge room is. It's a pretty big one, it was built in the 1950s, and it's the one that made people think humans were going to blow themselves up When the book is red." "Nuke Armageddon." "That's right, after this book came Woohoo, Babylon. It was a depressing place, and seeing Peter's pictures always made me think of some kind of underground fortress that would be used in the end of the world .There was a kitchen-like room, with a bunch of shelves full of canned food, and six cots. And some government-supplied equipment, including a Geiger counter.” "Those canned foods must still taste good after fifty years." "Actually, they put in new ones every once in a while. After 9/11, they even added a small generator. If you look at the policy address, every four years or so, There's an expense account for the shelter. It used to be three hundred dollars, and now it's up to six hundred. Anyway, there's the Geiger counter you want." She glanced quickly at Barbie. "Of course, James Len Nee looks after everything in the town hall, from the attic to the shelter, which he considers to be his personal property, so he's bound to want to know why you need that." "Old James Rennie won't know," he said. She accepted this without question: "Will you come to the office with me? You can watch the live broadcast of the President's statement while I work on the paper proofs. I'm not afraid to tell you that the proofs process is quick and Very philistine. Only one report, six consumer ads for local stores, not including Poppy's fall merchandise promotion flyer." Barbie considered the proposal.He will be very busy tomorrow, besides cooking, he has to scout around for news, and start back to his old business with the old routine.But from another perspective, if he went back to the pharmacy to rest upstairs, would he really be able to sleep? "Okay. I probably shouldn't tell you, but I'm pretty good at the office kind of stuff, and I make good coffee." "Sir, you have been admitted." She raised her right hand from the steering wheel and gave Barbie a high five. "May I ask you a question? Promise it will never be reported?" "No problem," he said. "Do you think you can find that sci-fi-like motor?" Barbie pondered this while she parked in front of the store below the Democracy's offices. "No," he finally said, "it can't be that simple." She sighed, nodded, and then took his hand again: "If you find it helpful, I will pray that you succeed." "Of course, there's no harm anyway," Barbie said. As of Dome Day, there were only two churches in Chester's Mill; both were Protestant churches (though very different from each other).Catholics go to the Church of Our Lady of Stillwater in Morton, and the Church of Peace in Castle Rock when the town's dozens of Jews are in need of spiritual comfort.There used to be a Unitarian church in the town, but it was closed in the late 1980s due to poor management. Anyway, the townspeople thought the place was kind of hippie crazy.As for that building, it now houses the Milltown New and Used Bookstore. The two clergymen of Chester's Mill were tonight in what old Jan Rennie used to call "devotion and fidelity."But what they said to God, their mental state, what they prayed to was very different. Piper Libby was the preaching pastor of the First Congregational Church, known simply as the Congo Church.Although she had long since ceased to believe in God, she of course never mentioned it to her congregation.Lester Coggins, on the other hand, believed in God to the point of madness enough to warrant martyrdom (maybe martyrdom and madness are the same thing). Reverend Libby, still dressed in her Saturday roast clothes—still pretty, though she was forty-five—knelt before the altar, with barely any light around (the Congolese church has no generators).Her German Shepherd, named Clover, lay crouched behind her, nose on paws, eyes half-closed. "Hello, 'doesn't exist,'" said Piper, "doesn't exist" It was her private way of addressing God these days.At the beginning of the fall, her address was "maybe great," and throughout the summer, "maybe all-powerful."She likes the title now, it sounds pretty good. "You know what's going on here with us - you must know, I've said it enough times - but it's not what I'm talking to you about tonight. Maybe it'll be a relief for you, too. " she sighed. "We're in total chaos here, my friend. I hope you understand that, because I can't do it myself. Well, we both know this place is going to be full tomorrow, and hope for salvation from heaven, Put an end to this disaster." There was silence in the church, even outside.Just like the common line "too quiet" in old movies.Had she ever seen such a quiet weekend night in Milltown?外头没有车声，也没有北斗星酒吧那些在周末表演的乐队的低音贝斯声传来（那些乐队总号称自己是从波士顿赶来的）。 “我不会要求你证明给我看，因为我已经不相信你会有所回应了。不过呢，你还是有可能会在这里听我说话——只是可能而已，我很高兴地承认这点——所以我求你，可以让我对大家说出有实质帮助的话。不是那些跟天堂有关的事情而是对地球上的这里有帮助的事。因为……”她发现自己哭了，但却完全不惊讶。她现在时常放声痛哭，不过总是在私人时间才会这样。新英格兰人对于牧师与政府官员在公开场合落泪一事，总是十分反感。 苜蓿感受到她的哀伤，因而发出低鸣。派珀叫它安静，接着又回头面对祭坛。她时常觉得面前的十字架，看起来就像是宗教版本的雪佛兰汽车的十字标志，不过就是个毫无道理的商标，一切只因为一百年前，有个人在巴黎旅馆里的壁纸上看到这个标志，觉得喜欢，于是就这么用了。 要是你看见这个标志，能从中感受到神性的话，那你可能不过是个疯子罢了。 但无论如何，她还是忍了下来。 “因为，我相信你一定很清楚，地球是我们仅有、也应该努力保护的地方。我想帮助我的教友。这是我的工作，而且我还是希望自己能这么做。假如你真的在这里，那请你眷顾我们——我承认，这个假设实在毫无根据——也求你能帮我一把。阿门。” 她站起身，虽说没带手电筒，但猜想自己不难找到走出教堂的路，而且也绝不会撞伤小腿。 她熟悉这里的环境，也知道哪里会有障碍物。她深爱这个地方，也没骗自己说自己并未失去信仰，但就算如此，她始终深爱这座教堂的事，仍是毋庸置疑的事实。 “来呀，苜蓿，”她说，“总统再半小时就要发表谈话了，他可是另一个伟大的'不存在'呢。我们可以在车上听电台转播。” 苜蓿平静地跟在后头，毫无一丝信仰危机。 小婊路这边（这条路总是被圣救世主教堂的信众们称为三号镇道）的情况，相比之下显然动态许多，而且还有着明亮的电灯光芒照耀。莱斯特·科金斯的礼拜堂拥有一台崭新的发电机，标签甚至还没撕掉，就贴在亮橘色的机身上。这台发电机拥有属于自己的棚子，棚子外头还漆成橘色，位于教堂后方的谷仓旁。 莱斯特五十岁，身体状况保持得非常好——出自遗传与十分卖力地小心照顾自己那虔诚的身体——他看起来不超过三十五岁（他非常谨慎地选用男性专用保养品来帮忙）。今晚，他只穿着一件右腿上印有“奥洛·罗伯兹大学金鹰队”字样的运动短裤，几乎全身上下的肌肉都硬挺着。 在他的工作时间里（每周五天），莱斯特总是以电视布道节目里的那种狂喜语调来布道，听起来就像是嗑药过度的人，以拉长音的方式呼喊这位大人物的名字。不是上帝，而是上—昂—昂—昂—帝！而在私下，他有时也会不自觉地以这种语调来祈祷。然而，当他深陷苦恼、需要曾导引过与他同样深陷水深火热中的摩西与亚伯拉罕的上帝来指引道路时，莱斯特也总会维持低吼语气，直至结束祈祷的那一刻为止，听起来就像条正准备要攻击入侵者的狗。由于在他这一生中，从未有人听过他祈祷之故，所以他未曾发觉过这点。 派珀·利比在三年前的一场意外里，失去了丈夫与两名年幼的儿子，因而成为寡妇；至于莱斯特·科金斯则因为在青少年时期，由于时常梦见自己手淫，抬头却见到圣母玛利亚站在卧室门口的同一场噩梦，进而终身未娶。 这座教堂以昂贵的红枫木打造而成，有着一台几乎全新的发电机，但里头也有朴实无华的地方。在莱斯特赤裸的背部后方，有张三个座位的教堂长椅，就位于天花板的横梁正下方。他的前方是讲坛，讲坛上只有一个放了本《圣经》的讲经台，以及挂在紫红色布幕上的巨大红木十字架。 唱诗班的站台位于讲台右方，至于乐器——包括莱斯特自己有时会弹的那把电吉他——则集中放在角落。 “上帝，请聆听我的祷告，莱斯特以他那”“我可是很认真在祷告”的声音大声说。他以单手握着一条重量不轻的绳索，上头打有十二个绳结，每个绳结都代表了一个门徒。而第九个代表犹大的绳结，则被涂成黑色。“上帝请聆听我的祷告，我以被钉上十字架后复活的耶稣之名虔诚发问。” 他开始用绳子鞭打自己的背部，先是左肩后方，接着换成右边，手臂不断使劲举起，动作十分流畅。他那壮硕到难以忽视的二头肌与三角肌开始冒出汗珠。当打有绳结的绳索打到他早已伤痕累累的皮肤上时，发出了如同拍打地毯时会发出的声响。他以前曾这么做过许多次，但从来没那么使劲过。 “上帝请聆听我的祷告！上帝请聆听我的祷告！上帝请聆听我的祷告！上帝请聆听我的祷告！” Crack, crack, crack, crack.就像火吻般刺痛，以及被荨麻科植物刺伤一样。痛楚延着人类可悲的大小神经网络蔓延开来，每一下都惊人地疼痛，也让他感到惊人地满足。 “主啊，我们在这个小镇里犯下了罪行，而我更是这群罪人中罪孽最深的一个。我听了詹姆斯·伦尼的话，并且相信了他的谎言。是的，我错信了他，而这就是我该付出的代价，一如过往。 “这并非只是为了这项罪行赎罪，而是连同其他人的罪行一起。你并不轻易发怒，但当你发怒时，你的怒火就像是风暴席卷麦田而来，并非只是将麦秆吹弯或留下伤痕，而是将一切都连根拔起。 “我播下了这场风暴的种子，也该受到这场风暴的报应，不只为了这项罪行，更是为了其他许多罪行。” 在磨坊镇上还有其他罪行，以及其他的罪人们——他知道这点，也没天真到那种地步。那些人口出秽言、跳舞狂欢、做爱取乐，以及吸毒等等，他知道的事情可多了——他们无疑该受到惩罚，被鞭打一顿。每个城镇都一样，这是真的。然而，这却是世上唯一一个受到上帝那骇人惩罚的小镇。 难道……难道……这诡异的诅咒并非由于他的罪行而降下？对，是有可能，但几率不大。 “主啊，我得知道该怎么做才好。我正站在十字路口。如果你要我明天早上站在讲坛上，向大家忏悔我与他们一同犯下的那些罪，以及我自己所犯下的罪，我会照做的。不过，这也代表了我的牧师生涯会就此结束，所以我很难相信在这样的关键时刻，你会希望我这么做。如果你真想如此，我也应该等待一段时间……看看接下来会发生什么事……于一面等待的同时，带领我的羊群们一同祷告，减轻他们身上的重担……然后才向大家忏悔。只要是你的旨意，主啊，就必定能够达成，永远都是如此。” 他停止鞭打自己（他可以感到一阵暖流自赤裸的背部徐徐流下，有几个绳结已经变成了红色），抬起布满泪痕的脸孔，望向以横梁支撑着的屋顶。 “因为这些迷途羔羊需要我，上帝。你清楚的，他们比以往更需要我。所以……如果让我远离你是你的旨意的话……就请给我一个征兆吧。” 他等待着。看啊，上帝对莱斯特·科金斯开口了：“我会给你一个征兆。虽然你小时候曾做过肮脏的梦，但还是可以翻开《圣经》。” “就是这一分，”莱丝特说，“就是这一秒！” 他把打有绳结的绳索挂在颈上，让血迹就这么印在胸口与肩膀上，随即登上讲坛，使更多鲜血沿着脊椎凹陷处流下，濡湿了身上那条短裤的松紧腰带。 他如同要讲道般地站在讲坛上（就算在最可怕的噩梦里，他也没梦见过自己会近乎赤裸地讲道），合着的《圣经》就放在讲经台上头。他闭上双眼：“主啊，一切将如你的旨意——以被钉在十字架上，为你带来荣耀的圣子之名起誓。” 上帝开口了：“打开我的话语，读出那些你看见的东西。” 莱斯特遵从指示（但翻开时，却小心翼翼地避过这本大《圣经》较为中间的页数——毕竟应该是《旧约》给他启示）。他用手指插入某个他不知道的页面，然后睁开双眼，弯腰去读。《申那是命记》第二章的第二十八节。他读了出来： “耶和华必用癫狂、眼瞎、心惊攻击你。”心惊这部分可能还好，但就整段话来看，实在不是什么值得鼓舞的事，也不太容易理解。接着上帝再度开口：“别停在这里，莱斯特。” 他又读了第二十九节。 “你必在午间摸索——” “对，主啊，就是这样。”他用气音说道，又继续读着。 “好像瞎子在暗中摸索一样。你所行的必不亨通、时常遭遇欺压、抢夺、无人搭救。” “我的眼睛会受伤瞎掉？”莱斯特问，他那祈祷专用的声音变高了些，“噢，上帝，请别这么做——当然，如果这是你的——” 上帝再度对他开口：“你今天起床时是从比较笨的那边下床的吗？” 他双目圆睁。那是上帝的声音没错，但却是他母亲常挂在嘴边的话。这是个真正的奇迹。“不是，主啊，不是。” “那就再看一次。我揭示了什么给你？” “一些与疯狂有关的事，还有失明。” “难道你只看得见这两件事？” 莱斯特又看了一遍经文，但他只不断注意着“眼瞎”这两个字。 “这是……上帝，这是给我的征兆？” 上帝回答：“对，就是如此，但这不是说你会瞎掉；从现在开始，你的双眼会看得更清楚。这是在告诉你有个人盲目到疯狂的地步。当你看到他时，你必须告诉你的信徒，伦尼在这里到底做了些什么，还有你与这件事的关系。你必须把一切都说出来。我们之后可以再讨论这件事，但现在，莱斯特，上床去吧。你的血都滴到地板上去了。” 莱斯特照做了，但在此之前，他还是先清理了讲坛硬木地板上的小片血渍。他用膝盖抹去血迹，清理时并未再次祈祷，只在心中默念经文。 他觉得好多了。 在短时间内，他只会大概提及那道未知屏障之所以会使这个小镇与世隔绝，与大家的罪行有关；但他还是会持续找寻征兆，找寻那个因盲目而导致疯狂的男人或女人。对，这就是真理。 布兰达·帕金斯会听WCIK电台，是因为她的丈夫喜欢（曾经喜欢），但她从未踏入过圣救世主教堂一步。她是刚果教堂的支持者，而且确定她的丈夫与她一样。 但一切都过去了。霍伊会再度待在刚果教堂，什么也不知道地躺在里面，而派珀·利比则在一旁念着他的追悼词。 这个认知来得如此显著，丝毫无法改变，就这么席卷了整个屋内。自从她接到这个消息后，布兰达首度放任自己大声哀号。或许是因为她现在总算能这么做了吧。现在她只剩自己一个了。 电视上，面色凝重、看起来惊人苍老的总统说：“我的美国同胞们，你们都想知道答案是什么。我在此保证，当我们得知原因后，就会尽快告诉你们。关于这个事件，我们不会采取任何保密措施。我得到的信息，就是你们会得到的信息。我在此慎重保证——” “是啊，少在那里搞欺诈了。”布兰达说。 由于这句话是霍伊常挂在嘴边的话，所以害她哭得更厉害了。她关上电视，把遥控器扔在地上。 她想一脚踩烂遥控器，却没这么做。之所以这样，是因为她仿佛能看见霍伊摇着头，叫她别干出这种傻事。 她走进他的小书房想摸摸他，仿佛就像不久之前，他还待在书房里一样。她非得摸摸他不可。 外头，发电机的运作声响传来。肯定是只大蚊子，霍伊总会这么说。霍伊在九一一事件后买下了这台发电机，当时她曾因价钱昂贵而大动肝火（总得以防万一才行，他这么告诉她），但她如今十分后悔当时骂出口的每一个字。在黑暗中，少了他的陪伴只会更加恐怖，也更让人感到寂寞。 书桌上放着他那台电源仍开着的笔记本电脑，除此之外空无一物。他设定的屏幕保护程序是很久前的少棒赛照片，每张都是霍伊与奇普的合照。 当时奇普大约十一二岁，身穿绿色的桑德斯家乡药王队队服。那些照片全是霍伊与生锈克·艾佛瑞特在桑德斯队打入州决赛那年拍的。奇普环抱着父亲，布兰达则用双臂拥着他们两个。那是美好的一天，但却如同玻璃高脚杯般易碎。要是当时早知道会发生这些事，她怎么可能只会轻轻地拥抱他们？ 在照片中，她没被奇普拥抱到，而这个念头——如果她还有办法思考的话——让她完全崩溃，跪在丈夫的书桌旁不断抽泣。她并未抱着双臂，而是合起双掌。当她还是个孩子时，总会穿着法兰绒睡衣，跪在床边念出祈祷文：愿上帝保佑母亲、保佑父亲，还有保佑我那条还没取名字的金鱼。 “上帝啊，我是布兰达。我没指望你让他回来……好吧，我希望如此，但我知道你不能这么做。所以我只求你赐我足以承受这一切的力量，好吗？如果可以的话……我不知道这算不算亵渎，也许是吧，但我还是希望你能让我再跟他讲讲话，也许还能让他再碰碰我，就像今天早上一样。” 一思及此——在阳光下，他的手指轻抚过她的肌肤——她哭得更厉害了。 “我知道你不跟鬼魂打交道——当然圣徒的例外——但或许你能在梦中实现我的心愿？我知道这么要求太过分了，但……噢，上帝，今天晚上，我的心破了个大洞。我不知道一个人竟然可以这么伤痕累累，让我害怕自己会这么一蹶不振。如果你愿意帮我完成心愿，我一定会回报你的，不管你要我做什么都行。求求你，上帝，只要轻轻的一个抚摸就好了，或是一个字也行，就算是梦里也好。”她涕泪纵横地深吸一口气，“谢谢你。当然，一切仍是仅遵你的旨意，无论我喜欢与否。” 她虚弱地笑了一下，“阿门。” 她睁开双眼，扶着书桌起身，一只手轻触到电脑，屏幕随即亮起。他老是忘记关机，但至少总插着电源，所以电池的电力始终是满的。他的电脑桌面远比她的整齐许多。她的桌面总是凌乱地放着一堆下载的东西，以及作为备忘录用的文本文件。至于霍伊的桌面上，总是有三个利落简洁的文件夹图示，写有“处理中”的文件夹，放着他正在调查的一些报告与资料；写有“法庭” 的，则是他保存某些人（包括他自己在内）的证物、地点、犯案动机等上法庭作证时所用的数据清单。 第三个文件夹的名称是“莫兰街住宅”，他把与住宅有关的所有东西都保存在里面。要是她打开这个文件夹，可能会找到一些她必须知道的发电机数据，好让发电机尽可能地继续运作。警察局的亨利·莫里森可能很乐意帮她更换作为燃料用的丙烷，但要是没备用的该怎么办？要是真的如此，她得在卖完前，到波比百货店或加油站商店购买才行。 她把指尖放到触控板上，接着停下动作。屏幕上有第四个文件夹，就藏在左边底部的角落。 在此之前，她从没见过这个文件夹。布兰达尝试回忆她最后一次看见这台电脑的桌面时的情景，但却想不起来。 那个文件夹的名字是：维达。 嗯，这镇上只有一个人会被霍伊取上“维达”这个名字，就是达斯·老詹·伦尼。 出于好奇之故，她把光标移至那个文件夹上，快速点击两下，想知道这文件夹是否设定了保护密码。 的确有。她试着输入“处理中”文件夹的密码“野猫”（至于“法庭”文件夹，他则没有费心以密码加锁），结果一试见效。在文件夹中有两个文件档，一个档名是“进行中的调查”，另一个则是名为“缅因州总检察长信件”PDF文件。 她点开档案。 布兰达快速扫视那封总检察长的信件，感到惊讶不已，就连泪水也停了下来。她第一眼看见的是称谓的部分。上头写的不是亲爱的帕金斯警长，而是亲爱的公爵。 虽然这封信的措词以公文方式写成，而非霍伊平常说话的方式，但其中有好几个词就像被标记为粗体字般，在她的眼前呼之欲出。首先是侵占镇属动产与公共设施，再来是桑德斯公共事务委员似乎牵连其中，然后则是此项渎职行为比我们三个月前推测的更为广泛深远。 在接近尾声处，有段话感觉不只像是粗体字，而是全都用大写字母写成的：生产及销售毒品。 这封信似乎响应了她的祷告，只是用的是一个她完全意想不到的方式。布兰达坐进霍伊的椅子，打开“维达”文件夹中的“进行中的调查”文件档，让她过世的丈夫开始与她交谈。 总统那场发表于凌晨十二点二十一分的发言，内容大多只是安慰之词，并未提供多少信息。生锈克·艾佛瑞特在位于医院三楼的休息室里看完了总统发言，最后检查了一遍病历后，这才动身回家。在他的行医生涯里，比今天下班时还累的情况不算少数，但过去却从未有过比今天更加沮丧、或对未来如此忧心忡忡的经验。 It was dark in the room.去年他曾与琳达讨论要买台发电机（前年也是），因为每年冬天时，切斯特磨坊镇总是会停电个四五天，就连夏天也会停电两次左右；西缅因电力公司的服务质量绝对称不上是最可靠的那种。他们的收入不足以买得起发电机。要是琳达转为全职警员的话或许可以，但由于女儿们年龄还小，所以他们并不打算这么做。 至少，我们有个不赖的壁炉与不少木柴，还是能派上用场。 车上的置物抽屉里有个手电筒，但他打开电源后，手电筒不过才发出五秒钟的微弱光芒，随后便立即熄灭。生锈克骂了句脏话，喃喃自语地提醒自己明天得去买新的电池——就现在这个时间来说，算是今天晚一点才对，而且还得假设商店开门营业才行。 都在这里住了十二年，要是还找不到路，那我就跟猴子没两样了。 呃，是啊。他今晚的确觉得自己有点像猴子——一只才刚被捉到、被丢进动物园笼子里的猴子。他闻起来一定就像猴子一样，也许睡前还得冲个澡——别指望了。没电就没得冲澡。 今晚天气十分晴朗，虽然看不见月亮，但屋子上空却有无数星星，看起来就与过往相同。或许屏障并未挡住正上方。总统没提及这件事，所以负责调查的人可能也不知道这点。要是磨坊镇只有周围被封锁，而非被一个古怪的钟形屏障所包围，那么事情或许还好处理。政府可以空投物资。 要是这个国家可以花数百亿来援助企业，当然也能负担得起用降落伞空投一些夹心馅饼与发电机所需的经费。 他步上门廊前的阶梯，取出家门钥匙，但才走到门口，便看见有东西挂在门锁上。他眯着眼，弯腰凑近了些，随即露出微笑。那是琳达在波比百货店夏末特卖会上花了五块六买的小型手电筒。 当初他还觉得这是笔无谓的开销，甚至还记得当时的想法：女人在特卖会上买东西的原因，就跟男人去爬山一样——只因为他们正好人在现场。 手电筒的金属柱身底部有个小钥匙环，他的一条旧网球鞋鞋带穿过钥匙圈，上头捆了张纸条。 他把纸条取下，打开手电筒观看。 嗨，亲爱的。Hope you are ok.两个女儿总算愿意上床睡觉了。她们两个都很紧张，但最后还是没事了。彼得·兰道夫说（他成了我们的新警长——真恶心）我明天得值一整天的班。 我说的是一整天，从早上七点到晚上七点。玛塔·爱德蒙说她会帮忙照顾女儿们，愿上帝保佑她。尽量别吵醒我（虽然我可能还没睡着）。 我怕会有段苦日子得熬，但我们肯定能克服难关，感谢上帝，我们就知足常乐吧。 亲爱的，我知道你一定很累，但你可以带奥黛莉出去遛遛吗？它一直奇怪地呜呜叫，会不会是它知道有什么事要发生了？别人都说狗可以感受得到地震，所以搞不好…… 莱蒂和贾奈尔说她们爱爸爸，我也是。 我们明天再找时间谈谈，好吗？聊聊天，还有评估一下现在的状况。 I am a little scared. 琳达他也感到害怕。他妻子明天得工作十二个小时，而他得工作十六个小时，甚至时间更长也不奇怪。茱蒂与贾奈尔肯定被吓坏了，却还得整天交给玛塔照顾，他们连这点也无可奈何。 但得在将近凌晨一点时，带他们家的金毛去外头蹓蹓，的确让他感到古怪不已。他认为它的确有可能感受到了屏障的出现，清楚狗对于许多即将发生的事会有所感应，不仅限于地震。如果只是这样，他与琳达用“呜呜叫”来形容的行为应该早就停止了，不是吗？他今晚回家的路上，镇上的其他狗就如同死般沉寂，没有吠吼，也没有号叫，他也没听见其他狗发出那种“呜呜叫”的声音。 或许它已经在火炉旁的狗床上睡着了，他一面打开厨房门，一面这么想着。 奥黛莉并未睡着。它只靠近了他一下，动作不是平常那种欢欣鼓舞的跑跳——你回来了！You're back!噢，感谢上帝，你回来了！ ——而是小心翼翼，几乎像是想逃走一样地夹着尾巴，仿佛觉得自己会被痛殴一顿（它从来没被这样对待过），而非被拍拍头似的。是的，它再度发出了“呜呜叫”的声音。事实上，还自从屏障降下后就没停过。 它之前有好几个星期都没这么叫过了。每当生锈克开始认为它再也不会发出这种声音时，它便总会故态复萌，声音有时虚弱无力，有时则十分响亮。 今晚就是响亮的那种——也可能只是由于他身处漆黑的厨房，仅有电子炉及微波炉上的液晶数字发出光芒之故。琳达每次帮他留下的灯光，总是如此虚弱黯淡。 “别叫了，小妞，”他说，“你会把全家人给吵醒。” 但奥黛莉没停下来。它用头轻轻顶着他的膝盖，在手电筒的光芒下抬头看他，眼中神色让他大可举起右手发誓，其中肯定带有恳求之意。 “好啦，”他说，“好了，好了，我们出去散步吧。” 它的遛狗绳就挂在储藏室门旁的吊钩上。当他拿下遛狗绳时（他把鞋带挂在脖子上，让手电筒的灯光照在地上。），它突然跃到他身前，比起狗来，动作更像一只猫。要是没有手电筒的话，他可能会被它绊倒。这可真是结束这一天最要不得的方式了。 “再一下，一下就好了，别乱动。” 但它却朝他吠了起来，同时向后退去。 “嘘！奥黛莉，嘘！” 这嘘声反而又让它吠了起来，声音在这栋沉睡的屋子里显得惊人得响亮。他被吓得抖了一下。 奥黛莉朝前一冲，用牙齿咬住他的裤管，试图拉着他朝客厅去。 出自好奇，生锈克决定让它带路。当它发现他跟着移动时，奥黛莉这才张口朝楼梯奔去。它爬上两级阶梯，回头看看，又吠了起来。 二楼卧室里的灯光洒在楼梯上。“生锈克？” 是琳达的声音，听起来仍迷迷糊糊的。 “对，是我。”他尽量压低声音回答，“其实算是奥黛莉才对。” 他跟着狗爬上阶梯。奥黛莉不像平常那样大步奔跑，而是不断停下来回头确认。对爱狗人士来说，狗的举止可以表达出清晰明确的意思，而生锈克现在看到的，则是焦虑的情绪。奥黛莉的双耳紧贴头部，依旧夹着尾巴。如果这也是“呜呜叫”的一种表现方式，那么这肯定被提升到了一个全新等级。生锈克突然想到，该不会有小偷闯进屋里了吧？厨房的门是锁上的，只有琳达与孩子们在家时，琳达总会记得把所有的门全锁上，但——琳达一面走到楼梯口，一面绑好白色的毛料浴袍腰带。奥黛莉看见她后，又开始吠了起来，而且还是那种“别挡住路”的叫声。 “奥黛莉，别叫了！”她说。但奥黛莉从她身边奔过，撞到了琳达的右腿，力道重到让她的背部撞