Margaret's Ark by Daniel G Keohane Read Free Book Online Page B

in the darkest corners of the world?
    Holly fumbled her way through the rest of the order, including the supplies in the cart - all of which were barcode scanned with shaking hands. She looked more relaxed as the credit card reader screeched and whined and the slip printed out.
    Margaret signed it, paying no attention to the sale total. What did it matter at this point, except to threaten her credit limit? The girl behind the counter said, almost as reflex, “They should deliver the lumber tomorrow, sometime between eight and noon. I'm sorry I can't be more specific.”
    The girl’s nervousness had the inverse affect on Margaret. She felt a sudden calm as she aimed the shopping cart towards the front of the store. She hesitated, then whispered, “There's room for you. Please, come join me. I could use the help.”
    Holly grew more pale and actually swayed for a moment. She muttered something Margaret didn't catch, something about clay, then looked away.
    Margaret left, not wanting to seem pushy. As she worked her way outside and searched for her car, the scene played itself over. The girl hadn't laughed, nor made her feel like a nut. On the contrary, Margaret couldn't help but think she believed in what she’d been told, or not told in this particular case.
    This small belief filled her with... comfort? Maybe a simple hope that she might not end up alone in all of this. She wondered if she'd see this girl named Holly again. If not at the store when she returned, then maybe on the town common.
    Maybe.
    You're insane .
    Maybe .
     
    *     *     *
     
    Boston’s Faneuil Hall marketplace swam before him as Jack stood on the sidewalk and spoke the Lord's words. Most people kept a safe distance, eating their sandwiches and talking amongst themselves.
    “Mothers will cling to their babies and howl for mercy. One will scream ‘Take me but spare my child’.  She will watch her innocent one disappear under the waves. In weakness and despair, she will know the ultimate horror, then fall herself into suffocating darkness.”
    The words were not his own. Perhaps he knew them once, when he lived a normal life and his brain worked as it should, but not now. Jack moved awkwardly in a small circle atop a short, two-foot wall. God's power surged through him as he preached. He fed off this power, needing nothing but the blessed manna from heaven – on the power of His words. Words which Jack spewed forth to those feigning disinterest in what he said.
    He stumbled. “I will...” The world swayed again. He saw the sky. No! Seeing the sky meant he was falling. He couldn't fall. Time was short. He jerked his head down, saw the ground moving. He thrust out one long skinny leg and caught himself.
    Had someone giggled? No matter. He was still standing, could still proclaim . Only that mattered. Sweat trickled down his back under the multiple layers of clothes. It had been warm today. Others around him still wore their winter coats but unzipped, fluttering in the breeze. Summer weather would come early this year. Spring would never come again.
    “I will stand here when the deluge comes. God has lavished such gifts upon the Earth, and all - “
    “Jack.” An arm on his shoulder. Jack pulled away.
    “- you people have done is fattened yourselves on his graces. Now -”
    “Jack!”
    The arm spun him around. He almost fell off the wall again, half-expecting to see the angel Michael standing before him. He didn’t. The man was shorter than Jack, but wore the dark blue jacket and cap of the Boston Police Department.
    “Good morning, Officer. Please, I'm in the middle of my sermon.”
    Mitch Leary shook his head. “Jack, I've asked you a half-dozen times to stay away from here.”
    “God has asked me - “
    “God's not responsible for keeping scary people away from the lunch crowd. Now come on.” He pulled the preacher off the wall and onto the sidewalk. Jack resisted and tried to regain his footing.
    “You don’t understand.