“It’s not yet lunch,” Courtnee told him. “I want you to meet two of Juliette’s friends. They’re from the other silo.”
“The other silo.” Walker adjusted a lens down over one eye and squinted at his visitors. He got up slowly from his stool. “I’ve spoken with you,” he said. He wiped his palm on the seat of his coveralls and extended his hand. “Solo, right?”
Jimmy stepped forward and accepted Walker’s hand. The two men chewed their beards and studied each other for a moment. “I prefer Jimmy,” he said at last.
Walker nodded. “Yes, yes. That’s right.”
“And I’m Elise.” She waved. “Hannah calls me Lily, but I don’t like being called Lily. I like Elise.”
“It’s a good name,” Walker agreed. He tugged on his beard and rocked back on his heels, studying her.
“They were hoping to get in touch with Jules,” Courtnee said. “And I was supposed to call her and let her know they’re here. Is she … did everything go okay?”
Walker seemed to snap out of a trance. “What? Oh. Oh, yes.” He clapped his hands. “Everything went, it seems. She’s back inside.”
“What did she go out for?” Jimmy asked. He knew Juliette had been working on something but not what. Just some Project she never wanted to discuss over the radio because she didn’t know who might be listening.
“She went to see what was out there, apparently,” Walker said. He grumbled something and eyed the open door to his workshop with a scrunched-up nose. He apparently didn’t believe this was a valid reason for going anywhere. After an uncomfortable pause, he dropped his gaze to his desk. His old hands deftly lifted an unusual-looking radio, one bristling with knobs and dials. “Let’s see if we can raise her,” he said.
He called for Juliette, and someone else answered. They said to wait a moment. Walker held the radio out to Jimmy, who took it from him, familiar enough with how they worked.
A voice crackled out of the air: “Yes? Hello—?”
It was Juliette’s voice. Jimmy squeezed the button.
“Jules?” He glanced at the ceiling and realized that for the first time in forever, she was above him somewhere, the two of them back under the same top. “Are you there?”
“Solo!” And he didn’t correct her. “You’re with Walker. Is Courtnee there?”
“Yes.”
“Great. That’s great. I’m so sorry I wasn’t there. I’ll be down as soon as I can. They’re making up a place for the kids near the farms, more like home. I’ve just got this … one little project to finish first. It should only be a few days.”
“It’s okay,” Jimmy said. He smiled nervously at Courtnee and felt very young all of a sudden. In truth, a few days felt like a very long time. He wanted to see Jules or go home. Or both. “I want to see you soon,” he added, changing his mind. “Don’t let it be too long.”
A burst of static. The sound of radio waves thinking. “It won’t be. I promise. Did you see my dad? He’s a doctor. I sent him down to check on you and the kids.”
“We saw him. He’s here.” Jimmy glanced down at Elise, who was tugging him toward the door, probably thinking of sweetcorn.
“Good. You said Courtnee was there. Can you put her on?”
Jimmy handed the radio over and saw that his hand was trembling. Courtnee took it. She listened to Juliette say something about the great stairway, and Courtnee updated her on the dig. There was talk of bringing the radio up so Jules could have it, an argument between them on why her father wasn’t up top to make sure she and someone named Nelson were okay, a lot that Jimmy didn’t understand. He tried to follow along, but his mind wandered. And then he realized Elise was nowhere to be seen.
“Where did that child get off to?” he asked. He ducked down and peered beneath the tool bench, saw nothing but a pile of parts and broken machines. He stood and checked behind one of the tall counters. It was a bad time for playing Hide and Find. He checked the far corner, and a cool taste of panic rose in his throat. Elise was quick to disappear back in his silo, was prone to distraction, just wandered off toward anything shiny or the slightest waft of fruit-smells. But here … with strangers and places he didn’t know. Jimmy lumbered across the room and peeked between the benches and behind the cluttered shelves, every second cranking up the sound of his heartbeat in his ears.
“She was just—” Walker started to say.
“I’m right here,” Elise called. She waved from the hallway, was standing just outside the door. “Can we get back to Rickson? I’m hungry.”
“And I promised you sweetcorn,” Courtnee said, smiling. Her conversation with Juliette was done. She had missed Jimmy’s minute or two of complete and utter panic. On the way to the door, she handed him the strange radio. “Jules wants you to take this with you.”
Jimmy accepted it gingerly.