Free The Fallout by S.A. Bodeen Page A

the tank. Lucas was riveted by all the commotion inside the tank, and as I calmed down more, I found that I was, too. How long had it been since I’d seen something like the aquarium?
    Since the Compound, I’d spent a lot of hours on the beach in Hawaii, but hadn’t done any snorkeling. Even though the aquarium fish weren’t as colorful as tropical ones were, they were amazing to watch. I found myself mesmerized and didn’t really think anything of it when the diver offered to answer questions and Lucas raised his hand.
    Lucas was little and cute, so of course the guy would call on him first, before I could pull his hand back down. And of course the guy would ask, “Where you from, buddy?”
    Lucas said, “I used to live in the ground, but now we live in a new house.” He turned to me. “Eli, where is our new house?”
    So stunned I couldn’t think, I managed to catch my breath in time to bark out a laugh and look around at the crowd, who were shooting odd looks at Lucas. “He likes to make things up,” I said.
    Eddy joined my fake laugh and added, “He’s got the wildest imagination.”
    I nodded, and soon some of the crowd began to smile and looked at their own kids. I breathed a sigh of relief and figured we’d better play it safe and move on. “Lucas, what should we see next?”
    He looked confused, as if he really wanted to pursue his annoyance at us, but he also didn’t want to blow his chance to see everything. His face finally relaxed and he asked, “Is there a food place? I’m hungry.”
    I grinned. “Yeah.”
    I saw Eddy hold out his hand to Lucas, so I pushed Cara in the stroller, following the signs that said CAFÉ . I stood in line behind Lee, who turned around to ask us all what we wanted. Lee said he’d stay in line, so Eddy and I took Lucas and Cara to sit down at a table.
    Lucas asked, “Where’s the bathroom?”
    I stood up. “Come on.”
    The bathroom wasn’t far—down a short hallway—and no one was inside. Probably because it was a weekday and the aquarium was mainly full of moms, who would take all their kids with them into the women’s room.
    Lucas went into a stall and shut the door. I heard it lock.
    “You okay in there?” I asked.
    “Yes.”
    My cell phone rang. Eddy. “Yeah?”
    “Cara is sick. She took a drink of her apple juice and threw it back up. Along with her breakfast. Oh God…”
    “Seriously?” I sighed. “Well, clean her up and I’ll be out in a minute.”
    “Dude, can you come now? This is gross.”
    “And it’s gonna be less gross for me?” I sighed. “Lucas, you almost done?”
    His voice echoed in the stall. “No!”
    I sighed. “Eddy, you’ve got to come in here and wait for Lucas.” Then I shoved the phone in my pocket and grabbed a bunch of paper towels, wetting some. “Lucas, stay there. Eddy’s coming in, okay?”
    “Yes.”
    I jogged back out to the table, which was a mess. Cara had thrown up not only the apple juice, but also the French toast she’d had at home for breakfast. Lee was holding his hand over his mouth and facing away from her. He shook his head at me. “Sorry. Sympathetic puker.”
    I wanted to groan. “That’s fine. I’ll clean this up and then we’d better get her home.”
    I heard an electronic beeping come from the direction of the hallway. It wasn’t loud enough to be a fire alarm, just loud enough to be annoying, so I ignored it and started in with the paper towels.
    Eddy was still standing there.
    I frowned. “Go get Lucas.”
    “Sorry.” He turned and left. I wiped off Cara with the towels as best as I could and stuck her back in the stroller. Our food had come by then, and Lee had it in bags so we could take it with us. Although eating was the last thing on my mind.
    At the edge of my vision, I saw Eddy come back. “Ready to go?”
    “He wasn’t there.”
    I turned to face him and noticed he was alone. “What?”
    Eddy’s eyes were wide and he nearly spat out the words, “He wasn’t in