(Don't You) Forget About Me (27 page)

Later I would hear how they scurried over the feet of those leaving the reformatory. They became their own parade, going all the way into the center of town to the corner of Main and State where the May Queen had once disappeared. Then the rats scattered in every direction.

The children caught up in the parade dispersed slower, less certain where they belonged now. But they would have time to figure it out, along with everyone else as they realized the Gardnerville they'd known was gone.

It would take days, weeks, for the full impact of that to be understood. As the old-timers passed away one after another. As those who'd come here to escape illness succumbed to their cancers and diseases once more. As those still alive made the decision whether to stay or to go.

Even with no train running, lots of people were talking about leaving. They hesitated only out of fear of what was out there on the other side. And of course, without the train, the journey was that much more difficult.

The first few to leave loaded their belongings into rowboats to cross the Salt Spring. But the water grew increasingly shallow every day without the reformatory to feed it, and the boats began to run aground. These days, those wanting to get to the tunnel have to slog through six inches of mud. It's drying up quickly, though, and my guess is that by the time we've said all our good-byes, the water and mud will be gone, leaving only a fine sprinkling of salt behind.

Not everyone is leaving, though. A smaller, more vocal group is insisting on staying and finding a way to make life here work once more. Surprisingly, Elton is leading that group. He insists that there is still something special about Gardnerville.

Despite all our differences, I can't help but hope he is right.

As for me, I did see Piper one final time. When the last of the reformatory crumbled to the ground, she came skipping through the bits of rubble until she was right in front of me, and then we were wrapped in each other's arms.

The rats were gone. This at last was truly Piper.

“Remember.” She whispered just that one word, and then she was gone, leaving me holding nothing but air.

Sometimes I think I shouldn't have let her go, that I should have found a way to make her stay. But there is no place for imaginary girls in this new Gardnerville. And there is no place for me, either. A girl who knows everyone's old secrets, but has no idea what currently hides in their hearts and never again will. The world is shockingly quiet now, and sometimes I wonder how everyone else manages to go through day after day with only the thoughts in their own head to keep them company.

At least I have you and Foote to go along with me and keep my thoughts from driving me crazy. And in return we'll be there to remind Foote that he can no longer absorb bullets or my lingering memory problems. Perhaps we'll find him a new name too, now that he is no longer lucky.

Along the way, he wants to find his mother. And I want to see a big city. One like we've seen on the posters at Milly's, full of neon signs and buildings that crowd out the sky. Piper said there must be magic there. I disagreed then, but now I'm not so certain.

I've done some research, and they say most of the big cities are full of rats, and ours are now nowhere to be seen. I can't help but wonder, if we see the ones from Gardnerville, will we recognize them as our own?

The truth is, Wills, I'll be looking for Gardnerville everywhere we go, hoping to find it again. You keep asking me, Wills, why we have to leave. You cry and plead for us to stay. Sometimes it's all I can do not to join in.

But we have to go, Wills. If we didn't then I'd be here, always trying to forget the way things ended, always hoping for a better outcome.

Forgetting the past doesn't change it, and if we want a better ending we'll have to go out and create it for ourselves somewhere on the other side of the mountain. Until then we have our stories. I'll tell them to you as many times as you want. Then you'll repeat them to all the new friends you'll make. Most people will think you're making them up. They might even call you a liar, and then, Wills, there's only one thing you can say.

Say it with me now, Wills. Once like it's our curse. A second time as if it's a relief. And finally like it's nothing but the plain and simple truth. Let's say it now, so we both remember.

There's no place like home.

There's no place like home.

There's no place like home.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

THANK YOU TO MY BRILLIANT EDITOR, ERICA SUSSMAN,
whose questions and comments have become an indispensable touchstone that I continuously come back to as I cut, tweak, and rewrite my way from the sloppy first draft to the final polished pages.

Thank you also to Stephanie Stein, the epically awesome Epic Reads Tea Time pairing of Margot and Aubry, and everyone else at HarperCollins in editing, design, marketing, and sales who all put so much work into launching this book.

Thank you a hundred million times to Alexandra Machinist. Two books in and I am still pinching myself, unable to believe my luck in having you as an agent.

Robert Brunschmid aka Bob, Bobbeo, and most recently Zumba Bobby (quite possibly my favorite incarnation yet). Thank you so much for all your help and advice in the months and weeks leading up to the launch of
Another Little Piece
. You are absolutely amazing and I feel so lucky to have you in my corner.

I often make fun of my decision to pursue not one but two impractical degrees, but I would not trade the experiences from my theater major days at Niagara University or the time spent pursuing an MFA in film and television production at Chapman University for anything. Thank you to all my classmates and teachers at NU and Chapman who taught and shared so much with me.

To all the wonderful writing friends I've made since beginning this journey, especially: all the Lucky 13s, the Class of 2K13, my Wednesday-night writing-group peeps, and my amazing longtime crit partner, Alyson Greene.

And finally to all of my family and friends, you know who you are and also (hopefully) know how much I love and cherish each and every one of you.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

KATE KARYUS QUINN
is an avid reader and a menthol ChapStick addict. She has lived in California and Tennessee, but recently made the move back to her hometown of Buffalo, New York, with her husband and two children in tow. She promised them wonderful people, amazing food, and weather that would . . . build character. She is also the author of
Another Little Piece
. You can visit Kate online at www.katekaryusquinn.com.

 

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OOKS BY
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ATE
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ARYUS
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UINN

Another Little Piece

CREDITS

Cover photography © 2014 by Danielle Ezzo

Cover design by Michelle Taormina

COPYRIGHT

HarperTeen is an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.

 

(Don't You) Forget About Me

Copyright © 2014 by Kate Karyus Quinn

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

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Library of Congress Control Number: 2013958345

ISBN 978-0-06-213596-4 (trade bdg.)

EPUB Edition APRIL 2014 ISBN 9780062135988

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FIRST EDITION