Across the Long, Impossible Distance

The evening air was cold and thin, with stars stretching from horizon to horizon. Charles sat alone in the middle of a field, the silence so sharp he could hear the beating of his heart and little else.

On his lap was a cheap walkie talkie. It reminded him of one he used to play with. He and the kid next door, what was his name, Peter, used to conduct secret missions, whispering frantically into…