Page 55 of A Better World

Linda stayed. The hormone-incited pity-party ended after about five minutes, leaving her the remainder to fix the label soPLASTIC ISLANDread more prominent. “Is it really almost gone?” she asked as a means of distracting him.

“A tenth of what it used to be, because of Omnium.”

“People here are so proud of Omnium. They’re gonna love your costume. What made you pick it?”

“Cathy says Omnium’s changed everything. I want people to know I believe in this place. That I’m on her side. She gets nervous. But it’s not her fault. It’s hard for her because the job she wants doesn’t give a golden ticket.”

“You like it better here than New York?”

He was surprised by the question. “The air’s clean here. That’s all that matters.”

Then she went to Josie’s room, to discover that Josie’d ignored theSalem witch trial judge’s robe and wig Linda had ordered for her and instead turned her soccer uniform inside out, because serial killerslook like normal people.

Linda wanted to object. It was Samhain! Everyone was dressing up! But the girl was turning sixteen in February. The last thing she needed was a mom who picked her clothing. “You sure you don’t want to be an evil judge?” she asked.

Josie tugged her jersey, nervous. “I can’t. They told me to wear this.”

“They assigned it? Who?”

“Them,” she said. “Arnie Nassar. He picks what everyone’s going to be. It’s a whole thing. It’s fine.”

“Takes the fun out.”

“Fun-suck vampires,” Josie agreed.

Linda had hoped that by now, Josie would have found a close confidant among her friend group. But it was a revolving crowd. During dinner and at night, she texted until Linda took away her device. It wasn’t happy texting. It seemed desperate. She’d never known Josie to be so eager to please. Linda tried not to worry. Josie was the kind of person who got through hard times. She bounced.

“Maybe it’ll be fun, anyway?”

“Maybe,” Josie said, then smiled a fake, trying-too-hard smile.

Night came. The family headed out.

At Caladrius Park, a set of badged PV police, dressed up as ghouls, guarded both the Labyrinth entrance and its exit on the other side—sets of stairs made to look like mouths.

“Scarier every year,” someone said.

“Too scary. I’m not going,” someone else answered.

Josie found her gang—a gaggle of boys and girls and thems. She faded into the group without saying good-bye and was the first of them through the mouth, down the maze.

Hip found Cathy Bennett. He didn’t wave at first, just admired her. Their eyes caught, and she did a silly, self-conscious jog in his direction, arms flying out and flapping like wings. They kissed in greeting.Overlapping lips. It was love. At least, on Hip’s end, it was love. Was fifteen too young for this intensity? Probably. But when is anything ever more intense than when you’re fifteen?

Cathy’s costume was a yellow canary. She looked both spectacular and thirty years old. Daniella had used fabric glue to cover a yellow leotard in feathers. Her plunging neckline exposed budding cleavage, and her face was specked with silver glitter. Cathy had wanted to go as Emily Dickinson, Linda knew, but Daniella hadn’t allowed it.It’s not like I have anything against lesbians. I like lesbians, she’d explained to Linda in whispers on a call.It’s the depressed personality. Jesus, that woman was a sad sack.

Hip registered her discomfort, gave her his jacket, whose back readPLASTIC ISLAND. She zipped it to the neck. They walked to the side of the entrance, where Cathy leaned against a tall hay wall that messed her hair. Hip leaned in front of her, his arms on either side. Neither of them was going in. Last year, Cathy’d been scared badly inside this maze and had vowed never to enter it again. Hip had decided to keep her company.

Linda tugged Russell’s shirt, so he’d look in the young sweethearts’ direction. How was it possible that the same boy who’d been crying about the way the plastic hung from his costume just two hours before could be so upstanding?

“Good for him,” Russell said with amazement. Then he took Linda’s hand, kissed it.

Pretty soon, their friends appeared at the edge of the park. The group included Heinrich; his husband; their daughter, Sally, who guarded the border; some coworkers; plus the ActHollow crew and a few of Rachel and Lloyd’s friends from legal. Anouk and her family weren’t among them, but Linda’d heard they didn’t typically participate in festivities; they presided over them.

“Did they meet up before this?” Russell asked.

The boisterous group approached, and it was clear they’d been drinking. Russell started for Heinrich and the rest. Linda weaved, hugging her hellos until she found Daniella, Rachel, and Kai. Rachel was red eyed from either emotion, drink, or both.

“Everything okay?”

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