The Plague Tales by Ann Benson

Author:Ann Benson [Benson, Ann]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-0-307-77811-6
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
Published: 2011-04-13T04:00:00+00:00

The old dog lay on the grass next to Sarin, his head resting across his front paws and his eyes half-shut. Every now and then he twitched, and his master would look down at him, wondering how fast the bunnies in his doggy dreams might be running.

He looked out over the sloped plain and watched the light of day fade, a recently added habit that had become part of their late-afternoon walk routine. They paused every day to sit in this particular spot and watch the sun slip below the horizon. It was the simplest way for Sarin to envision the passage of time, which had taken on new meaning to him since the arrival of the American women. He knew that his was limited, and he wanted to see it pass.

The sun set; his heart soared. It never failed to thrill him, the wonder of it all. He could imagine each of those who came before him doing the very same thing, all the way back to the very first.

He doubted that the field looked much different now. Except for the city lights in the distance and the scruffy-looking people who always seemed to be loitering on the perimeter, it was essentially unchanged. In this little protectorate things never seemed to change much, regardless of how well one might visualize the passage of time as the sun descended. Time moved on, oblivious to the small intrigues of those on whom it cast its dark shadow.

But time would claim him, he knew, and soon. In the last few days, after the burst of energy that had inspired him to put things right again, he had once more begun to falter, as if the air had suddenly gone thin on him. Each day was closer to his last, and it seemed to him now that the sun literally raced down from mid-sky to plunge madly below the horizon. He was afraid, and he was alone, except for his dog. He looked down at his sleeping companion and envied the gentle creature for the simple peace in which he always seemed to dwell.

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