1

I wake to a hand on my shoulder. Dads voice is urgent.

Get up, Scott! The light in the bedroom is on, and I squint up into his face. Dads eyes are wide, and hes shakwants to wake me. Up! Now!

ing me hard, not gently, the way he usually does when he I rub my eyes. An inner clock tells me that its the

middle of the night. My heart starts to race with alarm. What... ? Sparkys bed. Edward!

Were being attacked. He swivels to my little brother Attacked? As my brain claws toward alertness, I hear

sirens wailing in the distance. Not the melodic bursts

of code directing volunteer firemen to a fire. These are shrill swooping wails. ing, Dad scoops him up, blankets and all. Put me down! Come on! Sparky groans and tries to roll over. Instead of argu-

turns to me.

Still half asleep, Sparky kicks as Dad cradles him and Barefoot, heart heaving with panic, I race after him

out onto the cold hall tiles, where we nearly crash into from the kitchen. Hurry! Dad barks, and we scurry down the hall. In

Mom, whos carrying an armful of things shes just gotten the dark playroom, he opens the closet and, with a loud of the square metal trapdoor. Outside, the sirens continue to blare. Whats going on? Sparky cries, awake now.

clatter, sweeps away whatever toys and games lie on top

and pulls him close. Its okay. Dont be scared. from the front of the house. I gasp. Whats that?

Mom dumps the things from the kitchen on the floor But now loud banging sounds echo down the hall Without answering, Dad yanks the metal trapdoor up I cant see a thing. How? Crash! Glass smashes somewhere in the house. Whats happening? Sparky wails.

and points down into the square of darkness. Go!

emptiness. My feet dangle in the dark air. Frightened that hes about to let go, I dig my hands into his arms. I cant see! Feel the rungs with your feet! he commands.

Hurry!

Its okay, Mom says soothingly. Then to Dad: I feel Dads arms pick me up and lower me into the

Janet, our maid who stays over slap into the playroom. Its and her eyes are moons of terror. Go down! Dad barks at me.

light- blue robe closed, one night a week. Shes pulling a Richard? From somewhere in the house, a mans

I find a cold metal bar with my toes just as footsteps

voice calls through the dark.

of things shower down, bouncing off my head and arms, on the rungs just above me. Hurry! Dad yells.

as I lower myself. The dark air in the shelter is cool and Suddenly boxes and bags damp and smells like mildew.

The metal rungs hurt the bottoms of my bare feet

and falling into the shadows below. I cry out in surprise, even though it doesnt really hurt. Already Moms feet are

tally banged him into something as he tried to lower him through the trapdoor. other steps on a box that collapses with a crunch. One of my feet touches the cold concrete floor; the 3

Ow! Sparky cries, and I wonder if Dad acciden-

In there! a mans voice shouts.

Sparky cries out, and Mom gasps loudly. Something big is crunching thud, Sparky on her chest. Sparky! plummeting down, and I barely have time to jump out of

Above me, Mom yells, Careful, Edward!

Suddenly theres scratching and grunting overhead.

the way before Mom crashes to the floor with a horrible,

Mom! A terrified cry tears through my throat.

two

his friends called him Freak O Nature because . . . well, because thats what he was.

Freak O Natures real name was Norman Freeman, but

the diction of Tonto, the Lone Rangers Indian sidekick.

Me could eat horse, Kemo Sabe, Freak O Nature said in

and I were lounging on his lawn listening to Freak O Natures black transistor radio, which lay on the grass broadcasting the game between the Yankees and the Cleveland Indians. Mickey Mantle, playing for the first ahead 9 7.

It was the last week of fifth grade, and he, Ronnie,

time after a month on the disabled list, had just smashed a come- from- behind pinch- hit home run to put the Yanks

wearing a colorful Indian madras short- sleeve shirt that was the current height of style.

Who wants to bet they still lose? asked Ronnie, Me hungry, said Freak O Nature, who sat cross-

l egged, all sharp, bony angles, with brown hair, freckles, and thin metal wires across his upper and lower teeth from his bite plates. Lying on my back, feeling the grass tickle my neck

and ears, I gazed up at the puffy white clouds in the blue days, school would end, and we would have all summer to play baseball and swim and have fun.

sky. The June sun warmed our faces and arms. In a few Indians pitcher Gary Bell got Clete On the radio, the

ing. But it didnt matter. The Mick was back, and the Yanks sucked on a stem of clover hed plucked from the lawn. He was a stocky, muscular kid with black hair greased front hung down in a spit curl. The thought of sweet, creamy cheese filling were winning.

Boyer out on a ground ball and Bobby Richardson swing-

Want a Sara Lee cheesecake? Ronnie asked as he

back along the sides of his head into a ducktail, while the and graham- cracker crust made my stomach rumble before dinnertime and a sure bet to ruin my appetite, I asked, How? 6 Theres a million of em in Lindas garage. with anticipation. Even though it was only an hour

point. The houses in our neighborhood didnt have basethem with food. You mean, steal it? I sat up and tugged nervously

ments, so people put freezers in their garages and filled at the hair behind my ear. Id never stolen anything . . . candy from the shopping bag Dad hid in his closet so suspected, so he could eat some of it, too. Sparky and I wouldnt eat it all at once but really, we Ronnie insisted. We know Linda. Its not stealing, Linda Lewandowski had four brothers and sisters,

Ronnie might have been exaggerating, but we got the

the kitchen when Mom wasnt around and our Halloween

except for the stuff it was okay to steal, like cookies from

theyll never notice if one cheesecake is gone.

Besides, you ever looked in their freezer? Its so full, so it made sense that there might be more food in the that still didnt make stealing right.

freezer than her mother could keep track of. But even if thered been enough cheesecakes to fill Yankee Stadium, you think, Kemo Scott? Freak O Nature gave me an uncertain look. What

sucked on it pensively. What difference will it make? We could all be dead tomorrow.

What if we get caught? I asked.

Ronnie plucked another clover from the lawn and

From above come grunts, banging, and scraping the frantically. Dont let us die! Petrified with fear, I crouch on the concrete floor

sounds of a scuffle. Richard, let us in! someone shouts beside Janet, who climbed down after Mom fell. The still forms of Mom and Sparky lie in the dark while Dad clings The lights gone on in the playroom, and the shelter

to the metal rungs and tries to pull the trapdoor closed. brightens each time the trapdoor rises a few inches, then But people on the other side are trying to pull it open.

darkens again when Dad manages to yank it down. With

each flash of light, I glimpse Mom on her back, one arm against the wall, Sparky sprawled on top of her.

stretched out, one leg bent at the knee, the other propped Mom and into her arms. I cant tell if hes hurt, but at lies perfectly still.

least hes moving and making sounds. Unlike Mom, who Someone shouts a curse. Dads feet are wedged into the struggles to close the door. I want to beg him to let the The trapdoor rises enough to let in the wail of sirens.

My brother begins to whimper. Janet draws him off

others in. But I dont because this is something Ive been scared of ever since he first told me about the shelter,

metal rungs. His teeth are gritted with exertion as he

since I realized we were the only family on the block who had one. What if there are dozens of people up there? What if more are coming? What if they all try to squeeze in until those of us at the bottom are crushed to death? grip. Its a pole from the badminton net. Scott, the rope! Dad shouts. I look up at Dad. Where? On the wall! swings around as if trying to hit Dads arms and break his My eyes meet Janets. Do what he says, she tells me. Were in a narrow corridor lined with cinder blocks. The trapdoor rises. A thin metal tube slides in and

From a previous visit down here, I know that the wall hes talking about is around the corner, in the shelter itself. 9

But the small amounts of light seeping in from above dont reach that far. I cant see! I yell. ceiling! The light! Dad shouts. On the string from the

I think should be the center of the room, I wave my arms bunks and wooden shelves lined with food and other suparound until I feel a string and pull. A lightbulb bursts

scuttle into the pitch- black shelter. Stopping in what I

coiled rope is looped over a hook. I plies. On the wall, a

on, and in the glare I see the kitty- corner double- decker

Mom still hasnt moved. Something dark is pooling under her head. trapdoor and the closet floor. Theyre using it as a lever coil of rope from my hands. Now, in addition to the badA tennis racket slides through the gap between the

ing Sparky, whos staring fearfully up while Dad struggles.

Janet is comfortgrab it. Back out in the narrow corridor,

to pry the door open. Dad reaches down and grabs the

turning white around the fingernails as they strain to pull upward. floor beside Mom as Dad tightens his grip on the latch.

minton pole and tennis racket, fingers appear along the

edge of the trapdoor. First a few, then more and more, The trapdoor starts to rise. The rope falls to the

He grits his teeth and struggles, but the hands from above pull the door higher, and through the gap I see bare 10

in tight lips and clenched teeth like Dads. The peering door rises another inch. Dad is being stretched, the skin bottoms. Uhhh! he grunts, and lets go. of his stomach showing between his pajama top and The trapdoor flies open and light spills in, accompa-

feet, pajama- clad legs, the hems of robes . . . then faces

nied by yelps and thuds as the people who were pulling fall backward. The badminton pole and tennis racket tumble down on us with dull thunks. Janet and Sparky McGovern and Paula... cower. Mom doesnt react. Familiar faces crowd around Clinging to the rungs in the wall, Dad gapes up at The faces grow determined and grim. Go down, Ronnie! Mr. Shaw shouts. But Scotts dad said

the square opening above. Ronnie and his father. Mr. them. Theres no room, he protests meekly.

up and swats at it.

replaced by bigger feet. Dad swipes at them, but the feet kick back. Legs in blue pajamas force Dad down the rungs.

Hes stopping me! Ronnie cries.

Ronnies bare foot feels for the top rung. Dad reaches Ronnies feet rise as if hes flying away. Theyre

Go! Mr. Shaw yells.

11

freezes when he sees her c rumpled below.

step down.

Youll kill us all! he protests.

Ronnies dad answers with a curse and takes another

while others crowd around the trapdoor waiting their turn. Dad hops from the bottom rung, trying not to step Janet quickly slides his hands under Moms shoulders. heart beating as fast as a hamsters as we follow Dad and is coming true. Were going to be crushed. on Mom. Janet as he Get her into the shelter! he yells at

Meanwhile, Mr. Shaw and Ronnie are coming down,

Watch out for Mom! I cry at Dad, who momentarily

grabs Moms ankles, and together they maneuver her

the rungs while more people climb down. The nightmare

Janet. My last glimpse is of Mr. Shaw helping Ronnie off

around the shield wall. Sparky runs into my arms, his

12

four

You never knew what might come out of Ronnies mouth, but on that June afternoon, our heads filled with baseball tomorrow was unexpectedly jarring. him in a normal voice.

and cheesecake, the suggestion that we could all be dead

What are you talking about? Freak O Nature asked Nuclear war, I said, since that was the only thing that

could result in all three of us being dead by the morning. All year long, the Communist threat had been growing as the Russians spread their influence in Asia and South America and even to a little country called Cuba, which was an island somewhere south of Florida ruled by a

Commie named Castro who had a scruffy beard, wore a with fighter jets, bombers, and missiles to Cuba, Ronnie green army uniform, and smoked cigars.

didnt even believe in orthodontia. And if that didnt

gap between the front two, which showed that Russians anti- American enough, there was the time hed make him

leader, Nikita Khrushchev, had crooked teeth and an ugly

said. And if we try to stop them, itll be war.

My dad heard the Ruskies are sending ships filled

The Russians were evil. Their chubby bald- headed

United Nations and banged his shoe on the come to the were unpredictable, violent, and crazy enough to blow us pushed himself up to his feet and reached down, offering me his hand. Come on, lets eat. posed criminal enterprise. like always. I felt my stomach tighten at the thought of the proall up. rostrum, which proved beyond a doubt that the Commies Clover stem squeezed between his lips, Ronnie

Well? Ronnies hand was still out. I grabbed it, just Freak O Nature scooped up the transistor radio and

using his hands, this being one more piece of evidence of his general freak o naturedness. 14 We walked along the sidewalk past our neighbors

sprang to his feet. He was the only kid we knew who could go from sitting Indian style to standing without

homes, each on a quarter acre of property with a front boys to play touch football.

eleven- year- old lawn just large enough for a bunch of wondering how Ronnie expected to get a cheesecake out children, or Mrs. L ewandowski herself, catching us. of the freezer without one of the numerous Lewandowski Relief washed through me when the Lewandowskis As the three of us neared Lindas house, I couldnt help

garage came into view. Its closed, I announced, trying Ronnie steal. have to help Because theyre not home, said Ronnie. Linda told

not to let on how much better I felt now that I wouldnt me she was going to the doctor this afternoon.

all the others had to go as well. It was not unusual to back to smack one misbehaving child or another with her right. So . . . whatre we gonna do? I bit my lower lip Lewandowski steering with her left hand while reaching

see their car weaving erratically down the street, Mrs.

ever Mrs. Lewandowski took one of her kids somewhere,

The Lewandowskis had a station wagon, and when-

as if the answer were obvious. He stopped at the end of which was the color of chocolate pudding. My queasiness leaped up a notch; intentionally 15

nervously.

the Lewandowskis driveway and gazed at the house,

Go in there and get us a cheesecake, Ronnie replied,

opening a garage door seemed to imply a greater degree You mean, open the garage door? scientist in 4D Man.

juvenile delinquency than merely wandering in. I of No, Scott, Im going to walk right through it like that

reached behind my ear and took hold of a few more hairs.

deep ominous voice, quoting from the TV commercial currently promoting the movie. A man in the fourth dimension is in... de... struc... ti... ble. paralysis. You sure about this? the time.

Nothing can stop him, Freak O Nature said in a

By now my reluctance had risen to the level of near- Whats the big deal? Ronnie asked impatiently.

The Lewandowskis are our neighbors. We share stuff all But we ask first, I said. Ronnie took a few steps If they were here, Id ask.

up the driveway, then stopped and looked back at us. You guys arent chicken, are you?

16

Leaving a smudged trail of blood on the concrete floor, Mrs. Shaw, in a pink bathrobe, arrives next. From around to hurry and go down. Dad spins to face Mr. Shaw. Were all going to die,

Dad and Janet get Mom to a bunk. Ronnie and Mr. Shaw, in their pajamas, stumble into the shelter and look around. the shield wall come shouts of people urging each other

he growls as Paula comes in with tears running down her face. Therere already too many. There wont be enough food or water for all of us. Mr. Shaw and my father face each other for an instant,

then march back around the shield wall. Meanwhile

Sparkys still holding on to me, and I cant stop looking move. Ronnie and Paula also stare. Mrs. Shaw pulls both of them to her.

cradled in Janets arms, and wishing shed at Mom, now On the other side of the shield wall, Dad and Mr.

Shaw shout that there are too many people. Loud grunts Daddy! Her sobs grow louder, and Mrs. Shaw hugs and curses follow, as if theres a fight. A man shouts, My daughters in there! In the shelter, Paula cries out,

her and says its going to be okay. But that cant be true. get in.

Theres a nuclear war and Moms bleeding and too many The fighting and yelling grow louder. Sparkys grip on Mr. McGovern staggers around the shield wall with

people are already in the shelter and more are trying to me tightens as he pleads, Make it stop!

a long red scratch across his cheek. Paula breaks away from Mrs. Shaw, but before she gets to him, theres a sudden bright flash of light as if someone on the other side of the shield wall took a photograph. Everything turns dark. A womans scream pierces the air. The bulb in the ceiling goes out.

inky void. 18

The sirens in the distance stop.

Clang! On the other side of the shield wall, the

What happened? Sparky asks anxiously in the

trapdoor slams shut, and I hear a clank as if a bolt has been thrown. It is pitch- black in the shelter. The momentary silence is broken by Paulas sobs,

Mr. Shaws. From around the shield wall come thuds of voice cries hysterically, Richard! R ichard!

fists drumming against the trapdoor. A muffled female Its horrible. I cover my ears, but it doesnt help. More

then into the darkness come ragged breaths Dads and

Please! For the love thuds and frantic begging join in. join Paulas. of God! Dont let us die! Sparky wails. In the blackness, his sobs Im scared!

side of the trapdoor, there is a strange stillness in the shelter. Scott? Dad says somberly somewhere in the dark. Im here, Mr. Shaw answers, breathing heavily. Dad? Ronnie says at the same time his mother says, Loud clanks and thumps fill our ears as those left

might be possible.

Despite the panicked shouts coming from the other

Dont listen, Mrs. Shaw gasps, as if such a thing

Steven?

inch iron plate. Nothing short of a bazooka could blast through it. Make it stop, Sparky pleads.

above beat at the trapdoor. But it is made of quarter-

19

cramped, heart racing, I fight back tears and wish the banging and shouting would go away.

Stomach nized cries of those whove been locked out. Now theres a new, more distant sound . . . growing

But it doesnt. Theres no getting away from the ago-

steadily louder like thunder. Then a roar, and one last crashing. In the dark below, I cower over Sparky and

imagine something like a tornado above obliterating everything in its path. And then... quiet.

awful scream that disappears into deafening clatter and

rumbles over us, followed by a few muffled thumps. It

20

Fallout
Todd Strasser

Strasser once again combines terrific suspense with thoughtful depth... This riveting examination of things important to a boy suddenly thrust into an adult catastrophe is un-put-down-able. Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

www.candlewick.com