finding her, he walked down through the fields to the farmhouse. She was in the kitchen of the dusty, dried house, sitting at the table. Markel leaned against the door-jamb, aware that he was very much relieved. After all, she was essential to his dream, and although he didn't like to admit it to himself, he had become rather used to her.

He said, "Well, what's all this about?"

She got up and walked to the window. "There used to be cows in fields like that, cows with bells around their necks, and people walking there. Now there's no cows, and no people. Now there's nothing." Her silhouette against the window, he saw, was less thick than it had been; she actually had lost weight. She said, "Will we ever find a place where there's people? Are there really any people anywhere on Earth except us?"

"Certainly," he said lightly. "Lots of people, all watching television."

"Where?"

"Oh, Patagonia, Central Africa, the South Seas."

She said, "No. Nobody anywhere. No cows and no people."

After searching the farmhouse for books, and finding none, Markel took her back through the blowing fields to the convertible.

The sun was hot and the trees were soft-looking and blurred; moss drooped from some of them. But the autumn wind still blew and big clouds leaned across the sky. Accustomed to the Earth Mother's constant jabbering, Markel was perturbed because she had said very little since they had left the woods. She stared out at the road for hours or listened to the silent radio, and Markel did not like it.

The highway speared through faded wild-grain fields, through rusty meadows. The autumn death came soft to the land, not like the death that had come to the cities.

"Listen!" exclaimed the Earth Mother.

Startled, Markel turned. She was twisting the volume-knob on the radio. "Listen to that!" she said.

Markel heard only the burr of their tires on macadam and the wind against the windshield. "Listen to what?"

"This crazy music! Listen, doesn't it flip you?" Smiling, she stared dreamily at the radio. "Those saxes, ain't they the most?" She moved her head rhythmically.

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