The Stars Seemed Duller Than Usual

Darkness fell much earlier than usual that day, as if the sun had been extinguished. There was no moon; the only light came from the pinprick stars that twinkled silently against the black canvas of the sky. Even those seemed duller than usual, Bill thought, as he swept along the narrow highway that cut through the desert like a zip through a jacket, a grey ribbon in a sea of relentless sand.

He had been driving for several hours now and he didn't know why. There was no real purpose to his journey that he could remember; it was little more than aimless meandering along empty roads. A jackrabbit darted across the highway and Bill winced at the soft bump as it disappeared under his front left tire; he felt like a murderer. He stopped the car a couple of miles up the road - far enough away from the jackrabbit that it would be invisible to him even in the light. As he pulled to a halt the engine of his ancient car spluttered, disturbing a rattlesnake that was curled up by the side of the road. It gave a disapproving hiss and slithered off into the night. He clicked the engine off, got out and looked at the sky.

There was no moon, and the stars seemed duller than usual.

Bill looked up at the sky for a long time. Trying to remember. Remember where he had come from, and where he was going, and why. But the stars had no answers for him. They simply twinkled silently, not saying a word, just pale unhelpful dots of burning hydrogen billions of miles away.

He tore his eyes away from the stars and looked back at his car. In the pitch black night it was difficult to discern its color; Bill thought it was red but he couldn't be sure. He sighed and climbed back inside, sat down in the driver's seat, and rested his muddled head against the steering wheel.

The human mind, he thought, was a funny thing. It could remember obscure and useless facts and the names of people you've only met once and birthday parties you went to thirty years ago. But it could forget what you walked into a room for. Or why you drove into the middle of the desert, on a night where there was no moon and the stars seemed duller than usual.

Bill restarted the car and checked the rear-view mirror, and suddenly he remembered where he was going. And why.

He stepped back outside, smiling faintly at his own forgetfulness. The keys stayed in the ignition; he needed the lights to stay on because it was darker than usual tonight.

He opened the door to the backseat and dragged the corpse out into the desert, to about half a mile from the road. He left it there for the coyotes to find in the morning. As he walked back to his car Bill looked up at the sky and noticed that there was no moon, and the stars seemed duller than usual.

He climbed back into the front seat and drove away.