New viruses were discovered all the time, and I often wondered if they would one day rule, at last winning a war with us that began with time. For a while, I sat in the kitchen listening to the clock ticktock while the light changed beyond the window as the day fled. I was in the throes of a full-blown anxiety attack when Crockett’s peculiar voice suddenly hailed me from outside. “Ma’am? Ma’am?” When I went to the porch and looked out the door, I saw on the top step a small brown
