Among the Hidden

Luke gets up early in the morning to clean the mud Jen tracked in. He worries about her constantly. He struggles to eat breakfast, and when his family leaves, he turns on the radio to listen for news of the rally. However, the news is mundane. Luke turns it off before Dad comes home for lunch. While Dad eats, Luke reminds him to turn on the radio. Before Dad turns it off, the announcer says a big story is coming, so Luke convinces Dad to keep the radio on for the story. However, the big story is just about a record-setting alfalfa harvest. 

For days, Luke listens to the radio whenever Dad isn’t home, but the news never reports on the rally. Luke tries the backdoor light signal but no one next door responds. He watches Jen’s house obsessively, but there is no sign of anyone home. In his desperation, he asks his mom if she considered introducing herself to the neighbors, but she replies that Barons want nothing to do with farmers. 

Luke waits, distraught, for days until deciding he must do something to find out Jen’s status.