of strangers only loosely tied by proximity, like an apartment building where you nodded to your neighbors in passing but didn’t know their names. Instead I’d stumbled into an odd little community.
Of course, it didn’t take long for Lily’s curiosity to turn on me.
I answered her questions about school and my research without hesitation. She surprised me into admitting that I had been engaged, but that it’d ended six months ago.
“So you don’t have a young man waiting for you back in Boston?” she asked.
“No, no one is waiting for me. Anywhere.”
Lily gave me a significant look. “So you’re free, if a nice young man should happen to come along out here.”
I was trying to think how to answer when her husband spoke for almost the first time. “Don’t mind her. She likes to meddle. It’s, what do you call it, living vicariously.”
Lily burst into low guffaws worthy of Santa Claus.
I smiled and decided that was a good time to take my leave. “I don’t mind. But I’d better head back to my own campsite. Thanks for dinner.” I slid off the bench.
“Oh, don’t run away,” Lily said. “You must get bored and lonely over there by yourself, and you can’t tell me it’s bedtime yet.”
It didn’t feel like bedtime, and I already knew how challenging it was trying to read in the light of a small battery-powered lantern while lying in my sleeping bag. But I’d had all the company I could take for one day. “I’m going to go to the visitors center and do some work. I got a late start today. But thanks again!”
Once I’d had the idea, I liked it. I could fill my evening and make up for slacking off earlier. I’d have light and a comfortable chair. I could take a look at the slides I’d prepared at the storehouses and see whether I was getting anything of interest. That would help me target the next day’s work.
Darkness had fallen by the time I gathered my microscope and slides plus the paperwork I needed to finish. I held the box of equipment awkwardly in one arm so I could carry a flashlight in my other hand and took the path through the woods. When I got to the parking lot, I glanced up. Stars seemed to be blinking on, more every few seconds. I turned off my flashlight and watched until a kind of vertigo made me sway. Our planet really was just a speck in the universe. But what a universe it was!
The night breeze caressed my face. The wind shook the trees, making the forest sound alive. But the sound didn’t frighten me the way a single rustling in a bush did. The trees were not my enemies. An owl hooted, a lonely sound that sent a thrill rippling up my spine. I could almost hear the canyon calling me, whispering of mystery and romance. This wasn’t an opportunity to pass up.
I left the box by the door and walked to the canyon, entranced by the night. I wouldn’t be foolish enough to go exploring, but I wanted to stand on the rim and let the atmosphere soak in. I paused several feet back from the rim and let the night air wash over me as I listened to the breeze whisper in the trees.
Or was it the breeze? It sounded like human voices, faint and ghostly. But I didn’t believe in ghosts. It had to be something else.
I studied the darkness, straining my ears to locate the sound. A light flicked on a hundred yards away. It moved briefly and I could see the outline of a crumbled wall. Somebody was in one of the ruins.
I took a few steps forward and then stopped. I should do something, but what? If I really was hearing voices, that suggested at least two people. It was probably just some kids exploring or one of those crystal worshipers Danesh had mentioned. But what if it wasn’t someone so harmless? I couldn’t imagine what thieves would be doing here, where everything valuable and portable had already been removed, but I knew some sites attracted bandits and they could be armed and dangerous.
I didn’t want to confront strangers alone. Danesh and Jerry were long gone and
Of course, it didn’t take long for Lily’s curiosity to turn on me.
I answered her questions about school and my research without hesitation. She surprised me into admitting that I had been engaged, but that it’d ended six months ago.
“So you don’t have a young man waiting for you back in Boston?” she asked.
“No, no one is waiting for me. Anywhere.”
Lily gave me a significant look. “So you’re free, if a nice young man should happen to come along out here.”
I was trying to think how to answer when her husband spoke for almost the first time. “Don’t mind her. She likes to meddle. It’s, what do you call it, living vicariously.”
Lily burst into low guffaws worthy of Santa Claus.
I smiled and decided that was a good time to take my leave. “I don’t mind. But I’d better head back to my own campsite. Thanks for dinner.” I slid off the bench.
“Oh, don’t run away,” Lily said. “You must get bored and lonely over there by yourself, and you can’t tell me it’s bedtime yet.”
It didn’t feel like bedtime, and I already knew how challenging it was trying to read in the light of a small battery-powered lantern while lying in my sleeping bag. But I’d had all the company I could take for one day. “I’m going to go to the visitors center and do some work. I got a late start today. But thanks again!”
Once I’d had the idea, I liked it. I could fill my evening and make up for slacking off earlier. I’d have light and a comfortable chair. I could take a look at the slides I’d prepared at the storehouses and see whether I was getting anything of interest. That would help me target the next day’s work.
Darkness had fallen by the time I gathered my microscope and slides plus the paperwork I needed to finish. I held the box of equipment awkwardly in one arm so I could carry a flashlight in my other hand and took the path through the woods. When I got to the parking lot, I glanced up. Stars seemed to be blinking on, more every few seconds. I turned off my flashlight and watched until a kind of vertigo made me sway. Our planet really was just a speck in the universe. But what a universe it was!
The night breeze caressed my face. The wind shook the trees, making the forest sound alive. But the sound didn’t frighten me the way a single rustling in a bush did. The trees were not my enemies. An owl hooted, a lonely sound that sent a thrill rippling up my spine. I could almost hear the canyon calling me, whispering of mystery and romance. This wasn’t an opportunity to pass up.
I left the box by the door and walked to the canyon, entranced by the night. I wouldn’t be foolish enough to go exploring, but I wanted to stand on the rim and let the atmosphere soak in. I paused several feet back from the rim and let the night air wash over me as I listened to the breeze whisper in the trees.
Or was it the breeze? It sounded like human voices, faint and ghostly. But I didn’t believe in ghosts. It had to be something else.
I studied the darkness, straining my ears to locate the sound. A light flicked on a hundred yards away. It moved briefly and I could see the outline of a crumbled wall. Somebody was in one of the ruins.
I took a few steps forward and then stopped. I should do something, but what? If I really was hearing voices, that suggested at least two people. It was probably just some kids exploring or one of those crystal worshipers Danesh had mentioned. But what if it wasn’t someone so harmless? I couldn’t imagine what thieves would be doing here, where everything valuable and portable had already been removed, but I knew some sites attracted bandits and they could be armed and dangerous.
I didn’t want to confront strangers alone. Danesh and Jerry were long gone and
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