A Human Element by Donna Galanti Read Free Book Online Page B

Laura visited at the lake in the morning. One cool October day Laura had finished writing her sunrise entry when Jim and Scooter showed up. They stood together in silence and watched the early morning sky turn from burnt orange to a brilliant blue.
    "Mr. B, were you there the night the meteorite hit the lake? Did you see it?"
    It wasn't the sort of question Jim expected but he answered the best he could. "I sat on my front porch with Scooter when it hit. I saw it coming but was knocked out from the crash and woke up later."
    "What did it look like? Did it zoom down really, really fast?
    "It was this streak of light that pierced the sky. It pulsed in a peculiar shade of green. At first I thought it was a plane, but it kept growing in size. The light grew bigger until it blinded me and…then I don't remember what happened."
    "Wow."
    "But I don't think it was a meteorite." Jim stared out over the lake.
    "Really? What then?"
    "Whatever crashed that night wasn't all the government said it was."
    Laura stared at him. "What do you mean?"
    "When the government came in here and took charge, it was like they were covering something up. Too eager to buy up all the cabins. Too eager to get people away from the crash site."
    "So what was it?"
    "I'm not sure. Something man-made. A secret government project gone wrong, perhaps."
    "Maybe it was a spaceship!"
    "I don't know about that, but I do know some things are better left alone."
    "We should go over there, to where it crashed and look around."
    Jim scratched his head and frowned. "The government already came in and cleaned it all up years ago."
    Laura jumped up. "I know. But maybe I can sense something about what happened that night."
    "I thought you could only read minds?"
    "I thought so too but what if I can sense things from the past. Memories and stuff? I never tried." Laura pulled at Jim's sleeve. "Come on!"
    Jim gave in and followed her along the overgrown path around the lake to the north end where the crash site spread out. They wound around the decrepit cabins lining part of the lakeshore.
    "Wait." Jim called out to her. "It's wetlands in there." But she kept going.
    Laura reached the end of the lake where the meteorite fell from the sky all those years ago. Skunk cabbages and cattails now grew in the crater. She made her way to the tall fence surrounding the crash site and ran her hands along it looking for a way in. She pushed her way through an opening and ran forward to the edge of the crater, and then down the hill into the bottom of it. There she reached the small valley floor and knelt down amongst the tall grass to place her hands on the ground. Jim shoved his way through the fence. He held Scooter back who wanted to plunge ahead, eager to reach Laura.
    "There was something here, Mr. B. Something—or someone!"
    Jim and Scooter reached her side. "It could have been something from yesterday or last month or last year."
    "No. Someone was here the night it struck. And it wasn't a meteorite."
    Jim shivered in the morning chill and blew out frosty breaths. The day didn't promise to get above fifty-five degrees. "It doesn't matter now. It happened years ago. What if you're reaching for something because you want to believe in it?"
    Laura shook her head and closed her eyes, her hands still pressed to the ground. "He crashed here, I feel it. I know him. Not know him as met him…but know of him." She looked up at Jim with tears in her eyes. "So much sadness." She put her face in her hands. "He was here under the ground all alone and dying."
    Jim didn't know what to make of all this. He still didn't understand her powers, but believed miracles happened. Scooter nudged Laura, distressed by her anxiety. She threw her arms around his neck and hugged him.
    Jim rocked from foot to foot. "Who was here? Who do you know?"
    "I don't know. But he came here from far away and was so hurt and alone. He'd lost everything and he needed to do something important. And a girl. There was a girl