A Shadow Between the Trees

A Shadow Between the Trees

Sasquatch, Yeti, Bigfoot, Abominable Snowman - we’ve heard the myths.  What if they really existed, but not as we thought?  What if they weren’t the monsters?

Excerpt:

    Ben dreamt he and his brother were in the woods being chased by a pack of baying dogs.  They were getting closer and closer, making him feel like a hunted fox.  Suddenly he was one, scurrying alone and scared with no place to hide.  Then he heard his name being called.  Frantic.  Desperate.  It sounded like his dad and Uncle Harley!  He tried to call to them, but as a fox could only yip and yowl.

    A light hand on his mouth woke him and the sweet smell he had noticed the day before invaded his nostrils.  Florence was leaning over him and he thought she looked frightened.  Then he heard it.  “Ben!  Ben!” called over and over, faint but still audible amongst the cries of the dogs.  He sprang up, sucking in air to call out.  Florence touched her fingers to his lips again, eyes wide and beseeching.

    In the shows he watched with Billy, aliens were usually the bad guys.  They destroyed worlds.  They abducted humans and stuck them with probes.  But he had seen one or two where aliens were the victims.  Captured.  Dissected.  It took only a moment for him to understand.

    Billy had asked if he was a man or a mouse.  His answer hadn’t changed.  Summoning every ounce of fortitude he had, he made the first moral choice of his young life.  He kept silent until the sounds of the rescue party faded.

    “Can’t I ever go home?” he asked at last.  Her mournful reply left him without an answer.

Author’s Note:

This is the first story I almost gave up on.  I liked the idea of it and the writing was going well enough, but it was falling flat.  It lacked purpose.  Then one day, while I was cleaning the shower of all things, I finally fell into the story rather than being on the outside looking in.  The characters revealed their message, driving me to my keyboard with more enthusiasm than I'd had in quite some time.

Also found in Veiled Villains:  Tales of Evil in Disguise.