by Geof Johnson
“And maybe you’ll tell us about it right now,” Zach said optimistically and followed everyone inside.
Bo closed the door behind them and paused for a moment, his face thoughtful while the rest of them waited quietly. “I believe it is time to tell you everything.”
“Oh, good,” Shelby said, “but why now?”
“Because I think I can trust you.”
Zach and his friends glanced at each other and Jason shrugged as if to say we think we can trust you, too.
Zach peered around the cabin and noticed something different. On the round table by the big chair was a stack of books that hadn’t been there before, and Zach read the title of the topmost one: Advances in Asthma Research. He pointed to it and looked at Bo. “Where’d this come from?”
“I got it from a trading partner yesterday. I asked him to buy it for me.”
“I guess you can’t go to the store, huh?”
“If I need something specific, like that book, I have to use a….” His brow wrinkled fleetingly as he seemed to search for the word. “A middleman. I have someone who I trade with who is willing to go into town for me, and he bought that. I have been using it to study Shelby’s condition.”
“Why?”
“I believe that I can help her.”
“You mean, cure her?”
“Possibly.”
“Really?” Shelby’s eyes widened.
Bo motioned for them to sit on the long bench and he pulled the big chair closer and sat down. “It will not be easy. I need to visit the mountain witch to discuss it with her. She may already know of a remedy and have the necessary medicines on hand, or have the ingredients I will require to make my own.”
Shelby squeezed her hands together against her chest. “Gosh, that would be so wonderful. When could you do it?”
“I estimate four days, counting the time for the journey, the consultation, and experimentation.”
“We’d be really happy if you could do that,” Justin said. “But how can you cure asthma, if scientists haven’t had much luck, and they’ve been workin’ on it for years and years?”
Bo’s face became neutral again, a sign that he didn’t want to answer the question. Justin pressed him anyway. “You can do lots of things normal people can’t. You ain’t like us, are you?”
“No.”
“You’re not human,” Shelby said, “are you?”
“No.”
“What are you, then? You said you’re not an elf, but I still think you are.”
“I told you before that you cannot pronounce the name of my race.”
“So, where are you from, then?” Zach asked. “Are you from Earth, or another planet or another dimension or something?”
Bo took his time answering, holding them with his unreadable gaze. “I believe I am from another world. I was not sure at first and did not think that that such a thing could be possible, but after many years of speculation, I have come to assume that it is so.”
Another world! No wonder he’s so different. “Uh…so how did you get here? In a rocket ship?”
“I am not certain. It is still rather confusing, even after all the time I have had to consider it.” His massive chest swelled as he inhaled deeply. “It was long ago, forty-four years, when I was quite young, by the standards of my people. I was running down a trail in the forest — my home forest, the one I grew up in — on my way to hunt. I had my bow and my knife with me and was hurrying because I had gotten a late start that morning and had some distance to travel to reach suitable hunting territory.”
He took another deep breath and Zach tried to picture what a youthful Bo would look like, dashing through the woods with his hunting weapons in hand.
Bo continued, “I ran around a sharp bend, recklessly, and suddenly there was a strange, shimmering…something…blocking the path. I have no idea what it was. Before I could stop myself, I stumbled through it. The next thing I knew, I was in a room.” He spread his hands. “It was a severe shock, going from being outside, in a forest, to inside a strange building of some sort, almost instantly.”
He shook his head slowly. “My memory of this is not clear, because it was all so bewildering and I had no frame of reference for it. What I can recall is that the room was cramped and full of fantastic devices that I did not recognize. There was a man there, who was also surprised, and he shouted at me in a language I did not understand at the time, though I have since come to realize that it was English.
“I panicked. I managed to escape and make my way outside, where I cast about for refuge. I sensed this forest and ran to it with great haste. I have been here ever since.”
The cabin turned silent for several long moments, until Zach finally said, “That was over forty years ago?”
“Forty-four. Forty-four and some change.” Bo smiled awkwardly as if he’d told a joke. “Is that how you say it?”
“Yeah, sure,” Jason said. “So how did you survive?”
“I had my bow and knife, and I was able to hunt. The game here is not that different from what I was accustomed to, and the forest was accommodating, so I was able to find enough food and build a rough shelter. The weather was mild and I was not in any danger of exposure to the elements.”
“Is that when you met the professor?”
Bo shook his head. “A few days after my arrival, I came upon a campsite, deep in the forest, where I met Billy Byrd, a young Cherokee man. We were able to communicate through hand gestures, and he allowed me to camp with him. That is how I began to learn your language. He taught me much in the time that we were together.”
“Why was he out in the forest?” Justin asked.
“He wanted to become closer to his ancestors, who used to dwell here long ago. He felt that living in the civilized world was stunting his spiritual growth, and he needed to return to his roots, as he often put it, to capture the essence of his true self.”
“Sounds like a weirdo to me,” Jason said.
“He was a nice man. He helped me immeasurably. He taught me things that were of great benefit to me, like how to grow corn and other local crops, and he introduced me to a couple of his trading partners, and I taught him things in return. My people have an innate skill with nature and a certain knowledge that he could not have gotten from anyone else, I believe.”
“How long did you stay with him?” Zach asked.
“About a year and a half. He found out through a trading partner that his mother had become ill, and he returned to his family to help her.”
“Do you miss him?”
“He was a good friend. He came back to visit me from time to time, but I have not seen him for over two years. He is getting old and the walk through the forest has become difficult for him.”
“But you don’t seem old at all,” Shelby said. “You look like a young man.”
“As I told you before, my people have much longer life spans than yours. I could easily live another three hundred years.”
“Holy shmoly!” Justin jerked his head upright. “That’s a long time. Must be nice.”
“It was distressing to see my Cherokee friend so aged, though. Dr. Sizemore, too. He is dead, now.” Bo’s face saddened, and Zach wondered what it must’ve been like for Bo to see his companions grow old and sick while he remained youthful and healthy.
After a long, awkward pause, Jason said, “So, when Billy Byrd left, what did you do?”
“Not long after, I met Dr. Sizemore.” Bo smiled wryly and shook his head. “A man completely unprepared for life in the forest, without any of the necessary skills, yet one who had chosen to live here.”
“He was the professor who liked Thoreau?” Shelby said.
“It was his life’s passion.”
“Is that why you talk so fancy?” Jason said. “’Cause you lived so long with a college professor? That’s what you sound like to me.”
“My language stylings were mostly influenced by him, if that is what you mean.” Bo pointed at the twins. �
�You boys seem to speak in strongly affected dialect.” Then he pointed at Shelby and Zach. “Whereas, you do not. Why is that?”
Shelby frowned at her brothers, who sat next to her on the bench. “That’s because I don’t want to talk like a hick, and Zach’s mother won’t let him use bad grammar.”
Bo wrinkled his brow again, a very human expression. “Why not, Zach?”
“Because she’s an English teacher, and she said she wants me to grow up speaking properly. It’s a pain. She nags me a lot.”
“She is a language teacher?”
“No, not English language, English literature. She loves books.”
Bo smiled broadly. “As do I. I wish that I could meet her so that we could talk, but sadly, I think that would not be prudent.”
“Probably not. But I looked in our library to see what we have, and I didn’t find any science books, but we have some history and other stuff. Would you like to borrow some? I could bring some here next time we come.”
“I would love to have more books. It is my only entertainment. The nights can be tedious, and when the weather is bad, I can be trapped in here for days at a time with little to do.”
“That would drive me crazy,” Justin said.
“I do my best to maintain a positive attitude.”
I bet that’s why he wanted to meet us. Shelby’s right. He’s lonely.
“We’re gonna get you some books, too.” Jason nudged his brother with his elbow. Me and Justin. I mean, Justin and me, or I…however you say it. Soon as our mom fills out the forms for our library cards, we’ll get you anything you want.”
“That would be most welcome. I look forward to seeing what you bring for me, and perhaps we can discuss them.”
“Uh....” Jason’s mouth seemed to be stuck in the open position, words unable to come out.
“They don’t like to read,” Shelby said. “But I do. I’ll bring you some books, and we can talk all you want about them.” She gave her brothers a smug look.
Justin narrowed his eyes at his sister and then nodded at Bo. “We’ll read ’em. You ain’t the only one who knows how, Shelby.”
“Good,” she said. “Then maybe you’ll stop talking like a hick from the sticks.”
Bo studied the brothers wordlessly for several moments before saying, “Your manner of speech reminds me of a couple of my trading partners. They use phrases such as ain’t got no and done seen that ’un before.”
Jason grinned. “Hey, that’s pretty good. You sound like you’re from around these parts.”
Bo grinned, too. “I recognize that expression. Grady Heath uses that. He is one of my trading partners.”
“I bet he lives way up in the hills,” Shelby said.
“He does.”
“Then he’s a hillbilly, just like my dumb brothers.”
Zach put his hand on her arm and said quietly, “Could you stop that already? You made your point.”
Jason and Justin glared at her, then Jason turned to Bo. “So, can you talk like a Southerner instead of a professor if you feel like it?”
“I believe so. What would like for me to say?”
“Try sayin’ cain’t hardly suss it out.”
Bo repeated it and sounded almost exactly like Jason, only with a much deeper voice.
Justin bobbed his head. “Let me give you one. Say this here is my new truck.”
Bo did, and again his drawl was perfectly lazy, his vowels flat as the bottom of a cast iron skillet.
“How can you do that?” Jason asked. “Yankees can’t, and they’re from this country. You’re from another planet, but you sounded like you’re from this town. Can you sound like anything you want?”
“My people are good at vocal imitations. It helps us when we hunt. We make the sounds of our prey to lure them into a false sense of security, which enables us to get closer before we try for a shot.”
“With a bow?”
“It is our main tool for hunting.”
“Can you do bird sounds?”
Bo held his thumb and forefinger together near his face and his eyes became thoughtful. “There is a pair of mockingbirds that have a nest in a nearby tree. The male’s call sometimes sounds like this.” He rounded and tightened his lips and unleashed an uncanny string of melodious chirps and whistles. If Zach closed his eyes, he’d swear he was listening to a real bird.
Shelby clapped her hands. “That was awesome, Mr. Bo! Can you do other birds, or other animals?”
“I can imitate all of the species of birds and most of the animals in this forest, though I find it unnecessary. I don’t hunt the birds, and the bigger animals are not difficult to track. I mainly hunt deer and rabbits, and they are quiet creatures.”
“You are a pretty amazing guy,” Zach said. “Do you really think you can help Shelby?”
“I do not want to get your hopes up, but I think it is possible. Shelby, if you are willing to let me try, I will do my best to ease your affliction.”
“Oh, please try! I hate having asthma. It’s the worst thing ever. You have no idea what it’s like to feel like you’re going to suffocate.”
“It scares us,” Jason added. “Especially the other day when she nearly died.”
“All right.” Bo nodded once. “Come back in four days, and I will see what I can do.”
“Four days,” Justin said. “It’ll be almost time for school to start.”
“Will that make a difference?”
“Not yet, I’m just thinking ahead. But once we’re back in school, we won’t get home ’till late in the afternoon on weekdays.”
“I won’t be able to come out here at all,” Zach said, “except for Saturdays and Sundays. I’m sure my mom won’t let me because it’ll be too close to dinnertime.”
“We don’t have dinner ’till almost eight, most nights,” Jason said. “We can still come.”
“But I can’t.” Zach sighed and dropped his gaze to the floor. “I guess you can come without me.”
“No,” Shelby said quickly. “We can’t. Wouldn’t be right.”
Zach looked at her brothers to see if they felt the same way, and after a short silence, they both nodded. Zach nodded back.
Jason turned to Bo and said, “Okay. We’ll see you in four days.”
* * *
Liz gazed across the kitchen table at Zach, who was staring blankly at his dinner plate again. “Honey, did you hear any of what I just said?”
Zach lifted his head and blinked. “Uh…the school’s new and clean and stuff. Lots of windows.”
Liz turned to her father, who sat opposite her. “Honestly, I don’t know what’s gotten into him lately.”
“He’s almost a teenager, Liz. They get moody. I remember you being just as bad. Maybe worse.”
She looked back at her son and said, “Aren’t you even a little bit excited about school starting?”
“Sort of. Wish it wasn’t starting already, though. Seems like we just got out for summer break.”
“Liz, why are they going back so soon?” her father asked. “It’s the middle of August, for gosh sakes. You never started this early when you were young.”
“First day of school was always after Labor Day, and we didn’t get out until after Memorial Day.”
“So why did they change it?”
“They want to get as much teaching in before testing week, and they added a fall break in October.”
Zach began to stare blankly again and Liz watched him, concerned, until he suddenly said to her, “Can we take Jason and Justin to get their library cards tomorrow? They’re going to get their mom to sign the forms tonight.”
“It’ll have to wait until I get home from work.”
“That’s fine.” He knitted his brow and gazed at his plate again, as if something fascinating was going on between the salmon and the asparagus and the potatoes. Then he raised his eyes and said, “Have people from other planets ever been here before?”
“To Earth, or just Whitmer?” L
iz’s father said.
“I dunno. Either one.”
“Some folks claim that aliens have been here, but last I heard there’s no real evidence that it’s happened, just eyewitness accounts, which aren’t worth much.”
“So, no real space visitors?”
“What brought that up?”
“Just wondering.” His brow lined again. “Is it possible to cure somebody of asthma?”
“I don’t know,” Liz said. “I’ve never heard of that happening, but we can check later on the Internet.”
His face became thoughtful once more, and Liz couldn’t help but wonder what was going through his young mind. At the moment it seemed like everything was. He said, “If someone grew up speaking another language and then learned English, could they speak it without an accent?”
“Zach, where are all these questions coming from?”
“Nowhere special. Just wanna know.”
“What have you and your friends been getting into lately? Is there something going on that I should know about?”
“No ma’am.”
“What have you been doing out in the woods? You certainly have been spending a lot of time there. Are you really just building a treehouse? Seems like you would’ve finished that by now.”
“It’s nothing, Mom, really. We haven’t finished the treehouse ’cause we keep screwing things up and have to redo them, and we like to go to the creek and stuff, too, so we don’t get that much work done.”
He held her gaze and she started to question him further, but she looked at her father instead. He didn’t catch her eye, though. He was studying Zach intently, one hand on his chin and a whimsical expression on his face.
“What do you think, Dad?”
“What I think….” He took a long breath before continuing. “I think I wish I were going out to the woods and building a treehouse and playing in the creek.” He turned to face her. “Don’t you?”
“Well…um, I haven’t really thought about it.”
“Maybe you should, once in a while.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
Zach leaned toward his mother and bobbed his head. “He means you should lighten up sometimes.”
“What?” She started to scold him, but thought about it for a moment instead, and realized that he might have a point. Maybe a day in the national forest would be good for her. And maybe she should trust him. He’s a good boy, isn’t he? “Okay.” She nodded once. “Will you show us your treehouse when it’s finished?”
