Ben Archer and the Cosmic Fall: (A boy with an alien power - Book 1 in the Alien Skill Series - a gripping sci-fi adventure story for middle graders and teens) (Volume 1) by Rae Knightly

Author:Rae Knightly [Knightly, Rae]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2018-02-28T22:00:00+00:00

Ryan Archer

604-721-883

Wayne McGuillen

604-347-222

Thomas Nombeko

250-981-310

Susan Pickering

778-919-832

Bob M.

416-627-003

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

The Island

BEN DOZED OFF WHILE STUDYING THE LIST. HE startled awake again when Tike nuzzled him in the neck. He waved the dog away with his hand, then rested his head uncomfortably against the cold windowpane. But now Tike jumped onto his lap, placing his two paws on his chest, trying to catch his attention. Ben blinked several times. The lights of the all-night diner were out and the parking lot was empty. Only a couple of street lamps produced modest islands of lights, while everything seemed peaceful.

“Go to sleep, Tike,” Ben whispered, pushing him away from his face as the dog licked him.

His mother moaned from the back seat. Ben snapped his head in her direction.

Laura tossed in her sleep, the blanket slipping off her onto the floor. Ben bent over the car seat to move the locks of hair that were plastered to her cheeks. He touched her hand. It felt as cold as ice. She was drenched in sweat and shivering uncontrollably.

She’s burning up!

“Mom!” He gasped worriedly.

He covered her with the blanket again, rolled up his jacket under her head before emptying her purse on the driver’s seat in the hopes of finding some analgesic to bring down the fever, but he found none. An hour went by and Ben's mom was worsening. Her breath wheezed again as she twisted on the uncomfortable back seat.

Ben got out of the car and jogged towards the street, searching for a passerby or car, or anything that could be of help. But there was no-one in sight. He thumped on the door of the diner, knowing full well all its occupants had gone. He put his hands through his hair in despair.

“Mesmo!” He called hesitantly, searching the empty parking lot with his eyes. Only a soft breeze answered.

Tike jumped up to lick his hand encouragingly. They headed back to the car. Ben slipped into the driver’s seat. The time on the dashboard said 2:55am. He would have to wait many hours before anybody came by. He glanced over at Tike helplessly. The dog was sitting on the passenger seat, his tongue lolling to one side, with a paw on the sheet of paper that Ben had found in his mother’s jacket. Ben fondled his dog’s ears while he studied the list of names again.

He knew the first name, Ryan Archer: that was his grandfather. But he did not know any of the other names. As he stared at the phone numbers again he realized that the one belonging to Wayne McGuillen started with 604, like his grandfather’s, which meant they lived in the same area. He was not familiar with the zone numbers 250 or 416, but he pondered on the number that started with 778. That was a local number, he was sure of it. It belonged to someone named Susan Pickering.

He delved through his mother’s handbag and pulled out her cellphone, only to realize the battery had died. Desperately, he glanced around and was amazed to find a public phone booth attached to the side of the diner.

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