Una's World

Una’s World

By

Kim Fowler

Una’s World

Kim R. Fowler

Copyright 2012 by Kim Fowler

Smashwords Edition

This Book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This Book may not be resold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. Thank you for respecting the author’s work.

Table of Contents

Introduction

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Story Notes and Meanings

DEDICATION

I would like to dedicate this novel to my loving wife, Wilma Fowler. Special thanks to my daughter, Stephanie Oprandi, for creating the book cover, editing, and formatting help.

INTRODUCTION

Table of Contents

Tom Jason sat staring at the television screen. It could have been blank for all he cared. Even though their divorce had taken place months before, he was not able to stop from thinking about his ex-wife Jenny and the one sided divorce settlement. Tom had loved her, but Jenny had never wanted his love. No, Jenny had wanted money, cruises, and other materialistic things that he could not have possibly provided for her. Tom believed that if he had had any gold teeth, Jenny would be proudly wearing them on a necklace. It especially hurt when she had happily said, Oh well, I guess things just didn't work out for us, Tom. When will I have my money?

A few years before meeting Jenny, Tom had bought a small farmhouse with twenty acres of woods. Wanting to pay off the loan as fast as possible, Tom paid as much he could of his modest monthly income towards the mortgage. By the time he married Jenny the property had been nearly paid for, and yet the court in the usual way of favoring women in such disputes decided that Jenny was entitled to half of its worth since it had not been paid in full on the day they exchanged their vows. The judge decreed that they could both sell the house and divide the money between them or one of them could agree to buy the other's half. Since he liked his house and the vast woodlands that surrounded it, Tom took out a loan from the bank in order to pay Jenny her half of the property's excessively appraised value.

For the past ten years, Tom had worked in a tool and die shop where he had skillfully made small precision parts for the military that required tolerances less than a thousandth of an inch. Unfortunately, after the divorce, Tom became deeply depressed and was no longer able to concentrate on his work the way he always had. As his mental state deteriorated, Tom increasingly made useless parts, until one day his boss approached him and asked him to resign. After losing his job, Tom had no choice but to use the money that had accumulated over the years from his credit union in order to make the mortgage payments. When Tom had started working at the shop (which was before his marriage to Jenny), he had had seventy five dollars a month automatically deducted from his paycheck. He had never mentioned the small savings account to Jenny, reasoning that they should have something available in case of an emergency. Tom was glad he had not mentioned it, as Jenny would have insisted on spending it on something frivolous or would have fought for it during the divorce. Of that, he was sure.

Despite having been successful in keeping his savings from the credit union untouched, Tom had made the mistake of opening a separate joint savings account at the local bank. Jenny, without his knowledge, had withdrawn the entire balance just before filing for a divorce. Given Jenny’s deceitful (although legal) maneuver, Tom had therefore felt justified in his decision not to inform the court about his small savings account. Jenny had wanted everything she could get her hands on. It incensed Tom that the court had awarded her nearly everything she wanted, particularly since she hadn't contributed anything financially, emotionally, or otherwise to the marriage. That, however, was not entirely true. Jenny had merrily and unselfishly shared something with him an unusually virulent case of the clap. Of course, Tom’s small savings eventually ran dry, and he had been unable to make the previous month's mortgage payment. To make matters worse, in one week another payment would be due. As each day passed, Tom became increasingly apprehensive knowing the bank would soon foreclose upon his deeply treasured property.

Tom frequently wandered aimlessly throughout his twenty acres of woods. Occasionally he would camp there and sit staring at the fire thinking about all the misfortunes that had happened in his life. Nearly thirty years old, Tom realized how little he had accomplished and would sadly think about how he likely never would amount to much. He reasoned it was not entirely his fault given that his life had contained far more agony and woe than it should have. It seemed that ever since his childhood, there was a black cloud hanging over him. Tom's father had left him and his mother when he was a baby. His mother had constantly told him that it was his fault his father abandoned them because as a baby he had cried continuously. When he was eight, his mother died in a car accident; after a drinking binge, she had left the house to buy more alcohol and had driven directly into a tree on the corner of her own street on the way home. Not one of his relatives acknowledged his existence, and subsequently Tom bounced from foster home to foster home for the rest of his childhood.

A month before his high school graduation, there was an armed robbery at a nearby Dairy Mart. The store was fairly close to where he lived and Tom had frequented it often. The day after the robbery, while he was sitting in history class, two police officers came in and escorted him to the station for questioning. The storekeeper had sworn Tom was the robber. Unfortunately, Tom had been walking alone in the neighborhood at the time of the robbery and thus did not have an alibi. At eighteen years of age, Tom had been convicted of a felony and sentenced to five years in prison. After two long years, that had seemed an eternity, Tom had been released early for good behavior. It was not long after that he had miraculously managed to land a decent job and had begun to turn his life around. Alas, now the job was gone, Jenny had left, and he was probably going to lose his house now, too. Tom’s will to live and go on seemed to weaken every day.

Frustrated and needing to escape his thoughts, Tom angrily switched off the television and got off the couch to take a stroll through the woods. He hurriedly walked outside, slamming the door behind him, and jogged along the path he had begun to cut through his wooded property over the past few weeks. When he ran out of breath and his mind was sufficiently occupied with catching it, he wandered aimlessly off the path and towards the small creek. Here, finally, he found some tranquility as he noticed a small opening on the side of a bank; above it was an ancient oak with its roots growing like jail bars across the entrance. Absentmindedly, he wondered how far the opening went into the bank and reasoned that at most, it could only be a few feet. Being somewhat curious and desperately wanting something else to think of besides Jenny, he looked for a long stick. Eventually, Tom found a fallen branch from the old oak that was at least two feet taller than he was. He gingerly placed the stick between the roots and was surprised when he was not able to feel the end. Tom moved the stick from side to side and found that the opening became wider the deeper he went.

Now he was truly curious, and his unhealthy obsession of constantly thinking about Jenny and the divorce finally left his mind. Tom eagerly decided that the next morning he would return and saw off the roots and crawl into the opening, thinking that perhaps it would lead to a cavern or a large cave. At minimum, at least now he had something to think about other than Jenny or the mortgage.

The next morning Tom awoke much earlier than usual, eager to explore the opening below the giant oak tree. After a quick cup of coffee, he trotted to the tool shed, grabbed a saw, a shovel, and a flashlight, and headed for the passage under the ancient tree. Tom hurriedly sawed off the roots that barred the way into the entrance. With the flashlight, Tom looked into the opening. It appeared to be about three feet wide by four feet high, but he was unable to see where it ended. He crawled into the small space and noticed it changed from soft dirt to hard rock. Tom wondered if it was an entrance to a cave and contemplated if he was the first to discover the spot. Since the old oak's roots were untouched, Tom believed no one had been there before or not at least during his lifetime. Tom crawled inside the cave and found that after a short distance, he could stand in a bent over position. Traveling a few more feet, he was able to stand erect since the ceiling was now almost six feet high and he was only five foot eight.

As Tom traveled farther into the cavern it became higher and wider until the size of the tunnel became a consistent size, roughly four feet wide and a little over six feet high. He slowly continued to walk through the tunnel, unable to see an end to the bright beam from the flashlight. When the flashlight began to dim, Tom turned back thinking he had at least traveled one hundred and fifty yards into the tunnel.

As he walked back to the house, he decided supplies would be needed to go farther into the tunnel. He thought since it was only a little past noon there was still plenty of time to drive to the small town of Cooper before the stores closed. There was very little money left, but Tom reasoned since there wasn't enough left to help with the mortgage he might as well spend it on food, which was needed anyway, and supplies to explore the tunnel.

Not having bothered to wash his clothes since the divorce had been finalized; Tom packed the washer with grimy shirts and pants that he had sorted through every morning looking for the cleanest. After taking a bath, it shocked him by how weak he felt from exploring the cave. Due to his deep depression, Tom had eaten very little, and in this moment realized how badly he had weakened himself. The refrigerator was nearly empty, but he found some eggs and a few slices of stale bread. Unsure how old the eggs were, he cracked one open. Since it did not smell or look bad, he made eggs with toast, which was the largest meal he had eaten in months.

Tom was relieved to have something else to think about besides Jenny, such as the prospect of finding gold or precious gems inside the cave. A man could dream, right? Tom believed that if there had ever been anything of value in the cave, it would still be there. Of course, what remained of the rational voice in his mind reminded him that it was highly unlikely he'd find anything that might help to turn his financial situation around, but doing something new and exciting (and even the small chance that he might find something valuable) pulled him from his mental despair.

CHAPTER ONE

Table of Contents

Opening the old Dodge's door, Tom heard a rusty squeak. The old Dodge had been Jenny's, but the court had awarded her his much newer truck. The truck had been his pride and joy, and he had bought it before marrying her. The court's decision to award her with the truck still angered him. He had not been driven the rusty beater in over two weeks, but thankfully, it slowly cranked over and started. As he listened to the motor purr, he was grateful that at least the old car was faithful. Tom hated going to the little town of Cooper where everybody knew each other's business and his was one of the most discussed. It was getting late, however; too late to travel to the large city of Pilo, seventy miles away. This left him with only one option: the rotten little town of Cooper.

During the short ride to Cooper, Tom felt his stomach begin to tense. The town had only one hardware store, and as fate would have it, it was owned and operated by Bo Blackman. Bo's name really did fit him, since he was built like an ox and not much smarter. In school, Bo had constantly picked on Tom and even bullied him into a fight. Although Tom did not win, he learned a valuable lesson: first try to outsmart an adversary and then only fight as a last resort.

Tom realized it did not take too much thought to outsmart Bo, who was as dumb as he was strong. In school, Tom found he had a knack in finding ways to make Bo look like an idiot in front of the other kids. One of Tom's fondest memories of outsmarting Bo was when he had watched Bo bully a small timid kid out of his lunch money. In the first class after lunch, Tom put a note on Bo's chair, which read, Mr. Blackman, I saw you intimidate Earnest out of his lunch money. I want you to go to the principal's office and tell him what you did!

Bo, thinking the teacher had written the note, raised his hand and asked him if he wanted him to see the principal now or after class.

The teacher said, I don't know what you're talking about, Bo?

Bo had replied sheepishly, You know, the note you wrote me.

The teacher walked over to Bo and read the note. He then joked back a laugh and said, I didn't write this, but after reading it, I want you to go directly to the principal's office and tell him what you did!

Wanting Bo and the class to know that he had written the note, Tom had mocked, Good luck at the principal's office, Bo!

It was fortunate for Bo that his father had retired and given him the hardware store. He still did the books for his son, knowing his son was slow and that it was probably only a matter of time until the little hardware store would be forced to close its doors. Tom believed that if it hadn't been for his father, Bo would at best be a farm hand living in a farmer's barn.

Tom parked the car and entered the hardware store with a sense of dread, knowing Bo would do his best to make his visit extremely unpleasant.

Just as Tom entered the store, Bo yelled, Well, if it isn't Tom Jason. I thought you turned into a hermit!

I’ve just been on vacation, Bo. Tom replied, wanting to say shut up, you stupid bastard.

Bo smiled, showing off his crooked, yellow smile. Well Tom, you sure look like you need a heap of help, but I'll do my best!

I won't need your help Bo, Tom answered, fuming inside.

As Tom walked through the store, he noticed how run down it had become. The small hardware store had once been a busy place, full of customers, but now the floor was filthy and the store only contained half of its once former large inventory. Realizing the hardware store would soon fold, for almost a second Tom felt pity for Bo.

Tom found the items he needed: a Coleman lantern and a pack with a frame. He also picked up a compass, thinking it might be useful, and placed the items on the counter. Tom waited angrily at the counter for over five minutes, fully aware that Bo was purposely taking his time before slowly, sauntering to the counter.

Bo looked at the items and smirked. Going to explore that huge forest of yours, Tom?

Bo, just tally my bill. Tom found that he was tightly clenching his fists.

Comes to eighty three dollars and thirty cents and I don't give credit here, Tom. You know that, old buddy.

In the kindest tone he could muster, Tom retorted, Here's a hundred dollar bill. Do you need any help figuring out the change?

Here's your damn change, Tom! Bo exclaimed. By the way, I met your ex-wife at the Dew Drop Inn. We had a few beers and one heck of a wild night together. Hope you don't mind, Tommy. Bo giggled, his huge shoulders bouncing up and down.

Tom laughed. No, Bo, I'm happy for you. How much is she charging these days anyway?

Get outside, you scrawny little bastard, I'm going to tear you apart! Bo screamed.

Tom replied nonchalantly, Sorry, but I have a touch of the flu today; I will have to oblige you some other time. Bo, who was unprepared for such an answer, stood looking confused. Before he could react, Tom quickly picked up his packages and walked to the door.

Upon realizing that Tom was almost to the door, Bo snapped from his stunned state, and yelled, The next time I see you, Tom, you're dead meat!

Before the door closed, Tom yelled, Nice doing business with ya, Bo Bo! He quickly jumped into the car as Bo charged out of the store. Tom smiled and waved at Bo, which enraged him even more as he sped from the parking lot.

Tom stopped at a Kentucky Fried Chicken and bought a large sixteen piece bucket of chicken with Jo Jo’s. He thought it would be enough food for tonight’s dinner and to take with him the next day when he explored the cave. Tom then stopped at a small grocery store and bought bread, eggs, hamburger, coffee, and other grocery items.

On the drive back, the truck permeated with the alluring aroma from the hot chicken, which caused a small unconscious dribble of saliva from the corner of Tom’s mouth. When he got home and parked the truck, Tom quickly got out of the vehicle and carried the items into the house. Looking at the box of chicken now, he could not remember the last time he felt this hungry. Tom tore the lid off and grabbed a hot breast, oblivious to the pain as it burnt his fingers. Tom then bit into the chicken breast, tasting the crispy skin and the flavorful meat; he ate with the resemblance of someone who was deranged. Tom grabbed another piece but before he could finish eating it, his stomach began to hurt. He soon doubled over. Fighting to hold the food down, it dawned on Tom that he had eaten so little in past few months perhaps his stomach was much smaller than it once had been.

Later when he felt better, Tom started gathering things for his pack. He found a long rope in the tool shed and a piece of chalk. Thinking the chalk could come in handy in case the cavern led to any forks in the path, he would be able to mark his way back. Tom decided to take a sleeping bag (just in case he had to spend the night), two boxes of kitchen matches, and pretty much anything else he thought might be of use. Suddenly, Tom remembered the Swiss Army knife that he had bought a few years ago. It was not a cheap imitation, but the original knife with Victorinox stamped on the large blade. The knife had all sorts of handy items: a large blade, pen blade, wood saw, scissors, magnifying lens, leather punch, screwdrivers, etc. Tom rummaged through several small boxes in the top of his closet until he found it; he tossed it in his large backpack, zipped it shut, and plopped on the bed. He didn’t bother turning off his nightlight, and sleep took him over before Jenny had the opportunity to reenter his thoughts.

At the first beep of the alarm clock, Tom awoke eager to explore the opening. He hurriedly made a breakfast of a couple of eggs, dry toast, and coffee. Tom hoisted the pack, strapped it on his back, and found it was almost too heavy to carry. He wondered briefly whether he carrying more items than he'd ever need. Although Tom didn't know it at the time, it was fortunate that he hadn't taken the time to lighten the pack by removing items of questionable value.

Tom, struggling with the pack, finally reached the cave. He thought to himself that if only he had taken better care of himself in the last few months, the trek would not have left him desperately trying to catch his breath. He then reminded himself that since he was eating more, surely in time his stamina would return.

Since the opening to the cave was too small to enter while wearing the pack, Tom removed it and climbed inside. Having to walk backwards in a bent over position, he dragged the pack in behind him; this was exhausting work since the pack constantly caught on roots or a jagged rock. Finally, when he could stand erect, Tom strapped the pack onto his back.

Tom lit the lantern, and as he traveled deeper into the tunnel, he realized this was not an ordinary tunnel. The opening had become round and polished as if a giant red hot marble had shot through the solid rock. He had never seen anything like this on TV or in any of the National Geographic magazines that he'd read.

Hours passed and the tunnel still didn't seem to have any end. Tom kept walking through the tunnel, confident that he could find his way back since the tunnel had yet to fork off, and he continued to run as straight as an arrow. After another hour of hiking, Tom had to rest. He sat on the smooth floor of the tunnel and removed the box of chicken and an old canteen from his pack. This time he was able to eat three pieces of chicken and a Jo Jo. Having a full stomach, Tom felt sleepy and crawled into the sleeping bag.

After another hour or so, Tom awoke feeling refreshed, but sore. He was unused to such hard physical activity. He was beginning to feel depressed thinking the tunnel might continue forever. So far, he had seen nothing of value, only a tunnel that was devoid of any debris as if it had been cleaned with a vacuum sweeper. Discouraged, Tom sat and stared into the blackness of the tunnel. That is, until he noticed a faint flicker of light. He quickly stuffed everything back into the pack and ran towards the light.

Moving the lantern closer to the flickering lights, Tom saw a box. It had five different lights, each lighting one at a time, followed by a short pause. Then, the lights would again light one at time, but in a different sequence. Directly below each light, there was a button. Excited and pushing any hesitation aside, he hit the buttons but nothing happened. Tom subsequently realized that the lights must have something to do with determining which button should be pushed.

He watched again as each of the lights lit and turned off, one at a time, until all five had lit in a random order. Finally, it dawned on him that all he had to do was to push the buttons in the same sequence as the lights did. Tom watched the lights as they turned on and off, and memorized the order, five, one, four, two, and three. At the short pause, before the endless cycle restarted, he quickly pushed the corresponding buttons for each light. Immediately, a hole appeared on the side of the corridor and bright light and warm air rushed into the tunnel. In amazement, Tom stared out the opening, and saw huge trees separated by thick underbrush. He heard birds chirping loudly, with animal roars and growls in the distance. Tom wondered how he could have lived in Cooper all his life and never heard of this odd place. How could this strange forest, which could only be a few miles from his house, exist without his knowledge?

He quickly picked up his gear and left the corridor to explore the very odd but beautiful forest. Walking past the doorway, Tom felt the flow of warm humid air that had been flowing into the tunnel stop. Quickly turning around, he watched in both astonishment and trepidation as the doorway had simply vanished. Where it had been, there was now nothing but rocks and rotted wood. Frantically, he removed rocks and pieces of wood, hoping to clear a way to the tunnel entrance. Tom feverishly removed debris until he uncovered a smooth granite wall where the opening should have been. Ready to hyperventilate, Tom forced himself to calm down and think. He realized that the opening had closed and finding another box was the key to opening the doorway. Tom started removing the debris that covered the area where he imagined the light box should be. After a few frantic minutes, he found the box with a huge sense of relief. Again Tom watched the sequence and at the short pause, he pushed the corresponding buttons, and instantly the opening to the corridor materialized. Tom slowly felt the panic leaving him, realizing he could go back. Since there were still a few hours of daylight left, Tom decided to explore a little more of this very strange land.

Tom knew little about a compass, but he understood if he walked in a straight line, the opening to the corridor would be due west. As he hiked, Tom was amazed by the size of the trees, some of which looked like giant oaks and extremely tall conifers. The large trees formed a canopy of leaves with eerily bright rays of sunshine filtering through. Like a tourist in a strange land, Tom snapped pictures of trees and birds.

Tom slowly walked deeper into the forest and nearly choked on the strong pungent scent of decay, which seemed to be greatly enhanced by the excessive heat and humidity. Tom breathlessly took in the view of the odd berries and plants and paused to capture another glimpse of the large birds that were chirping very loudly but that he seldom saw because of the thick leaves. About to step over a large stick, Tom abruptly stopped and picked it up.

The stick was about five feet long, somewhat similar in length to the branch he had used to first explore the opening at the old oak on his property. It did not seem to be the same type of branch, however. Tom thought it resembled the walking sticks he had seen hikers use on TV, only a little thicker. After walking with it for a short distance, he found it was helpful since the pack was becoming very heavy. He also caught glimpses of other types of odd birds hidden in the trees, and in the distance, he heard large animals snarling and growling, as well as other unsettling sounds.

After about a mile, Tom stopped on what he thought was a game trail. Since the path was not due east, he marked the spot and reminded himself that on the way back to the tunnel upon reaching the mark, to walk due west. The trail was much easier to follow since it was fairly level and clear of brush. As Tom continued to explore, he would from time to time hear unsettling loud grunts, peculiar screeching and deep roars in the distance. He was also uncomfortably aware that he only had a stick to defend himself. Tom briefly wondered whether this could be a private game preserve, but quickly dismissed that idea seeing as it would not account for the magical opening from the corridor.

Following the game trail, he noticed smoke in the distance and decided to walk in that direction, thinking it might be a campfire or someone's burn barrel. Tom marked the trail again, and started walking in the direction of the smoke. As he walked towards the area of the smoke, he saw bright sunshine in the distance, and thought it must be a clearing.

Suddenly startled, hearing a woman's screams from behind, Tom quickly turned. Trying to see through the thick undergrowth, he caught flashes of someone running towards him. Alarmed by the woman's reckless abandon as she ran in his direction, he considered starting to run himself, but when she began to become more clearly in view, his astonishment kept his feet firmly planted where they were. The woman, roughly a hundred yards away and still running frantically towards him, he now was able to make out that she was wearing what appeared to be a leather sack. The woman ran straight at him with amazing speed, quickly closing their distance. As she neared him, he could now see that her leather sack was crude in comparison to the attractive soft leather skins that he had seen a variety of natives (Indians and tribes and such) wearing in pictures.

Astonished, Tom quickly understood why she running as if her life was at stake; a hairy creature that looked similar to a cross between an ape and a human was pursuing her. The creature was hairy, long armed and broad, and at times used its long arms as added legs to help it run faster. Swallowing a lump in his throat, Tom didn't know whether to run or hide. He did not want anything to do with the thing that was chasing the woman.

Now that he could see the woman's face, he could tell that she was an extremely exhausted young woman. Tom speculated that even in her worn out state, the creature was barely catching up to her. This thought made him wonder whether she had been running from more than one? When the young woman noticed him, she hesitated for a split second and then ran straight at