HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Lucknow Sentinel, 2014-12-10, Page 66 Lucknow Sentinel • Wednesday, December 10, 2014
Valerie Gillies/Lucknow Sentinel
Karen McGugan holds the beginnings of the Community Novel on
November 9,2014 which she organized at the Lucknow Library to
celebrate National Novel Writing Month.
This Happened in Lucknow?
.11k A Community
Novel
Submitted by
Karen McGugan
Lucknow Branch,
Bruce County Library
Here is the long awaited
community story! This began
as a sheaf of blank paper that
was made available at the
service counter of the Luc -
know Public Library for all
who stopped in to add their
piece through the month of
November, 2014. It was won-
derful to have so much com-
munity involvement and
obviously imagination is alive
and well in Lucknow. We will
definitely try this again next
November. In the meantime
if you know anyone who
wants some encouragement
or assistance, the writers'
group meets every Tuesday at
6:30 at the library.
This Happened in
Lucknow?
A Community Novel
When Dave woke up Tues-
day morning, he checked his
phone for messages. There
weren't any, and that was
odd. He dressed and went
downstairs to make coffee.
Dave looked towards his
neighbour's house. Jim was
always in his home office
early, but today there were
no lights on at all next door.
Dave looked up and down
the street. There weren't any
lights on at all. Even the street
lights were off, except in
Dave's house. He was the only
one with power. He won-
dered, for a moment, if there
had been a storm, but it was
still warm and balmy outside.
It did seem odd though, he
decided, that the edges of the
sky did seem to have an
unhealthy green glow to it.
He checked his phone
again. No messages. No
power except in his house,
what could it mean? Was he
special? Was he a target? He
looked out the window again,
the green was brighter.
What could that mean? It
seemed that no matter
where he looked, the green
light seemed brighter. Oh,
no! Was that a knock on the
door? Was he really alone?
Was that noise coming from
inside the house?
What was that noise? Was
it something blowing in the
wind? No. there was no wind.
Not even enough to sound
Municipality of Huron -Kinloss
Waste & Blue Box Collection Schedule
December 2014 & January 2015
the wind chimes on his bal-
cony. No one at the door, at
least not the front door...
Dave walked slowly, warily,
to the back door, and jerked it
open. A man stood on the
other side, looking shocked to
see him, dressed head to toe in
a hazmat suit. Voice muffled
by his mask, the horrified man
demanded, "Why haven't you
evacuated? Do you under-
stand what's happening?"
My god! Was this it? Aliens
have finally landed. Dave gave
a small chuckle, and dis-
missed this thought as frivo-
lous. But it did seem rather
odd that the stranger had on a
hazmat suit. Maybe it was just
a gas leak, or a freight train
with chemicals had derailed.
Three more people in haz-
mat suits arrived. Together,
the four dressed him in a
suit, and took him to their
van. They were speculating
as to whether he might be
immune to the mysterious
illness that was decimating
the population. He might be
the key to finding a cure.
Dave was hustled into the
van. His breathing was shallow
and his heart racing. "Cure?"
He thought. "What were they
talldng about? One night had
made such a change not only to
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him but to his world?"
Dave felt a chill run down his
back. That was oddly followed
by beads of sweat as he began
to slowly overheat in the suit
that fully enclosed his body.
The bench along the side of the
van that he was directed to for-
tunately had an edge that he
could grip as the driver
dropped the van's transmission
into gear and accelerated
aggressively away. Dave caught
a glimpse of the neighborhood
he lived in through the front
windshield as they sped down
the familiar streets. Except there
was no one on those streets. No
early morning wallcers, no dog
walkers. And no lights on any-
where. Not even the hint of a
light made by human hand
anywhere... Until, after a half
hour of driving, he saw a house
that had one light on.
"Wait, turn around, one
house has a light on!" Dave
shouted.
The driver turned his head
to see the house and was sur-
prised to see the light. The
driver said to Dave, "Well,
there's more than one like
you, Dave... do you happen
to knowwho lives here?"
"Why of course," said Dave,
"That's my brother's house
Ah, but it wasn't! It just
looked like it, but it was
already too late.
CONTINUED > PAGE 7
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