Ghost River by Jon Coon (best non fiction books of all time TXT) 📕

into the steel from the main span. He stopped occasionally to put Carol’s hand on the steel hoping to give her a sense of orientation. Ten minutes down he could tell she was getting it. Her breathing was slowing, and her grip was relaxing. Good.

Gabe now knew Corbitt’s boat was buried under the steel bridge, which was why they had not seen it thus far. But getting down to the boat would only be necessary to recover the body. To speak to Corbitt’s soul he just had to be close. He squeezed Carol’s hand twice: stop. He quietly prayed the astronaut’s prayer: “Lord, please, please don’t let me screw this up,” and he was ready. He raised his arm and spoke. “Wilson Corbitt, awake!”

At first nothing happened, and his heart sank; maybe it only worked when he was alone? Maybe he was nuts, and all these years it had just been his overactive imagination? Perhaps life was only a cruel joke?

Then supernatural light flashed. They could see the bottom as though the water had been drained. Beneath the twisted steel bridge was a mangled workboat. From it came gossamer light, emanating from Wilson Corbitt’s emerging ghost. As they watched the light took form, revealing the young engineer as he had been fifteen years ago. Corbitt looked at them both as though they were expected.

“Wilson, can you help us? Can you tell us what happened and what we need to put an end to this nightmare?”

“It was Peterson and Rogers. I think Conners was in on it too, but I didn’t see him. They called me out here for a conference. We tied up the boat, and then they dropped the lift span on us. It was so fast, we didn’t have a chance.”

“You said ‘we.’ Who was with you?”

“Nancy Bodine, my fiancée. She’s in the boat too. Please, send her to me if you can. Please.”

“Of course.” Gabe saw light coming downriver. Time was limited. “We know Peterson was rigging bids with McFarland. We were told you had proof. Do you still have it?”

“Yes. Everything is in my Pelican case. Two sets of plans. Different price tags. Be careful. We found out what they were doing, and look where it got us.”

The iridescent light was becoming brighter.

“They’re coming for me, aren’t they?”

“Yes, but don’t be afraid.”

“Oh, I’m not. I’ve been ready for a long time now. I’m just worried about Nancy.”

“Where is that case, Wilson?”

“Nancy hid it in the boat. Find her. She’ll tell you. Tell her I love her.”

There was no more time. The six-winged angels wrapped him in their radiance. As they left the river bottom their light intensified until it was too painful to see. Carol put up her hand to shield her eyes. Gabe did the same and said, “Go in peace, Wilson. And thank you.”

Like a shooting star, the light shown brightly, then burned out. Wilson and his angels were gone. The bone-chilling cold and the deep black of ghost river remained. But for the first time, Gabe was not alone. A new life, full of new promise and challenges, was waiting. Gabe held Carol close.

Now it was time to go home. Together.

Alone, the gear stashed, and Jim happily on his way back to the dive locker, they sat on a tarp by the water’s edge and drank hot chocolate from a thermos.

“I would never have believed it!” Carol said, “If we can talk with the dead, what else is out there?”

“Remember in the Lord’s prayer, the line that goes, ‘Protect us from evil’? The earliest translation was, ‘Protect us from the evil one.’ That should give us a clue. We may have a limited view of what’s normal.”

“I didn’t know.”

“It’s easier to deny evil than to face it. Something to think about.”

When they were in the cruiser on the way back to the river camp, she asked, “What did Wilson mean, ‘Pelican case’?”

“Waterproof cases. Divers and boaters use them. They seal very well and are tough. My guess is whatever’s in that case is still in good shape.”

“One more question, the business with the light, which let us see everything, how does that work?”

“Alethea calls it ‘post tennebras lux.’ It’s Latin for ‘after darkness, light.’ She thinks it’s a big deal. I have no idea how it works. It just happens.”

“Alethea knows?”

“Yeah, long story. We’ll get there later.”

“So what’s next? Find Nancy, his fiancée?”

“As soon as we can. In the meantime we keep each other safe and solve this thing.”

“Does that mean you’re not ready to send us home?”

“Nothing gets past you, does it?” he laughed.

“Well, here’s something that didn’t: you lured me on the dive telling me you want there to be an ‘us.’ Were you serious?”

He turned to smile at her, “Serious? Of course I’m serious.” He wanted to tell her based on his analytical evaluation of the situation and his consultation with old Ben, and he’d determined it would be mutually beneficial for them to pursue a relationship. But on second thought, perhaps bringing up Ben wasn’t his best option at the moment. “I want you to know everything before we cross any lines. And we need to wait long enough for the kids to get comfortable with the idea.”

“Is this your idea of a proposal?” She was smiling, but there was that look again. It told him in no uncertain terms he’d left something out, something important.

“Ah, yeah I think so, kind of a pre-proposal proposal.”

“What if Paul never gets comfortable with us?” One side of her smile was curling down, not a good sign.

“Then I guess we’ll have to wait.”

“How about the dogs. Do we need to ask them too?”

“They already love you—”

“Then how about the weather. If it’s raining, do we still get married?”

“I just think it’s important the kids are okay with us.”

“Jerk. You won’t get away hiding behind Paul. I’ll wait as long as we need to, but then, with or without Paul’s approval, or the weather, or the dogs, I want a ring and a