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. That s awesome! Justin grabbed me and gave me a bear hug. Ben and I need to get back to Fallon today, but I ll call youand we can work out the details.There are some things you canhave or sell and other things I want saved.140SUBJECT 13 Thanks, Luke. Justin hugged me again. You have no ideahow much this is going to help me.It s pretty tough living at homeand trying to get laid.Ben turned beet red, and I couldn t hold in a snicker. I know exactly what you re talking about, I said beforelaughing loudly.* * *Ben and I walked into the Pershing County Sheriff s Office andthe dispatcher at the front window instantly recognized us.Jackiewas a small woman and we d gone to school with her daughters.She hugged us both before sending us down to Sheriff Skinner soffice.Before we got to the office, Ben s other brother, Jarrett,stepped into the hallway.Jarrett had been a deputy sheriff for justover a year. Hey, Ben, Jarrett said as he extended his hand. Dad said youwere in town. How re you doing, Jarrett? Ben shook his brother s hand. I m doing okay.Why re you in town? Luke needed some help, Ben answered. You rememberLuke, don t you?Jarrett nodded at me.He d never liked me and it wasn t a lossas far as I was concerned. Ben, why don t you talk to your brother while I talk to yourdad? Ben nodded and I walked down to the sheriff s office.Ilooked back to see Ben following Jarrett down the hallway andpresumably outside.The door was open, but I knocked anyway.Sheriff Skinner141SUBJECT 13looked up and waved me in. Sit down, Luke, he said. What can I do for you? I m hoping you can help me with something. I sat down andleaned forward. When I was young, I used to have nightmares. About the green men right? Blue men, I corrected. The dreams went away, but theycame back when I went to Fallon.They returned with a vengeance.They were stronger and more terrifying than they had been.The sheriff leaned forward on his desk, but said nothing. The dreams got stronger and I was able to focus on certainthings. This is all very interesting, Skinner said,  but what do youthink I can do about it? I think the dreams are actually memories.Memories of my lifebefore Lovelock, before you found me.Skinner was scrutinizing my face, but didn t say a word. I think I lived in Oasis.Skinner tried to hide his surprise, but I saw it before he coveredit up. You know what Oasis is, don t you?Sheriff Skinner nodded. Everyone in Oasis died, except for ahandful of people.All the deaths were accounted for.There wereno missing identities. My memories are very strong, Sheriff.They are not justhallucinations. I m sure you believe what you re saying, but I don t see howit could be possible.He wasn t telling the truth.I could see it on his face and hear itin his voice.He was lying to me and I had no idea why. Why do you think you lived in Oasis?142SUBJECT 13A gut instinct told me I shouldn t tell him about our trip intoOasis, so I made up a story. Ben told me all about Oasis, and I dida lot of research.I found pictures of the pod houses and I just feltlike& like I d been there as a child.I even pictured where I lived.Skinner laughed uncomfortably. That s hardly proof, Luke.You ve always had a wild imagination. But isn t it possible, Sheriff? Based on where you found me. No, I don t think it is possible. Where did you find me? I asked. I ve told you this story dozens of times, Luke.You knowwhere I found you. Remind me, I replied. The northern part of Great Basin.In the middle of nowhere.You were in the sagebrush, so I almost didn t see you. Nowhere near the eastern side by the Coleman Caves? Thetrees I saw in my memory could ve been near that set of caves,though I wasn t sure.A wave of fear flashed across Skinner s face before hecomposed himself and gave me a blank stare. No, it was thenorthern part.That s where I liked to ride my four-wheeler.When I left Sheriff Skinner s office, I was certain he had beenlying, but I was baffled as to why he had done so.I knew I wasn tgoing to get any more answers in Lovelock, but I wasn t surewhere the answers were or how I was going to get them.As I stepped outside, I saw Jarrett get into his patrol car andpeel off.I looked at Ben and could tell he was upset.I ran to himand put my hand on his shoulder.He shook it off and spun around. Luke, fuck, I m sorry.Jarrett got me so goddamn pissed Ican t see straight.Can we get the hell out of here? Of course, let s go.143SUBJECT 13Ben threw me the keys to his truck and we left town.A fewmiles out of town, Ben finally spoke. Jarrett s an asshole. That s hardly a shocker, I replied. No, you don t get it.He s a homophobic asshole. Benslammed a fist down on the dashboard. He s furious Justin is gay [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]