Seventh Island Light

By Christopher Setterlund

What began as a last hurrah at his grandparents' cottage on 7th Island quickly turns into a race against time. On a cool mid-November night along the coast of Maine evil lurks. After witnessing a horrible crime Blake Jackson must escape the island chain by any means necessary before he becomes the next victim.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christopher Setterlund
• Release date: Jan 30, 2011
• ISBN: 9781458036599

Christopher Setterlund

My name is Christopher Setterlund and I was born and raised on Cape Cod. Being the oldest of five siblings, and coming from a large family mixed of many different nationalities, I enjoyed hearing the stories my elder relatives would tell. I was a born storyteller from the time I was eight years old and writing tales of adventures that my friends and I would take. As time went on my passion changed to film and producing, even going to college with the intention of becoming a film director. Still, throughout all of my time making my own home movies with my friends it was the stories that I enjoyed creating the most. Nothing is better for me than creating your own world or characters and bringing them to life.After losing interest in directing I spent much of my twenties writing poetry that described my world and emotions surrounding it, it was quite a growing experience to be able to open my heart but also do it in a concise and interesting way. Eventually I wanted to try my hand at taking the chains off of my mind and creating a full-length story complete with many interesting characters and a great plot. Second Coming was that story and since then I have never looked back.My biggest hope for all of you that choose to read my books is that you will be able to lose yourself in the world I create; sights, sounds, and emotions. Much the same as I did with my poetry I do not limit myself in one specific genre of writing; I want my words to reach as many people as possible and realize that different people like different types of stories. I believe that there is something for everyone in my collection, and if there is not keep checking back because I have many more books to come in the coming months and years. Thank you for taking a chance on my books, you will not be disappointed.

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Seventh Island Light

Christopher Setterlund

Smashwords Edition

Copyright 2011 Christopher Setterlund

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Smashwords Edition, License Notes

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Special thanks to Emily Jackson, your inspiration helped get this book off the ground.

Everybody has a special place. It’s a place that when spoken of, or thought of, only brings happiness and smiles to your face. Everybody has a special place filled with memories; usually it is a place from childhood taken into adulthood. For most people that childhood place now only exists in the theater of the mind. How many people would give anything for one last trip down memory lane? How many people would love a chance to see that cherished place one last time?

For Blake Jackson that cherished childhood memory was his Nana and Grampa Jackson’s summer cottage on 6th Island along the mid-coast of Maine. The cottage had been a gift from Nana Jackson’s wealthy family upon their wedding just after World War II and Blake had spent a week there every summer from the time he was five-years old. It was that one week out fifty-two in a year that he looked forward to the most. How he loved the cookouts, swimming in the slightly-cool ocean waters, and falling asleep to the sounds of the ocean waves.

Mostly however, Blake loved the many memories he created alongside his parents, his brother Dan, and his grandparents. That tradition had continued all the way through high school. Even when Nana and Grampa Jackson had gotten too old to do much more than sit and rock in their chairs on the porch Blake never thought that there would come a time when the cottage and the memories would be a thing of the past.

Things changed four-years ago when Grampa had a stroke and had to be put in a nursing home. Nana lost all interest in visiting the cottage on 6th Island without Grampa and the family felt it was not right to continue the tradition of spending a week there in the summer without the family’s patriarch and matriarch. Well, almost everyone in the family agreed except for Blake’s Uncle Mike who decided that he would front the money to buy the cottage from Nana and Grampa to help pay for their increasing health problems.

What seemed like a noble gesture at first only managed to tear the family apart. Uncle Mike, having spent his own money to but the cottage felt that it was only fair that he and he alone get to spend time out on 6th Island. However, he was ‘kind enough’ to offer it for a tidy price. Uncle Mike’s greed made him an outcast from the rest of family.

Blake hadn’t thought about the cottage on 6th Island since Uncle Mike had bought it, but things changed in the past week. Blake received a phone call from his mother alerting him to the fact that the cottage was set to be torn down the Monday after Thanksgiving as 6th Island had been severely eroded to the point where the cottage was a large storm or two away from washing away. The town of Bear Rock, Maine where the islands originated from had decided to be proactive and tear the cottage down first.

Blake’s mother had called to inform her son of the end of the cottage as much as she had called to gloat about the fact that since Uncle Mike had conveniently forgotten to pay taxes on the property after buying it he was not going to get reimbursed one cent for losing it. As much as Blake enjoyed hearing that his uncle was getting what he deserved for his harsh treatment of his own flesh and blood he could not help but wish for one more night in the cottage on 6th Island.

A few days passed, Blake had tossed around the idea in his head, when he finally decided on it. He would sneak out to 6th Island and enjoy his grandparents’ cottage one last time. Sure, it was not July, it was November and the average temperatures along mid-coast Maine during that time of year was fifty degrees he still felt that this was something that he needed for closure.

There was no way that he would tell his parents about his plan; they would only try to talk him out of it. Not that there was much they could do since they still lived down in southern Mississippi where Blake had grown up. He had been living in Maine’s state capital of Augusta since graduating college two-years earlier. He had only intended on staying in Maine until graduating but once he arrived he fell in love with the place. It was a more manageable one hour drive to Bear Rock for him.

Even though they were close Blake also couldn’t tell his brother Dan for fear that it might slip out in conversation. Dan had a knack for spilling secrets. In fact it was Dan who had been first to tell their parents that Blake had been accepted into Central Maine University six-years earlier. They had to pretend to be surprised when Blake came in with the good news.

The only person that knew of the plan was Blake’s roommate Alan Bocc. They had become fast friends when college began and stayed roommates after graduating Central Maine University. Blake knew that Alan would keep his mouth shut about sneaking out to 6th Island. Besides, Blake had plenty of secrets about Alan that he was holding onto just in case something slipped out.

Blake finished his day at District 3 Elementary School where he was in his first year of full-time teaching the Monday before Thanksgiving. He requested a ‘personal day’ for the next day, citing that he had family plans. Knowing that there was a half-day Wednesday meant that Blake was free and clear from work for six days. Blake’s excitement for one last hurrah on 6th Island grew from the moment he woke up on Tuesday morning.

All of the necessities had been taken care of after work the night before. All Blake had to do was drive out to Bear Rock the rest was already in motion. Still, Alan had been trying to dissuade Blake from going out on this adventure even though he had a big hand in helping him set the plans up. For his part Blake offered Alan a chance to join him; Alan continued to politely refuse.

Morning turned to afternoon and Blake began the chore of packing. He was not packing much as it had been one of the warmest summers on record in Maine which led directly into one of the warmest autumns as well. It had topped seventy degrees more in the current month of November than in the past ten Novembers combined. In fact