The Long Summer

By Mark T. Wayne

Mark T. Waynes The Long Summer is heartfelt adventure story of a fourteen-year-old boy, Cody, entering an awkward age and just beginning to have difficulties relating and communicating with his father. When Cody finds himself lost in the rain forest along Canadas southwestern shoreline, he is saved by a creature not just of another culture but of an entirely different species, a creature of same relative age, having the same problems with his father.

It is not until Cody understands the relationship between his savior and his saviors father that he understands his own relationship with his father.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Apr 22, 2016
• ISBN: 9781514486603

Book preview

Copyright © 2016 by Mark T. Wayne.

Library of Congress Control Number:   2016906385

ISBN:   Hardcover   978-1-5144-8662-7

Softcover   978-1-5144-8661-0

eBook   978-1-5144-8660-3

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted

in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system,

without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the

product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance

to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

Rev. date: 10/24/2016

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CONTENTS

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Cody thought he was going on a fishing adventure. He had no idea that it was to be the adventure of a lifetime.

Now, only Cody knows the truth of what lurks in the woods. But why won’t he tell what he knows?

I dedicate this book to all my children, grandchildren, great nieces, and great nephews. It was their inspiration that guided me through until completion of this, my first book.

I also write this in loving memory of Cody Cornelison, who I know would have loved this story.

A Cornelison and Son’s ink, Original Manuscript

Original copy, containing 52,723 words

November 2015 All rights reserved

Researchers excavating an ancient cave in Siberia, known as the Denisova Cave, unearthed a tooth, two and a half times the size of a modern human’s molar. The tooth was thought to be that of a prehistoric bear, or a giant sloth, and was set aside until further analyses could be done. Some years later, the large tooth proved to be that of a large human, a race of giants now known as the Denisovans that lived some 30,000 years ago.

It is also believed that, the Denisovans migrated across the Bering Strait land mass that existed when the sea levels were considerably lower, and into North America. Some believed that, after migrating, this huge race of giants assimilated with other cultures of people, and eventually became responsible for building the large burial mounds found across America’s heartland. Others believed that, although they may, or may not have been responsible for building the burial mounds, this race of giants simply died due to assimilation, disease, or natural disaster.

Yet, others believed that this race of giants still live, and have been told about in stories and legends of wild men such as Big Foot; Sasquatch; Yeti, the skunk ape; and other creatures said to be seen around the world and in every culture.

PROLOGUE

Cody was a typical twelve-year-old. He was an only child, living in a small Idaho town with his mother and father. His mother worked in a health food store, while his father was a construction worker. Cody was close to his father, and they enjoyed the things fathers and sons enjoy. But being a young boy, just entering his teen years and puberty, Cody and his father also struggled to relate with one another every now and then.

In the spring of Cody’s sixth grade year, Cody’s father found an opportunity to work in Alaska for an independent expedition company, testing and locating mineral and oil reserves. Cody acted indifferent to the fact that his father would be gone working in Alaska for the summers, but the truth was that, it shook Cody in ways he did not understand.

The day that Cody’s father was to leave, Cody refused to go to the airport, telling his parents that he had to go to school. Cody’s mother offered to take Cody to school after seeing his father off from the Twin Falls airport, but Cody said that he could not be late that morning. Cody’s mother knew Cody’s heart, and she also knew that he was hurting and mixed up, but she didn’t know what to do and let Cody stay home to catch the bus to school.

Cody sat playing video games as his mother and father readied themselves to go. Cody’s father tried to talk to his son, but Cody was unresponsive and acted as if he was too busy. Cody’s indifference hurt his father, and the boy’s father continued trying to talk to his son, promising Cody that he would fly him up for a fishing trip or some other adventure. Cody’s heart pounded at a chance to go fishing in Alaska, but he did everything in his power not to show his excitement. Before leaving, his father told Cody he loved him, and then gave Cody a long heartfelt hug, but Cody refused to put down his video game controller and never took his eyes off the television.

As soon as Cody’s mother and father walked out of the house, Cody quickly threw down his controller, ran to the front door and peered out through the window, watching his parents pull away and drive down their driveway. He watched the driveway for what seemed a long while, hoping they would suddenly come back, but of course they did not.

Cody left the window and walked into his parents’ room. There he stood cautiously looking around before opening his father’s dresser drawers. Cody felt shocked at seeing them empty. He checked the closet, and also found his father’s things gone. His world suddenly seemed to spin as his eyes began to tear up. He quickly wiped away the tears, furious with himself for such a foolish display of emotion. The anger felt better than the pain, at least that is what he told himself, and he let the pain of his father’s leaving turn to anger.

Cody wiped the last of his tears from his eyes, grabbed his backpack, and ran out of the house to catch the school bus. Once the bus stopped, Cody boarded but walked past his friend, Ryan. Ryan was a stocky, freckled-faced kid that everyone liked, with the exception of a few of the older kids, who rode the same bus to school; the kids whom Ryan and Cody considered as bullies. Ryan called out to Cody as he walked past him, asking him where he thought he was going. Cody just kept going and sat next to Jennifer, Billy Mathew’s girlfriend. Billy was the biggest bully of them all.

Have you bumped your head? Ryan yelled out to his friend, looking shocked.

Don’t worry. He won’t be here when Billy show’s up, Jennifer said laughing.

Cody never said a word, not even when his friend Ryan tried to pull him from the seat at the next stop. It was at that stop that Billy boarded the bus, and Ryan tried to make excuses for his friend’s actions. When Billy saw Cody sitting on his seat next to his girlfriend, he turned beet red, walked over and punched Cody in his chest hard enough to echo throughout the entire bus. Billy then quickly grabbed Cody and practically threw him from the seat before quickly sitting down.

Without saying a word, and gasping for air, Cody slowly walked to his seat next to Ryan as the entire bus seemed to erupt in laughter. Cody never lifted his tear-filled eyes to his friend as he sat down, and Ryan acted as if he had not noticed his friend’s silent sobs.

Hey, look, the little gooney is crying, Billy Mathew yelled out.

The little fat one does look like Chunk from the Gooneys, someone else yelled as the bus seemed to erupt in laughter again. Hey, you guys!

Ryan never said a word as he sat loyally next to his friend, still acting as if he hadn’t noticed Cody’s tears.

Cody’s father came home that winter and things seemed to quickly return to normal, but he left again the next spring, and the year after. Cody was now fourteen and more confused than ever. Every time his father left was like the first. It seemed he was becoming more and more unable to relate to his father, and he was sure his father would never understand him or his feelings.

*   *   *   *   *

CHAPTER 1

"But Mom, I don’t wanna go! yelled the breaking voice of a teenage boy through his closed bedroom door. If Dad wants to spend time with me, why doesn’t he come home to do it?"

You know your father has to work.

He’s always working, and I don’t even like fishing!

Look baby.

I’m not your baby! And I don’t want TO GO!

It was my idea. Your dad wanted to come home, but I told him I thought it would be nice if he could spend some time alone with you.

Alaska, of all places! They have mosquitoes as big as crows, and bears everywhere. You want me to walk around the woods carrying fish on my back with all those bears!

Look, if you don’t want to go, call your father and let him know so he can plan a trip coming home instead. But I wish you would at least consider it.

After hearing his mother’s footsteps disappear, fourteen-year old Cody opened his bedroom door and looked down the hall. Seeing the path was clear, he quickly grabbed his over-stuffed backpack, ran down the hall and out the front door. He quickly grabbed his bicycle and started pedaling down the street to his friend Chunk’s house. Chunk’s real name was Ryan, but everyone started calling him Chunk after seeing the movie The Goonies, and the day after Cody sat on Billy Mathew’s seat on the bus. Ryan was a stocky, freckled-faced kid, who did somehow resembled Chunk’s character in the movie. He hated being called by this new nickname at first, but somehow learned to accept, and even embrace it; and now even his own parents call him Chunk.

Chunk was at the same awkward age as Cody, and was also going through the same problems with his parents. Neither of the boys could understand why their parents would just assume they wanted to do the things that their parents wanted them to do. Both boys had decided that people must lose some part of their brain as they age, because it seemed no one past the age of thirty had any idea what the modern world was like.

After arriving at Chunk’s house, Cody found his friend waiting outside for him with a couple of fishing poles, an ancient tackle box, and an old backpack that looked like it had been stored outside for the last several years.

Hurry! Chunk said as he stuffed the fishing poles and tackle box in the well-used backpack. My dad’s asleep and I wanna git outta-ere before he wakes up.

What about bait? Cody asked.

I got corn, Chunk yelled, looking back over his shoulder from his bike.

The two boys blissfully rode their bikes down a country road, racing past each other along knee-high corn fields in the warm summer breeze. They would laugh as one would pass the other, each pedaling as hard as they could. They turned onto a dirt road along a canal bank full of fast moving murky water, and slowed to talk to one another.

My dad’s gonna be so mad when he wakes up, Chunk said between gasps and deep breaths of air.

Why? Cody asked.

He wants to work on my truck.

Cool! Cody excitedly answered as he also gasped for air, When ya gonna git it runnin’?

Chunk scrunched up face as he looked at Cody, He jist yells at me whenever we work on it, Chunk said, looking back at the dirt road before them. He wants me to do everything and gits mad if I even git a drink of water or somethin’!

I wish I had that truck. I’d work on it every day. I wouldn’t even care if your dad yelled at me, Cody said, looking back at Chunk with a faraway look in his eyes. That truck’s so cool!

Chunk looked at Cody with confusion in his eyes, and then began racing down the dirt road again.

Hey, wait up! Cody yelled, as he stood on his pedals, pumping as quickly as he could.

The two boys skidded to a stop at the edge of Rock Creek Canyon, a small canyon that dumps into the much larger Snake River Canyon near Twin Falls, Idaho. They pushed their bikes into some tall sage brush to conceal them, and started their walk down to the canyon.

Let’s go to the bridge, Cody said.

I want to go to-da pipeline where your dad said he use-ta catch ’em.

Now Cody scrunched up his face, My dad ain’t been fishin’ there for a hundred years. Ain’t no fish there, he said.

It won’t hurt-ta try. Besides, my dad knows about the bridge and I don’t want him ta see us, Chunk said, looking toward the bridge.

Cody reluctantly followed Chunk to the pipe line. They unloaded their backpacks and set up a little camp as if they were spending days there. Although it was warm, they made a rock fire pit and lit a small fire.

You wanna eat before we start fishin’? Cody asked.

Whad-ja bring? Chunk excitedly asked as he rubbed his hands together.

I got some of them little tattors, onions, peppers, hominy, a couple pork chops, and a bottle of Tabasco sauce. I thought we’d cook up some of that hash stuff like my dad always makes.

Cook it now, I love that stuff, Chunk said, still rubbing his hands together and now trying to make the slurping sound that Hannibal Lector made in the Silence of the Lambs.

The boys sat by their fire cutting up and preparing their breakfast. They laughed, giggled, and poked fun at one another as they always did. They argued about how to cook the food on the fire, where to place the pan, and what to heat, fry, or roast first. Chunk wanted it cooked just like Cody’s father would cook it, but Cody had his own ideas of how it should be prepared. As the boys enjoyed their breakfast, other than the sound of the small creek babbling as it tumbled over rocks, a comfortable silence fell over the two.

Your dad still in Alaska? Chunk asked parting the silence.

Yeah. He wants me ta go up there an’ go fishin’ with ’em, Cody answered, looking away as he poked at the fire with a stick. Cody knew Chunk would not understand him not wanting to go.

NO WAY! Chunk blurted out excitedly as he jumped up from his place by the fire, When ya leavin’?

I ain’t goin’, Cody said, still not looking at Chunk.

What! You must have bumped your head! You’d rather sit around here catchin’ little bitty trout with me than catchin’ monsters in Alaska! I seen ’em catchin’ fish so big they had ta use cranes ta get ’em on the boat. I’ll go if you don’t wanna! Chunk said almost yelling at Cody.

Cody tried to change the subject and began stringing his fishing pole. But Chunk was beside himself with excitement. Chunk followed Cody around never even putting his pole together.

You know there’s gold in Alaska? They say you can just pick it up. One guy found a nugget that weighed like, 400 pounds or somethin’. You could catch monsters and come back rich! Alaska, of all places! I can’t believe you’re not goin’, Chunk went on as if in a dream.

I guess, Cody said, looking away again, Are we gonna catch some fish, or what?

Chunk strung his pole and opened the can of corn to be used as bait. He went on and on about things he