Free A Tale from the Hills by Terry Hayden Page A

looked into the old man’s eyes and they were glazed and shining. If only he could scream he would wake himself up from this terrible dream. No sounds would come. His sight and hearing were the only senses that would function properly, and both of them were keen to a fault.
    Finally the old man spoke again, this time in a softer voice.
    “I will talk to you again son. Soon, very soon. The next time that we talk you will know what I want and you will understand.”
    He vanished into thin air, and that instant William woke up. He woke up next to his mother’s grave and he was terrified. He had never met or dreamed about anyone before who was as sinister and threatening as that old man. He knew that the old man wanted something from him but he was sure that he had nothing to bargain with. He was scared and confused and he felt like his plan had fallen apart. The old man must have known what he was going to do, and he appeared to put a stop to it.
    William gathered up the old quilt and sneaked back into the house. He got back into bed beside of Alan and lay there trembling for what seemed like hours. He finally fell asleep again, this time without dreams.
    The next day he had only vague recollections of the night before. Unlike his dreams about Alice, his last terrifyingdream was shadowy and mystical. He had to concentrate to even remember the dream at all. Maybe none of it happened. Maybe he slept in bed all night and never even rustled the covers. He had almost convinced himself of that until he noticed the fresh grass stain on the old patchwork quilt. Then he remembered as much as his psyche would allow.
    The bad dreams about Alice disappeared that night. He tried to dream about her but no dreams would come. He slept through the night and awoke each morning rested and tranquil. He still thought about Alice everyday, but the old man from his last bad dream was a distant memory.
    ***********
    Chapter Three  
    The family was happy that the old William was back with them, emotionally as well as physically. After all of those years since the tragedy, everything finally appeared to be getting back to normal. Joseph and Josh were hardly ever at home except to sleep, and Alan was there less and less. His relationship with the boss’s daughter was blossoming into something serious. Talk around the house nowadays revolved around which one of the brothers would be leaving first. Even though Joseph was the oldest, it was possible that he might not be the first to leave the nest. But he had not told his daddy and his brothers that he had been checking into houses for rent. That would be a surprise along with the other news.
    The lazy days of Summer were coming to an end and for William that meant that school was on the horizon. He looked forward to it with bittersweet feelings. It would be sad without the encouragement and support of Alice, and he was going to miss Miss Coalson’s smile and angelic voice as well. But his life was in transition and he looked forward to starting over fresh and new. Since the nightmares had passed, he was exploring the world around him a little bit more each day. He felt confident and unafraid of what might be waiting around the curves up ahead. He walked almost as far as the school a couple of times, but he could not make himself cross the footbridge where Alice lost her life. He decided that since he would be going to school alone, that he would cross the trestle instead of using the bridge. No one would know any differently and he was sure that he could outrun the slow moving train if he had to do so. He was almost twelve years old and he felt like he could take care of himself.
    The week before school brought transition to the rest of the Hill family as well. Joseph announced that he was getting married on Friday, and he and his new wife would be moving to Abingdon. The family met his fiance, Amy Cardwell, several weeks earlier, and they agreed that she was perfect for Joseph. She was hardworking and