Читать книгу Forest Shadows - David Laing - Страница 13

They all crowded round the set listening. It was a news flash:

… the phenomenon was seen last night by several people near Cray Bay, a small fishing village on the west coast of Tasmania. According to witness reports, a large, flashing object was observed hovering above the town. Apparently, the object then proceeded to move slowly across the sky in a southerly direction where it disappeared. No clear explanation for the strange sight has been given. However, some theories have been forthcoming, one of which suggests we are being visited … by aliens.

Jars noticed the newsreader’s discomfort when he had to read the last bit of his announcement. It was as though he didn’t know whether to frown or smile. Then he concluded:

We will keep you informed as more information comes to hand.

Snook exploded from his chair. ‘Wicked! How cool is that? Whatcha reckon, Jars? Wanna go look for those aliens?’

‘Hmph,’ Quenton sneered, ‘that’s so stupid; there’s no such thing.’

‘Snook glared at him. ‘Oh, yeah? How would you know? Lots of people have seen UFOs. Even aliens.’

‘Little green men, you mean? Hah! That’s brainless.’‘Well, I don’t care what you think. It’s possible they’re true so I wanna go look for whatever’s out there. Whatcha reckon, Jars?’

Jars smiled to herself. Here we go again, she thought. Another one of Snook’s wild ideas. ‘You realise,’ she said, ‘that the lights could have been caused by any number of things? Like space junk, weather balloons, meteors, even aircraft.’

‘Yeah, and it might even be a UFO,’ Snook continued. Then, seeing Jars’ skeptical look added, ‘Anyway, it wouldn’t hurt to look, even if it was junk or one of those other things.’

‘It’s not that. The announcer said the thing, or whatever, was heading south. So, if it was a UFO, it’d be far gone by now.’ She glanced at her watch. ‘Anyway, it’s after five. That’s far too late to be going anywhere. We need to fix dinner for your dad and Arnie. They’ll be home soon.’

‘Yeah,’ Snook mumbled, ‘I suppose you’re right.’

Jars, with Shadow following, headed for the kitchen.

Snook turned to Quenton. He jerked a finger towards the front door. ’We’ve got work to do so you’d better take off.’

Jars was already getting cooking utensils out of the kitchen cupboard when Snook joined her. He drew out a chair and sat. Eventually, he said, ‘What if it is aliens visiting us? What if they are true? It’d be awesome if we found ’em. Why don’t we go lookin’ after dinner?’

Smiling to herself, Jars could feel his excitement. ‘Let’s see if there’s any more news before we do anything. You know, play it by ear.’

‘Okay.’ He slapped a fist into his palm. ‘But if there is any news about aliens bein’ around here, I’m gonna go find ’em.’

Shadow, who had settled under the kitchen table, lifted his head, ears cocked. He thumped his tail on the floor. Something was going on.