Book of Days: A Novel Read Online Free PDF Page B

forget people too. You hadn't seen some of them in fifteen years."
    "I didn't remember a girlfriend I had for a year, a guy I played in a band with for two years."
    "You had no memory of them the whole time?"
    "No, I mean, yeah I did . . . but it took a while each time for the memories to kick in. It's like it was locked up somewhere in my mind. I stared at this person, knowing I should remember them and just couldn't."
    "And now you're thinking you're going to go down your dad's path?"
    "Yeah, but there's more. At the same time he told me my mind would start going, he said I had to find a book with all the days in it. That he saw this book when he was a kid. That when I found it, everything would make sense; everything would be all right."
    Ann didn't respond.
    Great. He needed video conferencing on his phone. Was she surprised? Amused? "Are you there?"
    "You're saying he was coherent when he laid all this Twilight Zone stuff on you?"
    "He was clear, Ann. It was only for a few moments, but he was all there."
    "It's been eight years since you had that conversation with him. Is there any chance time has tainted your memory of it? Given what you've, uh, been going through lately?"
    Maybe. It was a fair question. But Cameron knew what his dad had said.
    "No, I remember." He kicked at a rock, then said, "Here's where it gets a little bizarre. Jessie said the same thing on the day she died. She said I had to find a book, and if I did, it would be okay." Cameron swallowed hard. "What if they were talking about the same book?"
    "Jessie was on the verge of dying; the mind can come up with fantastical things in those moments."
    "But they both came up with the same story." Cameron shuffled back to his tent and sat next to it. "Jessie also said her stone was one of the keys to finding the book."
    Again, Ann didn't answer.
    "Did Jessie ever talk to you about a book or her stone?"
    "What does all this have to do with me, Cameron?"
    "I have to find the book. For my dad, for Jessie, for myself."
    "But why are you calling me about it?"
    "I need someone who knew Jessie to help me. Who might know something more about her story."
    "I don't think I'm the person you're looking for."
    "You know you are. Who else can I trust?" He scratched at the dirt with his forefinger. "Who else do I know who has a background in investigative reporting?"
    The silence lasted more than thirty seconds.
    Ann sighed. "What do you want me to do?"

    The next morning his cell phone shattered the silence. Who was calling this early? He fumbled through his pack to find his phone. Ann. Cameron unzipped his tent and glanced outside. Not a hint of dawn. He might be able to get back to sleep.
    He slid his Bluetooth over his ear. "Why are you calling me at this hour?"
    "I thought you wanted answers."
    "It's four forty-five, Ann."
    "My foster dad always said, 'Never any point in burning daylight.'"
    "It's not light," Cameron muttered.
    "Do you want to know what I've discovered or not?"
    He blinked and shook his head to wake up. "I want to know."
    "Your dad said he found this thing when he was a kid?"
    "Yes."
    "Did he ever talk with you about his childhood? His early childhood when he lived in Central Oregon, in a town called Three Peaks?"
    "No, I knew he grew up in Oregon . . . and I remembered him saying it was a strange time for him, but I didn't remember where. Where is Three Peaks?"
    "I just told you, Central Oregon."
    "Hey, I'm still waking up." Cameron crawled out of his tent and sat cross-legged.
    "How long did he live there?"
    "Till he was nine. What does this have to do with—?"
    "Remember what he said to you?"
    "About?" He scratched the back of his head.
    "Wake up, Cameron. You need to be on point for this. Your dad said he saw this book thing as a kid."
    "Yeah."
    "I got up early and dug through the Internet, grabbing everything I could find on Three Peaks, which wasn't a lot. But I did find one item worth mentioning."
    "What?" Cameron massaged his feet and