The Evergreen Enigma

Part Two: The Book

                                                                                  Part Two: The Book

     Filled with shock, Dexter laid down his camera. His hands were beginning to shake; not from fear of what resided in the house, however. His anxiety rooted from the book, staring into his eyes. He held up his trembling hands and swiped his fingers along the title of the book, removing a thick layer of dust and clarifying the letters. Without picking it up, the curious boy flipped open the book, revealing its worn out pages, yellowed with age. The smell of the old book, due to the breakdown of the chemicals in the paper, was a sweet smell that sent chills skipping across his skin, the aroma resembling a cross between almonds and vanilla. A scientific, official word didn't exist to describe the smell that he adored so much, and that was admirable to him. He'd always loved things that couldn't be explained.

     As he thumbed through the pages of the book, certain words stuck out in his mind. Things like "beautiful" and "peaceful," "greenery" and "flowers." However as the book went on, the words Dexter saw strayed away from wildlife and directed towards people. Descriptions like "tanned skin, dark hair," "strong build, tired eyes." Becoming more intrigued by the second, he skimmed on, making his way into the war. As he continued to read, he felt himself beginning to know the characters, the islanders indigenous to the land, and his heart broke for them as his eyes danced over every tragically written word.

     "She told me she had never left the island. She had tears in her eyes, slipping down her cheeks, and she looked so terrified. This girl stood in front of a forked road: she could give up her home and live, or she could try to defend it and possibly die trying."

     Dexter quickly flipped the page, trying to find the happy ending that he hoped was there. As he neared the end, he found what he was looking for; through the written words, Dexter learned that the girl and her people were successful in fending off their invaders. Though the fight ended in a bloodbath with few surviving from the American team of modern conquistadores, the islanders succeeded with very few casualties.

     "After it was over, she looked at me, her son by her side, and she smiled with tears in her eyes. The only thing she could talk about from that point on was how she survived, and how her people fought for their home. Everyone could learn a thing or two from them; not every story ends in a happily ever after, but if we fight hard enough, we can get close."

     Soaking in the ending of the wonderful book, and not understanding why anyone would ever prevent the final message from being published, Dexter glanced down at his clock. The hour hand was facing almost the four o'clock mark, and the minute hand a bit past the forty-five, almost forming a straight line. It was 3:47 in the morning, but Dexter's adventurous spirit and searching soul counteracted his exhaustion. After the final pages in the story, he arrived at the author's note; between that page and the next was a map folded into a small rectangle. Reading the note, and plucking the map from between the pages, the boy was astounded. It told about how "Evergreen" was based off of a true story, and how the unknown island with the threatened people truly existed. However, rather than the war ending, it was still happening; a lot less violently, but the battle for the island was actually taking place. Written in red pen, in the familiar scratchy handwriting that had been plastered on the walls of the house, there was a date and a note: "January 27th, 1967: The only original copy of "Evergreen" ever to be printed."

     Dexter's amazement only grew at this point, and suddenly a massive feeling of honor overcame him. He was touching, reading, looking through the only original copy of this book to have ever been printed or read; he was the only person in the world, besides the writer himself, to have known about this story in its entirety. That both broke his heart and brought it joy; broke it because he was the only one who could enjoy the words, and brought it joy because he had the opportunity to be touched by the story. Taking his hands off of the book, still reeking of the wonderful and unexplained smell, Dexter unfolded the map. It was zoomed in on the continent of Europe, exposing a small country called Latvia; he had heard of it, but didn't know much on the topic. Off the coast of Latvia, a tiny spec lay, circled in red pen repeatedly. Written beside it was the word "Evergreen." The island existed in an undesirable location, one that was almost entirely secluded, and Dexter had no doubt in his mind that it truly was undiscovered until now with the people trying to overtake it.

     It was in that moment that Dexter Sampson came to two conclusions: the island of Evergreen truly did exist, and Carter Renaldo, who'd lived in that house, hadn't been trying to steal its resources and make a quick buck- he was trying to save it and its people.