Farewell Summer ~ Ray Bradbury - Marimarister

Douglas fell back, afraid that she might touch him again. She laughed, her face merry.
―So there!‖ she cried. ―That‘ll fix you.‖
She turned and ran away and left him in the invisible rain, a terrible storm, shaken, his
whole body now hot, now cold, his jaw dropped, his lips trembling.
The explosion of the lightning bolt hit him again in memory, even stronger than when it
had first struck.
Slowly, Doug felt himself sink to his knees, his head shaking, his mind wondering at
what had happened and where Lisabell had gone.
He looked up at the now truly empty house. He wondered if he should go up the stairs
and find out if maybe he hadn‘t just come out of the house himself.
―Tom,‖ he whispered. ―Take me home.‖ And then he remembered: Tom wasn‘t there.
He turned, stumbled, almost fell down into the ravine, and tried to find his way home.
Quartermain woke laughing.
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
He lay wondering what in god-awful hell had made him happy. What was the dream,
gone now, but so wondrous that it cracked his face and uncorked something resembling a
chuckle beneath his ribs!? Holy Jesus. What?
In the dark he dialed Bleak.
―Do you know what time it is?‖ Bleak cried. ―There‘s only one thing you ever wait half
the night to churn my guts with—your stupid war. I thought you said the damned thing was
over!‖
―It is, it is. ‖
―It is what?‖ shouted Braling.
―Over,‖ said Quartermain. ―There are just a few more things I want to make sure of. It‘s
what you would call the joyful aftermath. Bleak, remember the collection of oddities and medical
freaks we put together one summer for a town fair, all those years ago? Do you think we could