A Spider Sat Beside Her
Page 24
Lowry turned back to where Adam’s hut had stood. Tears blurred her vision as she stared at the broken steel shaft glistening in the sun. A monument to delusion. Only an arrogant fool believes attacking civilization accomplishes anything. Humans may glance up and momentarily mourn the dead, but they then return to living, devouring everything in their path with their mindless propagation.
The seabirds had returned and were fighting over the remnants of Adam’s scattered brains, but she didn’t have the strength to shoo them away.
A warm breeze found its way from the ocean as she sank to the ground. The birds sang, and frogs began to croak as the brackish water returned to the lakes. Bees harvested nectar from blossoms on a honeysuckle vine draped across an uprooted shrub.
Lowry ran her fingers over the soft grass, which had been flattened during the flood, but now the tender blades lifted toward the heavens.
The final fall of Man might be the best thing that ever happened to the planet Earth.
The End
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Writing a novel is a journey with a myriad of twists and turns, and hills and valleys, but I was lucky enough to find the way lined with friends, family, and supporters, so there are many to thank. My writer friends: Lisa Tracy, who believed in me and bestowed great feedback for this novel, Cristina Pinto-Bailey for her critique and author Sonja Yoerg, for her prodigious support. My editors for this novel, Elizabeth Buege and Jim Thomsen. My family, for supporting me during the long process of crafting these novels. Thanks to Kit Foster for the incredible cover design and Walter B. Myers for the fantastic flooded Earth imagery. Friend Stevie Bond for reading and supporting my writings. And a special thanks to all my reviewers and readers.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
K.E. Lanning is a scientist and writer. Born in Texas in 1957, she grew up near Houston in the small town of Friendswood, laced with white oyster shell roads and open fields dotted with huge live oaks, riding horses rather than bikes. But nearby, NASA’s space program shepherded thoughts of astrophysics into her head.
Lanning received a bachelor’s degree in Physics in 1979 from Stephen F. Austin St. University in Nacogdoches, TX and a MBA in 1986 from the University of Houston.
A longtime fan of science fiction, Lanning is intrigued by the multi-dimensions of the genre, allowing the author to explore society, humanity, and our future, and bring the reader along for the ride.
A Spider Sat Beside Her is her first novel, and two additional novels, The Sting of the Bee and Listen to the Birds, will complete the trilogy. www.kelanning.com
She now resides in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia with her family.