Beneath A Wild Sky - Forest Cat and Other Stories

by ML Coley

Need a good shiver, a quick laugh, or a pull on the heartstrings? At least one of the eighteen thought-provoking short stories in this collection is sure to provide. Beneath a Wild Sky features stories about people you may think you know, and places you may think you've been. Meet FBI agents and devious killers, good mothers and bad wives, in a forest or at a lake, in spring rain or summer sun, all Beneath a Wild Sky. The eighteen thought-provoking stories in this collection provide shivers, laughs and more. Here are brief descriptions of each. 1. Forest Cat - Veterinarian Shea Maroney heads into the forest in search of a cougar wounded by a hunter, and encounters the legendary reclusive Bess Milton, "Witch of the Forest." 2. The Light Gatherers - Somewhere in a galaxy far away, Aviva rises early to complete her annual task. 3. Skinny Dipper - A young woman takes an early morning swim to a lake island. 4. Shiny - Orphaned Carlie feels doomed to more years of her slave-like existence with her brothers, until help comes from an unexpected ally. 5. The Eco-Trio - three short tales with an ecological perspective: a. Too Early - Imagine what it's like to wake up looong before breakfast, lunch or dinner will be ready. b. Equinox - A short introspective. c. An Arbor Day Dream - Who planted all those trees along the prairie river banks? 6. The Tribe at Fist Mountain - Damaris has come of age; her rite of passage includes a terrifying experience inside the caves of Fist Mountain, where she meets a Monster. 7. Zoo Dream - FBI agent Teresa Martin returns to her hometown in search of a criminal. When her investigation leads her to the town's abandoned zoo, old memories surface, including those of her first boyfriend, Denny, and the service tunnels below the zoo. 8. Hunter - Alex thinks the con he and Michael have pulled on beautiful Sandra is nearly complete and he's home free. 9. River Crossing - Hopelessness leads a young woman to a river where ghost explorers from the past give her something new to consider. 10. Lost - A woman loses her way on an abandoned nature trail, after her lover's funeral. 11. Homecoming - Chauncey returns home after years away with one thing on her mind - revenge. 12. Escape from White - Melene contemplates the possibility of life outside of the white world she lives in. Could Mikal have been right? Is there another world out there? 13. Persistent Downpour - A heavy thunderstorm causes Grace to evaluate husband Fred. 14. Shedding the Skin - Life on a houseboat with new husband Harry is going great, until teenager Merlayne ditches her dad and comes aboard. 15. From the Transom - Undercover for the FBI gathering info on a drug dealer, agent Lara McDougal sees more than she wants to see. 16. Whale Song -Sade, a fourth grader, is studying whales in school, and has no idea that those creatures aren't the only ones who can feel vibrations across long distances. 17. Dancer - A new chapter in life begins when an unemployed widow meets an old woman with an amazing past. 18. Playing the Dulcimer - Melanie Barkin wants to learn to play the hammered dulcimer. It's all part of The Dream.