Windkill

Paulie stood by the fire smoking a cigarette. Using the toe of his boot, he nudged a stone into the flames to see where the fire would go. They were all like the fire. Rocks were falling into their lives every day and they just avoided the obstacles, learned to live around the rock.

But the valley wasn’t a rock; it was a boulder. Tomorrow he would know what happened tonight and would have to live the rest of his life with that knowledge, learn to live around the ghosts of the valley.

“Why did you do that?” Brock asked from his seat.

“Back a few years, I had a rough time taping some of the stuff we see, the accidents and such.” Paulie looked at the fire. “I used to have dreams about it all. Sometimes I would dream I was taping my death, and I did not care. Now I don’t dream about it. The things I see through the lens don’t bother me. Is that bad?”

“Yes. I think we have seen too much.”

“We’ve learned to live around the rock.”

“What?”

“Remember that fable about the princess and the pea? How she slept on so many mattresses but still felt a pea under one of them?” Paulie looked at Brock with a grimace.

“Sure.” Brock was uncertain of where the conversation was heading.

“What if the princess did not complain? What if she just slept on the pea every night until it was just another bump on the mattress? Would that mean she was living a lie?”

“I don’t understand.” Brock admitted.

“We spent all our time thinking we can make ghosts to scare the crap out of people. Where is the nagging worry we are messing with something that should be left alone? We’re so used to thinking there are no ghosts that we put those people in a dangerous place and can stand here without stopping it.”

Brock stared at the fire and finally pushed a stone into the flames with the toe of his expensive shoe. “You’re right.”

“What the bloody hell did you do that for?” Anthony walked to the fire.

The reporter and cameraman looked at each other before Brock stood and glanced at Anthony. “We’re going into the valley as soon as Mark is in the trailer.”

“Nice to know I’m not the only idiot going in there,” Anthony answered with a huge grin.