Donna Galanti - The Element Trilogy

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A Human Element Excerpt: Can Ben be saved?

By Donna Galanti

Navy2

Me as a U.S. Navy Photographer

Ben Fieldstone in A HUMAN ELEMENT, finds himself in dire circumstances stationed as a U.S. Navy photographer in Pearl Harbor. I too was stationed in Hawaii as a Navy photographer. I know of the dangers sailors can find themselves in on the island of Oahu if they’re not careful.

I was told not to go to the Pali Lookout alone, a spot far above Honolulu in the Koolau Mountains. Set on cliffs with treacherous falls awaiting those who aren’t careful. Or those who are tossed off…or jump off. It’s known for its moaning, howling winds. People have disappeared up there, they’d say. It’s a haunted place where the ghosts of Hawaiian ancestors are said to roam.

But back to Ben and his night of terror at the Pali Lookout. Can he be saved? More importantly, can he be saved from himself?
Ben meets the man in black:

Ben closed his eyes and forced himself to find a dark place with peace and no pain. The two men continued to taunt him but they echoed far away in a tunnel. He held his breath, willing himself to pass out. The wild wind of the mountaintop raged around him and shrieked in his ears.

Then two loud cracks shot out over the howling wind. The hands on him fell away. He let out a huge sigh, dizzy from holding his breath.

Ben opened his eyes and craned his head around to see what had happened. Under the bright moonlight the outline of the two big Samoans rose up from the overgrown road. They didn’t move. The wind whipped the giant leaves of the banyan and guava trees about like sails on a great clipper ship. The buzz of traffic from the new Pali road carried up to him from below. He scanned the area. What had happened? Who else hid out there? He pulled at the stakes. His hands shook as he tried to break free.

“Forget it, kid, they’re held down in cement,” a deep voice said. “These stupid locals make up these playgrounds just to mess with us haoles.”

Ben swallowed the saliva stuck in his throat and focused on his surroundings. There stood the green-eyed man, hidden in the swaying banyan trees. His black outfit blended into the dark forest. He moved toward Ben and holstered his gun, then popped open a switchblade from his back pocket.

“I am not here to hurt you,” the man said when Ben shrunk into the rock. “I’m going to cut the ropes.”

In a few swift movements he slit the ropes binding Ben, who staggered back. The man caught him and held him up, then ripped off the duct tape.

“Who are you?” Ben’s body premier-pharmacy.com/product/soma/ trembled from the rush of fear and a fierce headache pounded in his temple.

The man didn’t answer. He bent over one of the dead Samoans and pulled out a wallet. He looked inside and threw it at Ben. “It’s yours.” Then the man led him by the arm down the overgrown road where he handed Ben his clothes from the brush. He tried to put them on but his hands shook so bad the man had to help him. He winced from the whip marks brushing against his jeans and shirt.

“Come on,” the man said. Ben looked back at the dead men sprawled face down. They oozed like two fat walruses sunning themselves in the moonlight. “Don’t worry about them. I’ll dump them later, somewhere they’ll never be found.”

In a daze, Ben followed his savior up the rough road, stumbling behind him in the dim moonlight. Those men had carried him unconscious down this road.

“I’ll take you back to base and you’re on your own,” the man said once they reached his car, parked off the main road. “Don’t speak of this to anyone. Understand?”

Ben nodded and climbed in the car. He looked over at the stranger in black who had saved him. His mammoth biceps flexed as he drove, hunched over the wheel. The man’s body looked crushed in the sedan. His square jaw tensed as he clenched his teeth. Ben turned to the window and closed his eyes. He had so many questions jumbled in his head. The wind blew soft on his face as they sped down the mountain curves.

Giddiness rose in him from the pit of his stomach to his throat. He bent over his knees with laughter. He laughed and laughed and then he sobbed with relief. He would live. Just like when he chose to save himself from his foster father. But this time a stranger chose for him to live.

The man looked over at him, both hands gripping the wheel. “Get yourself together,” he warned Ben. “I know what those bastards planned to do to you. This island is a cesspool of crap. Tropical paradise, my ass. Occasional good weather doesn’t make up for the trash-filled streets, gangs, and homeless. That’s what the tourists don’t see.”

Ben stared at him, fascinated by the man’s lengthy dialogue and then a memory flickered. “You were at my foster mother’s funeral. Why are you following me? Why save me?”

“I’m an interested party. Leave it at that.”

“I can’t. I would have died up there for sure.”

The man didn’t respond.

“Thank you.”

The man looked at Ben. His green eyes glowed in the moonlight that filtered into the car.

“Someday you might not thank me. Someday you might not survive.”

 

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Filed Under: Books Tagged With: A Human Element, Ben Fieldstone, Donna Beckley, Donna Galanti, Navy

Comments

  1. Mina B. says

    February 21, 2012 at 2:29 pm

    Loved it! Intense ending too. Great excerpt! Loved the dungarees pix too.
    Thanks for sharing.

  2. dgalanti says

    February 21, 2012 at 2:36 pm

    Mina, thanks! (glad you didnt make fun of me in my Navy dungarees – ha ha). Super excited to come on your blog soon with the villain X-10…sending post this week!

  3. Reggie Ridgway says

    February 21, 2012 at 3:05 pm

    Good excerpt. Like the cliffhanger.

    • dgalanti says

      February 21, 2012 at 4:13 pm

      Thanks much Reggie…its actually not where the scene ends, but a good spot to cut it off it seemed.

  4. Anna George says

    February 21, 2012 at 4:38 pm

    What a great excerpt! Creepy, and I felt like I was there. I really enjoy your writing, Donna 🙂

    • dgalanti says

      February 21, 2012 at 5:30 pm

      Thanks for stopping…and glad you enjoyed. yes, I do like to write the creepy!

  5. Catherine Stine says

    February 21, 2012 at 5:58 pm

    A cesspool of violence lurking behind the balmy palm trees? A green-eyed dude who’s scarier than two gigantic Samoans? Wow! I want to find out what happens.

    • dgalanti says

      February 21, 2012 at 6:53 pm

      Catherine, enjoyed your summary of it! Makes it sound wicked – LOL.

  6. Jerricho says

    March 18, 2012 at 2:29 pm

    Very intriguing… you’ve got style. 😉

  7. Marcy Kennedy says

    October 10, 2012 at 2:39 pm

    I loved the imagery of the bodies like fat walruses sunning themselves.

    • dgalanti says

      October 10, 2012 at 11:10 pm

      Thanks for reading, Marcy! That was a fun image in a dark moment 🙂

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    September 4, 2014 at 9:09 am

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  9. John Robertson says

    October 2, 2014 at 11:41 pm

    Wow, Saw the teaser and now I have got to get the book. It’s always nice to know that a former Navy Photographer (Like me 78-88) can put out a great story. I look forward to reading it and your other books soon. Keep the faith PH!!!!

Trackbacks

  1. Author Interview #180: A Human Element by Donna Galanti - Digital Book Today | Digital Book Today says:
    May 13, 2013 at 10:30 pm

    […] did. Except he gets into a wee bit of trouble with the Marines and locals there, unlike me. See an excerpt about that here. Want to know more about Ben? Check out an interview with him […]

  2. I Was A Serial Job Hunter | The Element Trilogy says:
    June 24, 2014 at 2:59 pm

    […] my suspense novel, A Human Element. He is a Navy photographer stationed in Hawaii (like I was) and gets himself in a bit of trouble there in one night of terror at the Pali lookout in the Koolau Mountains. Not that I ever got into […]

  3. Author Interview #330: A Human Element by Donna Galanti says:
    November 5, 2014 at 10:30 pm

    […] did. Except he gets into a wee bit of trouble with the Marines and locals there, unlike me. See an excerpt about that here. Want to know more about Ben? Check out an interview with him […]

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