A loud crash echoes through the air, closely followed by a flash of light. Near the center of the hole something glistens in the light. It’s a wet plastic bag. It’s dark now, a black dark that brightens slightly when the clouds shift from blocking the moon. The bag is difficult to uproot, so I move into a sitting position, my legs spread out, feet each side of the hole. The rain is falling into my open mouth as I pull and tug. Eventually it moves slightly. Pushing my body forward, I feel the soil shift under my feet. The bag is almost free. I look up at the tormented sky and pray. Help me, God, help me. One more tug and it’s free. I place the torn bundle onto the ground beside me. What is it? What am I going to find here?

The plastic comes away in pieces. A pile of bones lie on the ground. There’s a skull, a dog’s collar with a rusty disk attached. Holding the disk to wash in the downpour the letters slowly appear. R.O.V.E.R. My shoulders slump. Put Rover in the ground, Danny. What did she mean?

Wiping mud from my face, I stare at the hole. The storm continues unabated, the rain filling the hole. In the distance I hear a siren howl with the winds. Annoyed at myself for thinking stupid things, imagining crazy scenarios, I stand and kick the water from the hole. What did you expect to find, Becca?

My foot slips, sending me sprawling on the ground. But I felt something hard below my shoe; something moved when I slipped. Crawling on my knees, I move my hands around in the mud. Something else is in there.

Another crash, another flash. More pulling and tugging. Then I feel it. Something hard. A box of some sort. Scraping the soil from the edges, I tug at it. Slowly, it begins to shift. With a sucking sound it comes away from the hole. It’s made of tin, an old storage box. I place it on the ground beside the dog’s remains and pull at the lid until it opens. Something leaves me, flies out from my body into the angry night. Placing my hand on the bag inside, I feel the bones beneath my touch.

And then I can only sit here, unable to unwrap the bundle by my side. I place it in my lap. This is what she wanted me to find. This is where my story starts.