Old Bones — Ron Chudley

Resting on what was left of the bench was something else, lighter in shade than the background, round, about the size of a cabbage. There were two large holes close together, a smaller pair below, then two rows of wedge-shaped objects. The pattern suddenly coalesced: in atavistic and chilling familiarity . . .

In a remote British Columbia lake, an ancient auto wreck is discovered. Inside are the half-century-old remains of a traveler long lost and long forgotten. While there are few clues to the identity of the corpse, the discovery sets in motion a singular chain of events that dramatically affects a small and disparate group of people, each unknown to the other, but connected by history to the dead driver. Old agonies, unresolved quarrels, and desperate, dangerous secrets come to light, leading to a strange and surprising conclusion.

Old Bones is the story of how a single circumstance can bring about huge changes in the lives of many people. “If we could only know,” observes one of the characters, “just how many lost souls are stashed beneath the earth, some likely as near as our neighbour's yard, we would never sleep at night. Old Bones is the tale of what happens when some small-town stashing comes badly undone.