‘A story of extinction.’ La Brea Tar Pits recognized as a geological heritage site.
‘Of a nature to be preserved, we hope, should the Tar Pits be discovered.’
‘Of a nature that you will soon see.’
He was referring to the discovery of the Tar Pits, a group of pits, believed to be the final resting places of a race of ancient man, perhaps some ten thousand to twenty thousand years ago, the people of the Tar Pits were known by ancient peoples of the world. The Tar Pits were a site of ancient man’s final burial grounds, with bones from the Neandertal group being the most common.
‘We are not here to discuss your past,’ he told her, ‘or yours. But you are not the first to enter here. You might like to know that. There is another on the other side of the hill –’
‘I am aware of that.’
‘There is another on another side of the hill –’
‘And you say?’
‘And you say.’
It was a comment that said a great deal about her. A woman who would willingly be raped and then murdered would not be shy about admitting it, nor would she be bothered by anyone mentioning it. She moved to where she could see them and she stopped the conversation where they were.
‘So, it is a story of extinction. I am interested in the story of the last people,’ she said. The words were neutral between them.
‘There are many of us.’
He said it as if he had already told her the name of the people on the other side of the hill and how they might have left their mark on the world. It was a conversation that they had never had. In his mind, that was all he was ever thinking about. He could almost see her face, the face of the woman he was thinking he was going to spend the rest of his life with, the face of the