Terrane

Allen Wrangell is a terminally-ill, geology-obsessed loner who makes his way to an isolated mountain town to reconnect with Liz, a long-lost love. Allen takes a room at a bed and breakfast run by the enigmatic Maria and soon finds himself embroiled in a conflict with her abusive, alcoholic boyfriend. The drama is complicated by Allen's growing suspicion that Liz, Maria--even Allen himself-might not really exist.

As Allen's relationship with Maria deepens, he's troubled by the knowledge that any new love is destined to be short-lived. Perspective and sanity are maintained to some degree when Allen meets Ted, the town's mysterious bartender, who provides a safe refuge in his bar. Ted accepts Allen without judgment and through their conversations the fear and havoc of Allen's haunted experience are made more manageable.

The conflict comes to a head when Allen is pummeled and jailed on apparently false charges by Maria's boyfriend. Visited for the last time by Liz, it becomes clear to Allen that she is a mere phantom, and that he might in fact be completely delusional. Bailed out by Ted, Allen is recovering in the back of Ted's bar when he finds Maria at his door. They make a decision to free themselves from the earthquake-doomed town and seek refuge farther up in the mountains, there to face whatever may come. In a nod to the story's ambiguous reality, the last sentence of Terrane reads, as Allen and Maria approach their mountain refuge, They were almost there.