by Kip Nelson
Across the cave, Darren could see Betsy’s panicked face. Michelle and Tara were hidden from view, but he well could imagine that the two of them were frightened out of their wits as well. The mountain lion watched them carefully as they inched their way across the cave, and when they reached the other side, she resumed caring for her cubs. It was a sweet sight in truth, and one that would have made a good image in a documentary or a zoo. But, of course, with no barriers between them there wasn’t much chance for the humans to revel in the sight of nature.
As soon as Darren and Brent made it to the other side, they embraced the girls tightly. Darren told them that everything was going to be okay. Then they told the story about how they had managed to drag the log here to form a dam and prevent the water from reaching the cave. Brent was a little sheepish about the part where he had fallen in the water and almost drowned.
If things had gone slightly differently, they would have been in a far different mood. Everything was so finely balanced in this world that even one small difference could twist fate. But all that mattered to Darren was that his family was intact and for the moment they were safe.
Chapter Eleven
After they finished telling the story of how they had protected the camp, Darren was glad to see that Michelle was looking at her brother with admiration. So was Betsy, which was to be expected since a romance was blossoming between her and his son, but Darren liked seeing his two children getting along. He thought the age difference had something to do with it.
Darren had noticed that when siblings were close in age, they usually were testy and experienced a hostile relationship as they grew up together. But because there were a number of years between Brent and Michelle there was a gap in maturity and the two of them didn’t see each other as rivals. Of course, it helped that Brent had spent a lot of time babysitting Michelle over the past year while Darren had been working two jobs. Brent didn’t know it, and if Darren had his way Brent never would know, but Darren secretly had been envious of Brent because he got to spend quality time with Michelle.
There was always a great deal of friction within families. Spending so much time with the same people led to feelings of hostility. Although Darren wasn’t sure why this happened, there was no denying its truth. They had been fortunate so far that these feelings hadn’t presented themselves regularly, although there had been moments. The introduction of Betsy and Tara had gone a long way to calming matters down, he suspected. They also had enough to be scared of without getting annoyed at each other. Sometimes he wondered if they were just too tired to get angry with each other.
But now, with the presence of the mountain lions, they were even closer than they had been before. The cave never had been the most spacious location. It had been fine when it just had been the three of them, but with the addition of Betsy and Tara things had to be shifted around and they each had to give up a little of their personal freedom. The youngest girls didn’t mind, of course, for they hadn’t reached the age where personal space was an issue. For the others, however, this would be a challenge.
Darren had tried making the cave as accommodating as possible. He was well aware that, as teenagers, Brent and Betsy needed as much privacy as they could get. But while they previously had arranged blankets and bags to partition off certain areas of the cave, now they were huddled together behind a group of rocks. It was impossible not to get in each other’s way, and they were barely able to stretch out.
The mountain lions were using the space Darren had claimed as his own, although he wasn’t going to challenge them for it.
“We can’t stay here like this,” Brent said.
Darren and Brent’s clothes still were clinging to them. They needed to get dry soon. It wasn’t going to do them any good to sleep in these wet clothes.
“We’re going to have to for the time being. We’ll let the mountain lions get settled and then go light a fire. They might appreciate that too. You and I can keep watch as we dry out and make sure they don’t make any sudden movements,” Darren said.
“And the fire will be a good weapon in case they attack,” Betsy said. Her face was paler than usual, and it was clear she had been shaken to her core. Her gaze never left the animals, and her body was rigid.
“Yes, although we’ll try not to startle them,” Darren said. “We don’t want to provoke them.”
“You mean we’re just going to let them stay there?” Betsy asked incredulously.
Darren’s conversation with Brent had been kept private between father and son, so now it was Darren’s job to tell the girls what he was planning. He explained his reasoning, but Betsy didn’t accept it as easily as Brent had.
“You can’t be serious!” she said.
“I am.”
“We can’t just sit here and let them take over this cave. What if they come and eat us?” Betsy said, voice trembling with fear.
“They’re not going to eat us are they, Daddy?” Michelle said.
“Of course not, Sweetie,” Darren said, smiling at Michelle kindly.
His expression changed instantly when he looked back at Betsy, glaring at her as he tried making her understand that she shouldn’t say those types of things in front of the girls. He would have loved to pull Betsy aside and have a word with her in private, but circumstances weren’t allowing that, and he didn’t think she would be willing to sidle along a wall of the cave to go outside.
“It’s going to be okay. You can trust me on this. Now, why don’t you tell me what happened when Brent and I left. When did the mountain lions arrive?”
“I’m sorry, Darren, but I really can’t believe you’re just going to allow these animals to stay there. This is insane!” she said.
“They came just before you came back, Daddy. Betsy made us come over here. They haven’t done anything wrong. They’re just babies,” Michelle said.
“Babies,” Betsy scoffed, rolling her eyes.
“Betsy, come on, don’t be like that,” Brent said. Betsy shot daggers toward him, and Brent instantly wilted. Darren knew that look well. It was a look of betrayal.
“I can’t believe this is happening. You’re just like Dad. It’s left to me to protect us. I’m not letting anything happen to myself or Tara,” she said, and pushed past Brent.
Darren hissed at her to stop, but she evidently had a plan in mind and nothing was going to dissuade her from it. She pressed herself against the wall of the cave, just as Darren and Brent had done, although she was more frantic in her movements. She scraped against the ground, making a loud noise, which got the mountain lion’s attention. Darren cursed under his breath and went after her. Brent went to say something, but Darren interrupted him and told Brent that he’d get her back.
“She’s just scared, and when people are scared they do stupid things,” he said.
He followed Betsy’s path but when she stopped and rummaged around in one of the packs he grew alarmed. He knew just what she was going for, the gun.
Darren went as quickly as he could without running. He glanced over at the mountain lion and saw her watching him and Betsy with interest. His heart began to quicken. He couldn’t let Betsy continue with this. He reached her just as she pulled out the gun out and pointed. Her feet were spread out and she had both hands on the pistol. Her eyes glistened with tears and fear was etched on her face.
“We can’t let it stay here,” she moaned.
“Betsy, please listen to me, put the gun down,” Darren said, trying to keep his voice as steady as possible.
Betsy had the gun pointed straight at the mountain lion. Darren didn’t know if this animal had encountered hunters before, or just had a survival instinct and knew when it was under attack, but it rose to its feet and got ready to defend itself.
“Betsy, seriously, you need to put the gun down,” he said.
“I can’t. I have to protect us,” she said.
“Betsy, let me do the protecting. You trust me, right?” he asked. She nodded. “Okay, that’s
good. Please, let me do the protecting around here.”
“No, I have to. I have to keep you all safe. I couldn’t last time. I couldn’t save them.”
“It’s okay, Betsy. Nobody expected you to.”
“I should have. I should have saved him. My dad is dead and it’s all my fault. He was weak. I should have been stronger for him. I’m not going to let the same thing happen. I should have killed Bill before he did any harm. Dad didn’t see him as a threat, and the same thing is happening now. I have to be the one to save us. I’m not going to make the same mistake again,” she said, her words dripping with sad, desperate emotion.
Her index finger stroked the gun as it settled against the trigger. The mountain lion growled. Darren knew he had to do something drastic to stop her from pulling the trigger. He glanced back at the others. Brent looked anguished, but he was shielding Tara and Michelle from the scene.
Darren stepped to the side, putting himself between Betsy and the mountain lion.
“Get out of the way!” she cried.
“No, Betsy. I know you’re scared and you just want to keep everyone safe, but this isn’t the way to go about it. Think about what you’re doing. Do you really want Tara and Michelle to see you shoot an innocent animal? What about the cubs? Are you going to shoot them as well? You did well before at keeping them safe, and what happened with Bill wasn’t your fault. We’re all in this together, Betsy. We take care of each other and look, we’re all ready to take care of you. But please, you have to put the gun down.”
For a moment he was afraid that Betsy was so scared she would shoot him just to get to the mountain lion, but he was more afraid about what would happen if she missed. There wasn’t much distance between her and the animal, but she wasn’t thinking clearly or calmly and her aim was bound to be off. If Darren were a betting man, he’d put his money on the mountain lion, so he couldn’t let it get to that stage.
“Betsy, just tell me what happened when the mountain lion came into the cave,” he said, trying to get her talking so she wasn’t thinking so much about the gun in her hand. As she began speaking, she had a far-away look in her eyes, and Darren used the opportunity to creep closer toward her.
“We were just waiting for you, like you told us to do. I was playing a game with the girls, trying to distract them because they were worried. I was worried too. I kept looking at the entrance, hoping you’d come back. The rain was so heavy I couldn’t hear anything and then shadows started dancing along the walls. I called out to you when the mountain lion came in. I instantly grabbed the girls and went to the back of the cave.
“When the mother lion came back here and settled on the opposite side of the cave, I knew we had to get out. So when she was caring for her cubs, I grabbed the girls and we quietly crept along the wall. We were between the rocks, almost ready to move forward again, when the mountain lion stood and began to walk around. Shortly after that, you and Brent showed up. I was sure it was going to eat us. There was nothing else I could do except wait for you and I’m just so tired of feeling so helpless.”
“I know, Betsy, I know, but you did well. You kept the girls safe. You acted sensibly. I’m proud of you, Betsy. I’m proud of you.”
Darren didn’t believe in magic and there certainly were no magic spells that had any practical application in the real world. But occasionally there were times when people said the right things at the right time, and these phrases certainly could seem like magic because they could transform a person. Such a thing happened here. As soon as Darren told Betsy that he was proud of her she seemed to melt. Her grip on the gun loosened and her chest heaved.
Although Betsy tried to appear strong, she still was just a young woman and she clearly missed her father. There was a lot of guilt tied to his death, a lot of guilt that Darren wished he could help Betsy work through. But he wasn’t a therapist. When it came down to it, he only could do what came naturally, being a parent.
A choking sob escaped Betsy’s mouth and Darren took this opportunity to reach forward, lowering the gun. It didn’t take much for him to wrest it from her hands as he was much stronger than her, and her grip had been loose anyway. He held the gun away from them and wrapped his arm around her, offering her the comfort she needed. Her small, frightened body pressed against his and shuddered with sadness. He cradled her head and breathed deeply, telling her over and over again that it was going to be okay and that she had done a good job in protecting the girls, and that her father’s death wasn’t her fault.
Darren wasn’t sure how long he had been holding Betsy, but he had read something a long time ago in a parenting book that had stuck with him. It was that when a child hugged you, you never should let go first because you never know how much they really need it. It was something that had stayed with him for a long time. He decided it wasn’t just true for children, but true for people of all ages. So, whenever anyone hugged him, he never let go first. From what he was experiencing in that moment, it seemed as though Betsy needed a lot of comfort.
All their souls had been bruised and it was important to remember they all were in this together, and that they had to take care of each other. Betsy was now just as much his child as Brent or Michelle, and sometimes that meant protecting her from herself.
“Come on, let’s head back and get settled down. Keep taking deep breaths. I know this is scary, but let’s just take it one moment at a time,” Darren said, keeping his voice low and steady.
“I think I can do that, but what about her?” Betsy said, sniffing.
She pulled back from the hug and looked over Darren’s shoulder. Darren turned around to see the mountain lion glaring at him, claws drawn, mouth open, eyes dark with anger.
Chapter Twelve
Darren tried telling himself it all was going to be okay, that the mountain lion just was scared because Betsy had been pointing a gun at it and that the animal could be calmed down easily.
“Betsy, carefully but quickly make your way back to the others,” he said, hoping he could keep the mountain lion’s attention while she got back to safety.
Darren thought about wielding the gun himself, fearing that things had gotten to a point of no return, but he didn’t want to believe that. He couldn’t. He shoved the gun into the small of his back and then held out his palms, the universal sign of surrender.
“It’s okay, the gun is gone. You’re not in any danger,” Darren said. He knew the mountain lion couldn’t understand him. He wasn’t in a Disney film, after all, but somehow talking to the mountain lion made him feel better.
“I’m willing to share this place with you. I can see that you’re just trying to keep your family safe, as am I. I don’t want to hurt you. You can stay here until the weather clears up. We don’t mean you any harm.”
Darren didn’t know if it was his body language or the tone of his voice that did the trick, but the animal calmed down and went back to nursing her cubs. Darren breathed a sigh of relief, but kept the gun on him, just in case he needed it. His main concern was the mountain lion would grow hungry. He wondered if it was even possible for them to ignore a tasty meal waiting for them at their feet.
Darren waited a couple more moments just to ensure the animal had calmed down, and then made his way back to the kids, picking up a bit of food along the way. He shared it when he returned. Betsy looked tired, and was sitting beside Brent, resting her head on his shoulder.
“I’m sorry, Darren. I didn’t mean to cause any trouble. I just…I don’t know what came over me, really,” she said.
“It’s okay, Betsy. You don’t have to apologize. I know you were just trying to do what’s best for all of us, trying to keep us safe. It’s important you keep on doing that, but try not to beat yourself up about the past. We’ve all been through a lot and we have to remember some of these things aren’t our fault. Now, let’s try to relax as best we can. As soon as this weather calms down, I’m sure the mountain lion and her cubs will leave. I doubt they’ll want to stay here when th
ey can roam all over the mountains.”
“Can we keep them as pets?” Michelle asked, all wide-eyed and innocent.
She, of course, knew that mountain lions were dangerous, but in her innocent mind she couldn’t marry the fierce images she had of mountain lions from documentaries to the calm ones that were in the cave with them.
“I don’t think that’s going to be possible, Michelle. I think Mommy lion will want to keep her children together. That’d be like someone wanting to take you away from me,” he said.
Michelle’s face twisted in horror and she sought reassurance from Darren that such a thing would not happen. He laughed and wrapped his arm around her, pulling her in for a hug.
“What we have here is a unique opportunity, though,” he said. “Do any of you know much about these mountain lions?”
“They live in Africa!” Tara said.
“And they’re friends with Timon & Pumbaa,” Michelle said. Brent and Betsy stifled a laugh. Darren smirked too.
“You’re thinking of the big lions in Africa, the ones we’ve seen on TV and at the zoo. These lions are mountain lions, a little different than that. They have the largest range of any mammal in this part of the world, aside from humans. Which means they can walk for a long time, just like we’ve done. The cubs stay with the mother for two years before they go off on their own,” Darren explained.
“You mean they don’t live with their mother?” Michelle asked, scrunching up her face.
“No, but neither do people. When you and Brent get older you’ll be adults too and you’ll be having your own lives.”
“Why do we stay with you longer than lions stay with their Mommies and Daddies? Could we have gone away when we were two?” Tara asked.
“It’s different for mountain lions,” Darren explained. “They grow up more quickly than we do, and they don’t need as much looking after. Plus, they’re not like us. They don’t need somebody to read them a bedtime story, and mountain lion cubs aren’t naughty, and they always go to bed when they’re told,” Darren teased, tickling Michelle’s stomach. She giggled and tried fighting back.