The music got louder and the car went faster. The snow fell harder and a truck raced past her.
“Speed much, asshole?” Devon yelled. “This is treacherous driving, you dimwit!”
They were high up on Elk’s Pass Bridge. The trees below looked like tiny twigs on a vast white plain. Moon felt like she was really flying now as they raced across the bridge. She thought she saw a rabbit in the snow below. She remembered her dream of the gunshots and the blood-filled snow. She leaned out of the window for a better look. At that moment, the Range Rover slammed into the bridge with enough force to eject Moon and send her sailing over the railing.
Moon felt like she was flying now. Her body was weightless and the sound of the car screaming at the railing grew faint. She felt the icy wind tear at her coat as she rushed toward the white blanket below. She heard the jackrabbit from her dreams as she braced herself for impact.
Do not fear, my sister.
Chapter Nine
“Damn, sorry about the bumpy ride,” Devon announced. She turned off the stereo with a trembling hand. She pulled over as soon as she reached the end of the bridge. Her heart pounded and the smell of bourbon filled the car. Her soda can had spilled and stained her new leather seats not to mention the seat of her pants. She put it in park and killed the engine, not relishing the task of assessing the damage to the right side of the car.
“It’s okay, just a bit of a crash landing, that’s all.”
Devon unlatched her seat belt and turned around. “Come on scardy cat!” she called, but froze in her pose when she realized the right rear window was down. Panic gripped her and she scampered into the back seat not able to comprehend it was empty. She jumped into the hatch area, her eyes wild.
“Moon! Where are you?” She stared out of the back glass and began to tremble. “Moon!”
She climbed into the backseat and got out. In her haste, she landed on her back. The fall knocked the wind out of her and left her gasping for air. An ugly ache scaled her spine from her tailbone up to her neck. Snow fell down upon her oblivious to her presence on the ground, piling upon her as if she were nothing more than a rock or a divot in the road. The snow didn’t care about her. It fell into her mouth as she moaned. The road trembled beneath her. Devon found the fortitude to roll out of the way just as a car sped by, not seeing her at all, a mere bump in the road. She crawled to the metal railing, pulled herself up. It was at least a seventy-foot fall from where she stood onto a landscape peppered with trees. Nothing could survive that fall.
“Moon,” she called down the vast expanse. “Moon!” she screamed, as she pummeled the railing with her fists. “Moon!” she wailed until her throat was as wrecked as the side of the Range Rover.
The sun dunked into the landscape like a donut into coffee. She sobbed she watched it sink out of sight taking with it Devon’s hopes of finding Moon.
A bird called from beyond the trees, a bird so black it blended with the night sky. Devon awakened with a start. She assessed her surroundings, distraught to realize she was at the bottom of the embankment in a small clearing. Her forehead oozed blood and she had lost one of her shoes.
She remembered she managed to get up off the icy road, slipped and stumbled back to her Range Rover. She put on her ski jacket and shoved her gloves in her pocket. She abandoned her vehicle with the keys still in the ignition. She left her purse on the floorboard with its contents scattered. The spiked coke can was left neglected on her seat. Trivial things. However, she did take her flask. Her head was muddy from the liquor and her back screamed from her fall.
She hadn’t been at all graceful on the slick shoulder when she attempted to mount the railing. She’d lost her footing on the other side and banged her crotch against the metal barrier. She tried to hold onto the rail but reeled from the disturbing pain between her legs. To make matters worse, the railing was slick from the snow. She toppled over and began to slide down the steep embankment. On her way down, she had grabbed at a small tree, missed, ripped a few nails, and lost one of her shoes. Somehow, she had ended up going down the rest of the way, face down, and head first, where she collided with a tree at the base of the embankment.
She cast a sad glance in the direction of her lost shoe, and began her hunt for Moon.
She took a pull from her trusty flask and limped through the clearing. She took another fortifying sip before entering the dark woods. She called out until her voice was nothing but a rasp of cold air in front of her.
Intermittent moonbeams penetrated the stand of trees and she was able to make out her surroundings. She shuffled through the dark, ducking and dodging the trees that reached out for her. The branches swatted at her face, her jacket, and her jeans, taking bits of flesh and fabric as she passed.
She felt a presence behind her and wheeled around. “Moon?”
It was not Moon. She gasped when she faced a bear the size of a tree.
When you run with no direction, you will stumble upon the roots and rocks. On your journey, you must take your time in order to absorb the knowledge you seek.
Terror gripped her and made her move. She hobbled and lurched through the underbrush. Devon had an opportunity to reflect on the bear’s counsel when she found herself face down on the forest floor tripped up by the aforementioned root. She listened for the crashing footfalls, but it seemed the bear had not pursued her. She rolled onto her back and wiped the dirt from her mouth, listening.
The raven’s call startled her. Devon felt the flutter of its wings as it settled nearby. It blended with the darkness and watched her from a much closer proximity than Devon liked.
“Are you the raven from my balcony?” Devon asked. She searched the dark for something black, feeling foolish and not foolish at all.
The raven was silent.
“Have I stumbled into some alternate universe?” Devon asked. “Another realm?”
The bird squawked and took flight.
It is all in your mind.
“Is it?” Devon whispered. She peeled off her frozen sock wincing at the size of her ankle. She put her ski glove on her foot. It wasn’t a good fit and sure wasn’t pretty, but it would keep her foot dry for the time being.
“Moon! Where are you?”
What answered her back made Devon shiver. The howl of a wolf or perhaps a coyote reminded Devon once again of her reality. She was in a dangerous place, miles outside her comfort zone, fundamentally unprepared for survival in the elements or the wild. She should have stayed home where she was safe and loved. She pulled her knees to her chest for warmth, clenching her teeth to keep them from chattering.
For the moment, she’d forgotten she had no one waiting for her at home. She had no safe place, no love, nobody to miss her or to worry.
She smirked. So what? Screw the pity party She wasn’t going to attend it. She didn’t need anyone else. She was a lone wolf, always had been.
She inhaled and smelled the game around her. It made her hungry. Devon shrugged off her fear as she would a bathrobe. She saw herself naked and fearless. Her muscles twitched and she was no longer cold. Moonbeams slashed through the woods like giant talons prying back the trees to observe her.
She imagined herself running. Her eyes were lucid and she knew the forest well. She stopped in a clearing to howl.
Although the forest floor was impolite, she settled against the roots and ruts, empowered by her fantasy. She howled again, not caring if she roused the wolf or revealed herself to the bear.
* * * *
Devon felt safe in the arms of a black bear. He held her like an infant child. She felt his warm coat against her face. She snuggled closer and listened to the whisper of the wind, how it foretold his gifts.
I am Mudjewkeewis, spirit keeper of the West. The time of the great sleep now ends and you must prepare yourself a new life. First, you must heal old wounds. You must stand up on your own to determine your strength. You must seek your own authority and relinquish those vices that cloud you. You must look inside you
rself and discover your true heart. Only then will you be at peace with the truth and knowledge of who you truly are. I bring you gifts of courage and strength.
* * * *
Devon awakened still tucked in a tight fetal ball. The words resounded in her head. A seed of hope was born. From this dream came true wisdom. Devon hoped like hell she was able to remember the wise words and apply them when she escaped the bizarre forest. Slowly she unraveled herself, every muscle screaming in protest, as she assessed her surroundings.
She was deep within the woods in a small clearing where no trees stood. It had stopped snowing but her pants were damp and muddy. Devon remembered her Indian name, Shadow Wolf. She bolted up. How could she have forgotten her name? She recognized the woods. It was not her first time here. She’d followed a wolf puppy into the woods that day and came face to face with a wondrous wolf. A wolf named Two Stars.
Devon scanned the clearing for the irksome raven.
As if on cue, she heard the raven’s song from above and wondered if she was still dreaming. The bird cascaded downward and landed before her, its eyes shining like tiny black marbles. It paced back and forth, much like the raven from her balcony.
“My name is Shadow Wolf,” Devon told the bird. She liked the way the name sounded, the braveness speaking it evoked.
The raven squawked and seemed to nod.
“I followed a raven and ended up here,” Devon told it, feeling hazy and surreal. “Was that you?”
The bird rose and fluttered in front of her, then flew straight up through the clearing.
“Why won’t you tell me?” Devon called after it. She tried to stand but realized her un-shoed foot could not bear weight. She slid down a tree and took the glove off her foot. It had doubled in size. It was going to be impossible to walk.
“Help me!” she cried.
She had to get back to her car even if that meant dragging herself from tree to tree. She gripped a low branch and hauled herself to her foot. She stood there a few seconds, as wobbly as a foal, and fell down again, sliding against the tree and scraping the side of her face on the bark.
She curled up and sobbed her tears stinging the fresh wound on her cheek. She rolled over on her back, and faced the night. The trees appeared to reach the stars.
“Moon!” she cried. “Where are you?”
Devon swiped at her tears and the blood on her face.
“I need a drink!” she screamed. “I need a fucking, damned, fucking drink!” Then she remembered her flask.
The raven appeared above her singing and flitting about the treetops.
Fly high and you can see more clearly.
Devon whirled around and the raven was beside her watching her with its black, droll eye.
“What?”
Look beyond the sky.
Devon looked around her for the voice. Clearly, she was going mad, because the only other creature nearby was the annoying raven.
“Help me or go away,” Devon warned.
The raven had the nerve to perch on Devon’s knee.
“This is my dream so either help me or leave.”
The raven spread its wings and sang. Devon had to admit the sweetness of the raven’s song evoked a sense of peace. Devon took the arrowhead in hand and traced the point around her lips as she contemplated the memory of the girl who gave it to her. She let herself be lulled, leaning against the tree. As she dozed, it occurred to her that ravens didn’t sing.
Chapter Ten
“We’re almost there!” Analise announced from the front seat. For this trip, she was Claire’s co-pilot.
“Can I sleep outside on the balcony this year?” Devon asked, with her winning smile.
“Why would you want to sleep outside when the cabin has comfy beds and yummy sheets?” Analise asked.
“So I can stare at the moon and hear the animals.”
“That's ridiculous,” Claire scoffed.
“That sounds lovely, Devon,” Analise said. “It's fine with me.”
“Thank you, Analise,” Devon said, waiting for Claire's glare in the rear-view. It was right on time.
“Do not disrespect your mother that way!”
“Yes, sir, I'm sorry,” Devon raised a sarcastic brow at Claire's reflection. “I mean Ma'am.”
If looks could kill, Devon would have melted in a river of molten lava.
She smirked as she opened and closed the heart-shaped locket she wore around her neck, a recent birthday gift from her mother.
“I'm hungry, wow, look at that store. It’s shaped just like a giant Indian tepee.”
“Devon,” Claire scolded, “Stop snapping that locket, you’ll bend the clasp. Your mother spent a fortune on that thing.”
“I'm not a child, stop treating me like one. I'm fourteen for Christ's sake.”
“Then stop acting like one or this will be the final girl’s retreat.”
“Fine with me,” Devon muttered.
“Enough,” Analise said. “No more arguing. Claire, we can’t stop at the next exit so Devon can get a snack.”
“Come on, Mom, I want to stop there. Look at all of the cool Indian stuff on the porch. Look at that beautiful dog!”
“Why can't we stop? The place looks charming,” Claire said. “It is a rare occasion when Devon and I agree.”
“Fine,” Analise grumbled.
Claire pulled onto the dirt and gravel drive leading to Elk’s Pass Sundries. She ordered them all to wait until the cloud of dust cleared before she gave them the okay to get out.
Devon leapt from the backseat and ran to the dog sleeping on the deck.
“Easy, Devon,” Claire cried. “You don’t know that dog.”
Devon dropped to her knees to pet the animal's luxurious coat.
“Is this a dog or a wolf?” Devon asked the girl who appeared in the doorway.
“A dog,” the girl said.
“Do you mind if I pet her?” Devon asked.
“No, I don’t mind,” the girl said, kneeling beside her. “Isn’t she soft?”
“She’s beautiful, what’s her name?”
“Ducks.”
“Ducks? That’s a weird name.”
“Not to me.”
Devon stroked Ducks’ nose. “One day I’m going to have a dog just like you. Can I have a dog like Ducks one day?”
Analise smiled. “Of course you will.”
“She just had puppies,” the girl told her. “Do you want to see them?”
“Hell, yes. May I, Claire?”
“Just wash your hands and your filthy mouth when you’re done.” Claire’s face looked like it was going to crack.
Devon chuckled when Ducks raised her head and growled at Claire. It surprised her when Analise knelt beside Ducks.
“Go inside, Claire,” Analise said, as she stroked the animal. When Claire didn’t move fast enough Ducks scrambled to her feet and charged her.
“No!” Analise commanded, as she put herself between Ducks and Claire. She knelt and stared into her eyes until Ducks backed down. “It’s okay,” Analise, whispered, “it’s not her fault, it's mine.”
Ducks resumed her post and Claire sidled into the store.
“What’s your fault, Mom?” Devon asked.
“Some animals don’t like certain scents,” Analise said. “The perfume I bought for Claire seems to offend Ducks.”
Devon scowled. That sounded like a lie. It was easier to believe Ducks sensed the evil that was Claire.
“It really does smell awful on her,” Devon said.
“I’m sorry,” Analise, told the animal.
Ducks sighed and closed her eyes as if to dismiss her. Analise seemed reluctant to leave but followed Claire inside.
“I didn’t know my mom loved dogs,” Devon pondered aloud.
“She seems to have a special way with animals,” the girl noted.
“Weird. Can I see the puppies?”
“Sure, follow me.” She led Devon into a huge greenhouse behind the store. “The
y’re almost weaned and will be leaving soon.”
“Where are they going?” Devon cried, assaulted by six tufts of fur. “They’re so cute how can you get rid of them?”
“My mom sells them. They’re all sold except for that one there, the black one, and this one.” She picked up a grey bundle and cooed to her, tickling her tummy and kissing her nose. “This one is mine, my mom said I can keep her, and when she’s old enough she will have puppies and I will sell them.”
“How could you ever sell them?”
“So humans can learn from them.”
“I wish I could have one.” Devon pouted as she snuggled one.
“Pure wolves mate and cycle once a year but Ducks is a husky so she can have puppies any time of year. It is rare for a high content hybrid to have blue or green eyes, but ours do. This one has green eyes. The one I’m keeping has blue.”
“They are beautiful.”
The girl continued, “They aren’t easy to train. They’re escape artists and like to dig. Wolves tend to be timid and a hybrid that's not properly governed can be disposed to fear biting. They must be taught early not to nip, ever. A dog's nature is to please its master but a wolf does not care like that.”
“Why would anyone want to own one then?”
“I already told you, so humans can learn.”
“Learn what?”
“Wolves teach leadership and self-control. Their magic opens a path for a new direction, reminding humans to reach higher for their dreams. To keep their family unit tight and revere their elders. To protect the pack.”
“I don't have a pack,” Devon wrinkled her nose and shrugged. “I'm an only child.”
“I guess you're a lone wolf,” the girl grinned.
Devon chuckled. “Yeah, that sounds right. What's your name?”
“Jameson. What's yours?”
“Devon,” Analise called. “We are leaving in a few minutes.”
They laughed.
“You know a lot about wolves.”
Jameson nodded. “I learn as I go.”
Long Snows Moon Page 6