Lost at Running Brook Trail

by Sheryl A. Keen

  “What do you have in mind, Elaine?” Miriam asked.

  “I was thinking we could just warm some water, if we could find some kind of tin can to do it in. Maybe we could all do with something warm.”

  “Where are we going to find that?” Kimberly asked. “We didn’t see any of that when we were walking this morning.”

  “We can’t be the only people to ever come out here. People leave things behind.” They were all standing around in the Alberta sun, and Elaine wasn’t sure if today would be any different from yesterday. They were still lost, and bad things were happening to them.

  “Too bad you didn’t think ahead and pack a can.” Miriam lined up a couple small stones and kicked them as far as she could. Some ricocheted off rocks and others disappeared into the bushes.

  “You’re pretty funny,” Elaine said.

  “My stomach really feels funny.”

  “Okay, we’ll have to go hunting for a container to put the water in.” Miriam stopped kicking the stones and stood still, considering their options. “We should go in the opposite direction of where we went this morning, since there was nothing out there.”

  “But that’s where the poison ivy is.” Kimberly tried hard not to give in to the itch. When she felt overcome, she patted the areas instead.

  “It’s not going to affect you if you don’t touch it. Poison ivy doesn’t attack people. We’ll just have to be careful where we put our feet.” Elaine scoured their surroundings for something they could use. There was nothing but the intricate network of rocks, trees, bushes and vines.

  Elaine left her sweater on a nearby shrub again and they set off on the path that led to the right of the cave. They passed the poison ivy plants that Kimberly had broken and thrown on the ground. They looked withered and wilted in the afternoon heat. It was hard to imagine that it was these droopy plants that had done so much damage to Kimberly’s skin.

  “When we searched for food this morning, who would have thought we’d be looking for tin cans this evening?” Miriam asked. “If we’d known, we would have searched for both at the same time. Two birds with one stone and all that.”

  The path was grassy and any elevation was gentle. They really didn’t need to do much but put one foot in front of the other.

  “We can only kill two birds with one stone if we can see the birds. We’re out here because Susan’s stomach is sick. We couldn’t see that this morning,” Elaine said.

  “You would have to have known I would eat those berries to start looking for cans,” Susan said, “and how would you know?”

  The track turned into a denser area, matted with numerous trees, so it was hard to see much ahead of them. They stood close to one tree whose roots seemed to take up the entire area. Like huge antennas, they ran out under and above ground, stretching as far as the eye could see. The other trees almost seemed like props to this main piece. The tree’s tendons were not just huge but overwhelming.

  “This thing is like a huge monster.” As far as Miriam could look, all she saw was the roots of this tree.

  “All I can say is this tree must suck a lot of water and food from the soil. It’s amazing that there is any room for anything else.” Elaine looked up at the tree’s branches. They extended far into the sky and stretched a good way vertically and horizontally. It was possible that the roots had extended more than the tree’s branches. Maybe the roots had grown even taller than the height of the tree, if that was possible.

  “The roots look like gnarly, creepy hands.” Kimberly could think of many horror movies where this would fit right in. “It’s a bit scary.”

  “Some of them are so big, I think several became intertwined. It would take forever to cut one root.” Elaine could only imagine the distance the roots covered.

  “Can you imagine this at the side of your house?” Miriam asked.

  “I imagine the city would come and remove it,” Elaine said, “or it would just tear the house apart; several houses for that matter.”

  They felt small looking up at this huge tree.

  “I feel really short now,” Miriam said, “as if I don’t have enough to contend with. We passed tall trees all day yesterday and today, but this is Shaq tall in trees.”

  The ground on which they were standing was damp. There wasn’t enough space between the leaves, branches and trees for the sun to fully penetrate. The density of the space made the place seem all the more untouched.

  “We can never grow that tall, but we can branch out,” Susan said.

  “Ever since you ate those poison berries, you’re different,” Miriam said. “More thoughtful or something.”

  Susan shrugged.

  They continued to walk through the density. Some of the limbs reached threateningly toward them. The surrounding concentration of trees seemed to protect yet threaten them all at once. Finally the density gave way to a more open area. They emerged into the sunshine, still looking for that elusive container.

  “I feel like we’re in a story looking for some lost artifact.” Kimberly continued to pat her arms and lightly slap her face.

  “A tin can or cup may as well be an artifact. We’re looking for the remains of somebody who came through here, except hopefully that wouldn’t be too long ago.” Elaine thought it might be easier to find artifacts in the cave. They’d already seen the drawings and carvings; maybe there was some kind of container inside. Caves were known for buried tools, weapons and all sorts of treasures. But they had seen nothing of value.

  They all suddenly stopped in their tracks. They listened intently to a steady, continuous humming.

  “What’s that noise?” Kimberly was now distracted from scratching.

  “That’s a really mighty buzz,” Elaine said.

  They moved slowly and haltingly forward. They could turn around without knowing what lay ahead, but the sound, though petrifying, pulled them in.

  “Holy mother of God.” Susan made a huge cross over her chest.

  Before them lay the body of a dead deer. It was frightening and grotesque. The carcass held within and above it what seemed like ten thousand swarming flies.

  “I don’t think we’re going to find any can out here.” Miriam realized why they had stopped breathing. The air had a putrid smell.

  “We should go back right now.” Elaine held her nose.

  They felt the same way, yet they were pulled in by the weird beauty of the distorted, deformed picture. They had never seen this many flies on dead flesh before, and it intrigued them.

  “What do you think they’re doing in there?” Susan asked.

  They had only a partial view of the inside of the deer because there were so many flies, but it seemed as though most of the entrails had been removed.

  “They could only be eating.” Elaine noted the aberrations that were now the deer’s eyes. They were hardly distinguishable, overrun with funneling flies.

  “Have you ever seen so many flies eating dead meat before?” Susan had never witnessed anything like this. She wondered if it was the flies alone that had eaten the deer down to a partial shell.

  “No,” Miriam said. “I’ve seen a lot of worms and maggots but I’ve never seen anything like this. This is an army of flies.”

  The buzzing sound seemed to make the air vibrate and come alive.

  “All I know is this dead deer is providing these flies with food.”

  The deer lay like a rigid sacrifice to the swarming flies. Its four legs were stretched out and its eyeless head, which was probably empty, looked sightlessly and stiffly ahead.

  “This is a pathetic picture,” Kimberly said.

  “For who?” Elaine asked. “Not for the flies.”

  “It’s sad for the deer,” Kimberly said.

  “Maybe so, but we’re mutually dependent on each other. It’s sad but
if the deer didn’t die, the insects wouldn’t have food. Anyway, we shouldn’t be inhaling this stuff for too long.” Elaine didn’t know what would happen if they kept inhaling the smell, but she was sure it couldn’t be good. They were suddenly aware of huge black birds circling overhead. They would want their piece of the dead meat.

  “This is a little unsettling,” Miriam said. “I’ll see this picture in my mind for a very long time.”

  “It’s life and death,” Susan said.

  “It’s give and take. And I don’t want to be part of the taking process when the other animals get here for the rest of the deer.” Elaine figured wherever there was a dead animal, there were living, hungry ones.

  “How long do you think it’s been dead?” The grass had been broken and bent where the deer lay and a dark, stained spot marked the underside.

  “Long enough for it to smell and for the insides to be gone.” Elaine slowly backed away from the scene. This was a disconcerting part of nature that they had not expected to see, but then they had not expected to be out here alone, off the beaten path.

  As they turned to leave, more black birds were circling.

  “What’s going to happen to the rest of it?” Susan asked.

  “There are those birds.” Elaine pointed to the sky. “Then bears and other animals will finish the rest.”

  “Bears!” Kimberly shouted. “And we were standing there gawking? I don’t want to see another bear anytime soon.”

  “I told you guys to come on, didn’t I? But we couldn’t stop staring. It’s like the most fascinating scene ever.” Elaine stole a glance backward. The flies were still buzzing.

  “I’ve seen squirrels flattened out like pancakes on the road. I’ve never seen that,” Miriam said. “It’s good that when we got here, we saw insects instead of bears.”

  “Maybe the other animals came by already. Who knows? But it’s not something we want to find out.”

  They stopped occasionally to look behind them until they could only see the scene in their mind’s eye. Eventually the buzzing faded away too.

  “How does your stomach feel?” Elaine asked Susan.

  “It’s kind of weird, but it doesn’t feel too bad. Do you think other deer were around when this one died?”

  “Probably.” Elaine considered. “But they’re used to this. Animals are smart about the nature of life. Plus what’s left after the flies and the bears are finished decomposes and goes back into the earth to enrich the soil. It’s kind of eaten up both ways.”

  “Cycle of mutual dependence,” Susan said. “We never did find a container.”

  Evening was approaching. It was probably close to four o’clock, but they refused to look at their watches. Their watches reminded them of how much time they had spent out here and the endless amount they might have to spend before they were found. The swish-swish of their boots in the grass was the only thing they heard now. They were quiet, their minds still on the dead deer.

  “Do you hear that?” Miriam asked.

  “Hear what?” Elaine responded.

  “I hear twigs breaking and heavy breathing behind us.”

  They stopped and listened intently. They heard nothing. All was quiet. They turned to look behind them and saw only the trees and grass.

  “It’s probably your imagination,” Elaine said.

  “No, it sounds like we’re being tracked by something taking deep breaths.”

  “Bloody hell.”

  They came to the dense area and began to walk faster. They almost broke into a run, although they had no idea what they were running from. Sunlight filtered here and there through the thick foliage and gave their journey a dreamlike quality. The tall trees reached into the heavens above while they scrambled below.

  Miriam was sure of what she heard. “I can still hear it.” She walked fast ahead of the group, navigating through slender specks of sunlight.

  “I don’t know what you’re hearing.” All Elaine heard was their collective hard breathing and their boots on the soft ground.

  They reached the mighty tree with the far-reaching tendrils. If anything, it seemed to have grown bigger. Miriam overestimated one of her steps and went tumbling face down over one of the roots. Unable to break her fall, she’d instinctually thrown her hand out.

  “I think I hurt my hand!” she cried out, the thing chasing them momentarily forgotten. “It’s my left hand! This hurts!” she rolled onto her back, tried to get up with the support of her right hand and dropped back down with a look of defeat. “I hurt this hand before playing soccer. I fell on it and it hurt.”

  “So what did you do?” Elaine asked.

  “Nothing, it stopped hurting on its own. It was just a sprain.”

  “They say sprains don’t go away, so it’s aggravated now,” Elaine said.

  “How bad is it?” Susan asked.

  “Pretty bad.” Miriam flexed her left wrist, using her right hand to support it. “Why did this have to happen now?” Her breath came in rapid gasps, and she felt her chest tightening. “This useless trip when I should be at soccer camp, and now my hand hurts like hell!”

  “Maybe you should try to focus on something else,” Elaine said.

  “What do you expect me to do? My hand hurts. What do you want me to focus on?”

  “Sorry, I just don’t want you to become moody. I was just saying it’s mind over matter.”

  “Do you have a sprained hand, Elaine?” Miriam didn’t stop for an answer. “No, so what are you talking about mind over matter? I’m the one who’s feeling this!” She vigorously kicked out at leaves and shrubs.

  “Careful of poison ivy.” Kimberly ran her hand slowly across her face. “Elaine said that if it gets on your boots and you touch it, it might affect you if you’re allergic. I don’t see any here, but it’s dark here.”

  “Elaine knows every darn thing about this and about that, and here we are still in these godforsaken woods. We’ll probably be here tomorrow too, searching for this and that and finding nothing but carcasses and parasites.” Miriam’s breath was ragged now. “And this is all because Kimberly had something in her shoe.”

  “Are you blaming me for your sprained wrist?” Elaine pointed to her chest with her index finger. “One, you said you sprained the same wrist before playing soccer. Two, you tripped over a tree root. I get that you might be pissed, but please find something else to be pissed off at.”

  “Can’t you see that I’m in pain? I’m in pain!” Miriam said between gasps.

  It sounded like a wheeze to them. Her face grew redder and she began crying.

  Elaine bent over Miriam and put her hand on her chest. “Relax, take it easy.” She repeated this for a while until Miriam breathed easier and stopped crying.

  “Now you say it,” Elaine said to Miriam. “Try to take slow, even breaths.”

  “Relax, relax, relax.” Miriam closed her eyes and repeated the words until she felt more relaxed. Her breathing was back to normal, and she’d regained her normal complexion.

  “You should stop working yourself up for nothing. You can’t be upset over every little thing. You make mountains out of molehills. You’re going to have a heart attack if you keep this up.”

  Miriam wiped at her eyes and held her arms up in acquiescence. The other three stood over her. This lying down on the ground had been the soccer pitch all over again, only this time the culprit was the root of a tree.

  Elaine stretched out a hand and pulled her up. “Good thing it’s not the hand you use.” She brushed a fleck of dirt from Miriam’s face.

  Miriam was immediately sorry for her outburst. She was frustrated, and “foot in mouth disease” always got the better of her when she felt this way. Her hand hurt, and it was affecting her feelings. Miriam had always been intolerant to pain, and its ability to get
to her had always brought about a self-loathing and anger that she seemed to have no control over. The self-hate always came after she’d already had an outburst.

  They continued on, deftly navigating the corded roots of the trees, blending in with the abstract patterns of light and dark.

  They left the density and came back to the grassy trail and bright sunshine.

  They came upon where the wilted poison lay, more scorched now but no less dangerous.

  “Kimberly, check your Storm to see if we have a signal.” Elaine knew they were all on edge. When they’d been walking in their large pack only yesterday, they didn’t even have to see each other; they could afford to be preoccupied with their own notions of how things were supposed to be. Now here they were together, and they had to pay attention.

  “Miriam has the phone.”

  Miriam dug into her pocket and found the phone. She handed it to Kimberly, who pressed a button and shook her head.

  “It’s almost pointless to look at this,” Kimberly said. “This phone is totally useless.”

  “It’s not the Storm; it’s where we are. It makes for good light and as long as there’s battery power, there’s always the possibility we might stand somewhere there’s signal,” Elaine said.

  They stood above the cave now. Looking down they saw the wild, vast wilderness. This bird’s-eye view gave them an oblique perspective of where they had slept and now where they were returning to.

  Without warning Susan started laughing hysterically, doubling over and holding her belly.

  “Looks like she’s going back to how she was earlier, when she was out of it,” Kimberly said.

  Susan continued laughing. “You know what we were running from back there?” she asked between bouts of laughter. “From what was in our heads.”

  “She’s not out of it,” Elaine said, “she’s right. We were running from ourselves. The carcass got into our heads, like the feeling you get after you see a scary movie. After the movie is finished, you’re left with dark thoughts and yourself, and that’s a bad combination.”