Rhamin

by Bryce THOMAS

  Raymond wound his window halfway down. ‘Had a little engine trouble. Flooded it,’ he said coolly, fearing that the patrolman would look through the back windows. The patrolman hadn’t seen what Ben, Margo and the wolves were doing. His attention was drawn to the activity of the angry pack of wolves, still milling about by the back door of the station wagon.

  Neither had Raymond seen what his son and daughter were doing. Nerves shredding rapidly, he was too busy getting ready to panic. The station wagon was large, but with three big wolves under the blankets, there was little room for Ben and Margo. Their little legs were tucked underneath them as they both sat astride Rasci. They had hastily tugged at the blankets, but Yeltsa was lying on them and they had only managed to hide her and Rhamin. Rasci’s back and head were still exposed. If the patrolman looked into the back he would see a five and half year old boy sitting on a wolf ’s head and a four and a half year old girl riding the same wolf, bare back; not what is normally expected to be happening inside an average family car, even in a safari park. Not the normal activity of the average family.

  ‘Do you need any help?’ The patrolman’s eyes flicked from the pack outside to look at Raymond.

  ‘Nope,’ Raymond said cheerily, a bead of sweat trickling down in front of his ear. He wound his window back up. ‘The problem seems to have cleared itself now,’ he called as the gap above the glass disappeared.

  ‘I’ll lead you out,’ the friendly patrolman shouted as he drew forwards and, honking his horn to disperse the pack of wolves that were now in front of his vehicle, he began to swing his jeep around on the grass. As he passed, his face was within two feet of the children and their contraband. Ben pressed his face against the glass and smiled cheerily. Margo, her blond hair sticking to her face, swept it to one side with one hand as she waved at the patrolman with the other.

  The patrolman gave them both a friendly wave and, swinging his vehicle around on the grassy field, he headed away back up the hill.

  ‘Are you all covered?’ Raymond asked, now that there was no one watching them.

  Ben and Margo busied themselves adjusting the wolves. Without any fear or effort they got them to move just where they wanted them. As Ben drew the blanket level over the last wolf, a warm, appreciative tongue caressed his little hand. He responded automatically with a light pat on the wolf’s head and then he and Margo climbed over into the rear car seat.

  As they approached the gates, the first one rolled back and they followed the patrol vehicle into the lock. Patiently they waited as its driver paced past the side windows. He operated the lever and closed the gate behind them and then, passing the station wagon again, he glanced inside. Ben gave him another wave and the broadest of smiles. Grinning and waving back at them, the patrolman went and opened the next gate. He got in his jeep and drove forward, leaving room for Raymond to pull in behind him, and then he closed the gate, got in his vehicle and led them through to the next enclosure. The lions were still there, but no one took much notice as they proceeded to the next set of gates.

  Once again, they travelled through the animal lock one gate at a time. Each time Ben smiled at the man and got a smile in return. ‘You’re steaming up,’ he said to Raymond as he passed his window. ‘You can put your windows down now if you want.’

  They waved to the friendly patrolman one last time as they drove off, following the signs towards the exit. Raymond was very quiet. Margo was whispering to the wolves. Ben stood against his father’s seat with his hand on his shoulder. Rasci and the other wolves remained concealed beneath the heavy woollen blankets. He was later to learn what happened. At this moment, however, everything around him sounded jumbled and unclear.

  ‘We’ve done it, Daddy!’ Ben whispered in his father’s ear.

  ‘I don’t know if we have, yet,’ his father replied. Up ahead was some kind of checkpoint. There were only two other cars heading that way, and they had already been stopped and set off again by the time Raymond drew up to the small kiosk that stood by a long pole barrier. The barrier was up. Raymond resisted the urge to drive straight through, and wound down his window. A man handed him a leaflet.

  ‘Hope you enjoyed your visit, sir,’ he said. ‘Very exciting. Quite an adventure,’ Raymond said truthfully, wiping his forehead with his handkerchief and smiling the best he could, his heart still pounding inside his chest.

  ‘It is, isn’t it, sir? Have a good day.’

  ‘And you.’ With a cursory wave, Raymond drove off without looking back.

  Once away from the main gates of the safari park, Raymond opened the windows at the front and told Ben to do the same at the back. The station wagon had become a boiling pan. The wolves were panting desperately as Ben pulled the covers off them. He pushed the blankets into the back seat and stood back while the three wolves expanded into the extra space and lifted their heads so that the cooling breeze could wash over their faces.

  It was some time before, Raymond stopped. He pulled off the busy road, and followed a timber cutters track that cut an avenue through the trees, past some fields of corn and, eventually, came to a stop in a wooded area. Here, they were well away from the road and out of sight or sound of any traffic. Rasci thought that Raymond seemed to know exactly where he was going. Clearly, this man had reconnoitred the area better that Rasci had at first thought. He was focussed and seemed to be working to a pre-designed plan. Raymond stopped the engine, got out and went around to the back of the station wagon. He clicked the catch, lifted the back door and shook his head. ‘You’ll be hot there,’ he said, to his cargo. He was right of course. The three wolves were panting rapidly. Their coats were damp with condensation, but the late afternoon air was cooler now and it was a relief for the wolves to be able to breathe the fresh, cool air. Raymond took the basket that was buried beneath the blankets on the back seat, opened it and took out the water bowl. He pulled out the water container from under the blankets and poured the last of the water into the dish and let the wolves all take a drink. Yeltsa was the thirstiest. She had been lying partially underneath the other two. Raymond helped her to move to one side, totally confident that she would allow it, and she let him, watching him with her amber eyes, for this was the first time she had actually seen the farmer from the mountain, the man that Rhamin and Rasci had spoken about so often; the farmer that, during their incarceration, Rhamin had sworn had betrayed them. But now she knew differently.

  The sense of relief and the feeling of freedom were not just felt by Rhamin and Yeltsa. It was clear that Rasci and his human friends felt the same. Until they had finally escaped from the enclosed fences, they had all been trapped inside a prison.

  CHAPTER TWENTY EIGHT

  None of the wolves spoke until the station wagon was on the road again. Even in the shelter of the wooded glade, there was a sense of unease. They felt free, but there was still danger in the air. Raymond sensed it also, but he kept his nerve. Instead of driving off as fast as he could go, he stayed in the copse, letting the wolves recover, letting them breathe the free air of liberation. Even with the back door open, none of the wolves ventured out of the station wagon. They knew that this vehicle, this man made, roaring, noisy metal horse of a thing, something they would normally walk a mile around to avoid, was now their saviour. They knew they were many miles away from the farm and the Darin. There was no temptation whatsoever to try and make their bid for freedom on their own. They lay, facing the open door, ears pricked forward, not speaking, or even communicating. Their company, the closeness of their bodies and their mere presence seemed more than enough. The sense of belonging seeped back into their aura, as they listened and watched silently for any sign of danger.

  The sun had set long before Raymond told his children to sit back inside the station wagon. He took his time, glanced once more back along the track towards the road, closed all the doors and, as the daylight began to fade, he set off to drive through the night without stopping.

  It was only then that the wolves began to relax
, no longer looking out for danger.

  ‘Well,’ Rasci began suddenly, his mood gradually lightening, as if they had been talking for hours, ‘you don’t exactly look like you’ve been receiving special treatment, Rhamin. In fact, you look like… how can I put it? Er…’

  ‘Like?’ Rhamin asked with a smile.

  ‘Like a pile of bird poo,’

  ‘Worse!’ Yeltsa said as Rhamin chuckled. Yeltsa was usually the most serious wolf in the whole pack.

  Rasci looked at her.

  ‘I fear she has a broken leg,’ said Rhamin serious once more. ‘The patrolmen beat her with a stick when we were fighting the other wolves.’

  ‘But why? If she was defending herself…’

  ‘She had one by the throat,’ Rhamin explained, sitting up and scratching vigorously at his neck.

  ‘No more than it deserved,’ said Yeltsa.

  ‘She wouldn’t let go. They were attacking both of us because we were in their territory. She defended herself the only way we free wolves know how. But those wolves in the prison camp didn’t behave like us. Some of them are new, from their own territory outside the park, but the rest seem to have always been there. It was their territory. The other wolves, that had once been free, accepted that and fell into line, following the established leader. But I don’t think that the resident wolves have ever hunted and killed. It was like they belonged there; you know, dependent on men for their food. Even with some wild wolves amongst them, they were no match for us; you saw that yourself when they confronted us. We weren’t prepared to follow their leader.’

  ‘Yes, I did notice. Even looking half the wolf you should be, they backed off.’

  ‘When Yeltsa and I first confronted them, we were both much stronger. We were still free in our minds. But back there, I think they were backing away from you, Rasci. You can look quite fierce when you have to.’

  ‘Thank you, Bro,’ Rasci said, lifting his head proudly. Rhamin looked at the face of his brother. ‘What on earth were you doing here, anyway? I’d have thought the pack would have got itself a new leader by now and forgotten about us.’

  ‘It has,’ said Rasci. ‘Not forgotten about you… I mean got a new leader.’

  ‘Oh, who is it then?’

  ‘Well, it’s… er… well it’s me, actually.’

  Rhamin laughed. ‘Come on Rasci, stop playing the fool. Tell me, who really is the leader.’

  Rasci sniffed and looked over the edge of the window at some fleeting light beams as cars passed on the other side of the road. ‘It’s me, Rhamin.’

  ‘Seriously?’

  ‘Well it was,’ Rasci said, a little sadness creeping into his voice. He thought of Roxana. Would she still be there when he got back? She never really answered him when he asked her to wait. Perhaps he didn’t wait for the answer because he feared she would say no. He wasn’t sure. ‘We don’t need two leaders, do we?’ he said philosophically.

  ‘That sounds like you enjoy being the leader of the pack, Rasci.’

  ‘Not really, brother. I don’t think I ever meant to be leader, it just happened.’ He told Rhamin how Solin had appeared as if from nowhere, and how he had stood up to him and how, by some fluke of fate, by seeing Solin off, he had assumed the role of leader without actually putting his name forward for the position.

  ‘But why the sadness then?’

  Rasci had tried hard not to show it. He considered what he had done over the past weeks and how his life was changing. He explained that he had met a young female by the name of Roxana and how she was ambitious and wanted to be the alpha female of a pack leader. Rhamin wanted to know all about her. Rasci didn’t tell him that she had begged him not to risk his life trying to save Rhamin. He didn’t tell Rhamin just how hopeless she thought the rescue attempt was, nor did he tell him just how close he had come to believing it himself. Without the strength and the will of the pack behind him, especially Silvah, Zelda and Lexa, Rasci realised he would have let Roxana talk him out of completing the planned rescue mission.

  ‘Healthy packs increase,’ Rhamin said eventually. ‘They evolve. The Rhamin pack isn’t a single wolf or a set group. It’s growing like a tree.’ He looked at Rasci affectionately. ‘I have no doubt that the pack think of you as a great leader. Some may want to stay with me, but some will choose to go with you. You’ve told us that, by some miracle of fate, our babies are safe and alive. Well then, the pack is already renewing itself. It has room for a few deserters.’

  ‘Deserters?’

  ‘I’m joking Rasci. Where’s your sense of humour gone?’

  ‘Oh, I see. Oh, well I’ve had rather a lot on my mind lately.’ He nodded towards the human occupants of the station wagon, two of whom were fast asleep. ‘Developing relationships and all that.’ He went on to explain how he was first sure that Rhamin was alive and how eventually he turned up at the safari park. Corvak had been the key to convincing him that all the visits to the different places in his dreams and trances had been for real.

  ‘Yes,’ Rhamin said with a look of affection in his eyes, ‘Corvak did come to visit me.’

  ‘I know,’ said Rasci, ‘I asked him to find you. If there’s anybody in this world that could find you if you were alive, it’s Corvak.’

  ‘Yes, he is quite a remarkable little bird, isn’t he?’ Rhamin thought for a long time. When he spoke again, he looked at Yeltsa. ‘You know, Rasci, Yeltsa and I are really grateful. There isn’t any other wolf that I know who could have brought off such a daring escape, or got the help that you did. We thought we were there to stay. Neither of us thought we would ever see you or the pack again.’ He paused and looked Rasci in the eye. ‘But you need to think about your own life now and we’ll understand if you want to leave.’

  ‘But I’m not sure if that is what I want. I was never happier than when I was following you.’

  ‘There’s nothing to stop you developing another relationship, then seeing how you feel, is there?’

  Rasci shook his head. He breathed a heavy sigh of relief. ‘Whatever happens, I hope we’ll always remain friends,’ he said as he lowered his head onto his front paws. He was weary of it all and somehow, a great weight had lifted from his mind. He was beginning, at last, to feel free again.

  ‘You can count on it.’ Rhamin said quietly, as he watched his friend slowly doze and then eventually sink into a deep, trouble free sleep.

  Raymond didn’t stop once. The children slept, the wolves dozed and he drove and drove and drove. Rasci knew that this man and his young ones had done more than any friend could have been asked to do. They had entered the world of the wolf, without question and had risked their own liberty in so doing. He realised that the rescue mission had meant that Raymond was breaking the rules of men, and breaking those rules has consequences. Whatever they were, they hadn’t happened during the rescue. From this time on, even Raymond Rozalski’s life had changed.

  He pulled the station wagon into the farm yard as the grey light of the next day was beginning to creep over the horizon. Maria was there to greet him. She came hurrying from the house followed by Smokey. Maria was fully dressed and looked like she had had no more sleep than her husband. He got out of the vehicle, brushed her hair from her face with his fingers and kissed her on the lips. They hugged for a moment or two and then, breaking away, Raymond went to the back of the station wagon. As he opened up the door, Maria saw the eyes of three big wolves looking out at her. Their ears were forward. Two of their faces showed definite curiosity. The third, Rasci’s, panted with a wide smile that even humans recognise as happiness. She spoke to Raymond in words that Rasci didn’t understand. ‘I was so worried,’ she said with a trembling voice.

  ‘You were not the only one,’ he said, taking off his jacket and throwing it to the ground. ‘We have an injured wolf here,’ he said in a business like manner and then, putting his arms underneath Yeltsa, hoisted her up to his chest and carried her to the kitchen. Rasci could tell that, not for one moment, did he fear Yeltsa o
r the other wolves. Rhamin watched, ears forward, a concerned look in his eyes, but did nothing to impede the farmer. He knew his life had been changed by the farmer’s actions and trusted him completely.

  So did Yeltsa. She was thin and weak. He laid her on the large pine kitchen table and pressed his hand on her shoulder to indicate that she was to stay there, while the other wolves stood inside the door, watching. Raymond spoke again to Maria and she disappeared into another part of the house. He took up Smokey’s bowl and filled it from a tap with cool water and placed it in front of Yeltsa. She waited a moment and then, as he spoke some words in an encouraging tone, lapped at it gratefully. He just stood and waited patiently. Eventually, with the bowl almost empty, he removed it and refilled it once more, placing it down in front of the other two wolves, and said something to Smokey, who was watching everything with interest. She went to a basket in the corner and sat down while Rhamin and Rasci drank.

  Soon, Maria returned with two bags which she handed to Raymond. From the first, he pulled out some fresh beef and placed it on the floor in front of the two male wolves but they just stood and watched him, oblivious to the food. From the second bag, he took out some rolls of white material. He fiddled with the first one and it began to unwind into a long tape. He placed his hand in the bag again and took out a short flat piece of wood. Carefully, he placed it against Yeltsa’s broken fore leg, straightened the break as gently as he could and began to wind the tape around both the stick and the leg. Yeltsa never moved. She just watched him, bearing the pain without any audible sound. Rasci and Rhamin could hear her cries, of course, but still she remained totally motionless while Raymond continued to gently bind the leg.

  When he had finished, he stroked her head with such emotion that even Rasci and Rhamin could feel it. When he gave his affection to an animal, it was clear that Raymond Rozalski held nothing back and, as Maria watched him, it was clear also that she knew he was like that. Her eyes were soft, the way that Yeltsa looked at Rhamin. Rasci thought that perhaps, that was the way that Roxana had looked at him, only he had not recognised the look for what it was. He wasn’t sure.