“I wouldn’t know how to describe it.”
“Well, for starters, how big was it?”
“Maybe five or six feet high, ten feet long.”
“That’d be bigger than a bull.”
“Trust me, it wasn’t a bull.”
The forest grew dense and they had to push their way past thick foliage and bushes with long narrow thorns on every stem. Eric’s legs began to itch from the dozens of small cuts and scrapes he’d accumulated.
“You know,” Eric said, “when I was kid, I wasn’t that great with girls. I was awkward and shy and they never paid attention to me or were usually just mean to me. My dad used to take me to baseball games. We didn’t have a professional team, so we used to go to the college games. There was this girl there that worked at the food stand. She was blond and kinda skinny but had these gorgeous green eyes. I mean I was only like twelve at the time but I had a full out crush on her. I could never bring myself to talk to her, but she’d smile when she saw me and I’d smile back. I think she was the only girl at that time of my life that was nice to me.
“One of the games we went to she wasn’t there. She wasn’t at the next one either. She went to junior high school with one of my friends and I asked if he knew her and what happened. He said she was dead. Her father had come home drunk one night and thrown her down the stairs.” Eric glanced at William who was staring at the ground. “I never got to tell her how much those smiles meant to me. I still think about her sometimes but I don’t know why.”
“Regret’s a hard thing to deal with. They say it’s better to regret something you have done rather than something you haven’t, but I don’t know. I have so many regrets myself Eric, so many missed opportunities. I thank God I found Sandra but she wasn’t the first. There were others that I treated poorly and it went nowhere. But we’re learning creatures. We can’t expect to get things right the first time.”
A few minutes of silence passed, the crunching of vegetation underfoot filling the empty space.
“I killed someone,” Eric said, not looking at him.
William stopped in his tracks and Eric walked a few paces ahead but didn’t turn around. He stood motionless, watching the trees sway in the cool wind.
William stood silently watching.
Eric swallowed, his throat dry. “I killed my stepfather. I shot him in the chest.”
“Do you regret doing it?”
“I don’t know. I didn’t want to kill anybody, but at that time . . . I don’t know.”
“Why did you kill him?”
“He hurt my mother. I just wanted to scare him but it didn’t turn out that way.”
“And you thought you could protect her by taking his life?”
“No . . . I don’t know. I went over there to scare him but I think part of me knew it would end like it did.”
“You’ve committed a crime against God Eric, but your heart was in the thought of protecting your mother. God can forgive you; do you want to be forgiven?”
“Yes.”
“Then you must make up for the life you took, do you understand? You have to take a life with no hope and give it hope.” William got on his knees and forced Eric down with him.
“Repeat: O my God, I am heartily sorry for having offended Thee, and I detest all of my sins because of Your just punishments. Mostly because they offend You my God, who art all good and deserving of all my love. I will, with the help of Thy grace, sin no more. And I say these things, father, in the name of thy beloved son Jesus who is the Christ. Amen.”
Eric closed his eyes and repeated after him. William placed his hand on Eric’s shoulder. He embraced him before they began walking again.
*****
The sun seeped through the branches of the canopy above them at dawn. They’d walked the entire night without stopping. Now they were tired and hungry, thirst making their stomachs twist in pain.
They stopped near a large boulder in a clearing and sat down, their backs against the stone. A blanket of bird calls filled the forest and a colony of ants were busy at work on a tree stump in front of them.
Eric leaned back and closed his eyes. The heat felt wet in the forest and it soaked him in humidity and perspiration. He hardly noticed when a glob of drool spattered on his chest. Another strand leaked down over his face and he opened his eyes.
Above him on the boulder was a face from his nightmares. The creature’s eyes were drawn tight and its teeth were exposed. Eric couldn’t move. He stared into the creature’s eyes, watching its pupils dilate as its muscles tensed.
The creature lunged and Eric spun away on the ground, the horrible mouth snapping into air and missing his shoulder by a few inches. William jumped and grabbed the rifle but the creature spun around too quickly and knocked him off his feet. It turned back to Eric and let out an earsplitting roar. Eric took off into the forest and the creature went after him.
The forest was thick. Eric couldn’t see more than a few feet in front of him at a time. The branches were scratching his face as he dashed past them and the ground was uneven.
The creature pursued, adeptly moving through the density of the forest as if it were a bird. It ducked underneath low hanging branches and kept pace with its prey. Eric tried to zigzag but ended up losing ground. He glanced back once at the creature; it was certainly a hyena. It had the long forelegs and thick muscular build with the human-like eyes, but the size was unlike anything Eric had ever seen.
There was a tall tree with low branches in front of him and Eric leapt for the nearest branch, wrapping his arms around it and swinging his legs up. The beast flew into the air, its jaws wide, and snapped at Eric’s legs but missed and bit into the branch, tearing half of it down with a loud crunch. Eric climbed to his knees and then up another branch, and then another. He looked down to see the creature eyeing him. It had intelligent eyes that sent a chill up Eric’s back. You could tell it was thinking as it watched you.
The beast crouched and then vaulted onto the tree, its claws catching the bark as it climbed to the first branch. Eric watched in horror as it began climbing to the next branch.
Eric climbed higher, the bark cutting his hands. When he neared the top he looked down to see the beast’s face staring back at him. The tree was leaning to the side under its weight but still the creature climbed.
Eric got to the top and the hyena was right behind him. He pulled the handgun Jalani had given him and took aim. He fired once and missed but the second shot hit the animal right above its right shoulder blade. The beast was caught off balance and fell on the branch underneath him.
A thunderous crackling echoed in the air as the tree nearly splintered in half. The creature crashed through the branches and onto the ground. The violent swaying of the tree made Eric lose his grip and he hit the ground hard. He was next to the creature as it lay dazed. He stood up and pain shot through his ankle but he began to limp away as the hyena stood, a deep growl contorting its face with anger.
Eric came into a clearing and he darted for a precipice a couple dozen yards away. The beast was behind him, gaining on him with every second.
It was snarling wildly and drool sopped from its mouth. It almost had its prey now. The smell of its sweat was intoxicating and it opened its mouth, anticipating the warm flow of blood down its throat.
Eric flew off the edge of the small cliff and rolled down the steep side of the plateau. The gun flew out of his hand in the tumble and slid down a dozen feet before coming to a stop. As he rolled, his body absorbed the impact of rocks and stray logs but he saw the creature chasing after him, carefully managing its descent down the hill.
Eric crashed into the ground at the base of the hill, battered and in pain. He tried to rise, but his ankle gave out; it was strained and had already started to swell. He collapsed onto his stomach as the massive hyena stood over him, its mouth clamping down on his ribcage like a vice.
A shot tore through the air and the beast yelped as a bullet from William’s rifle pi
erced its back leg. Another shot missed and hit the dirt ahead. The beast turned and let out a deep roar, anger and hatred filling its eyes. Another round struck its paw and it roared violently before sprinting into some nearby grass.
William ran down the hill, sliding on his backside most of the way. He got down to where Eric was and bent over him. He put his hand on Eric and he screamed and batted it away, unsure what it was.
“It’s all right,” William said. “He’s—”
A roar and trembling in the ground as the hyena raced out of a thicket of long grass and leapt at William. He held up his rifle and the beast bit down, crunching the wood and steel as if it were biting through a twig.
Another gunshot, this one more heavily bassed. Then another and another. William flew off his feet and landed on his back, a gaping hole in his chest draining his body of blood. The hyena roared and lunged, but a series of shots filled the air and it collapsed on the ground not far from Eric.
Thomas walked toward the beast, four tribesmen with rifles behind him. He held the barrel of the rifle over the beast’s heart and pulled the trigger. Watching the blood flow into the dirt and stain it black. Eric saw William vomiting blood. He stood up and limped over to him, sharp pain shooting through his ankle and ribs.
“Will, come on. We’re gonna get you help,” He went to move him and William let out a scream of pain. “Come on Will,” Eric said, tears filling his eyes, “come on, you’re gonna be okay.”
William looked at him, a smile parting his bloodied lips. He reached up, touching Eric’s cheek and leaving a smear of blood before life drained from his eyes, and his gurgled breathing stopped.
“No!” Eric shouted. He went to pick him up but the weight was too much and he collapsed on the ground next to him. “No! Will, come on. You’re not gonna die, come on!”
“Let him go boy,” Thomas said.
Eric looked up to him, his eyes lit with rage. “You fucking killed him!”
“We were trying to shoot the beast.”
“You don’t miss, you fucking killed him.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.” He knelt down and picked Eric up by the arm, placing it over his neck to bear his weight. “People die here, Eric.” Thomas closed his eyes and said a quick prayer. He told the tribesmen to bury William and then said, “Come on, we’ll get you to a doctor.”
CHAPTER
54
Jalani had driven Douglas and Sandra to the village after one of the tribesman fetched them and told them the news. They came onto a village in celebration, the men that had hunted with Thomas being hailed as warriors.
Fires were lit and mountains of flesh were being cooked as a feast was anticipated, though many of the villagers would refuse to eat the meat. The hide of the beast hung on a vine tied between two trees and appeared as large as a tent. Its head was mounted on a post and children were throwing stones at it. The primitive music of the tribe—little more than plucked strings on handmade sitars and leather-bound tablas—was wailing in the late afternoon sun.
Eric sat with a primitive brace made of wood and rope around his ankle. The pain was soothed with a type of leaf the medicine man had given him to chew. It was dizzying and obviously a narcotic but it felt pleasant and made him feel warm in his gut. He watched Thomas tell Sandra, and her cold distant reaction. He watched Douglas sit next to a fire and pull out a bottle of liquor and begin passing it around to the hunters that had killed the great beast.
Jalani walked to him and smiled. “They now consider you a man,” she said.
He didn’t feel like a man. He didn’t feel like much of anything. Just a cold, gray weight in his belly and dizziness in his head. William was a good man; he didn’t deserve to die like that. Eric understood it was a mistake but he didn’t deserve that. He’d saved Eric’s life and now he was gone. “I didn’t kill it.”
“No, but you showed courage in the hunt. That is what is important. To have courage in the face of death. That is what a warrior is.” Jalani awaited a response but Eric gave none so she leaned down and gently kissed his cheek. “I am glad you are safe.” She walked back to the celebration.
The feast got underway and the meat was skewered on smooth sticks and passed around. Though vegetarian, the elders of the village had made an exception for this animal as they believed they would absorb its power. There was a boiling pot in which the beast’s heart was taken out and carefully cut as the medicine man of the village chanted a prayer. Pieces of the heart were given to all the hunters, the largest portion going to Thomas. He ate the heart with his eyes closed, blood dripping down his chin like one of his savage ancestors. Afterwards he rose and walked to where Eric was seated.
“He was a good man, but bad things often happen out here,” Thomas said, sitting down next to him.
“Look me in the eye and tell me you didn’t kill him on purpose.”
Surprise splashed across Thomas’s face, but only for a moment. He looked Eric in the eyes and said, “I did not mean to kill that man. He was my friend, Eric. And what possible reason would I have for doing so? He was a paying customer, a good paying customer.
“The truth is the tribesmen are not as well trained on rifles as we are. It’s a new technology to them and they take it too lightly. But I take full responsibility. I should not have told them to fire when you two were in harm’s way. I’m sorry I caused you this pain.”
Eric wasn’t sure what he could see. Still, he needed to hear those words come out of his mouth. “Where was he buried?”
“Out here. I don’t think there’s any Mormons I know of that could give him a proper send off, but we found a nice piece of land underneath the shade of a tree.”
“Sandra doesn’t seem very pissed off at you.”
“She will grieve in her own way. But what now for you? Where will you go?”
“I can’t stay here.”
“Oh?” Thomas said, a slight twinge of sadness in his voice.
“There’s nothing but death.”
“Death and beauty,” Thomas said, staring off at the sky. “When you’re older, I think you’ll see that death is everywhere. It must be. In the end, that’s all there is.” Thomas rose, taking something out of his pocket and handing it to Eric. “I wanted you to have this.”
It was a one of the creature’s teeth fastened on a piece of leather to make a necklace. “Thanks.”
Thomas nodded, and walked away. Some of the children ran up to him and began yelling requests. He lamented and picked up a stone. Taking aim at about twenty yards away, he threw the stone and hit the creature’s head on the post. The children erupted in awe and laughter.
You never miss, Eric thought.
CHAPTER
55
The celebration lasted well into the night. The meat that wasn’t eaten was hung over thick vine and smoked dry. The hide was cut up and would be used as clothing and the bones would be made into weapons and tools. Nothing was wasted.
Eric woke in the middle of the night and sat up. An image ran through his mind: William lying on the ground, blood leaking into the earth. It didn’t let him sleep. The whole incident replayed in his head over and over. The smell of gunpowder and blood, the bassed sound of large rifles, William’s last breaths.
Eric stood using a wooden crutch the villagers had carved out of a log for him. He walked outside the tent and stood in the night. The moon was high and lit the valley before him in pale light. There were swarms of gazelle and deer grazing in the tall grass. He looked around the village; it was empty and the fires were all out except for one at the end. He hoped Jalani was still awake.
Eric began slowly limping over, the bare wood of the crutch digging into the flesh of his underarm. A breeze was blowing and it felt cool against the burnt skin on his face. Snoring was coming from some of the tents he passed, a few groans of pleasure coming from others. He made his way to the last fire and looked into the tent.
Sandra’s nude body lay on a bed of fur. Thomas was on top of her, kissi
ng her passionately, his hands caressing her soft skin. Eric moved away from the tent, but stood nearby. What kind of woman would . . .?
An epiphany screamed in his head and he had to sit down on a nearby stone to quiet it down. He looked toward the tent, disgust and guilt going through him in waves. He finally stood up and wobbled back to his tent.
The next morning came quietly, most of the village sleeping off their drunkenness well into midday. Douglas woke Eric and told him they would be leaving soon. Another jeep had been brought from Kavali and they would be going back there.
Eric hadn’t slept more than a few hours. His dreams were filled with blood and laughter and screams. He saw William’s torn body. It was standing upright and speaking to him, trying to say something but no sound was coming out. The flesh was so badly ripped on his face Eric didn’t recognize him at first. He said something and then collapsed.
Eric rose and limped out of the tent. His ankle felt better though the swelling hadn’t gone down. He was pretty certain it wasn’t broken.
The sun was already bright and the cool breeze of last night was replaced with a wall of boiling heat. He looked out before the valley before him, observing the contrast between the sapphire blue sky and the golden grass below. A leopard stood over a gazelle, carefully glancing around every few seconds to make sure nothing was trying to spirit away her kill. She looked up once and saw Eric on top of the plateau.
“Come on, Eric,” Douglas said, “we’re riding with Thomas.”
They loaded everything in their jeep and Eric sat in the back, Thomas and Douglas sitting up front. Jalani had left with Sandra and Dr. Namdi an hour before and her jeep was already well out of sight.
Thomas walked into a few tents, presumably to say good bye, and then hopped into the driver’s seat and started the engine. They pulled away from the village and slowly made their way down the side of the plateau, Thomas carefully applying the brakes to keep from gaining too much speed. Occasionally they would slide and he would turn the wheel sharply left or right, causing the jeep to twist to its side and come to a halt. But they made their way down and the jeep chugged along the dirt path.
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