by G. M. Moore
The fawn’s head went to the ground, lost in the underbrush for a moment. The head came up and went back down as the animal slowly circled the slain doe. Tess squirmed as the baby let out a series of mournful bleats. The hand on her arm tightened. She turned to plead with Cain but saw he was no longer watching the fawn. She followed his gaze across the meadow to where a short, fat man stood, shotgun raised. Her stomach lurched when suddenly a second man rushed out of the woods and hit the shooter’s arm. Tess bit back a scream as a shot rang out. The fawn skidded backward. A patch of bright red spread across its rump.
“Are you crazy!” the second man yelled as he punched the fat one in the chest with both hands.
The fat one punched back and the two stared at each other, seemingly on the verge of a fight. Tess heard the crackling chatter of what she thought must be a walkie-talkie. The sound drew the taller, thinner man’s attention. He took the instrument from his belt. The fat man grabbed for it, and Tess watched the two men fight for it like a couple of kids. The thin man finally stopped the scuffle by holding the walkie-talkie high in the air with one hand and pushing the fat man back with the other. He held his palm out to keep the other man at bay and slowly lowered the walkie-talkie. He talked briefly on the device, then holstered it to his belt. The men didn’t appear to say anything to each other following this, just moved jointly forward across the meadow.
Tess and Cain crouched lower as the men drew closer to them.
“I knew he’d want it,” Tess heard the fat man gloat.
“He doesn’t want it dead,” the thin man replied sharply.
“He never said that.”
“Well, I did. We aren’t killing a fawn, especially an albino one.”
“Uh-huh.”
“Not happening, Butch.”
The man called Butch smirked. “We’ll see about that. A stuffed fawn would look mighty nice right next to its mother.”
Tess saw the thin man clench his fists and plow ahead of Butch, who stood chuckling callously. The fawn limped around and tried its best to run when the thin man corralled it. Tess thought she heard him say, “Thank God,” as he examined the animal. She noticed he was much younger than the fat man and obviously in much better shape. He showed no signs of fatigue, but she could see the belly of the man called Butch heaving up and down as he labored to breathe.
Tess carefully adjusted her weight on her legs as she continued to peer through the brush at the two men. The young man turned his baseball cap backward, and she heard him say, “You only grazed him.” He looked over his shoulder at Butch who was now busy spitting into a bottle and hiking up his drooping pants. The young man took a handkerchief from his pocket and tied it around the fawn’s back leg and hind end.
“He’ll be fine,” he said and stood up with the fawn nestled in his arms. “But I’m taking him.” He gestured toward the fallen doe. “She’s all yours.” He watched Butch wrestle with his large belly for a moment, shook his head, then turned and walked away.
The man called Butch wasn’t paying any attention to the other man, just pushing on his belly fat until he found the belt strap and pulled. “Huh?” he questioned. As he secured the belt buckle, he finally looked up. His head jerked left and right. “Where—? Hey!” he yelled after the young man, who was now several yards away. “Get back here.” He looked down at the doe. “You can’t be serious.”
The young man walked on, waved one hand in the air and called out, “See you in Stone Lake.”
“Come on, Wes,” Butch pleaded. Tess stifled a small chuckle as Wes kept walking. “I was kidding you. Kidding, all right.” Wes kept walking. “Hey!” Butch yelled again. “Wes!”
The young man turned back to Butch who stood with his mouth agape, his arms outstretched. “I’d get moving if I were you,” he ordered. “Oh, and be careful,” he smirked. “She’s going to be stuffed. Full body.”
With that, Tess watched him leave the meadow and vanish into the surrounding woods.
****
As Butch struggled to carry the slain doe from the meadow, Cain signaled to Tess and the two snuck off in the opposite direction, picking up another vein of the ATV trail. Tess wanted to ask questions, but Cain’s determined stride and furrowed brow kept her quiet. He walked so fast that she had to practically jog to keep up with him. She didn’t know where they were going, but she did know she should be heading home in case her father called to check up on her. Still, she found herself unable to stop following the boy. When it seemed they were a safe distance from the meadow, Cain finally broke the silence.
“What were you doing out there?” he demanded. She opened her mouth to answer, but he didn’t give her the chance. “It isn’t safe to be alone out here,” he continued, walking even faster now. “The area is too isolated. Look around you.” He waved his hand at the just-budding forest surrounding them, but never slowed. Tess struggled to keep up. “Does anyone know where you are? Do you have a cell phone on you? Any identification?” He looked at her for the first time since beginning his tirade. She shook her head no. “That figures,” he said in a tone that reminded Tess way too much of her father.
Glaring at him, she stopped short.
Cain continued on for several paces until he realized she wasn’t following. He turned back with a surprised, almost stunned look to see her blowing a strand of blond hair from her face and shaking a finger at him.
“You,” Tess blurted out. “You are not the boss of me. I don’t have to explain myself to you. I can do what I want. And how long have you lived around here anyway? Cell phones don’t work out here in the woods. Duh! You can never get a signal. And, for your information, I don’t have a cell phone.”
The look on his face changed from stunned to incredulous. “You don’t have a cell phone, come on?” He snorted. “Really?”
“Yes, really. My father won’t let me have one.”
“Why wou—” he stopped mid sentence. Tess saw his eyes dart to the scarf on her neck and a chagrined look appeared on his face. She was immediately taken aback. Did he know about the accident? Her hand flew to her neck. She started talking, fast.
“What do you think is going to happen to me out here, anyway? I’ll get attacked? By what, a bear? Oh, please.”
He heaved in frustration. “Not a bear, a person.” He walked closer to her, shaking his head as he approached. “You don’t get it. Animals, for the most part, are predictable; people are not. And those men, any men, are dangerous. You could disappear without a trace out here. No one would know where or how.”
They stared at each other for a moment. Tess realized her hand was still at her throat and quickly removed it. Her eyes fell to the ground.
“It’s just that…” he began slowly, his tone much softer. “You know, your safety is important.”
Tess looked up. Her safety? Why would Cain Mathews care about her safety? She met his hazel eyes and felt a wave of heat course through her body. Suddenly, she was very nervous and any fight she had, any argument she could muster, left her. Tess wanted to die right then and there. She couldn’t believe she had yelled at Cain Mathews. How stupid, stupid, stupid. All she could do at that moment was slowly nod her head.
“You could at least carry some pepper spray,” he said.
She let out a small, squeaky laugh.
He squinted one eye. “Maybe a Taser?”
Her eyebrows arched, and she cleared her throat. “A Taser? You want me to carry a Taser?” Tess pursed her lips slightly. “OK, Dad. I’ll carry a Taser. They come in pink, right?”
He smiled and started walking again. “I think so.”
She followed his lead. “Are we done with the lecture then?”
He nodded.
“Good,” she sighed deeply and asked, “So, where are we going and what’s the deal with those poachers? Shouldn’t we call the police?” She paused then, letting a Cheshire cat grin
fill her face. “Hold on, Mr. Safety. What were you doing in the woods all by yourself?”
“Well. Umm. Umm.”
Tess watched Cain rub the side of his face back and forth as he struggled to form an answer. He’s just as nervous as I am, she thought, and with a needed boost of confidence, felt the butterflies in her stomach calm a bit.
“Well, I was tracking the poachers,” he finally answered.
“Oh, and that’s not dangerous. No, not at all. Do you have a cell phone?”
“Not on me, no.”
“Any sort of weapon?”
“No.”
She gave him a reproachful look.
“OK, OK.” He held his hands up. “You got me, but it’s different for guys. Right?” He raised pleading eyebrows to her.
She hadn’t really thought about it before. Being in the woods was second nature to her. Tess grew up hiking and four wheeling with father, but Cain was right—out here by herself, with no way to call for help and no way to protect herself, she was as vulnerable as that fawn.
“Yeah,” she reluctantly admitted. “True.”
“Then to answer your other question, we are headed to my we-eh’s.”
“Your what?”
“My Ojibwe godfather,” he answered. “And you will be escorted safely home.” Tess rolled her eyes. “And I’ll take care of the poachers.”
“You?” she fired back. She grimaced slightly at how harshly that question had come out, but his safety was suddenly important to her as well. “Can’t you just call the police or the, ummmm, game warden or something?”
“I wish. I wish it were that simple, but these guys are really good. They run a very tight operation. My we-eh has been watching them for years. They are well connected, especially the lead guy.”
“But if they’ve been doing it for years, a lot of people must know who they are. Towns around here are small. Someone would have reported them.”
Cain nodded. “Over the years my we-eh has, many times. But nothing happens. No one stops them. They aren’t even fined. Now, he and other Mide watch and secretly sabotage.”
“Other Mide?” Tess questioned.
“Members of the secret Midewiwin, the Grand Medicine Society.” He smirked. “You white folks would call them medicine men.”
Her eyes narrowed. “You’re kidding, right?” She searched his face and saw that he wasn’t. “A secret society? Come on. What do they do? Cast spells on them?”
“Something like that.”
Her upper lip curled with skepticism. This was getting a little weird.
“Listen.” He waved his hand dismissively. “Forget all that. Just know that these guys are very dangerous. They make a lot of money poaching—a lot of money. They aren’t going to let anyone stop them—not you, not me. Their guns are not traceable. They would think nothing of shooting us right now.” He pointed to the ground. “Right here.”
Tess’s eyes narrowed again, doubt lingering in them.
“Yes,” he assured, his face stern. “You and I could have died this afternoon in a very tragic gun accident. Teens, you know, we are so careless.”
His tone made Tess shudder. This wasn’t getting weird, she thought. It was weird and a bit scary. She took a step away from Cain and walked a little faster.
****
The two teens followed the ATV trail until it crossed a rustic road paved with sandy gravel. They turned right onto the road and walked about ten minutes down it before Cain stopped at an overgrown lane marked by two large granite boulders. He directed Tess with a nod. “This way.”
The lane was more compact than the road had been and had a grassy strip running down the middle. Pine and spruce trees lined its edges, their fringy branches waving in the wind and blocking out the sunlight. The rays that broke through cast golden stripes across the teens’ path. They walked deeper and deeper into the woods, Cain on one side of the grassy strip, Tess on the other. They didn’t talk much, hadn’t really since leaving the ATV trail. Tess dragged her feet a bit, hit a network of tree roots twisting through the lane, and tripped. Cain grabbed her arm as she tumbled.
“Thanks,” she murmured, her face flushing.
“Don’t worry,” he assured her. “We’re almost there.”
That was good news because her feet hurt, her back ached, and she was beginning to wonder why she hadn’t just left Cain Mathews at the meadow and walked herself home. He gestured to the woods ahead, and to her relief she saw a small clapboard cabin nestled to the point of camouflage among a stand of black spruce. The building looked abandoned with its graying, worn wood and peeling paint. But as they drew closer, Tess saw movement in the dingy windows of its enclosed porch. An eagle screeched hauntingly in the distance, sending an unexpected shiver down Tess’s spine as an elderly Native American man emerged from the porch’s shadowy interior. He closed the front door behind him and stood as if on guard in front of it. His white hair was short and neatly combed. His bushy, salt-and-pepper eyebrows drooped above eyes diminished in size by sagging folds of creamy brown skin. He massaged his wrinkled neck as they approached.
“Maadaadizi,” he greeted Cain, encircling him with a bear hug.
“Boozhoo,” Cain replied as the man pulled back, eyed Tess warmly, and nodded. “It is time. Come.”
Cain shuffled his feet. “She should stay here,” he said, his voice cracking slightly as he spoke.
“No,” the man answered. “Both.”
Cain hesitated, his eyes pleading with the man.
“Come,” the Mide ordered, his tone firm.
Cain’s shoulders and head slumped, and he closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened them, he gave Tess a pained smile and then swept his arm outward. She stepped ahead and the two followed the elderly Mide to a moss-covered birch structure tucked back farther into the woods. They stepped into its smoky haze, leaving the late morning sun and spring chill for the dim glow of a fire pit and a stifling humidity that reminded Tess of a sauna.
The Mide moved to the fire and stared into it for a few minutes before turning to Cain. “The journey I foresaw at your birth is here. The spirits are calling you, Maadaadizi. They are crying for balance. You are a protector, a member of the Bear Clan. It is your time.”
The man’s dark eyes then fell on Tess. She leaned back and nervously pulled on the cuffs of her jacket. “You have seen the woods ghost. It came to you to die. It is a sign from the peacekeepers. They have felt your kindness.” He paused. “They have felt your pain.”
Shadows and light danced around the Mide as he studied her. Tess fidgeted under his gaze. She wasn’t sure what to do. Say thank you? Bow her head? Maybe turn and run? She settled for a small, nervous nod. He finally motioned for her to sit, and she did. The Mide walked over to a birch table taking a pipe and a fur bag from it. He signaled to Cain before stepping behind a door made from animal hides. As Cain passed her, he bent down and whispered, “Sorry. Just sit. It won’t be long.” He gave her an apologetic smile before opening the flap and disappearing behind it.
This is great, Tess thought, squirming on the fur pelt she sat upon. Albino deer, poachers, medicine men—what have I gotten myself into here? Cain Mathews or no Cain Mathews, I should have gone home. Why didn’t I just go home?
Tess looked around the room. There wasn’t much to it. The large circular pit glowed orange from the room’s center. Several animal pelts lay across the dirt floor. A birch table that reminded Tess of an altar stood near the pit and held a couple of pipes and a few yellow gourds. A drum rested against it. Behind the altar a large wooden circle hung from the wall providing the room its only decoration. The disc was divided into four quadrants—one yellow, one red, one black, and one white—and had the symbol of an eagle etched into its center.
It is so hot in here, Tess grumbled as she wiped sweat from her forehead with one sleeve. What is this place anyway
? she wondered, scanning the room again and searching her mind for an answer.
A sweat lodge. I bet this is a sweat lodge.
She nodded her head with certainty and looked around again. The place Native Americans come to learn and seek guidance. Very cool. A bead of sweat dripped down the side of her face. But very hot. Tess grabbed the pelt she was sitting on and moved it farther away from the fire. As she sat down, she heard faint singing coming from behind the animal hide door. She hesitated for a moment, then moved a little closer to the doorway. She cocked her head to listen. Chanting. That was definitely chanting. She scooted even closer. The chanting was in a language she assumed was Ojibwe. Then she heard a rattle shaking. Curiosity got the best of her and she quietly crept all the way to the door, pulling the flap back just a little. This room had its own fire pit, and in its faint glow Tess saw skin. Taut, sweaty, muscle-rippled skin. She cupped a hand over her mouth and dropped the flap.
He was naked. She had just seen Cain Mathews naked.
Her stomach fluttered. You shouldn’t have looked, she scolded. Tess bit down hard on her lip, wanting to look again but knowing she shouldn’t. She fidgeted, wincing slightly as the urge to look won. Tess slowly reached out, pulling the curtain back a second time.
OK, she quickly assured herself. It’s OK. He wasn’t naked, just shirtless. She felt relief, but strangely, disappointment too. Good lord, she sighed. What is wrong with me? She quietly inhaled and exhaled until her body, inside and out, calmed. Then and only then could she focus, really focus, on what she was seeing.
Cain sat shirtless on the ground taking puffs from a long pipe as the medicine man shook a gourd rattle over his head with one hand and a fur bag at Cain with the other. To Tess the movement was almost violent. This went on for several minutes until the chanting abruptly stopped. Cain laid the pipe down and slowly rose. Tess followed his movement with her eyes. His rippled torso glistened in the firelight. His jeans hung low on his waist, and Tess caught a glimpse of a tattoo positioned on his left side just above what she thought were his obliques. It was a circle, and although the dim light obscured it, she was certain it had some of the markings and coloring of the wooden circle on the wall. The medicine man now had a string of something white in his hands. As he began to tie it around the teen’s neck, Cain turned toward the door. Tess quickly dropped the curtain and froze, eyes squinted shut, hoping he didn’t see her. Not until she heard voices did she feel safe enough to move inch by inch away from the door. But curiosity kept her within earshot.
