They were walking up a long uphill stretch, Marin in front, Freya in the middle and Eloise trailing behind.
“Just one more bend and it’s flat again,” Freya called, her voice swallowed up by the thinner air. But she was wrong.
“There’s another hill,” Marin yelled as she turned the corner, her voice harsh with frustration. Freya walked fast to catch her up and instantly regretted it as she got out of breath.
“What?” She stared at the track ahead in dismay. There was indeed an even steeper hill leading up to a ridge. “I must have made a mistake somehow,” she said, fishing her phone out of her pocket and flicking through her guidebook.
“Don’t worry, it happens,” Marin said tersely. “Let’s just take it slow. Our planned stop for the night is still valid, right?”
“Yes. In the valley just over the ridge,” Freya said. They turned to look for Eloise. She was far back, a tiny, bright pink figure in the distance, at least a ten-minute walk away.
“Shit! We’re not supposed to get that far apart,” Freya said. “How did that happen?”
“We were too busy trying to get the hill out of the way. It’s okay; we’ll sit and wait for her in that patch of shade right there.” Eloise pointed to a tiny shadow beneath an overhanging crag. They heaved their packs off and sat down on the hard rock floor and watched as Eloise approached, seeming to move very slowly.
At last she arrived, breathing hard, hair plastered to her face with perspiration.
“Sorry, guys. That section was fricking hard,” she said in between pants. “Are we done with the hill yet?” The other two shook their heads, not wanting to tell her there was worse to come.
“How about we chill here for a while, until you’ve got your breath back? There’s plenty of daylight left.” Marin said.
“Okay,” Eloise agreed immediately, and flopped down next to them. Freya glanced at her, noticing that her eyes were wide, as if she’d had a shock.
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah, fine. Just a little pooped.” She laid her head back against a rock and closed her eyes.
“Aren’t you thirsty?” Freya said, noticing that she hadn’t drunk any water since she’d arrived.
“No, I’m good. I had some water back there,” she said.
When Eloise’s face was less pink, they continued. The ridge was hard, but a light breeze took the edge off the heat. The descent down to the valley wasn’t much better. The girls were learning that rocky terrain downhill was even worse than up, because gravity made their steps heavier and the small stones underfoot could be very unstable.
When they arrived in the valley, Eloise’s face was redder than ever. She dropped her pack and crumpled onto the ground, head in hands.
“Eloise, have some water,” Freya said.
“Uh, it’s gone,” she said, shaking her empty bottle.
“And your other one?” Eloise stared at her, biting her lower lip.
“I lost it,” she said in a small voice. Freya reached for her own bottle and passed it to her. Eloise gulped every last drop. Marin ran to the small stream in the middle of the camping area and came back with a sock soaked in cold water which she pressed to Eloise’s forehead. Then she and Freya squatted in front of her.
“When?” Freya said.
“Back when you were waiting for me. I sat down for a minute, put the bottle down. Then when I was half way up the hill, I remembered,” she said miserably.
“Eloise!” Marin exploded. “Why the hell didn’t you tell us? We could’ve gone back for it.”
“Because you’d already been waiting for me for ages. I didn’t want to be the weakest link again.”
“But… but… you now have only one water bottle, and tomorrow there are going to be no water sources AT ALL until we get to the next camp site!” Marin yelled. Freya laid a warning hand on her arm.
“What’s done is done. Our priority right now is getting Eloise rehydrated,” she said. “Eloise come on, you can use my pen at the water’s edge.” She led her over to the stream and helped her to lie down on the bank and dip the pen in the water. It was a high-tech filter that you could use to drink directly from any water source and it instantly removed all contaminants.
Eloise lay down drinking, while Freya splashed cold water on her forehead, then she stripped down to her underwear and climbed right in. The other two followed her, gasping at the coldness.
“Feel better now?” Marin said some minutes later. Eloise nodded.
“Yes, much. Thanks, guys. I’m sorry for being such an idiot.”
“That’s okay,” Freya said. “I know the heat was making it hard for me to think straight.”
“Yeah, that was it. I know I wouldn’t make that dumb decision now,” Eloise said.
While they had a dinner of jerky and rehydrated beans, they scrutinized the maps again.
“We can’t do the planned stretch tomorrow with Eloise down to one water bottle,” Freya said. “It’s dangerous. There’s not a single drop of water the entire way.”
“Agreed,” Marin said. “But what if we do this side trail here? It’s ten miles longer than the main trail, but it passes fairly close to the town of – uh – Fairbank, and apparently there’s a reliable water cache, left by trail angels.” They all shuffled closer to look where Marin was pointing on the map.
“Okay, and we can also camp along the way if we don’t make it back to the main trail by nightfall,” Freya said. “Let’s do it.”
“Let’s,” Marin agreed.
“Guys, I feel terrible,” Eloise said, breaking out from a guilty silence. “Because of me, we’ll have to leave the trail. This really sucks.”
“It’s fine,” Freya said, surprising herself at how agreeable she was being. “As long as we’re not missing any of the distance, it still counts as the trail.”
“Are you sure?” Freya and Marin both nodded.
“It’s lower altitude as well, which is always good with me,” Marin added.
They went to bed soon after, and Freya slept even more heavily than usual. Every night on the trail, she’d had very deep, dreamless sleeps, waking in the mornings feeling like she was coming out of a deep unconsciousness. She was the first up, followed by Marin.
“Shall we wake Eloise?” Marin said.
“Let’s give her another half hour,” Freya replied. “Her body probably needs more time to recover from the heat yesterday.”
They woke her 45 minutes later. She was groggy and slow to open her tent.
“How’s your head?” Freya said, squatting down and looking at her closely.
“Kinda thick,” she said with a dry laugh.
“Are you okay to hike today?” There was a flicker of something in Eloise’s eyes.
“I guess,” she murmured.
“We’ll go slow, drink lots of water before we start, and we’ll be in Fairbank before we know it.”
“Okay,” Eloise said, without enthusiasm.
Even at the girls’ slowest pace, they were still having to stop and wait for Eloise frequently. She looked beat, as if she’d lost her determination. By lunchtime, they were only half way to Fairbank, and Eloise’s water was running low again.
“I’m sorry,” she said miserably, collapsing onto the ground and breathing heavily.
“It’s okay.” Freya passed her her water bottle and she took a polite sip. “We should be in the shade in the afternoon and it’ll be the downhill section of the side trail, so we’re already over the worst of it.”
Freya was right. The afternoon was easier, as they walked partially in the shade, along a long-dry riverbed. Eloise’s spirits seemed to recover a little, and she cracked a few jokes along the way, commenting on the other hikers they’d met on the trail. They’d spoken to a lot of nice guys, but none of them had been hot, and all of them were grateful for that. Their no-men pact was holding strong.
They yelled for joy as they arrived at the spot where the water was supposed to be, and saw that there was a gian
t cache of water bottles. Eloise gulped half a big bottle straight down and poured some over her head.
“Whew!” she exclaimed.
They threw their packs off and settled down under the shade of a big tree with thick, gnarled branches that spread far from its trunk. There was a late afternoon breeze, promising a cool night.
“What’s the plan?” Marin asked, after they’d sat in quiet contentment for some minutes.
“I think we should call it a day and camp close by,” Freya said.
“But you were saying that there’s a town not far away?” Eloise said.
“Yeah, but it’s a detour. There’s no point heading over there. It’s at least two more miles, and we don’t need to pick up any more supplies.” Eloise let out an audible breath.
“Is there a problem?” Freya said, more sharply than she’d meant to.
“Oh, no. Not at all. It’s just when you said ‘town’, I jumped to the conclusion that we’d be staying there. But it’s fine, really.”
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to confuse you. It’s just more effort than I’ve got the energy for today. And my budget doesn’t stretch to such regular motel stays.”
“It’s cool. I understand, Freya,” Eloise said, and started rummaging in her backpack to allow them to change the subject.
“I think I might take a nap before dinner,” Marin said, getting to her feet and stretching expansively.
“Good idea,” Freya said, getting up too.
Freya awoke in pitch darkness, disoriented. Then she heard voices and got up. She was pleased to see that Marin was lighting a fire, while Eloise was sitting outside her tent, hunched over.
“Are you okay?” Freya asked. Eloise turned her head, and in the light of her phone screen, she could see that she’d been crying. “Eloise! What is it?”
“Freya, I can’t do this anymore. I’m quitting. It’s too much for me. I’ve tried my best, I really have. But for the last few days, I haven’t enjoyed it.”
“But – that’s because you haven’t had enough water,” Freya said, in a panicked tone. Eloise shook her head.
“No, that was just the catalyst. The fact is that I’m not strong enough for this. I’ve had a blast. It’s been great hanging out with you guys again. And I want to thank you, so much for this opportunity, but I’m done.”
“But – but – are you sure?” Marin came over.
“Eloise, is this like last time, where we just need to work a little harder at persuading you?” she said, squatting down next to her and laying an arm around her shoulders. Eloise started crying again.
“No. I’m 100% decided this time. Last time I hadn’t tried to hike the trail. This time I have. I’m actually proud of what I’ve done.”
“And so you should be,” Marin cut in.
“But that’s it. I’ve hiked way further than I ever thought possible. I’ve had a lot of thinking time as well. But now it’s time for me to return to normal life and leave you girls to achieve your ambitions. You won’t make it to the end with me here. We’ll be too slow and the snow will catch us. It’s better this way.” Freya nodded, respecting what she was saying, even if she didn’t agree with it.
“Okay,” she said at last. “But will you at least walk with us tomorrow, until we get to the point where we rejoin the trail? There’s a bigger town there, with much better transport connections.”
“Yes, absolutely,” Eloise agreed.
That night, Freya slept badly. Eloise was next to her, and she kept tossing and turning, in the grip of dark dreams. At last, she woke up bad tempered just after dawn. It was cold in the clearing and they shivered while they had breakfast and packed up, ready for their last day as a trio.
They refilled their bottles from the cache, and guiltily took an extra plastic bottle each as well.
They walked at a leisurely pace. The trail junction was only eight miles away and Freya and Marin wanted to make sure that Eloise enjoyed her last day. This section of the side trail was lush compared to the high, rocky main trail, a mix of confers and deciduous trees lining both sides, and at some points almost forming a canopy. They chatted and sang songs as they walked. Freya’s heart ached that Eloise was leaving, but there was also a strangely celebratory mood. Suddenly, it didn’t seem to matter that her friend wasn’t going to complete the trail. She’d taken herself right out of her comfort zone and hiked part of it. And that was surely something to celebrate.
They were singing one of their favorite pop songs from their high school days as they turned a small bend in the track, following on from a long straight section.
“What’s that?” Freya said, coming to a stop.
“What’s what?” Marin replied.
“The thing right on the track, far in the distance,” Freya said, and they all shaded their eyes to see better.
“Oh my god! It’s a bear!” Eloise screamed. Freya squinted to see better. There were several large shapes on the track. They were so far away that they were hard to make out. They seemed to have four legs each, but then they only seemed to have two. Is that fur? No, it’s not dark at all, it’s human skin, she decided.
“What the hell?” Marin hissed.
“Are they humans or bears? I can’t figure it out,” Freya murmured.
“Oh my goodness,” Eloise shrieked, hyperventilating. “It’s a whole bunch of bears. They’re going to kill us!” At the sound of her voice, there was a sudden, coordinated movement from the shapes. And then they were moving, slowly at first, but then a lot quicker, right in their direction. Eloise started screaming her lungs out, Marin ran over to a tree and hid behind it, while Freya fished in her pocket for her pen knife. Her heart was hammering in her chest. And all the things she’d learned about how to avoid bear attacks whooshed out of her head. The three of them stood, watching aghast as what were now clearly three giant bears hurtled toward them.
As the bears came within ten feet, Freya and Marin started to scream as well. They were absolutely terrifying – huge, with black glossy fur and gleaming white teeth. Freya thought she was going to faint from fear. And then they stopped dead. And Eloise fainted clean away.
Chapter Eight
Xander sighed and sipped from his thermos of coffee, gazing down at his clan’s territory from his high vantage point. He was sitting on a rock, just below the summit of Broken Hill. He used to come here as a kid when he wanted to be alone. It was a sheltered spot. No-one from the valley could see him up here, but he had a perfect view of the entire territory. A light breeze kept him cool, while his back was supported by a smooth rock. Things were quiet. For now. Beating Troy in the wrestling match had dramatically changed his clan’s perception of him. They still didn’t trust him yet, but they respected him. He could feel that strongly. No-one called him ‘brains’ any more, and all the whispers that he was no longer tough enough because he’d been living as a human for the past five years had stopped. He was a fighter. An unconquerable bear fighter. He’d injured Troy pretty bad, and his enemy had limped back home to the Black Paw Ridge bears, bearing his defeat as a message for them: back off, and don’t even think about trying to invade the Broken Hill Bears’ territory again. They’ve got a new Alpha, and he’s personally capable of taking anybody down who crosses his path.
But the infighting hadn’t stopped. The clan was still fractured and it would take a while to sort it out. His uncompromising new laws, like allowing the female shifters to fight, were helping to smooth out the hierarchy from the top, but every day there were still disputes that needed sorting out. The clan was starting to look to him to be the arbiter of their problems. Every time there was some issue over duties to be done, or property to be managed, they came and laid their problems out at his feet, like children. He sighed again. Why it had been his fate to inherit the most difficult clan, he’d never know. It had been his father’s style to let in any waif and stray, and look where that had got him. Constant fighting. The earth was not yet cold on his father’s grave, his heart not yet unclenched
from its terrible grief, and he had all of this to deal with.
As his gaze swept across the valley, from one extravagantly-built clan house to another, something caught his eye. He clambered to his feet and looked more closely. Three guys were walking through the forest. And they each seemed to be carrying a bundle. A bundle that was squirming about a lot.
“What the fuck?” he muttered, picking his thermos up and beginning to clamber down from the rock. It was a very steep route down, but he moved swiftly among the well-known rocks, and in thirty seconds, he paused to look again.
The guys were Gunner, Mikal, and Deacon, if he wasn’t mistaken, and the bundles they were carrying were women. Human women. Who looked like they weren’t enjoying being carried one bit. He wracked his brains, trying to think of a single reason why three members of his clan would bring humans into their very secret, secluded bear territory, but he came up with nothing. He ran the rest of the way down the mountain at full pelt, kicking up a dust storm behind him, and a pulse beat hard in his temples.
On level ground again, he picked up their scents immediately, along with the sweet, human scent of the three women. He made to go after them, but then he stopped himself, knowing instinctively that he shouldn’t let the women see his face. Instead, he followed at a distance. He caught up with them just as they were bundling the women into Deacon’s cabin. The women were screaming all kinds of insults, and the air was thick with the scent of their fear.
Once the door was closed, Xander strode up to it and rapped hard. Boiling with rage, he hid behind one of the two imitation neo-classical pillars that flanked the door on either side and waited. A minute later, Deacon popped out with wild eyes. Xander sprung out from his hiding place, caught him in a headlock, clamped his hand over his mouth, and pulled him down to the ground.
“You’ve got exactly ten seconds to tell me what the hell’s going on here!” he hissed in his ear. The effort to restrain his bear right now was incredible, as it responded to his urge to kick the crap out of Deacon. It clawed at his insides and tried to push through his skin.
Bear in the Rough: Bear Shifter Romance (Broken Hill Bears Book 1) Page 7
