[Runes of Argyl 01.0] The Runes of Argyl Trilogy

by Jessica Savage

  This began to remind me of the picture game “Where’s Waldo” as everyone kept saying that they couldn’t find the bear. Of course in my head it was “Where’s Barry?” Finally, everyone was dismissed and allowed to go home as police arrived to take over and converse with the remaining head staff. As I returned to my car, I began pondering just who was responsible for this. Did the bear somehow escape on its own? Was there someone behind this? Why would someone want to steal a bear? As I continued to think this over, I began driving.

  When I returned to my apartment, I immediately headed to the bathroom. I took off my uniform and looked at myself in the mirror. I was drenched in sweat, and my makeup wasn’t exactly on very well. I looked like a mess, and the bathtub next to me was tempting. After I wiped off my face, I poured myself a bath and then immersing myself, allowed some of the days fatigue to be soaked out of me. Finally, I got out, dried off and put on my robe before turning on the TV. Already, the media had caught wind of the disappearing act. The Zoo president – yes the zoo has a president - was being interviewed, and they were showing footage of the empty cage. Great, just what the zoo needed. More negative publicity in a year when attendance was already down.

  “The Longforest Zoo is known for causing some controversy. In 2009, it was scrutinized for health violations, and in 2013, one of the lions got too close for one boy’s comfort, although thankfully he was unharmed.” the report finished.

  “Great,” I said as I shut off the TV. I did have to admit that this zoo wasn’t the best, but it was the only one this town had, and it brought some life to an otherwise pretty dead town.

  As I relaxed myself, I received a call from my boyfriend Josh. I answered the call and he began with the worry immediately.

  “I saw the news report, are you all right?” Josh asked.

  “Yes,” I replied. It started off being a call of concern, but Josh soon changed his tune.

  “So when are you going to come see me?” he asked, a bit of impatience in his breath.

  “You know my work schedule is really busy, and you live three hours away. Plus, it goes both ways. You don’t have a job, so why don’t you come down here?” I replied.

  “I don’t have the money,” Josh replied.

  I wanted to call him out on that. Josh had been bragging on Facebook about some new video game he bought. For a fraction of that, he could have seen me. It wasn’t like gas was four dollars a gallon anymore.

  “Can’t we just wait until you come back here for college?” I asked.

  “But I really want to see you, babe,” he said, sounding pretty pathetic.

  “Then come here. I know that you can afford it. Sell one of your games.”

  There was silence on the other end, and then the call ended.

  Well, fuck you too, I thought to myself. His gaming was a touchy subject. He played a lot. Too much. Some would say addiction level too much. I grabbed myself a glass of wine and began sipping on it. At least tomorrow was my day off. And if they said I had to come in to search for the bear, it just wasn’t happening. Even though I was concerned for the bear, I needed a break. Besides that, it was confirmed that the bear wasn’t in the zoo or its surroundings, so what would be the point. After a bit, I received a text from Josh. “Sorry, I was in an area with poor signal and the call got dropped,” it read. I decided to ignore it for now. He was clearly hanging up because he knew I had put him in a checkmate, and pushed his buttons to boot. Instead of owning up to it like the strong man he claimed to be, he just ran away.

  “Oh well,” I said, and soon fell asleep.

  Chapter Two

  It was nice not having to hear the screeching of an alarm when I woke up. Instead, I heard the sweet sounds of nature greeting me as I slowly surfaced back into full consciousness. After stretching and turning on the coffeepot, I turned on the TV. It was still covering the bear escaping intermittently, and as usual, there were no updates. I saw a missed call on my phone from work, and from Josh, but I decided to leave both unanswered for the moment. Nothing was going to screw up my day off.

  Being my first Saturday off in a good while, I decided to dress for the occasion. I slipped on a cute little pink skirt, put on a pink tank top to match, shaved myself in all the socially mandated correct places, put my hair down, and even put on a little makeup. Looking at myself in the mirror I was definitely going to get a few heads turning today.

  I left my apartment, not sure about how I was going to go about my day. I could go to the mall, maybe hit up a bar, or go see a movie. I didn’t exactly have a ton of choices in this town. Maybe I’d splurge on my mileage and visit the city, but it was still up in the air. I didn’t like to schedule my one unscheduled day.

  I got in my car and began driving off. As I was leaving the complex, a man right of front of my car. I slowed down almost to a halt, and honked my horn before he moved aside. The man was startled, almost jumping out of his jeans.

  I put the window down, boiling in anger. “Watch it,” I told him.

  “I’m sorry. I’m new here, so I still don’t know where you cross,” he replied.

  “These apartments are a bit confusing I’ll admit but you gotta watch it stepping in front of cars buddy. If you need any help, just let me know,” I said. Despite the fact that people pissed me off, I was pretty good at letting stuff go. Plus, the guy was kind of cute. I usually am not into the lumberjack type, but his thick, dark beard below his shaggy hair was working for me. He also had brown eyes, which I was a sucker for. Granted, his jeans were ripped and his shirt was a bit dirty, but I could overlook that. Must be the next phase in the hipster evolution I figured.

  “I don’t think that I need any help really,” the man replied. “But being new around here, I’d love to make some new friends. I’m-“… there was a brief moment of hesitation, and then he finished. “I’m Eric.”

  “Stacy,” I replied. I was curious to know why he hesitated when giving out his name, but hey, I had brain farts all the time, so I couldn’t judge. Plus he was just about hit by a car.

  “I’m actually leaving right now,” I told him. “Going to have some fun this afternoon after a rough week. I need it after so much stress.”

  “What happened?” he asked.

  I explained the story about the bear escaping and how no one could find it. “It’s a shame, because that bear was my pal. Hell, what he gave me was more reliable than my boyfriend.”

  Eric looked at me with a bit of shock present on his face. “Oh, you have a boyfriend. I didn’t know, I mean, you don’t look like you’re in a relationship.”

  I didn’t know? It could be another brain fart, but he almost acted like he knew me. I thought.

  “I don’t? Well I guess that makes sense…I am kind of over it I think…Why am I telling you this anyhow? I was just running my mouth. There seemed to be something familiar about this guy that made it easy or even natural to just tell him whatever was on my mind.

  “So why are you with him then? I mean, life’s too short, seems to me.”

  “Yeah, I think I kind of new from the beginning that we weren’t quite right.” We met at a frat party. Strike number one, right? But he’s actually a nice guy, but he just doesn’t seem that into me. Maybe I’m not that into him. I don’t know, I was really into him at first. I mean, this has been my first real relationship. I guess that’s why I’m so caught up with it.”

  “You never had a boyfriend before him? How is that possible?” he asked, seemingly sincere.

  I felt my cheeks reddening. “I was the outcast in high school. I always liked animals more than people. That’s why I want to be a vet. I thought that going to the gym and taking care of animals would be amazing,” I explained. Why was I telling my life story to this man? Normally, it took me a bit to open up, but this guy had me spilling my guts, and I didn’t even know why. All I knew was that it just felt totally natural, so I decided was just not going to worry about it.

  “I love animals too. I mean, I’m an outdoorsma
n myself. I feel closest to the world when I’m in nature, and I love to explore the land around me,” explained. “I am trying to find the best trails out here, where would you suggest?”

  “There are a few out here. Miller’s Peak Valley is amazing, but it’s filled with snot-nosed brats most of the time when it’s nice outside.”

  He let out a hearty laugh. “I know all too well what it’s like dealing with kids.”

  “Say, you want to join me today?” I asked. “You seem kind of cool, and I wouldn’t mind someone to talk to and hang out with. Of course, if you’re busy or don’t want to go with someone you’ve just met, I understand.” What the hell was I doing? This guy could be some total psycho!

  The man shook his head. “I’m free. So where do you want to go?”

  “This town isn’t exactly massive. A few weeks ago, I might have said the zoo, but I’m sick of that place.”

  “Yeah, let’s go somewhere else.” he replied, a look of concern passing over his face. “What was your plan?”

  “I was originally going to go to the mall, or to the movies, but there really aren’t any good movies out, and the mall is packed on Saturdays.”

  “Not my thing either. Why not introduce me to the nature trails around here?” he asked.

  “Now you’re talking. After what happened, I need a break from people. Except for you of course, I mean, you seem all right,” I said. As I drove off in the direction of the nature trail I gave Eric a glance. Once again, I didn’t know why I felt so comfortable around this stranger. I was acting totally out of character. Normally I would never let some random guy into my car. But like I said, I just felt like he was ok. It was hard to explain.

  “So, what do you do?” I asked him.

  “I’m new to these parts, so I still need to get a job,” he told me. “But I used to work at a pretty big state park. Ever heard of Pine Peaks?”

  I nodded. “You used to work there! That’s amazing! I’ve always wanted to go there,” I replied.

  “It is amazing,” he nodded, smiling, “The rivers are phenomenal and they have beautiful hiking trails. I used to love to watch the sunset from the ridges too. I worked as a tour guide for a few years before I finally left. So, I just moved here, and was actually thinking about looking into if there are any jobs at this park.”

  “Probably not, sorry. It’s pretty small, so I doubt they would need a tour guide,” I told him.

  “A shame,” he replied. “Anyway, I think that I’ll probably get a job at some park when I get a bit more settled.”

  We arrived at the park. “Green Tops,” the sign in front of us read. Sure enough, the parking lot was packed with soccer mom vans. I had to do a few laps around the lot before finding a spot, and I only found it when someone else backed out.

  We got out, ignoring all the kids roaming around. “Is there a remote part of the park? You know, any part without so many people?” Eric asked.

  “I feel that. Well, I do know that if you veer off the trail, there’s a nice hilltop in the woods, where no one’s ever around. If you feel like exploring, it’s a cool spot.”

  “Why not?” he replied. “As a tour guide, I’m a natural trailblazer.”

  We began walking down the nature trail, avoiding the runners and children, and taking care to give the occasional senior citizen some space too. Finally, we arrived at the point where we had to turn off the well beaten path. Making sure that a nosy person wasn’t about to follow us, we began going up the hill. When we made it to the top, we began walking through the trees. Nature was singing its tune through the birdsong as well as the wind in the trees. The growth itself wasn’t too bad, and we soon found a log where we could park our butts and enjoy the surroundings.

  As we sat, Eric looked at me. “So, do you come here often?” he joked.

  “Every now and then.” I laughed. “Actually, I like to take my morning jogs here, but I don’t normally go so deep into the woods. It’s nice here, though. Kind of like your own little private world.”

  “I agree. So, what kinds of animals do they have here anyhow?” he asked.

  “Nothing huge. Just some rabbits, squirrels, and the like. Chipmunks, mice, shrews, rabbits, possums, woodchucks, raccoons…” I continued, playing off the joking light mood we had established. Nothing too major. Deer I suppose. You’re not going to find any bears roaming around though, unless we find the one the disappeared from the zoo.”

  “Isn’t the zoo like twenty miles from here?” Eric asked. “He would have to have a reason to come this far.”

  “I suppose,” I replied. I liked this guy. A bit on the oddball side, but my calling him that was like a fish calling another one scaly. Of course, some fish didn’t have scales, but you know what I’m talking about. I turned on my phone, because you can get service almost anywhere these days, and there was Josh, whining at me again.

  “Why haven’t you answered?” read his text.

  “Because you stopped talking to me once I called out your bullshit. And don’t tell me your phone dropped the call, because you and me both know that it’s simply not true,” I texted back. Message sent. I let out a drawn out sigh.

  “What’s wrong?” Eric asked.

  “You know, just my boyfriend.” I began explaining the situation.

  “Why not forget him? It sounds like you guys aren’t the best match” he replied, a quizzical look in those deep, dark eyes.

  “I want to dump him, but like I said, things were good before, and plus, he’s my first, so I guess I have some nostalgia attached to him. Even though he doesn’t really care about all that stuff. Hell, he wasn’t even that into sex last time I saw him. And that is weird.”

  “And that’s why you should dump him. Don’t think that he’s going to get any better,” Eric replied.

  “I know,” I replied, sighing.

  Eric gave me a glance, stroking that lumberjack beard of his. “You’re a cute, caring woman. You don’t need him. You could do much better.”

  My cheeks began reddening even more. “You know how to make a girl blush. But caring, me? Not at all. I hate people.” We both laughed.

  “But I know you care about animals, so that means you’re a good person,” Eric told me.

  With that he turned to me, and we ended up looking at each other eye-to-eye. “So let’s forget him. I can help you with that you know.”

  “How can you do th-“ I began to ask. But before I could do anything, he kissed me straight on the mouth.

  Chapter Three

  With his face pressed against mine, his soft beard made the perfect pillow. As our lips touched, I almost wanted to pull away. I wasn’t used to a man being so forward, or for that matter, so hairy. But despite his burly appearance, his lips were soft, and tempting, and I felt myself kissing back. My tongue slid between his lips and met his. They began to mingle. At first, they lashed against each other in quick strokes, but after I became accustomed to kissing him, mine wrapped around his in a sensual dance. When I finally removed my mouth from his, a film of spit connected us, and then broke.

  I started panting. “Holy shit, you’re an amazing kisser. But I don’t even know if this is right,” I said. “We just met, and, you know, I still have a boyfriend.”

  “Not anymore,” Eric joked. “I would not have done that if I believed you and he were meant to be together. And besides, it feels like we have known each other for a long time already.”

  I began laughing. “It really does. But still, it’s no excuse for what we just…. Oh, fuck it!”

  Before Eric could do anything, I scooted up next to him, the phone dropping from the log, and I began kissing him with passion. I grabbed the back of his head and pulled him in, giving his lips a gnaw as I did. He let out short breaths, and sounded so adorable I almost laughed.

  “Sorry” I mock apologized, “I’m just so pent up. I didn’t realize how much I have had to hold back my sexual feelings. You’re right, it’s over with what’s-his name. Please take me now. I thin
k I need this after a frustrating week,” I told him. “A frustrating year,” I corrected myself.”

  “Gladly,” he told me. His fingers ghosted over my bare leg, leaving a sensation of electricity behind after his finger had passed. His rough hands arrived at my skirt, and I felt one of them glide right underneath and then move up against the crotch of my thong. I absently realized with some relief that I wore my hot pink one today. As I felt his fingers probing gently at my mound, an instant sensation of pleasure burst forth from between my spreading legs as my body readied itself for him. There was still cloth separating his fingers and my sex, but the tease only amplified the excitement. I grabbed his shirt and began unbuttoning it as he sought to remove my skirt. Almost in unison, we disrobed each other, in a feverish bid to satiate our growing passion. As his shirt came off I could see that his dark hair coated his chest and arms to just the right degree to maximize his rugged sexual appeal. His well-defined muscles still shown through impressively.

  “You’re stacked. How does a tour guide get so buff?” I asked him, breathlessly.

  “Hey, being a tour guide is no joke. You have to get jacked. You never know when you might have to save your group by fording a raging river or wrestling a bear,” he laughed.

  I chuckled. “We have a comedian,” I said as I began rubbing his chest. The hair was so thick and beastly that it played right into what was quickly becoming my realized fantasy of being taken by a wild man. The thought of him inside me was driving me mad. Of course, I was not ready for that just yet. I knew that there was still plenty of delicious teasing foreplay to look forward to. I pushed him onto the ground and sat right on top of him, spreading my legs over his bulging pants clad crotch. I quickly removed my blouse and unclasped my bra in my rush to get to the main attraction. We were rapidly being surrounded by a growing clothes pile.

  “Like what you see?” as I shook my ample tits for him, a blush coming on. I had never felt so confident about my breasts. It felt so good to put them on display for him and feel the light breeze on my bare breasts and rock hard nipples.