by Olivia Harp
“Oh my god, did you just say ‘druggie’? I don’t have drugs on me, come on. Besides, you’re not telling me I look like a drug addict, right?”
“Probably meth,” he said.
Zoe’s face went pale, her jaw dropped. He couldn’t hide his grin.
“You ass!”
He roared with laughter, almost muting every other sound, some birds even flew away cracking, like in the movies.
“I’m kidding. I know you don’t have anything with you, I can smell it, I just want to take a closer look at you.”
“Really. Why?”
“Honestly? You’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen in my life.”
She blushed, the color returning to her face a million times more intense than before.
“And to help you get off that rock and put your hiking boots on, if you let me—”
She looked down, yeah she was going to need help with that, when she was sitting, the boots were beside her, but she stood up fast when she heard the man, dropping them to the ground. Putting them on again was going to be a little difficult.
“What’s your name?” She asked.
“I’m Damien Black, and you?”
“Zoe... Zoe Fox.”
He smiled, “Okay, Zoe Fox, let’s get you your shoes, you don’t wanna trip on that wet rock, fall, break your back and be animal food, I believe.”
He caught her by surprise. That thought had never occurred to her.
“Thanks.”
***
Damien raised his hand and Zoe held on to it. She used it for balance while stepping down. She took her time, making sure every step was safe.
Damien watched her, slightly amused. His bear roared in a blind fury inside him, yelling “Mate! Mate!” as soon as he saw her.
It was ridiculous. He had a job to do and this distraction had to end quickly. He was fighting his inner animal, controlling it, but at the same time, the urge to know her was impossible to resist.
He knew he had to get her out of the mountains if he wanted to keep his clan and the mountains secure, especially now that there was risk of a Shadowlands puncture. There could be no distractions.
Then she slipped, losing her balance, tightening her grip on his hand. He moved his arm, helping her regain her poise and she sighed in relief.
She turned to him, smiled, and continued down, but the rock was slipperier than she anticipated, especially now that it was wet. She pressed her naked feet on one of the edges of the rock, it was also sharper than she thought.
“Gosh!” she said, “This is harder than I thought.”
“Told you.”
Mate now! his bear roared inside. He knew better than to listen to it. The animal was wild and ferocious, he had to be the opposite.
He saw Zoe contemplating just jumping down and getting done with it, she was a brunette beauty, thin but not very skinny, wavy brown hair falling below her shoulders. Her outfit was tight, yellow sports shirt, dark gray yoga pants with shorts over. Her curves called to him. He’d never felt this instant attraction to anyone before. He could tell she could be the end of him, with her little attitude and her wild smile. I gotta get away from her fast, he thought.
“All right, may I?” said Damien, grabbing her by the waist and in an instant lowering her to the ground. She gasped, but it happened so fast that she didn’t even have time to complain. Zoe looked up at him, she’s just the right height, he thought, his protective animal talking again.
“Uhm... okay, thank you, I guess,” she said
“You were taking your time,” he replied, “this is a dangerous area. We don’t usually see many visitors from outside—”
“Where do you get your visitors from, then?” she said as she was putting on her boots. Damien clicked his tongue.
“You’re a little smart-ass are you?” he said.
She giggled.
“Only sometimes,” she said, embarrassed, “sorry, I’m a bit nervous. But okay, do you want me to leave? Or am I like, in trouble or something?”
Damien laughed, “You’re not in trouble, it’s just that it would be safer for you to go to the National Park. People go there for camping and sightseeing. Take the highway and it’s forty or fifty miles north.”
“Safer? I have you to save me, right, Mister Gym-guy?”
“Mister... what?” he said, eyes opened, caught by surprise.
“It’s a joke, you look like a gym rat,” she said, “but you seem to think I’m just a helpless ‘little lady’ who can’t look after herself.” Her tone had changed a little bit, this time it wasn’t as playful as before, but she was good hearted about it. Apparently.
“Well, nature doesn’t give an eff whether you’re into feminism or not, nature is—”
“Hold it right there, Damien Black.”
Goosebumps washed over him when she pronounced his name, he got turned on harder than ever before. He was lucky he was wearing his uniform pants, the ones with a zipper and harder fabric, and not any softer clothes. He put his hand in his pocket to hide his boner, what the hell is going on? Who is this woman? he thought.
“First of all,” she continued, “who says “eff” instead of “fuck”? That’s weird. Second of all, I know that nature does not care if you’re big or small or a woman or man or anything in between, but luckily I brought technology, you know? The thing that can make those differences not matter?”
He was better now, still turned on but the moment had passed, half a hand in his pocket, “casually” there, helping hide his bulge.
“Many people get lost—”
“I downloaded a map of the area, and bought a paper one too, and see? My reception is great,” she pulled her cell phone up and showed him their location. “I got a compass, the traditional one, just in case my cell stops working or battery dies,” she was pulling all of these things from her fanny pack. “So it’s kind of hard to just get lost, I already showed you my air horn, the Internet says it’s great for scaring off all kinds of animals.”
Damien looked at her, amused. Would he have to drag her out of the mountains himself? Would she fight all the way? Would she listen to reason?
“Most predators don’t give a fuck,” he emphasized the last word, just to make sure she knew who was in authority here, “about an air horn, you think prey is silent when being chased?” his bear growled inside him Mate, bring mate! he continued, “what if a bear sees you first, like I did just now?”
She was silent for exactly 2 seconds, then she stared at him and grinned.
“I’m ready for that, too.”
She pulled up a white on brown can with a ridiculous cartoon grizzly bear, above it were the words BEAR SPRAY: protect yourself! Keep ’em at bay! Damien had to contain his laughter. This girl was ready for war if it came down to that. Then he sat on the rock.
“Listen, Zoe, I get it, you want to hike around, see the sights. I can’t keep you from doing that, but I would feel much better if you went back to the road, to the park. There are more Rangers there, the trails are well traveled. There’s nothing here that you won’t find there. You wouldn’t be missing anything.” He lied. At least that last part. National Parks were amazing, but the constant human interaction made them... different. Out here, the forest was absolutely wild, like it has been for thousands, or even millions of years. This was no place for tourists, this was a dangerous place.
She looked at him, her eyes dark brown, in perfect combination with her pale skin and lush lips. He couldn’t believe how much strength he needed to stop himself from kissing her. She let out a long sigh and nodded.
“Well, I guess that’s that. You’ve convinced me... I’ll go back.”
He smiled, her camp was near, he’d passed it before coming to see who had entered shifter’s territory, and now that he met her, he would probably be able to tell if she actually left or not, her scent was too unique, too sweet, for him to confuse it with anything else in the forest.
“Thank you.”
&
nbsp; They looked at each other for a second, he turned to go but she said “Hey.”
He looked back, she raised her hand for a shake, her eyes looking at him in silence.
He shook it and for an instant his senses were sharper than ever: he heard the sound of every drop of water flowing through the creek, passing through submerged pebbles; the leaves dancing on the wind above him, the damp smell of the canopy. He was one with nature, with the dirt in the ground, the bark of the trees, the moss at the edge of the water... and with her. He noticed he wasn’t breathing, his bear wanting to come out, yelling mate! every second.
“Thank you for helping me down, it was nice to have met you,” she said.
“You’re welcome,” he said, but she was already walking away from him, towards her camp.
Chapter 3
Damien could barely contain his bear from coming out. It was raging inside him as he watched Zoe fade into the undergrowth. Her shape swaggered in the distance, his cock hard as a rock. No. There can’t ever be time for this, I can’t risk the security of the clan for a woman.
He let out a big sigh, bringing his mind back into focus. The wilderness awaited all around him. He was sure the scent he picked up came from somewhere around this place. If the Rot was back, there was no way he couldn’t notice it. The stench of it could be detected for miles away, its effects on nature instantly recognizable.
He crossed the creek in two big strides. He didn’t care much about the water or its temperature. Advancing like a focused beast, eyes open, senses sharpened.
Before going into the woods again, he noticed there was no sound of wildlife, no scent to be picked, not even birds chirping. Ground animals stay away from bears, they leave apex predator be. Grizzlies are territorial and bear shifters give that fuck-off scent that other beasts pick up and take heed to, unless they want to be destroyed. But birds? Birds are free. They don’t care, they know their predators don’t reside on the ground... and some of them even warn you off, if you’re smart enough to listen.
There’s no way she’s in danger, I just came from that direction, he thought. Then he noticed she was still on his mind, taking some level of awareness with her. Zoe Fox, he said to himself—just to make sure he hadn’t forgotten her name— and his bear growled inside.
Stop thinking of her. He tried to force the idea but couldn’t, at least not completely. His instinct told him to go to her, but his will was strong, he wouldn’t budge.
His mind blended with his surroundings. His sense of smell, his sight, his enhanced hearing, everything became one with nature. But Damien was a man too and had to think as a man.
He’d trample all the flaring instincts of a bear if he had to, just to get this job done. The woman is not for us, be done with it, he told his bear, pushing him inside. His bear pushed back, Lies!, it roared, She is mate! Damien had promised himself never to take a partner. He couldn’t do it. He was the alpha, the clan leader, love was a distraction, a weakness. Yes, he had had lovers, girls from Rosenberg and Ike’s bar, some of them bear shifters too, and had enjoyed their company, and the sex, obviously. That satiated his —and his bear’s— urges. He tried relationships but they never worked, so why bother? He never felt really drawn to someone else. Not like other bears who claim someone and breed cubs a week after meeting them.
So, he thought, if there was anything weirder than the Rot coming back, if it really came back... why was his bear flaring up like a mad animal after seeing that girl?
His bear growled inside, still furious in his intent to go after her. A sudden intensity filled him and his mind went back to her, she’s too stubborn, too defiant to do us any good. And she’s gone, anyway, forget about her being my mate. His bear wheezed inside him, panting in frustration.
She didn’t have the qualities of a good bear mate. Yes, she was a fighter, she was pretty, she was independent. She was ready for anything even though he convinced her otherwise. But she didn’t have any experience in the wilderness, she was a city girl, she wouldn’t like it out here. She was prepared, though, bear spray, he remembered, that was funny all right. And Mister Gym guy? he chuckled, that was plain silly. Then it hit him. Does that mean she liked him? He was always striving to be the smartest leader he could be, but stuff like that? Damn. He always missed those little bits of info when someone says one thing but implies “you are attractive to me”.
He laughed to himself. The air was fresh, the trees were strong. The Rot was not around. Maybe things were fine.
Then, in the distance, he heard the air horn blaring.
Chapter 4
The walk back to camp had taken longer than usual. Obviously, going downhill towards the creek was an easier trek than the other way around. She found herself trying to walk fast, but unable to do so. The ground was simply against her. Okay yeah, she could walk faster but going mildly uphill, with the rocks and the leaves and weeds, she would only cramp her legs or fall or whatever.
It had been what, five, ten minutes since she’d met that Ranger, Damien. And she couldn’t concentrate on the walk.
That was fun, meeting a guy who wasn’t a total jerk. Then she thought of her ex, Martin.
Martin was —in his own words— a “chill” guy, a person who swept his troubles under the carpet and forgot about them until they came crashing at his door. Then he’d turn around and put a pouty face and said “please” and asked her for money or whatever he needed, and she always bailed him out.
She’d been with him for two years before realizing she was being used more as a human ATM than a girlfriend, and made herself say “no”. He never cared for her, and she had been stupid enough to not notice it and excuse the behavior for some reason or another, keeping the farce up to avoid the confrontation and fallout. She never realized that was the very reason she was constantly depressed. She didn’t value herself enough to live the life she wanted and she was stuck in a depressing relationship with a no-use kind of guy. Not even for sex.
Oh, yeah, they hadn’t had sex for more than eight months before she kicked him out of her apartment, and from there, it took another year to gather all her strength and boldness to say “no more” once again, this time to the life she was leading.
After a year of hard work, overtime and sacrifice, she had saved enough to go. To leave Detroit and find her place in Portland, where the standard of living was way higher, according to an article she read in a magazine while waiting in line to pay for her groceries. Now that she thought about it, she never confirmed that, but hell, she’d seen the pictures online, it didn’t look bad.
Now she met a gorgeous man and couldn’t help herself. She had always been kind of shy but talking to him came so natural, so easy, that it felt as if she knew him for a long time. It was absurd.
She pulled up her cell phone, opened the MyCycle app, which she thought was a dumb name for a women’s period tracking app... after all, how many cyclists would download it and find it was rather not for tracking speed and all those weird things they track? Yeah... she just confirmed it. She was just being a weirdo. Maybe it was the change of air from Michigan to Oregon. She was not on a hormone high, her period had a long way to come still, so who knows. She met a cool guy, went along with it and it went relatively well... before he told her to leave the place and never come back.
Or words implying the same thing.
Then she felt it. There was a stillness in the air, like having your ears covered and having faint, far noises coming in. An unnatural, acrid smell almost made her gag.
Her stomach turned, realizing she didn’t recognize where she was. She was so lost in thought that she couldn’t tell if she made a wrong turn, or started walking in another direction. She pulled out her compass, it pointed out North, where she was going. She made two steps and then saw how the pointer slowly changed direction. It turned to northwest, west, then back to north.
“What the hell?” She said out loud, looking everywhere. And up ahead came a faint, rumbling noise, like the wind going t
hrough leaves, but it was constant, it didn’t have that periodic, natural sound. Then it stopped.
She felt undiluted, true dread. “Hello?” she said, her voice lost in the forest. Her skin crawled, her heart about to jump out of her chest. This was a kind of fear she’d never experienced. Move, Zoe, get out of here, you can’t stay here and wait for whatever-it-is to get you.
She wouldn’t let it, not now that she got this far. A flash of anger gave her the power to continue. She was sure now that she didn’t go any other way that wasn’t straight to her camp. She would continue walking until she reached there.
She slowly composed herself, walking in silence for a few minutes, until she heard it again, a kind of raspy breathing, closer now. It made her stop in her tracks, “to hell with it”, she said, and pulled out her air horn and bear spray.
“You better not become animal food now, Zoe”, she said out loud, walking forward, “life’s getting a little bit better than the shit it was and this will not be your ridiculous end.” Her eyes narrowed, treading forward with an angry face, she felt empowered.
She could feel the sweat soaking all her clothes, the hike was harder than before, but now she was afraid. More like pants soiling scared, she thought, but what could she do? Stay there? The camp was not far off and from there she’d just walk the trail back to her Nissan and leave.
Then her heart stopped.
Fifty feet ahead, she saw it: a wildcat, a huge wild cat. It’s skin completely black. A damn panther? Seriously Zoe, please survive this, just survive this and go back to Detroit, to that damn construction firm and carry on with their boring accounting and be happy and thankful you’re alive, okay?
The wildcat was like a living shadow. She never saw one out of the old Discovery Channel documentaries, but this one was more than black. She couldn’t stop looking at it, the blackness of his fur contrasted against its glowing yellow eyes, fixed on her. It stepped forward just like she remembered predators did in those documentaries, confident on catching an easy prey, and she unconsciously stepped back, prompting the wildcat to jump towards her.
