by Tisha Wilson
Jerry watched him for a while before he said anything else. “So… What are you going to do to me?”
Gerald sighed. “I’m gonna have to take you into the station. I have a feelin’ that your uncle is gonna want to talk at you.”
Jerry eyed the sun in the sky. He thought about Al laying up there asleep with no protection against the beasts. He thought of all the innocent people at the police station that would be harmed if the creatures were after him and not Al. Why they would be, he didn’t know, but there did seem to be something to Al’s belief considering what had happened at the hospital. Al had already been gone when they’d come after him. Maybe Sarah was dead because of him.
Before Jerry had any time to take any other action Gerald cuffed his arm to his own. “What the hell are you doing?” Jerry asked as he struggled to sit up, take the helmet off with his casted arm, and then get to his feet. He was a head taller than Gerald but Gerald made up what he lacked in height in width. Jerry wouldn’t be able to drag him anywhere if he tried.
“You had that look in your eye like you was about to bolt and I wanted to make sure that didn’t happen. At least not until you’ve talked with the Chief.”
Jerry looked around at the crowd that had come out of the diner across the street and those who were pumping gas. They were watching the exchange intently. Even if Jerry had the thought to overpower Gerald, there were too many witnesses. He looked in the direction of the motorcycle that lay on its side. It had skidded across the parking lot to rest on its side still running.
Gerald looked in the direction of his gaze and cursed. “We’re going to have to call Samuel to come over here and tow that bike to the impound. Is that that biker woman’s bike? She’s going to be pissed with you when she sees what you’ve done to her bike. Where is she and why is her bike here?”
Jerry clamped his mouth shut and looked straight ahead. Gerald just tsked and shook his head. “Your Uncle is not going to be happy with you. What is it with you and women? You find the women that can do the most damage to your life and reputation and fall in love straight away. I suppose you aren’t too different from the rest of us that way.”
Jerry smiled in spite of himself and looked at Gerald. “I’m sure Winnie would love to hear you say that. Haven’t you been married like thirty years?”
“Thirty four and I can tell you that that woman has done plenty of damage to me son.”
Jerry took a deep breath and blew it out. His chest hurt, his head hurt, and he was weary to his bones. “I guess this whole thing is really messed up. I suppose my Uncle is not ever going to understand this.”
They reached the car and Gerald opened the passenger side door, un-cuffed his arm, and hooked the cuff to the bar that held the cage that separated the front seat from the back. It was slow going because of the pain in his tailbone. Gerald asked him if he was sure he didn’t want an ambulance and he assured him it wouldn’t be necessary. Even if his butt bone were broken, there wouldn’t be anything they could do about it. There was no cast for the butt bone. It would have to heal on its own.
Gerald closed the door and then went to ask the garage owner if he would hold the bike until the tow truck showed up for it. The garage owner offered to store it in his fenced in backyard so that Gerald didn’t have to call the tow truck and Gerald agreed gratefully. It wasn’t protocol but it would mean less paperwork and though Gerald acted tough, Jerry knew that the man had a soft spot for Al’s long legs. He wouldn’t make her pay for a tow if he didn’t have to.
Before Gerald made his way back to the car Jerry spotted a spare handcuff key in the ash tray. He hurried to take it and stick it in one of the finger holes of his cast. Gerald lowered his girth into the driver’s seat and shut the door.
“Thanks for not putting me in the back,” Jerry offered.
Gerald made a face and looked at him. Jerry prepared himself for one of the man’s long lectures. To his surprise he refrained. He said instead, “You’re still an officer. You might be a young fool, but you’ve always been a cop, just like your old man. If I cut you I bet you’d bleed blue.”
Jerry now felt three times worse for what he had to do once they got away from the filling station. Once Gerald got on the road Jerry immediately moved his cast over to make it look like he was rubbing his wrist, as if the cuff were hurting him.
“Those things are damn uncomfortable. Sorry I had to do it.”
“You’re just doing your job. Don’t worry about it,” Jerry replied as a bead of sweat popped out on his face. The AC was trying hard to cool the car but it had been so hot all day. Even with the sun beginning to set it was still a scorcher.
Gerald’s cell phone rang and Jerry was happy for the distraction. He didn’t want Gerald to get suspicious. The cuff opened quietly and Jerry breathed a sigh of relief as he kept his arm, free of the cuff, at his side.
“Yep. It was him.”
Jerry looked towards Gerald with dread growing in the pit of his stomach. It had to be his Uncle if the ferocity of the cursing on the other end of the line was any indication. Gerald shook his head as he took the phone from his ear and then held it out to Jerry. Jerry shook his head and put his cast up to indicate how difficult it would be to hold the phone.
Gerald rolled his eyes and continued to hold the phone out to him. Jerry reached out and took the phone suddenly wishing that his fingers had been casted as well. He held the phone to his ear and took a quick calming breath. “Hey Unc,” he began.
“Hey Unc! Hey Unc! That’s what you have to say to me after we’ve been out here looking for you all night! While you’ve been doing what, rolling between the sheets with that biker woman?! Did it not occur to you that we would be out here looking for you? What the hell is going on with you Jerry? Where is Sarah Watkins? She was in the room when you were taken! I mean… what the hell is going on?”
Jerry looked out at the trees as they whipped past. He had thought about what he might say to his uncle all day. Nothing particular had come to mind. “I can’t really say what happened Unc. I was drug from the room the same as Sarah but I wasn’t conscious and Al saved me.”
“Al saved you? Al saved you? Saved you from what? Say it straight. Where is Sarah, her family is worried sick.”
“I think… I think they ate her.”
“Who ate her? The bears that attacked you and Russ? He woke up ranting about red eyes and big bears. What the hell is going on? I know that woman has something to do with it.”
“She…” Jerry stopped short of telling his uncle that she hunted them. It was dangerous for his uncle to know anything more than he already did.
“We’ve been out here all night and it is really suspicious that we haven’t seen one of these mysterious bears,” his Uncle railed on.
“Russ saw them. I saw them. They took Sarah off and it might be best if you let her family know…”
“I won’t be doing that until I see some remains. There isn’t a bear alive that will eat the entire body, bones, blood and all, over night. Bears don’t eat entire bodies at least not in one sitting. Now I am going to meet you at the station and you better have unhinged your jaw a whole lot more than you are doing now, and if you don’t make it to the station in the next hour so help me God…”
Jerry was silent for a moment. There was nothing he could really tell his Uncle. He would never understand and Jerry would never drag him into this. “You are going to have to trust me when I say I am trying to get to the bottom of this for us all. Take care of my mother,” he said softly.
“What? What the hell are you-” Jerry hit the off button and continued to press the button until the phone powered down. He handed the phone back and Gerald smiled.
“It might be best to turn off the phone. He won’t yell as much face to face.”
Jerry scoffed as he remembered the tongue lashing he’d received two days ago in the hospital. Jerry looked at the dash clock. It was nearing five thirty and the shadows were getting longer than he was comfortable w
ith. If he was going to do something, he had to do it now. He looked over at Gerald.
“I’m really sorry about this,” he said. Gerald turned to ask what he should be sorry about when Jerry sprung at him.
“You little son-of-a-” Gerald began as he swerved.
Jerry tried to deliver a blow to his brachial nerve but Gerald was quicker than he thought. He swung his head in Jerry’s direction and made contact with his nose nearly breaking it. He saw stars for a moment. Jerry had no choice but to clamp down on Gerald’s throat to block the blood flow to his head.
“Get the fuck off Jerry,” Gerald rasped as he struggled for air.
Jerry was glad that the older man had put his foot on the brake and brought them to a halt, but this caused Gerald to get a little momentum and Gerald’s shoulder made good contact with Jerry’s abs. He wanted to puke at the solid hit but he held on.
Gerald reached up and struck at his forearm trying to break his hold and nearly broke his good arm, but still Jerry held on, ignoring the trickle of blood that ran from his nose. It seemed to be taking forever for the other man to pass out. Gerald was like an enraged bull, striking him in any place they made contact, but soon his hits lost strength. He fought for two more minutes before his eyes rolled back in his head and he fell back in his seat. Jerry released him when he was sure that he wasn’t faking it. He then checked his breathing to make sure he hadn’t cut off the blood flow too long. The car started to drift and Jerry hurried to put the car in park.
He got out and was glad for the first time that the road wasn’t a busy one. He opened the driver’s side door and cursed viciously. Gerald would be next to impossible for him to move he was so big. He briefly had the thought to leave him on the side of the road and then call in his location. He had that thought until something caught the corner of his eye and made him look towards the trees. His heart hammered in his chest as he saw something steaming in the depths of the shadows.
It was just standing there with its teeth bared as its skin smoked and boiled. Where had it come from? It was just waiting for the sun to go down. Jerry cursed it before he roared in rage. “Leave me the fuck alone you son-of-a-bitches!”
The thing just stood there breathing hard as it watched him, getting closer. The sun sunk further and further behind the mountain. Jerry bent down and used every muscle he possessed to lower Gerald out of the car. He rolled the large man until he was able to open the back seat and then began the process of shoving him up into the back seat, cursing the cast with every shove. He had just got him in, taken his utility belt, and shut the door when the older man came awake.
“Jerry, you little shit! Open this damn door right now,” he yelled in a raged voice as he banged at the cage. Jerry slid into the driver’s seat and risked a glance off to the left to see that the beast was nearly to the road.
“What in the sam hill is that,” Gerald yelled with fright as he saw what Jerry was looking at. He slid across the back seat to get as far away from it as possible, clutching his bruised neck all the while.
“That is what broke into the hospital, attacked Russ, and attacked us at the motel. They are dangerous and I need to draw them away from town before they come after any one else,” Jerry said. He hit the gas and they nearly fishtailed. Jerry turned the wheel hard and headed back towards the gas station. The trees to the right moved with him until they came to a sunny part of the mountain. A howl rent the air. It was so loud that Gerald covered his ears.
“How the hell are you planning on doing that boy? We should call DNR. You’re a cop not a dog catcher.”
“Those are a little bigger than dogs,” Jerry shot back.
“They’re sure as hell bigger than dog’s. They look bigger than you. You aren’t a hunter. You should let us put a hunting crew together and-“
“No! You have to keep people out of the woods. I am leaving and when I leave they will leave.”
“What the hell are you talkin’ about boy? You got some bait I don’t know about? I’m the best marksman and hunter in the area…” The anger disappeared from Gerald’s voice. “I can help you if you’re in trouble.”
Jerry looked in the rear view. Gerald was still holding his throat, still looked mad as hell, but there was something else in his eyes too. Concern. Maybe even love and respect. Gerald could be annoying some times but growing up he had always seemed like… family. He was as much an uncle as his real uncle was. “Thank you. But you can help me by keeping people out of the woods… and by getting my uncle not to come after me.”
The older man’s blue eyes looked as tender as they ever were going to. Gerald had never been emotional. He was a man’s man, drinking beer and talking about women. One thanksgiving Jerry had watched him eat nearly an entire turkey in one setting. But right now he looked frightened and apprehensive. “Heaven and Earth wouldn’t stop him from comin’ after you. You know he always thought he owed that to your daddy. So do I.”
Jerry shook his head and focused on the road as tears clouded his eyes. He forced them back. “I’m sorry as hell to do this but I’m not going to endanger the people I love with this trouble. It’s mine alone. I never asked for your help so just… stay away.”
Gerald was quiet but Jerry knew that it wouldn’t last long. “That sure as hell didn’t look like any bear I ever seen.”
“There’s somethin’ wrong with them and you have to keep people away. They’re rabid and if you get bit by one of them… Just stay out of the damn woods until I’m good and gone.”
“Still… I seen rabid animals and that… that just looked plain unnatural.”
Jerry cursed under his breath. He was crazy if he thought he could just walk away and they would leave this alone. Gerald might be old but he was still a cop and the cop hound in him would run this thing into the ground. He cursed himself for not thinking to bring the satchels. Maybe he could have found some of that serum Al had used on him to make Gerald forget. They pulled into the parking lot and Jerry reached into the rack behind him to pull down the shot gun. He left Gerald’s utility belt and keys in the front seat. Gerald banged on the cage again.
“Damn it Jerry. Don’t do this. I can help you. I’ll even call-” Jerry slammed the door on Gerald’s protests.
A few people who had been pumping gas hurried to get in their cars and leave when they saw him coming with the shot gun. He must have looked a sight with his torn shirt, casted arm, and the big shot gun. He was pretty sure blood was seeping through his pants leg again too. He threw the gun to his shoulder and went into the garage. The two men working in the garage quickly put their hands into the air.
“Where are the keys for that motorcycle?” he growled. He groaned as he saw the big dent and scrap along the side of the tank of the motorcycle where it sat. Al was going to kill him for crashing her motorcycle.
The older of the two men who had been about to take a bite out of a sandwich pointed towards a board that held three sets of keys. He reached over and grabbed the keychain with the solid silver spiked skull. He supposed that Alicia used it as a weapon in a pinch but the creature would have to be pretty damn close. Jerry had no interest in ever being that close to one of them again.
Glad to see that none of the gas station attendants were going to try and stop him he slung the strap to the shot gun over his shoulders, glad that as a hunter Gerald kept a strap on his guns. As quickly as he could he wheeled the bike over to the pump. The attendants had locked themselves inside the gas station and Jerry cursed as he tried to open the door.
“Turn on the pump,” he yelled as he went over to the window behind the register. The employees were cowering behind it and refused to move.
“Turn on the pump or I will shoot out this damn window and turn it on myself,” he yelled. He put the barrel up against the pane of glass with a menacing thud.
The old man that had offered to store the bike in the back earlier stood up on shaking legs and nodded. He pressed a button.
Jerry hated the fright he saw in the o
ld man’s eyes. He didn’t like this side of the law but he had little choice. Lives were at stake. He pumped the gas and when it was full, he pulled cash from his pocket and went to the door. The old man was still standing up watching him. Jerry stuffed twenty more than what he owed under the door before he turned and ran back to the bike.
He kicked it to roaring life, this time with much more confidence, and sped off into dusk. He chanced a glanced towards the trees. This part of the mountain still held some sunlight and he was glad that he didn’t see the trees being bumped and crashed into as the beasts ran along side the road waiting to catch their prey.
If there was a doubt before, there was none now. They were after him for God only knew what reason. It didn’t take him long to get to the cabin and the sun gave its last rays of light as he entered. Al still lay in the bed untouched. He loaded what guns he could and then headed for the bed. He sat down on the edge so that he could see both the front window and the back wall.
“Al,” he tried. She didn’t stir. How long would she sleep? How long could he protect them like this? The room was sweltering and his cast was itching him like crazy. He wanted nothing more than to take the damn thing off, but a little over a week wasn’t enough to heal a broken bone. He didn’t want to have the weakness if it healed wrong for the rest of his life. It made holding a gun in that hand damn awkward but he managed.
The small gun would have been better but the little twenty two wasn’t a range gun and he needed the range of Al’s big cannon’s. He sat perfectly still as he waited. The sun was gone now and the shadows had gotten long. He strained his ears so that he could listen. There was an ugly howl but it sounded a good distance away. Still, he couldn’t find a way to relax. He was on the razor’s edge.
He was exhausted, his nose, ribs, and good arm ached from the assault Gerald had given him. His arm itched so bad he wanted to gnaw at it with his teeth and it was hot. He was hotter than he’d ever been in his entire life. Annoying sweat ran down the middle of his back tickling and making him want to scratch there too, but he would not move the guns from the two entrances in the room.
