2 Minutes to Midnight (13 page)

Two weeks earlier...

Chip and Scott Paulson were
veterinarian technicians at the local zoo, and had access to
tranquilizer darts mainly used to subdue out of control animals. In
a fatal twist of irony, a plan they had both been working on for
weeks was about to drastically change the lives of two city
dwellers out on a weekend retreat.
"You got the dart gun?" Chip asked.
Scott nodded.
"You get the darts?" Asked Scott
Scott pulled out a small case of high-powered tranquilizer darts
and showed it to his brother.
"Let's go! I have the rope in the car and we should be able to
lasso them once they're knocked out." Scott said.
The two were giddy with anticipation as they drove down a nearly
hidden dirt road to the abandoned cabin lake. It had been their
fishing hole for years, and they assumed no one owned it. Stopping
several yards from the water's edge, the two got out. Chip grabbed
the bag of duck decoys from his trunk, and the fishing line they
would used to secure them. Scott sat with his gun at the edge of
the water, binoculars in hand, and waited until he saw eyes.
"There they are, man!" Scott whispered.
"OK, time for phase two." Chip put his fishing pole together. He
would be the bait.
"They're probably going to come over once they see you get in the
water." Scott said.
"This is extra incentive, and maybe my way out of there before they
get me."
"Let's just do like we said, and get em' up on shore. Then I'll
blast the bastards with my tranq gun."
"This was a good idea on paper, but I think it'd be easier to blast
em' with the 30.06 rifle. I'll go get it." Chip offered.
"This is their home and we're invading it. Killing them wouldn't be
right, we just need some forewarning when we're fishing out here,
man. It's a great fishing hole."
An hour later the men had tranquilized three alligators and
attached duck decoys securely to their heads. When the gators woke
up the two would be long gone with three brown trout and two blue
gills in their cooler.
"You think anyone's ever done something like this before?" Chip
asked.
"Not sure, but I'm tired of fishing out here and these damned
things popping out of the water at us. I almost got eaten last
time." Scott barked.
Their work done, the two released the alligators and drove off the
way they had come.

the good fight

She woke up early from her
long winter nap and Rosebud the grizzly required food. What dangers
lay ahead as she leaves the safety of her winter
retreat?

Snow fell softly and silently on tall,
ancient cedars in a forest as vast and wide as the ocean as Gerome
lay very still at the mouth of his pack’s den. His gore-covered
face was propped on bloody paws, while pools of blood stained the
snow beneath him like a deranged Rorschach test, as he attempted to
regain his bearing from the fight. Gerome watched puffy miniature
clouds of cold white billow away from his nostrils through the
early morning light. The grey atmosphere made earth and sky
indistinguishable, and for the first time in as long as he could
remember he was cold, exhausted, and mortally wounded. Gerome gazed
with passive curiosity at individual flakes as they drifted
downward, lying gently upon any exposed surface, as the rest of his
pack fed hungrily on the bear’s carcass. She had wandered into
their hunting ground at a time of winter when his pack was
particularly hungry and dangerous.
Several days earlier...
It was the middle of a harsh northwestern winter and a freak forest
fire caused by lightening had set the forest ablaze. The ominous
smoke of an approaching fire wafted into Rosebud the grizzly bear's
den, giving her fitful dreams. She was in hibernation on this day;
she enjoyed the state of decreased awareness while food was scarce.
Although Rosebud was very strong and large, she was no match for
Mother Nature's fury, and she had three cubs to raise: Ranger,
Toby, and Bethany. Rosebud's bleary eyes popped open, and as soon
as she smelled the smoke she knew that there was a problem in the
forest. Although her activity level usually dropped significantly
during the cold months Rosebud sprung to life when her cubs were in
danger. While Rosebud was sleeping, they were playing, growing, and
exploring the forest very near their mother. Today, grey smoke
slowly billowed into her cave, choking and dimming the daylight.
Her cubs trampled in with worried expressions as she winced in the
light.
"Mama, mama, mama! There's bad air outside, and it hurts to
breathe." Bethany cried.
"The woods are hot, and melting the snow!" Ranger said.
"We got lost in the bad air for a little while, but found you
again." Toby finished.
"Come children, it's time to go. Our den is no longer safe."
Rosebud raised herself on powerful front legs and moved past them
toward the mouth of the cave.
They began to trudge through deep snow as Rosebud tried to take her
mind off of the gnawing ache in her stomach.
"Did you kids see any animals in the forest today that we might
eat?"
"We saw a deer two moons ago, mama." Ranger said.
"I saw a rabbit, and tried to chase it but she was too fast. That
was one moon ago." Toby said.
"Thank you children, we will have to remain vigilant and look for
something to eat." Rosebud instructed.
"But mamma, we eat from you? Is there something else we should be
eating? The other animals are our practice, right?" Bethany
asked.
"They were, and are...yes, but right now I need to eat something
because I was woken up earlier than usual, and I've been feeding
you three for a few months while I slept. You children are going to
learn how to hunt our forest friends for food." Rosebud
smiled.
"OK, mama," all three chimed.
For two days they walked through the snow covered forest leaving
the destruction of the forest fire far behind. A deer carcass that
had been ravaged almost beyond recognition lay half covered in a
layer of ice. Rosebud was weak, and after having been awake for two
days with no food she had expended too many calories to feed her
young and survive.
"Children, the deer is yours. I'm going to take a nap while you
eat, wake me when you're done and we will continue."
"But mama, can't we eat from you?" Toby asked. She looked into his
innocent eyes and felt a pang of maternal sorrow for the loss of
their innocence. She did not want them to grow up yet.
"I'm sorry, Toby, but I'm too weak to feed you in my current state.
Eat the carcass and wake me when it's over."
OK, mama." He nodded understanding.
They approached the deer slow at first, touching it with unfamiliar
paws, and then Bethany bit into the skull, crunching it between
powerful jaws, even at her young age. Soon she would be three times
larger, and would be taking down full size deer like her mother.
The deer carcass was enough for each of them to fill most of their
bellies, but they were still hungry.
"We have to help mama," said Ranger.
"What should we do?" Toby asked.
"Let's hunt her some food. I don't think she's well, and if we go
much farther she won't make it." Bethany said.
"She'll...die?" Toby asked. He shot his sleeping mother a worried
glance.
"I don't know, but if she can't feed us that's bad." Bethany
said.
"Toby do you remember what the rabbit smelled like? The one we saw
the other day?" Ranger asked.
"Yes, I do."
"We'll hunt one of those. The deer is too big and violent but mama
could eat a rabbit."
"Is that enough food? Mama's very big." Toby asked.
"Something's better than nothing, and we need her. I'm scared of
these woods." Bethany said. She was looking around nervously at the
tall pines.
"Right, well let's get on with it then." Ranger said.
They walked away from their sleeping mother leaving tracks in the
snow in case she woke up and needed to follow them. It was two
hours before they found a fat rabbit nibbling on a bunch of berries
sticking out of the snow.
"That's a good one, there." Toby whispered.
"So, what do we do? How are we supposed to get it?" Bethany
whispered. The rabbit pricked its ears up and stopped eating. They
stopped breathing until it relaxed again and began to munch.
"Bethany you go left, Toby go right to get around behind it, and
I'll hide behind this tree until you two are in place. Drive it
toward me at the same time, and I'll smack it with my paw as it
passes." Ranger explained.
Bethany and Toby nodded and positioned themselves as planned. The
tension was high as they moved like shadows to avoid spooking the
rabbit, and when they were in place Bethany looked over at Toby and
with her eyes she told him she was ready. They flanked the rabbit,
driving it in a straight line toward their brother.
"What are you guys doing here? I thought it was nap time for the
bears." The rabbit asked in his high-pitched voice. He leapt
forward like a flash.
"We don't really sleep, rabbit." Toby laughed.
"I hate to cut and run, but you two sure are big, and I'd like to
stay ali..." Ranger brought his paw down on the rabbit's neck,
snapping it.
"That was kind of fun. We should do it again!" Bethany chimed. Her
brothers nodded agreement.
The cubs took the rabbit back to their mother who was beginning to
stir. She growled in her sleep, kicking a back paw at the
air.
"Mama, we got you a rabbit." Ranger said.
"Yes, mama, you can wake up now." Bethany told her. Rosebud opened
her eyes to see the rabbit lying in the snow before her sensitive
nostrils.
"You children are so good to your mama. Thank you for the food."
Her voice was groggy and distant. She was very low on energy.
Rosebud ate the rabbit in less than ten minutes, but it made her
feel better and gave her just enough energy to move on.
"We can get you another rabbit." Toby said.
"The next one you get is for you. You're good hunters; now hone
those skills for larger prey."
Rosebud looked down and saw something different than rabbit tracks
in the snow. They were much bigger, familiar signs of a deadly foe.
Gerome's faint scent. Rosebud stopped in her tracks sniffing the
air.
"What is it?" Bethany asked.
"Wolves. We have to be careful. I think there's a den near
here."
Rosebud led her children away from the tracks, and got them to the
relative safety of a shallow cave. That night a snowstorm rolled
through and laid down six inches of fresh powder covering every
track in the woods. Detecting wolves while moving through before
the storm would be impossible. The rabbit she had eaten the day
before was gone, and unless Rosebud landed a deer or something
larger soon, she was going to be in dire straits once more.
"Let's keep going. I know Gerome and his pack are round here, but I
don't know where they set up for the winter, and now his tracks are
buried."
Gerome The Grey sat still as night, covered in new white snow, his
belly grumbling with hunger like the ominous thunder of an
impending storm. Rosebud and her cubs emerged from cover and began
to walk northeast. As he studied her, he noticed how slow she
moved. Her mid-winter lethargy told him what he needed to know.
Gerome was not sure why she was awake and on the move, and had he
known about the forest fire heading his way, it would not have
mattered. His pack was hungry, he was hungry, and no food source
had presented itself in a week.
"Well, well, well, Rosebud. I believe the boys and I will have to
have you over for dinner." He growled to himself.
Like a whisper on the wind, Rosebud caught a whiff of danger in the
air. He was close, and she knew he would be watching for signs of
weakness. Rosebud had known Gerome since they were small, and they
had played in the forest pines as cubs, but adulthood brings with
it responsibility and competition for resources. Old friendships
turn to respect for one another's territory, and then, when food is
scarce and alternatives no longer exist, they devolve into
hunter/prey relationships. Such is the way of nature, and such is
the way of life.
"Come children, we must move faster now. Gerome and his pack have a
wide hunting radius this time of year, and I need to find you a
good safe cave."
Gerome followed them for some time keeping out of range of her
radar; with her cubs Rosebud would be even more dangerous than
normal. She was in a weakened state but he had tangled with her
before and knew that she was an opponent worthy of much respect.
Gerome would need his soldiers: his pack, to take his old friend
down. He crept slowly and low until she found a spot to rest with
her cubs, and then he faded into the forest like a specter.
After hours of trudging through drifts of snow Rosebud found a safe
haven for her children and breathed easy. A cave opening through
the dense trees appeared like a yawning mouth.
"We'll stay here until winter's end." Rosebud explained.
A rush of water could be heard not far from the cave, and was
coming from down the mountain.
"Can we go explore?" Toby asked.
Rosebud sniffed the air. Gerome was no longer around, which gave
her pause, but she knew him well enough to know that her cubs would
be safe from him, and his pack.
"Go ahead, but don't cross the water and come back soon. I want you
where I can see you for a little while. I don't trust this area,
yet."
Nightfall would be approaching soon and her stomach was empty. If
Rosebud did not find something to eat before settling back into the
winter nap she would starve to death, and she smelled nothing to
eat within two miles.
"On second thought, I have to hunt. I'll be back by tonight, or
tomorrow at latest. You cubs are on your own, but I want you to
hunt for another rabbit, or a fox. You have to think about food all
the time now, and where it's going to come from next. Can you do
that and stay safe?"
"Yes mama." Bethany said, and the others nodded.
Rosebud felt a pang of remorse in her heart as she realized her
cubs would be on their own for the first time in their lives, but
she had little choice.
"I'll see you when I return." Rosebud turned to go.
Rosebud's energy stores were already low, and her walk through the
woods lowered them even more. Just when she was about to turn back
the way she had come a blood-curdling howl rang out through the
dense woodland. First one, then two, and then a deafening cacophony
of terror stabbed the bear’s eardrums, causing the hair on her back
to stand up.
"Gerome." Rosebud prepared for battle with an unseen enemy,
standing proud on muscular hind legs, waiting for the attack.
Night was upon her now. The tall pines stood like golems out of the
blanket of white. One swipe of her claws would destroy any wolf
that tried to tangle with her, and in the past, had even knocked a
head or two clean off. Rosebud roared a challenge to the night,
taunting them to come and get her with feral rage, peeling back her
lips to display two rows of large dagger-like teeth. Then, as
suddenly as it has begun the howling stopped, leaving her in
silence, but their odor permeated the forest.
"Let's go!" Gerome barked.
In a sudden, frightful turn of events, wolves surrounded Rosebud on
every side. Terror and rage glowed in her eyes as Gerome's pack
waited for further instructions. Gerome entered the circle and
faced off against the frightened bear.
"Rosebud," he said.
"Gerome," said Rosebud.
"I want you to know this isn't personal." He could smell her
fear.
"When this is over, whatever the outcome, I want your promise that
nothing will happen to my cubs."
"You have my word, we go back far, and this gives me no pleasure."
Gerome said.
"I'm going to tear your heart out for this Gerome. I want none of
your pack dead as much as I want you for this betrayal."
"The cubs will have every one of my fallen for their survival. Next
winter they had better be in another forest, though."
"Let's stop talking then. I've got better things to do."
His pack would eat well for a week from her body. On his command,
Reno and Sasha rushed in from the left and right, gnashing down on
her shoulders while five more wolves waited to pounce, not far
behind. Rosebud fought them off, tossing the two wolves into the
trees breaking one’s back, and crushing the other’s skull. More
wolves were coming now in a blur of teeth and claws.
Gerome watched his childhood friend toss powerful wolves off of her
as if they were twigs, tearing them apart. He would have to do
something if they were going to survive. Gerome patiently waited
for his moment as the melee proceeded, and then he saw an opening.
Shona was crouched down in front of the great grizzly rearing back
for an attack, when Gerome sprang forward like a bullet. He ran up
Shona's back as Rosebud stood on her hind legs, wounded and bloody.
With lightening reflexes he launched into her neck clamping down on
the windpipe, and with a primal burst of energy he bit down with
vice-like jaws. One crunch ended the fight, but as she began to
fall forward with one final fatal swipe of her claws Rosebud sliced
deeply through Gerome's abdomen.