The Hunt (closed)

[Sweetp4u]

ooc: This is closed for Poohlive and myself, comments will be welcome via PM, please do not post in the thread.

IC:

Name: Rhyanna Light, Rhy for short.
Age: 27 y/o
Description: 5'6" 115. Brown hair, brown eyes. mixed race of native decent.
Occupation: National Preserve Park Ranger/ Vet. Been on site since 18 y/o.


And the hunt begins...

When the phone call came at 3 a.m. she was doing her best to sleep and ignore it, but upon the fifteenth ring her temper was brewing.

“What!” She barked into the receiver.

All was silent as she listened to the voice on the other end rambling off quickly. There had been an accident.

“Alright, I will be there in twenty minutes.” She hung up, swung her legs out of bed and sat there looking at the floor. Confusion stirred foremost, obviously this was mistake, then resolve. She would go and check out the scene, confirm what she already knew to be false information and get back here to catch some sleep before the sun came up.

Her mind didn’t want to function at 3:30 anymore than her old Chevy wanted to start.
“Come on baby.. turn over.” She coaxed softly, her frustration held at a minimal amount.

Working in the wildlife preserve had been her life’s dream. Providing sanctuary for nearly extinct animals gave her a sense of wellness that filled her so completely, nothing else ever had room to interfere in her work. She didn’t need anything more than the nature surrounding her, nor did she need a sheriff waking her at this hour.

Rhyanna pulled up before the newly built “rehab” clinic and eyed the monstrosity with distaste. Why would anyone with a brain in their head build a rehabilitation clinic near a wild life preserve? To make her life hell, that was her only thought. Since this clinic had come in, she’d had double the trash to clean up, double the signs posted for no trespassing, no loitering, no hunting and had to fence and repair her lands more often over the last two years. Hell, she had to include a ‘no camping’ sign as well, were people really that thick?

These interlopers were basically a pain in the ass.

“What’s the problem Roger?” She sauntered over to the sheriff, trying her best not to look as bored as she felt. In her twenty-seven years on this planet, she’d never seen a man look more green around the ‘gills’ than how Roger looked right then.

“Well, seems one of your animals attacked a guest here. We had dead guy parts every where…” That was tasteless, they really should include sheriff training with subtlety classes.

She blinked, her head cocking to the side as she stared at him. Obviously she had misunderstood what he just said because there was no way she heard that right. “P-pardon?” Her sarcastic ‘I-don’t-believe-you’ tone.

“Now before you get into a fit Rhy, come and see what we found or better yet didn’t find.” He started forward, right for her fence not one hundred feet from the clinic ‘garden’. An area was taped off, stringing around trees and the lone picnic table, marking off the crime scene.

Lights lit up the ground, many had been brought from somewhere in the clinic and plugged in to help the officers gather what remained of the victim.

“What has this got to do with me Roger? It’s..” She glanced at her watch “almost four in the morning.”

“We’ve got paw prints all over in the mud surrounding the flower bed, in it, through it. The grass is trampled everywhere but nothing discernable. We did get a casting from the flower bed.” He handed her a plaster casting of the paw print.

She didn’t need to examine it for longer than a minute, she knew right away what it was. It paid being trained in tracking by the best man that ever lived… Her grandfather.

“It’s wolf. A wolf of large size, considerable weight and with little marks on it’s paw. Healthy I would guess by the depths of this print. So you think a wolf came through the fence, saw.. the victim sitting there and decided it was time for a snack?” Not likely unless the victim attacked the wolf. Most wild animals avoided humans like a plague… Timber Wolves included.

“Reports said they heard his screams for help and the growling of the wolf. A lady rushed out and tried to beat off the wolf but ran back inside when it chased her. She said that it went right back to tearing into .. Chris Waters as if he had no worries from the clinic or those inside. Several more attempts were made to stop…” He checked a paper he held in his hand, confirming the name of the victim while basically reading from a statement.

“Roger, sorry to interrupt you. But this isn’t normal behavior for a wolf. Was the man injured and bleeding openly? Was he inside the fenced area? It just isn’t like them..” This time his hand cut her off, shoved nearly in her face.

“We have reliable witnesses. Maybe the wolf was rabid? Maybe it was a dog, not a wolf. But we’ve called you here because the three witnesses not hysterically crying said it went back into the preserve. We need to get your approval to go in and hunt this animal down before another is killed, Rhy.”

She bit her lip, her hands fisted inside her jacket as she glanced around the scene. Little of this Chris Waters was left behind, very strange. “I can’t permit armed men, gun happy men at that, inside the preserve.. But I can offer a solution. I can hunt down this animal myself and get to the bottom of this.” She hated to think it, she’d been over every inch of her preserve for so many years, even tagged the wolves in here herself. Rabid? She would have seen signs of this before now, wouldn’t she? It is a large preserve, and so there are openings for mistakes and over-looked animals.

“This young man was a rock star, newly signed and very popular. The gentleman inside told me that much, since that was pretty much all they knew about him. He had a powder fetish, coke… Kept to himself mostly, but I do know the media is going to have a field day with this ‘accident’. Preserve or not, Rhy, we need a solution and quickly. Or I can get a court order..” His threat trailed off, not wishing to upset Rhyanna further, but wanting to see justice served. Animal or not, Roger felt it deserved to die.

“I’ll get on it in the morning. If I can’t find this wolf, I will allow your men inside.” She felt something beyond sadness, it was something much deeper, disappointment perhaps? They were wild animals, all over inside this preserve, it still did not stop her from thinking of them as family, not beasts. And if she had missed a rabid wolf, it was as much her fault as it were the wolf. “I’ll be back. Tell the person in charge that they should keep their ‘guests’ inside until this is cleaned up. Wash the grass as well, the lingering scent of blood will draw it back here.”

Rhyanna stood by her truck, studying the area when her eyes caught a reflection in the tree line. Staring intently, she watched as a pair of eyes blinked only once, but continued to remain fixed on her and her alone. Was this the wolf? The eye shape, what she could see, was slanted enough to be a wolf. But then again it was dark outside and the eyes only stared. A wolf brave enough to attack a man so close to a human dwelling would not linger in the woods if indeed it was rabid.

She stared back only a few more seconds before she left for her own cabin twenty minutes away.


The next morning she arrived just as the sun was rising over the shadowed Rockies. Parking once more in the gravel ‘general parking’ area, she once more felt eyes on her. Ignoring the sensation, knowing that lack of sleep and the gore of last night were doing this to her, she walked quickly to the tape. Bending, she shifted herself under and upright on the inside of the barrier tape. Squatting down, she again studied the grass and mud. They had cleaned it off, but she could still see blood spatter on various blades of grass.

“Good morning.” A voice came from somewhere behind her, startling her easily enough. Whirling around she caught sight of a plainly clothed man lingering outside the tape, watching her. His look was not unfriendly, but it was guarded slightly.

 

[poohlive]

In rehab everything became routine. It turned into a huge line at the cafeteria, where you are constantly trying to get your breakfast, lunch or dinner.
It was a routine going in, a routine going out, and even a routine when you lapsed that one night, and had to be rushed to the hospital.
Terry had his routine down, as square as he could. Smiling to the nurses, talking jittery tear filled nonsense in therapy, and every once in a while walking around the compound, smelling the good clean air, and pretending for a few pitiful moments that life didn't matter.
Life is a drug, the worst drug of all. It doesn't give you a high, not like any of the drugs they had been denied in this place, no, it just handed out lows from time to time. That was the reason people chose to get high... they were tired of getting low on life.
Terry lit up a cigarette, stuffed his hands in his pockets, and walked out to the edge of the fence.
He didn't see the woman until he was almost on top of her.
She was young, at least she looked young, attractive, and full of something. He saw it swimming behind the lovely hue of her eyes.
He offered her a cigarette, "What are you in here for? I didn't see you this morning at breakfast. You just arrive?"
He saw her standing next to the stain, he rolled his eyes once, "Weird huh? Guy just up and got himself eaten. They said they found pieces everywhere, wild animal or something. I don't believe it though, guy was a bit of a prick. I think, it was one of the nurses. She got pissed off, and just went after him."
He gave a little smile, leaning up against the fence.

 

[Sweetp4u]

Rhyanna

She scanned him over once, and then twice. He was in here for drug use, obviously by his appearence. His hair was long, untiddy, hanging down past his neck. He was tall, even from a distance she had to crane her neck up to look at him. Interesting theory he had there, one she would not comment on without more proof. He did look half starved, even for a recovering addict..

"No thank you.. and no, I am not a resident here. Rhyanna Light." She would have held out her hand to shake his but she was a bit too far, "I run the preserve... and you are?" She smiled, trying to keep the conversation light as possible. She did have work to do, but she wasn't a rude person either.

"I am here to track down the animal responsible for this... " mauling wouldn't be right terminology. The wolf ate the man, not mauled.

 

[poohlive]

"Animal?" Terry gave a bit of a laugh, he looked at the blood still staining the grass, "They told you it was an animal, did they?
"Well, being the park ranger service, and living with these animals all your life, you think it's an animal?"
The man shrugged his shoulders, as if to say it was her choice. He took a nice drag on his cigarette, loving the feel of it burn away his lungs.
He blew it out with a bit of sadness.
"I knew him, for a few weeks anyway. A real prick. He tried to rape someone you know. Her first night in, she was having withdrawls, they had to tie her to her bed, so she wouldn't accidentally take a razor to her wrists... and he went into her room. The orderlies got him before anything could happen, but still... one never knows."
With a sly smile, he reached out his hand, shaking hers with surprising strength.
"Terry, Terry McMullin. I'm here because I'm addicted to drugs and or alcohol, and you are Rhy, you're here cause you love animals..."
He paused, "Or hate people."
Terry lit another cigarette, "So, you playing detective now too, trying to solve the case of the dislimbered rock star? Any leads?"

 

[Sweetp4u]

Rhy

She listened to him ramble, but it wasn't rambling really. He knew exactly what he said and how he said it. The tone alone hinted at something.. but what? He witness the killing?

"Nice to meet you Terry." She shook his hand and surprisingly his grip was tighter than she would have expected. He didn't hurt her, but she felt a lingering kind of power in his hand... Or she had little sleep and was imagining things?

"He attempted to rape her and no one tossed him out?" She was frankly shocked by that news. Addicted to drugs or no, that was law suit material waiting to happen! She pushed the thought aside, she didn't get entangled into other people's lives, she had enough on her plate already...

"Did you witness the attack?" She didn't want to say it aloud, didn't wish to condemn her wolves without proof. Her attention left the ground around her and stared into his eyes. He met her stare unflinching, unblinking... She could almost see a smirk in those eyes...

His eyes have the strangest colors to them.. her mind functioned normally as anyone elses, only she filed away odd bits of information her entire life. Somewhere in her mind was the number of moons around Jupiter... As if that would be something important to remember.

"So, you playing detective now too, trying to solve the case of the dislimbered rock star? Any leads?" He chained smoked, clogging the air with grey tinged puffs of smoke, nearly causing her to cough outright. Backing up as unnoticibly as possible, she flashed a small smile, "I am no law officer, no detective. I only have jurisdiction on my own Preserve.. No, I'm only here to pick up the trail into the woods and see where it leads. We can't have a rabid mutt on the loose, nor an odd wolf."

 

[poohlive]

"It's amazing what money and fame can sweep under the rug these days, isn't it? Hell, even O.J. got off, can't beat the politics, even in rural forest preserve Colorado."
He took a big whiff of air, almost tasting it on his tongue, "God, you can say what you want, but you've got to love this mountain living. It's like air, real air. Living in the city, sometimes you forget this is where it all came from. You know?"
In the midst of it all, he couldn't get passed his old routine. No matter how much you tried, it pried and pawned at you until you screamed.
"Me? A witness? No, I didn't see anything. No one saw anything. We all turned our back... just like the time he tried to rape someone, and everyone turned their back. It's kinda funny like that, almost poetic justice, you know?"
Crushing the butt out, he turned to look at the stains.
"People saw an animal, cause that's the easiest way to explain what happened. Isn't it? Some weird animal ate some drugged up rock star, and now you're here to make some half assed attempt at real police work. I'll bet you a million bucks you don't find a single rabid wolf out here... or any wolf that size. It was big wasn't it?"
His hands spread wide, "Huge."
Terry turned around, looking at the fence with an objective eye, "I could help you, you know. I'm a private detective, or I was, before I decided to become a junkie. I could follow all the leads, and get us a suspect in time for lunch."
Ahhh, yes, lunch.
"You aren't hungry are you? They are serving up turkey sandwhiches at the cafeteria. If we hurry, we could get them while they're nice and hot. They taste like shit, but still... hot shit's better than cold shit. What do you say?"

 

[Sweetp4u]

Rhy

He had a point, a cynical point, but still it did make sense to her. She knew all too well how those in charge could and would hide things to protect the 'money maker'.

If no one saw anything how did four people write statements? This was even more odd than she first believed it to be. But what could a park ranger do about it?

Nothing.

"Detective?" She mulled it over, but knew a detective couldn't assist in tracking animals. What would he do? Question the wolf? She smiled slightly but said nothing aloud about that idea.

"That's an exageration. No wolf is that large." She eyed his wide hand spread and knew it was false. "I've raised quite a few and even have the two den's inside the Preserve tagged. Most are maybe one-forty in weight, at the largest.." What did he care? She was just rambling off excuses, defense mostly. She was used to defending her place and her animals.

"I am merely going to track, if possible. If the animal can be found, if it exists, it is my duty to see it put down. As much as that hurts me to say so, it must be done for safety reasons. Even I could be a target if this wolf is still in the area." She glanced along the fence, she really needed to get moving while the lighting was excellent and the prints were fresh.. Rain would definitely screw up her hunt right now too.

She scanned the skies, seeing nothing but clear blue and felt a little relief. "Thanks for the offer Terry, but I have to get moving before it gets any later. Will you tell the main desk my truck is here only for alittle while please. Its easier to start here." She took a few steps towards the fence and paused, she needed her rifle.

"If you think of anything, or hear anything, please give me a call?" She handed him her card which held only her name and number. "Anything at all, even a description of the wolf would help."

 

[poohlive]

Terry gave the card a once over, before putting it away.
"You don't have to get rid of me so easily. If you don't want me hanging around, I could go. It's just..."
He paused, looking back at the institution with a forewarning.
"I don't like routines," He said under his breath.
"People in there are puking and always talking about a fucking fix. Sometimes just a friendly conversation is just way beyond the mind of someone who's coming off of something."
He followed up behind her, eyeing the tracks now.
"I saw it, you know. Huge. Bigger than a bear," He let his hands grow as far as he could reach. He nodded in all honesty, as if she might think of him as a kid, who would see a creature and automatically think of it as ten times bigger and ferocious.
"I don't know about you, but I'd be scared going in there alone. Something big is in there, and it's hungry.... "

 

[Sweetp4u]

Rhyanna

Hallucinations. She felt the overwhelming urge to shake her head sadly but managed to halt the process and recover it quickly enough not to be noticed.

"I can understand the boredom of... routine." Why did she get the suspicion she was now trapped in a 'charity case'? She couldn't be rude and send him away, even though he wasn't supposed to go into the Preserve, he had a point. Something was very hungry.


"As large as a bear?" Her brow shot up, skepticism clear. "Wolves do not get larger or as large as a bear." She knelt down looking at a few prints that were smeared by careless shoes of the sheriff. "It's just not physically possible..." She stood up and moved to the fence, hunching down to peek between barbed wire, "If one that large were possible to breed..." Her voice trailed away as her face flamed white hot with embarrassment...

Her eyes scanned the next set of tracks, her hands shaking as she guesstimated the width... Nearly four and a half inches wide. Definately wolf, extremely large, weight was well over one-eighty.

"Now.. Now I feel like a complete ass..." Her voice trailed off, wonderment of a new discovery should have had her dancing with excitement, but the problem was.. This wolf was nearly the size of a bear.

"..unless these prints were planted." She sat back on her haunches, her eyes staring into the heavy wooded area. He was right, going in there alone seemed foolish, but she was a foolish kinda gal.

"Whether I want to or not, I have to go looking for him before someone else becomes 'dinner'. There are no large mammals in here really, other than the wolves... And even then a pack the size in here would keep away a loner. Even one the size of a grizzly. They hunt in packs, attack in packs, sleep.. You get the idea." She had a tranquilizer rifle in her truck as well as a .308, which one would be smarter?

"One this size is going to be constantly hungry.. And that worries me." She stood back up, her mind knowing what needed to be done but her body and eyes were more interested in staring at the tracks.

 

[poohlive]

"Could I offer a theory?" He saw she was lost in thought, and for the moment, didn't want to disturb her in this state of catatonic bliss. However, he did feel like they should at least get something straight.
"I can see two possible conclusions. One, we have a murderer on our hands. Some guy, who paid a few people to tell a large wolf story, made up some fake prints, and then got you to go traipsing along the countryside for some bear-like wolf. If that's the case, we are looking for a man, with a motive.
"Or two, there is somehow a huge wolf, which defies all logic and evolution, well, according to your park ranger expertise. This wolf is big and mean and hungry, and somehow decided that one guy in a group of people sitting out in a fenced area was good enough to eat. So, now we're looking for a monster wolf with a monster appetite."
He shrugged, as if he were stumped on the subject.
"A big wolf with a big appetite will leave a lot of carcasses around. If he's out there, wouldn't you find a bunch of dead decaying animals?"
At least now they were being honest about the situation, although, Terry wasn't sure if someone like Rhy could get herself around the terms of logic so easily.

 

[Sweetp4u]

Rhyanna

"Planted, I tend to agree." She felt she was correct with that assumption, the same one he had. After all the print the sheriff casted last night was a normal size paw print, not this monsterous thing.

"It does defy all logic, clearly if there were animal carcasses all over my Preserve, I'd know it. Found them.. Been hunting for a bear long before now. But nothing has been disturbed." She glanced around, when would the Sheriff be back?

"The trouble now is the Sheriff didn't gather any blood samples at all last night... Completely happy with.. You know, blaming a wolf." She sighed heavily. It was a more plausible excuse than a giant wolf in her Preserve. She'd been all over this Preserve for years, hell two nights ago she was monitoring a new batch of pups at the den, noting markings and date of birth. She would have to trap and mark them eventually too.

"Most wolves live in packs, there are loners out there. But not one this size has ever been recorded to my knowledge..." She thought about it, and the more she thought about it, the more Terry's story made more sense. Only trouble was, she'd have to follow the prints, make sure they ended abruptly. That would show them as being plants...

She bent in half, pushed her leg between the two wires and swung through, "Well.." She uprighted and glanced around the heavy brush, "Best thing to do now then is to follow these few tracks, make sure they go no where." She flashed a smile, already feeling a great weight lifted.

How could she have believed even for a moment that a wolf the size of a grown man was running around here?

But what about the torn, gore of Chris Waters? He'd have to be chopped up and puree'd to get this end result.. Not to mention ninety percent of him was missing, gone.. Assumed digested.

Still.. facts spoke louder than assumptions. "Coming or no?" She refused to admit she was scared inside her own preserve. She'd grown up on these few hundred acres, she had spent more time wandering this parcel of land than she ever spent trying to date. She should feel more than safe... She wouldn't let a little nagging troubled thought or two stop her..

 

[poohlive]

Terry followed with great interest.
"Yeah, sure, although, I think there are some rules we need to go over. First, I don't put out on the first date, and second, I do love a woman in uniform."
He laughed at this, and saw the torn up ground below them. A small sigh escaped his lips, just what was he doing? Playing with this woman like this? He didn't know why, maybe it was fun, but perhaps he was just making sure she didn't find out too much.
That would be dangerous, and she looked too pretty to be in any danger.
Although...
he stole a look back at the rehab clinic, wondering if one of those windows held a pair of eyes looking on them.
"All alone," He said, as the trees cut off what was left of civilization, "I've never been in the forest before. You'll have to protect me."

 

[Sweetp4u]

Rhyanna

She quirked her brow yet again and then couldn't contain the laughter any longer. It bubbled over, a light little chuckle as she stepped inside the cool interior of the trees.

"You don't have to worry about me, I don't make a habit out of mauling strangers.." She chuckled again and glanced down at the dirt surrounding her. It was harder here, more compact, it would be hard to follow the tracks in that, but not impossible.

"And I will do my best to protect you.. The den's are on the other side of my land anyway, nothing viscious in here.. Other than a squirrel or two." She moved a few steps forward and knelt down once more. Her eyes could pick up the faint outline of two toes, but further ahead was softer ground and another set, this time both sets were firmly in the ground.

"They stop here.. why?" She moved forward on her hands and knees, careful not to disturb the prints and peeked out at her truck between the branches of the sage brush...

A tingle of awareness went down her spine, but she said nothing about what she seen last night. Instead she got back to her feet and moved slowly in circles, looking for the next set.

"They are large, set in a pattern to mimic a wolf's stance.. A few here and there, but without a tape measure it's hard to tell if they stay true to movement.." She glanced up at Terry then, he looked a little nervous .. maybe it was the woods? Maybe it was her imagination because now he looked totally relaxed. She had to get some more sleep..

A plan came to mind however as she caught a glimpse of more prints moving deeper into the woods.. towards her property.."
"Well, they don't look like they go anywhere.. Just as you thought.. " She gave a small smile. Her intention would be to leave here, head home and wait until tonight before coming back. Terry didn't believe it, logic said it wasn't possible, but the prints needed further investigation.. They just didn't appear planted, course they didn't seem real either with their size.

Curiousity killed the kitten, and she was terrible with curiousity. She never left well enough alone.. "Well I can go home now and have some dinner.. I should call the Sheriff and let him know too. Too bad though, it had interesting possibilities." She moved back towards the trees they stepped through to reach this clearing. She wouldn't mention the prints she seen leading off, best not to worry Terry or anyone else until she trailed them later.

 

[poohlive]

"That was a little anti climactic," He mused, shrugging off the woods and coming back to his little routine inside the clearing. They had barely gone more than a few hundred feet. She was either stupid, or already had thoughts of her own.
"It was a pleasure tracking with you. I hope it was as good for you as it was for me. I never tracked anything before. I'm doing a lot of new things today."
The situation called for a smile, but he seemed too distracted to give her one.
"Turkey sandwiches are still on me if you ever want to come back and chit chat. I don't get much company here, by myself, and the present staff lacks what you might call humanity... I would appreciate something more honest."
There was a small pause, which he tried to say something more, maybe insightful, but he didn't. She shouldn't know, she didn't deserve to. The way things were, she was in trouble already.

 

[Sweetp4u]

Rhy

She felt miserable, she was being sneaky and dishonest and it bothered her. She hadn't done anything really, not what she wanted to do either. She had let him believe she gave up the idea entirely and yes, was very anticlimatic..

"Alright. Lunch sounds good.. Your treat?" She flashed a smile but he didn't seem to notice. He was lost in thought about something, she would have given anything to know why that look was on his face right then..

"You lead the way and this time you protect me... I've never been in a rehab before.." She tried to bring out that sparkle again in his eyes but he flashed a tight smile...

Something was bothering him, something that he didn't want to share obviously.. but why? She waited for him, studying him closely as she followed his lead.

 

[poohlive]

"Yeah?" He took her arm, leading her up to the building, "I guarantee you, the worst turkey sanwiches you'll ever eat. Come on."
Inside, there was some shouting going on in a floor above them. People were walking around, not seeming to notice. After a moment, there was a muffled crash, and the shouting stopped. Terry shook his head, leading the way.
One girl, who constantly scratched at her arms, came up to Terry.
"Come on baby, you got the stuff. I'm good for it... soo good."
Abesntly, she fumbled at his crotch.
"Tina," He pushed her away gently, "Tina. I've got it. No need for that. Here you go."
He took out Rhy's card, and gave it to her. She eyed it keenly, and then ran off, rolling it as she went.
"Acid, that shit does weird things to you. If you ever get a chance.... pass, believe me."
Up ahead, several large common rooms came up, some of them with groups of people sitting around talkng, discussing, crying. One room had several games, pool table, pin pong, although no one was playing. They were either walking around, or aimlessly sitting staring at the walls or out a window.
No one seemed there.
"The happiest place on earth," they entered the cafeteria, most of the people were already done with lunch. A few hefty women with hairnets and ugly light blue dressed stood waiting for the last lingering people to eat their meals.
They had several choices, "Take your pick, it all tastes pretty much the same."
He got himself a sandwich, some mashed potatos, and an apple cobbler looked more like the mashed potatos than the mashed potatos did. He also got a glass of milk.
They didn't pay. This was rehab, you didn't pay for meals, but he told her she was a friend of his coming to visit. She didn't pay either.
"So, Rhy, tell me about yourself," He asked, as he sat down at an empty seat.

 

[Sweetp4u]

Rhyanna

As she walked inside for the first time, the first thing to hit her was the smell of the place. It smelled.. Well like a hospital. An obnoxious stench really.

She tried not to stare at the people as he pulled her through, but it was impossible not to. They all had lost looks, they all looked haunted and frightened. A few were talking to themselves so loudly, she could hear their pleas for more drugs.

This place was depressing! How could it ever help someone heal with this type of environment around them? No wonder Terry looked haunted...

She pulled up short, watching him exchange her card with some poor girl who swiped her nose twice with the back of her hand, begging for a 'fix'. She tried to hide her pity but that too was impossible to cover from anyone who cared to look...

Lunch, thank god! Her mind was over joyed when they reached the lunch room until that is.. she saw the food.

She made a face, but chose a sandwich and carton of milk. She didn't know if this place could possibly get worse than it was already, but she wasn't going to be here long enough to figure that part out.

Sitting down, she looked neither left nor right, but kept her eyes glued to Terry. Best not to stare and cause trouble, nor draw attention to herself...

"Me? Well.." She chuckled nervously, she didn't know what she was supposed to say. What did people really mean by that? Did they really want to know or was it some desperate grasp for conversation? Much like someone asking, "how are you today?" You lie, tell them everything is alright. Why? Because no one gives a fuck really how your day is going. Its a pleasantry, a passing moment not meant to linger over and disect.

"I.. Well I am a park ranger as you know.. A vet as well. Own the land, my grandfather left it to me... " She was floundering here, unsure really want he wanted to know, if he wanted to know. "It's.. It's a preserve for endangered species. Those under the 'fortune 500'.. " She trailed off, her fingertips idly played with a slice of turkey sticking outside the bread.. Did she dare eat it?

 

[poohlive]

In a flash of brilliance, Terry realized that the turkey actually tasted like cardboard that had been used to pick up shit from a dog with worms. It made his heart soar to understand such a bad taste so well. He devoured the food with an intensity though, chewing like a rabid animal. He had finished his meal before she had even touched anything on her plate.
"Yeah, I know. Hi, my name is blank, I like blank, I work at blank, and I collect blank. Thanks for meeting me, hope to see you in the next lifetime. Look, I'm not trying to get into your pants..."
He stopped, eyeing her up and down once,
"Well, at least not yet. I was just curious. You have a look about you, I don't know, like if the whole world were to go to shit, you'd be the one I'd want to help set things back up after the apocalypse. Are you german?"
He pointed a fork at her eyes, that had mashed potatos running down it. How could mashed potatos run down anything... only if they were at one point and time liquid. Funny, he thought the whole purpose of mashed potatos was to mash potatos. Who knew?
"No, cherokee. Right? Sacajawea? Something, I don't know. I don't know much about our nation's sulture. Sorry for raping your grandmothers and taking your land. Well, looks like you got some of it back, at least the forest preserve. Cheers to that."
He held up a warm carton of milk, and downed it as if it were the last drop of liquid on the earth.

 

[Sweetp4u]

Rhyanna

The merriment shown in her eyes, she was laughing at him but fighting hard not to do so.

"Mother was Shoshone. Father was Itallian. And the land was purchased not granted." She chuckled, shook her head once and bit into the stale sandwich. He did amuse her.

It took a lot longer to chew the sandwich than that which would be normal time frame, but she didn't complain. Still she wanted to laugh out loud.

"I do not worry about you trying on my pants, I'm certain they'd be too small for you anyway." She purposely twisted what he had insinuated around to a literal meaning.

"You want the whole sob story of my life, or are you content with the blanks?" She flashed him her pearly whites and took another bite, she could get used to his sarcasm... It was much like her own.

There was a silence for a moment where she chewed and stared at him, and he pretty much did the same.

Swallowing before she choked on the dry meat, she laughed and wiped her lips. "Alright. I went to college, got a nifty degree to heal animals. Raised by my grandfather after my parents died in a car crash. Typical movie material really.. Except there were no drug habits, pimps or nightmares. I had a pretty good life, and my life is still going great. Live on the Preservation because it's home to me. I like solitude and animals. Perfect place to be to get both things... So what about you? Mr. Detective... any misses Dick? parents?" She avoided anything that might be too nosey, like how long was he here for and why was he here, that frankly was a bit too personal... She didn't get personal.

 

[poohlive]

Terry had laughed at her, even given her a hearty wink as she seemed to be opening up to him. He could feel that, and it seemed happy, almost carefree.
It wasn't until she asked about him that he stopped, looking down at his empty plate of crumbs. For a moment, that shine in his eyes, that one spark of life that separated him from all the others in this shattered rehabilitation clinic, had left him.
It was hard to discern Terry from the rest of this place.
His routine had started again.
"I grew up, I fucked up, and I'm here," he said, low, blunt, like a slap across a windswept coastline.
"I have..." He pointed at one of the other rooms, looking at them as if he were trying to seperate one from the other, it was getting difficult.
"I can't make up some lie about where I have to be at the moment. I'm sorry, it was great talking to you. I hope you can come again sometime. There's so few people who have fun in here anymore. Sometimes, it's kinda sad."
He thought, with a small smile that never reached his lips, this was one of those times.

 

[Sweetp4u]

Rhy

Well she had managed to ruin the afternoon with a simple question... and to top it off, he just dismissed her.

She fumbled for a moment, confused mostly but finally she stood up from the table. Finding her voice was a little harder, she really did not want to part ways like this.. But what other choice did she really have?

Besides.. Truth be told, she couldn't afford to be tangled up with someone, even if it was just an unstable friendship.. It hadn't developed but it could have.. Or maybe not.

"Thanks for the lunch Terry, and perhaps we'll see each other soon." She gave a small smile, her eyes darted for a moment at nothing in particular, words were just something that never seemed to come to her when she needed them..

She sighed heavily, mumbled a quick. "I'm sorry." And left before she made any more of an ass out of herself...


Outside in her truck, her fingers gripped the wheel so tightly she felt the numbing sensation start. Again, she shook her head, released the wheel and backed out.

Tonight she would follow those tracks, and not worry what she might have done to offend him any longer. She was torn between anger at herself for her clumsy stumble, and then angry at him for.. Well for whatever it was he did to start all of this in motion..

"Damn men and my luck!" She pulled before her cabin and smiled a little easier. Home. It had a nice ring to it, spoke or felt, home. It was the instant medicine to soothe her wounded pride, squash and push all worries from her mind.. That and she made a vow on her twenty minute drive home that she wouldn't go to the clinic again. Easier that way.

Crawling out of the truck, her first thought was a decent meal and then a quick soak in her hot tub.

"Hill billy hot tub at that." She chuckled a little, in her mind she could see people's reactions to the news of her version of a hot tub. She had a natural hot springs not ten yards out her back door. It did stink now and then, mostly in the winter, but in the spring and summer, it flowed freely and smelled heavenly.

Deciding she would rather eat and bath at the same time, she grabbed a bowl of venison stew, towel and her moccasins. She didn't need any soaps, her objective tonight was to wash away all her scent that she could, it would make it easier for tracking a wolf.

 

[poohlive]

"Who was she?"
Terry was curled up on the couch, his legs held by his arms, staring out at the window to the peaceful green forest that speckled the colorado mountains. He stared out of his routines, hoping, wishing for once that something out there would move, some part would just up and swallow the whole earth.
Something.
"A friend," He spoke solemnly, into his knees, like a child would, if his hand was found in the cookie jar.
"What's her name?"
"Rhy, she's a park ranger."
"Ahhh, she's investigating the animal attack. I saw you out there with her, talking. You must have made an impression on her."
"I must have..." He echoed from far away, demeaning the words.
"Will we be seeing more of her?"
He opened his mouth to answer, closed it, thought a moment, opened it again, and closed it again. After another debate inside his head, he shrugged, as if that were the answer.
"Do you like her?"
"Yeah, I wanna fuck her brains out."
"Terry..."
"What do you want me to say?"
"I want you to tell me the truth."
Terry sighed, gave a final huff, and spoke, "Yes, I like her. She's smart, and witty."
"You are too."
"i was once..."
"You make it sound like you aren't anymore."
Terry's silence exploded inside the room.
"What did you think heroin did to you, Terry?"
"It calmed me down, took away some of the urges."
"Yes, but it nearly killed you."
"I'm alive now, oh thank you so much Doc. Look at me, alive, and singing a fucking song."
"This isn't about drugs..."
Terry touched the paned glass, looking out at the place where Rhy had parked her truck.
"No, it isn't."
"What is it about?"
"It's about the truth."
"And what is the truth, Terry?"
Terry looked out to the police tape, covering the blood stained grass, which, despite being over a thousand feet away, he could see with crystal clarity.
"That's what I'm trying to find out."
After a moment, "I think our time is up."

 

[Sweetp4u]

Rhy

Having washed away as much as her scent as she could, she dressed herself in all black fatigues. As she silently dressed her mind kept going back to Terry and how they parted ways today.

She unpacked her rifle, checked her pouch for darts and set out across her property. The evening was a bit cooler than normal, but all her lawyers of clothing kept her warm enough. The crisp clean air, as Terry pointed out, was.. well pure clean air. She felt invigorated as she made her way towards the western fence.

She had several tree stands in the area she could make use of, even a few smaller lodges she used to observe the animals in their natural habitat. With luck she'd find a good location to watch for this wolf...

She reached the clearing but stopped short of entering. Listening, she had to work a moment to calm back down her heart beat. It wasn't a short hike, but fairly easy with level ground to cover.

Hearing no sign of trespassers, she stepped into the open and moved towards the prints she saw earlier. Hidden between two trees, they moved easterly, a little far for plants to be bothered with.

Kneeling down over the set of four, she took out a tiny measuring tape and took note of their spread. Earlier she had calculated how large this wolf would have to be by it's print depths and made notes of size, stride.. Best estimates she could come up with...

All in all, this beast would be about one fifty to one eighty. One fifty was pushing it, but not impossible.. One eighty was too large, but she had a realism workable estimate. Leg spread was average, nothing strange there, which would help her determine how the prints were made. All technical mumbo jumbo, for now she would just focus on following the tracks.

Moving between the two trees, she pushed a bunch of bushy limbs aside and stared down at the 'walking' prints. She kept low and moved slowly, not wanting to alert anyone that she was there, especially Terry.. She didn't think he would be watching, what did he care what she did in here? But she still felt the need to remain quiet.

She walked forward about ten paces before spying two more tracks.. Front paw, left and right rear.. Again she measured, they were within a half inch of matching those other four.

Now if his theory was correct, why would a criminal stop to consider someone would measure a wolf's print and continue to do so? On the other hand, they would have to look real to cover something up.. But still? Someone would have to plan this murder out carefully, plant prints almost perfectly, then kill Chris..

A lot of effort, more effort really than most criminals would bother with. Too many questions.

She walked forward for another ten-fifteen paces and found only a single print. Ground was harder here.. She unstrapped her rifle from her shoulder and loaded a dart up.

"just incase.." After walking an hour, bent over, following vague tracks she had two things on her mind.. First off her back hurt like holy hell and the second was that these tracks were not planted by a human being. Just didn't seem possible.. The tracks kept moving easterly but moving north east after reaching the creek. In the wet mud around the edge of the stream she had found another front two paw prints. They looked smaller than those back in the clearing, but water could have misshapen them..

"Maybe.." And maybe she was on a ghost chase? She sat down on a large boulder, pulling a wrapped sandwich from her breast pocket. Setting aside the gun as well, she took a bite as she scanned the surrounding area.

Were there any caves in the area? The den's were still a distance away, but some how a stray being welcomed into a tight commune of wolves seemed nearly impossible. There would have been a fight, the Alpha couldn't handle a larger male in his area without fighting.... Yet she'd heard no scuffles.. Not that it wasn't possible, but noise carried around here very easily.

She took a second bite and stared down at the ground, her mind mulling over what she'd seen.. Now what would be her next step?

 

[poohlive]

There was only the slightest rustle, like a leaf falling on other leaves, that seemed to make a dried whisper on the wind, but was drowned out by the other noises that the forst made.
No leaf fell.
The large bulky frame took a single sturdy step, holding out as a wet noise shifted at the ground.
For a moment, he picked up a wild array of sense, something like different images blasting in his head. He searched through them, sifted them out like some panhandler, the scents being ignored... a chipmunk, pine needles, burlap, rubber, human stench, and then it came to him.
Musty, like a moth eaten blanket, dirt wrapped in with the smell. It was him, the smell unmistakable.
He rushed into the woods, almost flying. His feet, large and padded, never stepped on the ground, more like glided over it, only touching from time to time, to reassure himself that he wouldn't end up flying off the face of the earth.
In no time, another smell matched up to the trail, one was his own, and he dismissed it regularly, and the other was her...
She followed him, didn't she?
A twinge of jealousy rose within him, and hatred too. She had lied to him, pushed him away, and gone on herself. He wanted to tear her throat out, watchin the blood flow...
Shaking his head, the mental image washed away. She couldn't be worried about now. He had something more important to attend to.
The scent, both of them, stopped at a creek. He paused, smelling her out there, just beyond the bushes. For a moment, he wanted to go to her, make sure she was ok...
THen, cut her throat out.
He chose neither of these, but made his way softly around her, and picked up the scent on the other side.
It was faint now, almost nonexistant, the creek had washed away most of it. Now, it was just a faint trail of odor. He paused every few feet, moving around a bush or side of a tree, keeping the trail as fresh as he could.
Then, it came right up to him.
A small cave, recently dug out of the earth, large enough for even a human to use, alongside the creek. The smell came on strong now, and he could see a single wolf print moving into the cave.
A footprint moved out.
Growling deep in his throat, he used his paw to scratch the print away from the mud, as if it were a disgust to him.
Three feet were holding his weight, as one scratched out the human footprint, but as he awkwardly tried to balance himself, something large slammed into his side.
Before he could think, he was already growling with ferocity, biting into the chunk of flesh to his right.
He heard a loud series of barks, and then a whinny.
Wolves, a pack. They had smelled him, coming into their territory. Almost absent mindedly he cursed himself, not bothering to smell their landmarks. He had wandered in, so determined to see...
Another one went for him. He cried out loud, something that sounded so human for a moment even he was surprised.
He made attempts to bite them, chomping on empty air, and the moment the shewolf that had him pinned let up, he ran off without a moment's hesitation.
He was outnumbered... he had to regroup.
Faintly, he could smell something, like lavender.
He growled again.

 

[Sweetp4u]

Rhyanna

She tossed the remains of her sandwich down, hoisted her rifle and set off again.

She had circled the creek, looking both in and around for more prints but of course, there were none.

"Figures." She muttered to herself before hoping over a few stones to the other side of the creek. Again, she searched once more. Too many freaking pine needles and debris from all the plant life to find a single spot.

Well.. he was heading easterly, she'll continue on that route for a little ways. What else could she do? It was growing darker by the minute, even knowing where she was, she had a thirty minute hike home..

That's when the sounds came to her... The pack was attacking something.

A shiver of fear danced up her spine, the taste of it tangible in her mouth. She wasn't protected by much really, just a tranq. gun and two layers of clothing.. Thin clothing.

She heard the growls, the barking, snapping of jaws and a yelp. Not knowing what else to do, she put her rifle butt against her thigh, prepared to fire one of the two shots. It would make a loud noise, about it though.

But did she dare? Drawing attention to herself would be stupid, completely stupid. She felt a hopelessness come over her, a choice to be made here. Interfering with nature too was unwise.. Upsetting the balance of things.. like a weaker wolf being taken out.. No, she had to go, and quickly.

One had to attacked Chris, she did not want to be next!

She began to jog, dodging branches and bush, heading south. She ran softly as possible for a good five minutes, barely slowed down to hear a rustle of something running behind her.

That was all it took for the fear to grip her entirely. They had heard her, and thought perhaps she was food? Her heart slammed in her throat as she tried to unscramble her brain.

"Oh god!" panting, she tried to remember where the nearest treestand was located, but failed.. She was losing her bearings as well, her sight limited too greatly at night..

It was getting closer!

Two trees ahead, she ran between them and kept going.. No low branches to climb into!

Damn.

Double damn!

She had a stitch in her side, fear eating at her, if she relaxed too much she was certain she might have an accident in her own pants.. How freakin' degrading would that be?

She had to stand her ground.. She had to squash her fears and turn to face whatever was coming behind her.. She had a shot ready, but it was the last loaded..

She whirled around as she passed a cropse of trees and bush. heart hammering loudly in her head, she felt light headed and dizzy.. "Don't faint!" She ordered herself as she pressed her back against a big tree.

She could hear the brush rustling, it was within twenty or so feet of her... Her held her breath, hoping it would pass by, her numb fingers seemed too frozen with fright to even raise the rifle.. thats when she heard the faint growl..

Her ears rang so loudly, she couldn't even pinpoint the general direction it was coming from..

Now what?

Her lips moved, her tongue nervously darting out to wet their surface, trying to think of her next course of action..

Just what in the hell was she going to do?!