Nevada Confidential

Endless Sands

"Don't. Move," Simon said in a low, steady voice. Unlike Brinley, he wasn't trembling.

Brinley wanted to ask him what they were going to do, but her mouth was dry. She couldn't move it, just like she couldn't move any other part of her. Adrenaline had numbed her body, and she found herself stuck, watching the bear in terror.

It didn't seem to care about their presence, if it noticed them at all. Brinley looked over at Simon, who knelt motionless beside her, his eyes glued to the bear. She wished that she could appear as calm as he did in moments like this.

Brinley had never seen a bear before. She couldn't remember much about them, either. Only a few things, such as 'Grizzlies are the ones to worry about; they'll attack, but Black bears usually run away'. Well, that was good. Brinley tried to feel relief, but even though she told herself that everything was fine, that the bear wouldn't hurt them, she couldn't stop the rapid rush of blood through her heart that made it beat abnormally fast.

"We're just going to wait for it to pass on," Simon murmured. His voice was so quiet that Brinley was surprised that she had heard it. It sounded only like something that had been carried along by the wind, and yet the words made sense to her.

Yes. Just wait. Don't move. She repeated the words to herself, because she knew that if she remembered them, she would stay still and not do something stupid. She couldn't trust herself when she was afraid. She was more action than intelligence. While Simon would sit back and consider the best possible route to solve a problem, she would just jump into it and face it head-on.

The bear lifted its nose, as if it had caught a wisp of a new scent. It snorted, and then took a few hesitant steps toward the siblings where they knelt on the forest floor. Brinley wanted to look over at Simon to see what she should do next, but she was afraid to move. She didn't want to turn her head and anger the bear.

Why was it approaching? Shouldn't it have been afraid of them? Brinley clenched her teeth together so she wouldn't scream. The bear was ten yards away. Then five.

Brinley heard Simon take in a shaky breath beside her, and that was when she was sure that the sitting still plan had not worked.

Simon suddenly got to his feet, and put his arms above his head. "Get out of here!" he shouted in a loud, powerful voice. "Shoo! Go away!"

The bear winced at the noise, walked backward a few steps, and then crashed through the brush in the opposite direction. It was gone. Brinley breathed out, relief flooding through her. She had never been that scared in her life, she was sure of it. She turned to Simon, and he put his arms around her. She wanted to laugh and cry at the same time. Instead, she hugged Simon tightly, letting the adrenaline that flooded her senses melt away. She was safe. Everything was okay.

"Why didn't you scare it away when we first saw it?" Brinley asked once Simon had released her.

"That decision was the last resort," Simon explained as they continued walking. Brinley wanted to take another break after that scare, but she followed behind him and listened.

"You never know how bears are going to react once they know you're there. It's better to stay low and see if they move on by themselves," Simon finished.

"Why did it approach us, anyway? Instead of being scared away?"

Simon shrugged. "I don't know for sure, but I read once that young adult bears get curious and approach things that scare them to experiment with dominance."

"Oh."

Simon grinned. "But hey, it's over now, and no harm done. We'll have a story to tell people, right?"