HUNTER'S TALE

16.

No, ya don't know fully how much I love ya,he thought. You'd probably be afraid to see the things I'd for ya, just to make ya smile, just to make ya feel good. These thoughts were swirling and lurking inside John's head as he slowly fell asleep. Alas, soon these thoughts would come in life. That night without his knowledge, he was manifesting his near future.

Soon the time came and John left with his team to the North. Along with captain Henry, who was waiting for them in the frontiers lodge a new man came, that Henry introduced as their guide through Missouri. Not that the rest did not know the paths, but things were different, when the snow falls and covers everything. That man had a son, a halfbreed as many called him, because he was native. John didn't pay attention to them. He was there to do his job and finish with all this, take the money and go home. Back to his wife, to his sons. The thought of them made him smile even in the rough weather of North. Frank many times teased him for his silly face, but he didn't mind. It's been more than a month, since he left home and they were heading towards the shores of Missouri. One day they heard a man screaming from the distance, probably attacked by some animal. John and Frank ran with the rest of the trappers to see the new guide, Glass torned apart from a bear. The man was lucky he managed to kill the bear first, but what followed made John to want to choke the whole team. Glass was nearly dead, his throat was split in half and he was barely alive. Captain Henry, though, took care of his wounds and decided that carrying Glass would delay the whole team. They needed to go back to the lodges and ask for help. Most of men of course didn't even consider to stay with Glass. One blaming this or the other all of them found some excuse to leave. So John was left alone with a breathing corpse and his son. Captain Henry of course promised to pay Fitzgerald pretty heavily for this, but no matter the money he was pissed as fuck with everyone. The woods were filled with dangerous animals and bloodthirsty Ree, who would chop their heads and boil them. God, Glass would be his end and he was ordered to stay behind to look after a corpse, for fucks sake. One day, when he stopped by some trees and Glass's son went to get some water by the creek, John was left behind with Glass. "How ya holding up, Glass?" John sighed, staring into the fire. Glass was tight up on a carrier and barely able to blink. It's been three days and he's still alive. "I can help ya, ya know. End ya suffering," he suggested, standing up walking close to his freezing body. It was a matter of hours anyway, but if he stays an hour long he'd probably die with him. "Ya don't hav..." he couldn't finish his sentence and he heard horses from the distance. John froze and crawled to edge of the cliff. When he looked down his blood froze. A team of fifteen Ree was resting by the riverside. Slowly without making any sound he crawled back to Glass. "For fucks sakes, Glass. There are Ree by the river. And I have a wife and two sons waiting for me. They're bloody waiting for me, I can't die here," he whispered to his side. "I promised, I'll take care of ya boy, just let me finish ya now so we can run away. They're bloody fifteen we'll never make it," John begged. "Glass, please. Ya only have to blink." he says. Glass was staring into his eyes and nodded. John felt relief and rush at the same time. He put a cloth on Glass's eyes and close his mouth and nose with his palm. The man didn't show resistance, even when the oxygen left his lungs. But soon as Glass was dead Fitzgerald felt a strong kick on his back, that sent him some feet away. Glass's son Hawk came back and saw them. He was howling screaming to Fitzgerald. The boy had no gun and everything happened so fast. John grabbed his dagger and then silence. Everything was silent again. He looked around in terror and vanished away, running. He was running for days and nights. Without an end until he made it back to the captain's lodge. The man saw him, that he was in a bad state. He didn't speak, he just said that Ree attacked them and he manage to escape. Well, nobody could blame him for that and captain paid him generously. Fitzgerald took his money and the only thing that motivated him to go on that moment, was his family. They're waiting for him and he wasn't sure, how he'd be able to look at them in the eyes. He came earlier this time. On the second month he was home and Mary was shocked, when she saw his horse, coming from the long distance. He wasn't in gallop, he was slowly walking.

She was just with both boys and pack of dogs in the garden. Both Daniel and Benjamin running around. Mary started to run that moment, seeing John. She was scared, he came home too soon. "John!" She called and rushed towards the horse.

He stopped by the gate and unmounted his horse. When she stormed into his arms, he wanted to cry like a little boy. Like that time when he came back to from the hunting weekend with his father and he got hurt bad on his leg. He ran into his mother's arms and cried. But then he was a little boy and now he's a man, that's his wife and he doesn't need to scare her. He held her tight without saying a word. He inhaled her essence and burried his face, hiding himself from the world in her wild mane.

"Are you hurt? John,love, what happened? Are you alright?" Mary held him tight, then quickly started to check on him. He seemed to be fine, she didn't see any wound. He looked very tired, exhausted and troubled. She cupped his face and kissed him all over his wrinkled forehead. "My love.... talk to me," she whispered.

"I'm alright," he managed to spell out. "I ain't hurt," he touched her soft cheek and gave her a tired smile. Seeing him from the distance, his boys ran to him as well. Instantly he picked them up both and held them tightly. He closed his eyes for a moment and even being a godless man, he thanked the God for allowing him to see them again.

"Dada!" Both boys were chuckling and patting his face. Mary took the horse to the stable and then joined them inside the house. "John, are you sure, you're alright?" She quickly started to prepare something for him to eat. She put the soup to warm it above the fire and sat next to him by the table. He was holding boys and felt lost in his mind. She took his hand to her and smiled, when he rose his eyes on her. "We missed you.

He was barely holding up himself that moment. Then he looked down, he kissed her soft hand again and again. Mary saw something like completely different in him. John was always confident and proud, even in the hardest times. Now he came back like a beaten dog, who was haunted by ghosts. "I missed ya too," he said. That night he ate her soup with content. It felt like balsam for his insides. After the dinner he went to wash himself and once he came back to the room, he found Mary with the boys on their bed. Once she saw him, she took Benji on her hands to get them back on their beds, since they fell asleep, but he stopped her. "No, let them sleep with us tonight," John said. Of course she found that odd, since he was the first, who started to complain about the boys being constantly on their bed and that they will get used to that.

"Alright," she whispered. Sitting on the bed, she observed him as he took off his breeches and laid down on the bed. Daniel and Benjamin were laying in between them. Mary had so many questions, but she decided to give John his time. He seemed to be extremely exhausted and not in the mood to talk. She only stretched her arm and caressed his bearded cheek. "Your beard grew thick," she smiled. "It suits you. Why you always let me to trim you?"

"Cus it makes ya happy," he answered calmly, looking at the boys. His voice lacking the nerve and the cheekiness that always carries. Now he spoke with such calmness, that almost sounded that he'd break in any moment. "Ya look happy, when I say yes. I don't even look in the mirror afterwards. I don't care, how it looks as long as ya happy. Is just hair.."

"I'm happy now. I'm happy, you're home, John," Mary spoke quietly, looking at his face in the dim light of the room.

"Sleep, luv," he murmured, looking at his boys sleeping then rolled his eyes on her. "Sleep, I'm here," he whispered.