The sun was rising, casting a strong golden light on the tree tops, when Kayliff and Ray approached the campsite. It was already hot and some cloud was gathering in the west. Amy woke when she heard the men landing. She had eventually fallen asleep on the bare ground, while crying. She looked a wreck and stood up as the men approached her. She began gesturing wildly and attempted to put her recent experience into words but the men understood nothing except her grief. At least here, both men were thinking to themselves, was an honest reaction to what they knew had happened.
Amy was swaying as though she were going to pass out so Kayliff went right up to her and put his arms around her, supporting her physically but also to convey his compassion. Ray took a cooking pot and brought fresh water to her and she drank greedily, spilling most of it onto herself.
Amy had never met either of the men before. Kayliff said, "We work with Michael. I'm Kayliff and this is Ray. Are you the guide?"
"Yes, I am," Amy managed to speak fairly clearly, "I'm Amy."
Before Amy could say anything else, Kayliff said, "We heard what happened from Phillip and Lisa, but we don't know any details. Can you take us to the bodies?"
Amy nodded affirmatively and then was speaking incoherently again, still crying, so Kayliff said, "Just take us there." Amy continued muttering and wailing quietly and took them to the place where Michael's remains were. Nearly all the flesh had been consumed and only scattered bones and shreds of clothing remained. Not only had the bear returned but the corpse was visited by other meat eaters as well. It was horrible, the most horrible thing Amy had ever witnessed, and she sunk down wailing. Kayliff and Ray had not been expecting anything like this. Ray bent over vomiting and Kayliff had to brace himself against a tree.
"This was Michael," Amy whispered and then she clasped her hands with her face down and prayed. Then she said, "There's nothing left of Colleen. Follow me," and she led them to the place where Colleen and Lisa had been fishing and which was also the place where Colleen had been seen last.
As Amy continued speaking incoherently from grief, Kayliff put his finger vertically across his lips and very gently uttered "Shhhhh, no need to speak now, we must eat first and rest." Ray took her hand and they followed Kayliff to the ring of stones where they would make a small fire and have some of the supplies the men brought. "You sit here, while we prepare what needs. Get yourself together. Your grief, same as ours, will be with us for a long time but you must organize your thought and tell us what happened."
After they ate in silence and were drinking black coffee, Amy finally spoke, nearly normally, "I can think now and speak so you will know what I know. I was not present at either death. Michael died during our first night at this site. I found him some distance from his tent. He must have got up at night and gone outside to relieve himself and was attacked by a mean prowling bear. I heard nothing and neither did any of the others. I didn't know what to do, as his body was so maimed already, but there was still enough of him to know it was definitely Michael. Phillip and Lisa did not want his remains brought to the campsite for fear of the bear coming back. Seemed to make sense. They wanted to leave right away and I started to get all the stuff ready to go. Lisa and Colleen went to where I showed you to fish while I was busy with Phillip shadowing and micromanaging me. It was evident to me from Phillip's behaviour that he hated Michael and he may have even been glad to see him gone, but I was horrified that Michael's wife, Lisa, seemed that she didn't care at all. Colleen never spoke and was a ghost of a being, not really with us at all. When I saw her after Lisa had pulled her from the water, I checked her heart and breathing because I am trained in first aid. Lisa said she had fallen into the water when a big fish grabbed her line and she slipped and hit her head on the rock but there is no blood on the rock where she stood fishing, there was some blood where her body lay on the shore but not anymore. Then the massive bear stormed us and we managed to escape. Phillip and Lisa got away in a canoe and I swam as far out as I could. But what happened to Colleen, I don't know. The bear had gone right up to her and then it started to follow me in the water but stopped after some time and much later after the bear was gone and I got back to where Colleen had been, she was totally gone, not a sign left of her. I was certain she was dead. She had no pulse or heartbeat and she was not breathing."
