Drea

Chapter seven: Bear

Bright yellow eyes lock with mine. I come to a complete halt and stare right into their glowing depths. Its pupils dilate with intensity as I my eyes roam over its feathers. Brown and white blended perfectly like coffee and cream. It's wings clinging  to it's body like a protective cape. It's intense stare bores down on me and I struggle to not avert my eyes.
I never liked owls, I hated how they always reminded me of my teacher I had in sixth grade.
Mr Harvey always had a scowl that seemed to be permanently etched into his face. Every time I did something wrong his condescending stare would rain down on me.
I wrinkle my nose at the memory as I watch the permanent look of anger on the owls face.
'What a shame.' I think as I look at its beautiful feathers, 'If its eyebrows weren't on that awful angle it would look really pretty.'

I carry on musing to myself until my thoughts are interrupted by the sound of loud grunts.
Startled, the owl spreads it's long wings in wide arches and disappears behind the branches of the spruce tree it was perched on.
I step around the tree to my right, trying to locate the grunting sounds. My breath catches in my throat and I throw myself back behind the tree.
No more than eighty metres away from where I'm standing is a giant brown bear, it's fur thick and heavy with its new winter coat.
I can barely breath and yet my heart jack hammers in my chest.
On all the hunting trips I've ever been on I have never once in my life encountered a bear. Don't get me wrong, I've always wanted to, I mean come on, that's a whole lot of meat.
I mentally go back in time and punch the past me in the face. 'Why did I not bring Mackenzie!!!!' I scream at myself in turmoil. I can't kill a bear with a 9 millimetre!
I pull the pistol out from its holster anyway, for at least a sense of security if nothing else.
I try to breath and not panic as I peer around the edge of the tree. It has moved a few more metres back, but that doesn't calm my heart in the least. 'I can either run in the opposite direction that the bears in and most likely die, or I can stay put and hope it passes me by without any trouble.
Just as I decide to go with the second option it's head whips around and it's eyes lock on me. My fingers tremble as I flick the safety off.
It felt like a lifetime, but can't have been more than half a second before it started running toward me at full speed. I pull the trigger and fire one of the six bullets in the clip in the general direction of the bear before turning and running like my life depends on it....... Which it does......
The bullet obviously missed because I can hear the bears heavy paws getting louder as it advances toward me. I swerve to the right and run toward the river I know to be around here somewhere.
My chest  heaves with the strain of running at this pace and Im not even running as fast as I need to be. My back pack straps strain on my shoulders and my legs threaten to cramp from running through thick snow.
I make a quick and painful decision to ditch my backpack. It's to heavy to run with and if I keep it I will have no chance at making it to the river. If it's your life or your backpack, it's a pretty obvious choice. I shrug off the bag and let it thump to the snow behind me. It's a huge relief off my shoulders and my pace quickens considerably.
The bear gains on me and is no more than thirty metres away.
A surge of hope and adrenaline spikes my bloodstream as I spot the thin, glazed ice of the river.
I pump my arms as I sprint, still clutching the pistol in a sweaty grip.
I practically glide over the ice onto the opposite bank, miraculously without slipping. I plant my feet deep into the snow and aim at the bear. It steps onto the ice and tiny cracking noises echo in my ears. I takes another careful step, but the ice doesn't break.
I swallow down the bile that rises in my throat as I aim the pistol at its head. My finger freezes just before I pull the trigger and I point the gun at the ice under the bear instead. I pull the trigger and five loud bangs ring out as the ice shatters and the bears splashes into the sub-zero water of Alaska.
It flails around in confusion for a second before focussing back on its target. Me.
I curse as I realise I just used the last five bullets in the clip. I start to turn and run, but I'm halted by the blasting sound of a rifle.
I stare in shock at the now still bear. It's motionless body slumped half in the water half out. Blood leaks from the bullet wound in its skull and drips like a leaking faucet into a deep red puddle on the snow.
I swivel around still in shock and to my complete surprise see the oh so familiar face of Thane.