Undaunted

Fear

It was now a little over a week since the circus had been in town. Most people hadn't taken Liepold's request to look for the escaped horse seriously and attempts dwindled. While that had eased some of the pressure, more and more unusual tracks were being found around the edge and entering the forest. We still weren't quite out of the frying pan yet.

Neither of my parents have noticed anything odd and haven't objected to me disappearing for most of the light hours of the day. It was late summer and they just thought I've enjoying my freedom from school while it lasted, which is just fine with me.

I made my way down the hill and followed the stream. Things had been quiet and Leona had protested less and less to remaining in the overhang, so I wasn't worried.

That changed quickly.

I started talking before I came to the small crack that served as the entrance. "Hey, Leona, maybe we could go back to the field if you want. It's far enough that I doubt anyone has found it." When I rounded the corner, I stopped cold. It felt like someone had dragged an ice cube up my spine or dragged their nails down a chalkboard.

Leona was gone.

I backed up. The stream kept going to my right, but it flowed into a opening in the rock and went deeper underground. There was no way she could have went that way. That left the entire forest. I had no possible way of knowing where she was.

"This can't be happening," I groaned, sprinting off upstream. I checked the flowered glade first, but saw no sign of her. I visited all of the other clearings I'd shown her, but they were empty as well.

"She wouldn't have jumped the gorge, would she?" I fretted aloud. I had no way of knowing that, not unless I magically grew wings. There was no way I would be able to cross.

Shoving down the urge to cry out, I raced through the woods, heading directly for the cabins. I hoped she hadn't gone off that way. If somebody saw her, anything could happen. She could end up right back where she started or somewhere else we hadn't even thought of.

I didn't really suspect most of my neighbors. A lot of them were either younger folks who were out here for work or older couples who had wanted a quiet place to relax. However, there were a few shady faces that could in theory do something like this. One in particular came to mind. I didn't really know him well, but he was a single older fellow who had a serious interest in hunting. He constantly passed through Avery with something in the bed of his truck or strapped to the hood. He was a good place to start.

His property was farther back than most of the other houses, nestled in some of the deeper forest where coyotes could be heard and deer frequented. I banged my knee on a stump. Biting my lip, I ignored the pain and trudged on.

The brush grew thicker, the stickers tearing at my jeans and shoes. I tried to stay away from this area if I could help it, mostly because it was creepy as all get out. It reminded me of all those horror movies my parents used to watch and I'd sneak back outside and hide behind the couch to catch a glimpse of. Not very pleasant memories.

Out of the corner of my eye, I caught a flash of movement. I whipped my head to look, but it was gone as fast as it had appeared. Heading in the same direction, I moved as silently as I could over the uneven ground. I kept catching glimpses of whatever was running ahead of me, but I could never get a good look. It was always disappearing behind trees or changing directions.

I trailed it for a solid minute or so when I realised it was following something as well. The slick leaves made it hard to pick out the tracks, but it was obvious that something had crashed through here before us. My heart flipped, and while I hoped it was Leona, I didn't want it to be at the same time.

I had to stop abruptly and lunged behind a tree. I'd nearly crashed into the figure. I could see who it was now. It was the landowner, holding a beat up shotgun and he had a large bandoleer of shells strapped to his chest. If I hadn't caught myself in time, there was a good chance I would have ended up with one very large sleeping pill that I couldn't wake up from.

The old man looked around listened, so I decided to listen with him. I heard snapping twigs and something dragging over the earth like a snake. The man turned to his right and inched forward, the nose of his shotgun held high and waving in front of him. His eyes were set with determination.

Please don't be Leona, I silently prayed, carefully following behind.

The underbrush and low branches made it near impossible to see from where I was, so I still couldn't quite see what the old man was searching for. He squatted behind a tall rock and propped his gun on top, his squinty eyes poking out above the gray face.

I pulled out from behind the trees in time to get a glimpse of what the man was aiming at. He had a clear shot and was aiming at a brown and white shape. It felt like someone had hit me in the stomach with a sledgehammer, but I shouted, "Run, Leona!"

The old man freaked, his hand squeezing the trigger. It exploded with a puff of smoke, spraying shot everywhere. Some of it peppered the trees and brush, but the rest hit the mark. I heard a shrill scream of pain.

I didn't have time to check on whatever was hit, because the old man had turned around and was aiming at me. I bolted, his next shot missing me by a few feet. I heard him fumbling to reload, but by the time he finished putting two more shells in, I was long gone.

I skirted the clearing. I could hear someone sobbing and crashing around. "Leona?" I called. I heard a choked sob and the crashing stopped. It drew closer and she walked out from behind a tree. She was biting her lip and her eyes were clouded with tears. I didn't see anything wrong until I saw a blossom of red on her side. "Leona, what happened?" I asked gently.

She sniffed. "There were people just outside the overhang, and I recognised some of the voices from the circus. So I ran before they trapped me in there."

"But how did you make it out if they were blocking the path?"

"People can do crazy things when it's fight or flight." She winced and pressed her hand tighter against the wound. "So now what? We can't go back."

I pointed at her hands. "Right now, we have to take care of that injury."

"How are we supposed to do that?"

"I know somewhere we could go."