Demons in the Jungle

Chapter 9

  I opened my eyes to the sound of something moving. It took me several seconds to remember where I was, and what I was looking at. My little lean-to had held up surprisingly well, despite a small rainstorm in the middle of the night that had exposed holes in the leafy roof. It had woke me up for a couple of hours, but I still managed to get a better night's sleep than I had ever thought possible in this place. Now the sun was up, peeking through the shelter to shine in my eyes, and there was something outside.

I moved slowly. The kukri was still in my hand, clutched there when I'd fallen asleep earlier, frightened by the sound of a roaring I couldn't identify somewhere in the jungle. I kept the knife at the ready as I gathered up my bow and arrows and slowly crept toward the door, and then carefully nudged it until it fell forward. Then I crawled out, peeking my head out first and getting a look around.

It made a noise like a harsh, throaty cat hiss, half-hidden in the trees not far from the shelter. I saw its spots first, and for an instant, my heart froze. Another jaguar? I squinted to see closer, and realized it couldn't be. It was too small. The sounds it made, too high-pitched, too much like an actual house cat. It was an ocelot, and it had grabbed the deer carcass I'd left outside, dragging it into the bushes to eat.

Oh, dammit. Tommy, you stupid son of a bitch. How could I have been so careless? I should have taken the deer deeper into the jungle and dropped it off, well away from my shelter. But no. Deciding I could probably eat some more in the morning, I had instead left it right outside the shelter door. Stupid, stupid, stupid. Fucking idiotic, to be honest.

I moved as slowly as I possibly could, keeping low and trying to put the bushes between me and the big cat. I could only glimpse it here and there, crouched and ripping away at the deer's flesh casually. I side-stepped, keeping my eyes on it, listening for any sound of aggression or sudden movement. I was perhaps twenty feet away when very suddenly, the ocelot raised its head, locked eyes with mine, and stood up straight.

I froze. I didn't know what to do. Like the jaguar, I assumed he would chase me if I ran, but for now, he was only watching me, protecting the food that now belonged to him. "Easy, buddy." I whispered under my breath, taking slow steps backward, not taking my eyes off the cat. "I don't wanna hurt you. You can keep all that meat. Let's just...keep everything copacetic, huh?"

The ocelot let out a low growl, taking a single step forward. I tightened my grip on the kukri, ready to slash if he moved for me. But he didn't; he stayed where he was, eyes on mine, giving more threatening growls. I kept stepping back, and just before he fell out of sight, I saw him turn his head, returning to the meal and flicking his tail as he went.

I sighed with relief, sheathing the knife and moving on through the jungle. I climbed another tree to get my bearings, lamenting the fact that I'd had to abandon the shelter. I'd wanted to dismantle it and use another few branches for arrows. I'd also wanted to cook up some more deer meat. But, there had been no choice. I had to move on. I reached the top of the tree and peered around, quickly finding the high hill where Charlie had made camp. That was where I needed to go. I descended the tree quickly, setting out to the northwest. I had a long way to go.

The jungle had consumed me again. All I could hear were insects and amphibians calling to one another, my own footsteps crunching through the dense leaves. I was constantly listening, trying to hear something unusual in the mix, determined to keep the predators away. I wasn't going to let this jungle take me down. I couldn't. For my sake, for Deb's sake, I couldn't let it get the better of me.

My mind went back to one of the last few nights I'd spent with my friends. We were in a club in Mexico, something just a little off the beaten path. We were all very drunk and feeling restless, so of course, trouble had started. And, as trouble often did, it started with Jay.