The sun went under the ridge and the shadows poured down Rendezvous Bowl, spilling over the snowcovered upper runs and lapping across the Ski Village, crossing the Moose-Wilson Road and fording the Snake River, on their unstoppable blue march to the Gros Ventre Range.
Gris barked. They heard the crunch of snowshoes and leapt up. Ginger had a big chef's knife handy. Mary peered out the window.
"It's Slim," she said. "Something's wrong."
He came in the door, stiff-legged, and then he collapsed. Mary fell to her knees and gathered him in. He was crying, as if something inside him was being wrung and twisted, forcing the tears out.
He tried to talk, but started coughing, so she patted his back, between his shoulderblades, and held him hard against her.
"My God, what is it?" Ginger said, and knelt beside them. Gris was whining and licking her ear, then Slim's, then hers again.
"Gin— could you settle Gris down? Or put him out."
Claws scrabbled on the plywood and the door squeaked.
"They even killed my cat," he said, in a choked voice.
"What? Who?"
"They took my car. They went to my place and tore it up. And they killed that poor old sick cat. Jesus Christ!"
He coughed again, as if trying to expel the dark air, the knowing.
"Gin? Get some water and a washcloth."
She loosed her arms and wrung out the cloth, then drew it across his face, slowly, and around the back of his neck, murmuring. His breathing evened out. Then he took the cloth and scrubbed his face and his hands.
"I buried him in the flower bed. Ground's still frozen in the shade. Had to use an ax to chop a hole. They tore my place to shreds. He was up against the wall. Old Kitty-Man. He must've come out when they opened the door, and they kicked him. Broke his neck. Jesus Christ. Who would do that?"
"How did you get out here?" Ginger said.
"What?"
"If your car was gone?"
"Oh— rode my bike. With my webs in my pack. Didn't really need 'em— the snow's pretty crusty. I just—" He started to tear up again, and turned away.
Outside, Gris started to bark.
YOU ARE READING
THE FERAL STRUT
Mystery / ThrillerEscaping her trailer-trash background for a summer job as a forest ranger in Wyoming, Mary Browne deals with various hazards, natural and human. But when she moves to Jackson Hole, and starts playing with her band, The Feral Sluts, she steps unwit...
