Wild Rider (Dragon Castaway Book 1) [Complete] {2018 Wattys Longlist}

Chapter 1

"Shit, there goes my whole day"

Jake McCall stood on the grassy crest of a steep hill, cursing his luck as he watched dark storm clouds gathering on the horizon. He had always loved being deep in the Texas hill country and had thought that bow hunting some hog would get his mind off his recent issues. Instead, it had now only served to bring him more immediate problems. 

Running his fingers through his shoulder length black hair, Jake huffed in anger at his failed venture as he gathered up his gear and headed down the opposite slope. He had walked for miles into the wilderness and his car was quite some distance away. It would take him a good few hours to reach and he was sure that with his luck, it would be a complete downpour by the time he managed to get out of the area.

Reaching the edge of a ridge Jake stopped for a moment and took drink out of his canteen, looking at the ground he froze suddenly as he recognized something on the game trail that he'd been following.

Hog tracks were clearly visible in the soft dirt, and they were big, real big. Moving closer he carefully examined them, then let out a whoop of glee.

"Yes! They're fresh, this thing had to have come this way recently" Jake thought his spirits lifting at the prospect. Maybe this trip hadn't been a waste of his time after all.

Looking back to the storm clouds he hesitated as he saw that they were still ominously gathering in the distance, creating a single large bank of near blackness in the sky.

"Still, they don't seem to be moving quickly, perhaps they won't come this way for a while" Jake thought as he weighed his options. Looking at the tracks again he made up his mind.

"Screw it, no risk no reward, if this goes completely sideways I'm sure it would be no trouble to just leave my stupid ass out here for the coyotes anyway"

Turning back around he took off at a full sprint in pursuit of his newly acquired quarry, the thrill of the hunt causing his blood to sing out in excitement.

Quickly, yet quietly, Jake followed the trail over a set of low ridges and felt the excitement rise in his chest as he observed the tracks getting fresher all the time. Even better, Jake could tell from the increasing number of tracks that there was now more than one hog that he was stalking. He grinned at the prospect of being able to go home with multiple large kills rather than having to hump it out of the place empty handed as he had believed would be the case earlier.

As Jake neared the top of a hill covered in dense brush and tall grass he slowed down and closed his eyes, listening intently for any sign of any nearby activity. He was rewarded a moment later with a series of distinctive snorts and grunts coming from the next valley over.

"Got you" he thought as he unslung his bow from his back and examined it, wincing at the raw memories as he did so. It had been a gift from his mother, passed through her family for who knew how long. Re-curved and sinew backed with fine snake skin, it was decorated with traditional Comanche ornamentation. Not to mention incredible at generating a lot of power off a very short pull.