The Vagrant Shadow

Chapter 4

Thoughts inside my head were dull and vacant. Nothing really seemed to perk my interest, as my tires sped around tight corners. I honestly had no idea where I was going. No one had told me how to get to town, and judging by my luck I was sure to get lost. I stopped at a four-way intersection and sped my way across the street once I saw it was clear. I kept glancing around searching for any means of familiar routes. I sighed to myself and looked around, when I noticed that the Mustang had an onboard GPS system. I switched it on and typed in my destination. I rolled down my window and let my arm hang as I controlled the steering with my right hand. As I rounded another corner, there eerie silence that haunted my thoughts was now replaced by an eerie howl that sounded painfully close. I pulled off to the side and turned off my car as I listened to the howl. It was the most magnificent, yet ominous thing I have ever heard. Wisconsin was only known for their cows, cheese, and beer, so I never heard anything as majestically beautiful as this howl. Sitting the driver’s seat, a sharp shiver went down my spine. Something inside of me felt misplaced, like the wolf wasn’t howling out of loneliness, but out of pain. I got out of my car and headed into the forest. Not far from where I entered, could I hear whining coming from a large black wolf that was caught in a bear trap. My heart leapt to my throat as I could feel my blood run cold. Golden eyes pierced my soul, as I could feel cold blood rush to my feet. I slowly made my way towards the animal. Every step I took, I could feel her pain, as she yelped, trying to release herself from the bear trap. Every time she moved her paw, the trap dug deeper into her flesh. My heart was racing as I was now only a few feet from this majestic hunter. She was scared…so was I. I knew she could sense it, and as a result, she bore her teeth menacingly. I took a deep breath and got down on my knees to examine the wound. She tried to move her paw away from me, and yelped. I gulped and gave a soft smile, slowly working my hands toward her. At one point, she snapped her jaws at me, as sharp canines nearly nicked the surface of my hand. The feeling smooth, but razor sharp, never had I been so close to a wild animal before. The wolf whined and bit at her leg. “

“Hey, now, don’t do that,” I coaxed softly. I looked around my body for a piece of loose clothing to use as a bandage. I noticed that I had a small rip in my right arm of the shirt. I dug my finger into the hole to make it bigger, as I ripped off the clothing from the seam. The wolf looked at me with her glinted golden eyes as she tilted her head curiously. I reached my hand towards her paw, and lowered he nose to my hand and sniffed. The warm arm coming from her nostrils tickled as she licked my hand softly. She whined once, but made no sudden movements as I pried open the bear trap. Once her leg was free, I quickly applied the tourniquet as she barked happily. Her tail was wagging wildly as she pushed me down with her paw and licked my face. Upon applying pressure, she yelped and stumbled backwards. She looked at me with a tilted head as I got up to brush the dirt off my pants. She barked once and nudges my hand with her nose as I pulled it away. She tilted her head and whined as if to ask what did I do? I began to walk away and she began to follow me. Hearing the leaves crunch under her paw, I turned around and put a hand up.

“No, you have to stay,” I said. The wolf whined and tucked her tail between her legs as she limped into the forest. I watched her leave and sighed to myself, walking back to my car. I opened up the door and sat in the driver’s seat and let myself calm down. My heart was still beating wickedly fast and the adrenalin that coursed through my veins made me feel light headed. I leaned my head back on the head rest and blacked out from too much excitement.

My thoughts were vague and distorted as my mind led me to believe I was in a world of disillusions I wasn’t sure what was happening, but I felt like I had been here before. I stood behind a tree as watched a man sit in a comfy recliner in front of television set. The cabin windows flickered with a translucent golden hue. Inside the window, I could clearly see that light oak wooden flooring complimented the rustic interior design, however something didn’t seem right. The room was covered in pelts—wolf pelts. Taxidermy wolves stood on statues near the fire place, as wolf heads hung delicately above, and wolf tails hung on both sides of the open fire. I inched closer to get a better look at the luminescent window, but was quickly taken off guard by the sound of a honking horn. I gasped as a shiver went down my spine when I saw the man pierce beady red eyes directly at me. I turned around and ducked out of the way only to see a shell of my Mustang driving through the forest, ushering me to get out of the way. Something was different, and I stood and watched in horror as the car crashed its body into the side of the house, sending the man into visceral rage. I could see the man in the wheelchair throw things, and set the house on fire, it was to intense as I ran for my life. The Mustang horn echo seemed to follow me. No matter where I ran, it was tracking me down.

I opened my eyes. My neck was cramping up from sleeping on my shoulder, as my forehead had an indentation of the Mustang logo from the steering wheel. I groaned painfully and softly, and I massaged my aching neck. I turned on the car groaned when I realized that it was nearly six o’clock. I left the house at two. I have been gone for four hours. I turned the ignition on and started on my way. My mind was numb as I drove down the silent strip of eroded concrete. Patches of thick tar were drizzled lazily amongst the patches of hazardous pot holes as if the road worker was too lazy to finish the job. As I rolled to a stop sign, I craned my neck to the left and winced in pain as I checked for any oncoming vehicles. After a brief moment, I commenced to follow minivan that had two fighting children in the back. The taillights faded into a blur as I followed her to the next stoplight. Switching on to my right turn signal, I entered the vicinity  of a small strip mall I parked my car near the door and headed into the grocery store. I walked down the aisle lazily, looking at the cakes with a vacant stare. Quite honestly, I had forgotten what the cake was for. I picked up an extravagant double chocolate cake with brownie bites embedded into the crust. Luckily it was on special, so it didn’t cost as much. I placed my merchandise at the counter and handed the clerk the money, where she in turn gave me my change and receipt. I never really did know why we had to get a receipt for food purchases. It wasn’t like anyone was going to return it when they were done with it.

          I could not think of anything else except the wolf encounter I had and the dream. I gently brushed my left hand over the top of my right. I could still feel the cold nose of the black wolf as he tongue flicked gently over my skin in gratitude. I smiled and placed the food in the backseat of the car. Closing the door, I turned on the ignition and proceeded home without the GPS. I needed time to think, more importantly I needed answers to why and how my dreams were becoming relate