The Cypress Trap

Chapter 5

Stark and deteriorating, the cabin was made up of graying wood with dark vines growing up the exterior walls. A rusty tin roof sloped over a wide porch that ran the full length of the front. The porch sagged and was crowded with several old wooden chairs that had been left outside in the weather. 

She heard the cry again. It was coming from behind the old building.

Rayanne came out of the trees and brush, and approached the cabin. She stepped to the western side and pressed her back against the wall and into the vines. She didn’t hear any noise inside, then heard the cry again. This time it was a long, tortured wail that chilled her. She moved along the wall to the backside of the cabin.

In the open back yard, she saw a fire pit in front of a stone shed. To the side of the shed was a rack with a drying boar carcass. It shocked her for a second. Then she noticed a cage rattling at the foot of the shed.   

There was a raccoon trapped in it. It was struggling to get out and cried out again. She approached it, walking across the yard. The coon hissed and bared its teeth.

“Did you get trapped?” she asked it, studying the cage. She could see that one end folded inwards, allowing a small animal to enter but not leave. She assumed there had been scraps of food placed in it earlier.

She touched the cage door. The raccoon hissed again, and swatted toward her hand. Rayanne jumped, then laughed at herself.

“Calm down,” she said. “I’ll get you out.” She looked back at the cabin. There didn’t seem to be anyone there. She didn’t really believe anyone could possibly live there anyway, being that it was so small and run down. She looked back at the cage.

The raccoon watched her and backed into the furthest corner. She smiled at it again, then lifted the latch that released the cage door. The cage opened.

She watched the coon, but it wouldn’t move from the back corner. The hair on its back raised up, and it was clearly ready to defend itself. She looked down at it and felt sorry for its little feet standing on the wire mesh.

She wasn’t sure how she was going to get it out of the cage.

Remembering the granola bar, she fished it out her pocket and held it up for the coon to see. 

“I bet you’ll like this,” she said to it. She unwrapped the green foil and pulled it off the yellow-brownish bar. Breaking off a chunk, she set the piece at the opening of the cage, then backed away.

The raccoon stared at her a moment, then looked back at the chunk of granola. It cautiously approached the opening and sniffed the air. It hesitated, looked back at her, then snatched the granola. It ate it quickly and completely, before poking its nose around the cage opening. It seemed to notice it had a way out and looked as if was trying to determine if it was another trap. Never taking its eyes off Rayanne, the coon dropped out of the cage and scrambled onto the dirt. It hesitated there, waiting for her to make a move.

She set the remainder of the granola bar on the ground and took a step back. The coon bared its teeth and Rayanne took another step. She watched it hesitantly approach the granola bar and pick it up. It looked up at her, then turned. Carrying it in its little hands, the coon scrambled across the yard toward the cabin. Rayanne followed it as it rounded the corner and crawled through broken lattice work along the foundation, disappearing into the dark crawl space. 

No wonder someone had trapped it if it was living under there, Rayanne thought, walking along the exterior wall. She passed the broken lattice work along the crawl space and noticed that the wild vines didn’t grow as thick on the eastern side of the cabin. Rounding the front corner, she hesitated.