Vanished Trails by L.T. Ryan & C.R. Gray

Author:L.T. Ryan & C.R. Gray [Ryan, L.T. & Gray, C.R.]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Liquid Mind Media
Published: 2024-01-23T00:00:00+00:00

When we made it out of the tent, a blob about the size of Tempest barreled over the hillside. Confirming my theory that Mama Bear was only so upset because she was taking care of baby bear.

Bentley wasn’t the only one with tears in his eyes as I bent down to examine her. Luckily, even with limited visibility through the tent, I had gotten her in the head. While I found comfort in that, knowing she hadn’t suffered, Bentley said, “Murderer.”

Looking over my shoulder, I found his gaze in the dawning sun. “Was I supposed to let her kill us, asshole?”

“We probably deserve it more than she did. Sure, she was going to eat us, but we’ve done worse, haven’t we?”

“Worse than eating a random couple and their dog?” I asked. “Shit, man. What other skeletons do you got in your closet?”

Giving a half laugh, he kneeled toward his backpack. “We gotta report this to the rangers, right?”

“Right,” I murmured, trailing a hand over the bear’s coarse fur. “I’m sorry, Mama. If you would’ve just walked away, I wouldn’t have had to do this.”

Of course, Mama Bear did not respond. Contrary to what Bentley seemed to believe, I wasn’t the least bit pleased with this outcome. Killing animals had never been something I was fond of. In fact, this was the first time I had killed an animal. Ending a person’s life didn’t come close to the pit in my stomach I had now.

Against the mossy soil, the black bear lay with her snout in a puddle of blood. Thankfully, the blood came from the other side of her face, tucked against the grass, so I didn’t see the extent of the damage. She was dead, but from this side, it looked like she was just taking a nap. I’d seen bears in movies and at the zoo a few times, but this was the first time I’d seen one up close. She was as cute as Tempest. Like a giant puppy.

Damn it. I had just killed a giant puppy.

While Bentley spoke on the satellite phone with the park rangers, and Tempest explored the campsite on her long lead, I sat with the bear. That pit in my stomach stretched into my chest, hollowing and aching with each second that passed. This was not how I wanted to spend today. It had been a necessary evil, but trailing my fingers through a dead animal’s fur was hardly my idea of a good time.

I would much rather have preferred sitting on the boulder a few dozen strides away, looking out at the view from this mountaintop. Pink and orange with hints of purple blanketed the miles and miles of farmland. Some windmills spun in the distance, cows chomped on the grass of the rolling green hills, and the birds sang the prettiest song in the treetops overhead. Looked like a wonderful place to enjoy a cup of coffee with my dog and my—now confirmed—boyfriend.

But nope. I sat in the dirt beside a dead bear instead.

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