Read Beneath a Winter Moon Online
Authors: Shawson M Hebert
The door behind him clicked as the lock turned and his shift relief stepped into the tower, shaking snowflakes off his thick, sheepskin jacket.
“Morning, Sam,” Clancy
Dearborne
said cheerfully. “Have any excitement during the night? I figured you might be busy with those two pressure systems coming together yesterday evening. Hell of a storm it has whipped up.” He was a pudgy man in his middle fifties, completely bald, always wearing a cap of one sort or another.
Samuel thought about what to say. Should he be careful, here? After a moment, he decided there just wasn’t anything to say—dumbass teenager sticking his probably
pierced
nose into things that were none of his business. Steven had probably just radioed to tell Kyle that all was well. Dumbass teenager was probably looking to be a hero, hoping and dreaming that something was wrong.
“Not a thing,” Samuel finally said as he set his empty coffee cup down on his desk. “There is a fresh pot of coffee in the break room. First flight out this morning is still correct on the board for 8:30, and the first flight in is at 7:00. It’s that group from
Santa Fe
that will be going after some bighorns over on
East Puckett
with Tom Self’s outfit. I heard those guys are a seriously rich bunch of greenhorns.”
“Yeah,” Clancy sighed, “That’s what I heard, too…but it’s always those ones that end up paying better than anyone else. I guess they like to flaunt what they’ve got.”
Samuel stretched, his shirt coming
untucked
from his pants, exposing the stretch marks on his massive stomach and revealing his lint-filled navel. Clancy resisted the urge to gag and turned away to set his coffee cup down, shifting his vision to the huge tower windows.
“Well, I’ll see you tomorrow morning, Clancy. I’m
gettin
while the
gettin
is good.”
Clancy nodded and sat down in front of the tower control station as Samuel shut the door behind him. He looked down at the weather radar screen. Yesterday’s massive snowstorm had moved south a bit but was holding in place rather than continuing on its path. He frowned as he noticed another system coming in from the north, building pressure as it unexpectedly met resistance from the remainder of the other storms. There was going to be more snow, especially to the north, but they might have clear skies for a few hours.
* * * * *
The Other was close to the humans. He breathed in their scent and found it mixed with other strange and pungent odors that he did not understand. He stood beside a massive tree facing a rocky clearing and could not see the humans but he knew they were there. He stared at the large, odd thing that sat in the snowy clearing. There was movement inside the thing. He smelled blood but did not sense that the humans were in distress.
His instincts were settling in, now…taking over. He would rush at them, attacking the thing that held them. Once it was subdued, he would rip and tear his way to the humans. He took a step forward into the clearing, preparing to leap but just as he was about to bound across the clearing, he sensed and smelled the Beast. It was here.
Before the Other could react, the Beast struck him hard and toppled him back into the wood line. The Other somehow managed to right himself and land atop the Beast’s chest, ripping and tearing. The Beast cried out once but used his strength to roll the Other over onto his back where he changed roles, bashing and clawing and biting in a fury. The Other managed to cry out once—then lost consciousness.
Inside the helicopter, Jenny cried out and opened her eyes.
“
Shhhhh
,” Steven whispered, placing a finger at his lips.
Delmar and Daniel both sat up. Thomas motioned for them to be silent.
“I thought I just saw something move,” Thomas whispered to Steven. Thomas held his rifle in one hand while tightening Jack’s leash with his other. Jack growled and fidgeted but did not pull away.
“Did you hear all of that?” Jenny whispered.
Steven nodded and Thomas whispered, “We heard it.”
“What was it?” Daniel asked. Delmar was busy removing the straps that held his rifle to his backpack. He had secured the weapon there for the flight.
“Keep a close eye out of your windows,” Thomas said to his two friends. “I saw something move after the crazy sounds. Something big.”
Daniel nodded. Delmar finally had his rifle free. He quickly loaded it and stuck his face to the window.
“And whatever you do, don’t turn on any lights. We are already at a disadvantage.”
“Don’t you think we’re safe in here, Steven?” Daniel asked, keeping his voice low. “What the heck could get at us so long as we are in here?”
Steven kept staring out the window. “The only thing that worries me is that a Grizzly might be out there. I have personally seen them rip the doors off a pickup truck.”
“And what I saw was freaking big,” Thomas whispered. His eyes opened wide. “Freaking huge. It had to have been a bear up on his hind legs.”
Delmar spoke up, “What I heard did not…I repeat…did not sound anything at all like a bear.”
“Keep your voice down, Hero,” Thomas said.
“What we heard sounded just like that wolf again,” Steven said. “This time it sounded like there was a struggle. I would have guessed it was another wolf, but Thomas’s description leads me to believe that a Grizzly was also out there.”
“He’s often full of shit, you know,” Delmar whispered, white teeth glowing in the moonlight as he grinned. “He’s just scared himself with that story of his.” He looked at Steven. “I’ve known Thomas for half my life and he’s never mentioned that particular tall tale before tonight.”
Thomas didn’t reply. He stared out the window.
Delmar chuckled softly. “He’s conjured up a boogey-man.”
They kept watch for another hour. By then, Delmar was snoring and Daniel was leaning back, his eyes heavy. Jenny had fallen asleep against Steven’s shoulder while he remained vigilant. Thomas did too, staring out his window, Jack asleep at his feet.
“It will be daylight soon and I, for one, have to say that I will be relieved.” He turned and squinted in the darkness, “Thomas, do you have something for a headache? This cut is really hurting and I have a horrible damned headache…must be the worst I’ve ever had—feels like I might throw up, too.”
“Why didn’t you say something before?” Thomas asked. “We’ve all got meds in our packs. Just a second…” He shifted his feet so that he could reach into the pack without moving Jack. He felt inside his pack for a moment and then pulled out an O.D green nylon bag. He shuffled around for a second, found what he was looking for, then handed three brown tablets to Steven.
Steven thanked him and used the last of his bottle of water to wash them down. “Pain medicine won’t help the cut...that is why I didn’t ask….but the headache just came on full speed ahead a couple of minutes ago—hit me like a ton of bricks.”
“I’m so sorry,” Jenny said, waking up enough to hear her husband. She pulled him toward her. “Just lean back and rest as long as you can.”
“Yeah, I think I will.”
Thomas closed his eyes too, keeping his hands on the rifle.
The sun slowly rose into the sky, waking Delmar and Daniel first. They woke to find that they were sore from the cramped confines of the cabin. They both stretched, yawning and groaning as muscles expanded and bones creaked.
“I am so old,” Delmar said.
“Tell me about it,” Daniel replied in a low voice so as not to disturb Thomas.
“Look at that beautiful sun,” Delmar said.
“Yep. I’m happy to see it. Hope it stays clear like this.”
The sky was blue and nearly free of clouds as they looked out of the dull plexiglass windows…but they could not see the storm looming heavy with snow as it drifted slowly toward them.
Thomas woke to see Daniel petting Jack. The Husky was standing in front of the door opposite Thomas, wagging his tail and wooing on occasion. “He’s got to go out,” Thomas said. “Give me a second. I’ll take him.”
“He’s not the only one that has to
go out
,” Daniel said.
“I second that,” Delmar replied, already stooping to grab the door latch. “Do you have Jack’s leash?” he asked Thomas.
Thomas groaned and stretched. “Yep, I’ve got him.”
Delmar pulled the sliding door open, the rush of cold air momentarily taking his breath away. He had expected cold, but not this cold. “
Whoooooeeee
! It’s colder than a well-digger’s butt in
Idaho
.”
“Hey, now,” Daniel teased. “You are talking about my home state.”
Delmar laughed and hopped down into the fresh snow. His right foot hit one a skid and nearly toppled him over, but he caught his balance, cursing.
CHAPTER FIVE
The three friends walked to the nearest wood line and did their business. Jack was happy to be outside and in the snow. He buried his nose deep into the snow in several areas, and playfully bounded all around Thomas, tangling himself on his leash and nearly tripping them both. The three friends stretched and held their faces to the sun. Thomas thought that he saw a slim line of clouds to the north but they seemed to be far away.
They talked about the dangerous landing, the damage to the helicopter, which they could now see plainly in the light of day and they sighed when the subject changed to their ruined vacation. None of the three were selfish enough to bicker about the loss of the hunt while they had much more to be concerned with, but they were disappointed…especially Delmar.
Thomas and Jack stayed near the forest’s edge, walking around so that Jack could romp in the snow and sniff at the foliage. Delmar trudged back to the helicopter and found Jenny smiling at him through the cracked windshield. She opened the co-pilot’s door and shivered.
“Need to take your turn at the wood line, Jen?”
She smiled as she pulled a black wool cap down over her ears. “Yes, indeed.” She looked over at Steven. “He’s still sleeping and I think we should let him. I’ve just called another radio check and another mayday. There’s not much else we can do. I am sure that if the weather is better at the south camp, Kyle will have someone heading our way and I bet we are out of here before sundown.”
Delmar nodded. “That is good news, and I am not going to take your bet for fear of jinxing our rescue.”
Jenny held onto the small cockpit door and swung herself down into the snow. “I’m going that way,” She said, pointing to the edge of the tree line on the opposite side of the clearing. "Tell Thomas and Daniel to stay put for a minute.”
“Will do,” Delmar answered, shutting the cockpit door for her.
As she started to round the nose of the aircraft, she turned back to Delmar, “You guys are bound to have something that will do for breakfast, right?”
“Absolutely. I was just thinking I’d make us some coffee. We can use it to wash down some peanut butter and crackers.” He smiled, “We can even whip up some hot Ramen noodles if need be.”
“Great,” she said, then added, “The
coffee
that is…I can use some coffee.”
Delmar waved to get Daniel and Thomas’s attention. They saw him as he pointed in Jenny’s direction. They nodded that they understood. They were not to embarrass her as she used nature’s little girl’s room. Back inside the cabin, Delmar rummaged through his gear and came up with an aluminum pot. He grabbed several coffee packets, a small canister of compressed propane and the accompanying screw-on stove top He shoved the items into a smaller
daypack
that had been attached to the top of the backpack, added some powdered creamer, sugar, and a two-quart canteen of water. He then slung the small pack over his shoulder. He hopped back down into the snow and surveyed the area for a good spot. He found a cluster of large, flat rocks, one, he decided, was perfect for use with the propane stove.
Jack tugged hard against his leash and harness as Thomas was grunted and snapped commands at the big Siberian Husky. He did not want Jack to go into the woods but the dog had other ideas. Jack was determined to follow whatever trail he had picked up…even if he had to drag Thomas behind him.
Daniel laughed as he watched Thomas use his full weight against the long leash only to be pulled off balance and dragged a few more steps forward. Thomas grunted and commanded Jack to sit. The dog ignored him and kept straining against the leash, his nose sniffing at the surface of the snow. Thomas saw the fur on Jack’s back stand up and his tail suddenly curl in a tight loop.
Uh oh
, Thomas thought.
I know what those signs mean.
Thomas looped the leash tightly around his wrist and used all his might to hold jack in place. He stepped toward Jack, reeling in the leash and steadily looping more of the nylon around his wrist as he labored to halt his canine friend. Jack growled fiercely, the menacing rumble unlike his usual, inquisitive snarls or growls of uncertainty. Jack tugged harder, going so far as to leap clumsily into the air as he tried to free himself from his leash. Thomas could not help but laugh at the dog’s aerobatics. “Nice triple
lutz
, boy.” Finally, Thomas was close enough to reach down and grab a handful of the shoulder harness. He pulled the dog waist-high off the ground, scooping him up into his arms like a barrel and began to struggle his way back toward Delmar and his makeshift coffee station.
He made it about twenty feet and decided he could not carry the big Husky. Jack was definitely not thrilled, either, squirming against his owner’s grip. Thomas let him down and waited to see what he would do. Jack whined and looked back toward the woods longingly but sat down on his haunches in submission. Thomas praised him, knowing that it must be hard for Jack to give up whatever was so enticing at the edge of the woods.
Daniel looked into the woods, focusing his attention on the spot that had so excited Jack. He stepped a little deeper into the wood line. There had been too much snowfall since they heard the strange animal sounds—there were no visible tracks unless the animals had stuck around until just before daylight. He walked a little further but found nothing. He shrugged and walked back.
“See anything unusual, Daniel?” Thomas asked.
“Nah. Nothing…but I think we can trust Jack on this one. I didn’t see any signs in that spot but Jack’s nose knows where they had it out last night…whatever
they
were.”
“Coffee will be ready in about five minutes,” Delmar said. “Ladies, first, though.”
“By all means,” said Thomas. “Huskies after the lady?”
Delmar grunted. “Wouldn’t surprise me at all…the way you have spoiled him.”
Jack wooed as if in answer. Thomas leaned over to look down the cliff wall. The drop was almost vertical and around two hundred feet down. Sharp rocks were studded along the cliff face and small, bushy plants grew from some of them. The bottom was anything but level ground and was covered by piles of boulders and outcroppings the size of a small house. “That’d be one nasty fall,” he said, kicking some snow over the ledge.
“Definitely,” Daniel answered, leaning over to get a good look for himself.
“Someone want to carry a cup to Jenny?” Delmar asked. “I grabbed our canteen-cups but we will be short by two so we will have to share.”
“I’ll take it,” Daniel said. “Thomas has Jack to worry with.”
Delmar poured coffee into one of the steel canteen cups. The odd-looking cup was designed so that a one-quart canteen could slip down into it when the cup was not in use. Two hinged, wiry handles jutted out from the back of the cup and clipped together for use as a handle. Delmar handed the cup of coffee to Daniel. “I’ve got enough in there for Steven, too or he can wait till Jenny finishes.”
Daniel held the steaming cup out in front of him as he walked through the snow toward the helicopter. Before he made it halfway, Jenny threw the passenger door open and shouted for help.
At first, Daniel thought Jenny and Steven were being attacked and his minds-eye flashed with an image of a huge grizzly clawing at the helicopter. But then he discerned the frantic words.
“He won’t wake up!”
Daniel dropped the coffee and ran, as best he could through the fresh snow. Delmar and Thomas were not far behind. Jenny shook Steven frantically but he did not respond. Thomas ran around the nose of the helicopter to the pilot’s door. He hooked Jack’s leash to one of the pontoon skids.
Delmar coaxed Jenny out of the co-pilot’s seat and convinced her to sit in the back so that they could take a closer look at Steven. He hopped into the co-pilot’s seat and shut the door to keep out the cold.
Thomas was standing halfway inside the pilot’s doorway, leaning over Steven’s unconscious form, listening to his chest while checking his pulse. He looked up. “His pulse is weak, but steady. He’s breathing, but it seems a little shallow.” He unzipped Steven’s jacket and unbuttoned the flannel shirt underneath. “There are no visible wounds. I need to check his entire body, but I think that this is all about a concussion.” He paused. “But he didn’t have any of the normal symptoms last night…his pupils reacted perfectly normal. His only complaint was a headache—and that is not necessarily a bad sign.”
Jenny had jumped into the passenger cabin where Daniel sat next to her, holding an arm around her shoulders in an effort to comfort her. He told Jenny that Thomas was one of the best combat medics he had ever seen…and that Steven was in good hands and would be fine. Jack had just enough slack in his leash to jump inside the cabin to lie at Jenny’s feet. Daniel slid it closed, leaving a little crack in the door for the leash.
At Thomas’s behest, Delmar double-checked Steven’s pulse and his breathing. “This should not have happened,” Thomas said. “There is no way that he should be unconscious—at least not because of the head wound.”
Jenny let out a sob but kept her fist against her mouth as she tried to stay calm.
“He’s just unconscious, Jen,” Thomas said. “His breathing is shallow which worries me but he could wake up at any moment. We need to get him out of this seat and stretch him out in the back.”
Daniel cleared their gear and backpacks off the bench behind the pilots’ seats, piling them to one side. The three men moved Steven’s limp form. It took some effort, but they finally lay him onto the bench in the passenger cabin. Thomas rolled up his foam bedroll and used it to elevate Steven’s feet while Delmar covered Steven with a poncho liner.
Jenny sat across from him, holding his left hand to her face. She twirled the wedding band and fought to stay calm. “I am going to kick Kyle right in the ass when we get back,” she blurted. “We’ve been over the protocols with him a hundred times. He should have had air rescue up here by the time the sun was up.” She motioned a hand toward the window. “Look out there,” she said, “The weather is perfect right now. Right
now!
How long will it stay this way?” No one replied but she hadn’t really expected an answer.
“Easy, Jen,” Daniel said after a long silence. “Steven can hear you, I am sure of it. He needs to know that you are okay, so, just stay calm and let him know you are with him.”
Jenny laid her head close to Steven’s and began speaking softly to him.
“Jenny,” Delmar said as he climbed into the pilot’s seat, “How long should we wait before it becomes a good idea to do something on our own? I mean…by the looks of those clouds and the feel of the wind, another storm is coming. I don’t know what Kyle has or has not done so far as getting help, but I
do
know that if no one heard the mayday and Kyle could not get word out, then it might be that no one will even search for us today.”
“Are you suggesting we walk out of here? We can’t leave with Steven like this,” she said, looking up at Delmar, her eyes red and moist with tears.
Delmar glanced at Thomas and Daniel, who said nothing. “No, we can’t,” he continued, “but with his being hurt we can’t afford to leave things to chance. I am not sure yet, but it may be that two of us could make it down to the cabin at the lake or maybe to that man….Jeremiah’s place. We could radio the airfield and know that help is on the way.”
“Let’s not jump the gun, though Delmar,” Thomas said. “We need to take a good look the map first and maybe talk through what we know about the normal procedures of the air rescue units here.”
“Thomas is right, Delmar,” Daniel agreed. “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. You know that the one thing you never do is leave your aircraft. How many times have you said that during training when your men were about to board the aircraft? Part of the safety-brief during training or peace-time is that you never,
ever
leave your downed aircraft.”