RUDY

 

The sun went down and the moon replaced it. I looked up at the sky through the trees and saw the stars shining.

What a beautiful view.

I laughed softly to myself despite my circumstances. I supposed that was enough to tell me that things weren’t as bad as they were.

I remained in the brush and calmed myself. My heart steadied in my chest. My breathing returned to normal. The sweat no longer dripped from my brow.

I couldn’t sense the stranger who had attacked me anywhere near me. I could only hope for the moment that he’d lost track of me.

After calming down, the numbing pain in my leg came to me. I reached down and felt the wound on my leg. The blood on my fingertips was unmistakable. But the cut wasn’t so deep that I was running out of time.

Still, I couldn’t stay in the brush for much longer. Even if the stranger was nowhere around, I would surely freeze to death if I remained where I was when the storm came.

“Okay… You can do this…”

I exhaled a deep breath and pushed myself up to my feet. I stepped out of the brush and looked at my surroundings. The sound of creatures lurking in the darkness of the woods filled my ears. I could barely make out the paths between the trees.

“This is just great…”

I wasn’t familiar with the area I stood in. I’d run farther away from my camp than I’d ever been. But that didn’t mean I didn’t know where to go.

I looked up at the stars to see where they pointed. All I had to do was head east and I would eventually hit the camp. Now it was just a matter of whether or not I would make it back to the herd before the snow came.

I took a few steps forward and ignored the pain from my wound. It would be a long journey. Even if I weren’t injured, there was still the threat of the stranger who attacked me out there. I had to constantly be on guard.

I kept walking down the path in the hopes that I would eventually find a place more familiar to me.

Suddenly, I heard a noise coming from the brush next to me. I stopped in my tracks and immediately held my breath.

Someone’s there…

I looked out into the darkness to try and make sure I knew where the noise was coming from. I kept listening and heard the sound growing louder and louder.

What is that?

It was a stupid idea but for some reason, I started walking forward toward the sound. I could see the light coming from between the trees. As the sound became clearer, I realized what it was.

Whistling.

Somebody was whistling.

And when I looked out into the clearing, I saw the man doing it.

He had his back turned to me but I could already see how big he was. The striations and muscles on his back and legs were clear. He wore nothing but a cloth to cover his bottom parts. Over his shoulder, there was a bag strapped to him.

The big man searched through the brush as he continued to whistle.

My bad judgment continued to get the best of me as I stepped forward into the clearing.

What am I doing?

I stood there and stared at him. For a reason I couldn’t figure out, I felt compelled to just look at the stranger.

I knew it wasn’t the man who attacked me earlier. His size alone was enough to tell me that. But there was something else about him. I couldn’t feel any animosity from him whatsoever.

Suddenly, he turned around. He spotted me and immediately stopped whistling.

He stared at me, his feet locked in place.

His hair was dark and short. The hair around his mouth matched. His chest and arms were just as firm as the muscles on his back and legs. His skin was fair.

But more than anything else, it was the way he looked at me. The way his brown eyes examined me, I knew he wasn’t the stranger who attacked me earlier.

“Hello,” he said with a nod, his voice deeper than I expected it to be.

I swallowed to clear my throat and responded.

“Hello.”

He shifted his eyes up and down my body.

“You’re bleeding.”

I looked down at the wound on my leg. Out in the clearing with the moonlight shining down on me, I was able to see the blood clearly.

“It appears that way,” I sighed.

He took a step forward and put his hands up.

“Don’t worry,” he said. “I won’t harm you.”

He walked toward me. As he got closer to me, I saw just how big and tall he was. I swallowed again as I looked up at him. He kept his hands in the air to show that he wouldn’t hurt me.

He finally shifted his eyes toward the injury on my leg as he took a knee down next to me. He ran his fingers over the wound and sent a shiver through my spine.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “Did that hurt?”

“No, it didn’t hurt. I…”

I didn’t want to admit that it was his touch that made me feel that way. I bit my bottom lip and tried not to laugh.

“The wound isn’t deep,” he said as he continued to examine it. “But you’ll have to seal it.”

I sighed a deep breath of frustration and put my hands on my hips. The big man stood up straight and looked at me.

“Are you out here alone?” he asked.

I nodded.

“I’m heading back to my herd. I don’t know how much farther they are—”

“You know the snow is coming, don’t you?”

“I know,” I said, trying not to laugh. “That’s part of the reason I’m trying to get back to them.”

“You won’t be able to get back to them in time. Not with your injury.”

“Then what are you suggesting?”

“I have a place near here. A cabin. You’re welcome to stay until the snow passes.”

I narrowed my eyes at him.

I had every reason to believe he was up to something. Out here in the Timberlands, it was every man for himself. Even though he appeared to be friendly, he was still a stranger. I couldn’t trust him so easily.

“Why would you offer me a place to stay?” I asked.

“Why?” he said with a laugh. “Because you’re injured and the snow is coming. I wouldn’t let you freeze to death if I could do something to prevent it. What kind of man would I be if I allowed that?”

I wanted to believe he was being sincere. And when I looked up into his eyes, I saw the kindness that I was searching for.

But I wasn’t about to accept his hospitality so easily.

“I shouldn’t,” I said, shaking my head and looking away from him. “I should really just get back to my herd.”

“There’s no telling if you’ll even make it. Is it really necessary for you to take such a risk?”

“I’m sure Knox is worried about me…”

“Knox?”

“The lead Alpha of my herd.”

“It would be better for you to see him again, even if he was worried, than to never see him again at all.”

“…I suppose you have a point. Still, I don’t want to impose—”

“I’ll tell you what.”

He removed the strap from his shoulder and handed his bag to me.

“I’m preparing for the snow,” he said. “Some snacks if I wake up while I’m sleeping. Help me pick some fruit and we can consider it even.”

I just now caught his scent. He was a bear. I’d never had much experience with them, but from what I was told, they were mostly trustworthy. Running into a bear out in the forest appeared to be the lucky break I was looking for.

“Does it hurt?” he asked.

“What?”

“Your wound.”

“No,” I said, shaking my head.

“It doesn’t appear to be. You’re not losing a lot of blood. Help me pick some fruit and we’ll return to my cabin. I’ll close your wound and you can sleep comfortably next to the fire so you don’t have to worry about the storm.”

I kept trying to look for a reason to walk away. But the friendly smile on his face was making it hard for me to do so.

“Sure,” I sighed. “That sounds like a fair deal.”

I smiled back at him and took the bag from him.

“There are still plenty of bushes in this clearing to pick from,” he said. “Let me know when the snow becomes too much for you to handle.”

He started whistling again as he went back to picking fruit. I stood right next to him and held the bag open as he tossed all of the berries and plums he plucked from the bushes.

It was a strange sight to see. A man so imposing yet so carefree. Despite the weather and the darkness that surrounded us, he picked his fruit like he was the only man who existed in the Timberlands.

“Are you alone?” I asked.

“I’m alone.”

“What are you doing here?”

“I’m picking fruit.”

“No, I mean… Why are you out here picking fruit?”

“Because the snow is coming and I’d like something to snack on while I’m stuck in my cabin.”

“What about the others?”

“The others?”

“Yes. The other bears in your sleuth.”

“There are no other bears in my sleuth. I’m alone.”

He picked another berry and tossed it into the bag. He straightened up and gave me a puzzled look.

“What is it?” he asked.

“Wait… Are you telling me you’re really all alone? You live out here by yourself?”

“That’s right.”

“I… I never met a bear who lived by himself.”

“Have you met many?”

I hesitated to respond. He smirked at me, already knowing my answer.

“Don’t worry,” he said. “I said I would do you no harm and I meant it.”

“I know it’s just…”

“It’s just what?”

“Never mind. Let me help you with the rest of this.”

The stranger resumed whistling as he picked his fruit. I’d already agreed to help him, so I started picking from the bush just the same as him.

“What’s your name?” he asked.

“What?”

“Your name. You do have a name, don’t you?”

“Rudy.”

“Rudy… Nice name. My name is Vesper.”

“Vesper…”

“It’s nice to meet you, Rudy.”

“…Nice to meet you, too.”

I didn’t know where the bear had come from. And I still couldn’t get over him picking fruit so late in the evening all by himself.

There was a certain comfort in having him by my side though. The thoughts of the man who attacked me left my mind momentarily. I could only hope that George made it back to the herd to warn them. For now, I had to focus on the task at hand and worry about everything else later.