There was no sun to set, so only the darkening of an already dark sky marked the onset of night. Rick began to jog toward the canyon, knowing once night fell, it was impossible to see anything. He thought of the warm fire and of Con waiting for him. The little shelter, meager as it was, had acquired some of the feelings of home. He looked forward to returning to it.
Con scampered down from the ledge as soon as Rick entered the canyon. Joe began to build up the fire. A brief look of disappointment came to her face when she saw he was empty-handed, but she quickly covered it up. 'Joe and I spent the whole day getting wood,' she said. 'We can have a nice big fire tonight.'
Rick smiled and gave her a kiss. 'That sounds won-derful.'
'Any luck?' called Joe.
'Nope,' said Rick.
'So it's not just me,' said Joe.
'These are cagey animals,' said Rick. 'Did you see the tracks beneath the ledge?'
'Yeah,' said Joe. 'I don't like it.'
'Neither do I,' said Rick.
'What can we do?' asked Con.
'They adapt, we adapt,' said Rick. 'Joe, could you dig out the flashlights and see if they have any juice?' Joe disappeared into the sleeping area. Two pale beams shone briefly. 'There's some life in them yet.'
'Good,' said Rick. 'Tonight we'll slay home and hunt.'
Rick warmed himself by the fire as he explained his plan. 'Joe and I will stay up with the flashlights and the gun to wait for our visitors.'
'How's that going to work?' asked Joe. 'They only come around when it's pitch-black.'
'We'll rig the pot like a bell and attach a piece of dried meat to it. If we hear the bell ring, we'll turn on the flashlight and zap whatever we see.'
Joe grinned and rubbed his hands together. 'Sounds like fun!'
Two sticks were crossed and lashed over the opening of the pot, and pebbles were tied to threads suspended from them. When the pot was moved, the pebbles clinked against its interior. They tied a piece of meat beneath the pot and hung it from a tree. Once the alarm was set up, Joe and Rick returned to the ledge to wait.
Con found it was too cold to sleep alone, so all three of them stayed up and silently ensured no one dozed off. The night wore on without a sound, not even wind. Many hours passed before they heard a soft clinking sound. Three short rows of tiny colored lights glowed as Rick turned on the gun and placed his eye to the targeting scope. Joe switched on the flashlight and a nightstalker was caught in its pale beam. Rick pulled the targeting trigger, then the firing trigger, as the gun tracked the flee-ing animal. A single crack downed the beast.
Con screamed as a pair of large yellow-brown eyes rose and peered over the ledge. Sharp claws grasped the stone just inches from where she sat. Joe swung the flash-light at the feathered head, striking its toothy snout. The light went out. Rick fired blindly into the darkness while Con groped for the second flashlight. When she turned it on, its beam revealed a single nightstalker lying dead in the snow and two sets of tracks heading from the canyon into the night.
THE NIGHTSTALKER RAN with her child from the place of strange smells. She ran with surety, for her eyes could distinguish the black trees from the slightly less black ground. She saw the dawn behind the clouds and used it to her advantage. It was easier to hunt when the prey was blind. As she ran, she did not grieve for the child left behind. Grief was something she could not understand. Pain, she understood—hunger, too. Hunger governed her life and directed her thoughts. When the pain left, she would re-member the place of strange smells. One of those smells was food. Maybe more than one.
30
NO ONE CONSIDERED SLEEPING, DESPITE HAVING BEEN UP
all night. Rick lit a fire on the ledge so they could have warmth and light as they waited for the sky to brighten. While Joe stood guard with the gun, Rick climbed down to retrieve the pot and to pluck and butcher the nightstalker. By the time that task was done, light had returned to the sky. Joe took some pieces of the nightstalker and dropped them into the pot in which water boiled. 'It's only proper to serve our visitor,' he said cheerfully.
'That raid was a sign we need to head out,' said Rick.
