There was a tall tree with low branches in front of him and Eric leapt for the nearest branch, wrapping his arms around it and swinging his legs up. The beast flew into the air, its jaws wide, and snapped at Eric’s legs but missed and bit into the branch, tearing half of it down with a loud crunch. Eric climbed to his knees and then up another branch, and then another. He looked down to see the creature eyeing him. It had intelligent eyes that sent a chill up Eric’s back. You could tell it was thinking as it watched you.
The beast crouched and then vaulted onto the tree, its claws catching the bark as it climbed to the first branch. Eric watched in horror as it began climbing to the next branch.
Eric climbed higher, the bark cutting his hands. When he neared the top he looked down to see the beast’s face staring back at him. The tree was leaning to the side under its weight but still the creature climbed.
Eric got to the top and the hyena was right behind him. He pulled the handgun Jalani had given him and took aim. He fired once and missed but the second shot hit the animal right above its right shoulder blade. The beast was caught off balance and fell on the branch underneath him.
A thunderous crackling echoed in the air as the tree nearly splintered in half. The creature crashed through the branches and onto the ground. The violent swaying of the tree made Eric lose his grip and he hit the ground hard. He was next to the creature as it lay dazed. He stood up and pain shot through his ankle but he began to limp away as the hyena stood, a deep growl contorting its face with anger.
Eric came into a clearing and he darted for a precipice a couple dozen yards away. The beast was behind him, gaining on him with every second.
It was snarling wildly and drool sopped from its mouth. It almost had its prey now. The smell of its sweat was intoxicating and it opened its mouth, anticipating the warm flow of blood down its throat.
Eric flew off the edge of the small cliff and rolled down the steep side of the plateau. The gun flew out of his hand in the tumble and slid down a dozen feet before coming to a stop. As he rolled, his body absorbed the impact of rocks and stray logs but he saw the creature chasing after him, carefully managing its descent down the hill.
Eric crashed into the ground at the base of the hill, battered and in pain. He tried to rise, but his ankle gave out; it was strained and had already started to swell. He collapsed onto his stomach as the massive hyena stood over him, its mouth clamping down on his ribcage like a vice.
A shot tore through the air and the beast yelped as a bullet from William’s rifle pierced its back leg. Another shot missed and hit the dirt ahead. The beast turned and let out a deep roar, anger and hatred filling its eyes. Another round struck its paw and it roared violently before sprinting into some nearby grass.
William ran down the hill, sliding on his backside most of the way. He got down to where Eric was and bent over him. He put his hand on Eric and he screamed and batted it away, unsure what it was.
“It’s all right,” William said. “He’s-”
A roar and trembling in the ground as the hyena raced out of a thicket of long grass and leapt at William. He held up his rifle and the beast bit down, crunching the wood and steel as if it were biting through a twig.
Another gunshot, this one more heavily bassed. Then another and another. William flew off his feet and landed on his back, a gaping hole in his chest draining his body of blood. The hyena roared and lunged, but a series of shots filled the air and it collapsed on the ground not far from Eric.
Thomas walked toward the beast, four tribesmen with rifles behind him. He held the barrel of the rifle over the beast’s heart and pulled the trigger. Watching the blood flow into the dirt and stain it black. Eric saw William vomiting blood. He stood up and limped over to him, sharp pain shooting through his ankle and ribs.
“Will, come on. We’re gonna get you help,” He went to move him and William let out a scream of pain. “Come on Will,” Eric said, tears filling his eyes, “come on, you’re gonna be okay.”
William looked at him, a smile parting his bloodied lips. He reached up, touching Eric’s cheek and leaving a smear of blood before life drained from his eyes, and his gurgled breathing stopped.
“No!” Eric shouted. He went to pick him up but the weight was too much and he collapsed on the ground next to him. “No! Will, come on. You’re not gonna die, come on!” “Let him go boy,” Thomas said. Eric looked up to him, his eyes lit with rage. “You fucking killed him!” “We were trying to shoot the beast.” “You don’t miss, you fucking killed him.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.” He knelt down and picked Eric up by the arm, placing it over his neck to bear his weight. “People die here, Eric.” Thomas closed his eyes and said a quick prayer. He told the tribesmen to bury William and then said, “Come on, we’ll get you to a doctor.”
CHAPTER
54
Jalani had driven Douglas and Sandra to the village after one of the tribesman fetched them and told them the news. They came onto a village in celebration, the men that had hunted with Thomas being hailed as warriors.
Fires were lit and mountains of flesh were being cooked as a feast was anticipated, though many of the villagers would refuse to eat the meat. The hide of the beast hung on a vine tied between two trees and appeared as large as a tent. Its head was mounted on a post and children were throwing stones at it. The primitive music of the tribe-little more than plucked strings on handmade sitars and leather-bound tablas-was wailing in the late afternoon sun.
Eric sat with a primitive brace made of wood and rope around his ankle. The pain was soothed with a type of leaf the medicine man had given him to chew. It was dizzying and obviously a narcotic but it felt pleasant and made him feel warm in his gut. He watched Thomas tell Sandra, and her cold distant reaction. He watched Douglas sit next to a fire and pull out a bottle of liquor and begin passing it around to the hunters that had killed the great beast.
Jalani walked to him and smiled. “They now consider you a man,” she said.
He didn’t feel like a man. He didn’t feel like much of anything. Just a cold, gray weight in his belly and dizziness in his head. William was a good man; he didn’t deserve to die like that. Eric understood it was a mistake but he didn’t deserve that. He’d saved Eric’s life and now he was gone. “I didn’t kill it.”
“No, but you showed courage in the hunt. That is what is important. To have courage in the face of death. That is what a warrior is.” Jalani awaited a response but Eric gave none so she leaned down and gently kissed his cheek. “I am glad you are safe.” She walked back to the celebration.
The feast got underway and the meat was skewered on smooth sticks and passed around. Though vegetarian, the elders of the village had made an exception for this animal as they believed they would absorb its power. There was a boiling pot in which the beast’s heart was taken out and carefully cut as the medicine man of the village chanted a prayer. Pieces of the heart were given to all the hunters, the largest portion going to Thomas. He ate the heart with his eyes closed, blood dripping down his chin like one of his savage ancestors. Afterwards he rose and walked to where Eric was seated.
“He was a good man, but bad things often happen out here,” Thomas said, sitting down next to him.
“Look me in the eye and tell me you didn’t kill him on purpose.”
Surprise splashed across Thomas’s face, but only for a moment. He looked Eric in the eyes and said, “I did not mean to kill that man. He was my friend, Eric. And what possible reason would I have for doing so? He was a paying customer, a good paying customer.
“The truth is the tribesmen are not as well trained on rifles as we are. It’s a new technology to them and they take it too lightly. But I take full responsibility. I should not have told them to fire when you two were in harm’s way. I’m sorry I caused you this pain.”