Evil under the Mountain - #BookExcerpt Two
“It definitely can’t…” Ash stopped in mid-sentence and flung
out her arm to stop Miranda from going any further.
She was momentarily frozen in place, her brain frantically trying
to process the sight in front of her as hives one and two came into view.
The two honey Supers on each hive were toppled over. The
boxes were broken up and the frames were scattered. The two brood boxes on each
hive were tipped over but appeared to still be intact. She usually checked the
hives multiple times a day ever since she could remember but hadn’t checked
last night. She’d never seen anything like this.
“What could do this?” Miranda whispered.
Hearing Miranda’s voice brought Ash out of her shock. “Here,
take Sara and get behind me.”
They quickly transferred the baby sling from Ash to Miranda.
Ash pulled the 9mm out of its holster and
checked to make sure it was ready to fire.
“We need to get out of here in case whatever did this is still
in the area,” Ash said as her eyes scanned the trees surrounding the small
clearing, searching for anything lurking behind them or to the side.
Ash didn’t see anything. They took several steps backward before
the sound of crunching leaves and breaking twigs in the trees behind the hives
caught her ear. She squinted to focus on the dark spaces between the trunks.
“Oh my God, it’s a grizzly,” Ash whispered. “Move slowly and
steadily back the way we came. Don’t run no matter what as long as you’re in
view of the bear, or it will think you’re prey and give chase. Keep me between
you and the grizzly at all times.”
Ash glanced over her shoulder and could see that Miranda had
a tight hold on Sara and was walking away, glancing over her shoulder at Ash
every few steps. Ash backed up down the trail, hoping the grizzly hadn’t noticed
them.
Her hopes were dashed when it plowed through the destroyed
hives and rushed toward them. The rapid burst of speed brought the bear within
thirty yards of them. Miranda gasped, so Ash knew she saw it, but Miranda kept
moving steadily back down the trail the way they came with Sara clutched
tightly to her chest.
“Owen said this probably can’t stop a bear, so I’m just going
to fire a round near it. Maybe the noise will scare it away and, at a minimum,
it will hopefully alert someone that we’ve got a problem. Cover Sara’s ears the
best you can. This will be loud.”
Ash gave Miranda only a moment to prepare before she shot
just to the left of the bear. It reared up on its hind legs and roared. The
sound sent chills racing up her arms.
Another glance over her shoulder, and she could see Miranda
quickly putting distance between them. Ash prayed there was only one bear, and
nothing could get between her and Miranda.
Holding her ground, Ash waved her arms and yelled. For a
moment it looked like the terrifying predator might leave, but then it lowered
back to the ground and stalked steadily toward her, a low huffing-sound coming
from its chest, its massive head swinging from side to side.
“Keep walking, don’t run until you’re out of sight, and don’t
come back no matter what you hear. Get Sara out of here.”
Ash took one last glance over her shoulder, and Miranda was
nearly out of sight down the trail.
“Go, get out of here,” Ash screamed as she waved her arms at
the advancing animal.
The bear kept coming. Only twenty yards separated her from
the grizzly. She didn’t want to shoot, afraid that even if she managed to hit
it, the wound would do little damage and just make it angrier.
She yelled again, but the noise only seemed to quicken the
bear’s pace. She widened her stance, took a deep breath, and sighted down the
barrel aiming for the center of bear’s chest. When it charged to fifteen yards,
she pulled the trigger.
The bear growled and twisted sideways in agony. She took
advantage of the broadside target, estimated where its heart would be located,
and fired until she heard a click indicating the clip was empty. The bear was
still on its feet and moving toward her. She knew she hit it but wasn’t sure
how many times or if any of the shots were in a spot that would do enough
damage to bring the bear down.
Ash stowed her gun as she darted behind the closest, decent-sized
tree. She searched for a large limb to use as a weapon, but like everywhere in
the forest close to the community, the ground was clear of anything big enough to
burn.
She stole a glance around the trunk. The bear was only ten
yards away. It lumbered toward her, staggering unsteadily as it closed the
distance. She wounded it but wondered if it was enough to save her life.
Ash thought about Sara, and tears filled her eyes. She prayed
Miranda had reached safety by now. She desperately wanted to see her little
girl grow up, she couldn’t die now.
The bear nearly collided with the tree before veering right.
The sudden change in direction caused it to drop to the ground on one shoulder,
but it quickly regained its footing. Ash used the bear’s stumble as an
opportunity to abandon the useless tree and darted toward the trail. She had
told Miranda not to run, but she felt she had no other option left, so she ran.
Despite the bear’s unsteady gait, it sounded like it was gaining.
Ash was afraid to turn her head and look, so remained focused on the trail.
Each time the huge bear’s paws hit the ground it sent vibrations up Ash’s legs,
and terror through her mind.
She hadn’t run far when she heard shouts approaching up the
trail, but the low rumbling coming from the bear, heavy footfalls, and labored
breathing behind her grew louder by the second. She prayed whoever was coming was
armed and would arrive in time.
When Owen and Dillon came into view, Owen stopped and raised
his rifle. Dillon ran toward her
shouting and motioning for her to get down. She couldn’t hear
what he was yelling, but she knew Owen couldn’t get a clear shot with her
directly between him and the bear.
She veered toward Dillon and dove like Caleb used to do when
he tried to steal a base while playing baseball when they were younger. She
slid past Dillon on her stomach as he positioned himself between her and the grizzly.
Just as she hit the ground, she heard the rifle fire. The impact
with the hard ground knocked the wind out of her, so it took her a moment to
respond to Dillon.
“Are you okay?”
“I, I think so,” she gasped.
Ash pulled her hands back near her chest and pushed herself
up to her knees. She looked up at Dillon with tears in her eyes. “Sara and
Miranda?”
“Miranda reached the cabin with Sara just as we left. They’re
both safe,” Dillon replied.
He leaned down, put his hands under her arms, pulled her to
her feet, and wrapped her in a firm embrace. For a moment she just clung to
him. As her heart slowed, she stepped out of his arms and turned around. The
bullet from the powerful hunting rifle penetrated the bear’s skull, and it
dropped just ten feet in front of them.
“Let’s get to the cabin in case there’s another,” Owen said.
“We’ll gather those with rifles and come back.”
Ash said nothing as Dillon picked up his bow from the ground
where he dropped it to help her up. He carried it in one hand and placed his
other arm around her waist. Normally she would have protested that she was fine
and didn’t need help, but she wasn’t sure her legs would hold her.
Dillon led Ash down the trail while Owen covered their
retreat. As they approached the Solomon cabin, Ash could see people starting to
gather. She couldn’t face them now. All she could think about was Sara.
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