Until the cut healed, she wouldn’t think of him. If she did, she would reopen the wound. She would convert the pain from mental to physical. Eventually, the physical wound would heal.
The cut got infected. Instead of taking a couple of weeks to heal, it took months. Madelyn’s body ached and she ran a fever for days. Just when she thought the infection had run its course, it flared back up.
One morning, when she finally felt better enough to go sit on the porch with a cup of hot tea, she received a surprise. Her heart sped up when she spotted movement over near the rock. A giant shape was digging in the spot where she had buried David’s hat. Without wondering how it was possible, she was suddenly sure that he had returned to set everything right.
Madelyn dropped her tea.
The mug shattered on the porch.
At the sound, the enormous grizzly bear lifted his snout and studied Madelyn across the yard. She knew the look—the bear was famished and would eat anything it found. She covered the distance to the door in two big strides while the bear streaked towards the cabin. She locked the door behind herself and heard him scratching around out there.
For days he held her hostage. Madelyn went down to the control panel so she could study the cameras. He stayed so close to the cabin that she couldn’t get an angle on him. She would open one of the slits in her wall, see just a corner of the giant animal, and then he would move off. Her best bet was to rush through the door and nail him with the scattergun, but every time she went near the door she could hear him out there sniffing around.
Locked inside, Madelyn’s imagination began to run wild. She imagined that the bear was a hairy demon, sent to drag her down to hell. She could hear him out there, banging against the wall when he scratched behind his ear, or scraping at the cabin’s foundation as he dug a spot to sleep.
It was even worse when she couldn’t spot him on the surveillance cameras. Then she was left to guess and tempted to venture outside. Eventually, she would spot the bear through one of the slits and her heart would race.
Madelyn felt like she couldn’t breathe anymore. She was trapped.
That’s when they came. The bear’s size and shape drew them in. The Roamers closed in on her cabin because of the stupid bear and there was nothing she could do about it. Madelyn crawled up into her loft and hid under her blankets as the clicking intensified.
The bear seemed oblivious. He thumped and scratched at the walls.
He roared when the things closed in.
They wouldn’t attack a bear. He wouldn’t have the right DNA. As soon as they got close enough to invade his cells, they should have turned away. But she heard a massive fight going on just outside the walls of her cabin. She pressed her hands to the sides of her head to block the noise. It still got in.
Madelyn realized that the moaning she heard was coming from her own throat.
She pulled her hands away. It was quiet.
There was no clicking, and no growling from outside.
She raced downstairs to check the panel. She didn’t see him. Back upstairs, she checked every slit until she was sure that it was clear outside.
Madelyn slid the lock open and waited until she could catch her breath. She stepped outside with the scattergun leading the way. She found the claw marks in soil. She found the tufts of hair that were caught on a tree trunk over by the old outhouse. She found David’s hat. The bear had dug it up and shredded it.
Footsteps made her spin. She wanted to run for the cabin, but she couldn’t make her legs work. The thing was stumbling out from the woods. It’s big head hung at a strange angle. Its legs didn’t seem to be moving in time with its stride. As Madelyn watched, the bear advanced to the grass and then fell to the ground.
She trotted forward, keeping the scattergun pointed at the target.
The bear had lost a lot of mass somehow. Its brown fur seemed deflated. She didn’t understand until she saw the finger poking out from underneath the paw. She looked at the glassy eyes of the predator and realized that they were dead.
Madelyn reached down, grabbed one of the round ears, and pulled. It was just a bear head and skin. David was under there. She tossed the gun aside and rolled him to his back. She cradled his head on her lap and wiped the blood from his eyes.
Madelyn’s tears fell on his face.
“What happened to you?” she asked. “I don’t understand.”
David blinked and his eyes found her. He spit out blood before he spoke.
“I heard the Hunters coming your way and I tracked them. This bear ran towards me so I shot it. I didn’t realize that they were on his tail. Before they converged on me, I managed to skin him and hide under his fur,” he said.
Madelyn stroked his cheek.
“You throw off heat like a campfire,” she said.
David took her hand and squeezed it.
“It almost worked,” he said. “They definitely didn’t give me the full workover.”
“What happened?” she asked again.
David smiled and coughed. Blood spilled from the corner of his mouth. It mixed with the clotting bear blood.
“We have to get you inside and cleaned up,” she said. She thought of him naked in the shower and more tears spilled from her eyes. She remembered the time that she should have had the most sympathy and had instead turned away.
“Don’t eat the bear,” he said. “The meat will be tainted.”
“No, of course not,” she said, shaking her head.
When she started to lift him, David expelled a heavy breath. Madelyn realized that he was gone.
She sobbed and beat a fist against the ground. David had come back from the dead and had promptly left again. This time, he was gone forever. She held him until the blood dried and started to fuse their skin together. She held him while the flies discovered the rotting bearskin and encamped on its eyes.
Madelyn kissed his salty lips for the last time.
She spent the day putting him to rest.
Chapter 23
{Departure}
Madelyn pulled herself from the loft and descended quietly, so she wouldn’t wake Elijah. The loss of David ached like a fresh wound. She went to the bathroom and barely recognized herself in the mirror. She looked creased and haggard. Over her shoulder, the glass door of the shower reminded her of the time she had found David there.
Madelyn took a deep breath and looked down at the sink. She was too weary to continue, but there was no use in trying to get any more rest.
She returned to the living room.
Despite her effort to keep quiet, Elijah had gotten up. He was tidying up—folding the blanket he had used.
“Sorry to wake you,” she said.
“Don’t be,” he said. “Seems like you had a rough night. Must be tough coming home under these circumstances.”
Madelyn nodded.
“Besides,” he said, “we have to make a plan. Assuming Harper is feeling okay, how long do you estimate it will take us to hike to the truck?”
“I’ve been thinking,” Madelyn said. “You guys should continue on without me. I can stay here and monitor that thing to see what it’s doing. I’ll figure a way to post the status of it up on the ether so you’ll have some warning if it’s really headed towards Fairbanks.”
Elijah shook his head. “No. We don’t leave people behind like that. We came to rescue Harper and that doesn’t include sending her off to find her way home alone.”
“She won’t be alone. The two of you can take care of each other.”
“Neither of us knows this area like you do. We need you, Madelyn.”
They both turned as the door opened and Harper emerged from the bedroom. Sleep had been kind to her. She looked healthy and rested compared to how she had looked the night before.
“We’re going to pack some supplies and make a run for it,” Elijah said to the girl. “You ready for that?”
“Yes,” Harper said.
“Stop,” Madelyn said. She
held up her hands as if she could contain Elijah’s presumption with the gesture. “I can’t go with you. I’m sorry, but I can’t. I belong here.”
Harper came to Madelyn and took her hands. The young woman locked eyes with Madelyn. “You can’t stay here. It’s not safe. We have to get to Fairbanks and convince everyone to go south before the danger gets there. It’s the only way we’re going to survive.”
“If I can’t survive here, then I suppose I don’t want to,” Madelyn said.
“You have to do it for us,” Elijah said. “What happens if we can’t find our way back to the truck? What happens if we’re attacked. You’re going to leave us out there without a guide?”
Madelyn considered the issue. Elijah was decent with a map and a compass, but nothing beat local knowledge. There was no doubt that they stood a better chance with her along.
“I’ll take you as far as the truck,” she said.
# # # # #
The woods had the same menace that she had sensed the day before. There was something hanging over them, ready to strike. Harper seemed to sense it too. Elijah was either blissfully unaware or really good at hiding his fear. They hiked in silence until they were almost halfway to the truck.
“When we get down to the second checkpoint, we can trigger an emergency meeting,” Harper said. She was coping with her fear by planning their next move. It was probably the best use for her nervous energy, but Madelyn still wished she would shut up.
“No,” Elijah said. “We need to report what we experienced. It’s up to Cleo to call a meeting if she sees the need.”
“This is one of those situations where words won’t convey the threat. It clearly falls under the emergency provisions,” Harper said.
“Trust the process,” Elijah said. “Trust Cleo. When your grandfather came down, she immediately gave him time at the meeting. She will take us seriously, but we have to follow the process.”
“In a way, I suppose you could consider this new threat to be good news,” Harper said. “We must be doing something right if there’s such a strong reaction, you know?”
Madelyn thought about Harper’s optimism, and how strongly Gabriel had defended it. The old man had been convinced that Harper needed to be blindly hopeful if humanity had any chance of survival. Perhaps he was correct.
“The Wisdom,” Elijah said.
Madelyn recoiled from the word. It had been a long time since she had heard it used that way.
“Yes,” Harper said, “I suppose it is.”
“No, that’s not what I’m saying,” Elijah said. “It just occurred to me that this phenomenon that we’re dealing with might have a name.”
“No,” Madelyn said.
“I don’t know,” Elijah said. “It almost makes sense.”
“This is a bad road to go down,” Madelyn said. She couldn’t put her finger on exactly why, but Elijah’s line of reasoning was beginning to make her nervous.
“What is it?” Harper asked.
Madelyn shook her head but kept her mouth shut. She didn’t know how to articulate her objection.
“Back before all this started, there was a cult who were obsessed with the end of the world,” Elijah said. “They claimed that there was a force, and they dubbed it ‘The Wisdom’. They said that it would come and cleanse the earth. They claimed that it rolled through like a giant eraser every time a species got so powerful that they were self-destructive.”
“So they thought that the Hunters were part of that force?” Harper asked.
Madelyn wanted to stop walking. She had gotten up that morning with a hollow feeling in her gut. It was coming back now.
“No,” Elijah said. “They were adamant that the Hunters were not part of The Wisdom. They claimed it was a powerful force, just shy of omnipotence. Imagine a local god.”
“Stupid fairy tale,” Madelyn said.
“I don’t know,” Elijah said. “They claimed that it would appear differently to everyone who witnessed it. They said that it would blow in like an Indian summer and then hover against the wind. It almost sounds like what we’re experiencing.” He looked up towards the sky as they walked.
“Then what?” Harper asked.
“Vengeance,” Elijah said. “Ancient retribution stuff.”
“That sounds bad,” Harper said.
Elijah tilted his head and fell silent for a second. He sounded less enthusiastic when he finally continued. “They used to say, ‘You’re never too blind to see The Wisdom.’ Even that seems to fit.”
“Why did they call it The Wisdom?” Harper asked.
“I don’t know. One name is as good as another, I suppose. I’m not sure they ever really had a specific reason for the name.”
Madelyn knew why.
“They said that wisdom is the application of good judgement,” Madelyn said. “They said that their god was going to judge us all.”
“But then nothing ever came of it?” Harper asked.
“Supposedly, it had a timetable,” Elijah said. “It would take a hundred years to scour the Earth. Before long, all of the followers were taken by Hunters. It’s hard to worry about theoretical threats when the concrete ones are killing everyone around you.”
Harper looked up too. “I suppose it’s as good a name as any other.” She tasted the words in her mouth. “The Wisdom.”
“No,” Madelyn said. “It’s a terrible name. Whatever is up there is just a simple predator, like any other. It doesn’t have a magical explanation or any benevolent mission. It’s moving through the world trying to survive, like all the rest of us. Don’t invest it with some mythical purpose or you won’t be able to react to it for what it is.”
“And what’s that?” Elijah asked. “How can you profess to know anything about it?”
“I don’t,” Madelyn said. “That’s the point. We have to maintain our position of ignorance so we don’t do something stupid. Don’t assume that you know anything about it or you’ll end up a victim.”
With that, they walked in silence.
# # # # #
“Why did you hide the truck?” Madelyn asked.
“Pardon?” Harper asked.
“This is where I found the truck, but it’s not where you and I left it. Why did you and Gabriel move it?”
“I wasn’t a part of that,” Harper said. “You’ll have to ask him.”
Madelyn looked to Elijah. They both seemed to realize the same thing at the same time. When they had told Harper about her grandfather’s death, the young woman had been pretty sick. There was no telling how much of that she remembered. Now that she was feeling better, she would have to be told again.
“I should get back,” Madelyn said. “I want some distance before you go starting this thing up.”
“What if we can’t get it running?” Elijah asked. “We’ll need your help if we can’t drive out of here.”
“I can find the right roads,” Harper said.
“Perhaps, but we won’t be taking roads if we’re not in the vehicle,” Elijah said.
Madelyn held up her hands to stop him and then pointed. “I’m just going to climb up to the top of that ridge. I’ll wait for ten minutes. If I don’t hear the truck start up and drive away, I’ll come back and help you figure out which way you should head down the mountain.”
Elijah thought about this for a second and then nodded.
“Okay,” he said.
Madelyn turned to leave and then reconsidered. She gave Harper and Elijah both a quick hug and then broke away. She could feel their eyes on her as she hurried through the center of Circle Poke. The old town was full of ghosts. Madelyn was almost afraid to turn back to see if Harper and Elijah had become ghosts as well.
She didn’t even make it to the top of the ridge before she heard the old truck rumble to life and then fade away. Madelyn picked up her pace. Before long she was breathing hard and had an uncomfortable heat building in her chest. Madelyn pushed through. Everything would be okay once she made it s
afely back to her cabin.
Her tears began to flow. At first, she thought of Harper. The young woman had forgotten or repressed the news of her grandfather’s death. Madelyn knew what that was like. When she had heard about her grandmother’s passing, Madelyn had denied it for weeks. The old woman had been too vital and strong. The idea that she had succumbed was ridiculous. Harper had a tough road ahead.
Madelyn realized that Harper wasn’t the only reason she was sad.
Her memories of David had mixed with her thoughts of Elijah. Somehow the two men were becoming intertwined in her brain. They were so different, but somehow occupied similar spaces in her mind.
Madelyn didn’t want to open her David feelings again. She wanted to be done with them. Ever since she had pulled his skull from the incinerator, his presence had been closing in. More ghosts.
A noise snapped her back to the present.
It sounded like a wave crashing on a beach. It was just the one quick wash of noise and then nothing. The normal chatter of birds came back slowly. Every living thing in the forest had been shocked into silence for a moment.
Madelyn made her feet move again.
She walked a few paces and then broke into a run.
Chapter 24
{Ghosts}
Madelyn burst through the door of the cabin and slammed it behind herself. She couldn’t catch her breath. The air would get as far as her vocal cords and then she would cough it back up. With the door locked—both electronically and mechanically—she staggered for the bathroom.
She splashed cold water on her face as she panted. The look of herself in the mirror frightened her more. Her skin was waxy and pale. Here eyes were wide and crazy. Madelyn slammed the door to the bathroom and collapsed to her knees. Another wave of coughing nearly made her vomit for real. She got herself under control as a sharp pain jabbed in her side.
They had chased her all the way home.
Phantom noises appeared in the forest as she ran. Footsteps trailed her. Lonely voices called from the trees.
Madelyn turned at a glimpse of movement. A shadow under the bathroom door shifted—there was someone in her cabin.
Rummaging through her bathroom turned up nothing more deadly than nail clippers and a hairbrush. She pulled a spray bottle of cleanser from under the sink and held it in front of herself as she turned the doorknob.