water on three sides of them, and a large patch of reeds on the other.
Alexis settled a little but continued to cry. "The coonspider ate the duck."
Tom remembered the ducks from a week ago. Two had landed on the sandbar island and only one flew away. But how did the coonspider get to the duck?
"Daddy."
Tom looked at the coonspiders on the peninsula. Only one was still there. It paced back and forth along the edge of the lake. Tom wondered where the other two went. He scanned along the peninsula toward the shore, looked for the other two coonspiders, but didn't see them. The reeds blocked his view of where the peninsula met the mainland. Beyond that, the chain link fence was barely visible above the reeds.
"What, baby?"
"They got out, didn't they."
Tom stared at the top of the chain link fence. The peninsula was outside of the fence. If the coonspiders were the Endangered Species on the sign, then maybe they had escaped. "Maybe, baby."
The reeds shook and rustled.
"Alexis you need to swim," Tom said.
"I don't want to."
"We have to." He backed away from the reeds, into the water. The reeds separated and Jawbreaker came out onto the sandbar. Tom backed further into the water.
Jawbreaker chittered and stepped into the water.
"Hold on, baby," Tom said. "I'll swim for us." He backed away into the lake. The water rose higher on his legs, up to his waist, filled his bellybutton.
Jawbreaker turned around and disappeared into the reeds.
Tom turned toward the far shore. He eased into the water until it was up to his neck, then pushed off of the muddy lakebed. With Alexis on his back, Tom swam across the lake. He looked from side to side as he did. Certain a coonspider or two knew how to swim and Jawbreaker had gone to get them.
Minutes passed while he swam. Alexis had become silent, but he felt the nervous shaking of her body against his. Finally he approached the far shore. Tom stopped and treaded water for a minute, searched the shore for any sign of the coonspiders. If they were able to escape an endangered species preserve, they were smart enough to walk around the lake.
Tom saw no sign of them. He swam to a spot that was cleared of reeds. There was a bench situated with a view of the lake, and Tom guessed the clearing had been setup by the park staff. He swam as close as he could, then stood and walked with Alexis on his back. When he was out of the water he turned and looked at the peninsula. There was no sign of any coonspiders.
"Alexis, we made it," he said.
"Can we go home now?"
"No, baby. I think we need to tell the police about this, but I promise after that, we will never come here again."
"Promise?"
"I promise."
Tom left a little trail of blood behind while they walked to the car. He helped Alexis into her booster seat, buckled her seatbelt, and got into the driver seat. When he drove away, as he promised, it was the last time they ever went to Hollins Lake.
***
Jawbreaker scurried along the trail, sniffing for the piece of the man's leg-flesh. For the brief moment the morsel was in his mouth, it was delicious. Jawbreaker intended on savoring as much as he could, though it was a smaller chunk than he wanted. He had pulled it from the man-thing's leg, by rights the piece was his.
He found it near the trail and picked it up with his paws, held it close to his chest. The others respected his right to the tidbit, as long as he followed the rules. Jawbreaker scurried to the tree where the blue and white plastic bin hung. He climbed the tree and continued along the branch, his spider legs clung to the bark with ease. He tried to bite the man-thing's flesh sacrifice, but his jaw was broken and he could not.
One of the other coonspiders chittered. Jawbreaker knew it was old Cloud Eye and ignored him. The flesh was Jawbreaker's by right, but he had to put a piece into the container. That was the rule. If he could not, the others would eat him. Jawbreaker needed no reminder of the rules. He looked down at old Cloud Eye and hissed.
They were all as hungry as he was, Jawbreaker saw it in their eyes. The stare of the hunters. Waiting, poised and ready to strike, until the prey made its fatal mistake. But Jawbreaker was determined not to make that mistake and become the prey. He shoved the piece of leg-flesh into the side of his mouth, along his back teeth. They were not sharp like his front teeth, they could not rip flesh as easily, but he had no other choice. He clamped down and pulled on the tidbit, his jaw flashed with pain.
The morsel tore in half. Old Cloud Eye chittered, then scurried away. Jawbreaker dropped one half of the morsel into a hole in the top of the plastic container. The Servant-man would collect this token and surely send other sacrifices to their peninsula. The remaining bit of the man's leg-flesh was small and Jawbreaker ate it slowly. He savored every morsel of flesh and drop of blood, despite his painful broken jaw. The other coonspiders watched, knowing there wasn't enough to share, eager for another sacrifice large enough to satisfy them all.
The End
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