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The Hunting Trip
By Predator2005
Thomas Murphy awoke that morning with a terrible headache. Rolling out of bead that morning at 5:30 seemed to be too much for him, a man his age. He never knew growing old would be so hard. Just celebrating his 51st birthday, the weight of age was starting to take its toll. His hair was thinning on to and grey hair could be seen. His beard had almost officially turned grey. He had trouble seeing now, in need of glasses. He never had vision disorder in his life till now. The headaches were becoming more frequent. His wife urged him to see a doctor on many occasions but he insisted that the headaches were just normal and easily went away with some aspirin. He would eventually go, he told himself.
After fixing a fresh pot of coffee and feel the effects of the aspirin, he had enough energy to finish his packing. He was packing up for a hunting trip he and his buddies had been planning for a while now, and he was in desperate need of a break.
Soon, he had his 12-quage, double-barreled shotgun packed along with his .40 side-arm. The plan was to stay in the cabin he and his wife built after the kids moved out of the house. A great get away spot for a weekend. He also packed together his flashlight, a few cases of beer, assorted blue jeans, flannel shirts and hunting camouflage. After quietly leaving the house, he started the Ford F150 he had bought just a week ago. And looking at the clock, decided he had time to stop at the gas station for more coffee.
Darrel Haney watched as Thomas pulled up in his truck. Darrel was the first to the cabin, and it belonging to Thomas; it was locked, leaving Darrel out in the crisp, Colorado air. The cabin was located deep in the Rocky Mountains, hidden far from civilization; the closest town being 50 miles away. The area was a great spot for deer and bear hunting. Thomas frequently visited the area to get away from normal, human life and find solitude. Darrel was wiping down the barrel of his hunting rifle as the truck came to a stop.
The two had been friends since the second grade. They had been through pretty much everything together; parties, hang-overs, women, jobs, no money, drugs, highs. They were inseparable.
Darrel set his rifle to the side of him, propping it against the log he was sitting on. He stood up, brushed the pieces of bark from his back-said and gave Thomas a smirk as he climbed out of the truck.
“You son of a bitch,” Darrel laughed as he approached Thomas with his arms wide.
Giving Darrel a hug, Thomas muttered, “Ah, you still haven’t changed your language. I told you to watch it.”
“Ah, old habits die hard,” Darrel coughed.
“Yeah you’re right,” Thomas said, looking at the pack of cigarettes sitting next to the log Darrel was sitting on.
Thomas knew Darrel would never quite, because Darrel has a real problem with commitment. He could never propose to his girlfriend of 4 years until one day she decided to leave.
Darrel had really let himself go. Once being fit and lean, he was developing a gut and the muscle tone has disappeared.
“You doing alright, man?” Thomas asked.
“Well…yeah, yeah Thomas, I’m okay,” Darrel assured him.
Thomas knew something was wrong, but he knew not to pester him about it.
Just as Darrel finished his sentence, a black 1984 Mustang pulled up the lane.
Randy Geiger stepped out of the car, dressed in regular, casual style clothes; a polo, blue jeans and Adidas sneakers. He was only about 30 years old, and being Thomas’s friend and colleague at work, this was his first time hunting in the area. He had never once visited the Rocky Mountains, even though he had lived in the area for more that 12 years. He was a more built man than Darrel, still in his prime. He lifted frequently and often boasted about his muscular size at work. Thomas could admit that the man could be a jerk at times, but still, Thomas wasn’t a rude man and felt he and Randy could hang out.
Taking off his black aviator-style sun-glasses, he said with a smile,, “What’s up guys. Great day to kill some bear.”
“Yeah, it appears so,” Thomas said.
Darrel was still unfamiliar with Randy, and he approached him with his right hand out to offer a hand shake. “Hi, may names Darrel Haney.”
“Hi Darrel, Randy Geiger. I work with Tommy,” he said.
“Now damn it, Randy. I told you not to call me Tommy, I am getting way too old for that,” Thomas said, a bit frustrated.
“Ah, its okay. But no, you’re right. We all don’t stay young forever,” Randy said with a cocky attitude as he pulled his bags from the trunk of his car.
Thomas turned the key and the door to the cabin opened. Inside, it was cozy. The kitchen was connected to the living room, leaving no space for an official table, only a counter with stools. The couches were centered around a 27” screen TV with DirecTV. The television set was set not to far from the stone fire-place; a pile of wood stood off to the side of it. Mounted over the fire-place was a stuffed head of a buck Thomas had killed two years before. All along the walls were assorted stuffed animals, from fish to squirrels to deer. The cabin continued upstairs where there were three rooms, each with a dresser and double-sized bed. The master bedroom was a bit larger though, having a 20” television and a queen sized bed.
Thomas set his bagadge off to the side of the door, but kept the guns and set them on the counter of the kitchen.
“Alright guys, Darrel, you know the drill, but Randy, pick any room upstairs, but don’t take the master bedroom,” Thomas instructed.
“Yes sir,” Randy laughed.
Thomas shook his head with a smirk on his face and turned around. He unzipped the leather gun case and pulled out his weapon of choice. Clicking the barrel open, he looked down them, making sure the shafts were free from and debris. He did the same with his revolver, checking the cylinder. He slid in six shells into the cylinder and clicked it shut, setting the gun to the side with the safety still on. He put two shotgun shells in the empty barrels. He grabbed the holster for the revolver and strapped it around his waist and stuffed the gun into the holster. He fastened the strap for the shotgun and kept that on the table. He turned and nearly shit himself. There, standing at the door was the last member of the hunting trip, Kevin Hoover.
Kevin Hoover was a skinny black man. He had grown up with Thomas and Darrel, although he wasn’t as close to them as the two are. He lived over a hundred miles away, but was glad to make the trip to see his old friends. This only being the second time hunting, he was actually pretty good at scoping out targets and hitting them right on the money. He was rough looking, but not very intimidating. Whenever Thomas saw him, he had a scraggly beard and a short, nappy afro. Thomas could also tell that age had set in on his old friend.
Thomas seeing that Kevin already had a beer in his hand, said, “Sure, Kevin, you asshole, have a beer. For gods sakes, it’s only ten in the morning.
“I know, man, I know,” Kevin said after taking another swig, “But I figured I’d start a little early today.”
The two laughing, they gave each other a hug.
“How have you been, man?” Thomas asked.
“Well the wife left about two months ago and I have been slowly drifting into depression and often have thought of what it would be like to kill myself, other than that, alls good in the hood,” Kevin said laughing.
Chuckling, Thomas said, “Good, good, you know I would hate to see anything happen to you.”
“Ah man, I was only joking,” Kevin said.
“Well so was I,” Thomas said, laughing.
Kevin’s eyes shoot toward the stairs where he saw Darrel and Randy coming down them.
“Darrel!” Kevin shouted, with a big grin on his face.
“Kevin!” Darrel shouted, mimicking Kevin’s expression.
Thomas rolled the ATV out of the shed. He had his leather gun case strapped to the rack already. Randy was in the house preparing himself, and Kevin and Darrel were outside prepping their weapons for the day.
Darrel had a semi-high-powered hunting rifle. The weapon was extremely accurate and was able to bring down a full grown brown bear in three shots. Kevin had his shotgun ready; a pump-action, eight round weapon that could blast through a tree in a few shots.
“What the fuck is pretty boy doing in there?” laughed Kevin.
“Putting the gel in his hair,” mocked Darrel.
“Hey, come on now. Don’t fuck with him, he is new to this sort of stuff, so lay off,” Thomas scolded.
Still laughing, the two nodded in acceptance.
Out of the door came Randy, holding his hunting rifle in his hands. All four were dressed in camouflage, but Randy was the only one with an orange vest.
“Lets get outta here,” Thomas said. “Kevin, you and Randy take the ATV in the shed to the canyon up the trail. Me and Darrel are gonna take this one back down the road and catch the trail to the creek. You guys shouldn’t have a problem with finding bear out in the canyon. They are getting ready for hibernation and a scavenging for food along the valley. Same thing for use, they are walking the creek for fish or crayfish. Lets get the fuck going then.”
Thomas climbed onto the ATV and started it, and soon Darrel climbed on. Kevin worked on getting the other one out as The two tore out of the place, leaving a cloud of dirt.
Darrel could see the brown bear in his scope. It was a female, he could tell by it’s size. It was walking along the bank of the creek.
“Thomas I got one,” Darrel said.
Thomas slowly climbed his way toward him to see the bear though the scope.
“Kill it then, damn it,” Thomas muttered.
“Look how big it is, we would never get it back to the cabin,” Darrel argued.
“We’ll cut the meat off of it here then. Just take the shot,” Thomas urged.
Darrel nodded. He pulled back on the slide and loaded a bullet into the chamber. The bear was still in the same spot, apparently finding some sort of food in the water. Darrel closed his left eye and scrunched his right to get a better look. He fired the weapon. The bullet struck the bear in the upper neck. With a spray of blood, the bear stumbled. Again, Darrel loaded another bullet and fired, this time, striking the bear in the head. The large animal collapsed into the water, dead.
“Well, they must’ve got one,” Kevin said soon after hearing the echo of the weapon.
“Well isn’t he just fucking lucky. Man, we have been sitting here for three hours and nothing,” Randy complained.
“Do you ever have anything positive to say. Cause the only thing you have been doing here is fucking complaining about it being ‘boring’,” Kevin shot at him.
“I just wanna kill something,” Randy said, childishly.
“Bear in this region are real thick. Just wait, man. Something is bound to come though the canyon here,” Kevin answered.
Just after Kevin turned back toward the cabin, something moved off to the left of them. Something was in the brush twenty yards out, moving quite slow. Kevin slowly brought his shotgun up to his shoulder and cocked it once. The animal was still moving towards them. They were sitting in a small cleared area, the dead end of the trail that looked out over the canyon. Randy slowly rose his rifle to his shoulder and steadied it. It began to come more quickly now. Shades of brown could be seen through the foliage. Kevin decided to take a shot. With a loud blast, leaves and sticks flew everywhere. Kevin fired again, to make sure whatever he shot at was dead. He rose to his feet, made his way to the brush to find a few yards away, a brown bear cub. Kevin was more worried than upset. Kevin stumbled back and turned toward the ATV.
“What was it, man?” Randy asked.
“I killed a fucking cub,” Kevin said, going through his pockets for the keys.
“Oh shit,” Randy said.
Just then, a great commotion erupted from the woods. Bumbling through was a large brown bear, the largest Kevin had ever seen. The two stood in fear. The bear must have stood close to five feet tall, weigh in more than four hundred and fifty pounds. It was the mother. She had already found her cub, and seeing the two hunters, she became enraged. Letting out a deafening roar, Kevin acted quickly. He swung the shotgun from his back and cocked it. Steadying it in less than a few seconds, he was about to pull the trigger as the bear charged at him. Randy watched in fear as the monster charged toward his companion. Kevin fired of a shot, but the bear seemed to be unfazed. Blasting him to the ground, the bear tore at Kevin. Shacking violently in horror, Randy struggled to get the bullet into the chamber. The screams from Kevin echoed through the canyon, stirring up birds nearby. Kevin began to choke on his own blood as the bear began to tear deeper into his chest. Kevin stopped resisting, and finally the bear tore at his neck, killing him. The bears jaws and fur were covered in his blood. The bear climbed off the dead man and turned toward Randy. Shaking, he rose the gun to his shoulder as the bear charged.
Darrel and Thomas sat and could hear the faint sounds of gun-shots and drained screams.
“What the fuck do you think is going on?” Thomas said in fear of what he believed could have happened.
“Don’t worry about it, Thomas. They just shot up something and it’s screaming. That’s all,” Darrel assure.
“Yeah, I hope. Let’s finish loading this meat onto the ATV and get back to the cabin,” Thomas suggested.
“Yeah I hear yeah,” Darrel said as he finished cutting the meat of the last strip of bone.
Darrel and Thomas pull into the shed. They climb off, leaving their meat on the back of the ATV. They got out of the shed, to find that the other ATV wasn’t back and it had been nearly five hours since either of them had eaten. The two fear the worst. Darrel searched through his pockets to find his radio.
“Kevin, can you hear me, over,” Darrel said into the radio.
Nothing, just static.
“Damn it, Kevin, can you hear me, over!” Darrel yelled, frustrated. “Fuck, Tom, something is very wrong with this.
“I know, Darrel, but maybe they are just in the canyon and can’t get a good signal. I am sure they are fine. They are grown men. Besides, I don’t know what you’re worried about. You told me everything was going to be okay,” Thomas assured.
“Yeah, you are right,” Darrel said. “How about I take the ATV up the trail and see if I can find them. Just radio me back in one hour. I’ll get in touch with you if I find them.”
“That’s fine. I’ll get working on dinner then,” Thomas said.
The two worked on getting the meat off the ATV and as soon as they finished, Darrel was gone up the trail.
Darrel’s ATV came to a sudden halt. On the trail laid Kevin’s hat, a bit torn. This was the first bit of evidence found since he left the cabin over an hour ago. Just up ahead shortly was the end of the trail. If he wouldn’t find anything there, something was defiantly wrong, he thought to himself. Starting the vehicle again, he tore off up the trail.
Thomas began to grill the bear meat over and open fire, rotisserie style, on the fire just outside the cabin. Night had fallen, and the fire gave warmth to Thomas, trying to keep his body heat high. He had become worried for his friends. They had not been back, and Darrel left over an hour ago. In the midst of all these thoughts, something startled Thomas. To his left, a large object stumbled out of the brush and into the yard of the cabin. Thomas stood and picked up his weapon. The figure came running through and the porch light gave Thomas the light he needed to see. It was Randy. His clothes were caked with dry blood and the orange vest was tattered. He had no weapon. He collapsed on the ground in front of Thomas. He was bleeding pretty badly, and the loss of blood could explain him fainting. Quickly, he drug the fainted man into the house and placed him on the couch. Immediately, Thomas picked up the radio.
Darrel sat in horror. He was crying, and shinning the flashlight on the dead body of his dear friend. The animals of the woods had began eating on him. Darrel had been sitting on the log for a bit over an hour. He had been too shaken to move, or even radio Thomas. He was snapped out of the trance he was in by the frantic voice of Thomas.
“Darrel! I have Randy. He is pretty banged up. Where are you!” Thomas’s voice cracked over the radio.
Slowly, Darrel rose the radio to his face. “I…I found Kev…Kevin. He’s fucking dead, Tom. A bear must’ve done this to him,” he said, shaken.
Thomas’s stomach dropped he nearly collapsed. Thomas took a seat.
“Darrel, get your ass back here now! We are getting the hell out of here when you get back,” Thomas urged.
“Alright. I’ll be there soon,” Darrel said as his voice drained. Thomas knew he wouldn’t be there anytime soon. Thomas stood inside the cabin. The whole clearing the cabin was in was visible, lit by either the house lights or the moon. He had no way of contacting the outside world, and all he could do was wait and tend for Randy. He could not stop thinking about Kevin. He felt a tear slowly slide down his face. He began to reminisce on old times. Just then, Randy began to scream.
“Fuck! Damn it! Get the hell away!” he yelled. He curled up on the couch, staring into space. Thomas walked over to him and crouched down to his face.
“Randy. Come on man, it’s all right. You’re safe. You’re with me. Everything is gonna be fine,” Thomas assured.
“It…it was…was fallowing me,” Randy muttered through his teeth.
“What was? What happened to Kevin,” Thomas asked.
“It…it killed him. He…he’s dead,” Randy said as he began to cry.
“What! What killed him!” Thomas yelled.
“The…the fucking bear did!” Randy snapped back. “It’s gonna kill us too!”
Thomas stood up. He went to the kitchen and grabbed his shotgun and brought it with him to the door. He looked outside. He could see nothing but the darkness of the trees. The bear must have lost track of his scent, he thought, otherwise it would have been here by now. Thomas left the door and went and grabbed the radio from the counter.
“Darrel, are you there?” Thomas asked.
“Yeah…what?” Darrel said.
“Randy said a bear killed Kevin. How…how bad is he?” Thomas asked
“Pretty fucking bad,” Darrel said, almost crying.
“Where are you?” Thomas asked.
“I am still here with Kevin,” Darrel said.
“I told you we need to leave, Randy need a doctor. The sooner we get back to town, the sooner we can have someone track the bear for us. Plus, Darrel, it isn’t safe for you up there. The bear could be can anytime,” Thomas insisted.
“Alright, Tom. I’m heading back,” Darrel said.
Darrel laid a blanket over Kevin’s remains. He sluggishly made his way to the ATV. Starting it, he thought to himself, I’ll get him, Kevin, I’m gonna fucking kill that bear if it’s the last thing I do. Clicking the headlights on, Darrel tore out of the place, heading back towards the cabin.
Thomas watched the large bear sulk into the cabins yard. It was caked with blood. It was the largest bear Thomas had ever seen before, and he could see where it had been shot. He knew it wouldn’t be easy to kill it. He knew he had to do something, though. He watched the bear make his way to the camp fire. Thomas looked back at Randy before opening the door slowly. Creeping out of the house, he crouched next to the wall. The bear was fifteen yards away, and from that distance, two shots would be enough to kill him. Just then, Thomas could hear the ATV coming down the path. The bear could, too. Thomas decide to take his chance. He fired one shot. The bullet struck the bear in the upper body. A spry of blood erupted, and the bear turned in anger. Then the ATV came into the picture. The bear became enraged. Thomas wasn’t about to endanger another one of his friends. The ATV came to a burning halt. The bear had had now changed it’s focus to Darrel. Darrel leapt from the ATV to see the bear charging right at him. Unarmed, he ran around the ATV and scrambled to undo his weapon. The animal collided into the vehicle, nearly knocking it over. It made it’s way around the vehicle, sending Darrel running. Thomas steadied his gun and fired again. He must have missed. How could he have missed? he wondered. Darrel had already scrambled into the house, and Thomas decide to while the bear was fixated with the ATV.
Darrel began to go through the kitchen and living room, looking for any bit of weapon.
“Darrel, settle down. I got the only weapon in the house,” Thomas said.
Darrel began to yell violently. “Fuck!” he shouted as he leaned against the wall and slid down to seat himself on the floor. He cupped his head in his hands and began to cry. Thomas couldn’t watch his best friend in agony. He loaded two more shells into his gun and walked to the door. Nothing. The bear had seemed to leave, but it could also be hiding. With his friend in a complete mental breakdown and Randy had fainted again, he decide they weren’t going anywhere for the night. And Thomas would stand guard at the door.
The sun is what awoke Thomas early the next morning. Randy still lay on the couch and Darrel was propped against the wall, asleep. There were several can of beer around him. Thomas rubbed his eyes. His head hurt again, but that was least of his worries. He looked out the window. The bear meat was gone, and the bear was nowhere. Thomas looked on last time at his friends before venturing out into the yard. He slowly made his way off the patio. He kept his eye wide, watching every movement. With his gun to his shoulder, he was ready to fire. He could see his the vehicles ten yards away, and there was no bear. It had retreated into the woods, he thought.
He made his way back into the cabin. He awoke Darrel by splashing a cup of water into his face. The man rolled over and opened his eyes. He slowly made his way up off the floor.
“Come on, Darrel. I need you. We need to get Ryan into the truck. The bear is gone,” Thomas commanded.
Groggily, Darrel muttered, “Alright.”
The two helped Ryan up. Wrapping his arms around their shoulders, they carried him out of the house. They continued through the yard, but just feet from the truck, Darrel collapsed. To their right, the bear was standing. With rage in it’s eyes, and the men unarmed, it was about to charge. Thomas then remember that he had left his weapon in the house. Ryan lay on the ground, motionless. Darrel was frozen in fear. Thomas, the only sane person, got to his feet and ran. The bear began to charge. Then, the bear was hit in the head by a heavy stone. Darrel stood, beckoning the bear. He turned to Thomas.
“Run, get the gun, Tom!” Darrel yelled.
“But Darrel!” Thomas said, scared.
“Go, damn it!” Darrel snapped back.
The bear turned back at Darrel and charged.
Thomas grabbed the shotgun off the counter and bolted outside. By then, the bear was tearing into Darrel a few yards fro were Randy lay. Thomas ran to were he was just about five feet from the bear. He steadied the shotgun and fired. The bullet struck the bear in the side of the head. With a loud roar, the bear stumbled back and fell to the ground. Thomas continued and blasted it again in the neck. The bear lay motionless, with blood pouring from it’s wounds. It was dead.
Thomas got down to Darrel, but he was already dead. Thomas sat on the ground next to his old friend and cried.
Years Later
Thomas turned the key to the cabin. Standing there with him was Randy and a few other friends. Light filled the cabin and against the wall stood a massive object. It was the bear, standing close to ten feet. Thomas starred at the stuffed animal for a good long time.
4/10/2006 8:06:49 PM
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