Page 90 of Wilderness Daddy

“Baby?” I say, keeping my eyes on Gillie. “Go get Anders and bring rope. Watch for Red.” I hear her run off.

When he comes at me, I smile. I crack my fist against his jaw, ignoring the pain that shoots through my wrist. Gillie stumbles back, and for a second I think he might go down, black out, but after a few teetering steps, he steadies himself. I should be disappointed, but I’m not. In fact, maybe I held back a little subconsciously. I want this badly. I want to beat him for what he’s done to Akari, Lucy, and fucking nature.

Again, he comes at me. We scuffle and when he trips, he takes me down with him. We roll on the ground for a minute or maybe it’s longer. I don’t know. He gets in a few good shots in and I can taste blood and pennies. I give as good as I get but another few hits have me seeing stars. But then I’m on top, pinning him down. His eyes are wild. Grabbing his shirt front, I yank him up, raising his upper body, and smash it down. His head hits the dirt hard. And I do it again. I know I’m doing damage by the lack of clarity in his eyes but the psycho just smiles cockily. My jaw tight, once again I temper myself, roll my shoulders, gather control, and release him.

I rise. “Stay down,” I warn.

I shake my head when he jumps to his feet. This time he surprises me though and runs.

I take chase. I’m not letting him get lost in the mountains. No, he’s going to face what he’s done in a court of law and then feel the suffocation of spending some time behind bars. Hopefully a lot of time.

Branches slash at my face and tear and whip my arms and legs. I have to jump over roots and felled trees but I don’t stop until he drops from my view. It takes a few beats to realize what’s happened and by then Gillie’s screams rip through the quiet woods. Cold shivers slice through me as the thud and crack of body and bone on rock end the shrill sounds of his cry.

I run to the edge of the ravine, the sudden drop I warned Kari about. Looking over it, I see him twisted in an unnatural angle at the bottom. There’s blood, enough I need to look away.

“Daddy?” My head whips back at Kari’s voice, but I can’t see her yet.

“Don’t,” I order, looking back at the man below. “Stay there.” He’s alive, struggling for every breath, suffering and my stomach rolls, sickened by it. “You don’t need to see this.”

I don’t want Kari to be burdened with a memory like this. My baby deserves a life free of horrors. I know this will haunt me for a long time if not forever.

“What did you do?” I’m confused by the voice. I’m expecting Anders, but when I turn I see Red. He’s holding Kari’s arm, his grip sure and tight.

“It’s bad,” I say and his face pales, his grip loosens, and Kari runs for me as Red falls to his knees. I move away from the edge toward Kari. I can’t let her see him.

“What did you do to my brother?” Red’s words come out in a howl and he shakes as if he can see what I’ve seen in my expression. Kari slams against my chest and I wrap an arm around her, holding her tightly against me, keeping her face buried in my chest, whispering, “Don’t look.” I pet her hair, coo nonsensically. Hold down the sour bile that churns in my gullet.

“He’s still alive, but I’m not sure for how long. He needs help. We need to find the search and rescue team. They can chopper him out of here to a hospital. Red, you need to go to him.”

“You! He didn’t fall. You...” Anger twists his mouth. He doesn’t finish his sentence. He stumbles forward like a child on his knees before rising. He doesn’t attack us, like I expect. Instead, he passes, shuffles to the edge, peering over. The howl that follows sounds pained and eerie like the cry of a cougar or the haunting call of a lonely wolf.

I move us away. Not only in case he suddenly charges us, but to save Kari from hearing the tortured noises coming from Red. I don’t stop moving until we can no longer hear him crying. And when I do, I immediately look down at Kari.

“Let me see you,” I say, ungluing her from my side and checking her over for injury. “This will bruise for sure,” I say, tenderly touching her excoriated neck. But then I look into her eyes. Her physical damage is not my only concern. “I’ve got you.”

My hands splayed against her cheeks, I bend down to kiss her lips gently. Her eyes are wide and her face as pale as Red’s was. She’s trembling and I think she might be going into shock so I pull her tight to me again a moment before I scoop her into my arms.

“Let’s go back to the cabin.” With one last glance behind me, I carry Akari away.

“Please, I need to walk now,” she whispers against my neck. I let her down, but keep her close.

“Come ‘ere, let Daddy hold you while we walk.” Pulling her tight to my side, I tuck her under my arm and she wraps hers around my waist while pressing herself fully against me as we plod on.

“And to think I was worried about the animals.” Her voice is husky from Gillie’s rough treatment and it makes my gut tense, but I ignore it and focus on her.

“There’s only one species that truly qualifies for the definition we attach to that word.”

She looks up at me and blinks. “Agreed.”

“I can’t wait to get you home and spoil you rotten for a week straight,” I say, looking down at her.

“Home? What about the Wilderness Man?”

“He’ll be back, but I need to take care of you first.”

She frowns, but her eyes still carry the vacant expression of someone who hasn’t processed everything yet.

“And when I come back up here, baby, I’m taking you with me.”

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