Reclaiming (10 page)

“I see you met my early warning system.” A voice said from a distance.

The pair stopped and stood. Headed towards them was an older man with a full salt and pepper beard and a head of hair to match. As he walked in their direction, Daniella noticed that he did so with a bit of a limp.

“Yes, we did,” Jett began. “Owen?”

The old man nodded.
“That’s what they call me. You David and Jo’s boy? The one in trouble with the law?”

“Yep, afraid so.” Jett replied.

The old man stopped a few feet away. “Nothing to be afraid of up here. ‘Cept of course mountain lions and maybe a bear or two.”

Daniella
’s eyes shot towards Jett.

“Bears huh?” Jett replied. “I didn’t think that there were bears this far south.”

“Yes sir,” Owen said. “Good foraging ground this. Plenty of fresh meat for them. It’d be hard for any bear to turn his nose up at it.”

“I see,” Jett replied as he nodded. “This is Daniella.” He said as he gestured in her direction.

Owen nodded. “Pleasure.”

Daniella smiled at him as he greeted her. It was plain to her eyes that although he might be old, he could handle himself out here and that
… was no easy feat. Upcountry living wasn’t for the faint of heart and wasn’t something Daniella could relate to
at all
. The forest would make short work of someone like her, no question about it.

But not Owen.

Though the passage of years shrouded it a bit, it was plain to her that he must have once been a strong man, perhaps a logger or ranch hand. That wouldn’t be unexpected for a man of his years. After all, it was only within the past decade or so that the way in which most folks earned a living in these parts changed.

He was a
fighter, she noticed it in the way he looked at her. Underneath the leathered skin and wrinkled brow, brilliant blue eyes sparkled back in her direction. In many ways they mirrored the color of the beautiful turquoise amulet that hung around his neck.

“Max! Diego!” Owen shouted as he focused his attention on the dogs. “Come! Leave them be.”

The dogs turned away from their welcoming committee duties and wandered back up a well worn foot trail that lead to Owen’s home.

“Alright now,” Owen said as he turned his attention back towards them. “I would suppose the two of you are about ready for chow. It’s a good hike up here. Am I right?”

Daniella and Jett nodded.

“Good,” the old man said as he turned and started to head up towards the house. “Food’s about ready.”

They made their way up the steps and into the cabin. Max and Diego took up sentry positions at either side of the front door. Owen limped ahead of them, opened the front door and entered. With each step they took, the pine floor groaned underfoot.

“This here is my place,” Owen said. “It
ain’t much but it’s all a man of my years requires. Have a seat,” he said as he motioned towards a simple oak table near the kitchen.

A delightful scent caught Daniella
’s attention. “That smells incredible.”

Owen chuckled.
“Yep, rabbit stew. Best in the county. My wife’s old recipe, God rest her soul.”

“Oh,” Daniella replied with sympathy in her tone.

Owen grabbed bowls from the cupboard. He placed them on the counter and said, “She’s gone years now. Don’t get yourself worried about it.”

“Alright.” She replied.

Jett sat down in one of the chairs. “So… Owen… How long have you been here?”

As he spoke, the old man stirred the meaty contents of the pot. Without turning back towards Jett, he replied,
“Oh, been about twenty five years or so I would suppose. Any spoons on the table?”

“I don’t see any,” Daniella replied. “Do you need me to help you with anything?”

“No, you go on and sit.” He said as he gestured towards them. “Make yourselves comfortable.”

As Daniella took her seat, Owen lifted the pot off the stove and headed towards the table. He placed it in the center and motioned for Daniella to pass her bowl. After he
’d filled all of them with stew he took a seat and they began to eat.

“This is incredible,” Daniella said. “It’s so flavorful and rich.”

Jett nodded in agreement. “Yeah, it’s delicious.”

Owen grunted in acknowledgment.
“Took me a while to get it just right after the wife passed. She had a way with food. It’ll never be as good as hers was but it suits my needs.”

The trio ate in relative silence for about ten minutes. It seems Owen was a man of few words. That didn
’t surprise Daniella. She assumed it was a by-product of being out here all alone for so long. She felt bad for the grizzled woodsman. The isolation must be overwhelming at times. As lunch wound down, Owen picked up his bowl, took it to the kitchen and then paused for a moment.

“If you want to go out alone, take a gun or the dogs.” He said. “It’s never a good idea to wander around out here in the backcountry but if you do, be smart about it. I’m going to get a bit of shuteye. We’ll talk about the next couple of days over supper tonight.”

Daniella and Jett nodded. Owen turned, headed down the hall and into a room on the left where he closed the door behind him.

“A nap sounds like a good idea to me as well.” Daniella said as she stretched. “Are you tired at all?”

“No but you go ahead and rest.” Jett replied. “I’m gonna go for a walk, clear my head.”

“Okay but be careful out there. Remember what Owen said.”

“I know, I will. I’ll see you in a little while.” He leaned in and kissed her on the cheek. Afterward, he got up and walked out of the cabin.

***

After Jett left, Daniella wandered down the hallway and as she did, she passed the bedroom Owen entered moments earlier. As she continued, she made her way to what looked to be a second bedroom at the end of the hall. She went inside and closed the door behind her.

Like the rest of the house, the decor was sparse. If Owen
’s wife was alive here at some point, it was hard to tell. Few creature comforts existed and that was doubly true when it came to the bedding. As she lay down, Daniella wriggled in place to try to find a comfortable position. The hike earlier exhausted her and so in spite of the rigidity of the mattress it wasn’t long before she drifted off to sleep.

When Daniella awoke, she felt late afternoon sun streaked across her cheek. She rubbed her eyes, stretched and climbed out of the bed. She had no idea how long she was asleep but she felt refreshed from the brief respite. As she walked down the hallway, she noticed that Owen
’s door was open and he was nowhere in sight.

“Jett? Owen?” She called out as she walked. There was no response. She continued to the front door, opened
it and walked out onto the stoop. Max and Diego were sound asleep.

“Some guard dogs…
” she muttered. Daniella continued out into the yard and as she did, she scanned the area nearby for any sign of the men.

“Jett!” She called out. “Owen!”

She assumed they were off together somewhere and so she meandered around the perimeter of the property. Daniella marveled at the beauty of the wildflowers and surrounding plant life. Just down the path, she noticed a large patch of Elephant Flowers and Yellow Paintbrush grouped together.

She walked down to get a closer look and as she neared, she saw another burst of color beyond a small hill to her left. An immense thatch of Copper Mallow Flowers, King
’s Crowns and Alpine Wildflowers beckoned her. Before long, Daniella found herself in the midst of a kaleidoscope of color. She removed her cell phone from her jeans pocket and snapped one photo after another.

“I wish I could get them all in one shot…
” she grumbled to herself as she scoured the nearby terrain for a better vantage point.

To her right was a rock outcropping that promised just the view she needed. Minutes later, she made her way up it and out onto the rock
’s ledge. She took a series of pictures and paused for a moment to admire the serenity of it all. For a brief instant, she came to understand why someone like Owen might feel at home here. It was a beautiful place.

Satisfied she
’d captured the images she wanted, she smiled and turned to head back down the rock when a horrible sound galvanized her attention. It was a low staccato growl which came from behind a nearby bush. The stand of greenery shook for a brief instant until all of a sudden, it appeared.

Daniella recoiled in fright as an immense mountain lion stood before her. She looked in every direction but knew that if she made any sudden moves, the large cat would pounce. Instead, she began to back away in the direction of the ledge. As she moved, the great beast stalked her.

Just as she reached the end of the ledge, she looked down. It was easily a ten, maybe twelve foot drop. If she jumped, she’d survive but a broken leg was a possible result. Frantic, she looked back toward the cat as it approached and screamed, “Jett! Owen! Someone help!!”

The animal stopped, bared its teeth at
her and emitted a terrible screech. As it finished, it leaned back on its haunches. Daniella’s eyes darted back and forth, desperate for any last chance of escape. With her eyes fixed on the beast poised to strike before her, she scooted to the very precipice of the ledge.

Bits of pebble and sand tumbled over the edge and she moved to its absolute furthest point. Any second it would jump at her. She had no choice. She would have to make the leap. As fear raced through her veins, she readied herself to do it when the cat finalized the decision for her.

It began to race toward her but instead of jump, Daniella froze in place, gripped by primal terror. Yellow eyes glared at her as the predator closed in but just as he drew within ten feet or so a huge blur emerged from the tree cover to her right and collided with the cat. At first, she had no clue what it was but as the dust cleared, she realized she stared at the backside of a huge grizzly bear. Daniella’s pulse raced. The cat scrambled to its feet and roared at the huge creature that impeded its feast.

“Daniella!” A voice called out from below her. Her head snapped down and to the left where she saw Jett run up the trail with Max and Diego in tow.

“Jett!” She screamed. “Help me!”

Her attention returned to the standoff in front of her. As the mountain lion regained its awareness, the bear stood up on its hind legs and roared. For what seemed like an eternity, the cat held its ground as the two beasts stared one another down. And then, almost as soon as it appeared, the mountain lion bared its teeth,
turned and disappeared back into the dense cover.

As it did, the bear dropped back down onto all fours and looked back over its shoulder at Daniella. For a split second, she thought she swapped one predator for another and readied herself to take the leap once again. But the bear growled, turned away from
her and started to walk off. To her left, Daniella saw Jett and the dogs make their way up the hill. He stopped in place when he saw the bear and aimed the shotgun at it.

“Jett, no!” Daniella screamed. “Don’t… it saved me. Let it go!”

The bear looked in Jett’s direction and roared. The dogs barked at the immense animal but nothing more. After several tense moments, Jett lowered the weapon and the bear continued into the trees until it disappeared from sight just as the mountain lion had. As it did, Jett ran the rest of the way back up to where Daniella stood.

“Jesus, are you okay?” He said as he arrived and hugged her.

“Yes, I think so.”

“What happened?”

As they walked down from the ledge and back onto the trail, Daniella recounted the events of the past few minutes.

“Daniella,” Jett began. “Owen told us not to wander off without the dogs or the gun. What were you thinking?”

“I don’t know. I wound up over here somehow, I’m sorry.”

“Hmm, it’s alright, I guess. Are you hurt at all?”

“No, I don’t think so.” She said.

“Okay, let’s get back to the house.”

Max and Amigo ran along ahead of them as they followed the trail back to the cabin. Daniella’s hands continued to shake as she walked, the adrenaline fresh in her veins. As they entered the house, Owen emerged from his bedroom.

“Taking a walk?” He asked.

“Uh, hardly…” Daniella replied. Jett helped her to sit down on the couch in the living room.

He turned back to Owen and said,
“Mountain lion got after her. I went running towards them with the dogs. By the time I reached her, a bear chased it off.”

“A bear?” Owen said. “Did you…?”

“No, I didn’t have to shoot it.” He replied. “It wandered off in the same direction as the mountain lion.”

Owen looked at Daniella.
“Well, I suppose you learned your lesson, didn’t you?”

Daniella nodded. She exhaled a deep breath and replied,
“Yeah and not one I ever want to learn again.”

“See to it then,” Owen replied. “You can’t go through life expecting to be rescued. You know?”

“Yes,” she said. “I’m sorry about that. I’ll never put myself in that situation again.”

Owen nodded.
“Well then,” he said. “I’ll get supper going. You two make yourselves comfortable.”

Over the next hour Daniella
’s nerves started to settle. That was the closest thing she’d ever had to a near death experience and she had no desire to ever repeat it. As Owen prepared their meal he told them stories about the near misses he had over the years. Daniella wasn’t sure if he did it to make her feel better or not but it did.

***

“So Owen,” Jett began as they ate dinner a couple of hours later. “How is it that you know my folks?”

“Knew ‘
em from when we both lived in Fesser’s Grove,” he replied. “Long time ago… We were a close bunch back then.” He said as his voice drifted off.

Daniella and Jett exchanged glances across the table.

“We?” Jett asked. “You… and my folks?”

“Yes,” Owen said. “Kane, too.”

“Kane?” Jett replied. “I don’t remember my parents talking about anyone named Kane before to me.”

“No, I don’t suppose you would.” Owen replied. “That was for the best. At least it was then.”

Jett swallowed another mouthful of food. “What do you mean?”

“Hmm?” The old man replied. “Oh, it’s nothing. By the way, I was sorry to hear about their boy, Wyatt. Terrible thing that.”

Daniella reached over and rubbed Jett’s shoulder.

Jett smiled at her and said,
“Thanks Owen. Losing anyone is never easy but losing my brother, well, anyway thanks.”

Owen looked at Jett.
“Your brother?” He said. “They didn’t tell you, did they boy?”

“Tell me? Tell me what?” Jett replied. “What are you talking about?”

The old man’s spoon clanked against the empty bowl. He stood from the table and started to head back into the kitchen. Before he did, he turned to Jett.

“Wyatt…” he said as he picked a bit of food from between his teeth, “wasn’t your brother.”

Jett laughed. “What? You’re crazy old man.”

Owen walked away from him.
“Might be. Plenty of folks would agree with you around here about that. Even so, you ain’t got a blood brother and that’s a fact.”

Jett shot to his feet.
“You’re wrong!” He exclaimed. “My parents adopted both of us when we were young. We were infants… from Fesser’s Grove.”

Owen placed his bowl down on the kitchen counter and turned back to Jett.
“
Half
true.”

“What?” Jett scoffed. “You aren’t making any sense at all.”

Owen looked at Jett and chuckled. He rubbed his hands together and walked past them towards the far side of the room. As he did, Jett challenged the old man’s earlier statement.

“What proof do you have anyway?” Jett demanded.

Owen didn’t reply. Instead he seemed preoccupied with the contents of a box on the floor.

Jett grew impatient.
“Hey, hello?” He said. “I am talking to you… If you are going to say things like that about me and my family, don’t you think you need to be able to back it up?”

Owen remained unresponsive and focused on his task.

Daniella sensed Jett’s budding disgust. “Jett, please, don’t…”

“Don’t
what
Daniella?” Jett snapped. “I’m not gonna sit here and let him say shit like that to me.”

As Jett
’s emotional state flared further, Owen started to hum while he scoured the contents of yet another box.

“You know what? Fuck this.” Jett said as he stood from the table. “What the hell am I doing here?
Come on, Daniella, let’s get out of here. I don’t need his
help
.”

“Jett, wait…” Daniella said.

“Big mistake boy…” Owen replied with his back towards them.

“Why is it a big mistake?” Jett said as he waived his hands dismissively in Owen’s direction. “Why the hell am I listening to you anyway? This is bullshit. We need to go, now, Daniella. I have to find out who killed my brother and end this whole thing. I don’t why my folks sent me here but it’s a huge waste of time.”

The old man grabbed a thick photo album from the box. As he stood he said, “You discovered something about yourself, didn’t you?”

“Huh? What you are you talking about now?” Jett said.

The old man turned back towards them. His once warm blue eyes seemed dark, almost black… and ominous. He clutched the photo album in his hand and started to walk towards them.

“You…” He said as he stared at Jett. “You’ve got a
secret
… don’t you son?” As he finished, he walked right up to Jett and stopped a few inches from his face. Daniella’s eyes widened as she looked on in disbelief. The thick tension in the air set her hair on end.

“Get out my face you crazy old coot.” Jett said. “You may be my elder but if you don’t back off, I’ll lay you out.”

Without breaking eye contact, the old man tossed the dusty photo album on the table.

“Do it.” Owen said.

“What?” Jett scoffed. “I would kill you.”

“And I’m right here telling you to
do it
.” Owen replied. A smirk came to his face. “Unless… you don’t have it in you.”

“Don’t have it in me?” Jett replied. A split second later, a smile broke across Jett’s face and almost as quick, the smile turned it into unbridled laughter. “You’re insane…”

But no sooner had Jett begun to roar in delight than the old man moved at him in a blur. In less than a second, he snatched Jett by the throat and crushed him against a nearby wall. The movement was so fast and violent that Daniella had no time to think, let alone react. The next thing she knew, she turned to see Owen held Jett a foot off the ground.

Around Jett
’s neck was an immense brown bear paw. Three inch long claws hovered about his exposed flesh. Daniella recoiled in disbelief as Jett dangled helpless less than five feet away. Jett flailed against the power of the old man yet every movement he made only tightened the grip upon him. As Jett gagged for air, Owen cocked his head to one side. His eyelids drew narrow as he held a man one third his age and twice his size off the floor with ease.

Daniella couldn
’t speak.

“You think this is some kind of
joke
, boy? A game?” He said as he choked Jett even harder.

Jett gasped for breath but couldn
’t reply.

“If you do, it’s best you leave here now.” He released his grip and Jett hit the floor with a heavy thud. Outside on the porch, Max and Amigo yelped at the sudden commotion. As Jett writhed in place, he choked and gagged. Daniella scrambled to her feet to help him.