Susan’s Secret. Ch 1. The stranger in the forest. Fictional story

The beginning

Almost a year ago I wrote a short story for a contest that would originate a great story that I have been writing for quite some time. And that I have decided to publish little by little since I still have half of the whole story written. This is one of the many stories hidden in my mind that wish to be embodied in the blockchain.

I'll start with Susan's secret and then with the others, although I may publish the chapters of the others I've been hiding, perhaps out of fear or insecurity. But I suppose that a writer learns, like any other activity or skill, practicing constantly or in this case writing constantly.

It is possible that this first chapter captures me the annoying cat (I say this to it with affection) and I mean the feline that captures the plagiarism (you know of whom I speak). The story has a lot to do with the first story written more than 11 months ago. I hope it won’t.

So, let’s begin with the first chapter.

Source

Susan’s Secret. Ch 1. The stranger in the forest.

From time to time nature finds a way to counteract the destructive effect of human beings, often in such a devastating way that its consequences are engraved in the depths of the hearts of human beings, including their next generations.

However, in this story, nature decided to take a more subtle path to control the effect, not to say the harm, of humankind over the environment.

I usually have monologues in my mind, especially when the wait is long.

I like to hunt for sport, although most people deny that hunting is a sport. I love weapons and the power that it feels to carry them. I have a Timber Classic Marlin 336C and a Remington 700 Sendero, I could never hunt an elephant with them, but they were effective in doing their job. My favorite, the Glock 17, said that I would not find a better home defense pistol or scope gun. And, obviously, a couple of revolvers kept at home, S&W Governor (.410 shotgun shells) and Taurus Protector (.357), just in case.

Human beings, more specifically, men, since the beginning of time have felt the need to defend themselves against the adversities of the world that surrounds them and obtain sustenance for their families; for this, they have created the tools, let's call them weapons, more and more effective to fulfill these objectives. Thus becoming the dominant species on the planet. Hunting since then has been a fundamental part of humankind and the way of man's life. Hunt or be hunted. At least, that "was" my fundamental thought ...

The thud caused by the folders falling on the desk took me out of my thoughts.

The license sign, Emma Simpson, trembled at the blow.

— Welcome again to FORESTAL AND SAWN LUMBER Inc.

With a big smile, she gave me a strong handshake.

— You are Mr. Samuel Coleman, isn't it? — she asked doubtfully.

— That's right. You can call me Sam.

The human resource girl was a very charming redhead, with big green eyes hidden behind a pair of round glasses.

She started rummaging through all the folders she brought to the desk while chewing on her lower lip. Finally, after a couple of minutes, she smiled to herself when she found what she was looking for. She nodded as she'd read my file.

— Congratulations! Your request has been approved.

— Excellent — I replied with a smile.

She took out two contracts and passed them to me.

— You must sign your name and today's date at the end of each document.

Her desk phone rang and while the girl answered, I read the contracts before signing them.

Finally, when she hung up the call, I delivered the signed documents. The girl smiled again, got up and left the office.

On the walls were posters with business safety regulations, proper use of ear covers, gloves, industrial boots, and other items.

She reappeared and handed me a copy of the contract.

— You must appear at 2 o'clock in the afternoon at the office of Mr. William Anderson, hunters supervisor, who is in charge of imparting induction courses for beginners.

I nodded. She again congratulated me on becoming a new member of the FORESTAL AND SAWN LUMBER family. I thanked her for the good news and I left the office. I returned to my Jeep. I took a look at my watch. There were still about 5 hours left for the meeting. So I decided to go to Mike's food truck, and resume my breakfast.

— Hey, Mike! — I shouted from my jeep when I parked near his food truck.

— Sam! — he replied cheerfully.

— I have burgers and cokes! — he shouted from his end

— You have read my mind, my friend — I answered

After serving the order, Mike asked me

— Did they take you in?

— Affirmative! — I replied.

— We have to celebrate this! — Mike shouted again — Breakfast is on the house!

Mike was a very expressive guy. His effusiveness always made me feel at home. He was happy because he knew that I wouldn't return to my old job in the capital city. I was tired of being a lawyer, a vile trade, often a dirty, dehumanizing and cruel job that paid extremely well.

Thoughts that were dissipated when I gave my first bite to such a juicy burger. I closed my eyes to taste it better, the combination of meat, tomato, lettuce, and Mike's secret sauces was a carnival for my palate. I opened my eyes again and Mike watched me with a smile from ear to ear from his trailer.

I nodded and Mike broke into laughter according to my expression for his culinary art.

My luck was changing; being hired by the sawmill company would give me the opportunity to spend more time outdoors, in contact with nature and away from the hustle and pollution of the city. And best of all, doing my favorite entertainment, hunting, or at least was what I thought when referring to the word entertainment ...

— Very well, gentlemen, we will make this a short meeting — expressed Mr. William in his harsh voice.

We were meeting in a conference room, four new workers, including me. Three of them were red-haired and with family traits, so I assumed they would be family.

Mr. William stood in front of us, behind a projection screen. He activated a remote control and a map of the area appeared behind him.

— My name is William Anderson, you can call me Mr. Will.

Mr. Will, he was an afro-american man and by his behavior, he was surely a war veteran or ex-soldier.

— Your main mission will be to patrol the zones surrounding the felling area, specifically zone A, B, and C — pointing on the screen.

— And your main function will be to take away or hunt any predators that endanger the workers of the company. Among these: pumas, bears, and wolves. Especially the wolves.

He changed the slide again and a series of articles appeared behind him.

— Each one of you will have wireless communication equipment, an all-terrain motorized vehicle, rifle ammunition and a GPS device with the included map of the area. For the latter, you should read the user manual for its correct use.

— In case of a sighting of predators or any emergencies, you should contact the operations center (O.C.) through channel 6 on your communication devices. They will send the necessary assistance or help as soon as possible.

— This company has 24-hour surveillance drones, which will expand the surveillance zone. If required, hunters who are active must respond to orders issued by the O.C.

Finally, he welcomed us to the company, assigned us our work schedules and told us that we should do the business safety induction course (safety standards in the work area and things like that) before start working.

The time passed relatively quickly, while I got used to the schedules and rotations assigned by the company. Sometimes we had night shifts. For which we were assigned night vision equipment (That was awesome!).

Generally, the sightings of predators were not many, so there were no attacks on the sawmill. However, due to the increase in the value of the wood, the company decided to increase their inventories and reach twice the amount obtained last year. So not only extended the work period but also expanded their borders into virgin or less explored zone into the forest, with the purpose of cutting down more trees.

The personnel in charge of the custody of the loggers consisted of a dozen hunters. However, every day only 6 of us would be assigned to watch the area, helped by O.C. drones or as we used to call them, the "God's Eyes".

Most of my hunting mates were good guys. Among them were the three redheads coming from the south, the McAllisters, who received the beginner training with me. Supervisor William, the oldest of all, a man who could sniff a deer more than 100 yards away. The mute Joe, we call him that because he had never spoken any word. Richard (Dick), who hunted with a crossbow, the most silent hunter I have ever known. Jack, our tracker, who we thought had Cherokee blood, although none of us knew his past, and finally Charles, the rookie. We knew little about him, most of us thought he was running away from the law or maybe he was tired of living in the stress of the city like me.

Unfortunately, as usual, there are always in the group characters who usually want to submit to others, impose their own laws, perhaps because of seniority or perhaps fear, actually, I had no idea. However, while I was out of their sights, I'd have no problem with them. The Blacks, three of the roughest and most unreliable guys I've ever met; among them, Dan, the ringleader.

The Blacks had some influence in the company, perhaps because they were distant relatives of some other minor senior partner of the company and for that reason, they were never penalized for their actions.

It was a Friday morning when I was assigned to enter the unknown zones of the forest, with the aim of making a reconnaissance of the area for future logging. To my bad luck, that day I had to work with the Blacks. We would start the journey early. We subdivided the area into small areas and assigned them randomly.

When I entered that area of the forest, I could perceive the refreshing smell of the leaves of the pines flooding the place where I walked. The ocher color painted the scene, the autumn was making its presence. The days became shorter. I decided to slow down my vehicle in order to appreciate the zone in detail. From where I was, I could barely see the blue of the sky, the trees stretched out like long arms trying to reach the sun. The small beams of light that managed to cross the vegetation, gave a magical aspect to the forest.

If I kept going deeper, I would surely find the entrance to Narnia. I laughed to myself.

I still didn't get any communication to the other hunters.

The sun was hidden early. Normally I loaded my tent and provisions in case I had to stay for a couple of days, so I didn't pay much attention to the time. I stopped my motorbike and tried to communicate through the communicator one more time with the other hunters but they didn't answer. I assumed they would have taken the day as usual, for being Friday. It was to be expected to see that the "God's Eyes" were closed. So, I decided to finish my journey and I was going to turn on my vehicle and beginning the way back, but something out of the ordinary stopped me.

I got out of my vehicle, pulled out my backpack and unsheathed my Marlin rifle. I went much deeper into the forest, this time on foot. It was the characteristic sound of a river that had caught my attention. I checked the map again, but there was no sign of any river in it. I decided to do a more extensive reconnaissance of the area. I registered my coordinates in the GPS equipment and then approached cautiously until I reached the riverbank.

I could see a pack of wolves on the other side. It would be a good opportunity to test the effectiveness of my new rifle sight. However, an unexpected event prevented me from taking advantage of it. I had them in my sights when I was distracted by the sound of a moan... a human one.

It was the first time I saw her. At first, I thought my imagination was mocking me. Maybe I had dehydrated myself by not drinking enough water during the day. I approached suspiciously without attracting the attention of the wolves, and indeed what I had seen was a human being, a girl to be more precise. Her body was lying on the leaves of a large Maple tree. I hurried to get to her. She was curled up in a ball. And for some reason she was completely naked, shivering with cold.

She opened her eyes to give me a look and she went unconscious.

I covered her immediately with my jacket; I took some blankets from my backpack and wrapped her legs. I made an effort to lift her into my arms as she was heavier than she seemed, I managed to get to my motor vehicle as soon as possible.

The pack of wolves had disappeared.

I tried to get help on channel 6, but I haven't got any response.

— Don't worry, I'll take you to a safe place — I warned her while I quickly made my way back.

I was not sure if she heard me, but her breathing told me she was still alive.

The trip to the company's clinic would be too long, so I decided to take her directly to my hut and call for help. Fortunately, the lights on the cabin eased me.

When I arrived, I gave a few kicks to the door.

— Matilda! Open the door, it's an emergency! — I shouted emphatically.

Matilda was an old lady who kept the cabin in good condition the days I went to the city or when I spent a lot of time hunting, she didn't come all the time. Fortunately, today she was here.

— Oh my God! Sam! What has happened to that girl?

— I have no idea, I found her in the forest like that — I answered

— Let's take her close to the heat of the fireplace. I'm going for some blankets — advised Matilda.

I placed it on the old sofa in front of the fireplace. We covered her with several blankets and gave her water. Her temperature was higher than normal. Maybe that's why she could endure the cold weather of the forest, I guessed.

We called the ranger Hank to ask for his help. But it was in vain. We would wait until the next morning to take her to the hospital.

Matilda glanced at her body in search of some kind of wound or fracture but found none.

I sat all night long next to her, fanning the fire in the fireplace.

It was 4 o'clock in the morning when Matilda came quietly towards me.

— How is the girl? — she whispered

— She is still asleep, however, her temperature is already normal — I answered.

— Thank God — she answered relieved

I felt the gratifying smell of fresh coffee

— I made you some coffee

I thanked her with a big smile.

— I'll go back to the town and in my way, I'll warn Hank about the situation and I'll also bring some of my daughters clothes, to see if any of them will fit her.

— I'll be back as soon as possible. Don't worry she seems to be a strong woman.

I nodded and she left the hut.

I kept watching the stranger on my couch, hypnotized by the rhythm of her almost imperceptible breathing. Wondering who was her and what the hell she was doing in that place.

Why she was naked and how she had survived the dangers of the forest.

I was sure that Hank would soon arrive and help me solve this mystery.

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So, this is the end of my first chapter.

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