the scattered patches of high grass and thickets.
Halfway
out, movement from the far right caught his eye. He turned his head and froze.
Duncan and Ronan, noses to the ground, loped in the opposite direction. Brain
gears whirled and locked. The tiger had circled behind him. Janesh broke for
the tree line still two hundred yards away. Spooked antelope hooves drummed for
the distant horizon. Superb conditioning injected oxygen-rich blood into legs
that blurred the distance. He spun behind a tree and looked back.
Tigers
reached speeds up to forty-five mph but their size limited the distance to
fifty, sixty yards. If its prey took off beyond that range, tigers didn’t
bother giving chase. Sure enough, Janesh glimpsed a flash of orange and black
just inside the opposite trees. It strode out from the shade. Foreboding,
malevolent eyes laser-locked on him. From the left, Duncan and Ronan sounded
the chase. The tiger snarled and bared its huge fangs before disappearing into
the forest’s gloom. Janesh raced back across the now empty meadow. They had
him. After nine fruitless days he would not lose the trail.
Four
hours later the three stood on the bank of a narrow tributary that fed the
lake. They’d lost the trail. Powerful swimmers, the tiger had sought refuge in
the water. Dusk wanted to descend. At sunrise they’d pick up the trail on the
other side. He did not relish tracking a tiger at night and stumbling into a
leopard.
Darkness
left him no longer able to distinguish between edible berries and the poisonous
ones. Before full night set in he returned to the river for a drink, wary of
any lurking marsh crocodiles. When his thirst slacked, he climbed into a tree
he’d spotted while foraging. Two massive branches grew at an angle that allowed
him to wedge in against the trunk. With falling out eliminated, only a hungry
python might pose a problem.
Janesh
slowed his breathing and once again entered a meditative state. While not
sleep, it allowed his ears to remain alert. Fed and content, Duncan and Ronan
returned from their hunt. Curled around the tree’s base, they too kept alert
ears.
*
* *
Orange
singed the eastern sky but the tributary’s dark waters remained murky. Janesh
scanned its placid surface. Behind him Duncan and Ronan paced, skittish over
his intention. All dogs could swim though his companions didn’t like it. A year
ago a crocodile waiting on a river bed, surfaced, grabbed Duncan by the head,
then submerged to drown its prey. Its refusal to let the dog go allowed Janesh
to plunge a knife into its soft underbelly and gut the reptile. While its
brethren tore the dead croc apart, Janesh swam Duncan back to shore, a
frightened Ronan close behind. Duncan’s struggle to escape had opened a
head-to-nose tear. Now only devotion and loyalty permitted the coming plunge.
Janesh
waited for their confidence to build. Though inner calm left no room for
impatience, he wanted to cross now. The cool morning air insured the coldblooded
marsh crocodiles inhabiting the river remained sluggish and less alert. Ronan,
ever first, approached the water’s edge. A futile sniff tried to detect
anything amiss. Spear strapped to his back, Janesh walked into the river. Ronan
followed. Duncan hesitated a moment longer before joining his pack. When the
water reached his chest, Janesh raised his eyes in prayer. “Protect me, Lord
Vishnu, that I may protect my friends. But if not take me not them.”
Strong,
silent strokes powered him toward the opposite bank a scant sixty yards away.
His feet paddled beneath the surface to avoid any splash. Duncan and Ronan made
no sound. Neither did the quiet morning.
When
a stroke touched bottom, Janesh stood and thanked the Preserver. Duncan and
Ronan rushed ahead to shake their coats dry. He knelt to pat and scratch while
they pressed against him and licked his face. Bonds reaffirmed, the two
answered a question nagging him. They trotted off downstream before pausing to
look back and
Halfway
out, movement from the far right caught his eye. He turned his head and froze.
Duncan and Ronan, noses to the ground, loped in the opposite direction. Brain
gears whirled and locked. The tiger had circled behind him. Janesh broke for
the tree line still two hundred yards away. Spooked antelope hooves drummed for
the distant horizon. Superb conditioning injected oxygen-rich blood into legs
that blurred the distance. He spun behind a tree and looked back.
Tigers
reached speeds up to forty-five mph but their size limited the distance to
fifty, sixty yards. If its prey took off beyond that range, tigers didn’t
bother giving chase. Sure enough, Janesh glimpsed a flash of orange and black
just inside the opposite trees. It strode out from the shade. Foreboding,
malevolent eyes laser-locked on him. From the left, Duncan and Ronan sounded
the chase. The tiger snarled and bared its huge fangs before disappearing into
the forest’s gloom. Janesh raced back across the now empty meadow. They had
him. After nine fruitless days he would not lose the trail.
Four
hours later the three stood on the bank of a narrow tributary that fed the
lake. They’d lost the trail. Powerful swimmers, the tiger had sought refuge in
the water. Dusk wanted to descend. At sunrise they’d pick up the trail on the
other side. He did not relish tracking a tiger at night and stumbling into a
leopard.
Darkness
left him no longer able to distinguish between edible berries and the poisonous
ones. Before full night set in he returned to the river for a drink, wary of
any lurking marsh crocodiles. When his thirst slacked, he climbed into a tree
he’d spotted while foraging. Two massive branches grew at an angle that allowed
him to wedge in against the trunk. With falling out eliminated, only a hungry
python might pose a problem.
Janesh
slowed his breathing and once again entered a meditative state. While not
sleep, it allowed his ears to remain alert. Fed and content, Duncan and Ronan
returned from their hunt. Curled around the tree’s base, they too kept alert
ears.
*
* *
Orange
singed the eastern sky but the tributary’s dark waters remained murky. Janesh
scanned its placid surface. Behind him Duncan and Ronan paced, skittish over
his intention. All dogs could swim though his companions didn’t like it. A year
ago a crocodile waiting on a river bed, surfaced, grabbed Duncan by the head,
then submerged to drown its prey. Its refusal to let the dog go allowed Janesh
to plunge a knife into its soft underbelly and gut the reptile. While its
brethren tore the dead croc apart, Janesh swam Duncan back to shore, a
frightened Ronan close behind. Duncan’s struggle to escape had opened a
head-to-nose tear. Now only devotion and loyalty permitted the coming plunge.
Janesh
waited for their confidence to build. Though inner calm left no room for
impatience, he wanted to cross now. The cool morning air insured the coldblooded
marsh crocodiles inhabiting the river remained sluggish and less alert. Ronan,
ever first, approached the water’s edge. A futile sniff tried to detect
anything amiss. Spear strapped to his back, Janesh walked into the river. Ronan
followed. Duncan hesitated a moment longer before joining his pack. When the
water reached his chest, Janesh raised his eyes in prayer. “Protect me, Lord
Vishnu, that I may protect my friends. But if not take me not them.”
Strong,
silent strokes powered him toward the opposite bank a scant sixty yards away.
His feet paddled beneath the surface to avoid any splash. Duncan and Ronan made
no sound. Neither did the quiet morning.
When
a stroke touched bottom, Janesh stood and thanked the Preserver. Duncan and
Ronan rushed ahead to shake their coats dry. He knelt to pat and scratch while
they pressed against him and licked his face. Bonds reaffirmed, the two
answered a question nagging him. They trotted off downstream before pausing to
look back and
Similar Books
