There’s no response, only the rustling of leaves in the wind.
“Those sounds came from up ahead,” she says. “But there’s so much blood right here.”
I nod, swallowing hard as I dig my heels into the horse’s flank, and we take off in the direction of the gunshot.
There’s another loud yowl. It sounds like a woman dying.
“That’s a mating call,” Sutton states.
There are intermittent trails of blood, possibly from Thunder, and we continue following it. The blood stops, though, and I can see something large and brown disappearing into the thick trees.
I pull up on my reins, seeing something in the distance. Sutton dismounts quickly, tying her horse to a nearby tree. I follow suit, my hands trembling as I secure the reins.
“Stay close,” I say, her eyes locking onto mine.
“What is that smell?” Sutton gasps as she covers her nose and mouth with her shirt. “It smells like fifty skunks or something.”
She gags and I do the same just as the smell hits me. I’ve never smelled anything like it before.
We move into the underbrush, following the trail of blood. Every step feels like an eternity, the forest closing in around us. Then, we hear it—a faint, pained groan.
“Caleb!” I shout, breaking into a run.
We find him sprawled on the ground, his face pale and his shirt torn. His leg is twisted at an unnatural angle, and claw marks rake across his side. But he’s alive. He’s breathing.
“Dad?” he rasps, his eyes fluttering open.
“I’m here,” I say, dropping to my knees beside him. “We’re here.”
Sutton is already on the phone, calling for the sheriff and the rescue team. Her voice is calm and steady.
“You’re going to be okay,” I tell Caleb, my hand gripping his tightly. “We’ve got you.”
Sutton jumps into action, ripping her shirt off as she starts to put pressure on the wound on his side.
“Do you know how to set a leg?” she asks.
I shake my head. “No.”
“We’re going to need to. If the helicopter can’t get here…” She trails off as she looks around.
I hear a four-wheeler; within minutes, my dad is screeching to a stop beside us.
“Your mom said the tracking app had him in this area. I tried calling as I was headed this way.”
My dad drops to his knees beside Caleb and takes over, holding pressure on his side.
“What happened?”
“It smelled so bad, but this thing… it came out of nowhere,” Caleb rasps in short breaths. “This…this thing came after it and…”
“Sssshhh, you can tell us later,” Sutton says. “Save your energy, buddy.”
He nods, his eyelids fluttering shut. I grab his hand in mine.
“Hold on, buddy. Help is on the way,” I tell him.
It’s like a bad dream unfolding before me, and I don’t know what’s real and what’s not. My heart is shattering as I watch my son struggling to breathe.
