Relentless by Tracy Kisgen
12shortstories.com: Monthly Prompt: Cut-Throat, Word Count 750
by Tracy Kisgen | Apr 24, 2019 | Prompt 4: Cut-throat
Genre : Drama
Waking from hibernation I’d found shiny eyes and sweet faces. One baby resembled his father and the other mirrored me. The boy was not graceful like his sister so I named them accordingly: Klutz and Grace.
We foraged for food but it was slim pickings. After two days the rains came and we found water and grubs, but I needed to restore my energy which meant hunting.
On the prairie I was able to catch and devour a ground squirrel. Now revitalized, we took a long hike and the cubs noticed everything that moved including a porcupine. I took Grace and Klutz to the river to fish. Other bears were gathered indicating that food was plentiful. The cubs were splashing at the edge when I spied Bart.
We hadn’t seen each other since June when Bart killed my love. Ren romanced me over a period of seven days. Ren was playful but very masculine. Other bears were promiscuous but we agreed to belong only to each other. I was happy with Ren until Bart ruined everything.
Bart was older and much bigger than the other grizzlies. Before Ren, Bart had pursued me but I’d put up a big fight. He wasn’t my type and finally got the message, turning his attention to another female. Today, his interest was rekindled and he began to posture. Ren didn’t meet my eyes as he faced off against Bart who was nearly twice his size.
Ren gave it everything he had but lost the fight. Bart turned to claim me so I ran as fast as I could. He couldn’t keep up because he was out of breath from beating Ren. Over time my fears turned to images of destroying Bart if we should meet again.
Now Bart noticed me and the cubs at the river’s edge. He didn’t mind his own business like the other grizzlies and instead trod through the forceful current. I urged my cubs onto dry ground and told them to climb a tree.
Bart approached as if we were old friends.
“Miss me?”
“No.”
“You’re mine, I won you.”
“Ren was my love.”
“He’s dead now.”
“I don’t want anyone else.”
“What you want doesn’t matter.”
“Excuse me?”
Bart looked past me to the black and brown fur balls holding onto a swaying tree trunk.
“Them yours?”
“Maybe.”
“I want you without them.”
Rising up on my hind legs I bared my teeth and gave my lowest growl.
“Get away from us. Go!”
Bart snuffled and grunted and seemed more amused than angry. He waded through the current until the water reached his back, and then I could only see his head poking above as he swam to shore on the other side.
I called the cubs down and we spent another two hours in the river, just to put on a show of standing my ground, unaffected. Then we climbed back to our den, the home I’d built at a carefully chosen location for its high elevation and hillside slope. Large trees loomed nearby with trunks tall enough for refuge.
For an hour, we practiced racing from the den to one certain tree and staying there until I called them down. Grace and Klutz responded to my commands well, and obedience could mean their survival.
Bart will find me by scent and there is nothing I can do about it. My mother taught me that males often kill cubs to put a female back in heat. Males are driven by one thing and have no sense of parenting.
At sundown the babies were sleeping, and I made my plans. I left them for a short time to find the porcupine we’d seen earlier. He would make an excellent barrier at my front door.
With quills raised, I deposited the animal onto a pile of leaves and twigs and he began to feed. I lied down and rested. Listening to the sounds of my Grace and Klutz snoring alongside a contented porcupine was strangely peaceful. If Bart arrives tonight as expected, this will be the porcupine’s last meal and he will have a violent death.
When Bart pushes his head into my den opening, the scared porcupine will greet him. Its quills will injure Bart’s mouth while I attack without limitation. When the cubs awake, I will send them to the tree while I fight off this monster. If Bart makes the mistake of coming to my den, it will not end well for him – not this time.