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“The gun isn’t for you. Get up. The moose is gone.”
She still won’t get up.Fine.I grab her by the forearm and help Trinity to her feet. She looks like a damn mess, but she doesn’t look hurt.
“What the hell were you thinking?” I growl the second I realize she’s fine. Trinity pulls her forearm away from me. She’s wearing my clothes, including my special edition gold-colored St. Louis Blues beanie. I guess she thought my clothing would help her survive the wilderness better. Too bad she couldn’t keep her backpack together. She has the ax in her hand, which I promptly remove before she gets the wrong idea.
“I wasfine,” she says. “I could have killed that moose with my ax.”
Despite everything, she still holds her head high, like that damn moose didn’t nearly trample her ass. She’s shaking, but pretending like she has everything under control. My blood boils. I’m glad she’s alright, but this woman is absolutely wild.
“You have lost your fucking mind,” I snarl. “That moose could have killed you in an instant. The dogs probably confused it. Now come, we have to go find it.”
We can’t waste any time and I’m done dealing with Trinity’s spoiled ass. She’s helping me dress this moose whether she likes it or not.
“Are you crazy? You shot that motherfucker. Now you can take me to the airport.”
“You were going North.”
“And?” she asks with an annoyed tone.
I respond gruffly, “The airport is South.”
“I would have found my way.”
“Into a polar bear’s den most likely. Nowcome.”
“I’m not following you into the damn woods. What’s not clicking, Augustine? You are taking me to the airport where my best friend Lachelle will be waiting for me because I told her we’re going on a cruise leaving from Juneau.”
Again, Juneau is in the opposite direction from where she’s going and all the cruises leave from Seward. I bite my tongue. She’s lying.
“We shot a moose and it’s illegal and inhumane to let it go to waste. You’re coming with me and we’re butchering it. I hope you’re as strong as you look because I’ll need help carrying it back. The dogs can only carry so much.”
“Have you lost your fucking mind?!”
“No. You either follow me or risk getting eaten by a wolf. Now stop arguing. We’re wasting sunlight.”
She looks like she wants to fight, but she just mutters something about sending off a text message and then follows me and the dogs through the woods. She huffs dramatically as she struggles to keep up with me. I won’t lie, a part of me wants to punish her for this disobedience. Another part of me is genuinely in a hurry to get this done before dark, which is virtually impossible with a beast that big. I don’t expect Trinity to actually be much help but I still need her…
Maybe I need her in more ways than one. This is the longest I’ve gone without getting stinking drunk. The dogs probably appreciate the exercise and having someone to protect. They follow Trinity closely and she stops whimpering nervously when they get too close, which is progress. I explain to her that we’re following the trail of blood, which she argues over, but I just keep following it.
The dogs help and within forty minutes, I see the beast lying on the ground.Dead.Trinity sees the beast too because she lets out a yelp and hides behind me, clutching my arm. This is new since she has muttered various offensive slurs about me under her breath that I’ve had to ignore throughout our walk.
“You know how to gut a moose?”
“No! Are you crazy?” she says, her eyes widening with terror.
“It was a joke. You’re gonna learn. I can’t do this alone.”
“Ew! I’m not doing that.”
“You can’t make it back without me, Trinity. So get your ass to work. Here.”
Giving her a hunting knife might not be the best idea, but she gives me this intense look like she’s trying to prove herself to me. Whatever. I don’t care what motivates her to help me dress the moose, as long as she does it and doesn’t use that fucking knife on me.
“This is abuse,” she says.
“Right. I suppose a good man would let you get trampled and leave you out here to die from your ridiculous escape plan. I’m yourhusband.You can’t run. You can’t hide. Iwilllook after you. Now get your ass over here and stop fucking arguing.”
“I willneverstop arguing,” she says, but Trinity follows me at a quick pace, so I let her ass keep mouthing off behind me.She’d better not try that shit again.
