Free with You

Sammy POV “Is it just me or does the hike feel harder to trek today?” I keep looking down at my feet where the mixture of rainfall and mud has seeped over the collar of my combat boots. And…now onto my cargo pants. Great. “Well, f**k… can’t see a thing now” I try to look straight ahead, but the heavy drops of rain are now hanging on my lashes practically blinding me. I squeeze the water out of the strips of hair that are poking out of my baseball ball cap. Every step I take feels heavier, as I make my way up the trail with my dog, Kubo, who is pacing between my left and right. Kubo is my only real companion these days. He is a seven year old German Shepherd but still acts as a pup. His coat is drenched but he’s enjoying himself with the weeds he keeps nibbling on. “C’mon boy, we’re almost there!” I say as I pass him and sprint to the end of the hill that overlooks a deserted crater. Kubo notices that I’ve passed him and makes a quick turn to follow me abandoning his feast of weeds. The view of the crater is calming. It’s an open space with no one around for miles. The rain pour is so strong that all you can hear is loud TV static. I make my way to the center, doing my best to get traction on the muddy hill so that I don’t slip. I see Kubo dive for the closest puddle, and I smirk at his eagerness to get himself even dirtier than he already is. It’s early Spring here, in the Pacific Northwest. If I had to guess, it’s probably about 50F right now. But as I stand still, the air starts to feel colder so I grip the arms of my combat jacket closer to my chest for warmth. In fact, the only waterproof and fireproof piece of clothing I own and wear everyday, is this jacket. It used to belong to someone else... I keep trying to remember when we had our moments together, laughing, joking, maybe even holding each other. But when I think back, the only image flashing across my mind is that of his lifeless green-blue eyes staring back at me. Suddenly, my right temple starts to hurt and I shake my head to rub away the pain. Kubo’s ears perk up, and at first I think it’s because I’m shaking, but his head is turned away from me. “Kubo? What is it boy? what’s wrong?” He is eerily still, as if he is listening to a distinct sound of an animal nearby. I start to walk towards Kubo to grab him, but my fingers miss him by a second. He zooms in the direction of the sound. SHIT!! I run as fast as I can, chasing Kubo out of the crater and into the nearby forest that has no clear path. I’m jumping through bushes like a wild man, leaves and beads of water swatting my face along the way. I’m frantically yelling for Kubo, my eyes scanning the landscape for a brown ball. Finally, after a good ten minutes of searching, I spot him about 20 feet away sniffing and circling a large trunk of a Douglas fir tree. As I finally make my way to Kubo, I notice he keeps pacing between me and whatever is on the other side of the tree trunk. “Please…don’t be a dead animal.” I whisper to myself, as I try to catch my breath. With my hand clutching my switch blade, I tip toe around, doing my best to be as stealthy as possible. My heart is already beating hard, but now, I can hear it drumming against my ear. I turn my head to see what Kubo is staring at, and I almost trip on a root. Right there in front of me sits a drenched shirtless man, on the ground, leaning against the base of the trunk. His head is tilted to the side, dark brown hair tousled over to the same side with water dripping on the ends. His eyes are closed shut and his pale lips hanging slightly open. He lies there so peacefully, as if asleep or dead. As I lean down to check his pulse, I notice the deep red scratches and bruises on his muscular tattooed biceps, forearms, and torso. Probably from the sharp twigs of this forest? The wounds do look fresh. I can see blood is slowly seeping through the cuts, but it quickly washes off with the rain drops falling on him. I don’t check his pulse, when I see more closely that he is breathing —his slightly hairy chest elevating up and down. “He must be so…high” I mutter to myself leaning back up. There is no way a man would be this far out in the woods in this terrible rain storm, with no shirt on, a pair of long khakis, and a strange looking slipper on one foot. I internally sigh and shake my head, dumbfounded at my discovery today. Now that I am towering over him, I notice he’s probably about 6’2, mid 30’s. He’s got a chiseled jaw with a slight overgrown stubble, thick dark bushy eyebrows. This man possibly has a hint of latin or middle eastern descent. He’s a very handsome man, even with the deep scar running over his left eyelid and cheek. Next thing I know, my eyes are trailing over his body shamelessly. I shake my head in an attempt to oust the perverted thoughts creeping in. For God’s sake, there’s an unconscious man in front of you. I stop myself before I get too carried away. “Hey buddy, uh…you okay?” I say as I lightly tap his knee with the tip of my boot. His eyebrow twitches for a moment, but he is out like a light. I deliberate on what to do next. Wait until he wakes up? Leave him here? Kubo is panting, looking up at me as if asking, “So…what are you going to do?” I face palm for a minute knowing that I cannot carry this giant man back to my truck. We are miles away in the middle of a forest. It would be hours until I can get back to the main road for help. I start to shiver as the sun is turning orange on the horizon. Now I am worried that this man will freeze to death or die of an infection. “I will be back for my jacket” I say as I take it off and wrap it over this man’s torso. He probably didn’t hear me, but I had to make it a point, that I would come back for my jacket. Instinctively, I hover my finger tips over his facial scar, the temptation growing to touch it once. Suddenly as if he could sense the warmth of my hand, his cold wet cheek falls on my palm. I freeze from this intimate moment of his prickly stubble brushing against my hand. I could have sworn I just heard him murmur something, his voice just barely audible over the rain pour. Pulling back my hand slowly, I use my other hand to lean his head gently against the bark behind him. I start to feel hot in the face with what just happened. I turn away from him before I end up changing my mind about leaving him alone. “C’mon Kubo let’s run home quick!” Kubo is hesitant to leave at first, sniffing the man one last time, but he bounds over to me realizing that he would rather follow me home. I make our trek as fast as possible doing my best to increase my blood flow despite my soaked shirt and pants. The rain has now stopped but the wind was picking up making me feel like an icicle. My teeth start chattering, making me really wish that I had my jacket right now. Then I think of the man. He probably needs it more… After a few hours, Kubo and I recognize the opening of the trail and notice a dim flashing of blue and red lights through the bushes. The police are here? Can’t be a coincidence, that crazy man probably has family and friends out looking for him. I wave to the policeman, who is now looking at me and Kubo with concern. He steps forward, before I have a chance to explain. “Miss, excuse me, miss, yeah do you recognize the man in the picture?” he holds up a photo up to my face with his flashlight shined on it. I let my eyes adjust to the image, and notice the same man in the woods. “Yes! I came here as fast as I could hoping there was help! He’s there, in the woods! I couldn’t carry him, it looked like he was unconscious. I’m sorry, but I know where he is. I can help” I say between pants. The policeman hands me a fleece blanket and nudges me toward the parking lot toward my truck. “No need, I’m surprised you made it out alive having run into him. He’s an escaped convict miss. A dangerous criminal we’re out looking for. Thanks for the tip, you’re good to go home now” He salutes me with his hat and walks back to his car. I find myself at a loss for words, feeling a deep wound re-opening as the guilt consumes me. My God… wait, he’s a criminal? I guess that explained the khaki pants and slippers but what happened to his shirt? Hold on, he escaped prison? How? Does this mean I just ruined his chance at freedom? I wonder what he did to get locked up? Is he a killer? Damn, I should have stayed with him until he woke up…Maybe I would have been served the fate I deserve… The questions in my mind start reeling. Kubo jumps into the passenger, as I climb in after him and get seated in my truck. “f**k, f**k, f**k!” I yell as I hit my steering wheel with my fist. Kubo nudges my arm and I look ahead to see the policeman giving me a weird look through his windshield. “Time to go home Kubo”.