The Extinct

CHAPTER 59

Thomas walked along the dirt road, listening to the crickets. He saw a dark shape up ahead and as he neared he saw it was the jeep. And behind it was the other one, both tipped on their sides.

He froze in his tracks and began looking around as he brought his rifle up. It was quiet except for the nightlife of the plains and he cautiously made his way to the jeeps. He could see the remains of Douglas’ corpse, little more than legs caught under the jeep and some bloodstained rags that had been his clothes.

He knelt down and picked up the torn shirt, observing the large claw marks across the chest before dropping it. Thomas sighed and stood up. Off in the distance he heard laughter. It was over a large patch of grass. He took Douglas’ rifle and slung it across his chest before beginning to walk toward the sounds.

The grass hid him well if he crouched low. He kept his breathing to a whisper and stopped every few paces to make sure nothing was following him. When he reached the edge of the patch he could see a house with the porch light on. In front of it were three colossal hyenas.

They were snapping at each other and rolling around in the dirt. One bit the other’s leg and it let out a whelp before nipping at the other’s ear.

The animals rolled and nipped and eventually grew bored. They sat on the ground surveying their surroundings and staring up at the small window of the attic. One finally rose and walked inside the house. The other two promptly lie on their sides and fell asleep.

Thomas began to slowly step backward into the grass, keeping his eye on the two hyenas sprawled out on the ground. They were obviously juveniles. The one they killed the other night was large and male. That meant a matriarch was still out there. If these were like normal spotted hyenas, the matriarch would be the largest and most aggressive of the pack.

Another step and a crunch. He looked down and saw he’d stepped on a piece of dry bark. One of the hyenas looked up, straining its neck and moving its ears to pick up any more sound. Thomas stood entirely still, not even breathing. He could feel sweat roll down his back and tickle his skin.

The hyena lay its head back down, ignoring the sound. Thomas breathed and slowly turned, moving as quickly as he could in a crouching position.

A growl sounded from behind him. He stopped, hearing the deep breathing of the creature behind him just a couple yards. He turned his head and saw the two juveniles on the edge of the grass, glaring at him with their red eyes, a low snarl escaping their lips.

Thomas raised his gun in a slow purposeful motion, aiming at the juvenile closest to him. The hyenas took a step forward, and then hesitated. They let out mournful whines and ducked their heads low. Then they backed away from the patch and sat down on the ground.

Thomas’s brow furrowed and he lowered the rifle. The hyenas were unmoving. They kept their eyes low, as if frightened.

He felt the breath first.

It was hot and wet against the skin on his neck. Drool fell down his back and he heard rumbling coming deep from a great belly. He didn’t turn around at first, he just closed his eyes, and thought of the wife he had lost so long ago.

Thomas took a deep breath and looked up to the moon, enjoying its icy glow.

He turned.

The beast’s mouth stood a few feet higher than his head and its eyes were savage and bare. Its mouth opened with a growl as it tore into Thomas’s neck, lifting him off his feet. He aimed the gun at the creature’s chest but his hands went limp as the hyena crushed his throat, severing the head, and dropped him to the ground.

The beast howled to its clan and they strutted over, and began to feed.