A few days ago...

"It'll just be for the weekend! Please Shawn, I've been planning this for a while, and Bill pulled out at the last second. Come on, I don't ask you to go hunting with me that often." my dad says, practically begging.

"Well you sure ask to go fishing a lot. And golfing." I say, even though it's not totally true.

"What's wrong with a father wanting to spend a little time with his only son?" he asks me.

That's my dad. Playing the guilty card.

"Okay! Fine, whatever, I'll go." I say, giving up. I don't have any plans anyway.

"Good. Be at the camp grounds by five. Not a minute late." he starts to walk away. "Oh, and Shawn? Bring some kind of camouflage this time. Bright red shirts don't exactly help you blend in."

My dad walks out of Psych, leaving me alone again.

I snicker. The last time I went, we didn't catch anything. I had brought along some clothes that had been spotted by every creature in the forest.

I glance at my watch. It was already 3 o'clock. I should start getting ready. It takes at least 30 minutes to get where my dad wanted to usually start. Plus I had a few things to do.

At my place, I packed two green shirts, and dark pants. Using the house phone, since my cell is charging (I forgot to plug it in last night), I call Gus and tell him of my weekend plans.

Hopping onto my motorcycle, I stop by the police station.

"Hey Jules!" I say to my obviously busy girlfriend.

"Oh, hey Shawn." she says, "What are you doing here?"

"What I can't drop by?" I respond.

"Of course! I didn't mean it that way."

"Actually I was going to tell you I'm going hunting with my dad this weekend, and cell reception is spotty, so I might not be able to call you." I explain.

"Oh, ok. Well, have fun. Be careful." she warns, kissing me on the cheek.

"I will. See you on Monday." I say.

"Monday," Juliet says back.

Stocking up on snacks (Dad never has enough) I head out to my father's favorite place to go for hunting.

I arrive at 4:50 p.m.

Can't do that again, I think.

"Hey, look who's actually here early. Help me unpack this stuff. We'll need to hit the trail as soon as possible if we want to find a good place before sundown. That's less than three hours. " he instructs.

Ten minutes later, both of us, loaded down, begin hiking to an area my dad says he's never tried before.

We don't talk much, even though at this point it doesn't we walk further and further away from civilization, I can sense my dad getting increasingly relaxed. I find myself loosening up also.

Suddenly he stops.

"Here. Let's stop here."

While un-loading, I get a text from Gus. Turning, my father gives me a look. "Turn that off! You know the rules! No phones!"

"Awe, come on Dad! What if I put it on silent?" I try to convince him.

"No way. OFF!" he says.

Well it's a good thing I told Juliet I might not be able to call her, I think, turning the phone off. So much for charging it.

As night starts to creep on, I get a sense that someone watching me. Ignore it, I tell myself. You're in a forest! Everything's watching you!

When we have both eaten dinner, my dad loads the guns.

"Wow Dad. Are you sure you want to go tonight? We've got all tomorrow and Sunday." I ask.

"Why not? Gives us a chance to warm up. Anyway, when was the last time you went to the shooting range?"

I think back. "True. Okay, but $10 to the first person to hit something!" I challenge.

"Oh, you're so on! And maybe you'll actually pay this time." I love my dad when he's like this.

He's shocked when I win. But then he just laughs when he sees it's just a rabbit.

"Hey!" I say, "A deal's a deal! And, this little creature is the first to go."

"Alright, alright. Here." He takes out his wallet and is just about to hand me the money when it hits him.

The dart pierces into his back, and a second later he's on the ground.

I pull it out, hoping it'll help. I don't even get a chance to decide what to do the next second before I feel a sharp prick on my neck, and blackout.