Chapter 2

Dakota's pov

A knock at my door woke me from a dead sleep. Strands of my hair from my messy ponytail came loose and covered my face in silver and black as I sat up looking around. Sunlight filled my room as did the sounds of singing birds. I pulled my colt pocket pistol from under my pillow and cocked it back removing the safety. I dressed in my green plaid pajama pants, black spaghetti strap top and no bra. I went downstairs to open the door and looked through the peephole first. Two men dressed in suits waited outside talking amongst themselves. I leaned my right shoulder against the wall with my gun behind the back and opened the door.

"Can I help you gentlemen?" I asked my stance more relaxed as they looked at me.

One was very tall with long brown hair and brown eyes. He gave me a soft smile. "Good morning ma' am I am special agent Peters and this is special agent Smith." They both flashed me their FBI badges. I could have cared less. "We are here on the matters-"

"Of my brothers." I finished. "Everyone is."

"We apologize for bothering you." Agent Peters tried to be sincere.

"Don't be. You're just doing your job." I opened the door fully. "Come on in."

I made my way back to the living room where the cabin windows overlooked the forest. I sat on the window bench in my favorite bay window. The gentlemen shut the door and sat by me. I put the safety on the gun and set it next to me. Agent Peters smiled gently at me while his partner stared at my gun with his green eyes. He was handsome and rugged for an FBI agent. His short dirty blond hair was spiked up and his scruffy chin gave me butterflies. I pulled my knees to my chest regretting not putting on a bra. He was so hot.

Agent smith pointed at my gun. "Is that a colt or a browning?"

I raised an eyebrow at him. "It's a colt 1911 pocket pistol 380 government issue."

His smile lit up the room making me feel slightly better about my situation. "Awesome." He bragged to his partner who shook his head.

"Ms. Silverwood-" Peters began to say.

"Dakota."

"Alright," He brushed his hands over his suit pants. "we don't want to take up too much of your time we just have a few questions about the matter. Can you tell us in your words what happened?"

I sighed, and Smith sat down watching me intently. "About a week ago I went out for a jog like I did every morning. Except that day I decided not to take my pistol as I was only going to run down to the end of the street and back. I had stayed out late with my best friend Laura the night before and didn't feel like running much. I was about half way in my run when I heard what I thought was a bear down the road from me. I stopped and looked for it. It was a huge black bear about ten yards or so away from me. I've dealt with bear encounters before and stayed quiet heading back the way I came trying to avoid him. I tripped as I was backing up and the bear went rabid and attacked me. I ran to the nearest tree and began to climb it. That's when it got weird. It followed me and yanked me from the tree and I hit the ground…" My body still ached from when I had fallen from the tree. "I hit my head and that was it. I blacked out. I woke up two days ago in the hospital and they told me my brothers were dead. Doctors say they found nothing wrong with me and I was free to go home."

"You said when the bear attacked you from the tree that it got weird?" Agent Peters asked.

I shrugged. "The attack seemed normal for bear personalities. I know people get attacked from trees because bears could climb. That was not the weird part, but just how the bear looked. It looked like a hybrid between a bear and a wolf."

"A hybrid?" Smith tilted his head in disbelief.

"This bear had a long narrow snout, bright yellow eyes and a tail."

"A tail?" They both asked.

I nodded. I rose from my seat and ruffed through the plastic hospital bag on my kitchen counter. I pulled a folded up drawing of the beast and handed it to them. "I drew this for the psychologist in the hospital." They looked over the drawing. Agent Peters stared at the image memorizing what I had seen. "I know that when you're in shock or danger sometimes the mind can play tricks on you. But a tail on a bear? Does not seem like a mind trick to me."

"Do you mind if I keep this?" Peters asked holding up the drawing for me to see.

I sat back down and curled up. "Go ahead. The whole thing is still in my memory."

"I have a question," Smith asked eyeing my gun. "Why are you carrying?"

"Safety same as you." My tone dropped from melodrama to annoyed. "I live alone now thanks to that beast out there. If I ever see it again I'm going to empty this gun in its skull."

A knock on the door interrupted us. Laura sheepishly opened the door still in her work uniform. "Hello?"

"Come in," I called. "We're in the living room!"

"We?" Laura came around the staircase and saw the two agents. Immediately her face flushed red when her eyes met theirs. "Oh, hello again."

"You know these two?" I asked arching an eyebrow at her.

"Um yeah." She brushed her hands on the back of her pants and stuffed them in her pockets. "They came in the diner for lunch and asked about you. I'm sorry Dakota I should have called to let you know, but I was slammed at work."

"No, it's cool. I was dead asleep anyway." I gave her a reassuring smile. "Sorry I wasn't at work today I'll be in tomorrow."

"Don't sweat it." She came over and sat with me. "Conner says he's going to cover us both with Arianna."

"So free day tomorrow?" I asked.

"Yup. Maybe you can finish my car tomorrow?" Laura fluttered her eyes at me apologetically.

I bit my lip feeling the guilt build up. "Oh yea that's right I was pulling the alternator before the accident. I'm sorry buddy."

She hugged me around the shoulders. "Don't be. Hey I can come over and help you if you want. I don't know cars but you can teach me."

"You work on cars?" Smith asked with a pearly white smile making my stomach flutter again.

My face flushed. I almost forgot that they were in the room with us. "Yeah. My brothers were both mechanics taking after my dad. I've had Laura's car in my garage for them to work on but to be honest from laying in the woods for a few days and the bear attack I'm still too sore to put it in. Could be an all-day thing. Is that okay?" I asked Laura.

"Well," Smith interrupted Laura before she could get the words out of her open mouth. "Agent Peters and I still need to find this 'bear' and if it lives around here maybe we could find it. Also, since we will be in the area maybe we could post up here and I can help with her car? I'm a mechanic on the side."

I small squeal escaped from Laura and I felt my stomach drop and face burn bright like Rudolf. "Well you see-" Laura elbowed me sharply in the ribs and I winced. "That would be great. Say meet here around 10am?"

"Sounds like a date." Smith said quickly before getting up. He pulled a card from his jacket pocket and handed it to me with a wink. "If you need anything. Call. We will see you ladies in the morning."

Then they walked out and the door shut behind them.

I let out a sigh of relief holding the card in my hand reading the small writing. It said, 'Agent Smith FBI call if anything comes up.' The anything part seemed a bit of an innuendo to me.

"They are so hot." Laura giggled lightly like a windchime.

I smiled at the card. "Especially agent Smith."

"Dakota!" She lightly pushed my shoulder.

I hissed a bit behind a laugh.

"Are you alright?"

I rubbed the soreness from my ribs. "Yeah, but can I ask you a favor?"

"Anything."

I lowered my head in shame. "Could you help me into the shower?"

"Sure, but I thought the doctors said you were okay?"

I got up and headed upstairs to the one bathroom in the house. "They did." I turned the water on to the shower as the hot steam filled the room.

Laura joined me and steadied my body as I began to undress. "So what's the matter?"

"It's the bruises that bear left on me." I pulled off my top keeping my upper half covered with my shirt. I turned in the mirror. My body was riddled with bruises matching claw marks and bites. The purple and yellow colors had begun to fade this morning, but still turned my stomach at the reality of what happened. I felt like an abused chew toy.

"Oh my god." Laura's voice was barely above a whisper. "That thing did this to you?"

"I guess. I don't remember much."

"Why didn't you tell them or even the doctors about this?"

"The doctors saw it. They couldn't understand why my skin never broke or even my bones. If the FBI knew they would treat me like a freak."

"What if it wasn't eating you but moving you? It could have been that your weight pushed on its teeth causing you to bruise?"

"Maybe, but the only place it did go through my skin was my ankle when it pulled me from the tree." I turned my right ankle for her to see the healing teeth marks. Scabs now masked over my once beautiful skin.

"Ouch." Laura hissed. "Let's get you in the shower. You'll feel much better after that."

A half hour in the hot water letting the steam and heat relax the soreness away some of the bruises left my body. Even the scabs flaked off into pink scars. I rubbed some lotion into my skin especially over my tattoos to keep them in good shape. I had three. One over my right wrist, over the side of my left thigh and one on my right hip trailing down the front my thigh. My hair was being dried and fluffed by Laura who began to sing along with the music she played. I felt absolutely spoiled.

"So what do you think of the FBI agent Smith?" Laura asked with a huge grin on her face.

I tilted my head up to look back at her. "You ask like I'm going on a date?"

"Kind of are." She ran the brush through my hair again checking for wet spots. "Think about it. There's not a wedding band on him."

"He's hot an all but he won't stay here for me."

"I wouldn't sell yourself short. He was eyeing you the whole time and he was finding an excuse to see you tomorrow."

I rolled my eyes. "You mean to find the bear."

"Noticed how he only gave you his card and not one to me?"

I looked at the card sticking out on my makeup box facing me. "A man like him has to be taken."

She smacked the back of my head. "Stop it. Just get to know him. I can tell he likes you. Did you see his face light up when he found out that you work on cars? You're totally hot, work on cars, can cook, shoot guns and take on a bear and live?"

"That explains why none of my boyfriends ever worked out. They say I'm to tomboyish and then start hitting on you. You're the type of girl every guy wants."

"Maybe you're meant for him."

I rested my knees on my chin looking at the card. I was starting to regret tomorrows date.