Sheep's Clothing by Gary Lewis (free ebook reader for pc txt) 📕

Vance shrugged his shoulders with a laugh and rubbed the back of his head, looking at the grass between his rugged boots. "I guess the gig's up, Terry." Vance looked around at everyone. "There was no trap. It was just to try and lure out the monster."

"You mean the killer," David said firmly.

"Same difference," Vance said. "What's it to you?"

Sarah stepped forward. "You two knock it off."

"Yeah. We're all here together," Janice said, stepping from David's side as she paced gracefully through everyone to hold her hands out above the campfire. She slowly turned back toward everyone. The blazing furnace of felled forest licked tongues of flame behind her silhouette, casting long shadows across the ground as orange and red light danced across the dark traces that outlined her shirt and face. "It could be the last chance we have together."

Vance took a step toward David, "She's right, man." He reached his hand out and waited until David hesitantly reached back. He grasped David's palm and gave him a hard pat on the shoulder with his other hand.

"While we're here we can at least check the SD card on my camera," David said to Vance as they continued uphill toward the others, now circled around, talking at the fire.

"Maybe y'all shouldn't," Janice spoke up. "It's awful dark out and you've obviously been drinking."

"They'll be fine," Sarah said with a nonchalant brush of her hand. "Worst case scenario, we're down a loudmouth and an asshole."

Janice shot a look of anger at Sarah. "You don't mean that."

Sarah scowled. "Of course I don't mean it. I'm just saying."

"Just saying what, exactly?" Janice asked.

Vance tried to contain the smile that threatened to squeeze out from hiding as he turned to David who was already looking over at him. Of course. David always relied on Tony to get him out of tough spots and now there's only him. Vance rolled his eyes and spoke up. "Alright. Alright. Me and David are heading up to grab the camera. Can y'all avoid tearing each other to pieces while we're gone?" There was only silence in reply. "Oh. No pun intended, by the way," Vance said, turning to walk uphill to the large metal tower that loomed overhead while David followed close behind.

"So, what's eating you?" Vance asked as they neared the steel bars that covered the bottom of the ladder.

"What do you mean?" David asked.

Vance peered across the corner of his eye toward David. He's definitely hiding something. 

"It's the way you," he paused and turned to look David in the face as David glanced aside. "The way you do that."

Vance gripped the bars and lifted himself up to the ladder with a huff. "If it's about her," he spoke in between lifts on the way up. "Don't sweat it. Plenty more where she came from."

Vance peeked between his feet every couple pulls to make sure a silent David was safely behind him until they finally reached the top. As Vance reached onto the platform above, he felt something sharp slide across the grated metal, just between his fingers.

"Uh oh," he said. "This might not be good."

"What is it?" David asked from just below his feet.

"I'm not sure yet," he replied with a grunt as he lifted himself into the cold steel walkway to see bits of black metal and plastic scattered across. "I have some bad news."

"Well?" David asked from the ladder.

Vance reached down to give David a hand. "Come take a look."

David ignored his offer and climbed straight through, brushing aside Vance's arm.

David stood alongside Vance as they looked upon the mess. The scope and camera were busted and ripped apart. The lights from town twinkled in the distance as Vance tried to make sense of it in the dark. David picked up a busted black chunk out of the rubble to examine it while Vance looked at the tiny flickering dot of fire below.

"It's trashed," David said, throwing it down onto the hard floor with a clank.

"Tell me about it." Vance sighed and looked up at the white dots moving around the streets.

"No. I mean, the SD card. It was ripped out on purpose."

"Let me see," Vance said as he started to hold out his hand, but then saw David motion toward the pile of garbage beside them. "Oh. Well, nevermind."

"Do you know how much I spent on that thing?" David asked. "The telescope? The digital camera? The timer?"

"How much?" Vance asked.

David sighed as he sunk to sit against the rail. "Forget it."

A narrow wisp of cloud began to stretch its way across the half moon, glowing brightly above Pine Bluff. "Even the sounds from the woods don't reach us way up here," Vance said as he took in the cool night air.

"But something sure can," David said.

"Exactly," Vance said, lowering himself to sit alongside David as he pointed below at the tiny glow of the fire. "And now we know for sure that it's one of us."

"Most likely," David said.

The heavy warmth of cheap beer pulled at the sides of Vance's head. "Think we should get back down soon."

"Sure," David said as they both raised to their feet. "Wait. If there's no trap, then what the hell was the cage for? And all the bear traps?"

Vance stretched a grin as he tilted his head back. "The gauntlet."

David’s face looked puzzled. “One of those medieval glove armor things?”

Vance shook his head. “Not even what gauntlet means.”

David raised his eyebrows. “Yes it does.”

###

After an arduous journey, fighting gravity all the way down, Vance eventually made his way back to the now blazing fire where he counted everyone safe. On the opposite side of the fire, David strolled over to sit with Janice at the far end of Terry’s large, rotten log. Terry sat further over from them.

To Vance’s left, Sarah sat alone on a large rock, eyes focused into the fire. She leaned forward, one arm across her knees and the other resting her hand against the front of her small chin. Vance saw her forehead