Weekend of the Wolf

CHAPTER 3-1

Like everything else in the area, the road into Ely was engulfed by forest. Both sides offered the visibility of only a few meters past the initial wall of green, where legions of red and black spruce teamed with the various birch and conifers to block the view of countless wild residents from passing motorists.

Occasionally the wall was interrupted by peaceful stretches of a lake. Some were enormous, others mere puddles, but they seemed to grace the already incredibly gorgeous scenery at virtually every turn. The Minnesota license plates boasted ten thousand bodies of fresh water, but the truer count was closer to fifteen thousand.

For Paul, the view was breathtaking both outside of the car and in. Shannon sat beside him in the front seat of his generic mid-sized rental car. His attention was torn between the awesome forest, and the awesome passenger. He decided to play it safe and fix his gaze on the road instead, which would take them to Ely, which was fifteen minutes from the lodge.

“So, where do you teach, exactly?” asked Paul. It was always his best approach. When interested in a member of the opposite s*x, simply interview the person the same as you would on a story. It got the other person talking about their favorite subject, and Paul never ran out of questions.

“Lincoln High School in Atlanta,” said Shannon. “It’s a good school. I’m sure it’s not as exciting as being a news reporter, but I like it.”

“Being a reporter isn’t always exciting,” said Paul. “In fact, it can be pretty tedious when you’re doing some of the research. This happens to be one of those exceptions where almost every aspect of it’s interesting. Especially the people involved, I might add.”

If Shannon got the compliment, she completely blew it off. “What do you think about those men you saw last night?” she asked. “It seems pretty scary.”

“You know, it’s probably nothing,” said Paul. “Or if it is anything, it’s probably just some penny-ante d**g smugglers with pockets full of pot. Either way, I doubt if I’ll be able to figure it out while I’m here. I have to take off for Yellowstone as soon as I’m done with this. Yellowstone was the first place in the country where they reintroduced timber wolves into the park, and I have to do a status report.”

“I’ve read a lot about it,” said Shannon. “Actually, I had one of my classes study wolves this past semester so I could be as knowledgeable as possible before I came up here to help do the tracking.”

“Then you’re much further along than I am,” admitted Paul. “All of this is brand new for me. They kinda dumped the environment on me as one of my beats, which is fine. I think it’s interesting on the political and philosophical levels, but I’m not really your woodsy type. And I had virtually no time whatsoever to check up on wolves before coming up here.”

“You’ll be okay,” said Shannon. “The staff here’s really good. You’ll be an expert by the time you reach Yellowstone.”

“I might be,” said Paul, “but I can guarantee the company won’t be as spectacular out there as it is right here.”

“Such a charmer,” smiled Shannon. “I’ll bet you’re like this with all the girls in all the towns you visit.”

“No, just with you,” said Paul. “I guess you just bring out the wolf in me.”

“Well let me remind you about wolves,” said Shannon. “Unlike human bachelors with testosterone problems, adult male wolves are family oriented. They’re fiercely loyal to the pack. The alpha male mates with the alpha female, and that’s it.”

“I don’t think I meant it that way,” said Paul, feeling the blood rush to his face. “In fact, I’m feeling more sheepish than wolfish at the moment.”

“It’s okay,” said Shannon, reaching over and touching his arm. “I’ll let you off the hook this time.”

“I should behave myself anyway,” said Paul. “You might be married.”

“I might be,” said Shannon. “Are you?”

Paul allowed himself an inward chuckle over her lack of response. It was a tactic he used often in his job. Turn it around on the other person as often as possible. “No. I was married for a while, but it ended about four years ago.”

“And you’ve been on the prowl ever since?” asked Shannon.

Paul winced but tried to cover it up.

He had blown it already. He always managed to scare them off, but it usually didn’t occur so quickly. They had been alone together for only about ten minutes.

“No,” he said.

“Oh, so you were prowling even before then, huh?” chided Shannon. “No wonder your wife left you.”

Paul took a deep breath and bit down on the knuckle of his left index finger. A flood of memories washed through his consciousness, accompanied by the icy sensation of numbing pain. He replaced his hand back on the wheel, tightening his grip as he released a long, slow exhale.

Debra had not left him. In a sense she had, but not because of any prowling on his part. In that faculty, he truly had been like a wolf. He had been fiercely loyal. Unfortunately, she had not. Paul had returned home early from an out-of-town assignment, only to find his wife in bed with another man. Overcome with shock and despair, Paul had simply turned around and walked out without a word.

Four years later, he still blamed himself. He had chosen the job which kept them apart so much, and she had gotten tired of waiting around. The courtroom proceedings had been as painless as a divorce could be. Debra apparently felt guilty and was grateful for his lack of making a scene in the bedroom.

While the legal aspect was painless, the loss of his wife was not. Debra truly was the love of his life. The serious, black emptiness of loss didn’t even begin to lighten up for almost three years, in which time Paul survived by delving deeper into his work, and into the bottle. He did not go out on a single date during any of those three dark years.

During the past twelve months, the sun had finally come out. Paul was much happier overall, and doing fun things with fun people. He worked out in a gym four times a week, and in a karate studio the other three. Alcohol was no longer part of his vocabulary. He dated when he could, but he was so far out of practice, he usually screwed it up by the third try.

Now, he had blown it with Shannon, but he wasn’t really concerned. She had just given a demonstration of her own mean streak. She might be beautiful, but she wasn’t worth the aggravation.

“I’m sorry,” said Shannon. “I guess it was really uncalled for.”

Paul glanced in her direction. He was surprised to find sincerity in her eyes. “I guess my approach has been a little inappropriate,” he said. “I truly apologize. I guess I haven’t made a very good first impression.”

“I’m just a little sensitive,” said Shannon. “I get real defensive whenever a man tries to sweet talk me. My ex used to do it all the time . . . not only to me, but apparently everyone else as well, including my own sister.”

“Ooh, that’s a drag,” said Paul. “How long ago?”

“Year-and-a-half,” said Shannon. “Look, let’s not talk about it, okay? I’m sorry for being so mean.”

“Okay. And I promise I won’t try and sweet talk you anymore.”

“Why don’t you hold off on that one for a while?”

Now reassessing his evaluation of Shannon, Paul turned onto the main strip of downtown Ely. Downtown wasn’t much more than just a simple stretch of wood and brickwork fashioned into the assorted shops and businesses of Middle America. The majority of establishments catered to sportsmen, offering bait and tackle along with hunting supplies for the upcoming deer season.

“I have one stop I have to make,” said Paul. “I don’t know how long it’ll take. Why don’t we set a time and we can meet back here.”

“Are you going to interview someone about the men you saw in the woods?” asked Shannon.

“Yeah.”

“I’d like to come along. I’d love to see how you interview people.”

“It might be pretty boring,” warned Paul.

“But to me it’ll be fun. I’m just a high school teacher, remember?”

Boundary Run was the name Norm Dillman had mentioned back when Paul was interviewing the old trapper. It specialized in souvenirs, and sporting goods. There were large racks of T-shirts boasting the name of Ely while displaying the images of area wildlife. Various paintings of loons, deer, and bears adorned hundreds of various colored articles throughout the store . . . but the vast majority boasted portraits of timber wolves.

Only a few customers milled about. Most of them were men, and more than one had time enough to glance up from the T-shirt racks to gawk at Shannon, who didn’t seem to notice. It was not lost on Paul, however, who grinned to himself as he walked with Shannon toward the cashier.

The man behind the counter seemed somehow out of place for Ely. Most of the men Paul had encountered were the rugged, outdoors type, either as sportsmen, lumber workers, or both. But the man whose nametag identified him as Tom appeared more like an accountant, with a small, lanky frame and thick-rimmed glasses. He wore long, thin strands of brown hair from the left side of his head which stretched all the way over to the other, ineffectively attempting to conceal a large, uncovered area.

“Hi, I’m looking for Brian Gleckman,” said Paul. He had already phoned ahead to find out the owner’s name. “Is he in?”

“He should be right down there on the lower level,” said Tom, pointing toward a small staircase, in a voice much deeper than Paul would have expected from someone who appeared nearly frail.

“Thanks,” said Paul.

He was about to walk toward the steps when something beside the register caught his eye. Turning back for another look, he saw a large, thick glass casing, which surrounded a host of fine jewelry. He stepped forward for a closer look and saw a respectable collection of diamond settings . . . the kind of diamonds featured in exclusive, big-city jewelry stores, or in the overpriced, glossy catalogues of elegant, high-end department stores.

There were rings, pendants, bracelets, and necklaces, all framed in brightly polished gold.

“Ah, would you be interested in a diamond for the lady?” asked Tom. “She certainly is worthy of the finest.”

“Yes, she is,” agreed Paul, glancing back at Shannon, who offered no reaction.

“Perhaps a ring would do,” recommended Tom. “We have only superior quality, just like the lake. And as you can see, our prices are reasonable.”

“Yes, I was wondering about that,” said Shannon. “These do look quite nice for the price.”

“We have a good source,” said Tom. “Would you like to try on a necklace?”